jmel Posted September 13, 2006 Author Share Posted September 13, 2006 The finished rear part of the LH bay. For some reason beyond me, Trumpeter did not include the LOX bottle in the front part of the bay, so that will need to be scratchbuilt. Suggestions on material to make the bottle??? Ian, regardless of which jet I decide to build, it will be in the later two-tone gray camo. Jake Quote Link to post Share on other sites
habu2 Posted September 14, 2006 Share Posted September 14, 2006 If you're gonna go for a Two-sair then go esoteric - EA-7L !!! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
geedubelyer Posted September 14, 2006 Share Posted September 14, 2006 Great scratch building in the bays Jake. These'll look MAGIC with a little paint on them. How do you plan to get into all of the nooks and crannies? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
longmc Posted September 14, 2006 Share Posted September 14, 2006 I'm sitting in a hotel in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, for 8 days. Lots and lots of time. The downside of building in a hotel room is that I forgot to pack the fuselage sides. I sure hope these bays fit! And, yes, a Springfield jet when finished.Thanks, fellas! I'm cranking out the RAT bay right now, and I'll start the RH bays tomorrow. Jake Well sir, you know where my vote goes for markings! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jmel Posted September 15, 2006 Author Share Posted September 15, 2006 These'll look MAGIC with a little paint on them. How do you plan to get into all of the nooks and crannies? Beats me. Got any suggestions????? :) Well sir, you know where my vote goes for markings! :lol: Yep, it will certainly be a Springfield jet. Hey, the next time you're out there, do you think you can sift through some photos in the MultiMedia office for me? I need the crewnames for one of their Ks. Jake Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Pete "Pig" Fleischmann Posted September 18, 2006 Share Posted September 18, 2006 Nice work Jake-As usual :D The Aires cockpit and wheel wells for this are really nice BTW Eventually I'll get around to doing the COANG 2-tone grey...but not until after I watch you build this beast! Now get back to work! Regards, Pig Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jmel Posted September 18, 2006 Author Share Posted September 18, 2006 I have the BB pit for it, but I don't really like it. It's got a bunch of errors and shape issues, especially with the seat. I didn't realize there is an Aires cockpit. I certainly would have preferred it. You're going to like the kit. There is quite a bit of work to do to make an accurate D, but I think the results will be spectacular. Jake Quote Link to post Share on other sites
longmc Posted September 18, 2006 Share Posted September 18, 2006 Beats me. Got any suggestions????? ;) Yep, it will certainly be a Springfield jet. Hey, the next time you're out there, do you think you can sift through some photos in the MultiMedia office for me? I need the crewnames for one of their Ks. Jake Jake, I'm going out this weekend. It's an off weekend (SUTA) so I'm not sure who all will be around. I've been trying to hook up with the Base Historian. No kidding - he shares and office with the PAO!! Most likely the same person!! If you've been out there recently you would've noticed all the framed photos in the base buildings of all the different aircraft. I've been trying to get copies of some like the F-84Es and the A-7s. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jmel Posted September 19, 2006 Author Share Posted September 19, 2006 Jake,I'm going out this weekend. It's an off weekend (SUTA) so I'm not sure who all will be around. I've been trying to hook up with the Base Historian. No kidding - he shares and office with the PAO!! Most likely the same person!! If you've been out there recently you would've noticed all the framed photos in the base buildings of all the different aircraft. I've been trying to get copies of some like the F-84Es and the A-7s. I haven't been inside the headquarters building since early 2004. I'm dying to go back! Jake Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Pete "Pig" Fleischmann Posted September 21, 2006 Share Posted September 21, 2006 Jake... Did you see that Aires is about to release some avionics bays for this beast Figures huh! If you hadn't done all that awesome work-we'd all be forced to do the same. Never fails.. Looking good Regards, Pig Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ThePhantomTwo Posted September 21, 2006 Share Posted September 21, 2006 (edited) Jake,I'm going out this weekend. It's an off weekend (SUTA) so I'm not sure who all will be around. I've been trying to hook up with the Base Historian. No kidding - he shares and office with the PAO!! Most likely the same person!! If you've been out there recently you would've noticed all the framed photos in the base buildings of all the different aircraft. I've been trying to get copies of some like the F-84Es and the A-7s. Mike,my understanding is Historian is a additional duty now,not a primary,so the wing historian may work somewhere else on base and get to the historians stuff after his prinary work his done for the day/week.We lost ours two years ago due to this,my understanding from our PAO and former historian it's ANG wide.Of course,some units may keep thiers under the radar Jake,I wish I could work with the fiddly bits as good as you,awesome work! Edited September 21, 2006 by ThePhantomTwo Quote Link to post Share on other sites
