Jump to content

Kinetic 1/48 F/A-18C VFA-151 Vigilantes


Recommended Posts

I am finally presenting my completed Kinetic 1/48 F/A-18C Hornet, VFA-151 Vigilantes. This was built to be a "working girl"...dirty and loaded for combat. The Kinetic kit is not bad, but is sure no Tamiya kit. The first go through of this kit met an unfortunate end in a Testors dullcote disaster. But such is life, and away I went again. There is a build thread located here http://www.arcforums.com/forums/air/index.php?/topic/312213-kinetic-148-fa-18c-vfa-151-in-progress/.

 

The build included:

-Kinetic 1/48 F/A-18C Kit

-Eduard Exterior PE set

-Two Bob's VFA-151 sheet, USS Constellation 2002-2003 OIF Deployment

-Eduard Brassin bombs/missles

-Reskit resin wheels

 

The goal was to build a realistically finished bird, but was dirty. Hence the desire for a combat deployed line bird. I looked at some Marine schemes, but also wanted to fold the wings. So that got me to the Two Bob's sheet. The decals performed well, but I don't trust/believe the color for the tail art still. I think they're too blue and too light.

 

The use of the Eduard set started as a replacement for the fuselage slime lights lost in filling, and then used the rest of the set.

 

The Brassin munitions are things of beauty.

 

The Reskit wheels were used because...well the kit ones are hideous.

 

So on to the pictures! To start, some general aicraft views:

 

49903083961_0c6c76991a_c.jpg

 

49903393602_bee2549994_c.jpg

 

49903392832_c935e6726b_c.jpg

 

49903084416_dceca9ac3c_c.jpg

 

49903083761_e100c072b6_c.jpg

 

49903392562_c76596fe92_c.jpg

 

49902569683_0a07e4a380_c.jpg

 

49903082941_8caa00efd6_c.jpg

 

And on to some detail shots. The classic aft belly stains were made with a combination of diluted sprayed paints and oils.

 

49903082696_e2dc4483c4_c.jpg

 

The landing gear wells are out-of-the-box, but all the piping was carefully and then the piping clips painted for added color.

 

49902568893_59c3bdf6fb_c.jpg

 

49903391097_6bcc91d29f_c.jpg

 

The CMS dispensors were "loaded" to reflect a mission ready bird being powered up by the pilot.

 

49902568333_a800cb3a6e_c.jpg

 

Some time was taken with the Eduard munitions. They really standout when finished well. The AGM-65 was kept pretty clean based on reference photos, but the Sidewinders and LGB-12 got some weathering. Also seen is the chipping on the front of the pylons that seems pretty prevelant on the Hornets.

 

49903390627_17180d9192_c.jpg

 

The other wing was loaded with an LGB-12. This also shows a good closeup of how impressive the Sidewinders are.

 

49903081431_56245675ac_c.jpg

 

49903390087_3b119044b2_c.jpg

 

The gun door ordnace markings were added with a pencil, again reflecting a mission ready bird.

 

49902567483_ae70b5acc2_c.jpg

 

All of the upper surface weathering was created with oils.

 

49903389562_f399f0f014_c.jpg

 

A good view of the Maverick seeker head, which again, is a gem from the Brassin set. A bit of detail can be seen on the main landing gear as well.

 

49903080406_f762835255_c.jpg

 

The aft side shows the burner cans, some corrosion control touchups, and the classic grime that accumulates around the resting/parked position of the horizontal stabilizer.

 

49903080136_c878447c88_c.jpg

 

The sump vents were also weathered with oils. This close up also helps show the mottled overall finish.

 

49903388817_c7853a10d0_c.jpg

 

As always, comments, questions, or criticism are welcome! Thank you for looking!

 

Eric

Edited by ESzczesniak
Link to post
Share on other sites
  • 2 weeks later...

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...