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AMK Tomcat - High Entropy


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Hi everyone, just started to work on the much debated AMK's F-14D rendition...

 

Of all the shape issues the most annoying to my eyes is the IFR:

 

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not a perfect fix but wanted to save most of the details.

 

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time to restore some rivets...

 

Edited by Andrea Bolla
Title change
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Switching to the other side working on Naca intakes:

 

y4mq0ayQ1nyp7tkUNVIBT1iAfJmf7k-qmWzyMAiZ

 

one piece nose section is amazing but working on the inside is quite difficult: hard to reach spots, plastic quite thick, lot of vibration clamping the milling bit just for few mm but is doable

 

y4mx_bD2wLv2jRdMa0aii9bVHHpYd-ZnN7pjogh6

 

now the smaller ones...

 

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Filled the NACA and ready to proceed; while melted plastic was hardening I drilled deeper the slime light frame rivets and sanded down a bit the frame itself.

 

y4mp5Rb2m54LnOZzc25NivyR-2wKkFc1FSODm0ZZ

 

 

Following this post:

 

 

I decided to cut the MLG oleo and to add a metal polished rod so I had to fill these holes:

 

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a little bit of Milliput and MrSurfacer for the ejection pin marks fixed everything:

 

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plan to end work on the front fuselage while waiting for DACO book to arrive...

 

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Real job kept me quite busy these days so just a little modeling done:

 

y4mUgOmsMVF-sJo5lgSwYT44MUxRZr5PDR8Dbmd2

 

cut a vinyl mask to re-scribe the lower NACA, gave a bit of primer (no photo taken sorry) to mark better the new position but found that filler was not perfect...

 

Waiting for MrSurfacer to fully cure started to polish the clear parts: just a few minutes with a soft nail polish stick and a light buff with Novus 2 followed by Novus 1 and the mold lines are gone:

 

y4m4ZJrc2z4VBkrNcAZnaKrnC5VP2QletA1aAbho

 

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mold line was a little heavier on the right rear part so I have to re-check the painted part.

 

Still not sure if If I will use the multipart canopy I just tried a quick dry fit:

 

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transparent parts are not polished yet, just a quick look...

Edited by Andrea Bolla
typo fix
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  • 2 weeks later...

Just another small update:

 

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y4me3fzWoiVN-cuUCISkeB-Wp7rdRiZsZVlGyfFt

 

modded the IFR receptacle support to match the modified door and, instead following instructions, glued part U2 before inserting the tub/well compound into fuselage.

 

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y4mohoXamUZYM4Xxgt-P4JsDOZuLPFEyZM_pfXuY

 

everything fits good so far.

 

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y4mlaWvbsRcnzrbkaPEchxbnRnzS7t68-EfJXpck

 

intake trunks needs taking care of ejector pin marks and a bit of sanding to remove tool machining marks; fit is really good so they will become seamless with just a bit of MrSurfacer.

 

DACO book just arrived so I started working on the MLG cutting the oleo and preparing to replace it with a polished metal rod:

 

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while drilling the upper part a bit of Milliput come loose...

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Hi everyone, after a long hiatus I'm resurrecting this build: putting aside the nose section that caused this stop I worked on the engines;

 

decided to split the one-piece tubes into three sections to make it easier fixing the seam and paint:

 

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to clean the seam on the corrugated tubes I made a "tool" with superfine Milliput simply pressed on the inner surface:

 

y4m52fgNAHi6RVLez7lRLqXsepn2L1aKxCfCBmyP

 

and then, working with a small ball milling bit on the two halves before gluing them, made enough space for a good amount of superfine Milliput and formed it with the "tool".

 

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Using the closed nozzle as a template I drew a mask and cut them with a Silhouette Portrait:

 

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not perfect but a near miss...

 

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Still working on the engines, both the low pressure turbine and the augmentor gutter are badly replicated in the kit parts:

 

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and the worst part in this kit:

 

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Thought about some aftermarket replacement but considering that IMHO the best representation of this area is/was done by Shawn Hull or KA Models, the first long OOP and the latter more expensive than the kit itself I decided to design my own replacement parts:

 

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first test confirms it's printable on my YHD-101: have to fix a couple of things in my 3D model and repair the UV curing station but hope to have them ready in a few days

 

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  • Andrea Bolla changed the title to AMK Tomcat - High Entropy

Hi everyone, the time spent around engine design and test was filled filled working on several areas of the model generating an high entropy build;

 

at first I was curious about draping decals over cockpit panels, something I have never done before: gave a base coat of paint  matching the decal color for the panels and then applied decals wetting them with microset solution and completing with a few coats of microsol

 

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decals performed very well with microscale products, without silvering or excessive distortions.

 

Cockpit tub received just a basic paint because with pilots on their seats it will be impossible to see anything.

 

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For the pilots a friend gave me an Aerobonus F-18 pilot with seat to test, but the resin seat has a very different angle and it does not fit at all...

 

before looking for a different solution I decided to try a bit of surgery: made a quick copy of the resin seat (just to save the original one if the test gave a positive result) and then: 

 

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fit is promising, need to work a bit on the legs but it seems feasible;

 

added the sides from the plastic parts and a bit of putty

 

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now have to do it again twice on the original ones...

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Did the same surgery on the original resin parts and decided to keep much more of the plastic bits:

 

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trying to differentiate a bit the two figures I added a kneepad to the pilot and also removed the oxygen masks and added the floating bags; a new oxygen mask will come from a couple of Academy pilots.

 

At first I thought it would be impossible to fit the pilot with his boots, so I removed them but found it was not enough: cut the legs and changed the angle a bit solved the problem and made room for the boots too... but they were gone so I used those from my early recast even if they are not as crisp as the original ones.

 

Now a question for the experts: HGU33 or HGU55, which helmet was in use on last Tomcat cruise? I'm oriented to do a machine from VF-31 using decals from "Fightertown Decals Tomcats at War Part 3".

 

And also considering that I would like to add a bit of entropy to the cockpit: how is common to have the pilot and the RIO wearing different color flightsuit?

 

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Helmets would be either a HGU-55/P or a HGU-68/P (www.flighthelmet.com has pics ) and, the O2 masks would be either MBU-12, MBU-14 or MBU-20.

As far as the flightsuits go, considering the time period your building, I would think any combination could be possible.

 

Steve

"TOMCATS FOREVER, BABY...!"

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Just a small update, put some paint here and there... I know painting figures in not really my best skill

 

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decided to go with a tan (a bit to dark) flightsuit for both figures and added a new canvas cover giving it a "soft" look

 

y4mq8OrOZkuLxqPMOJDMB-NEMUiAihtT4gALmLKb

 

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