1/48 Acadegawa F-22 Raptor

[MarkW]

Realistically this should take me all of 2010, especially due to the paint scheme and how much time I have to work it. But, little bit of a jump start here. Working with the ARC raffle prize (props to Waco), I'm staring with the Acdemy F-22 and the Aires cockpit set. A few goals for the build:

1. Gear up, in flight mounting.

2. Weapons bays closed except the port side, preparing to fire either an AIM-9M or -9X. I plan the missles to be interchangeable via magnets like on the Strike Eagle.

3. Modified exhausts to capture the surface detail and maybe some of the structures seen on the tail booms.

4. Detailing the kit seat and cockpit to be more accurate. I plan to use the Aires set as a guide, but to save it for an eventual ground build. There are more than enough reference photos to dress the kit version up, especially with the zipper suited sky god firmly planted in the seat.

5. Likely will use a Tamiya Viper pilot, sinc the kit pilot inexplicably doesn't touch the control stick.

6. Extending the inlets so the engine faces are not visible.

7. Dressing up the AIM-9 launch rail a bit. Kit version is good, could be tweaked.

So, on to the obligatory cockpit section.... :)

First, some comparison shots of the kit and Aires parts. Not sure if this has been doe before, but always nice to see kit vs. resin. Judging from the referenc photos, the Aires (as expected) is pretty dead on.

Seats. Kit is not bad, could be better with some simple work. The red areas I plan to remove/replace. The side detail is only so interesting before it gets buried in an all black cockpit...

Instrument panel. Aside from the blank areas at the bottom outside edges, the two are very similar. The Aires part has the coaming molded on, and the coaming is more richly detailed than the kit part molded into the upper fuselage.

Top view of the pits. The Aires one is more accurate, especially the rear deck area, but it is actually a bit overdetailed in the rivets. There are some layout differences--the kit ejection rails are part of the seat, the canopy actuator mount point is a different piece, etc. Overall, and again with the pilot in place, the differences aren't too great for a canopy down build.

Now on to some construction. First thing was to assemble the internal structures, starting with the center weapons bays. One thing that isn't obvious until you test fit is all the hinge points for the weapons bay doors need to be removed, otherwise the bay doors won't fit. Easier to do this before mounting the assembled bays... Once done, the big single piece door fit pretty well.

For the nose and tailhook doors, those were practically drop ins. The MLG doors on the other hand did not fit without some edge sanding. I perhaps should have tried the two piece doors. What is interesting here is that Academy chose to mold details onto the single piece doors, even though by definition they will never be seen. This area was backfilled with copious amount of JB Weld to make sure they never EVER move or flex. The Cask of Amontillado ain't got nothin' on me when it comes to entombing parts.

Finally, on to the dreaded inlets. I chose to assemble them in this fashion for a couple reasons. First, the bottomg edge (both inside and outside) seems to be the one that give people the most fits. I am quite sure the other inlet piece will mate up fairly seamlessly with what I have now. I'm not quite as sure how that will marry up to the upper edge, but, hey, we'll see, right? Second, this gives me a fairly sturdy nose section attachment. Third, I have access to sanding the seams and ejector pin marks, as well as fairng the inlet extensions when I figure out the plan for those. Not sure why ejector pin marks buried deep in an inlet all of a sudden bothered me, but a little voice told me that was the most critical part of the build to get right...

All for now.

Edited March 5, 2010 by MarkW

[rom]

nice start!

i have the kit with the Arires seat!

I will watch your build

bye

[MarkW]

Thanks!

Here's my plan for the zipper suit. Pic below shows from left to right the Academy guy, an aftermarket JHMCS helmet (not for Raptor), and a standard Viper driver from Tamiya.

Plan is to use the correct Academy head (with side, not front mounted O2 hose) and at least the right arm from a Tamiya driver. As you can see, the Academy guy can't hold the stick, really annoying considering the kit. I think they took a generic center stick guy and stuck him on the sprues instead of designing a new guy. Also not sure about the gee suit. The Tamiya is accurate for all other fighters, not sure if the Raptor has a new suit or Academy dropped some details (like the knee cutouts). Then again, judging from my F-15E, there is no way to see beyond the top of the thighs anywho with any detail, so not sure I need to worry about it.

Work continues on the ejection seat...coming along nicely, I think.

