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Steel Beach preproduction F-14 set


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I got this one done for the IPMS Nationals, but since I was going up to Sprue Bros. I decided to drop it off early. It should be in the system next week. The set allows you to make a preproduction/test Tomcat. Fightertown Decals has stated they will probably be doing a set of decals in the future. In addition to the wing sweep area pieces and the braces, the set will also include an IRST pod and early beaver tail.

 

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dsc-0474_2_orig.jpg

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Hi Darren

 

That set looks very cool! You mentioned a while ago that you would re-do the boat tail,  that obviously has to be used along with that set, as well...do you have pictures of the new versiob already? I am still very much planning on doing a 1st cruise VF-1 bird with me next Tamiya Cat...

 

cheers

Uwe

 

 

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  • 5 weeks later...

Hi,

 

Really cool that you made this, Darren.:thumbsup:

I look forward to that Fightertown sheet, there should be some really cool colourful Tomcats on that.

I think this set could be used to create a model the first F-14A delivered to VF-1: 158627 a block 65 jet.

Can anyone confirm this? I mean, the set is not just for the YF-14's, but also any pre-Block 70 Tomcat?

 

Cheers, Stefan.  

 

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18 hours ago, Stefan buysse said:

Hi,

 

Really cool that you made this, Darren.:thumbsup:

I look forward to that Fightertown sheet, there should be some really cool colourful Tomcats on that.

I think this set could be used to create a model the first F-14A delivered to VF-1: 158627 a block 65 jet.

Can anyone confirm this? I mean, the set is not just for the YF-14's, but also any pre-Block 70 Tomcat?

 

Cheers, Stefan.  

 

Yes, you can make any of the pre-Block 70 airframes. I thought about doing that early Wolfpack set of markings. They are unique!

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18 hours ago, Slartibartfast said:

I would love me a pre-production Tomcat. Still remember the asymmetric flight photo in Airpower magazine from back in the day.

You actually don't need the pre-production overwing braces. If you look closely at that picture, that aircraft has the standard wing sweep area found on the Tamiya kit. All you'd need is the early beavertail.

Edited by Darren Roberts
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On 18/08/2017 at 8:27 PM, Stefan buysse said:

Hi,

 

Really cool that you made this, Darren.:thumbsup:

I look forward to that Fightertown sheet, there should be some really cool colourful Tomcats on that.

I think this set could be used to create a model the first F-14A delivered to VF-1: 158627 a block 65 jet.

Can anyone confirm this? I mean, the set is not just for the YF-14's, but also any pre-Block 70 Tomcat?

 

Cheers, Stefan.  

 

 

Hi guys !

I have heard and read about that....

Got an extensive Tomcat picture & books collection, but never managed to find one picture of those VF-1 Tomcat with early overwing fairing...

Any picture please ?

Thanks !

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7 hours ago, Air one said:

 

Hi guys !

I have heard and read about that....

Got an extensive Tomcat picture & books collection, but never managed to find one picture of those VF-1 Tomcat with early overwing fairing...

Any picture please ?

Thanks !

Hi,

 

I have never seen it either. I only have the profile from the Fightertown decals and I gather from the books that Block 65 Tomcats were built with the early overwing fairing.

I am not entirely sure if 158627 still had that early overwing fairing and braces, which is why I ask for confirmation in my post here from the 18th of August.

Personally, I do believe that she would not have been converted to the later configuration prior to delivery in June 1973.

While the Fightertown profile shows the original short gun port and lack of gun vents, the braces look the same as in the profiles of the later VF-1 Tomcats.

 

It's a bit odd that we apparantly don't have pictures of the delivery of the first Tomcat to a fleet squadron. I'd have expected that the event would have been covered by official Navy  photographers, Grumman photographers and the press.

 

Cheers, Stefan.

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1 hour ago, Stefan buysse said:

Hi,

 

I have never seen it either. I only have the profile from the Fightertown decals and I gather from the books that Block 65 Tomcats were built with the early overwing fairing.

