I prepped the missiles with colors based on their real-life counterparts. In the anime the AIM-120s were all white with 3 blue bands although the AIM-9s looked to be accurate. As per usual, the first coat is a gloss coat using AK Interactive Gauzy. What set this build off was me finding a copy of …...

The fun begins when I have finished fixing gaps and rescribing the lost details. The amount of gray paint really shows how many areas that needed to be worked on. Before installing the tailfins I addressed the exhaust shrouds. I painted these Vallejo Metal Color Jet Exhaust. I think the results are too light with …...

The final stretch before I can start addressing all the gaps and bad fitting parts. First up is working on the canopy, which has a long mold line going down its middle. 5/6 of this needs to be scraped off with the remaining 1/3 at the back remaining as there’s a canopy detonation cord that …...

Work continues slowly. Before combining the 2 halves of the fuselage together I added the slot for the rod. To ease handling, I added a small length of brass pipe into the fuselage. The rod will then insert into this pipe when I’m ready to mount the kit to the base. A glob of epoxy …...

The F-14 Kai is equipped with the larger of the 2 sensor pods under the wing glove. The kit comes molded with the smaller one which needs to be cut off. The larger pod is an option in the kit. The Kai doesn’t have the wing gloves so these need to be closed up. With …...

This is actually my 4th go at the ‘new’ mold Hasegawa F-14 kit. The less said about the first 3 disasters the better. Anyway I hope to break the cycle with this one. The kit includes all the parts for the various iterations of the F-14 through its 30 years of service so I’ll be …...