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F-117 in 1/72 scale


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Hey guys!

I'm looking for a decent 1/72 scale F-117A "Nighthawk" kit (just the black plane, not the one with the "stars 'n' stripes).

I am aware of the Revell, Italeri, Hasegawa, Academy and Zhengdefu kits.

But I don't know what to find in the box...

Some reviews or previews could be nice...

A nice kit would be one with recessed panel lines, decent decals and a nice price (nothing more then 20 EUR or 25 USD)

Regards,

Jürgen

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I've built the Italeri and Airfix stealths - plus a few that 'jumped the gun'. Never measured either.

Italeri looks good - but has a conventional bomb-bay, rather than the centreline doors that we now know the F117 has.

Airfix is condemned as little more than a toy - nothing fits very well. It put my son off models.

I've also built the Italeri F-19 - released before any pictures or data were released.

And Hasegawa just after the first photo. That kit was well and truly misled about the shape - all the angles are wrong.

I'll try to put some photos up soon.

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Hasegawa did two. Their early kit is laughable - almost an F-117 Eggplane. Forget about it.

They re-did the kit around 2000. This is probably the best Stealth in the scale, now. Only real concern: some releases have the bomb bay, some do not. The base kit has a one-piece cover to attach for closed doors, some boxings add an additional sprue with the bomb bay and open doors:

http://www.ipmsdeutschland.de/FirstLook/Ha...awa_F-117A.html

Off the top of my head, the initial release was a plain aircraft, and lacked the bay.

This was followed by a re-release, again normal markings, with bomb bay (called something like 'F-117 with bombs' or 'with detail' or somesuch)

They later released the Skunkworks boxing - 'Special Marking'. Which seems to have the bay.

They've also released the kit in F-22 style metallic grey paint, as 'Grey Dragon'. I'm pretty sure this DOESN'T have the bomb bay.

http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/10053642

Revell/Tamiya/Italeri are all the same (and stem from Italeri). As noted, there's a relatively minor bomb bay issue.

http://www.modellversium.de/galerie/artikel.php?id=258

Not entirely sure where Academy's fits into the mix. If memory serves, some of the angles are slightly off. Not the best choice, but still a workable option:

http://www.modellversium.de/kit/artikel.php?id=984

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Revell/Tamiya/Italeri are all the same (and stem from Italeri). As noted, there's a relatively minor bomb bay issue.

http://www.modellversium.de/galerie/artikel.php?id=258

Which Revell issue are we talking about here? The one they released in the light blue box in the early 1990's I don't believe is anything like the Italeri kit.
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I personally prefer the Hasegawa kit, but I also have the Academy . If you're on a budget go for the Academy, it's not that difficult to add or change the few things .

The only thing with the Academy is not to use the bombs as they're the old GBU-10 without the "clipped' wings .

:banana:

Stef

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The Hasegawa may be the best shape but the fit is absolutely horrible, but it could have been me of course!

The wings are separate, rather than moulded as part of the fuselage and the mating edges are not along the leading edge so you have to be really careful gluing these parts together.

Again it could just be the modeller but I found this to be a really disappointing kit.

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IMO the Revell kit #4460 is accurately shaped and includes the weapon bays, and can probably be found for under $10. The Monogram snap-tite kit #1148 is the same kit but with the weapons and gear bay doors molded closed. If you want to build an in-flight model I would suggest the snap-tite kit in a heartbeat.

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The Italeri kit isn't too bad, although it has raised panel lines. It does have the minor bomb bay issue with the bay doors, but that's fairly easy to deal with. That was my very first model that I built by myself. I wish I had kept it...

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