Jump to content

VintageEagle

LSP_Members
  • Posts

    343
  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    1

VintageEagle last won the day on June 27 2021

VintageEagle had the most liked content!

Recent Profile Visitors

2,680 profile views
  1. Thank you. Indeed, that’s the leg for the F-15E on the picture. I just ordered the one for the F-15C.
  2. Thank you for your analysis. I have the Kopecky fuel tanks which are quite heavy, but I’ll get a set and can still measure the weight of all parts before installation. I noticed that the resing gear shown above has a horizontal cylinder attached near the bottom. I only found that on F-15E gears but not the F-15C. Is this correct?
  3. Great to have the option for an accurate landing gear for the F-15. They write: The E type nose landing gear will not deform when weighing less than 500 grams(C type less then 350 grams), and will deform slightly when weighing 1,000 grams. The rear landing gear will not deform even if it weighs over 2000 grams. Does anyone know the weight of a Tamiya 1/32 F-15C with some resin parts (roughly)? I’m a bit concerned that the front gear leg will bend over time. Thanks, Roger
  4. Thank you all for your kind comments! That motivates me to continue with this build! Next will be riveting. I know that putty was used on the original, at least in certain areas, but in wartime close-up photos you can still see the rivets. So, I'll add them, but try to be subtle.
  5. Finally, I found time to take photos (sorry for the low quality, I only had an iPhone 13Pro available). The cockpit is basically complete except for the wiring/tubes on the backside of the main instrument panel. The first few photos show the cockpit from all angles without the cockpit sill installed, the second last photo shows the cockpit with the sill loosely placed on top of it and the last photo shows the other side of the cockpit tube. I added a hand-written marking that was applied by the sub-supplier (presumably an internal serial number) as well as an instruction decal. the former can be seen on e.g. the NASM Me 262 or German Museum Me 262, the latter on wartime photos of Me 262 W.Nr. 111711 taken in the US shortly after the war. Note that the small crack near the firewall will be completely hidden once the cockpit tube is installed inside the fuselage and therefore I didn't bother to fill it. Changes I made since I showed the last pictures include: OXYGEN HOSE: Added the oxygen hose to the left console KG 13B BUTTON & WIRING: Installed a new accurate-to-scale button on the left side of the control grip for charging the MK 108s (made using a punch & die tool) as well as yellow wiring from the terminal box and side button to the base of the control column. RUDDER ASSEMBLY: I shortened the rudder assembly as it was too wide straight out of the box and added the straps that were made out of fabric and a metal clip to fix the length. I also had to move it slightly more to the firewall to have the assembly in the right relative position to the rest of the cockpit. This involved some surgery and a lot of dry fitting. Dry fitting was generally a must during the assembly so that all parts fit together well (in particular for the fit of the firewall to the cockpit tube). I am glad that this fiddly part is now successfully completed and that I can move on to the next part: riveting. In parallel, I have already started with the nose gear assembly. I am a slow builder and regularly switch from building models to writing on my next book, so it could take a while again before my next update.
  6. OK, it seems I was wrong and confused the P&W nozzle with a GE nozzle. And Kirk’s explanation regarding the landing gear lights makes sense. Sorry about the confusion!
  7. Yes, you are right, I confused the photos in my earlier post, but in my most recent one I show photos of the same airframe, but once with P&W and once with GE.
  8. Thank you for your explanation. 86-273 was built with a P&W engine see photo below), but apparently received the GE engine around 2022. That’s a good point about the nose gear landing lights. I’m not sure if also received the heavyweight landing gear. It would be interesting to know all changes and whether the Tamiya F-16C Thunderbirds or the Block 50 kit were the better one with the least number of required modifications. A GE engine aggressor is definitely a very attractive bird. Later:
  9. Yes, but do GE engines work with the NSI and is that (GE engine, later landing gear and NSI) a new Block designation?
  10. Thank you all. Here is a recent photo. It seems the upgrade was done around 2022. Another one here: https://www.jetphotos.com/photo/10588645
  11. Hi, I recently saw the photo of F-16 86-273 of the 64th Aggressor Squadron. It used to have a P&W engine and the early landing gear, but it seems it was upgraded in the past 2 years with a GE engine and the late landing gear? What would be the Block designation and what exactly was upgraded? Could the Tamiya Block 50 kit be used to build a model of this aircraft? Thanks, Roger
  12. Sorry for the late reply. After I completed the assembly of the side walls with the center structure I started weathering. Unfortunately, it did not turn out well and I stripped the (aluminum) paint and tried to redo. The second time, I added the rivet decals the wrong way around and only realized after I had applied paint. The third time, the aluminum paint was pulled off by the masking tape I applied to paint the center part in RLM 02. I then tried the same again for several times before my mojo was completely gone. After summer, I gave it another go and used a different aluminum paint. This time it finally worked and I am about to close up the cockpit after assembling all parts, adding an oxygen hose and the nose wheel break lever. The rudder pedals assembly out of the box was too wide and the pedals were partially hidden behind the side consoles. So, I had to shorten the width, which took some time to do properly. The only thing I still have to do now is the wiring/tubes on the backside of the instrument panel. Not much of that will still be visible once the windshield is installed, so I won't replicate plugs, etc., just the cables. Pictures to follow soon.
  13. Which aircraft do you plan to build? I have just ordered this kit as well but will probably wait for the Reskit parts to become available. I have decals for two VA-22 (Gecko and overall grey) and a Stinger bird, but haven’t decided yet which one to build.
  14. Thank you. I probably will do just that. I doubt there are 1/32 training AGM-45s available. I like the blue color contrast to the white red of the aircraft. Even if they used live AGM-45s I will probably go with the airshow loadout. Thank you for the details of the antenna configuration, which is very helpful. My main field of expertise is WW2 Luftwaffe aircraft and I don't know a lot about modern jets, but I do like how they look in 1/32 and have several in my stash.
  15. Thank you Thierry! Was there an external difference (other than the color) between a live and an inert AGM-45 Shrike? I see that Eduard offers a 1/32 scale Shrike. Thanks anyways Tony. I saw that you wrote it was the inert version of the AGM-45. I agree, I like the markings on the Navy jets from the 60/70s.
×
×
  • Create New...