Tamiya Tomcat Build

[toadwbg]

I've always wanted to build Tamiya's large scale Tomcat but was historically out of my price range. A few years ago someone sold me a partially started kit on the cheap and I finally got started on it this year.

 

This is an origional boxing- almost 30 years old! The plastic was showing it's age with parts warped, discolored and brittle. I figured if I didn't start this soon it would decompose in my stash!

 

I picked up the Teckniks pit, wolfpack boarding ladder, Steel Beach intake covers, and a few other odd items for added details along with CAMs decals for VF-111 Sundowners, a old fav of mine. I fondly recall the old Monogram 1/48 kit hanging from my ceiling as a kid with the VF-111 sharkmouth on it and that inspired me to take this up.

 

Here's a pic of the raw ingrediants. More to come.

 

 

here's a pic for inspiration and hope for the end result:

 

[toadwbg]

For starters, I stripped away the previous owners paintjob- which was fo VF-84 Jolly Rogers. Love those markings too but have already done them in 1/48 a few years ago.

 

 

Castro Super Clean to the rescue

 

 

Sit tight

 

 

with some rising and light scrubbing, parts were as good as new

[LSP_K2]

The Sundowners are pretty cool. I've always really liked VF-41 Black Aces as my personal choice. Good luck with this; we'll be watching.

[toadwbg]

Jumped right into the Teckniks pit. This thing is a kit in itself. I imagine putting 10 hours into the ejection seats alone, lots of detail here.

 

The brass instrunments went on pretty well

 

 

found it difficult to get a good sharp photograph capturing all that detail.

 

[LSP_K2]

Speaking of Tomcats, a couple of years ago, a friend that worked at the (now defunct), MOANG called and said a Tomcat had just made an emergency in flight landing. I grabbed my cheapie digital camera and made my way to the airport. After looking at this aircraft for a few minutes, it dawned on me; I think this was the CAG bird from the USS George Washington! Too Coolness!

[toadwbg]

I have no idea what the fit newly molded and without an aftermarket pit is like, but this thing was a BEAST to force together! Had to get out some serious clamps and musta used 2 tubes of superglue on the coward fusalage alone!

 

 

[Texas]

It's a real challenging build but I am sure your up to the task...Great choice on the Sundowner markings...One of my favorites to....

 

Texas

[toadwbg]

Speaking of Tomcats, a couple of years ago, a friend that worked at the (now defunct), MOANG called and said a Tomcat had just made an emergency in flight landing. I grabbed my cheapie digital camera and made my way to the airport. After looking at this aircraft for a few minutes, it dawned on me; I think this was the CAG bird from the USS George Washington! Too Coolness!

 

sweet close encounter! I build that Red Ripper CAG Bird about 4 years ago in 1/48 with 2Bobs decals and sold it to someone else who loved those markings.

[toadwbg]

Showing some of the aged plastic- see contrast between yellowed areas and areas sanded down. Plastic was brittle and I had to do some of my own BDR .

 

 

I removed the BDR Tamiya molded on and filled in the feuling probe area. Blood and sweat.

 

 

I'll need to describe a little but I don't plan on rescribing the main fusalage, I'll live with the raised lines.

[PhilB]

Excellent progress!

Good luck with this one.

Phil

[LSP_K2]

Two things; where in the world did you find a copy of the Teknics cockpit set, and do you have a macro setting on your camera? I just recently discovered that my little Nikon has a macro function. Five years I've owned the camera and had no idea it had macro capability!

[shark64]

A lot of goodies indeed. Following this build. Nice start BTW.

Oliver

[toadwbg]

Two things; where in the world did you find a copy of the Teknics cockpit set, and do you have a macro setting on your camera? I just recently discovered that my little Nikon has a macro function. Five years I've owned the camera and had no idea it had macro capability!

 

the Teckniks pit I got a few years ago before Meteor crashed.

 

We've got a nice Cannon digital with macro but my wife always has the thing hidden somewhere I can't get it. So I wind up using my iPhone camera out of convienience.

[toadwbg]

Had to do some engineering to improve the fit of the forward fuselage to the main fuselage. Added some braces, stiffeners, thickened/widened areas with strip styrene. Used a ton of Superglue again.

 

 

 

LOTS of putty and superglue at the seams to smooth this all out.