frank83 Posted March 18, 2021 Share Posted March 18, 2021 Surface treatment is just spot on! Looks like the real thing indeed. chuck540z3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starfighter Posted March 19, 2021 Share Posted March 19, 2021 Absolutely beautiful, Chuck! chuck540z3 and Derek B 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chuck540z3 Posted March 31, 2021 Author Share Posted March 31, 2021 (edited) March 30/21 I hate the end of any modeling project, but this one more in particular. So many of the tiny details are left off the model until the very end for fear of breakage, but this is also usually when the model is the most difficult to handle at the same time. At about 21” long not including the needle-like pitot tube on the nose, it’s hard to work with this jet without it banging into everything, damaging the paint. All the hard work you put into a model can come crashing down at the end if you’re unlucky or not careful. In any case, this model is DONE! I do, however, have some recent challenges that I'd like to share as follows; - I left off the control surfaces for ease of handling and painting, which worked great. With no tabs to use to attach them to the wings and tail, however, they are tough to glue using CA glue without making a mess, especially after painting. I pulled it off OK, but it was unnecessary stress to do so and if I built this model again, I would glue them on early before paint with Tamiya cement. - The open Avionics Bay cover and Canopy are likely the most vulnerable parts of any build I’ve dealt with before, because again, there are no tabs to slide them into. They just sit there and presumably other modelers have used CA glue to secure them, risking pretty much everything as they hang over the side defying gravity. For this I figured out a better way, using small drill bit pins to hold them in place without any glue at all. It was risky drilling the holes into the sides of the thin fuselage walls, but I’m pretty happy with the results. - Gluing a painted canopy rail inside the canopy was also tricky, because there are only 2 contact points at the rear, leaving the front and one side unsecured. This was also accomplished with thin CA glue without a major mishap, but it too was risky and stressful. - My method of attaching the landing gear at the end worked like a charm, but then again, I did trim and dry fit everything before paint to make sure that happened. Landing gear doors, however, also without attaching tabs, were a real pain to attach cleanly. Did I mention that this was stressful as well? - I weathered the model with pastels to show that this was a working jet and not a museum piece, but still not filthy like maybe a Greek Starfighter. I think it added just the right amount of realism and made it more interesting to look at, which changes from every angle with different lighting. One last step I would like to show is final assembly of the landing gear and other items, starting with this: Not only do the ResKit wheels look great on the kit legs, you can align the wheels perfectly with them off the model which is a first for me. I added the main hydraulic brake line down the legs according to references and not much else, other than tie-down hooks which is found on the left and missing on the right (it fell off, since fixed). While the wheels are circles going over square pegs for the legs, they still fit nice and tight with a little trimming. These wheels are directional and according to references, that bulbous notch feature on the wheel should be at the rear on either side, while the brake line goes into the side of the coupling at the top of the wheel. With everything attached that hangs on the bottom, plus a little weathering with pastels. And now a few pics of the completed model. This metallic finish was really hard to photograph, because on a flat light background, it reflects nothing, dulling the look of the finish. As a result, I retook a few of them from many different angles with my go-to blue background, which shows the metallic sheen a lot better. Here’s what I mean… VS. Final Thoughts This kit is a real mixed bag of some good features and many challenges, but overall can be made into a pretty accurate looking F-104. The deep and wide panel lines are the weakest part of the fuselage which are very hard to mitigate, so you pretty much have to just live with them. While the Black Box (Avionix) resin cockpit made for the Hasegawa kit fit fairly well, the Aires Avionics and Ammunition Bay was a very tight fit and is not recommended to beginners. The ResKit engine/exhaust and CF-104 wheels are outstanding, while the VideoAviation SUU-21 (converted to MN-1A) bomb dispenser was pretty good. The biggest surprise was the kit decals, which I would also consider outstanding, but I understand that decals in earlier versions of this kit are not very good. The HGW decal rivets worked much better than I thought, but with over 9,000 of them, you really have to want to put in the time to get the desired effect. Overall, a very good modeling experience, but I’m really glad it’s over with! The rest of the pics will be in the Ready for Inspection Forum. See you there! Ready For Inspection Cheers, Chuck Edited March 31, 2021 by chuck540z3 Brett M, Cheetah11, HerculesPA_2 and 38 others 40 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scvrobeson Posted March 31, 2021 Share Posted March 31, 2021 Even with all of the trouble it gave you, it is a spectacular model. Little surprising that there isn't a better attachment system for so many kit parts, but you found your way around them. Onto the Hellcat next! Matt chuck540z3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.C. Posted March 31, 2021 Share Posted March 31, 2021 That is simply superlative work, Chuck. It actually looks real. Quite masterful, actually. I thoroughly enjoyed following this thread and learning from your tutorials. Thank you for sharing this wonderful build with us. Cheers! chuck540z3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LSP_Kevin Posted March 31, 2021 Share Posted March 31, 2021 Superb work, Chuck! If I'm honest, though, I think I prefer the photos against the white background. They just seem a little more realistic to me, even if they don't quite show the metallic effect the way you were hoping. Kev chuck540z3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chuck540z3 Posted March 31, 2021 Author Share Posted March 31, 2021 2 minutes ago, LSP_Kevin said: Superb work, Chuck! If I'm honest, though, I think I prefer the photos against the white background. They just seem a little more realistic to me, even if they don't quite show the metallic effect the way you were hoping. Kev Thanks Kev, that's why I took both types of shots. To my human eye, the metal finish is stained and weathered a bit, but still quite shiny. The white background looks like the paint is dull and quite dirty, while the blue background shows that it looks shiny with not much weathering stain. It's somewhere in between, honest! Cheers, Chuck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D.B. Andrus Posted March 31, 2021 Share Posted March 31, 2021 Chuck Would love to see some outdoor shots on a sunny day with lots of blue sky reflecting off the metal. Absolutely outstanding build. Cheers, Damian chuck540z3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Out2gtcha Posted March 31, 2021 Share Posted March 31, 2021 Wow, amazing looking! I agree with Kev on the white background.... Especially the first upside down pic, it really captures an elegant look to the metallic finish. Well done! chuck540z3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockie Yarwood Posted March 31, 2021 Share Posted March 31, 2021 Bravo Chuck, what a splendid result! chuck540z3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeroen_R90S Posted March 31, 2021 Share Posted March 31, 2021 Awesome! Also indeed really interesting what I different background and lighting can do -on the last 2 photo's on one the stencil placards on the bomb dispenser are barely visible, on the other they stand out really well. Thanks for keeping an extensive build log like this and taking the time to answer questions and come up with pointers and hints. I, for one, really appreciate the effort required to keep up a log like this. chuck540z3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Squizzy 78 Posted March 31, 2021 Share Posted March 31, 2021 Another masterpiece, and amazing photography too! Congratulations Chuck, and you really pumping out kit after kit at the moment! I can’t wait to see wants going to be next on your work bench. chuck540z3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IainM Posted March 31, 2021 Share Posted March 31, 2021 Superb work! That looks a real treat, awesome craftsmanship! Those HGW rivets are really good, make a world of difference! Well done! chuck540z3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex Posted March 31, 2021 Share Posted March 31, 2021 Super result! The pastel weathering looks great on the metallic finish, and the overall effect is just awesome from every angle. You keep raising the bar with every project... chuck540z3 and scvrobeson 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madmax Posted March 31, 2021 Share Posted March 31, 2021 Rivets, shiny Alclad and decals on top - not for the faint hearted! You have pulled off a hell of a balancing act here Chuck, well done. chuck540z3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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