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Yet another 1/48 Tamiya F-14A


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Hello fellow modellers,

 

I built the hase tomcat 25 years ago and it was my introduction to modelling on a more serious level.

Of course everyone knows that the hase tomcat is not an easy build but there wasn't much choice back then.

Naturally, I was ecstatic to hear news that Tamiya decided to do the F-14. 

It was purchased at first opportunity and it went straight to the top of the build queue.

 

The kit was started in March right after I completed my previous project.

I can't say enough about the engineering. Such a pleasure. Everything fits.

Nonetheless 4 months later, all I have to show is the forward section.
I build slowly :rolleyes:
 

I'm attaching pics via imgur. I hope it works.

 

uZMCg3j.jpg

 

I9pyid5.jpg

JzH18Xn.jpg

 

NUex31E.jpg

QsHeWQc.jpg

 

s3ydmeh.jpg

 

Let me know if the pics don't show for you.

Thanks for looking.

 

 

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On ‎7‎/‎19‎/‎2017 at 6:54 AM, Aigore said:

Coming together nicely :D

 

On ‎7‎/‎20‎/‎2017 at 8:18 AM, A-10 LOADER said:

Great start.

 

Steve

" TOMCATS FOREVER, BABY !"


Thanks guys, I'm a great admirer of your work.

Plugging along...
Sometimes, I find motivation in doing small subassemblies.
Reducing the number of parts by sticking them together is fun :thumbsup:

This time around, it is the landing gear.

Which is weird cos I often find them a chore.

FkLVM5r.jpg

FgLUJrB.jpg

7xAIPCa.jpg

Not sure why they look so clean in the pics.
They have been treated with Tamiya panel black washes and look scruffier in person.
Perhaps I'll give them a once over with some pastels later.

 

Thanks for looking!

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On ‎7‎/‎26‎/‎2017 at 5:48 AM, Aigore said:

Clean is good :D

A bit of wires and your done....great looking wheels!

 

Thanks Janne!

 

On ‎7‎/‎26‎/‎2017 at 7:46 AM, RichB63 said:

Nice paint work!

 

Thanks Rich!

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hey guys,

 

I thought I'd try Hasegawa's adhesive film for the windshield tinting.

 

rIxnnFW.jpg

 

It is like a thin vinyl film. Conforms to shapes really well but a little delicate.
You can see that I had several tries before I was successful.

vZj82zL.jpg

 

It came up a little darker than I would have liked but I'm okay with it.

I also used their matt black film for the interior window framing. Just cut into thin strips and stick on. No masking, really quick to do.

 

The remaining panels on the bottom of the front fuselage got stuck on.

I modified the nose gear with a pin so I can attach the bottom half later. 

 

J2hw7UV.jpg

 

Next I tackled the intakes,

1r2um4J.jpg

 

IXc340U.jpg

 

as well as the main landing gear bays.

 

mA8wZNz.jpg

 

I made a mistake painting that panel next to the intake ramp actuators black but it has since been remedied.

 

bCvkkPL.jpg

 

One last pic before closing up.

 

6ZJ9eFN.jpg

 

I like the detail. Totally missing in the old hase kit.

 

W16ETHO.jpg

 

Oh and one last thing.

This looks like a faint mold line that should cleaned up.

Totally missed it till now.

 

RgPh316.jpg

 

Thanks for looking!

 

 

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CO,

 

The Tomcat looks great: very clean and precise work. A few questions...

 

Regarding the Hasegawa Trytool Finishing Films...how strong is the adhesive? And do they take well to compound curves, say like Bare Metal Foils do? Or are they better suited for flat surfaces, like the front windshield pane?

 

And finally, have you decided on a markings scheme for your Tomcat?

 

Rich

 

 

Edited by RichB63
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2 hours ago, RichB63 said:

CO,

 

The Tomcat looks great: very clean and precise work. A few questions...

 

Regarding the Hasegawa Trytool Finishing Films...how strong is the adhesive? And do they take well to compound curves, say like Bare Metal Foils do? Or are they better suited for flat surfaces, like the front windshield pane?

