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Hi Y'all

Haven't been around much... but I've been trying to build, slowly.

So I'm going to build the Hasegawa F/A-18F.

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I received the kit as a gift last year and I was excited. The OOB scheme is for VFA-2 Bounty Hunters... a squadron I've actually built two other aircraft for in a previous F-14 GB.

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So this is the scheme I want to build:

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This picture was taken in 2005 as part of fleet readiness exercises in the Pacific. I might add a JSOW on the other wing too. I'm a bit lazy after dropping the flaps on three CF-18 last year, so I'm going to have it with pilots during pre-flight checks, on the carrier.

Back in the spring I actually started on this model, in a small way. I had made a fairly large batch of miliput for the zimmerit of a Tiger tank and to hold the lead weight nose of a F-35. I had too much left that I did this:

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Basically I formed my own air ducts, after cutting out the blank plates that sit at the back of the hasegawa intakes. a little bit of miliput and I was done.

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Anyway, I left the kit for ages after that, until this GB. Colin graciously let me include this kit despite the start, and so here we are.... I'll post more later tonight.

Edited by -Neu-
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  • 4 weeks later...

Hey guys

Sorry about the lack of an update. Basically I hit a bit of a roadblock with regards to pilots. Originally I wanted to use the USAF pilots from the F-16 Block 50 kits.... but they aren't the best.

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Don't forget those HARMs, you'll be seeing them later.

I contacted Modern Hobbies, as they do a pretty nice set of 1/72 scale resin pilots. I purchased a pair and a few other things, and waited, then waited and waited some more. Finally A month past and I inquired about my order. They had sent it, and since it had been so long, they graciously offered to send me a new set free of charge. However I discovered that had it sent to an old address. My bad. Anyway, long story short a new set will be here in a few days,

Now I can't move forward with the build because the way the kit is designed, I'll have troubles shoehorning a pilot in and then assembling the kit. I basically got it to that stage. First I used a PE cockpit from Eduard to dress up the kit.

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I don't mind the "on" colour for the MFDs, as the aircraft would presumably be in that state. The panel colours seem a bit off, but since the pilots will take up most of the viewing space, I'm not that concerned.... as you can see with this test fit with an F-16 pilot.

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Anyway... I added a bit of nose weight enclosed within some dried miliput... I tend to do that because I like them to have a bit of weight.

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Banged it all together:

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which also required a bit of cleanup along the exterior seam lines.

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And that's where it has been sitting for the past month. Knowing my schedule its going to be tough to get this done in time for the end, but I'll do my best. I might try to use some of kursad's excellent ideas to fill out the lacklustre landing gear bay before they arrive.

Thanks for looking.

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Great work -Neu-! The Super Hornet is a filler hog for me. Yours looks much better!

For us Americans, it sucks that MH is now in Canada. Still, you save up for a few items to ship at one time, and it not too bad.

(as a 1/72 modeler, ever been to 72nd Scale Aircraft?)

http://z15.invisionfree.com/72nd_Aircraft/index.php?

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