Academy 1/48 F-4 Phantom question

[Hornet14]

Just picked up the VF-84 boxing of the Academy F-4 today and looking at the parts it seems to have the B/C radar dome and USAF weapon parts. My question is how many parts are similar between the C and J boxing's and can one be built from the other considering the external differences the versions have? I'm no Phantom expert so any help would be greatly appreciated.

[CreepyGuy]

They have a lot of similar parts, and you can do different versions from one box... HOWEVER, there are only Navy style pylons in the box.... and USN style gauges.  The C boxing has the inside parts for a C or a D.

[Hornet14]

Ok thanks would it be possible for a N or S out of the J boxing then as the other USN versions?

[CreepyGuy]

The N has the thin wing of the B model, so no... You could make an EARLY version of the S, without the wing slats, BUT you would need to add the slime lights, and the additional strengthening pieces that were added under the main fuselage/wing area.  Honestly, most people would not notice the difference between a J and an early S

[Hornet14]

Ok thanks that's a big help for someone who doesn't know much about F-4s beyond the basics of the different models. 

[BillS]

Externally the other considerations are the a/r differences; AF has the slipway,  Nav had the probe and light on the right side. Nav also had chaff/flair dispensers on the aft intermediate fuselage, inbd pylons as mentioned and wheel/brake were different. Check ecm antenna placement differences depending on period. 

[Darren Roberts]

On 9/7/2019 at 4:46 PM, Hornet14 said:

Ok thanks would it be possible for a N or S out of the J boxing then as the other USN versions?

 

Steel Beach has a conversion to make the S out of the Academy J. It's available at Sprue Bros.

[CreepyGuy]

6 hours ago, Darren Roberts said:

 

Steel Beach has a conversion to make the S out of the Academy J. It's available at Sprue Bros.

And Steel Beach stuff is phenomenal

 

[Darren Roberts]

16 hours ago, CreepyGuy said:

And Steel Beach stuff is phenomenal

 

Thanks for the kind words. I'd say it's functional and decent. There's still a lot I have to learn about casting. It's not the quality of Aires or Eduard, but it doesn't the trick.

[mingwin]

17 hours ago, Darren Roberts said:

Thanks for the kind words. I'd say it's functional and decent. There's still a lot I have to learn about casting. It's not the quality of Aires or Eduard, but it doesn't the trick.

it DOES the trick! and it's greatly appreciated. because, most of the time, you're the only game in town in a lot of subjects/areas...(so, if i haven't done it previously, Thank you for your dedication to the hobby!)

 

[ijozic]

Speaking of Academy's F-4J kit, are the auxiliary air intakes the same dimensions as on F-4B/N? Asking as I never saw Aires releasing the set for the J/S kits.

 

Edited September 12, 2019 by ijozic

[Ben Brown]

2 hours ago, ijozic said:

Speaking of Academy's F-4J kit, are the auxiliary air intakes the same dimensions as on F-4B/N? Asking as I never saw Aires releasing the set for the J/S kits.

 

Yes, they’re the same.

 

Darren, perhaps some kind of simple aux air intake interior might be a good idea for a future product in 1/48? 

 

Ben (looking at the multitude of Phantoms in his stash)

[Darren Roberts]

2 hours ago, Ben Brown said:

Yes, they’re the same.

 

Darren, perhaps some kind of simple aux air intake interior might be a good idea for a future product in 1/48? 

 

Ben (looking at the multitude of Phantoms in his stash)

 

That wouldn't be a bad idea. The other idea I've been toying with is correcting the angle of the refueling door. Is it that big of a deal that it needs a piece of resin? It wouldn't be hard to make an insert for...at least I don't think so. 😁

[Ben Brown]

It might sell, especially for an open refueling door. If you build it closed, it's easy to just fill the seams and rescribe the door in the correct location. Of course, others might prefer a drop-in solution over rescribing. 😁

 

Ben