Jump to content

1/48 Hasegawa F-22 - OOB or Aftermarket?


Recommended Posts

Hi All,

 

Well, I have an interesting saga to pass on.  The very first model that I got, once deciding, 11 years ago, to get back into models, was the Academy 1/48 F-22A.  In fact, the model was a Christmas gift from my in-laws, and since I was a COMPLETE newbie, getting back into the hobby after ~40 years, and I was just learning about aftermarket stuff, I bought just about every aftermarket item that was available for this kit, including Eduard and a bunch of Aries stuff, which was before I learned how fussy Aries fits can be.  I still have that F-22A, but have yet to begin building it.

 

Subsequent to getting the Academy kit, I have also gotten the 1/48 Hasegawa F-22.  I'm curious about what you all think about whether the Hasegawa kit would significantly benefit from aftermarket items, or whether it is detailed enough to build out of the box.  I don't want to go crazy with aftermarket as I did with the Academy kit, but I was thinking about possibly getting the Eduard Big Ed set, which appears pretty comprehensive, but is about the same cost as the kit itself.  In particular from those of you who may have built this kit both ways, OOB and with significant aftermarket items, what would you suggest?  I know we are all individuals, and what we like is very much an individual thing, but I'm curious about your thoughts.  I've read over the years that even OOB, the Hasegawa is pretty decent.  What do you think?  

 

Thanks in advance for your input!

Link to post
Share on other sites

I hate the nose of Academy one so wouldn't have built that one. 

 

I love Has. I have 4. The only aftermarkets worth buying are the seat (especially if the cockpit is open, optional eduard color cockpit, I just love them so good for lazy/talentless builders like myself) and weapon bay details if you are going to built the bays open. If the canopy and bays are closed nothing worth buying. 

Link to post
Share on other sites

I have also built the Hasegawa Raptor, although I built mine wheels up bays closed in-flight, so no real need for aftermarket.  The shape of the kit is very good, unlike the Academy kit which has a severely misshapen nose and some vertical tail issues. 

 

But there are some issues with the Hasegawa kit.  It is a bit over engineered and assembly can be a bit tedious, although the fit overall is excellent (the canopy on this kit is by far the best fitting canopy I have ever used).  Also, the RAM panels are way too pronounced, and many modellers sand them down, although I was too lazy to do so and they really don't stand out quite so much once the model is painted and weathered.

 

Here is mine:

 

716378-16625-49-1440.jpg

Edited by Fighting Eighty-Four
Link to post
Share on other sites
13 hours ago, foxmulder_ms said:

I hate the nose of Academy one so wouldn't have built that one. 

 

I love Has. I have 4. The only aftermarkets worth buying are the seat (especially if the cockpit is open, optional eduard color cockpit, I just love them so good for lazy/talentless builders like myself) and weapon bay details if you are going to built the bays open. If the canopy and bays are closed nothing worth buying. 

What's wrong with the Academy nose?

Link to post
Share on other sites

Academy fixed the nose back retooling it in 2010.

Undersize tails are still in the kit.

To my eye Academy is an easier build, beautiful decals etc.

The oversize plates on the Hasegawa kit are a PITA to mess with.

Pay your money and make your choice...

 

Link to post
Share on other sites

The Hasegawa weapons bay doors are a great addition as well as a nice ejection seat.  I added some resin nozzles to mine, but they weren’t necessary.  
 

The etched doors are a huge improvement over the kit parts.  
 

I followed the Hasegawa instructions for the paint scheme and I think it’s the best solution out there for paint scheme. 

Link to post
Share on other sites

I can seccond that the color mix suggested by Hasegawa gives a perfect raptor sheen. The kit is nicely detailed and imho aftermarket sets are not really needed (I used an ejection seat by Eduard though) apart from one aspect: The decals in the kit are colorwise really bad. More specifically the light grey used for the tail markings on the kits decals has a distinctive brown hue to it whereas on the original the color is almost the same as the ram coating on the leading edges which is probably more like light ghost grey. Also in my two copies the air command badges were only partially printed. I was able to find two old (long oop) Twobobs sets that I used on mine. I am not aware of another company making aftermarket decals but Carcal decals has announced a new set some time in the future.

Link to post
Share on other sites

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...