f5guy

Great build! I too am having the same problem with the nose cone on my build..... the fit was bad and sanding wiped out most of the detail. I'm at the point where I have to rescribe and re-rivit, and that were its been for the last 8 years.... on my shelf of doom. Now that I'm retiring, I'm hoping to have some time to get back to it and make it look as good as yours! Fred K.

Agreed! Very cool Fred.

Excellent! Thanks! I've just started an F myself, and thought the same thing about that tail joint..... what a stupid place to put the seam! Also a great suggestion from you and eoyguy about doing an extended tail fin for those export Tigers. And those rear fuselage rivets... one of many things with these kits that makes me scratch my head and wonder what the heck Kitty Hawk were thinking Fred.

No doubt! There's lots of things to tweek, that's for sure! Fred.

Thanks! This is exactly the type of input I'm looking for. Fred.

Not necessarily. In fact, I've only seen a few E/F's that had the guns completely removed. Usually they just put plugs in them. It might have something to do with throwing off the balance of the aircraft. Fred.

Hello everyone, I was recently contacted by a designer from an aftermarket company regarding help with some projects for the Kittyhawk/Storm Factory 1/32nd scale F-5E/F kits. First and foremost on the list of projects is the cockpits. Anyone who has seen these kits can attest that they are very underwhelming at best. On top of that, they are 3mm too shallow, and it really throws off the look of the finished model. I am suppling cockpit pics of a Mexican Air Force F-5F, but there is interest in other cockpit variants as well. The standard F-5 cockpit will no doubt be covered, but perhaps some of the upgraded jets with multiple MFDs in place of the original instruments. Also, seat details are needed. Especially from those countries that didn't use the Northrop seat, like Iran. SO, if you have some good pics or info of any countries F-5E/F cockpits and seats, please post them here, or if you like, contact me via a message, and I will get them to the right people. Now for external upgrade ideas. Is there anything that you might like to see that you would actually purchase? New weapons pylons and fuel tanks were suggested. I suggested closed gun bay and shell chute ejector doors. The E kit only gives you the option to have both open. The F kit does not have this problem. I'm not sure about the RF-5E kit as I have not personally seen it. Any other idea's? The intakes and exhausts have already been addressed quite nicely. The KH/SF kits are a great start for the F-5E and F, and with some love can be turned into a stellar build. If you have ANY interest in seeing upgrade products for these kits, NOW IS THE TIME! So please, if you have any idea's or photo's to share, please do so. As an F-5 junkie I beg you Fred K.

I would second the 32nd F-18E/F cockpit sets for the Trumpeter kits. My first choice though would be cockpit sets for the Kitty Hawk/Storm Factory F-5E and F. The kit cockpits are very underwhelming, and far too shallow. I've contacted Reskit a few times in the past about it, and they've assured me that they're on the to do list, but nothing yet. The fact that they've been releasing cockpit sets for other large scale jets gives me hope though. I've got 9 of the KH F-5E's, and 3 of the F's just waiting for cockpits, so my fingers are crossed! Fred K.

Very nicely done Fred K.

Hi, I've used their decals a number of times, including this same sheet in 1/72nd scale, and have had no issues at all. They go down quite nicely with any solutions that I've used. Those big national insignia going over vortex generators are going to be tricky no matter who the decal manufacturer is. Furball decals are top notch, so have no fears! Fred K.

Beauty! Thanks for the link Niels! I just ordered a couple of A tails. Fred.

Nice! I'm glad to see some low-vis Skyhawks in 32nd scale. Not that I'll be building any of the sheet options, but I'm betting that I can use the stencil data for some of my large scale adversary Scooter builds. Most welcome indeed! Fred K.

Hi, The original seats were largely changed out by the very early 1980's, if not sooner. A pic of the jet that you want to model is really your best bet to determine which seat you need. If it is in the 87/88 time frame that you mentioned above, it will definitely be the late style seat. HTH, Fred K.

Yup..... I second the F-101, F-102 and F-106. A T-38 would be nice too. Fred K.

Hi, I just stumbled across this build. Very nicely done! I have plans to build this very jet, but I am waiting for someone to put out an aftermarket cockpit set to fix that Godawful kit cockpit. You really did #43 justice Fred K.