Mark Jackson Posted April 18, 2017 Share Posted April 18, 2017 (edited) I've decided to start another big Hornet from Academy which is a quality kit which you can have faith in. No open panels or bays, just armed to the teeth. I've built several Hornets over the years and every time you open the box you can't help but feel overwhelmed by the sheer number of parts - the sprues just keep going on and on. I work by removing all the parts that I can and store them either in the main box or plastic craft boxes. Some parts I leave on the sprue so I can identify the number; some of the landing gear parts definitely need to be kept like this until assembly. When you work like this you are left with just the parts that you actually need and the build seems far less daunting. There are several large sprues containing unused weapons which have been stored for spares. The only after-market parts that will be used are the Eduard exterior fret, canopy mask, Eagle Strike decals and an Aires resin SJU-5/6 seat as this Hornet will be an early block "C". Edited April 18, 2017 by Mark Jackson Luca, themongoose, Marcel111 and 5 others 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Squizzy 78 Posted April 18, 2017 Share Posted April 18, 2017 I've just started the same kit, doing the chippy ho f/a-18c from 1995. I'll be loading the kit up with as much resin as possible, but having seen the work you done on the tomcat, I'll enjoy watching this build. Good luck Mark. Mark Jackson 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Jackson Posted April 19, 2017 Author Share Posted April 19, 2017 Something seems amiss with the Academy Sidewinders and after a bit of sanding the Trumpeter F-14A missiles should look the part. The flanged plates (on the LAU-117) that the pylon/launcher's sway braces rest against have been slightly thinned and chamfered at the corners. So the ordnance will be wingtip AIM-9's, 1 x AGM-65E Maverick, 1 x AGM-88 HARM under each wing and a centreline fuel tank. The AGM-65's will have a detailed laser seeker behind the glass nose and the business end will also have a few mods. A-10LOADER, Anthony in NZ, F`s are my favs and 3 others 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LSP_Kevin Posted April 19, 2017 Share Posted April 19, 2017 Nice work, Mark! Let's hope this one presents you with fewer problems. Kev Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Jackson Posted April 26, 2017 Author Share Posted April 26, 2017 Go on then - ask what "Swished" is. A-10LOADER, KiwiZac, MarioS and 6 others 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark M Posted April 26, 2017 Share Posted April 26, 2017 logan181 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Jackson Posted April 27, 2017 Author Share Posted April 27, 2017 He's only gone and cut the engines in half! It'll never fly. Why? I only want the afterburner section to connect to the ceramic inner plates inside the nozzle, the engine front and intake tubes will not be required. The inside of the afterburner sections should be ridged so I reckon a textured card or paper might have to be used. The next bit is a bit scientific and involves algebra, calculus and quantum physics. One of the attached wings was slightly higher then the other so a state of the art fix was employed: Basically lumps of plastic or resin to push the wing against the fuselage and change the angle ever so slightly. I blame it on a poor upbringing and glue fumes. Whitey, blackbetty, Seversky and 5 others 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A-10LOADER Posted April 30, 2017 Share Posted April 30, 2017 Very nice progress Mark especially with the Maverick's and pod. Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Squizzy 78 Posted May 1, 2017 Share Posted May 1, 2017 Great start, and you're moving ahead so quickly, which I like so I can see regular updates on a great looking bird. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Jackson Posted May 12, 2017 Author Share Posted May 12, 2017 Still bits to add to the seat. F`s are my favs, KiwiZac, themongoose and 4 others 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Peterpools Posted May 12, 2017 Share Posted May 12, 2017 Mark Super progress on the Hornet and your attention to detail is written all over the images. Looking forward to following your progress Keep 'em coming Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chuck540z3 Posted May 12, 2017 Share Posted May 12, 2017 (edited) Hi Mark, Great work on the nozzles and seat. Understanding that you've made this kit before and your skill level is extremely high, I thought I would take a chance and point out two things on this kit that are wrong, just in case you are not aware of them already. 1) The rear flaps hang too low if you use the 45 degree hinges. They should be closer to 30 degrees and the bottom of the flap should never hang lower than the bottom of the fuselage. 2) There is a big miss-match in panel lines at the rear of the wing to fuselage. If you fill in the existing panel lines on the fuselage and re-scribe it, it will look much better. Cheers, Chuck Edited May 12, 2017 by chuck540z3 A-10LOADER, Mark Jackson and Marcel111 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marcel111 Posted May 12, 2017 Share Posted May 12, 2017 Hello Mark, that's a great start! Any chance I can convince you to buy some Zacto Aim-9M's? They are beautiful and it is such a high point of focus for the model. The AMS AGM-88's are also sweet. Cheers, Marcel Mark Jackson and chuck540z3 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Jackson Posted May 12, 2017 Author Share Posted May 12, 2017 Thanks Chuck and Marcel, I'll have a look at the wing/fuselage panel line problem but the AIM-9's I will have to pass on as the Trumpeter F-14A ones are taking shape nicely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chuck540z3 Posted May 12, 2017 Share Posted May 12, 2017 (edited) Hello Mark, that's a great start! Any chance I can convince you to buy some Zacto Aim-9M's? They are beautiful and it is such a high point of focus for the model. The AMS AGM-88's are also sweet. Cheers, Marcel I totally concur. The Zacto AIM-9's of every type are fantastic. Edited May 13, 2017 by chuck540z3 Tomcat14 and williamj 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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