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Tamiya 1/32 F-16CJ


Daywalker

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After over a year and a half on the bench, I am calling this one finished! It is Tamiya's 1/32 F-16CJ kit, built as a line jet from the 55th FS during Operation Nothern Watch, Incirlik AB, Turkey. Decals used were Afterburner Decals, as well as a few stencils from Two Bobs. The missile decals were mostly Two Bobs, with a few kit decals where TB missed some. I used the ordnance provided in the kit- 2x AGM-88 HARM missiles, 2x AIM-9M Sidewinders, 2x AIM-120C AMRAAMS, the HTS pod, as well as a modified An/ALQ-184 ECM pod. The ECM pod is a cut down version of the one provided in the kit to represent their 2 band pods used in theater. I would like to thank everyone who stopped by during the construction of the kit here. I would also like to extend a huge thank you to Jake Melampy and Pete Fleischmann for their invaluable help regarding technical aspects of the F-16 as well as great advice on ordnance- THANK YOU BOTH!!!

 

As always, there are a few things I will do differently next time, some of those are things I did one way on the first one and differently this time. Also there are things which did not work so well either time LOL! This time around, I used the Aires resin exhaust set- what a huge difference! Of course, I couldn't do that on the first one as it has a Pratt and Whitney engine (different exhaust) and Aires do not make such an item yet. I also used some .5mm stainless tubing for the static whip housings, and stretched sprue for the whips. This looks MUCH better than than the .5mm stainless rods Tamiya gives you. I cannot take credit for coming up with this idea- I read about it in Reid Air Publishing's "Building the Scale Viper" in a build by our own Geedubelyer. If you have never seen his build of this kit, it is by far the best example of this kit I have ever seen. The only other additions are some wiring for the landing gear, a few small scratchbuilt additions in the cockpit like the canopy lock (very noticeable in it's absence) and some wiring for the canopy opening mechanism. Otherwise, it's out of the box. Paints were all by Tamiya. Thank you for looking in, and I would love to hear any feedback and constructive criticism!

 

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Guest Peterpools

Frank

Just a tremendous build and one awesome looking Viper! The subtle weather is wonderfully done and adds so much to a used but well maintained look. Aces on a wonderful build. :clap2: :bow: :clap2:

Peter

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Frank, my friend, you have nailed it ! It's the best Viper I have seen, anywhere, not kiding. Congrats on another well done build..............Harv :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :punk:

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Hi Frank, that is a beautiful Viper. i agree with everything that everyone else has said and I'm humbled by your gracious words, thank you.

The finesse and quality of your work is peerless. The little dude looks superb and really sets the model off to a tee.

Flawless work Sir. Great job.

 

 

* some more pics then.

I can't wait. If you ever get a chance to take a few shots outdoors under sunlight I'd love to see them. Your model will look indistinguishable from the real item. :punk:
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Awesome job Frank! Looks great with the pre/post shading and subtle weathering. The only suggestion I would make is to leave the canopy open next time. There's so much to be seen inside that cockpit that the closed canopy just doesn't allow for showing it off. I'm assuming you've not glued it on and it is removable. I know when the pilot gets in they get the APU started and close that canopy asap so the ECS can be brought online and make the pilot nice and comfy especially under the heat of the greenhouse canopy (desert climate...I think it's probably pretty cold at times in Alaska [and other bases] and the guys turn on the heat asap). Again, I'm assuming that's what you're trying to model and forgive me if I'm wrong...that's just what it looks like to me. I hope mine aggressor turns out as nice (if I ever get around to building it).

Edited by TimC
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