[Qian]

Great progress so far Mark! Yea I must admit that Academy really screwed up their pilot very badly. For my F-15SG build here, I took a cutter and pried off his moulded-on right arm then replaced it with a Hasegawa arm. But overall though, I like the way the pilot came out. Much better than the Hasegawa and Tamiya ones IMO!

Keep up the good work. This is a must-get kit for me! I hope to see more progress soon!

:)

[Waco]

Actually, that Academy pilot is quite nice, and very, very accurate. For starters, he's got on the correct helmet, vice the old style one represented by the Tamiya pilot. Second, his oxygen mask is a VERY accurate representation of a Combat Edge mask. The small triangular projection plus the straight line down on the very front of the mask is the mic connector, and it's in the right place. The bulge on the left (as you're looking at it) or right (if you're wearing it) of the mask is the exhalation valve. The small circular protrusion on the right (as you look at it) or left (if you're wearing it) is where the O2 inhalation hose connects.

He's wearing the new low-profile LPUs, which debuted on the Raptor. He's got the chest connector hose for the Combat Edge vest, which currently only F-22 pilots are required to wear. The G-suit pants he's got on are correct. There are no knee cutouts on the ATAGS, which is currently only worn by F-22 pilots. The survival vest and associated pouches look far more accurate on the Academy pilot (those stupid things are really bulky these days, especially owing to the bulky new survival radio we carry).

So other than the fact that he's got his hand on his lap rather than on the stick (not all that uncommon, actually), it's a pretty darn accurate moldup.

I wouldn't change the helmet....JHMCS is not integrated to the Raptor, and it isn't scheduled to be integrated onto the jet. AIM-9X isn't yet either, and it's several years away. Something else to consider.

[MarkW]

Good to know about the flight suit, which makes this even more bizarre--why make a detailed F-22 guy and have him on autopilot?! Other than that, I'm digging the detail on the guy, very nice. Oh well, that's why the good Lord gave us Dremels. I'll have to resist the urge to ask "Is it safe?" in a German accent while grinding the arm off.

I did know the JHMCS wasn't for F-22. As I understand there are canopy fit issues. DON'T ANSWER THAT!! I just put that up as some people think the F-22 has an even newer helmet.

http://www.hobbyfanatics.com/index.php?app...attach_id=34040

Last update for today. Here's the mostly modified kit seat and cockpit. Not much, but adds a bit of 3-D to the tubes and cylinders. I'm not futzing with the back of the seat details as the canopy actuator covers the majority in a canopy down build.

Still need to add a few knobs and such to those blank areas, then ready for paint.

Edited December 23, 2009 by MarkW

[Wayne S]

Looking good so far. The pilot comes with the Raptor?

[MarkW]

Thanks, and yes. Isn't it sad that today we have to ask if a kit comes with a pilot and weapons?

[Wayne S]

Thanks, and yes. Isn't it sad that today we have to ask if a kit comes with a pilot and weapons?

Thanks bud,

Yes it is very Sad

[MarkW]

Ok, time for a quick update. Been dorking around with the cockpit and zipper suit as a way of killing time to get my head around how to extend the inlets so the cheesy engine front face is hidden. And make copies for my second Raptor...

First, a simple but effective replacement of the canopy frame molded on handle with some scale appropriate wire.

Next, the modified Frankenpilot. The right arm is Tamiya, the left upper arm from the kit, and the left forearm and hand from Tamiya. The original left arm had him grabbing at the mask, which meant the arm bend was wrong and the hand wasn't shaped to cup the throttle, so this was the ideal fix.

Concerning the copper wire coming out of his butt, well "Don't mind this, Mr. Gopher...just Doctor's orders and so forth".

Now on to the pit. Next time it pops up, it will be painted. I added a few extra wires and reshaped the seat a number of times to get something that will look decent with the canopy down. I also monkeyed in some stuff where the blank panels were that will hold up OK unless I get an F-22 pilot with a flashlight looking at it...

Turns out F-16 guys fit this LM cockpit setup pretty well. Since he is in flight and getting ready to take an AIM-9M shot, the throttle is forward and his other hand is on the stick. Not sure if F-22s accelerate when launching missiles to impart some kinetics or not, but it works mentally for me.

