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In July 1983 was the first flight of McDonnell Douglas F-15E Strike Eagle, Multi-Role Fighter Bomber 71-0291, F-15B-4-MC, Converted from the second two-seat F-15B Eagle trainer, My starting point, a 1993 kit that was collecting dust for almost about the same period.. and left over Mk20 Rockeye from Tamiya Bought that magazine in '86, and always had a crush on that article but never find the time nor the guts to start the build.. Don't know yet if I'll go down with all the trouble to converte the cockpit to a B version or just use what's in the box, but one thing for sure is there are some real most needed modification that I'll do... There was no gun on the that demo version, and the seat used was the Escapac version... And going to use those early Corsair version with pilot from Aerobonus. See you soon with some progress, have fun and thanks for watching. Dan.

After a rather lengthy build, this one is finally over the line. I really wanted to do a large scale air superiority blue F-15 and the candy cane scheme of this B model really appealed. As ever, there was no real OOTB version so extras included an Aires early C cockpit, some additional resin parts from Bruce for the rear cockpit, new exhausts from GT Resin, Fuel tanks borrowed from the Revell F-4, modified Aires Aim-7 to get an F variant, CE Aim-9Js a fair bit of scratch built vents etc and of course some added lighting. The Revell kit is OK shape-wise but needs some real love and attention to bring it somewhere near modern standards i.e. no riveting, rather wide panel lines, soft detail etc. Suffice to say I learnt a lot, mostly that I need to be more focused on build Quality from the start rather than fixing up my errors later on! I tried Black basing on this one, but with lots of over-painting which prove more effective, so not sure I'll do it the same way again. The weapons and tanks are attached with magnets so they can be moved around or replaced. I also trialed some acrylic carving for the afterburner effect which turned out quite neat. Anyway, enough words... picture time! And yes the lights still worked (mostly!).... Thanks for looking! And for anyone interested the build thread is below:

Hi everyone, Having eventually completed the F-4E, the desire to actually assemble a model rather than admire the contents has returned. The subject of the next labour of love is the old Revell F-15 which I am going to attempt to construct as its 'B' version. I'm not sure why I've gone for another Revell kit other than they are relatively cheap in comparison to the alternatives and this one is nearer to a B than converting say the Tamiya E (I also have some spare parts for this kit if I screw something up!). That said I will inevitably blow this reasoning out of the water by buying more aftermarket stuff than I need and adding stuff like lights that will turn it from 'easy and cheap' to 'challenging and expensive'. The other challenge will be making a mono-chromatic paint finish look real. So here's the kit in question: I understand that the shape is good but it lacks some of the Tamiya detail. As I have a Tamiya C I'm going to try and read across any additional detail that looks ok. I also have Jake Melampy's excellent book on the F-15 and some internet piccies though this version will be an early 70's jet so references are a bit thin on the ground. My initial hit list will include: - Revised cockpit based on the Aires A model pit - Escapac sets (kit has Aces version) - Revised engine exhausts as the kits ones are pretty plain - Added rivet detail - this kit has none - Added detail where the vents are - Added crew (the kit has none) - Alternative sidewinder launch-rails where no weapons are carried - kit ones are pretty crude - New formation lights - Aim-9J drill rounds Feel free to offer any steers on where else I mighty need to go. Please bear in mind that my work-rate is inversely proportional to home command commitments so don't expect a quick turn-round! Thanks for watching.