WIP : Hasegawa 1/48 F-104J Starfighter Pt. 1 – Construction
Trying to get my building routine going again, I decided to tackle a 1/48 kit next. This will be an F-104J flown by the Japanese Air Self-Defense Force dressed in ‘Aggressor’ markings in the 1970s. I got this kit used from an online seller and it came with a set of aftermarket resin wheel bays …...
WIP : Fujimi 1/72 RF-4C Phantom II Pt.5 – Finishing
Time to finish this thing. First an overall gloss coat to prep for decals. The AirDOC decals are printed by Cartograph and look very good. However, all the aircraft numbers and codes are individually printed and need to be added 1 at a time. I decided to use the slime lights from the Hasegawa sheet …...
WIP : Wave 1/20 Rapoon Pt. 1 – Construction
Next up is (what I hope to be) a more relaxing build than the Fujimi RF-4C. This is another powered suit from Maschinen Krieger. This time, it’s a recon version of the standard SAFS. Fit as usual is so-so with fairly obvious gaps. I went with the 2-armed option instead of a laser for the …...
WIP : Fujimi 1/72 RF-4C Phantom II Pt.4 – Painting
Finally ready for painting! I begin as usual with a base primer of black. I’m trying something new with a marble coat of medium gray and white colors. Not sure if it’ll affect the final paintjob though. Let’s see… Modern USAF F-4s came in a striking 2-tone gray camouflage of FS36270 and FS36118. For the …...
WIP : Fujimi 1/72 RF-4C Phantom II Pt.3 – Construction
So I was told by a fellow modeler that the fit of the 4-part canopy might not be great so I decided to do a quick dryfit. Thankfully they fit fine. Problem is the rear canopy has a crack in it. Nice. I’ll live with it. A dip in Future is next for these. The …...
WIP : Fujimi 1/72 RF-4C Phantom II Pt.2 – Construction
So I’ll be building a Desert Storm era RF-4C. The kit will require donor parts to get it to be configured correctly. For some reason USAF RF-4s used the US Navy straight-edged styled pylons and the kit is supposed to include them but alas, these were missing (I bought this kit used). I got a …...
WIP : Fujimi 1/72 RF-4C Phantom II Pt.1 – Construction
Next build up is an oldie but goodie (famous last words). Having built one in the mid 1990s in college I remember this kit to fit well in general and with fewer parts than the Hasegawa counterpart, would be a quicker build. I was planning for this kit to be part of a groupbuild with …...
WIP : Hasegawa 1/72 VF-1S Super Strike Valkyrie Pt.5 – Final Assembly
Time to put everything together! First i attached all the vernier nozzles on the FAST packs. I kept these glossy just like the thrusters. Since I only have 1 clear parts tree I’m stuck with only 1 lens for the beam cannons. I made up a pair of lenses from battery blister pack instead, painted …...
WIP : Hasegawa 1/72 VF-1S Super Strike Valkyrie Pt.4 – Finishing
The fixes required after painting were thankfully minor. The most obvious being the round plate on the backpack. Some careful hand painting fixed it. After a gloss coat, it was time for decals. Since I didn’t have enough of the roundels, I had to use the 2 that were from the old boxing, which is …...
WIP : Hasegawa 1/72 VF-1S Super Strike Valkyrie Pt.3 – Painting
After a few stages of gap filling, I’m ready for painting! I’ll be painting the kit in subassemblies which will make everything easier to handle. Color scheme-wise, I’ll be going for the one below. It’s not Milia’s usual color scheme except for the red highlights. Time for the colors. For the VF-1 first, a...
