Kit Info
Subject: Hasegawa 00232
Media: Styrene
Markings: Print Scale 72-377 F-16 Desert Storm and kit
The Subject
The Lockheed Martin (originally General Dynamics) F-16 Fighting Falcon is a multirole jet fighter. It currently serves in 25 nations, with over 4,400 aircraft built. Commonly known as the ‘Viper’, it features innovations including a frameless, bubble canopy for better visibility, side-mounted control stick to ease control while under high g-forces, and reclined seat to reduce the effect of g-forces on the pilot. It is also the first fighter to be built to sustain 9-g turns.
Entering service in 1987, the F-16C Block 30/32 were the first blocks to have different engines installed. Initially, the aircraft looked identical except for the engine nozzles with the Block 30 being powered by the F110-GE-100 engine. Some Block 30s would eventually be upgraded with a larger intake due to the increased thrust of the GE engine. There would be further upgrades to both the Block 30/32s including Radar Warning Receiver (RWR) antennas on the leading edge flaps and targeting pods for precision strike. A total of 733 aircraft were produced and delivered to six countries.
The build depicts 86-227, an F-16C Block 30C from the 480th Fighter Squadron ‘Warhawks’ in 1988. The squadron is part of the 52nd Fighter Wing, flying out of Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany. The 480th began receiving the F-16C in April 1987, initially operating it in tandem with the F-4G Phantom II to form hunter-killer teams within the squadron. During this time, the 480th F-16s carried sharkmouth markings which was the primary reason I went with this particular F-16.
Sources
Cybermodeler – F-16 Fighting Falcon Variants
Wikipedia – 480th Fighter Squadron
Wikipedia – General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon
The Kit
Originally released in 1985 as the F-16A, the F-16C variant with additional parts was released in 1987. The boxing that I built has a re-designed box and was originally released in 2000. This means, as of this writing in 2024, this mold is already 39 years old. In any case, this is one of Hasegawa’s classic kits which has held up surprisingly well. It’s also still the only game in town for an earlier F-16C. The details in the wheel wells can’t quite be compared to the more modern competition and flash is started to creep in but other details are still quite nice with finely done panel lines throughout. Details include:
- a very basic ejection seat with decals for all consoles
- pilot figure with old style flight helmet
- canopy can be posed open
- pilot ladder included
- canopy is clear but older F-16s usually have tinted ones
- lowered landing gear only
- there’s a general lack of details inside the exhaust nozzle and gear bays
- stores included are 3x external fuel tanks, 2x AIM-7J Sidewinders, 2x AIM-9L Sidewinders, 2x BL-755 Cluster Bombs (which aren’t used by the USAF)
- decals are of the new variety where the whites are really white
- 3 schemes included: 363rd TFW 10th TFS ‘Gamecocks’, 86th TFW 512nd TFS and 58th TFW 312nd TFTS. All are USAF F-16s.
As I’ll learn, this kit only gets you an F-16C Block 25 or an early Block 32 out of the box. I would need at least a GE exhaust nozzle for an early Block 30 and additional parts to for a late Block 30/32.
The Build
This build is to fix the mistake I’ve made on a previous F-16C build where I wanted a Block 30 F-16C but ended up with a Block 25 instead.
The subject of this build, F-16C 86-227, is part of the batch of F-16C Block 30s that had the GE engine but retained the NSI (ie small mouth) intake. So I only needed to add in the engine nozzle to model it. I took the part from a Hasegawa F-16CJ kit which includes both GE and PW nozzles.
I also made some small modifications:
- added the small vent on the right side of the nose. As far as I know, this feature is missing on every Hasegawa kit released but is quite prominent when you see photos of the F-16C Block 30/32
- adding the static discharger lines on the side of the nose with stretched sprue
- modified the centerline pylon to fit an ALQ-131 from the Hasegawa Weapons set properly. The main armament for this build is a pair of AGM-88 HARM which I took from an Academy F-16C kit.
- replaced the nose probe with a brass one from Fine Molds
This is my fourth Hasegawa F-16 kit so there’s no longer any surprise build-wise. I once again assembled the landing gear at the beginning to ensure a strong fit. I also managed to break the gear door actuators (but only once!) but this is an easy fix during final assembly.
Colors & Markings
F-16s at this time were painted in a 3-tone gray scheme. From a photo I found however, 86-227’s tailfin was a non-standard color: the base and leading edge of the are a darker gray. I also painted the walkways instead of using decals which wasn’t all that hard with the help of very thin masking tape.
Markings were primarily from Print Scale and some of the stencils were from the kit. The Print Scale decals took some bedding down with Mark Softer but they eventually ‘melted’ onto the surface. I did have to trim the color chevron on the tip of the tailfin though.
Finishing
From the few photos I saw this F-16 was relatively clean so weathering was kept minimal with just a panel wash and some staining on the bottom.
Final assembly involved attaching the AGM-88s to the pylons which proved to be a challenge as there was very little mating surfaces. This is something to look into fixing the next time I use the Academy missiles. The build is finished off with a brass nose probe.
So I finally have a ‘correct’ Block 30 F-16C and now I’m considering rebuilding that wrong Block 30 into a Block 25 F-16C. Let’s see how that goes.
Build Log
Pt.1 – Construction
Pt.2 – Painting & Finishing
Build 4 of 2024
