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Revell F-18 Hornet


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I was beating myself about the face and head over the fit of this kit. I got so exasperated that I put it in a box and it has sat on a shelf for over a year. Thanks to CM for the initiative to get this kit done...hopefully. It is the Revellogram F-18 'Blue Angel's boxing. I'll be making up a CF-18 Hornet. I have a couple of options at my disposal so I'll make that decision closer to completion date.

Good luck everyone.

Mike

Edited by AX 365
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Okay. Here are some photos of what I had done up to the point of sending it to my version of CFB Mountainview.

Underside, air brake closed, gear wells and slime lights removed from the vertical tails.

Bottom_zpsafcee0b7.jpg

AirBrake_zpsb878b475.jpg

MainGearWells_zpscf9dfd20.jpg

NoseGear_zpsa93da3a6.jpg

LeftSlimeLightRemoval_zps91da3a6d.jpg

RightSlimeLightRemoval_zps8299e19b.jpg

More photos in next post.

Mike

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Some of the seams I have had to deal with. Unlike the Hasegawa kits that have a separate piece for the rear side of either fuselage, the Revellogram kit is simply top and bottom. It is extremely difficult to get both part lined up properly to avoid any seams. CM...I read your reply and the suggestion included. Thanks. Unfortunately, the problem here is a step and not a gap. I started the 'Fill. Sand. Curse. Repeat.' process and quite after two cycles.

RightRearSeam_zps89ea479e.jpg

LeftRearSeam_zpsaec2281b.jpg

The seams on the sides of the intakes are a bit of a pain too.

RightIntakeSeam_zps9aa441ea.jpg

LeftIntakeSeam_zps896a0248.jpg

Again. because of the design of the kit, there are horrible slanted seams on the nose from the top and bottom join.

RightNoseSeam_zps7f0c87c1.jpg

LeftNoseSeam_zps87da6f1b.jpg

There is a lot more work to do to get these seams right. One thing I forgot to do while assembling was drill out a hole for the searchlight. D'oh! Oh well. Drilling a hole is easy. Adding glass is easy. Adding a blanking plate or lens is impossible so I'll leave it the way it is and live with my error. A funny thing about the kit is that there is a centre line tank and pylons but no tanks for the pylons. I have a couple of spare tanks from a Hasegawa kit that I might use. We'll see.

The gauntlet has been tossed. I have six months to get this beast done. Let's see if I can do it.

That's it for now ad thanks for looking.

Mike

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  • 1 month later...

Just a thought for the searchlight. How about a 'silver' circle painted in the appropriate loc, then gloss coat it?

Sorry for the delay in responding and posting. I've been stalling on doing anything with this project until we returned from our winter vacation. We're back, rested and ready to go....sort of.

Thanks for your suggestion on the searchlight. A good, simple solution. That's probably the way I'll go. :thumbsup:

I've done a bit of work but nothing photo worthy. I've sanded and worked the 'white blob' areas in my photos above. I think I've gotten the seams to a somewhat acceptable finish. A coat of primer will show how (un)successful I have been. It just dawned on me that the tails in this kit are "C" tails. Some work with a sanding stick will get rid of the extra lumps and bumps.

I also noted that the instructions do not show gluing on the chaff dispensers. The parts are in the box and there are spaces for them on the airframe but there is no mention of the need to attach these parts in the instructions. <_< I caught that this morning. You see? Sometomes a break and a fresh perspective can make a difference.

I've also decided that I'm going to use Leading Edge's 409 Squadron "Nightmare 01" decals as seen here:

http://www.lemdecal.com/48.060%20page.html

As you can see, they're sized for the Revell / Monogram and Hasegawa CF-18.

That's it for now.

Thanks for checking in.

Mike

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  • 2 weeks later...

Again, no photos but all I've done is prime the model (seams look pretty good!) and paint the underside grey.

I've removed the extra sensor on the vertical stabs. They look pretty good. I also have to remove a couple of bumps from the fuselage behind the cockpit.

As I looked closer at the decal sheet and instructions, I noted that the aircraft these markings are on is a CF-18AM. As stated, I'm starting with a 'C'. The angled blade antennae needed to make an accurate CF-18AM are not included in the kit. Oh well. I can live with it as a regular CF-18A. Close enough for jazz.

Mike

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Masked and top colour (MM Enamel 35237) applied. Once that's dry, I'll mask the for the false canopy (MM Enamel 36118). Then I'll mask the underside and spray the wheel wells, wheels and landing gear MM Enamel Gloss White. I'll then spray Alclad on the gun ports and the exhaust area.

Mike

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The painting is done. After I buff with an old tee shirt, it will be time for gloss coat and then decals.