[MarkW]

Some progress. Got paint on the zipper suit dude, and the bang seat is pretty much done. The figure was mildly modified. I took the air hose off the mask and made it the G-suit inflation hose. For the mask hose, I stripped a wire core twist tie, which had a mild steel ~25 gage wire inside. I chucked this in my pin vise, and spun a softer ~25 gage magnet wire around it. After painting the hose, I twisted a 30 gage magnet wire painted black around the hose. If I had been thinking ahead, I would have drilled a hole in the mask for the air hose and to anchor the comm line, as it was tricky to hold in place while wrapping. Added to that, the magnet wire doesn't hold paint for crap and is very fragile. Even primer doesn't stick well, so next time I'll have to figure a clever way to get the paint on. The whole air hose mod was really easy otherwise, and I'll never use a kit hose again.

The seat was base coated with MM Aircraft Interior Black, with the seat cushions in gloss black for contrast. The flight suit was originally MM Dark Green, which was (shocker) too dark. The overall tone was lightened with MM Forest Green, with the collar and some of the vest painted with MM Dark Slate to break it up. Polly S Olive Drab was used as a wash over it all, with a highlighting of Polly S Dark Green. The helmet is made up of MM Dark Slate & Gunship Gray, with gloss black on the visor and mask, silver for the mask bayonets. The seat belts are lead foil, painted with Dark Green tinted with silver to lighten it up and give it the right sheen.

Keeping in mind the little guy is going to be under the gold tinted canopy, I think he's in pretty good shape.

Edited January 20, 2010 by MarkW

[MarkW]

Final touches on the dude and seat. Applied decals, touched up the paint, and put a coat of Tamiya clear Smoke on the visor to give it a bit of depth and greater gloss.

Ug. The stupid black paint peeled from the stupid red magnet comm wire. Oh well, it can't be seen in the finished kit. Basically anyhting below the level of the Dude's arms can't be seen at all, obscured by the cockpit tub.

I'll touch it up anyways, but it can't be seen. Now on to the cockpit tub and controls.

[MarkW]

Began working one of the two external shape bugaboos of the Academy kit--the nose and the vertical tails. The nose looked easiest, so I started there.

Here's the nasal profile of the uncorrected kit. Note the "chin" on the underside.

And now the refined, more beaky profile:

And finally, truth (note the view angle is a little off, but close enough):

All it entailed was filling the bottom nose with epoxy putty, then grinding off the chin and back a bit to get the right profile. A bit of effort was needed to refining the curves when viewed from the front, as taking the chin off leaves an ugly flat spot and actually goes through the fuselage a bit (hence the epoxy putty backing).

Still a little more work to do to make it sharp--the tip is still too rounded, but definitely getting there.

[Alex.B]

I agree.. nice start!!

I will follow this one, as I like both the Raptor and inflight displays!

[MarkW]

Finished up the pit. Here it is with a summary of the big changes.

Again, closed tinted canopy should help with the appearance.

C&C welcome.

[MarkW]

More detailing work done, this time some really basic stuff on the AIM-9 weapons bay. First, the players--the kit bay with the blank back wall cut out, a new back wall blank, and strip styrene for ribs. Looking at the bay, I already added a couple stringers to the front end:

Using numerous photos (and a sneak for confirmation purposes at the Hase instruction sheet), the webbing went up. Not as bad as I thought, but wish I had my Chopper II in hand already. Yep, tiny.

Installed on the bay back, and a peek at the kit look:

I think once the rail is in place with a missile on board, and painted up, it should look OK. The ribs are probably a little out of scale, but otherwise OK--the match the rest of the bay, which helps. The rail gave me more trouble than I thought, even so the Academy rail is surprisingly decent. Fortunately, I have a spare set in case it continues to vex me. I'm pretty psyched by the bay--once painted and decaled, it should look pretty good. Not perfect, but pretty good.

I've also decided to scratch build the weapon bay doors. The Academy ones have OK detail, but it could be better. Most importantly, the exterior is kind of rough in a almost sink hole sort of way. Too friggin much trouble to fix something I can scratch myself.

OK, let's see if I eat those words down the road. <_<

Edited January 30, 2010 by MarkW

[Aigore]

Gorgeous detailing and helluva job on the nose!

Awesome work!

Cheers!

[MarkW]

Thanks!

[MarkW]

OK, next big thing--the inlets. For some mind boggling reason, the Academy kit has very clearly visible engine faces. Heck, you can get a better shot of the fan face than most people have of their wedding pictures. While you can wimp out and get inlet covers, this tends to not be an option for in flight. So, here is my solution, giving the transition form the irregular 4 sided polygon to a true tube towards the back. I was unable to get a shot down the inlet, but I can assure you from the Mk I eyeball view they are nearly perfect. I need to adjust the outboard wall curvature to achieve complete blockage, which should be relatively painless. Most importantly, the curve is very realistically gradual--with this internal volume to work with, this might be fairly close to the real ducting.