 

And finally, have you decided on a markings scheme for your Tomcat?

 

Rich

 

 

 

Thanks Rich.

 

With respect to the stickiness of the adhesive, I would say it is slightly stronger than masking tape but weaker than stationary clear cellophane / scotch tape.

Being stretchy, once it's stuck onto something it is hard to remove without deformation.

It is not that sticky, just delicate. I would say that it is thinner than masking vinyl and a little thicker than plumber's tape.
You can see I had to cut out a new piece every time I didn't get the application right.

 

Regarding compound curves, anything that Bare Metal Foil or water slide decals can do, this will do easily.

You can also burnish it into shallow details like canopy framing with a cocktail stick.
While it will tear once it reaches the limits of it's stretchiness just like BMF or decals, it is more stretchy than either.

 

It is a little expensive but I am happy for the option.

I hope that helps.

 

Scheme wise, I'm afraid it is going to be the boxing's Jolly Rogers.
It will replace the one I built 25 years ago that is falling apart.

You gotta have at least one Jolly Roger tomcat in the collection right? ;)

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20 hours ago, CaptainObvious said:

Hey guys,

 

I thought I'd try Hasegawa's adhesive film for the windshield tinting.

 

rIxnnFW.jpg

 

It is like a thin vinyl film. Conforms to shapes really well but a little delicate.
You can see that I had several tries before I was successful.

vZj82zL.jpg

 

It came up a little darker than I would have liked but I'm okay with it.

I also used their matt black film for the interior window framing. Just cut into thin strips and stick on. No masking, really quick to do.

 

The remaining panels on the bottom of the front fuselage got stuck on.

I modified the nose gear with a pin so I can attach the bottom half later. 

 

J2hw7UV.jpg

 

Next I tackled the intakes,

1r2um4J.jpg

 

IXc340U.jpg

 

as well as the main landing gear bays.

 

mA8wZNz.jpg

 

I made a mistake painting that panel next to the intake ramp actuators black but it has since been remedied.

 

bCvkkPL.jpg

 

One last pic before closing up.

 

6ZJ9eFN.jpg

 

I like the detail. Totally missing in the old hase kit.

 

W16ETHO.jpg

 

Oh and one last thing.

This looks like a faint mold line that should cleaned up.

Totally missed it till now.

 

RgPh316.jpg

 

Thanks for looking!

 

 

I had the same mold line as well.  It was a bit of a pain considering how nice the rest of the plastic was.  Anyways, good to see your progress!

 

Steve

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On 8/8/2017 at 2:48 AM, CaptainObvious said:

Oh and one last thing.

This looks like a faint mold line that should cleaned up.

Totally missed it till now.

 

RgPh316.jpg

I wonder if that's a plastic flow line? That is, the plastic flowed into the cavity from multiple locations and that's where it met within the cavity. I've seen that sort of artifact on other kits.

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10 hours ago, Falconxlvi said:

I had the same mold line as well.  It was a bit of a pain considering how nice the rest of the plastic was.  Anyways, good to see your progress!

 

Steve

 

Thanks Steve.

You've hit the nail on the head. The kit is so good it lulls you into a sense of complacency. Which was why I missed it ;) 

 

 

3 hours ago, dnl42 said:

I wonder if that's a plastic flow line? That is, the plastic flowed into the cavity from multiple locations and that's where it met within the cavity. I've seen that sort of artifact on other kits.

 

Hi dnl,

It does look like a flow line. The line is the same on both sides though. That leads me to think that it may be caused by a multi part mold.

Who knows? :dontknow:

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It’s a mold separation line. I didn’t feel like it was difficult at all to remove since it was so faint and the engraving was so good. Worth removing, but pretty unnoticeable if it gets left on.

 

Great progress! I have built two Hasegawa Tomcats in my life, and when I took delivery of my first Tamiya example*, I sold the other four Hasegawa kits. Never again.

 

*There are now 6...