patkiller Posted September 21, 2006 Share Posted September 21, 2006 EA7L 1/32 is possible the complete photo album of pat'ea7l in progress My Webpage sorry i don't speak english patkiller amaymodeles club ipms belgium Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jmel Posted September 21, 2006 Author Share Posted September 21, 2006 Did you see that Aires is about to release some avionics bays for this beast Nooooooooo, I didn't see that. I might have waited had I known. I considered the Eduard set briefly, but it doesn't come close to capturing the cluttered look, and doesn't even address all the cables and wiring. Jake,I wish I could work with the fiddly bits as good as you,awesome work! Thanks Dave! Jake Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jmel Posted September 25, 2006 Author Share Posted September 25, 2006 Well, I decided to take the plunge and turn this jet into a two-seat A-7K. At the factory, there were two plugs installed in the airframe. One in front of the wings to accommodate the rear cockpit, and a second plug behind the wing to maintain the CG. The rear plug was easy to figure out. It is on existing panel lines. The front plug, however, was a bit more tricky. There is no obvious place to cut, and, since the front cockpit area is so tapered on the jet, the results would be less than ideal if a cut and plug was installed in the wrong place. To make matters worse, the gun and nose gear door remain in their single-seat position (relative to the new plug), and would not simply accept an additional chunk of plastic to lengthen the fuselage the correct amount. Make since? Probably not! Here's the first pic that shows where I decided to make the cut to the front part of the fuselage. The black sharpie lines are my first thoughts as to where to cut. You can see I chose not to cut the lower part of the fuselage, to maintain the correct position of the nose gear and gun. In this case, I'll add an extension at the very front of the intake. And another showing how it now lines up with my scale drawings in the front. The rear has yet to be cut, which is why it doesn't line up with the rear part of the drawing. And after the plug, made from sheet plastic, was roughly tacked in place. Rear plug tacked into place. And an overall shot with both plugs in place. More to come shortly! Jake Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ThePhantomTwo Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 I am in total awe Jake,you tackle some mighty hard projects!Look forward to following your progress on this build!Still going for the Ohio ANG markings? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ThePhantomTwo Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 (edited) Yipes!Double post! Great looking work Jake,your a braver soul than I!I can barely manage to build out of the box let alone tackle a big job like that Edited September 25, 2006 by ThePhantomTwo Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mungo1974 Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 Well?? is it done yet??? I want a 1/32 A-7K too So the sooner you finish this,the quicker Trumpeter will release one! ;) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
geedubelyer Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 Jeepers Jake :blink: ......... My hat's off to you! What a project. This looks superb so far. I would never even dream of tackling anything so complex :) This is going to be a real education One question......and sorry for jumping the gun, but.....are the front and rear cockpits identical? (If so, I assume you'll use two sets and just squeeze them in?) :( Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jmel Posted September 25, 2006 Author Share Posted September 25, 2006 Still going for the Ohio ANG markings? Thanks, Dave! No, not necessarily. The 178th had some really great-looking Ds, with a bunch of great nose art, but their two Ks were dreadfully boring. I may go with the Selfridge or Des Moines units instead. That's a decision for the down the road, thankfully. So the sooner you finish this,the quicker Trumpeter will release one! :) Yeah, no kidding. Oh, well. I'm just doing my part to help you get what you need! :blink: One question......and sorry for jumping the gun, but.....are the front and rear cockpits identical?