RiderFan Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 (edited) Hi there. So this is not going to be one of Chuck's award winning uber-builds, but I'm hoping this turns out well enough to at least bring to a show. The subject matter this time is the Trumpter 1:32 scale A-7E Corsair II. One of my favourite USN aircraft I intend to build this with early service markings. I'll also be using a few aftermarket items like Zactomans really fantastic canopy and intake replacement sets and Aires gear and equipment bays as well as their replacement cockpit. I've had this kit and its various aftermarket parts in my stash for about 3 or 4 years now, and have dragged it across the country and 3 provinces. I figure, given my situation of late, it's a good time to delve into the stash for a build that will take a while to finish and that I really don't have to spend money on anything else to finish it. Well, save for decals. I'm not sure if I'm going to buy a set, or create a set of decals myself. This is where I am at this point. The Aires gear bays and equipment bay (I'm only opening the left hand side door) are completed and installed. Aires replacement parts are very frustrating. They look amazing, but they also never fit. I really wish they'd change the type of resin they use because the shrinking that happens just makes things a mess. This is the Aires wheel bay. Because the real thing is kept quite clean and white, I've kept the wash and weathering to a minimum. There's not this much colour in the real thing and those placards are fictional, but I really wanted to try and make the gear bays pop out a bit and be more interesting, so I've taken a tiny amount of artistic license in these areas. The parts go together very well and I'm quite happy with the results. Forward bay What I'm NOT happy with is how they fit into the actual kit parts. They've shrunk about 2mm in length and so don't fit properly into the hole. As you can see in the photo below, I've centred the bay in the hole, and will need to fill the ends with strip styrene. You can also see the equipment bay. I used Tamiya Yellow Green for the yellow zinc chromite colour. I've added the tie down rings to the bottom of the landing gear legs as they're quite a prominent part of the gear and they're missing from the kit parts. Edited February 25, 2014 by RiderFan Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Joel_W Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 Nice job painting and weathering those resin parts. Personally, I rather have them a little smaller then the usual much larger that requires a lot of filing, grinding, sanding, test fit, and repeat as necessary. Shimming with sheet plastic is easier and much quicker. Looking forward to your next update. Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Crazy Snap Captain Posted February 26, 2014 Share Posted February 26, 2014 Rider, Really looking forward to this build as I have the same kit and AM ready in the stash. Great job so far! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Jimbo59 Posted February 26, 2014 Share Posted February 26, 2014 (edited) Spent a lot of time around these birds in my youth. Love seeing these kits built. Edited February 26, 2014 by Jimbo59 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
RiderFan Posted February 26, 2014 Author Share Posted February 26, 2014 Small progress last night. there's a small AC turbine vent axhaust on the lower starboard side of the aircraft that is part F48. I cut open a hole in the fuselage and replaced that part with a hollow brass tube that has been 'squashed' slightly so that it's oblong and not round. Looks much better than the kit part. I also closed up the equipment bay doors on the right hand side but as you can see they don't really fit well into place. Large and uneven gaps that I need to fill with CA glue and rescribe. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
A21-29 Posted February 26, 2014 Share Posted February 26, 2014 what a great start. I have one in my stash so shall follow close. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
RiderFan Posted February 26, 2014 Author Share Posted February 26, 2014 (edited) Ooops... never mind, ignore this post. Found the photo I was after. Edited February 26, 2014 by RiderFan Quote Link to post Share on other sites
chuck540z3 Posted February 26, 2014 Share Posted February 26, 2014 Hi David! That pic above says "Trumpeter" all over it. Crappy rough plastic, poor panel lines and rivets. You have your work cut out for you sir! I look forward to watching this build evolve into something much more presentable with your advanced skill set. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Finn Posted February 27, 2014 Share Posted February 27, 2014 Here are a couple of pics that show the refuelling probe was used as a walkway hence the scuff marks: http://media.nara.gov/stillpix/330-cfd/1990/DN-SC-90-04827.jpeg http://media.nara.gov/stillpix/330-cfd/1988/DN-ST-88-02216.jpeg Jari Quote Link to post Share on other sites
RiderFan Posted February 27, 2014 Author Share Posted February 27, 2014 (edited) LOL.. love the photo of the guy wiping down the windscreen giving the camera man the hairy eyeball. Small update again. The gun gas exit door just forward of the left hand equipment bay is often seen open when the aircraft is on the ground. The kit provides this as a separate panel that can be opened or closed but the opening on the fuselage has been blanked out (as can be seen in the equipment bay photo in my first post above) and there's no part for the hydraulic piston that opens or closes the door. As you can see the gun detail, I've opened that space up in the kit and added a few details that resemble the interior of that space. The door is only open a small amount so you're really not going to see much inside anyway. But I think it will be better than just a blank bit of plastic and a panel hanging open. When I'm much further along the build, I'll fit the space with the hydraulic actuator and detail the inside of the door. [edit] - I really should stop using my Macro lens for these photos. It shows off too many mistakes and problems. thanks David Edited February 27, 2014 by RiderFan Quote Link to post Share on other sites
