Improving Hasegawa 1:48 Tomcat – 21: Wings (VI)

[Thadeus]

Oh I hate not finishing models. Even if I cut corners or diverge from the initial ambitious plan I try to finish a kit once started. Although my most ambitious project is a far cry from Your Tomcat.

With such a magnificent build like Yours, I hope You'll not get too distracted from finishing it because of a minor thing such as wheel wells.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed for You!

[Lucio Martino]

@Mr. Happy
@RichB63
@Sernak
Thank you all. It is because of your interest that my Hasegawa Tomcat is again on the workbench.

 

@Storm
About the Aires stuff I do agree with you. Every time it is always the same, an exercise in cutting and sanding. Check this thread to see how much I had to work on the Aires cockpit to get a fit. That's why I didn't go for the Aires wheell wells. Nice to know that I am not the only one loosing interest in a build.

 

@A-10 Loader
Thank you for your offer that I decline. Back in the days, I had five Hasegawa Tomcats in my stash: an early A, two A, a B, and a D. As soon as I got the rumor that Tamiya was realesing a new 1:48 Tomcat I sold them all with the only exception of the A now on my workbench.

 

@Gwen phoenix
Thank you very much for your interest. I have to say that 2021 and 2022 weren't good years for me in general, and for my hobby in particular. But now is getting much better and I'm curious to see how far this build will go. Stay tuned.

 

@Thadeus
I know, it is strange, but for me finishing a model is not so important. What is important for me is spending enjoyable time working on that model. And yes, you're rigth, I shouldn't focus so much on the wheel wells.
 

_____________________________________________

 

Improving Hasegawa 1:48 Tomcat – 15
Wings (I)

 

In the end, I shouldn't have forgotten that my goal was to improve this kit, not to build a "perfect" replica. Otherwise, the Tamiya Tomcat 1:48, or the one in 1:32 from the same company, would have been a much better choice. With that in mind, I've just retrieved my Hasegawa Tomcat off the shelf of doom.

 

Let's start from the Hasegawa wings (pic 233).

 

 

Dimensionally, and shapewise, the Hasegawa wings in the "clean" configuration are fine (pic 234).

 

 

Unfortunately, the same is not true about the "dirty" configuration. As David W. Aungst explained twenty years ago on Hyperscale (1), Hasegawa's flaps are too long in their chord (pic 235).

 

 

To increase their accuracy they should be shortened by something like three millimeters. In my opinion, the best way to do it would be cutting away the slice of plastic between the two panel lines running near the leading edge of the flap (pic 236).

 

 

In addition to the inaccurate flaps, each Hasegawa wing is lacking four of the six hinges/actuators that connect the wing to the flap (pic 237).

 

 

Not to mention that these two "hinges/actuators", generously made available by Hasegawa, are ridiculously basic, being nothing more than a strip of plastic. As a result, I strongly suggest anyone who dares to build this kit to go for the "clean" wing configuration.

 

Instead of getting my razor blades and giving to my "neurosurgeon" skills a chance, just to engage soon after into a scratchbuilding effort aimed at duplicating the six hinges/actuators for each wing, my lazy solution was to take advantage of my friend Alberto Borzellino offer and to discard the Hasegawa wings altogether for the AMK ones, whose flaps are of the rigth dimensions out of the box, not to mention the level of detail shown by the AMK hinges/actuators. By the way, AMK is giving not two hinge/actuators but all twelve of them... (pics 238, 239).

 

 

 

Pic 240 shows the AMK on top of the Hasegawa wing.

 

 

Dimensionally they are quite much the same. The most important difference is a step running all along the leading edge area. A step rightly missing on the AMK wing, as you can see on pic 241. Rightly because there is no step there on a Grumman Tomcat wing.

 

 

About the AMK wings, my only real criticism concerns the heavily engraved panels, but it is an easy fix (pic 242).

 

 

By the way, the dimensions of the AMK flaps are very, but very, close to the dimensions of the flaps of that Tamiya Tomcat famous for being the most accurate replica of this aircraft released so far.

