Jay Chladek Posted October 10, 2006 Share Posted October 10, 2006 (edited) I wouldn't have believed it if it hadn't happened to me. Anyway, given that I was at Sunset, I got a Tomcat plaque with pieces from 161859, an F-14B. Not long after I got back, I purchased Aeromaster decal sheet 48-526, Tomcats part VI since it had a nice set of VF-31 CAG markings (plus it was sitting in the closeout bin at the LHS). I wasn't thinking too much about the VF-14 markings it had, even though they looked to be very similar to what Colin used for his "The blue and the gray" Tomcat. Well, today I got my David Brown autographed copy of Tomcat Alley in the mail (purchased if from Dave himself on eBay since I didn't get a copy at Sunset). While checking the pages, I came across the picture in the book of 161859 from when it was an F-14A and something looked strangely familiar about it. I checked the VF-14 markings on the decal sheet and sure enough, except for the buer number, the decals were practically for that jet! The jet on the sheet was a Desert Storm vet and it looks like due to its high use, it went back for maintenance and 161859 got reassigned to be Camelot 101 the next year (photo taken in March, 1992). The AC tailcode fonts match, the squadron markings match and the general paintjobs match. The only real difference is that it looks like VF-14 wasn't assigned to a carrier yet in early 1992, so the JFK nameplate on the tail was replaced with VF-14. Plus, the dark gray stencils were replaced with lighter gray ones as well. So, looks like I know which Tomcat I'll be building one day soon (after my current VF-11 Red Rippers F-14D gets finished). Its another example of one of those freaky coincidences I've been seeing lately in my decal purchases. The picture of the jet in question is on page 184 of Tomcat Alley. Edited October 10, 2006 by Jay Chladek Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Daniel_B Posted October 10, 2006 Share Posted October 10, 2006 I don't need much excuse to pull "Tomcat Alley" off the shelf and look thru it, so your post more than qualified. :D If you look closely at the pictures of both 161859 and 161858, you can see that the carrier name is on the wing glove, right between the glove vane and the wing. Looks like it's still "USS JOHN F KENNEDY". Congratulations on your discoveries--the finished model should be a really nice complement to the plaque. I've got my fingers and toes crossed for one of the pieces of 163900--I'd already ordered the VF-101 sheet from Brian with plans on doing Gunfighter 155, anyway, so that would work out perfectly. And all I need is an excuse to get the TwoBobs VF-2 sheet and build Bullet 104. But I also have decal options figured out for both of the F-14A's he's got pieces from, so either one of those should be do-able, as well--just be a little more work... Daniel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Jay Chladek Posted October 10, 2006 Author Share Posted October 10, 2006 Okay, I see it...barely, but it is there. I'll just have to figure out how to do a JFK stencil that small and in the right color since the one on the sheet is black in color. My ALPS can do a lot, but some of these light grays might be a bit much for it to pull off (I will have to see though). Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Andrew D. the Jolly Rogers guy Posted October 10, 2006 Share Posted October 10, 2006 Jeez..now that WOULD be a neat display! The model with the piece! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Andy Mullen Posted October 11, 2006 Share Posted October 11, 2006 I don't need much excuse to pull "Tomcat Alley" off the shelf ... You actually put it on a shelf :D Mine is always on my desk or workbench :) Okay, I see it...barely, but it is there. I'll just have to figure out how to do a JFK stencil that small and in the right color since the one on the sheet is black in color. My ALPS can do a lot, but some of these light grays might be a bit much for it to pull off (I will have to see though). Jay an option would be to buy this sheet from CAM if you cant produce it on the ALPS Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Andrew D. the Jolly Rogers guy Posted October 11, 2006 Share Posted October 11, 2006 Hehe...scanners...fighting copyright tyranny for humanity! :blink: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Daniel_B Posted October 11, 2006 Share Posted October 11, 2006 (edited) Funny--I was planning just last night to ask about the CAM sheet with the carrier names, see if anyone had used it. My question is, do you get every name in all four colors? Because what if I wanted 'USS SARATOGA' in black lettering? Or 'USS JOHN F. KENNEDY' in dark gray? I've always hoped that that scan Andy posted was an incomplete one, something CAM put together just to give you an idea of the names and colors involved. 'Cause if you only have one color option per name, what's the point? Especially that third row, where everything looks blue--I can't remember ever seeing an aircraft with markings in that color... :blink: Daniel Edited October 11, 2006 by AP_Hancock Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Andy Mullen Posted October 11, 2006 Share Posted October 11, 2006 That is a link to the image posted on their site. I couldn't link to the page for some reason so I linked the image. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Daniel_B Posted October 11, 2006 Share Posted October 11, 2006 That is a link to the image posted on their site. I couldn't link to the page for some reason so I linked the image. Yeah, I know--I've seen it plenty of times before, which is why I asked the question :lol: . So, is what you see what you get, or do you get every name in all four color variations? :blink: Daniel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Andy Mullen Posted October 11, 2006 Share Posted October 11, 2006 Just found a review over on HS showing the 1/72 sheet >> HS Review << Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Daniel_B Posted October 11, 2006 Share Posted October 11, 2006 Question answered. Thanks, Andy! And I guess that probably solves Jay's problem, too, huh? Daniel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Jay Chladek Posted October 12, 2006 Author Share Posted October 12, 2006 Yeah that might indeed do the trick. Thanks for the links guys! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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