latormentabritanica Posted May 1, 2021 Share Posted May 1, 2021 Hello all! I'm building Trumpeter's 1/48 F-100F, but have noticed three glaring errors in the cockpit that need fixing: 1) No throttles included 2) Front seat should have a split headrest and associated mechanism, but the kit only provides two rear seats 3) The canopy reinforcement spar is totally missing. Strangely, they molded the space for the spar to fit between the front seat and the rear console, but never made the actual spar. Does anyone know if there are aftermarket correction sets for these issues? I found seats by Black Box, but they seem significantly undersized. Really hoping to avoid scratchbuilding all this... Thanks in advance! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ben Brown Posted May 1, 2021 Share Posted May 1, 2021 The aftermarket has pretty much left the Trumpeter F-100s alone, probably because they are such a mess. AMS had some correct F-100F seats, available through Sprue Brothers. They're usually out of stock, but the last couple of times I signed up for the "Notify me" feature for them, I got an email within a couple of weeks. Perhaps Sprue Bros. might be ordering them when somebody requests them? I think AMS proprietor Harold still hangs out on the Large Scale Planes forum, so you might be able to contact him directly there and order a set. The Black Box seats are something like 4 mm too short. All of the problem is in the seat back, so they can't be corrected and putting something under them to raise them up puts the seat cushion well above the consoles. Legend's seats look like they used the Black Box seats as their reference, because they are almost, but not quite, identical. Aires makes a seat for the D, but it isn't much better than the kit seat. The Aires resin cockpits don't correct any of the kit's inaccuracies and I don't think they ever did a cockpit for the F. There are several options available to correct the nose (AMS, Renaissance) and the too-large wheels (Reskit, Royale Resin). Ben Quote Link to post Share on other sites
latormentabritanica Posted May 1, 2021 Author Share Posted May 1, 2021 Thanks, that's a very useful and detailed answer. Looking at things, I think I could modify the seats and the missing throttles wouldn't be visible with a closed canopy. But honestly, out of all the issues with the kit, the one I find irredeemable is the missing canopy spar. I can understand if a company gets the shape wrong (I can even overlook the intake shape, in this case), but to be not even bother to include a very visible part is really disappointing. That spar is visible whether the canopy is left open or closed, and it'll bug me to no end. The 1/48 Aires F-100F cockpit set has everything that's missing, but I'm not sure I want to drop ~$45 and have to go through the hassle of sawing resin and sanding away cockpit walls. At this point, I'm considering not building this kit after all...UGH. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
lavony Posted May 16, 2021 Share Posted May 16, 2021 On 5/1/2021 at 11:43 AM, latormentabritanica said: Hello all! I'm building Trumpeter's 1/48 F-100F, but have noticed three glaring errors in the cockpit that need fixing: 1) No throttles included 2) Front seat should have a split headrest and associated mechanism, but the kit only provides two rear seats 3) The canopy reinforcement spar is totally missing. Strangely, they molded the space for the spar to fit between the front seat and the rear console, but never made the actual spar. Does anyone know if there are aftermarket correction sets for these issues? I found seats by Black Box, but they seem significantly undersized. Really hoping to avoid scratchbuilding all this... Thanks in advance! Hi the 48ers on-line shop have the seats available: https://the48ers.com/f-100f-ejection-seats.html good luck Quote Link to post Share on other sites
lavony Posted December 30, 2021 Share Posted December 30, 2021 That’s a great looking cockpit ! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
airmechaja Posted December 30, 2021 Share Posted December 30, 2021 One thing I can't get over with Trumpeter's F-100 offerings is the stance it has on the ground. The real !00's had that low rake to the rear. Revellogram really nailed it with their kits. If I build another one, it will be flying. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ben Brown Posted December 30, 2021 Share Posted December 30, 2021 (edited) 2 hours ago, airmechaja said: One thing I can't get over with Trumpeter's F-100 offerings is the stance it has on the ground. The real !00's had that low rake to the rear. Revellogram really nailed it with their kits. If I build another one, it will be flying. That’s due to Trumpeter got the main gear tire diameter too large (the wheels are okay, just the tire sidewalls are too tall) and the wings are too thin, which has the effect of making the main gear struts appear longer. The 1/32 kit wings are close to the same thickness as the 1/48 Monogram kit. The only fix is to replace the wheels and cut the tops of the struts down a little. Ben Edited December 30, 2021 by Ben Brown Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ChesshireCat Posted December 30, 2021 Share Posted