 

So, the problem now is how to get the AMK wings mating the Hasegawa fuselage.

 

(1) https://www.hyperscale.com/features/2001/f14constructiondwa_3.htm

 

Edited March 22, 2023 by Lucio Martino

[Lucio Martino]

 

Improving Hasegawa 1:48 Tomcat – 16
Wings (II)

 

Mating the AMK wings with the Hasegawa fuselages turned out to be much easier than I thought. Clearly, these two kits have a lot more in common than it seems at first glance.

 

In my opinion, the best strategy to insert the AMK wings into the Hasegawa fuselage is to adapt AMK central spar, part V3 (pic 243 and 244), to the Hasegawa upper fuselage, part A7 (pic 245).

 

 

 

 

To this exent, only three quite simple steps were required: The first was to cut off the two pins on part AMK V3; the second was to increase the diameter of the two holes on the part AMK V3; The third was to shorten the distance between the two holes removing a slice of plastic from the middle of part AMK V3.

 

Pic 246 shows the cutter used to remove the pins from AMK V3, the mitre box and the saw used to cut AMK V3 in two halves, and the drill bit used to increase the diameter of the AMK V3 holes to the needed five millimeters (pic 247).

 

 

 

Pic 248 and 249 show the original and the enlarged hole (apologies for the low quality pics).

 

 

 

After cutting the part AMK V3 part in two (pic 250, 251), I kept removing a little of plastic from both halves until they were barely touching each other (pic 252).

 

 

 

 

At this point, using some Evergreen stripe to give the bond greater strength, I glued together the two part AMK V3 halves (pic 253 and 254).

 

 

 

In the following pics (255, 256, and 257) you can see part AMK V3 inserted into the AMK wings and then all this assembly inserted  into the Hasegawa fuselage. Any feedback is very welcome.
 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited March 26, 2023 by Lucio Martino

[SERNAK]

The step running all along the leading edge area is a classic Hasegawa 'trademark'! The Skyhawk has it, The F-111 has. The F-86 has it and so on. But it's an easy fix.

[Lucio Martino]

 

 

Improving Hasegawa 1:48 Tomcat – 17
Wings (III)

 

When it comes to the wings I have to say that the AMK instructions are somewhat confusing, drawings are relatively small and very "crowded". However, before I venture into actually building the wing, there are a couple of things I'd like to figure out with your help.

 

The first is the angle of the wing spoilers when they are deployed while the flaps are extended. According to AMK they are almost vertical to the wing, but I think that is wrong for a plane sitting on the ground.

 

 

And then I have no idea about about how painting of part A7 and B7 (pic 259). The best pic of this area I saw is on pag. 31 of the Daco book, but it is far from being useful for detail painting.

 

 

Edited March 26, 2023 by Lucio Martino

[GW8345]

Red with white actuators and linkages.

[Lucio Martino]

@GW8345

I have another question for you: What about the flap actuators? Red or natural metal?

 

_____________________________________________

 

 

Improving Hasegawa 1:48 Tomcat - 18: Undercarriage Legs, Wheels, Seats, and Canopy (II)

 

Sorry for the bad quality of the following photos.

 

Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't think possible that the F-14 undercarriage legs are as angled back as in the Hasegawa offering. Something must be wrong (see pic 260).

 

 

Maybe the main legs are too short or maybe parts F78 and F79 are too long. I don't know. However, this project has already burned me out so much that honestly I haven't even tried to figure out which of these two hypotheses is correct. So, I opted for a shortcut: I did another hole a little further in which insterting the pin of piece C in order to get the undercarriage leg slightly more vertical (see pic 261).

 

Any feedback is very welcome.

Edited April 21, 2023 by Lucio Martino

[Gwen Phoenix]

Ciao Lucio,

Your shortcut happens to be exactly the option I recall someone had resorted to in order to fix this issue with the main landing gear legs in the Hasegawa kit.

I've got the G-Factor brass set for my build, but I'm quite sure it's exactly the same size as the Hasegawa offering.

