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1/48 F7U Cutlass..."ELITE"


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That's right folks, the "ELITE" edition of the Hobbycraft F7U Cutlass 😳...that makes it only about 3% nicer that the heap of parts you get in the regular boxing of the kit. 

I've always liked Naval Air jets of the 50s, it's my favorite section of the National Museum of Naval Aviation (NMNA) down there in Pensacola. I used to live down that way and worked in Air Ops just up the road from the joint. When our local club would host the "Blue Angel Model Fest" we'd go set up on the Friday night before, and they'd let us climb into the cockpits of the aircraft...and if you wanted to get in the F7U, your butt was climbing high! I sat in it once, and just had to build one. I picked up this kit at "John's Models" around that time, back in the early 2000s or so.

The Elite boxing comes with some p/e made by Airwaves, and then some white metal landing gear. I'll probably use the nose landing gear since the tire bogey is separate and I can pose it turned slightly. The p/e for the instrument face and side consoles is pretty nice, though I did substitute the throttles for my own scratch built ones, along with a landing gear control lever, and added punched out dial faces from Mike Grant Decals. I replaced the stick portion of the control column with a spare Hasegawa A-4 control stick...the kit one is way over sized and clunky looking. The ejection seat is bare bones, but a couple of p/e parts make up the cage like frame structure of it along with belts. I did add a few bits from the spares box to dress up the back side of the seat and headrest area.

I painted the cockpit area Tamiya German Grey (XF-63), and NATO Black (XF-69). The seat is painted Tamiya Field Grey (XF-65), with a Khaki (XF-49) seat cushion.

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The area behind the cockpit is also void of any detail. The canopy is made to slide (though I'm not sure it would make the trip if you look at the pic below...) but I have a Squadron vac canopy I'll be replacing the overly thick kit glass with and posing it open. I filled in the sliding slot and dressed up the area with spare bits of plastic and p/e.

 

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While waiting for the forward fuselage section to set up and dry, I managed to get the aft section top and bottom halves glued together. A little filling and rescribing back in the aft area,  and she's all set. After it was dry, I decided to notch out the wing tip nav lights and make some out of clear sprue.

 

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With both main fuselage sections complete, my next move will be to get them joined up.

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Looking forward to seeing this as  I'm building the same right now as well. Only difference is I have Lonestar cockpit set and SAC gear. Really don't think the kit is that bad.

 

Are you going to "fix" the nose? If so, what will be your approach.  

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29 minutes ago, Chorse6 said:

Looking forward to seeing this as  I'm building the same right now as well. Only difference is I have Lonestar cockpit set and SAC gear. Really don't think the kit is that bad.

 

Are you going to "fix" the nose? If so, what will be your approach.  

Alright cool! I wasn't sure if the Lone Star 'pit was still available or not...then figured, meh, it's got some p/e in there to dress it up some ¯\_()_/¯

 

I'm not going to try and fix the nose any, I'm not enough of an expert on the F7U to even know what is wrong with it. BTW, I did see a Collect Aire forward fuselage replacement set on eBay...yeah, not paying what they're asking. 😵

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A few more progress pics here. I found some shots of the ejection seat on my phone, just to give an idea of the whole of it.

 

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The kit exhausts are really crappy looking, so I'm replacing those with a couple of spare Hasegawa A-4 exhaust pipes mated with the kit nozzle interiors.

 

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The kit arresting hook is a mess, so I cut away the hook "point" (??) and replaced it with the end from an old Airfix EA-6B kit.

 

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I decided to get the vertical stabs in place prior to joining the fuselage sections, as it was apparent some filling and sanding would be in order and it would be easier to handle without the nose section in the way. Gap filling with plastic sheet/bits. Putty to follow.

 

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Something to note if you find yourself building one of these and feeling more ambitious than myself...The wing slats come as separate parts displayed in the extended/drooped position. Like Hasegawa's A-4 Skyhawk kits, the wings are molded with "slat wells", that "lip" towards the leading edge should not be there, slats don't work that way...

You could correct the issue easy enough I suppose by doing the same as you can with the Hasegawa A-4, cut the areas away and re-position them along the leading edge and fill the gap for a smooth transition into the upper wing area. I didn't do the mod but it looks like it wouldn't have been very difficult.  ¯\_()_/¯

 

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I'll be spending the afternoon filling and sanding the vert stabs. 

Cheers 🍺

 

 

 

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2 hours ago, eraucubsfan said:

Wicked awesome Whitey!! 

 

Hey, thanks man! I'm thinking of doing one of the -3M test birds from Pax, pretty basic in the markings but I'd like to put those funky looking early Sparrow missiles, painted orange on it.

 

 

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On 2/1/2020 at 1:40 AM, 82Whitey51 said:

A few more progress pics here. I found some shots of the ejection seat on my phone, just to give an idea of the whole of it.

 

IMG-9288.jpg

 

IMG-9289.jpg

 

IMG-9287.jpg

 

The kit exhausts are really crappy looking, so I'm replacing those with a couple of spare Hasegawa A-4 exhaust pipes mated with the kit nozzle interiors.

 

IMG-9243.jpg

 

IMG-9255.jpg

 

IMG-8250.jpg

 

The kit arresting hook is a mess, so I cut away the hook "point" (??) and replaced it with the end from an old Airfix EA-6B kit.

 

60176748093-1-A5-EC993-1979-406-C-BFEF-9

 

IMG-9270.jpg

 

I decided to get the vertical stabs in place prior to joining the fuselage sections, as it was apparent some filling and sanding would be in order and it would be easier to handle without the nose section in the way. Gap filling with plastic sheet/bits. Putty to follow.

 

IMG-9260.jpg

 

IMG-9261.jpg

 

Something to note if you find yourself building one of these and feeling more ambitious than myself...The wing slats come as separate parts displayed in the extended/drooped position. Like Hasegawa's A-4 Skyhawk kits, the wings are molded with "slat wells", that "lip" towards the leading edge should not be there, slats don't work that way...

You could correct the issue easy enough I suppose by doing the same as you can with the Hasegawa A-4, cut the areas away and re-position them along the leading edge and fill the gap for a smooth transition into the upper wing area. I didn't do the mod but it looks like it wouldn't have been very difficult.  ¯\_()_/¯

 

IMG-3134.jpg

 

F7-U-3129620.jpg

 

I'll be spending the afternoon filling and sanding the vert stabs. 

Cheers 🍺

 

 

 

 

Interestingly the slat locking mechanisms are similar to those of invader/prowler. It is an important feature of the wings.

 

The slat can be corrected by just adding some filler, no need to cut or reposition anything.

 

Great work done so far, I am watching you 🙂

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This build is so cool! I love the Cutlass. Just about my favorite jet fighter from my childhood in the '50s. I thought I saw something about someone releasing a new mold kit in 1/48. Kitty Hawk? Anyway, watching this build with enthusiasm.

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4 hours ago, titan8251 said:

 

Eh...it would be okay....bit of a snoozer for sure.  Can't believe this person that refers to himself as Whitey even models!

 

 

Seeing as you're from the same town, I sure hope you know him and are joking around. Yes? :hmmm:

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  • 1 year later...

Missed this the first go. I too used to attend the show in Pensacola. I looked forward to it every year, as the venue in the museum was top notch. 
And John's Models. Great memories. 

Hopefully, you've made progress or will return to this project. 

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  • 2 years later...

Holy thread revival, Batman! Did this ever progress? I'm loving your detail pictures, both aircraft and model, because I'm building one right now. It's the ancient Revell 1/60th kit, crude but good enough for a 'What if?'! 

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