I only went to this trouble since I have two of these kits.

Some further refinement of the display hood/coaming. Added a few rivets and panel lines, while marginally correcting the sahpe near the back.

That's all for now...

[Aigore]

Very neat air ducts! Impressive even :D

Cheers!

[Aggressor Supporter]

Good to see an update and agree with Janne about the air ducts.

[MarkW]

Thanks! Getting closer to sealing up the fuselage with that...

[MarkW]

Sudden stroke of fortune/change of plans. Thanks to a buddy building the Pepto Pink Gawa Raptor gear up, I was able to snag all the weapons bays detail parts and the open door sets. Hands down, the Gawa side weapons bay kicks the snot out of the passable Acad bay. Academy scrimped on detail but has awesome decals to make up for it. I will now combine the two, using the bulk of the Academy weapons bay, but uber detailed with the Gawa parts, then topped off with the excellent Academy decals. In the first pass, the Gawa rail is absolutely perfect, matching the hoard of detail shots I have of the rail perfectly. This will be fun!

[MarkW]

OK, back in the saddle. Rough month at home for kit building. First, further progress on the side weapons bay. Thanks to CW at Hobbyfanatics, I was able to get the Pepto pink Hasegawa part he didn't need. I modified the Academy bay by cutting out the sections between ribs that either had the Academy missile rail mount points or had the kind of wimpy Academy detail that I couldn't just cover with the better Has parts. Here is a comparison shot between the Academy and Has rails. After studying photos for a few months now, Has clearly nailed it, even it the rivet detail is a bit much:

Note the two have different attachment points--more on that later. Also note the Academy part has been chopped a bit--I was trying to adjust that "box" thing on the underside of the rail near the rail. The rails are really only a mm or so lengthwise different. The Academy rail just looks shorter due to the exhaust deflector being left off.

Now the technicolor yawn of the old, new, and rebuilt bay parts:

You can see where the bays between ribs are numbered--this was to help me match up the Academy bays with the right Has detail parts. It also was vital to mounting the Has rail. The Academy rail attaches about 4mm too far back, but since the rail supports are also too far back on the rail, it works out the rail end up extended in the right place. Mounting the Has rail at the Acad points has the Has rail hitting the back of the bay! So, using reference photos again, and counting the bays, the right location was found. The rail already has it neo super magnet installed. I'm debating adding any piping detail because of what a pain it would be, and how hard it is to see around an AIM-9 and the rail...

Next up, let's see how Pepto pink does with primer!

Edited March 14, 2010 by MarkW

[rays]

OK, back in the saddle. Rough month at home for kit building. First, further progress on the side weapons bay. Thanks to CW at Hobbyfanatics, I was able to get the Pepto pink Hasegawa part he didn't need. I modified the Academy bay by cutting out the sections between ribs that either had the Academy missile rail mount points or had the kind of wimpy Academy detail that I couldn't just cover with the better Has parts. Here is a comparison shot between the Academy and Has rails. After studying photos for a few months now, Has clearly nailed it, even it the rivet detail is a bit much:

Note the two have different attachment points--more on that later. Also note the Academy part has been chopped a bit--I was trying to adjust that "box" thing on the underside of the rail near the rail. The rails are really only a mm or so lengthwise different. The Academy rail just looks shorter due to the exhaust deflector being left off.

Now the technicolor yawn of the old, new, and rebuilt bay parts:

You can see where the bays between ribs are numbered--this was to help me match up the Academy bays with the right Has detail parts. It also was vital to mounting the Has rail. The Academy rail attaches about 4mm too far back, but since the rail supports are also too far back on the rail, it works out the rail end up extended in the right place. Mounting the Has rail at the Acad points has the Has rail hitting the back of the bay! So, using reference photos again, and counting the bays, the right location was found. The rail already has it neo super magnet installed. I'm debating adding any piping detail because of what a pain it would be, and how hard it is to see around an AIM-9 and the rail...

Next up, let's see how Pepto pink does with primer!

umm ，hase missile laucher more detail

hase f-22 add small pe part

you want to use hase nozzle in acad f-22 ?