Looking forward to your progress.

Cheers bambino.

 

Gwen

 

PS: I'm still trying to find the build thread where a modeller sorted the issue with the lenght on the MLG leg in the Hasegawa kit.

Perhaps some other members on here remember about that fix?

 

 

[Lucio Martino]

@Gwen,

Thank you again for your attention.

Yes, the G-Brass legs are copies of the original ones but much stronger, and that is really good !

 

_____________________________________________

 

 

Improving Hasegawa 1:48 Tomcat - 18: Undercarriage Legs, Wheels, Seats, and Canopy (III)

 

With some plain plasticard I hided the two original holes making the side bulkhead of the main legs whells more interesting. Well, it's all "gizmology", no accuracy here. Soon after, I began the tedious job of reproducing that tangle of tubes and cables characteristic of the undercarriage wheels only to find out that I really no longer have the needed stamina... so I stopped quite early, finding comfort in the thought that not much will be visible when the model is finished (see pics 263-267).

 

 

 

 

 

 

As a consequence of my changes, parts F23 and F24 became too short but some very short pieces of the smallest Evergreen rod came to the rescue (pics 268-269).

 

 

 

And pics 270 and 271 show a dry fit:

 

 

 

Again any feedback is very welcome.

Edited April 25, 2023 by Lucio Martino

[Gwen Phoenix]

21 hours ago, Lucio Martino said:

With some plain plasticard I hid the two original holes making the side bulkhead of the main legs wells more interesting. Well, it's all "gizmology", no accuracy here. Soon after, I began the tedious job of reproducing that tangle of tubes and cables characteristic of the undercarriage wheels only to find out that I really no longer have the needed stamina... so I stopped quite early, finding comfort in the thought that not much will be visible when the model is finished.

 

Hi bambino,

The main landing gear wells are looking busy enough, I'd say. In the end, as you've said it yourself, not much of it will be visible after the kit sits on her legs anyway.

Had better keep your stamina for working on details that will be a lot more visible than that, such as the bang seats, windshield and canopy.

After that, you're done with the detailing and/or correcting, aren't you, Lucio?

 

Any fellow modellers reading this: Please, anyone of you who have built the AMK 1/48 Tomcat D kit with her wings swept back, and still have part V3 to part with, let me buy it from you. Drop me a PM or just say it out loud on here. Thanks chaps.

Cheers,

 

Gwen 

 

PS: Bummer, I'm still not able to find that build thread where the length on the MLG scissors in the Hasegawa Tomcat kit was sorted out.   

Edited April 26, 2023 by Gwen Phoenix
Forgot to finish a sentence, just like Dory from Finding Nemo

[Lucio Martino]

I have two questions regarding the F-14 wings.

First: I don't know what to do with the wing spoilers. According to this reference:
http://www.anft.net/f-14/f14-detail-wingcontrol.htm
I have three options: 1) down, 2) up 5°, 3) up 15°.
Which of these three possibilities is the most congruous with the following configuration: canopy open, only rear step open, ladder closed, tail airbrake open, and wings in the "dirty" configuration.

Second: According the same source, in a landing configuration slats should be down at 17°. Now that I am working on the AMK wings, I can't tell if the AMK slats are really dropping at 17°. Anybody out there in the know ?

Edited May 2, 2023 by Lucio Martino

[lgl007]

Lucio... firstly you are a MAD MAN... MAD MAN... I tell you... but HUGE respect.  The work you are doing here and sharing with us is nothing short of encyclopedic and extremely welcome.  But damn, where were you when I started building mine a few years ago... I'm finishing her off now.  This reference would have been truly invaluable.

 

Wonderful stuff!

 

-Greg

[GW8345]

11 hours ago, Lucio Martino said:

I have two questions regarding the F-14 wings.

First: I don't know what to do with the wing spoilers. According to this reference:
http://www.anft.net/f-14/f14-detail-wingcontrol.htm
I have three options: 1) down, 2) up 5°, 3) up 15°.
Which of these three possibilities is the most congruous with the following configuration: canopy open, only rear step open, ladder closed, tail airbrake open, and wings in the "dirty" configuration.