Top_zpseb6bam0g.jpg

Exhaust_zpslnx4kyud.jpg

Guns_zps9ccnmc0q.jpg

Wheels%20and%20Tails%20-%201_zpseg1knr91.jpg

Bottom%20-%201_zpsh6erl6pb.jpg

Main%20Gear_zpswzc3t7gc.jpg

False%20Canopy_zpsxhgoyyhs.jpg

This time I remembered to paint the false canopy correctly! :doh:

Buffing and gloss coat will take place on Monday and Tuesday. I'm working midnights this weekend so it will be: Sleep. Work. Sleep. Work. Sleep. Work. Sleep. Buff and spray gloss.

As usual, comments and constructive criticism is always welcome.

Thanks for looking in.

Mike

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Looks really nice! How much are you going to weather? Are you going to add staining to the bottoms of the engine and AMAD doors?

This one is looking like a silk purse. Way to stick with it!

Thanks guys. It looks a lot better than I thought it would. The only colour that needs to go on is the silver circle for the spotlight. Once that's done, I'll gloss coat. Proabably tomorrow.

As for weathering, none at all. It will look like it just came out of the paint shop after Mr. Jim Belliveau and his crew at 4 Wing did their amazing artwork and the jet was cleaned up.

Mike

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Nice work :thumbsup: ! I built that kit many moons ago and fought it every step of the way (or did it fight me... :lol:) . You've done a great job of it so far.

Regards,

Don.

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The painting is done.

Guns_zps9ccnmc0q.jpg

Nice work :thumbsup: ! I built that kit many moons ago and fought it every step of the way (or did it fight me... :lol:) . You've done a great job of it so far.

Regards,

Don.

Thanks for your kind words, Don. I appreciate them. You're right. This kit has been a bit of a PITA but taking the break that I did, and corsairman's great idea for this GB, were the cure to what ailed me. I learned a few things about this build that I'll do differently when I build the other one in the stash.

Now the painting is really all done. I masked off part of the nose and fixed the light grey on the bottom. As you can see in the photo above, I masked too far down and the dark grey is too far below the guns. I have masked and resprayed to get the level correct. I've also masked and sprayed the radome tan. Also, two coats of Model Master Gloss have been applied and are curing. The tires have been brush painted and are drying too. I should be ready to start decaling on Friday. Working nights again on Wednesday and Thursday so you know the routine; Sleep. Work. Sleep. Work. Sleep. Model time.

I'll insert some photos in the next post.

Mike

Edited by AX 365
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This is looking great. :thumbsup:

nice masking

Looks good so far, and much better than that blue plastic!! How many layers did you have to spray to get the landing gear white?

Daniel

Thanks for your kind words, gents. As for the landing gear, one coat of MM Light Grey as a primer and two light coats of MM Flat White is all it took. The light grey covered really well so the flat white was super easy to do.

This build is now finished. While FAR from a show stopper, all things considered it turned out not too badly. As I've mentioned in previous posts in other threads, I've been spoiled rotten with the fit of some very nice Tamiya, Hasegawa, Academy end even some other Revellogram kits. In the end, this looks like 'Nightmare 01' - 409 Squadron's special markings created when the Nighthawks were reactivated in July 2006.

All the decals and markings, except the tail art, went on flawlessly. The decals, except the tail art, are thin and settled down extremely well without the need for any setting agent. The tail decals are completely different. The colours are sprayed over white ink on heavier paper. They are very thick. Even though they responded to Solvaset, I did end up with wrinkles on the decals. They were overside so there was some trimming required once they had settled in place on the tails. As you can see in other photos, I left all the tail surfaces off the model until final assembly. It made getting all the decals on a lot easier. I took IrishGreek's suggestion and painted a silver disc in the appropriate spot to at least give the appearance of a spotlight. Decals were applied over two coats of Model Master Gloss and sealed with two very light coats of Model Master Flat. Here are a couple of photos with more in the Completed Builds thread.

Thanks to everyone who dropped in and had a look or left a comment, a bit of advice or a suggestion or all of the above. I appreciate it.

Done%20-%20Left%20Tail_zpscj5tko2w.jpg

Done%20-%20Top%20Left_zpsxcpvpym4.jpg

Done%20-%20Left%20Side_zpsgs0mwoaj.jpg

A special thank you to corsairman for organizing and moderating this GB. :thumbsup:

Mike

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Ahh, I recall the trials and tribulations of that Monogram F-18 kit (not one of their better models) from watching your build. I got through mine OK but haven't built another.

Nice choice of markings as they add a bit of colour to the kit, well done finishing this one off - looks good Mike.

Oh and yes BTW nice runway too... :whistle:/>

Cheers,

David

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Thank you for kind words gents. I appreciate it.

David - I tried to convince the missus to let me paint that sofa table with a runway motif but it went over like a turd in a punch bowl. Go figure. :lol:

Mike

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