1/32 BBI F-4J Phantom

[ChrisS]

http://www.badcataviation.com/fphjorovf1bl.html

[DaveJ]

The radome is supposed to be white.

 

Never even heard of these before....

[Texas]

HI Thats pretty neat must be 1/32 scale.

 

Texas

[Rob Colvin]

The white nose was on 201....

[SeaVenom]

Is it just me, or does that look pretty cool for a 'toy'!

[johng]

"Toys" have come a long way since we were kids.

[genedig65]

My better half ordered one for me to be opened at Christmas. Me, being a bad 42 year old boy, couldn't wait that long and had to sneak a peak! Overall, it's an impressive model/toyand it looks pretty good out in the box. ( Ican't take it out of the box until Santa comes down the chimney!) Some of the paint work is quite fuzzy though. This is especially true of the walkways along the top fuselage, they don't look too good. In addition, on my example, the intake ramps were painted the same color as the walkways. Also the weathering around the exhausts was, in my opinion, overdone. The pilot figures look great including the yellow and black helmets as worn by VF-84 crewmembers.

 

I think all of these items can be addressed and certainly with the amount of 1/32 Phantom decals, one can choose any markings they wish. I would say modelers now have a lower cost choice over the Tamiya F-4J.

 

Look for pics after Dec. 25! In the meantime Merry Christmas to you all!

[Guest Rigor]

iam not into jet's but cool

[DaveJ]

The white nose was on 201....

 

Actually I believe it depended on the year. I have numerous pics of both 200 and 201 with white noses.

[SeaVenom]

"Toys" have come a long way since we were kids.

 

 

 

I wonder how it compares detail wise to the Tamiya kit. Looking at the photo's it seems to have as much detail as Tamiyas's. I hope they do the beefier Spey engined British Phantoms too (with dark sea grey and dark green camouflage) as I grew up with those roaring about the place.

[genedig65]

I wonder how it compares detail wise to the Tamiya kit. Looking at the photo's it seems to have as much detail as Tamiyas's. I hope they do the beefier Spey engined British Phantoms too (with dark sea grey and dark green camouflage) as I grew up with those roaring about the place.

 

 

Looking at my BBI F-4 and comapring it to my unbuilt Tamiya bird, I'd say the level of detail is close but not the same. The Tamiya model is still the best 1/32 F-4, but it is also still rather pricey. I think any decent modeler can do a better paint/decal job than the factory finish applied to the BBI F-4. I'm probably going to repaint mine and add decals from CAM.

[eoyguy]

Looking at my BBI F-4 and comapring it to my unbuilt Tamiya bird, I'd say the level of detail is close but not the same. The Tamiya model is still the best 1/32 F-4, but it is also still rather pricey. I think any decent modeler can do a better paint/decal job than the factory finish applied to the BBI F-4. I'm probably going to repaint mine and add decals from CAM.

I was wondering if the BBi bird is 'inspired' by the Tamiya kit and , most importantly, is it covered with raised patches? It appears to have some of the same ones as the Tamiya kit, but I can't tell if they're as prominent and widespread . Also, and I am aware its a toy, but how did they handle the inside of the intakes?

Thanks

Jason

[Starfighter]

I also have the impression that BBI has been influenced by tamiya, as it hast the same - incorrect! - raised panels all over the fuselage...

[Scotsman]

I hope they do the beefier Spey engined British Phantoms

 

Of course they will - after all the gods of modelling have been apeased by some of us fools parting with a LOt of money to build one in resin .. yup I'm one of the 85 , along with neil ...!

[genedig65]

Well, I got it out of the box. A mixed bag really. One hand, the fuselage is a clone of the Tamiya bird. That's good. However, the paintwork is not very good. Far too much weathering for my tastes. As stated earlier, the walkways are sloppily painted. The cockpit is actually nice considering that it's meant to be a toy. I like the instrument panels and they seem to be correct for a Navy Phantom. The crew figures look nice, well detailed. However the shape of the canopy is off. Comparing it to my late issue Revell F-4E and Tamiya F-4J, it seems that the center section and pilot's canopy are too long on the BBI Phantom. The injection molded L/G seems nicely detailed but a bit flimsy, I have detached the gear and keep my Phantom in the inflight appearance.

 

So to sum it up:

 

1/32 F-4J via mail order: 54.99 USD plus shipping

 

Tamiya F-4J or Revell F-4E clear plastic canopies: 0-15 USD

 

CAM decals Phantom walkways, F-4 data stencils, US insignia , and markings of your choice: 46.00 USD plus shipping

 

That's over 100 dollars already. You can probably score a Tamiya kit off Ebay for less. If BBI had done a better job on the canopy shape, I'd consider these jets to be an alternative to Tamiya's. But the poor canopy shape and sloppy paintwork make it hard to consider them a scale model. Oh well, it makes a cool toy!