bashace Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 Do you have a great F-4 Phantom tale to tell, some interesting facts, or some of that down right gee wiz info? We want to hear it! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bashace Posted March 5, 2013 Author Share Posted March 5, 2013 Have you ever wondered how the Phantom got it's odd wing and stab configuration? Here's a quote from one of the descriptions of a Phantom that is on display at the Pacific Aviation Museum... "The first reaction of most people who first see a Phantom II is, “Why is it so weird?†The wing tips and horizontal stabilizers look broken, and the bird has a bulbous nose. Initially, the F-4 design had none of this. However, prototypes soon found instability both near the speed of sound and at Mach 2—the two ends of the Phantom II’s supersonic speed range. In both cases, the aircraft would pitch up and put the pilot in danger of losing control. To solve the pitch-up near Mach 1, the wing’s cord (front-to-back length) had to be lengthened. In addition, the wing needed a 3 degree dihedral (upward slant) for horizontal stability. Rather than redesigning the entire wing, which would have repercussions for the design of the landing gear and would have been expensive because changing the titanium inner-wing design would be very complex, McDonnell only changed the outer folding part of the wing. This required a 12 degree dihedral on the outer wing. In addition, the cord of the outer segment was increased by 10% giving the wing a saw tooth. Near Mach 2, a different problem occurred: The wing’s wind flow partially covered the slab horizontal stabilizer. Rather than move the stabilizer, McDonnell again chose a simpler solution—to give the tail a 23 degree anhedral (downward slope) to get it in clean air." V/r Ron Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bashace Posted March 5, 2013 Author Share Posted March 5, 2013 A quote from Mike J Bradley about "The Phantom Bite"... "The Phantom was definitely a loud and leaky aircraft that loved to fly, in fact if you flew the aircraft constantly it would rarely break, but let it sit for even a few days and it took a major effort to get the plane back up again, such was the legacy of the Phantom. There was also a unique thing that all maintainers came to know as well called the Phantom bite, as this aircraft had many jagged and protruding drains that would inevitably cut or hurt you. Still it was a badge of honor to get it, but if you were lucky you just lost a uniform and no skin. The Phantom had light strips on the sides and when it was sitting on the end of the runway and lit up the afterburners it was truly an amazing sight. That has been captured by many photographers, but it had to be seen to be believed. Luckily there are some F-4’s featured in various air show acts and if you are fortunate to see one, be sure to watch it on take off, that is where the legacy of the Phantom was born, the power and might of McDonnell-Douglas engineering in all 5,195 of the Phantoms that were produced from 1958-1979." V/r Ron Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bashace Posted March 5, 2013 Author Share Posted March 5, 2013 Did you know there was a RAAF pilot flying RF-4C missions over Vietnam during the war? Check out the story of the "Carolina Kangaroo", makes for an interesting USAF RF-4C with a little Aussie flavour. My link V/r Ron Quote Link to post Share on other sites
PhantomPhreakII Posted March 5, 2013 Share Posted March 5, 2013 The German Air Force is retiring its Phantoms this year. A spottersday will be held at Wittmund (northwestern Germany) and they have a nice list of aircraft coming in: http://www.phantom-pharewell.de/spotterday/information-4 You have to register for the spottersday (I did ythis yesterday)... I'll bring back some GREAT pics (I hope..) Harald Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bashace Posted March 5, 2013 Author Share Posted March 5, 2013 The German Air Force is retiring its Phantoms this year. A spottersday will be held at Wittmund (northwestern Germany) and they have a nice list of aircraft coming in: http://www.phantom-pharewell.de/spotterday/information-4 You have to register for the spottersday (I did ythis yesterday)... I'll bring back some GREAT pics (I hope..) Harald This looks like a Tiger Meet! I may have to go see that myself. V/r Ron Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bashace Posted March 5, 2013 Author Share Posted March 5, 2013 This looks like a Tiger Meet! I may have to go see that myself. V/r Ron Oops, wrong Spotters day, still looks like a good meet. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bashace Posted March 5, 2013 Author Share Posted March 5, 2013 Looks like Ian Allen Aviation Tours has a good deal going on with this, I may be taking a small vacation in Germany. V/r Ron Quote Link to post Share on other sites
