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Zoukei-mura 1/48 F-4J Phantom II


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Da king of the hill is being knocked down the hill, a lot of makers are moving Hasegawa down a notch in kit quality, with a lot of popular model kits . If the ZM skyraider is any indication...we're in for a treat :yahoo: :yahoo: ; it ain't funny with the AMK Tomcat, GWH Eagles, and now the Academy, and ZM Phantoms how can I save any money.

Edited by #1 Greywolf
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Good news!

I spent a lot of time at the ZM booth at the 2015 NATs and I am happy to see a firmer release date. It is a good time to be a Phantom Phan. I am in for at least one J ... even though I already have several Academy Js . The only problem with the F-4J is that there are too many good markings options between the US Navy and Marine Corps units.

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I had a good long chat with the kit designer at Telford about this kit. The one on show was a 3d printed prototype, and already showed promise. He said the kit is planned to have early and late cockpit details as well as external details. A lot of planning has gone into the nose area as it is a complex shape which he is trying to get spot on. The (small) downside is that this will not be a cheap kit, but I think it will be good.

Ted

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Da king of the hill is being knocked down the hill, a lot of makers are moving Hasegawa down a notch in kit quality, with a lot of popular model kits .

It also shows that a company can only re-release their kits with crappy decals for only so long...

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Hasegawa decals are not completely wortless. But the red is very often a kind of brown and when it comes to Phantom stencils, it is not complete. Ofc the carrier film is not superthin but with Mr. Mark softer and later when dry a coat of gloss clear or future will blend them in.

For 100 bucks I can get a Hase J and some nice AM goodies. (Want to say I already have a few "J"s in stash including AM).

Their J is still good for me and I let others buy the academy kit.

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Sometimes Hase decals' white is not really white. I did not say yellowing. A bit of cream from the factory indeed. But in most Hase kits these days they are just good perfect white...

Edited by Teeradej
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:rofl: It just comes round to further prove the End of the Times is nearin'... :unsure:

It also shows that a company can only re-release their kits with crappy decals for only so long...

Resting on your laurels leaves the door open for someone to walk up and run off with your crown...Hasegawa kits are very, very good about that there is no doubt, however they are not perfect :coolio:. The perfect kit will be produced long after I'm playing a harp in the winged orchestra.

Edited by #1 Greywolf
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Finally, a release window. I don't understand pulling the Hasegawa stuff into all of this.

Were you expecting them to make new-tool Phantom kits to replace their older ones? That doesn't happen very often with model kit companies and as you said, the kits are still good (and quite cheap) which warrants continued production. As always, other companies will eventually provide alternatives for better or worse.

Edited by kaz
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Why a J? If they really wanted to make a significant smash into the quarter scale F-4 market then start out with a long nose E or G. The modeler is already limited to one kit, the Has, if they want an accurate depiction versus a Hasegawa or Academy J.

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Why a J? If they really wanted to make a significant smash into the quarter scale F-4 market then start out with a long nose E or G. The modeler is already limited to one kit, the Has, if they want an accurate depiction versus a Hasegawa or Academy J.

Virtually every F-4 family on the market has started with the short-nose variants. You get so many schemes for so little extra tooling.

I expect to see long-nose F-4's from Academy (soon) and ZM (eventually).

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  • 4 months later...

Has there been any more news regarding the ZM Phantom? It is now summer 2016. I know delays are common, I just hope this one did not become vaporware.

Lol. No. No news. ZM is notoriously slow. Their Do 335 took 3 years from the time of the first announcement to hit the shelves. It's going to be a while.

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Lol. No. No news. ZM is notoriously slow. Their Do 335 took 3 years from the time of the first announcement to hit the shelves. It's going to be a while.

At least with ZM you have anticipation of a great kit, however another maker announced a Flanker in 1/48 for years, and finally there is a glimmer of hope the kit will finally see the light of day, a glimmer only mind you.

(one ping Vasili, one ping only please)

Edited by #1 Greywolf
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