Darren Roberts

That sure does look like an F-105 seat. My question is where did you find the photo? My Googling ability must suck. When I was making my YA-10, I searched the internet but came up with only a couple of pictures.

Nope. You would need the original beaver tail. That's why I was thinking about a resin one.

I did a YA-10 for an FSM article last year. Everything I read said it was fitted with an ESCAPAC seat, but I agree with you that it looks more like what you'd find on an F-105, or possibly an F-106. I never could find a definitive answer. I didn't worry about it too much because I was doing it in 1/72 scale and had a pilot in it, so the seat really wasn't visible. PM me if you need any help.

Yikes! I would have gotten someone a little more experienced/knowledgeable to build the kit that was going to be showcased. 😧

In addition to the points you make, the GWH is only a D. The Academy can be used to build just about any Tomcat expect ones with the original beaver tail. Hmm, this might be an opportunity for a resin piece. 😊

That decal sheet is as rare as hen's teeth. I actually had that sheet and used the NYANG markings on a WhIf F-20. Now I wish I hadn't! Edit: Here's a thought. I have a couple of extra sets of Monogram F-4 decals with the Niagara Falls script. I never used the rhino on the F-20. If you could somehow paint the green and blue water fall, I could send you the rest of the markings. I think I still have them.

One stop shopping for almost all variants! Here's hoping they scale it up and release it in 1/48 as well.

Before I go to eBay, I thought I'd give the Buy and Sell a try. I'm needing a TBD for an upcoming FSM project. If anyone is willing to part with one, I'd love to buy it from you. Cheers! Darren

Let me begin by saying I'm a novice at picture taking. I have a Nikon DSLR. I shoot at the highest f setting I can. I use a tripod and a lightbox. The images are good enough for magazine printing. While the image stacking is neat idea, it seems to be labor intensive. I put my images in Photoshop and hit auto color and sharpen and I'm good to go.

The question I have is if paint is really even necessary? In today's BVR environment, if you can see what color the enemy is painted in, does it really matter? The closing speeds are so eye-wateringly fast that is acquiring them visually necessary, or even possible, until you hit the merge? I guess they have to be painted something, and gray is better than yellow and red. It just seems the paint is more for radar absorption than actually concealing the aircraft.

Paint lifting off the huge downside of Acryl. I'm lazy and usually don't prime. However, if I need to mask, I'll spray a primer. I'll let that dry a good day or so and then spray Acryl. When that's completely dry, I'll use a sanding cloth and smooth it out. That limits the surface area that the masking tape can grab onto. I also de-tac the masking as much as possible. I just masked off the wings of a Bearcat that I had sprayed yellow and the only lift off I had was on the edges of the wheel wells. That was easily touched up with a brush. I understand your frustration with the lack of adhesion though. I've fought it quite often If you can use large Post-It notes, they word great and don't pull up the Acryl.

I've thought about ordering sleeves of 6 bottles of the colors I use most. If unopened, they last years. At least you'll get a few more years of MM Acryl if/when they go away.

I want moderator rights! No fair!!!!! Heck, I'm ARCer #55. I've been around since the beginning. I think I deserve moderator rights! 😊

Much of the time SB has no control over the restock. The situation with Caracal and the F-16 plates is that SB is dependent upon the manufacturer getting them restocks. I'm a prime example of that. There are quite a few Steel Beach sets OOS at SB because I'm a one-man operation and cast when I have the time. SB has no control over when they get my restock. In regards to MM Acryl, it is being phased out because sales were just not there. The rack takes up space and it doesn't make business sense to sit on items that don't sell. Believe me, I was sad when Gordon told me it was going away. Unfortunately, the entire line is going away eventually because the manufacturer is discontinuing it a piece at a time. SB has tens of thousands of different items in stock. If they don't have what you want, it may just be bum luck.

While MRP is a fantastic paint, I'm with you. I've been using MM Acryl for years and absolutely love it. I just AK paints and they sprayed beautifully. But when I needed to touch up a couple small areas, the paint was darker when applied by brush. That's what I love about MM Acryl. You can spray it and touch up with a brush and it all looks the same.