I am not entirely sure if 158627 still had that early overwing fairing and braces, which is why I ask for confirmation in my post here from the 18th of August.

Personally, I do believe that she would not have been converted to the later configuration prior to delivery in June 1973.

While the Fightertown profile shows the original short gun port and lack of gun vents, the braces look the same as in the profiles of the later VF-1 Tomcats.

 

It's a bit odd that we apparantly don't have pictures of the delivery of the first Tomcat to a fleet squadron. I'd have expected that the event would have been covered by official Navy  photographers, Grumman photographers and the press.

 

Cheers, Stefan.

Ha ha Stefan ...!!! Look what I found...

What do you think about this one... if I tell you I typed "F-14A early wing cover " on google...?

What is your take...?

After having looked at it for a good 15 min and compared, it seem to me that what we see here is production strakes with pre-production early long wing cover...the end towards the fin bases are too straight to be late-style cover...

or not ?

 

IMG_4812.JPG

Edited by Air one
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3 hours ago, Air one said:

 

Ha ha Stefan ...!!! Look what I found...

What do you think about this one... if I tell you I typed "F-14A early wing cover " on google...?

What is your take...?

After having looked at it for a good 15 min and compared, it seem to me that what we see here is production strakes with pre-production early long wing cover...the end towards the fin bases are too straight to be late-style cover...

or not ?

 

IMG_4812.JPG

That's interesting! It does look like it has the preproduction overwing sweep area. Yet it has the longer gun muzzle with the seven louvered vents. Strange...very strange!

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It seem that just about every configuration could have been done in those early days...but the picture I found lack some resolution... I am not sure but this may be the proof that we were looking for...

Another clearer picture could suit me.... but.... it seem hard to find ... just a picture of 163223 in VX-23 markings!

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1 hour ago, Darren Roberts said:

That's interesting! It does look like it has the preproduction overwing sweep area. Yet it has the longer gun muzzle with the seven louvered vents. Strange...very strange!

 

Disagree, on the pre-production configuration the outer pair of raised ribs / strakes are noticably taller and longer than the inner pair, in this pic all four look to be the same length. Also the early version had a distinct separate leading edge cap on the outer strakes, visibly different than the production version.

 

I went thru all my Tomcat books and all the pics I found of VF-1 & VF-2 taken in 1974 show the production configuration. I'm still researching when the change was made. 

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3 hours ago, habu2 said:

 

Disagree, on the pre-production configuration the outer pair of raised ribs / strakes are noticably taller and longer than the inner pair, in this pic all four look to be the same length. Also the early version had a distinct separate leading edge cap on the outer strakes, visibly different than the production version.

 

I went thru all my Tomcat books and all the pics I found of VF-1 & VF-2 taken in 1974 show the production configuration. I'm still researching when the change was made. 

In my head, I'm pretty confident that all the -1 and -2 jets were Block 70 on cruise. But that picture perplexes me. The strakes are the standard smaller ones, but look how the wings sweep area curves backward away from the strake. It should curve toward the strake. Then again, it could just be an trick of light. I would love to have a clearer resolution picture. 

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In the old Aero Series (#25) book there are two pictures of a VF-1 Tomcat with the short muzzle port, page 72 and 93.

 

All the Tomcat's with the short muzzle port had the early pre-production overwing fairing strakes.

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3 hours ago, Darren Roberts said:

In my head, I'm pretty confident that all the -1 and -2 jets were Block 70 on cruise.

 

Jon Lake's book says the fairing and strake changed on the first Block 70 158978. That would imply the Block 60 & 65 airframes (158612-158637) had the original long strakes & fairing.  Did those early jets go to VF-124 ???

 

Edit  (based on DD-250 info)

158612 (first Block 60) stayed with Grumman for development testing

158613, 614, 616 & 619 went to Pax River

158615, 617 & 618 went to VX-4 NMC

158620 (first Block 65), 622 thru 634 & 637 went to VF-124 at Miramar

158621, 635 & 636 went to Norfolk PAR

158978 (first Block 70) went to VX-4

158979 thru 159000 went to CVA-1 (VF-1 & VF-2) at Miramar

Edited by habu2
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23 hours ago, Air one said:

 

Ha ha Stefan ...!!! Look what I found...