RiderFan Posted February 27, 2014 Author Share Posted February 27, 2014 For those wondering why the landing gear legs are already installed, it's because I removed the molded on brake lines and replaced them with scratch built wire ones. The ends of which connect into spots on the Aires resin parts. So it was easier to build these on to the legs while they were fitted into the bays. This will make masking a little harder but likely not a big deal. I also corrected the detail of the retract leg (kit parts F36 and F37) to the main legs. On the kit this is just a pin in a hole. On the real aircraft it's a movable linkage. As I was using the metal main legs, I took the linkage parts off their plastic counterparts (parts F28 and F29) and re-factored those. You can also see the tiedown loop. thanks David Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Marcel111 Posted February 28, 2014 Share Posted February 28, 2014 Nice start on the A-7! Marcel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
RiderFan Posted March 14, 2014 Author Share Posted March 14, 2014 Just a minor update today. I've opened up the small intake on the right hand side that is just behind the large/main intake. This gives it, more or less, the correct depth as opposed to the kit part which is only a slightly recessed panel. I also received my Aries "Early" cockpit package today. Disappointing that the majority of little parts are broken off the resin casting block and parts of the seat have snapped off as well. So I spent a couple of hours rebuilding those parts with super glue and accelerant. Now I have to remove all the overly gigantic casting blocks from the seat and tub. thanks David Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Crazy Snap Captain Posted March 15, 2014 Share Posted March 15, 2014 (edited) David, Lovely work thus far. Taking notes. I hear you on the casting blocks. I just removed one from my cockpit for the Flanker I'm building...it was bigger than the cockpit itself! Any hoot...keep the posts coming. Loving it. Edited March 15, 2014 by Crazy Snap Captain Quote Link to post Share on other sites
RiderFan Posted March 15, 2014 Author Share Posted March 15, 2014 (edited) So this is where I am with the cockpit. I've repaired all the little parts that were broken either off the seat or separated from the casting block and broken into pieces. You can see in this shot the Zactoman Canopy frame that I'll be using in lue of the Aries or the kit part. This is the Aries pit tub and I'm trying to figure how the best way to paint this. The sidewalls being molded on makes this a bit of a problem because normally I'd spray the whole thing black, mask out the panels, then spray on the light ghost grey. With the sidewalls there, this is going to be much more difficult. I'm also not sure what the sidewall colours are. There's a bit of trimming required to make the cockpit fit over the top of the Zactoman intake but it's not too bad. You have to remove the casting blocks anyway so it's not that much extra work. Nice detail though, but I'd wish they'd make the walls separate parts. Edited March 15, 2014 by RiderFan Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Marcel111 Posted March 15, 2014 Share Posted March 15, 2014 Nice work on that little intake... things like that make a big difference to the finished model. Marcel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Joel_W Posted March 15, 2014 Share Posted March 15, 2014 Those brakes lines really look good. Looking forward to your next update. Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
RiderFan Posted March 18, 2014 Author Share Posted March 18, 2014 A bit of progress on the cockpit over the past couple of days. This macro photography notwithstanding, I'm reasonably happy with how the painting turned out. Needs a few little touch ups here and there. Most of the detail painting was done with toothpicks and magnifying glasses. I don't have very good references for the A7, at least, not the cockpit so I've tried to get as close as I could given my limited resources. The little canopy notches on the tub part will get removed once the whole thing is inside the fuselage. The Zactoman canopy frame comes with those same notches, so I'll use those once I'm ready to build up that part. And the IP and forward combing The seat has been painted its base colour but I'll tackle the cushion and belts over the next couple of days. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
RiderFan Posted March 18, 2014 Author Share Posted March 18, 2014 Getting a few of the big bits together now. The Zactoman Intake and all the gear bays are now fitted. There's a small amount of the intake trunk that needs to be removed to fit around the Aries electronic bays. The forward gear bay seems to fit okay, although like the main gear bays, it's very short. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
RiderFan Posted March 18, 2014 Author Share Posted March 18, 2014 So a question about the antenna on the vertical fin. I'm trying to figure out if I need to shave off the vertical fin antenna on the version I'm doing (VA-25 A7E December 1975). The Trumpeter kit comes with it molded on to the vertical fin, but as near as I can tell it shouldn't be there for the variant I'm working on. So I'm wondering if anyone has a drawing of the panel lines for the tail without the antenna. Or was this feature on all A7's and simply painted over on most aircraft? thanks David Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jmel Posted March 18, 2014 Share Posted March 18, 2014 The antenna should be there, but it is not raised as Trumpeter has molded it. Sand it down and rescribe the shape of the antenna back into the plastic. Jake Quote Link to post Share on other sites
RiderFan Posted March 18, 2014 Author Share Posted March 18, 2014 The antenna should be there, but it is not raised as Trumpeter has molded it. Sand it down and rescribe the shape of the antenna back into the plastic. Jake I thought that might be the case, but then I find photos like this one; http://cdn-www.airliners.net/aviation-photos/photos/7/5/0/2392057.jpg And you can see the rear panel line, but none of the others. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Finn Posted March 18, 2014 Share Posted March 18, 2014 Here are some pics that show the outline: http://media.nara.gov/stillpix/330-cfd/1989/DN-ST-89-01926.jpeg http://media.nara.gov/stillpix/330-cfd/1989/DN-ST-89-05694.jpeg http://data.primeportal.net/hangar/vodnik/a-7e_walk/A-7E_002.JPG most you can’t really tell that it’s there. Jari Quote Link to post Share on other sites
RiderFan Posted March 18, 2014 Author Share Posted March 18, 2014 Great! Thanks. Yes, very difficult to tell that is there. I'll just do some really light scribing to redo that. thanks David Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Finn Posted March 19, 2014 Share Posted March 19, 2014 David here is a view of the cockpit from above with a few details that may come in handy: http://media.nara.gov/stillpix/330-cfd/1984/DN-ST-84-05155.jpeg Jari Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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