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F-15 Eagle wheel question


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Hi all,

When exactly did the F-15 wheels change from black to white? I've got an old Microscale sheet 72-456 with markings for an F-15A 76-022 of the 318FIS in 1984 that I plan to put on either an Airfix F-15A or old tool Hasegawa F-15C kit (which appears to be no different in config than the Airfix kit).

I suspect the plane should have white wheels as the squadron tail marks and stencils are full colour but the national insig is lo-vis, but that's just a guess. I've googled it and seen models done with both. Which is a great help....

Found pics of 76-022 from 1978 with black wheels (and BT tailcode) and 76-050 in 318FIS colours with white wheels.

Also, was this airframe ASAT wired? ESCI seemed to think so back in the day (and appears to recommend black mainwheels and white nosewheel on their instructions for same).

Arrgh!

Cheers,

Roy

Edited by roym
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Hi all,

When exactly did the F-15 wheels change from black to white? I've got an old Microscale sheet 72-456 with markings for an F-15A of the 318FIS in 1984 that I plan to put on either an Airfix F-15A or old tool Hasegawa F-15C kit (which appears to be no different in config than the Airfix kit).

I suspect the plane should have white wheels as the squadron tail marks and stencils are full colour but the national insig is lo-vis, but that's just a guess. I've googled it and seen models done with both. Which is a great help....

Found pics of 76-022 from 1978 with black wheels (and BT tailcode) and 76-050 in 318FIS colours with white wheels.

Also, was this airframe ASAT wired? ESCI seemed to think so back in the day (and appears to recommend black mainwheels and white nosewheel on their instructions for same).

Arrgh!

Cheers,

Roy

I know at Langley (were most of the 318th jets came from)in 1981 we could have a black, white or silver painted wheel each strut or any number of combinations. About 1983 we (the Langley Crew Chief Community) decided to paint our wheels and make our jets pretty and clean the way a fighter should never be, we started to mask off our wheels and paint them white. I know that there was a few CC's that were in a little competition to include myself and we would come in on the weekends to clean our jets and spray paint the wheels. We even started to do the "Good Year" in white.

That was on our A models,this little ritual caught on so everybody was painting their wheels, we even had a sheet metal ring that we would pass around on Swing shift from jet to jet to get that fresh Krylon white sheen on all three of our wheels. After awhile the krylon would build up layers and layers of pauint, thus a heat build up on the mains when the brakes were applied on landing causing an overheat condition (Hot Brakes)and in some cases the tire would blow on landing causing a ground emergency.

When this came to the attention of the Brass the painting was immediatly stopped causing our very pretty white wheels to turn a nice carbon black and the paint would take on a brown burnt sheen. As the wheels would go off to depot for refurb as they had soooo much paint they would strip them and repaint them with a specially treated heat resistant epoxy laquer.

I got my First C model in 1983 (82-0019)she came from the factory with that new jet smell and White Wheels, but you still had people that would spray paint their wheels because at first thie paint that was originally on the wheels would not adhere very well, until they got a new paint in 85 did we actuall stiop painting wheels.

Sorry for the long winded story, but like all stories there is a point to them, the wheels were a gradual thing but mostly from about late 83- early 84 did the transition actualy take place. soo with all things on the Eaglew its all a matter of time frame and photo referances......

Cheers

Dave Whalen

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The 318th, like the 5th was an interceptor squadron, not a tactical one.

We flew "A" models and came under A.D.T.A.C. and Norad just like they did and carried the bright squadron markings and had white wheels.

scan0024-4.jpg

scan0026-4.jpg

The 48th probably had the same wheel color too.

Here's two of the F-15s sent from other bases to help celebrate our transition from the F0106 to the F-15. It looks like they have the natural metal wheels.

scan0035-2.jpg

These shots were taken on 5 dec 1984. I just looked at the ceremony booklet's date.

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Thanks to jennings and Old Crew Dog for the quick replys and ikar for going to the trouble of posting the pics. Very nice! I added the serial in question to the original post, the airframe is 76-022 according to microscale and ESCI.

Ikar, in your photo 135 seems to be dark and 124 seems to have white wheels, on the photo stream there is one of 76-141 in 318FIS colours with white wheels. I think that settles it for me!

Cheers and thanks again all,

Roy

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Thanks to jennings and Old Crew Dog for the quick replys and ikar for going to the trouble of posting the pics. Very nice! I added the serial in question to the original post, the airframe is 76-022 according to microscale and ESCI.

Ikar, in your photo 135 seems to be dark and 124 seems to have white wheels, on the photo stream there is one of 76-141 in 318FIS colours with white wheels. I think that settles it for me!

Cheers and thanks again all,

Roy

I know most of the 318th birds were from Langley, 76-0057 was my jet in the 27th TFS at Langley, 76-022 was in the 94th TFS with 76-0050 was in the 27th as well.

76-0057 was transferred to the 318th IIRC 1984? and it was one of the last A models transferred out.

Nice pictures of freshly painted jets, to clean to be not fresh from the paint barn...

Cheers

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  • 5 months later...

Sorry to dig up this old thread, but as the model is making slow progress on the bench, this second question also occurred to me.

The copper/brass coloured canopy frames. Would my model of 76-022 of the 318FIS in 1984 have the copper effect or would it have been painted grey by then? Also, would the frames be black on the inside or copper?

Cheers again and thanks!

Roy

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The F-15As at Elmendorf when I was there in 1984-86 had the red-brown canopy framing. It's not metal - it's some kind of a phenolic resin type stuff. It's a dark red-brown, not copper or brass.

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This is one of our brand new, hand me down "A" models. It was one of the first we received as we transitioned from the F-106. It also has the brown one the canopy.

scan0021-4.jpg

Some, if not all of our aircraft went to the Mass. A.N.G.

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The F-15As at Elmendorf when I was there in 1984-86 had the red-brown canopy framing. It's not metal - it's some kind of a phenolic resin type stuff. It's a dark red-brown, not copper or brass.

It's phenolic with hi-torques screws to attach the acrylic to the metal frame, exactly. I would say they did not paint the phenolic till we started to transition to the mod eagle as my jet at Kadena still had the phenolic showing till it received the new scheme in 92. My jet at Elmendorf had the phenaloc painted over in 94.

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