What do you think about this one... if I tell you I typed "F-14A early wing cover " on google...?

What is your take...?

After having looked at it for a good 15 min and compared, it seem to me that what we see here is production strakes with pre-production early long wing cover...the end towards the fin bases are too straight to be late-style cover...

or not ?

 

IMG_4812.JPG

The aircraft pictured does not have the early style overwing fairing or strakes, what you are seeing is a discolorating in the air bag caused by the wing when it is swept back. The strakes are the late style.

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8 hours ago, GW8345 said:

The aircraft pictured does not have the early style overwing fairing or strakes, what you are seeing is a discolorating in the air bag caused by the wing when it is swept back. The strakes are the late style.

I think you nailed it. In habu 2's link to the higher resolution photo, you can see on the other side that it's the standard sweep area. I kept an open mind because I've learned to never say never!

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20 hours ago, habu2 said:

 

Jon Lake's book says the fairing and strake changed on the first Block 70 158978. That would imply the Block 60 & 65 airframes (158612-158637) had the original long strakes & fairing.  Did those early jets go to VF-124 ???

 

Edit  (based on DD-250 info)

158612 (first Block 60) stayed with Grumman for development testing

158613, 614, 616 & 619 went to Pax River

158615, 617 & 618 went to VX-4 NMC

158620 (first Block 65), 622 thru 634 & 637 went to VF-124 at Miramar

158621, 635 & 636 went to Norfolk PAR

158978 (first Block 70) went to VX-4

158979 thru 159000 went to CVA-1 (VF-1 & VF-2) at Miramar

Lake would actually be incorrect. The standard wing sweep area was on the first Block 60 aircraft (158612). Here's where it gets interesting. 612 has the early louvered gun vent, but 613 has the short gun muzzle. 614-617 are inconclusive from the Tomcat Alley book. 618 has the louvered gun vent, but there's a VX-4 jet behind it that has the short gun muzzle. Then comes the Block 65 aircraft. 620 has the early gun vent, but 621 has the short gun muzzle! I can't understand why the short gun muzzle was interspersed in the production run with the early gun vent.  

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Just want to point out that the mid-barrel clamp panel (what everyone is calling the "louvered gun vent") was interchangeable between aircraft so I won't use it to judge an aircraft's block number. I've put early panels on late block A's (and a few A+'s) when I was VF-101 when we were cycling the panels through AIMD to get them mod'ed with the new NACA vents. The A+'s panels had to be sent to airframes to get repaired when the gun yoke broke, allowing the gun to shift and rub against the panel. Once the panels were mod'ed/repaired they were reinstalled on the planes they came from but for a few weeks we had some late block Tomcat's with the early panels and a few A+'s that didn't have the NACA vents.

 

Now there's a unique thing you can model that would drive the Tomcat mafia insane. :woot.gif:

 

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1 hour ago, GW8345 said:

Just want to point out that the mid-barrel clamp panel (what everyone is calling the "louvered gun vent") was interchangeable between aircraft so I won't use it to judge an aircraft's block number. I've put early panels on late block A's (and a few A+'s) when I was VF-101 when we were cycling the panels through AIMD to get them mod'ed with the new NACA vents. The A+'s panels had to be sent to airframes to get repaired when the gun yoke broke, allowing the gun to shift and rub against the panel. Once the panels were mod'ed/repaired they were reinstalled on the planes they came from but for a few weeks we had some late block Tomcat's with the early panels and a few A+'s that didn't have the NACA vents.

 

Now there's a unique thing you can model that would drive the Tomcat mafia insane. :woot.gif:

 

Wwooowww....

Yeah there can be some hot discussion goin on with a kit modeled like this!

And yes guys, Hi-Rez pictures are a must... so,this Tomcat unicorn is still wandering untamed....!

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