John F Smith Posted July 4, 2014 Share Posted July 4, 2014 (edited) Hi everyone, I'm really pleased to join this group build since the Phantom is one of my favorite aircraft.....truly an aircraft of my generation. I'm going to be building the Tamiya F-4E USAF in the markings of one of the aircraft participating in Operation Linebacker in 1972. Below is a photo of the kit (Ooops, I don't have the lid open, I can take another photo if you like, but with all the aftermarket I have on hand, I think it's pretty obvious that it's unstarted): Lots of aftermarket for this kit, and much of it will be a learning experience, because I've never dealt with many of these kinds of items so far in my modeling: So, we have above Seamless Intakes from D-Mold, Linebacker decals from Monokio (S. Korea?), Master Pitot Tube and AOA probe for Long Nose Phantoms. Eduard Brassin Exhaust pipes, Avionix Cockpit set, Eduard Brassin Wheels and tires, and Eduard Brassin Ejection Seats. In addition, I have a couple of items from Nautilus models which I am hoping to use. One of them is reinforcing plates which were applied to Phantoms for structural integrity reasons, and the other is a wooden jib for correctly setting the Dihedral for the wing tips, and the anhedral for the Horizontal stabilizer. You can get these from www.nautilusmodels.com. So, that's it for now. I'm finally completing the Fine Structure Zero in the Featured Builds on the site as soon as I get a canopy which is on order, and then I can devote full time to this project. It's going to be a lot of fun, I think, and I'm really pleased to be working with such a great bunch of people. Edited August 5, 2014 by John F Smith P Stoner 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andromeda673 Posted July 5, 2014 Share Posted July 5, 2014 looking forward to this one! welcome to the party Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Youngtiger1 Posted July 5, 2014 Share Posted July 5, 2014 This is going to be an other great build. So, welcome aboard.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marauderdriver Posted July 5, 2014 Share Posted July 5, 2014 Hi John. Always room for more builds and al late war Phantom is defiantly Welcome. watch'in you jack Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LSP_Paul Posted July 5, 2014 Share Posted July 5, 2014 Welcome John! I added your name and project to the who's doing what in the group build list and we look forward to your progress. All the best, Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John F Smith Posted July 5, 2014 Author Share Posted July 5, 2014 Thanks everyone I really appreciate the welcome. I think LSP may be one of the friendliest spots on the web, and I just know I'm proud to be a part of it. Since many of the techniques in the build are new to me, I'm sure there will be a lot of exchanges like: "You want me to do WHAT to the fuselage to mount those seamless intakes??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John F Smith Posted July 23, 2014 Author Share Posted July 23, 2014 OK, it's time for my first question for those of you who are familiar with this kit or with aftermarket weapons sets. How good is the quality of the Mk. 82 bombs, the AIM-7E, the AIM-9E, the MER, and TER in the kit? They seem to be a little short on decals for markings and I'm always suspicious of kit weaponry because invariably, it's this part of the kit that get's the short end of the stick. Is the Tamiya stuff in the kit OK? Would I be better off using the 1/32 Trumpeter sets? I've searched high and low on the internet for resin replacements and can't find anything Vietnam era....it all seems to be post Vietnam. Is anyone aware of some good resin/PE replacements for the kit parts? Thanks in advance for your replies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe Posted July 23, 2014 Share Posted July 23, 2014 John - having built both Tamiya and Trumpeter mk 82 bombs, MERs and TERs the Tamiya parts IMO are much more accurate in shape and size. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John F Smith Posted July 23, 2014 Author Share Posted July 23, 2014 Thanks, Joe I appreciate your taking the time to help me out. Best Regards, John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LSP_Paul Posted July 23, 2014 Share Posted July 23, 2014 John, if you have the Money available for the project , our very own Harold from AMS Resin has made some spectacular Mk-82's in both Snake eye and slick versions that can NOT be beat.. I have reviewed the Snakes already the slicks are just as good. Contact Harold for special group build member pricing. Paul Girlscanplay2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P Stoner Posted July 23, 2014 Share Posted July 23, 2014 Zacto has real good AIM-9s both early and later L/Ms. The sparrows are a simple build from the kit but lacks detail, plus fins are very thick! The MERs and TERs are Air Force type and are designed for the kits bombs! The AMS bombs are a better deal unless ur on a budget! Go Phantoms!! Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John F Smith Posted July 23, 2014 Author Share Posted July 23, 2014 Thanks for the help, guys. I've had a look at the Mk. 82s and the AIM-9s from AMS and Zacto, and I think they both look pretty good, so I've contacted them about getting what I need. Should be some nice additions to the kit. LSP_Paul and Girlscanplay2 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Cross Posted July 23, 2014 Share Posted July 23, 2014 This might be obvious, but I put the weapons pylons on before mounting the wing tips, so the jig was useless by then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John F Smith Posted July 25, 2014 Author Share Posted July 25, 2014 You're right, Bill, and that's the way the kit instructions show it being done, too. On the other hand, studying the instructions indicates to me that putting the wing tips on could be done before mounting the weapons with no problems at all, so perhaps the jig will come in worthwhile after all. I'll know more when I get to that point. I just finally got the Zero's on display after the Group Builds and finished cleaning up the workbench (Boy, that's scary!), so now I can actually lay some rubber to the concrete on this project. Progress reports will be coming soon. Girlscanplay2 and LSP_Paul 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe Posted July 25, 2014 Share Posted July 25, 2014 (edited) I've always left the weapons and pylons off until last so I can weather and detail them. Makes that part a lot easier. On my last F-4D I added stencil decals from the spares box just to add some visual interest as there are no kit decals for this area provided by tamiya. I think I even used 1/48 decals for extra detail...! Edited July 25, 2014 by joe LSP_Paul and Girlscanplay2 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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