Second: According the same source, in a landing configuration slats should be down at 17°. Now that I am working on the AMK wings, I can't tell if the AMK slats are really dropping at 17°. Anybody out there in the know ?

If I may;

 

For the configuration you are doing (canopy open, only rear step open, ladder closed, tail airbrake open, and wings in the "dirty" configuration) I would recommend the flaps/slats in the landing configuration and the spoilers at 55 degrees. This is the configuration the aircraft would be in for maintenance (phase) and getting a wash job.

 

As to the AMK kit's slats being at 17 degrees, sorry, can't help with that, don't have the kit.

 

hth

GW

[Lucio Martino]

14 hours ago, GW8345 said:

If I may;

 

For the configuration you are doing (canopy open, only rear step open, ladder closed, tail airbrake open, and wings in the "dirty" configuration) I would recommend the flaps/slats in the landing configuration and the spoilers at 55 degrees. This is the configuration the aircraft would be in for maintenance (phase) and getting a wash job.

 

As to the AMK kit's slats being at 17 degrees, sorry, can't help with that, don't have the kit.

 

hth

GW

 

Thank you for your prompt answer.

 

Nothing set in stone yet but of all early F-14A here is where I am going to:

https://www.airfighters.com/photo/184737/M/USA-Navy/Grumman-F-14A-Tomcat/161135/

 

Not perfectly my planned configuration, canopy is closed instead of open and I can't tell about the airbrake, but it's almost there. Can't tell either if the spoilers are shut flat or up the 5 or 15 degrees, surely they aren't at 55, that's why I was asking.

 

I trust you that the 55 would be the most accurate, but - honestly - I don't like it. Barring 55°, what would be your pick: flat, 5°, 15°

 

Thank you again, Lucio

 

 

[GW8345]

2 hours ago, Lucio Martino said:

 

Thank you for your prompt answer.

 

Nothing set in stone yet but of all early F-14A here is where I am going to:

https://www.airfighters.com/photo/184737/M/USA-Navy/Grumman-F-14A-Tomcat/161135/

 

Not perfectly my planned configuration, canopy is closed instead of open and I can't tell about the airbrake, but it's almost there. Can't tell either if the spoilers are shut flat or up the 5 or 15 degrees, surely they aren't at 55, that's why I was asking.

 

I trust you that the 55 would be the most accurate, but - honestly - I don't like it. Barring 55°, what would be your pick: flat, 5°, 15°

 

Thank you again, Lucio

 

 

IIRC, the 5 and 15 degree only happened in flight or with electrical/hydraulic power applied to the aircraft so to do it on deck without the engines running or power/hydrualic power applied would not be accurate. In order to get the spoilers to "pop" and stay you had to pull the C/B so they were either open 55 degrees or closed when there was no electrical/hydraulic power on the plane.

 

Given a choice, I would go with either keep them closed or have them open to 55 degrees.

Edited May 3, 2023 by GW8345

[Lucio Martino]

@GW8345

First of all I would like you thank you very much. Your help is very important for me.

 

_________________________________

 

 

Improving Hasegawa 1:48 Tomcat - 18: Undercarriage Legs, Wheels, Seats, and Canopy (IV)

 

Another update, a short one. This time it is about the undercarriage doors. In my opinion, out of the box they are too bare (pic 272).

 

 

Just to make them looking a little more interesting, first I thinned them somewhat (pic 273).

 

 

Then, I enhanced their appearance with some 10X20 Evergreen stripes (pic 274).

 

 

Again, I was very, very, but very, freely inspired by the real stuff...

 

Edited May 20, 2023 by Lucio Martino

[Gwen Phoenix]

Ciao bambino! 

How are you doing, Lucio? Nice to see some more progress on your build.

I finally managed to get my part V3 for the AMK F-14D kit on my way from Perú, courtesy of @Manuel J. Armas S.