(If so, I assume you'll use two sets and just squeeze them in?) :( They are not identical, so simply putting in a pair of Black Box pits won't work. There are a whole bunch of similarities, though. I managed to modify the kit's front instrument panel into the K's rear panel, but I'll need to totally scratchbuild the rear cockpit tub with new side panels. Jake Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jefropas Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 If I can put my Iowa Hawkeye grad. opinion in, go for the 132nd, and they looked almost very similar to Springfields SLUF's. Jeff Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Pete "Pig" Fleischmann Posted September 26, 2006 Share Posted September 26, 2006 (edited) If I can put my Iowa Hawkeye grad. opinion in, go for the 132nd, and they looked almost very similar to Springfields SLUF's.Jeff Hey Jeff! My wife went to Iowa..Go Hawks! '87 grad. Jake! ...Looking great! This will be an awesome conversion Looks like you've got outstanding references too. I am really looking forward to watching this one come together. I was rooting through the box the other night, and the only things that jumped out at me as looking weird were the nose gear wheels and tires..kinda' overdone / not quite right. So I've got that in the back of my mind and am on the hunt for a suitable replacement...more to follow! Any thoughts? Regards, Pig Edited September 26, 2006 by Pete "Pig" Fleischmann Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jefropas Posted September 26, 2006 Share Posted September 26, 2006 Pete, Always gotta like Hawkeye grads! Jake, if you do go for Iowa, I have some pics of their stuff in the 2 tone grays, maybe even have a K, I think it was #0077 if I remember correctly. Jeff Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jmel Posted September 26, 2006 Author Share Posted September 26, 2006 (edited) things that jumped out at me as looking weird were the nose gear wheels and tires.. Any thoughts? Hey, Pig!! Thanks! It'll be fun getting this together. I've wanted to do a 1/32 K for many years now. The kit is really nice. The biggest problem that I've found is that it was originally released as an "E". Many of the parts in the kit are still E-specific, including the fuselage (with the exception of the AAR probe which they've removed). There are some panel lines missing, vents/scoops missing and/or misplaced, things of that nature. Certainly not a big deal, but, in my opinion, worth taking a look at to correct. There is also other stuff that Trumpeter simply missed the mark on, like the avionics bays, missile rails, pylons, and pitot tubes, and nose gear, but, again, not a big deal. The decals are also a disappointment. Most of the small stencils are pure gibberish. They didn't even try to make them say actual words. For example, "danger" appears as "daxxme". Having said all that, I really do think you'll enjoy building it. Jake, if you do go for Iowa, I have some pics of their stuff in the 2 tone grays, maybe even have a K, I think it was #0077 if I remember correctly.Jeff Hey, Jeff! If you've got refs on the 132nd's Ks (they had two--0076 & 0077), I'd love to see them. I'm having a hard time finding suitable pics to do any jet. I have 1 or 2 shots of a jet, but no shots that show crewnames, etc. I'd love to see what you've got! Jake Edited September 26, 2006 by jmel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
stusbke Posted September 26, 2006 Share Posted September 26, 2006 Hey Jeff! My wife went to Iowa..Go Hawks! '87 grad.Jake! ...Looking great! This will be an awesome conversion Looks like you've got outstanding references too. I am really looking forward to watching this one come together. I was rooting through the box the other night, and the only things that jumped out at me as looking weird were the nose gear wheels and tires..kinda' overdone / not quite right. So I've got that in the back of my mind and am on the hunt for a suitable replacement...more to follow! Any thoughts? Regards, Pig well about the wheels i would suggest sanding the wheels a bit more round OOB they look like jeep wheels about the wheel bay well scratch is one option alos I think the nose shape is way off so a tweak is needed there too, not quite sure on how to tackle it many people are thinking on this kit many have a solution that might work main thing remains though sanding it untill it becomes anoying only to sand some more Greetz STB Frederick Jacobs Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jefropas Posted September 27, 2006 Share Posted September 27, 2006 Jake, I'll scope out my pics later for you, crew names are maybe 50/50 chance, the ol 200mm wasn't the greatest, or the worst. Jeff Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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