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  • 5 weeks later...
On ‎8‎/‎10‎/‎2017 at 1:44 AM, andrew.deboer said:

It’s a mold separation line. I didn’t feel like it was difficult at all to remove since it was so faint and the engraving was so good. Worth removing, but pretty unnoticeable if it gets left on.

 

Great progress! I have built two Hasegawa Tomcats in my life, and when I took delivery of my first Tamiya example*, I sold the other four Hasegawa kits. Never again.

 

*There are now 6...

 

Yeah, it wasn't difficult to remove at all.

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Hey everyone,

 

I've been sticking the main bits together.

Qin87HK.jpg

 

Here, the forward missile pallets have been glued to the bottom of the front fuselage.


Ot0WoMR.jpg

 

If you knocked down these 2 locating pins a little, the front fuselage can slide and lock into the corresponding holes on the aft fuselage.
They can also be separated with ease by lifting up on the pallets with gentle pressure. The pallets act like latches.

 

91wYNh2.jpg

 

b4cZpvq.jpg

 

Masking is not fun.

 

V9mDkiV.jpg

 

Primed in black.

 

O4IVIN1.jpg

 

Putty, sand and rescribe the inevitable seams that you find.

 

mM9WfxV.jpg

 

She's a big model, so being able to separate the halves makes handling easier.

 

kPwQKIT.jpg

 

She's going to be mainly clean gull gray over white but I thought I'd give mottling a go for a little depth.

 

pRIXmVO.jpg

 

6qR1FYo.jpg

 

khq6O9t.jpg

 

I've started on the bottom half using Gunze's Aqueous Hobby Colors.

I like to use them but the only downside seems to be that they remain tacky for a long time. 

I leave finger prints on the finish after weeks of drying.

The only work around I have is to clear coat them with Tamiya X-22.
Does anyone else share this experience? Any help is appreciated.

 

 


 

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On ‎9‎/‎9‎/‎2017 at 11:48 PM, my favs are F`s said:

I always love to see this type of preshading ;)

 

Thanks for stopping by.

Your F-15 is crazy good!

 

 

On ‎9‎/‎9‎/‎2017 at 11:54 PM, Aigore said:

Coming along nicely :D

 

Thanks Aigore. Your intruder is very nice! So much work!

 

On ‎9‎/‎10‎/‎2017 at 0:02 AM, crackerjazz said:

That's the scariest part for me!  I'm taking notes!  : )    Hmm, seems like your paint wasn't dry yet.  I'm not sure if it was a good idea to clear coat already.

 

I do wait a long time for the paint to dry. Weeks later, it is kind of "dry" but it still takes fingerprints. It is something I noticed about gunze's aqueous line of paints.
No biggy, the fingerprints do disappear under a cover coat.

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What did you use to thin the Gunze paints? I had a similar experience years ago when I first tried Gunze paints and used plain alcohol to thin them. Would take forever to stop being sticky. Taught me a lesson - now I always use the thinner issued by the paint manufacturer and everything is fine.

 

HTH

Joerg

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18 hours ago, Joerg said:

What did you use to thin the Gunze paints? I had a similar experience years ago when I first tried Gunze paints and used plain alcohol to thin them. Would take forever to stop being sticky. Taught me a lesson - now I always use the thinner issued by the paint manufacturer and everything is fine.

 

HTH

Joerg


Thanks for chiming in Joerg,

 

I do make it a point of using only the manufacturer's thinners. 
Can't figure it out :dontknow:

Perhaps I'll do many thin layers and wait for the paint to dry in between and see how that goes.

 

Cheers

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I had the exact same experience with the Gunze LGG and White.  Even after two weeks, I had tacky paint.  I mixed Gunze Acrlyic with Mr Color Leveling thinner at about 2:1 thinner to paint, even going closer to 3:1 with no success.  Gunze Super Clear III varnish sealed everything up though.  I will use Tamiya or try MRP paints for my next Tomcat.  

 

Steve

Edited by Falconxlvi
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  • CaptainObvious changed the title to Yet another 1/48 Tamiya F-14A

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