Tamiya F-4J Phantom VMFA-232 Red Devils *Finished*

[ziggyfoos]

On 9/2/2020 at 3:24 PM, AlbertD said:

Not late at all, the timing is perfect. Thank you. This is exactly how I'm planning my loadout except I have Mk 82 High Drag bombs. Would you happen to have the whole picture that I could use as a weathering guide?

Unfortunately it's not my pic for sharing as it was sent for the decal project, cropping it allowed me to show the load you were specifically interested in on your first post. 

 

3 hours ago, Finn said:

The black on the bottom I think is from the pods sitting on rubber coated racks in storage for some time and it leaves an impression on the pod.

It was a black rectangle applied on the pod itself denoting the hard point area.

[Finn]

4 hours ago, ziggyfoos said:

It was a black rectangle applied on the pod itself denoting the hard point area.

You are right, most images look like it was painted on rather than an impression. However not all pods had it:

Jari

[Finn]

Albert here are those red caps at the back of the pods:

Probably a shorting device or weather seal but removed after loading which may have added a bunch of potential FOD on the carrier deck of tarmac. The caption for the photo says 1975.

 

Jari

[AlbertD]

10 hours ago, Finn said:

Also I'm curious what the red is on the back of the Zuni pod, here is what they looked like:

Jari

 

Jari, The red PE disks popped right off the Zuni pods with no problem. They now look like the photos. I am going to try to get new Mk 82 decals from Eduard, otherwise I wise I will have to wait a couple of weeks to order 2 new resin sets. I can't seem to find a sheet of 1/32 bomb stencils anywhere.

[vvwse4]

Hi Albert,

 

The load looks good to me, man you are flying though this build!! Looking forward to your next update.

 

Jari the pictures are great thanks for sharing, really tempting to make a very dirty Phantom.

 

Rick

 

[AlbertD]

12 minutes ago, vvwse4 said:

Hi Albert,

 

The load looks good to me, man you are flying though this build!! Looking forward to your next update.

 

Jari the pictures are great thanks for sharing, really tempting to make a very dirty Phantom.

 

Rick

 

Thanks Rick. As far as speeding through the build, I have the luxury of being retired and able to put a lot of time into it almost every day. I'm also not quite up to the super detailing that some builders are. I do feel like the skills are improving though. Much of it thanks to the helpful people on this forum.

 

Do go for a dirty Navy Phantom. It would be a fun build.

[vvwse4]

18 hours ago, AlbertD said:

Thanks Rick. As far as speeding through the build, I have the luxury of being retired and able to put a lot of time into it almost every day. I'm also not quite up to the super detailing that some builders are. I do feel like the skills are improving though. Much of it thanks to the helpful people on this forum.

 

Do go for a dirty Navy Phantom. It would be a fun build.

Hi Albert,

 

So retirement is the key.....hmm that will take a while in my case I am afraid. Do not worry about superdetailing, I try my best but I never reach the level I see from a lot of people over here which is not a problem anyway love to watch it.

 

I saw some pictures on Jari's Flickr account from some very weathered Phantoms. I really want to do that but it is so easy to go overboard and mess things up. I must try to find some more pictures from very weathered Phantoms and take a deep breath I guess.

[AlbertD]

On 9/7/2020 at 10:19 PM, Finn said:

Good work on the ordnance but a couple of things, the Marines didn't get thermally protected bombs, the Navy had priority so the bomb should only have one yellow stripe.

Jari

 

Jari, I contacted Eduard and they are sending 2 sets of stencil decals right out to me. I'm glad I can re-use what I have. I wasn't ready to put another $50 into this build when I already have the parts. I do have a question though if you don't mind. Did the bombs always have stencil data on them? I could see them getting worn off or just not applied but I'm sure it's also important to know exactly what you have for arming and maintenance and such.

[Finn]

Hi Albert, normally they would have the stencil although they did fade over time or the bomb body became so weathered any markings just disappeared. Here are a couple of A-4s with lots of bombs and you can see the markings, on one side only:

And here are some about go into a B-52:

note not all markings are in the same location and some are hard to see. It is possible different companies, and branches of service, had their own specs as to how, where and what markings were applied.

 

Jari

[AlbertD]

Thanks again Jari. That bottom picture also shows the arming wires.

[AlbertD]

Since I am removing the paint from my Mk 82's I was thinking of doing 2 or 3 of them with grey tails like seen on some Navy Phantoms for a bit of variety. I had been searching for photos of USMC Phantoms with grey tail bombs but have had no luck until now. At least I think I see a grey tail bomb on this photo. What do you guys think?

[Finn]

Grey tails didn't start coming out until the '80's, well after Vietnam however tails sections and bomb bodies were stored separately, the bombs usually outdoors while the tails were mainly inside, either in a building or a container. So that is why you will see different shades of OD on bombs, only when built up and  they sit around gathering dust and dirt they look different. Here is a Snakeye that almost look like it has some grey on it but it's just dust and dirt:

 

 

edit: here is another Snakeye, note how clean the tail section is while the body is a bit weathered:

 

 

Jari

Edited September 11, 2020 by Finn

[AlbertD]

20 minutes ago, Finn said:

here is another Snakeye, note how clean the tail section is while the body is a bit weathered:

 

 

Jari

I've noticed the tails always look cleaner and darker. I'll try to replicate that. I imagine the bodies were staged out in the weather and would have dust and water stains from SEA rain. This project is turning into the most modeling fun I have ever had. I have learned a lot of both history and modeling skills.

[Finn]

Here is the Air Force bomb dump in Danang, the Marine one would be the same, showing how the bombs were stored ready to go the flight line to be loaded:

 

Jari

[AlbertD]

3 minutes ago, Finn said:

Here is the Air Force bomb dump in Danang, the Marine one would be the same, showing how the bombs were stored ready to go the flight line to be loaded:

 

Jari

Having worked for the Navy and involved in explosives safety I cringe at seeing all those bombs out in the open like that. I know it's a forward base but it sure wouldn't comply with stateside rules. We had earth covered magazines with very specific separation distances.