nubaba Posted May 19, 2011 Share Posted May 19, 2011 (edited) I was going to start this build last year; however, work and other things got in the way and I had to put the tools down for awhile...man how fast a year flies by. I have the Hasegawa 1/48 F-8E kit with a set of decals from Microscale (48-266) I really like the dark blue and white star studded scheme of the Marines Unit, but I am somewhat daunted by the task of converting the F-8E to a K. That said, I am going to give it a go armed with my Squadron/Signal Walkaround book and information from the good folks of ARC (refer to thread from link below) http://s362974870.onlinehome.us/forums/air/index.php?showtopic=202403&pid=1914027&st=0entry1914027 First up I cut off the spine from the top of the wing and filled it with Humbrol filler. Then it was out with the sanding sticks. I am hoping and crossing my fingers that the Humbrol filler won't shrink. I also started on the nose, by sanding sides to get a flatter profile and trying to get basic shape of nose cone right. I filled nose with filler to give the plastic some shape. I won't really be able to finish shaping until; the fuselage halves come together. Edited July 13, 2011 by nubaba Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Tomcat Tweeker Posted May 19, 2011 Share Posted May 19, 2011 Nice work so far! I will watch this one closely Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Eric2020 Posted May 19, 2011 Share Posted May 19, 2011 For small reshape use miliput! That does not shrink, is hard in less than 24 hours. And it does not meld the plastic. Oh before I forget its looking very good!! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
nubaba Posted May 19, 2011 Author Share Posted May 19, 2011 Thanks for the advice. I have read a few threads that mention miliput and it sounds like a great product. Unfortunately I have never seen it in a shop where I am and have only used Tamiya or Humbrol gap fillers :( . The Humbrol product seems to work best for me, but I have only used it to fill gaps, not build up parts like this. I put the filler on in layers over a piece of styrene. The first layer was a bit thick I think as it did crack a little. I did a couple of thinner layers over the top of the first one and let them dry a bit longer than the first one. Then I started wet sanding the piece to shape. It seems to be ok but only time will tell if it holds up . Quote Link to post Share on other sites
nubaba Posted May 20, 2011 Author Share Posted May 20, 2011 Finished sanding top of the wing to final shape and after dry fitting it looks like I will be able to blend pieces together ok once I remove the protective tape and glue everything together. I also started to sanding down the fairing on the right side as it should blend down into the fuselage rather than the plank represented by Hasegawa. Next up I made a start on opening up opening in the Air Cycle Machine exhaust as the K has a larger bifurcated opening. I have decided to build this bird in flight as I really like the clean lines of this aircraft. After fiddling with the undercarriage doors I decided to add some bits of styrene around the wheel-well openings to make sure that I get a good solid fit. Help wanted I am trying to find references/colour matches/photos of the flight suit and helmet that would have been worn by a pilot in this unit. The photo by Peter Nicholson (link below) shows the plane I will be modelling around the same timeframe as the photo. http://www.airport-data.com/aircraft/photo/269676.html Any help you could give me would be appreciated as this will be the first pilot I have painted and I want it to be a reasonable representation :D Quote Link to post Share on other sites
nubaba Posted May 22, 2011 Author Share Posted May 22, 2011 Couple of photo's to show work done on the right fairing.... and Air Cycle Machine exhaust Now to make a start on the cockpit Quote Link to post Share on other sites
nubaba Posted June 16, 2011 Author Share Posted June 16, 2011 I have not been able to get much done of late; however, finally managed to finish the cockpit. Given that this will be closed up I was not too fussy with detail. I just used kit parts and added some seat rails and a few boxes, wire etc onto the rear bulkhead. Tricky part (for me) was changing the radar screen from the rectangle shaped unit in the F-8E to the round one in a square box typical of the early F-8's and the K variant I am building. I had to cut the old radar out and make a new one out of styrene and stretched sprue. Had a few goes at it before getting something that I could live with. Glad the closed canopy is going to disguise things a little :) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
HOLMES Posted June 16, 2011 Share Posted June 16, 2011 good work..Keep it going.. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
eagledocf15 Posted June 17, 2011 Share Posted June 17, 2011 Excellent work. Keep us informed of your progress. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
nubaba Posted June 19, 2011 Author Share Posted June 19, 2011 (edited) Been working on the fuselage and trying to bring all the bits together. After a lot of shaping and sanding I have now got the basic shape as close as I am going to get it. Bump on the top is now gone... ......the gear doors are all closed - the doors were made to be displayed open and it took a lot of cutting, filling and sanding to get them to fit in the wheel wells..... ....the nose has been reshaped and front fuselage is a bit thinner. I have overlaid part of the photo with Detail and Scale drawing and side profile looks pretty close to me. Photo's showed that port side of nose needs to be shaved a little at the base, which I did not pick up till I had taken photo's and compared them to drawings Oh well part of the nose to shave, a bit to clean-up and I will have to re-scribe detail that has been lost, but, I am making progress :) Edited June 19, 2011 by nubaba Quote Link to post Share on other sites
nubaba Posted July 12, 2011 Author Share Posted July 12, 2011 (edited) Sorry no photo, but, F-8 is all buttoned up and painting has started. I have tiny problem that I was hoping someone could help me with. I was looking at the decal sheet and noticed that I did not have the instruction sheet. Does anyone have a copy (or know where I can get one) of the Microscale 1/48 F-8 Crusaders VMFA-321 & VMFA-451 Number 48-266 instruction sheet? Thanks. Edited July 12, 2011 by nubaba Quote Link to post Share on other sites
nubaba Posted July 13, 2011 Author Share Posted July 13, 2011 Photo of Crusader buttonned up primed and base coat of white laid down. Base coat has highlighted a few areas that need addressing :( I want to get a really smooth finish on this bird and will try and follow what Paul Osborne did on HS with his build. I am still looking for the instruction sheet for the Microscale decals (1/48 F-8 Crusaders VMFA-321 & VMFA-451 Number 48-266). Any help with this would be appreciated :D Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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