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Trumpeter 1/32 F-105G Wild Weasel - Nose gear bay time…finally

Brett M

By Brett M
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Brett M

Brett M

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I'm back, and hopefully not with another kit that ends up on the shelf of doom. This is a bird that I've been interested in for a very long time, having read Termite Hill and Lucky's Bridge by Tom Wilson years ago, both of which focused on the Thud. I've also recently read Hunter Killers by Dan Hampton about the creation of the Wild Weasels, all of which I recommend for some background info on the F-105 and it's uses. 

 

So, after nothing was fitting on the T-28C/D Trojan I'd been working on, and the lack of interest in the plane as well, it's ended up boxed at this point, sitting on the shelf for (hopefully) another rematch someday. Now I've got the F-105G, and a bit of aftermarket, to make some winter time building. Now, the first thing.....this thing is HUGE compared to the other 1/32 kits I've built. It'll dwarf my Corsair and Dauntless, whenever it ends up in the display cabinet. 

 

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I've picked up a few bits of aftermarket, with the Quintas Studio's cockpit the one I'm most interested in trying. I'm going to see what I can do to combine this with the Aires cockpit, Eduard PE and the kit parts. We'll see how well that works! 

 

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I also have GT Resin's update set for the Wild Weasel, with a new nose, vertical stabilizer, engine, etc. 

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New resin wheels/tires and also a nice turned metal nose probe to top things off. 

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I'll also probably be needing to find some metal landing gear, as all of this is going to get heavy, plus adding additional weight to the nose to keep this from turning into a tail sitter. Special thanks to @Dragon for sending me some decals a while back that will get used in this build!

 

And....finally, I also picked up something for later, Randy Coopers Blade Runner 2049 Spinner. This will be a challenge, as I've never tackled a full resin kit!

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Woody V

Woody V

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Yea, that's a BIG model of a great aircraft. Have fun!

Thuds actually shot down more Migs over Vietnam than Phantoms. 

Their missions during the Vietnam war make for some great reading.

Edited by Archer Fine Transfers
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Brett M

Brett M

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12 hours ago, themongoose said:

I'll be starting Trumpy's D version as soon as I finish the Bug so definitely following along here! Looks like a nice set of aftermarket. Man those 3D cockpit decals look amazing.

Glad of the company, hopefully it doesn't bog down :thumbsup:

8 hours ago, MikeMaben said:

Have fun Brett  :speak_cool::popcorn:

Thanks, Mike!

6 hours ago, Archer Fine Transfers said:

Yea, that's a BIG model of a great aircraft. Have fun!

Thuds actually shot down more Migs over Vietnam than Phantoms. 

Their missions during the Vietnam war make for some great reading.

Thanks, Woody! If you have any reading suggestions, share away. I'm always up for new books. 

43 minutes ago, ROM said:

oh cool!

 

Maybe you want to check on Reskit exhaust:

https://reskit-models.com/news/scale_exhaust_nozzle_1-32_1-48_1-72_hobbyboss

 

bye

Thanks, Rom. Looks like it's in development still, but definitely looks interesting!

 

Now, time to grind some plastic to fit the Aires tub. :ninja:

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Brett M

Brett M

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1 hour ago, alain11 said:

and what about the wheel well from Aires ?? an interesting resin set .... useful to bring some improvements

Alain

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I generally don't flip my models over once they're done.....but with how tall this will sit, it might be worth picking these up!

1 hour ago, Mark P said:

Gonna take a lot of weight in the nose to counteract the additional resin weight in the tail.

 

Are you considering brass undercarriage for this? This thing is gonna be heavy and I will be watching with interest!

 

Mark Proulx

I have! Suggestions are welcome, as so far I'd only seen the SAC replacements (which I haven't heard good about). Any other options out there? 

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Alex

Alex

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On 11/5/2022 at 5:34 PM, Brett M said:

Now I've got the F-105G, and a bit of aftermarket, to make some winter time building. Now, the first thing.....this thing is HUGE compared to the other 1/32 kits I've built. It'll dwarf my Corsair and Dauntless, whenever it ends up in the display cabinet. 

 

Cool - I'm excited to follow along.  But yeah, that's going to be a huge model - thus my "jets are 1:48" rule - I have the 1:48 Hobby Boss F-105G kit waiting in the stash.

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Alex

Alex

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5 hours ago, Brett M said:

If you have any reading suggestions, share away. I'm always up for new books. 

 

 

"When Thunder Rolled" by Ed Rasimus.  https://www.amazon.com/When-Thunder-Rolled-F-105-Vietnam-ebook/dp/B004ZZM3GK

 

It's about F-105Ds, so bombers, not Wild Weasels, but it's good a first-person dive into what it was like to be there in the early days of "strategic" bombing in Vietnam.

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Brett M

Brett M

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2 hours ago, Mark P said:

G-Factor did a set of 32nd gear legs for the 105 in solid brass. Probably worth tracking down a set IMHO.

 

Mark Proulx

I'll have to dig around more, didn't find them on eBay and every other place is just showing discontinued. Thanks for the tip though!

1 hour ago, Alex said:

 

Cool - I'm excited to follow along.  But yeah, that's going to be a huge model - thus my "jets are 1:48" rule - I have the 1:48 Hobby Boss F-105G kit waiting in the stash.

At least it's only half as wide as it is long? Stubby wings :thumbsup:

 

 

Just some kick off work. Sucking resin dust (not) and sanding down the inside of the cockpit walls of the kit parts. I've got everything fitting well. The center bulkhead had a slight lean backwards, so hot water bath and now just holding it forward with some sprue while it cools down (overnight). Also, the seats, along with the additional parts that go with them, should turn out pretty well. Nice starting point compared to the kit. 

 

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It's going to be....interesting getting the Quinta parts to fit Aires, but just eyeballing it says it works. We'll see! Thanks for following along. 

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denders

denders

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The G-Factor landing gear are nice. I thought I got mine from SB but I don't see them listed.

 

The solid resin nose will balance out the resin engine parts. I didn't put additional weight in mine. Of course, the G-Factor nose gear and the Aires resin nose gear bay helped.

 

I used a Master Model metal pitot on mine too. It's very pointy and will draw blood if you're careless. I would suggest holding off to the very last to install it.

 

The Quinta cockpit stuff looks great. It wasn't released until I had the fuselage closed up. I used Eduard PE.

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