Incidentally; how are you going to replace the wingtip slime light parts J5/J11 on your AMK wings? 

Cheers,

 

Gwen

 

[Lucio Martino]

@Gwen Phoenix

I am doing well, thank you, and I am happy to read that you are getting part V3.

Your question about replacing pats J5 and J11 is a very good one...

______________________________

 

 

Improving Hasegawa 1:48 Tomcat – 19: Wings (IV)

 

... the best solution would have been to create a resin copy of parts J5 and J11 but I've never had an AMK Tomcat. The AMK wings that I'm using in this project are leftovers from a kit already assembled with the wings at maximum sweep by my friend Alberto Borzellino, and I haven't found the courage to ask somebody else to cut these two parts from the sprues and lend them to me for the necessary time to make the silicone moulds.

 

In the end, I went very old school and resorted to my much loved Evergreen plasticard. After having firmly glued the plasticard in place, using the Hasegawa wings as a template, I shaped the plasticard bits with my no less beloved sanding sticks, as shown in photos 274, 275, 276, and 277.

 

 

 

 

 

For what concerns the proper slime ligths, I am planning to go with the Hasegawa decals, but we will see.

 

Another solution that I have been evaluating for a while was to cut off the wingtips of the AMK wings and to replace them with Hasegawa wingtips, but I discarded it because it was risky.

 

Edited June 6 by Lucio Martino

[Thadeus]

Nice detail on the wheel well covers. Good call on filling the slime lights with plasticard. I guess You could fill them with some clear plastic, and then try to paint them with diluted green colour. But this way You'd get two different types of slime lights, one on the wingtips, other on the entire fuselage and tails. I guess decals or just paint is a better way.

[Gwen Phoenix]

On 5/21/2023 at 9:27 PM, Lucio Martino said:

@Gwen Phoenix

Your question about replacing pats J5 and J11 is a very good one...

 

 

Oh, of course...  I had completely forgotten the fact that I was the noob here... 😄 You've sorted it the expert way.

Ciao bambino... please don't be too long on another update.

Cheers,

 

Gwen 

[Gwen Phoenix]

Ciao, Lucio! 

Any more progress on this, hun?  I'm starting having trouble breathing in now. 

Cheers, 

 

Gwen

Edited July 21, 2023 by Gwen Phoenix
Adding a couple Emoticons to the post

[Gwen Phoenix]

It's already past high time that this thread be updated by now... Lucio, are you there, hun?

[Gwen Phoenix]

I always wake up with the hope that there would be further progress on this build thread. 

Almost a whole year has gone by now since the last update.

[Lucio Martino]

Apologies for the long break.

My eyes didn't work well enough to keep up on this project. Now, after surgery, I see even better than before.

Before going back to the real stuff, I need to thank you all for your long standing interest.

 

_________________

 

Improving Hasegawa 1:48 Tomcat – 20: Wings (V)

 

Assembling the AMK wings was much more complex and laborious than I ever expected.  First, the wing parts, all of them, fit together very imprecisely, requiring a lot of preparation work.  Great care must be taken to prepare the gluing of the parts that replicate the wing spoilers to the upper wings to avoid unrealistic gaps, having decided to fit them closed.  In this regard, see the following photos:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After long dry fitting, best was for me to first gluing the flap actuators to their base and than to the wing half (see pics 286-289). 

 

 

 

 

More on the wing assembly very soon and thank you again for your attention.

Edited June 6 by Lucio Martino

[Gwen Phoenix]

Ciao, Lucio! 

How have you been? It's very nice to have you back on the bench with this impressive build. Your work is outstanding; quite interesting.

I've managed to break one of those flap actuators (the half round portion that butts up into the flap surface) on the AMK wings. I was having a brew, goofed and the actuator just went flying into oblivion. Then I was completely unable to recover it from the carpet monster, of course. But I'm confident that I can scratchbuild it from plastic sprue; no biggie. 

You've had your videos checked, huh? Good for you.

Hope to see some more progress very soon.

Cheers,

 

Gwen