December 30, 2021 On 5/1/2021 at 5:44 AM, Ben Brown said: The aftermarket has pretty much left the Trumpeter F-100s alone, probably because they are such a mess. AMS had some correct F-100F seats, available through Sprue Brothers. They're usually out of stock, but the last couple of times I signed up for the "Notify me" feature for them, I got an email within a couple of weeks. Perhaps Sprue Bros. might be ordering them when somebody requests them? I think AMS proprietor Harold still hangs out on the Large Scale Planes forum, so you might be able to contact him directly there and order a set. The Black Box seats are something like 4 mm too short. All of the problem is in the seat back, so they can't be corrected and putting something under them to raise them up puts the seat cushion well above the consoles. Legend's seats look like they used the Black Box seats as their reference, because they are almost, but not quite, identical. Aires makes a seat for the D, but it isn't much better than the kit seat. The Aires resin cockpits don't correct any of the kit's inaccuracies and I don't think they ever did a cockpit for the F. There are several options available to correct the nose (AMS, Renaissance) and the too-large wheels (Reskit, Royale Resin). Ben If your doing a Wild Weasel air frame, I know the F105 did not have the stick in the rear. I have a buddy I see three or four times a year, and he's flown in the lone surviving F100f. I'll ask him about that. gary Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ben Brown Posted December 31, 2021 Share Posted December 31, 2021 (edited) In the one photo I’ve seen of an F-100F Wild Weasel rear cockpit, the stick was missing. The only flight instruments were the airspeed indicator, altimeter, and RMI. The rest of the panel was taken up by the Weasel gear. Ben Edited December 31, 2021 by Ben Brown Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Specter1075 Posted December 31, 2021 Share Posted December 31, 2021 Was it a physical photo or online somewhere? I'd love to get a look at the back, as I'm sure others here would too! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ben Brown Posted January 1, 2022 Share Posted January 1, 2022 Here you go. It was posted on one of the other forums, think it was on Britmodeller, but I can't find it to give the person who posted it credit. I found the declassified report the pic came from a few months ago and finally got around to requesting it through the interlibrary loan program last week. If they can get it, I'll post anything of interest. The front cockpit was your standard F-100D/F pit, with an azimuth display on top of the glare shield above the drag chute handle in place of the drop tank fuel indicators. If there was a control stick present, it would be pretty prominent from this angle. Also, if you don't already have it, the Kindle version of the Detail & Scale on t he F-100 has a fantastic photo of a Weasel with a Shrike on a Type I pylon. I can't post it due to copyrights, but the book is worth the money. The Type I was the same pylon used to carry the Maverick; different from the inboard pylon usually carried. Here's the pylon: I think it's about time for me to break out my last War Eagle F-100F conversion and start a Weasel! Ben Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Specter1075 Posted January 1, 2022 Share Posted January 1, 2022 That's fantastic, Ben, thank you! Now I find myself wondering at how well I could chop up an Aires cockpit and try to scratch those back-seat elements into it... I do have the detail and scale book. I got it hoping for a cockpit picture and came away disappointed. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ben Brown Posted January 1, 2022 Share Posted January 1, 2022 (edited) You’re welcome! I’m still trying to find the original post so I can give the gentleman proper credit. It shouldn’t be too difficult to modify a rear instrument panel with a little scrap styrene. I was disappointed that the D&S book didn’t have much Weasel cockpit info, but they more than made up for it with the Shrike photo and the RF-100A cockpit info. I’d been looking for years for that! Those two jets are near the top of my modeling bucket list. Ben Edited January 1, 2022 by Ben Brown Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ben Brown Posted January 11, 2022 Share Posted January 11, 2022 On 12/31/2021 at 10:48 PM, Specter1075 said: That's fantastic, Ben, thank you! Now I find myself wondering at how well I could chop up an Aires cockpit and try to scratch those back-seat elements into it... I do have the detail and scale book. I got it hoping for a cockpit picture and came away disappointed. I just heard back from my local library. Maxwell AFB says that while the document is declassified, it is restricted and has a security label on it so it can't be released to the public. Oh well. I think we still have enough good info to build a pretty respectable Weasel. Ben Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Specter1075 Posted January 12, 2022 Share Posted January 12, 2022 Thanks for digging into it! I guess we'll do what we can! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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