PhantomPhreakII Posted March 8, 2013 Share Posted March 8, 2013 Score... I just received my confirmation to the june 28th spottersday at Wittmund..... Harald Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bashace Posted March 8, 2013 Author Share Posted March 8, 2013 Score... I just received my confirmation to the june 28th spottersday at Wittmund..... :banana:/> :nanner:/> Harald Good on ya! I have a friend that says he can hook me up with a good place to stay if I decide to go, he went there last year to watch the F-4 OPs. V/r Ron Quote Link to post Share on other sites
31Tiger Posted March 8, 2013 Share Posted March 8, 2013 Score... I just received my confirmation to the june 28th spottersday at Wittmund..... :banana:/> :nanner:/> Harald Me too !!!! now lets hope for good weather Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sentry30 Posted March 9, 2013 Share Posted March 9, 2013 if I decide to go Here's some motivational stuff I shot last week, once their gone...their gone...! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sentry30 Posted March 9, 2013 Share Posted March 9, 2013 Few more; Daniël Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Litvyak Posted March 10, 2013 Share Posted March 10, 2013 Did you know there was a RAAF pilot flying RF-4C missions over Vietnam during the war? Check out the story of the "Carolina Kangaroo", makes for an interesting USAF RF-4C with a little Aussie flavour. My link Does anyone know if there are decals for the Carolina Kangaroo? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
31Tiger Posted March 10, 2013 Share Posted March 10, 2013 Sentry 30, awesome pics!! and look at those retro paints Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bashace Posted March 11, 2013 Author Share Posted March 11, 2013 Wow, what a chore to register, thank the gods for Google translate. Registration submitted. Have any of you done any spotting at Wittmund before? V/r Ron Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bashace Posted March 11, 2013 Author Share Posted March 11, 2013 Woohoo! I got my registration confirmation! Flight, hotel, and car booked! See you all there! V/r Ron Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bashace Posted March 12, 2013 Author Share Posted March 12, 2013 (edited) Does anyone know if there are decals for the Carolina Kangaroo? Here's a website that has a nice 1/32 RF-4C "Carolina Kangaroo". It looks like standard RF-4 markings with 4 custom made stencils all the same size, should be easy to make from scratch. My link Edited March 12, 2013 by bashace Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bashace Posted March 13, 2013 Author Share Posted March 13, 2013 Here's a nice pic that's been floating around on FB. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Procopius Posted March 14, 2013 Share Posted March 14, 2013 So, uh, quick question for you all. I need to weather my F-4J(UK), and I've never really weathered anything before, ever. (I'm a little inept.) What's a good way to do this? It may save some heartbreak if you assume I'm a congenital idiot. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
31Tiger Posted March 14, 2013 Share Posted March 14, 2013 So, uh, quick question for you all. I need to weather my F-4J(UK), and I've never really weathered anything before, ever. (I'm a little inept.) What's a good way to do this? It may save some heartbreak if you assume I'm a congenital idiot. You can make a wash with oil paints or with enamel paint but it all needs some experience, (my prefered way because i grew up with the "VERLINDEN WAY" ) You can buy pre-made wash from Tamiya, MIG, AK interactive, etc but they all need good protective coats before starting and are expensive , look at their websites for how to use them, or look for them at Youtube , lots of good vids on weathering models Another more easy way to go is with pastels, scrape some of in a cup and dilute with water and a tiny drop of soap and clean up with water. or...also easy are the flory washes, here is a good link how to do it: http://www.florymodels.co.uk/washes/ very very easy! Mark, Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Saber Exile Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 The Phantom as a humanitarian? Sure! I stumbled across this article while researching something else. Now I'm trying to find out the serial # of the plane that flew this unique mission: In 1986, an F-4 Phantom II was used by the North Dakota Air National Guard to transport a human heart from Fargo, ND to Stanford, CA in time to save an infant's life. Here's a link to the whole story: http://www.1af.acc.af.mil/news/story.asp?storyID=123058688 Quite possibly the only time a Phantom payload delivered to its intended target actually saved its life. -James Quote Link to post Share on other sites
phantom Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 THAT is such a cool story!!!!!! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bashace Posted March 26, 2013 Author Share Posted March 26, 2013 THAT is such a cool story!!!!!! Is there an F-4 with a little red cooler in the back seat in your future build lineup Phantom? V/r Ron Quote Link to post Share on other sites
phantom Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 Prob not, unless there is a photo showing paint scheme and tail number........... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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