Gene K

Just reviewing some favorite threads. Appreciate your posting the cut files for Silhouette Studio on the Scale Models Paint Mask site. Gene K

Of course not, Dave. "Do you honestly believe that any modeler is going to be dealing with temperatures" storing Oramask in a hot truck for three days? Possible. "To be clear", and heaven forbid, I was not challenging you, I was merely suggesting that your more expensive alternative material, to some extent, has temp limitations... as does Oramask. With all due respect, Gene K

Per the Amazon link, that 3M/TapeCase material, like Oramask 810, is also sensitive to heat: Like Out2gtcha, I've stored and used small rolls of Oramask 810 inside my house (normal heating and cooling) for many years without a problem. Gene K

Mathieu, Did the new Tamiya 1/48 F-4B distract you from this 1/32 project? Gene K

Mathieu, Can you share a picture of your support scheme, please? Any more progress? Thanks, Gene K

Absolutely. Quite an impressive Fusion accomplishment. Warning off scale follows: I reduced and printed your intakes to 1/72 to use with Hasegawa Phantoms -- took quite a lot of fiddling, but the parts are useable. Wish I were somewhat as accomplished in Fusion as you are an expert. I also reduced your wing parts to 1/72 and tailored them to a FineMolds kit. "One of these days" I'll actually start the modding! I totally understand. Fusion proved to be beyond my diminished mental skills. It will be worth the wait to witness your magic. However, I wouldn't hold my breath on new 1/32 Phantoms, especially from Sprue Brothers ... or do you know otherwise?? Thanks again for all the sharing. Gene K

Mathieu, What happened to this spectacular project? Gene K

Ouch! The one I saw was an F-4E with the radome resting on the flightline. Not as much of a kneel as in your photo. Thanks for that most interesting illustration. Gene K.

Sorry I didn't see your post earlier (I'm spending too much time flying RC). Here's some pertinent info from the Flight Manual: "Accidental retraction of the landing gear when the aircraft is on the ground is prevented by safety switches on the main gear. Ground safety locks may also be installed to further prevent inadvertent retraction". Main Gear: "When the gear handle is UP and weight is off the gear, the gear will retract ... The gear is locked down by an internal finger type latch in each side brace actuator". Nose Gear: "The gear is locked in the down position by an internal finger latch within the gear actuating cylinder". I have seen a flight line "kneeling" mishap where the nose gear was retracted on the ground ... only once, but have never seen a picture. As an aside and along those lines, I never saw the wings folded when airborne as shown here: Rare. Gene K

Any updates as to the status of the Pheon website? Gene K

Hello Michael. I had intended to post back in December, but life ... . So I just posted the studio3 file for use with Silhouette cutters here. I also posted the scale SVG for use with other cutters. My next post at that site will be the outer wing reinforcement plates ... after Anthony fits and OKs them. Gene K

The reason for "multiple revisions" was that as I was preparing the Silhouette cutter files, my references, including "scale" drawings from multiple sources like this, didn't quite match available after-market sets in various scales (Nautilus, Hypersonic, GTR, Flying Leatherneck, and ScalePhantomPhixer), nor photos like those in the excellent DACO book Rick highlighted above, nor with Mr. Google. I also scaled up scans from the 1/72 Airfix Brit Phantom as well as the 1/48 Zukei Mura F-4S for comparison. The most useful drawings were those posted from Navy F-4 Phantom Tech Manuals as shown here. There are some good discussions on LSP concerning the straps here and here, as well as in Chuck's outstanding build from 2013. Thanks, Anthony, for sharing your modeling perfection in such great detail. Just amazing!! Gene K

The plates you mention are on the F-4N in the Pensacola Naval Museum, but the belly straps are not. Not concluding anything as regards USN versus USAF mods ... just an observation. Gene K

The straps I'm posting are tailored to the Tamiya 1/32 kit and may not necessarily fit other 1/32 models. ... or other kits if scaled down. For which kits are you " needing" straps? Gene K

Will do, MIchael. However, I was just requested to attend a funeral tomorrow, so I'll be out of town -- maybe up to 10 days. I'll take my files with me in the hopes of adding the finishing touches to the file and posting it. I'm reinventing the wheel, of course, but my challenge has been in resolving the shape of the "ears" and the center reinforcement of the strap. I have at least 10 different interpretations in drawings and aftermarket sets, and am settling down to scaling up and adjusting the Zukei Mura F-4S patterns. That raises the question as to whether or not all Phantom model reinforcements are the same (I was told they are, but?). Just for grins, here's one of the drawings I used for reference: Lines up well with the detail photos from Coreman's Uncovering book that Mathieu alerted me to. Gene K