My Big Fast Greek Dog - KH F-86D

[Kyrre]

Sooo ... I have a thing for Greek stuff. With Kitty Hawk's release of a Sabre Dog I was hooked and had to start it almost as soon as I got the kit delivered. 
Now, a few things about my approach to modelling, having done this for 35 odd years:
- Cockpits. Don't like'em, don't like replacing them with resin or etch, but will do what it takes to do them "nice enough". Will cheat, will omit parts, as long as it looks busy enough. 
- Fuselage. I like my kits to look representative - and will not open up stuff unless it was a typical feature of that plane. So, in this case, dropped slats are a necessity (as on a Bf109), opened air brakes? Not so much. You don't see many pictures of these aircraft flashing their innards, unless they just landed.
- Exposed engine? Yeah right. See last paragraph. 

- Research, yes, accuracy, yes, but if it takes the fun out of the build - screw it. If the kit looks right - it is right. 

So, without further ado: 

 

The cockpit is quite okay straight from the box. I have no idea about accuracy. There should probably be some more seatbelt-stuff in there, but they will be painted greyish and then with a bit of added shadow, that's it. 

 

The cockpit decal is nice, but I thought I'd get into trouble if I tried applying it over the relief molded panel, so I cut them out and applied a coupious amount of Micro Sol, followed by some Future for the "glass". I gave the radar screen some typical cathode ray colour, I have no idea if this would be correct.  

 

With a bit of sanding and dry fitting the air brakes are a tight fit. Nice one, Kitty Hawk.  

 

As mentioned earlier, I have no interest in displaying the engine, so I attached the front and rear halves respectively, using some strip plastic to ensure that I got a fairly smooth joint when viewed from the outside. Worked quite well - shouldn't be much of a step along the fuselage. . 

 

That's how far I've come. I am enjoying this build immensely and have not encountered many issues yet - though a lot of time has been spent dry fitting before committing. 

Thanks for watching - oh, and do give feedback on any issues you might see with the build! I appreciate constructive criticism. 

Kyrre

[Kyrre]

Since I do like'm dirty I am inclined do my kit up like this:

Edited October 8, 2015 by Kyrre

[SinuheH]

Nice, keep it coming.....!

[andromeda673]

that instrument panel is bitching! Hand painted or decals? 

[Kyrre]

that instrument panel is bitching! Hand painted or decals? 

Thanks!

I cut the decal into the respective bezels and applied them one by one. Quick job, made it quite a lot better than applying the whole panel at once, since the detail of the panel is quite "bumpy" :-) 

[monthebiff]

Cool subject........great for some heavy weathering.

 

Regards. Andy

[ClumsyDude]

Those weathered photos look awesome, keen to see you get into it. Great start on the IP too, very convincing.

 

Jim

[Kyrre]

Thanks guys. 
I have actually done one of these before, albeit in 72nd scale. I completely overdid the chipping bit, but had so much fun doing it that I didn't want to stop. Will apply same technique - with some restraint this time around   
 

So, here's the tiny version. 

Edited October 9, 2015 by Kyrre