WIP : Great Wall Hobby 1/72 F-14D ‘VF-31’ Pt.3 – Construction
It’s time to close up the intakes by pre-painting the interior white. The bottom of the intake lips are also painted at this point in Metal Color Jet Exhaust. After that I joined the nose to the fuselage and thankfully the fit is pretty good! There’s a very very minor step on the join that’s …...
WIP : Great Wall Hobby 1/72 F-14D ‘VF-31’ Pt.2 – Construction
Looking st the rear fuselage I found a problem. The port side is OK with crisp panel lines… However, the formation lights are not molded onto the starboard side. That’s quite an omission. To help the stabilizers fit better I cemented a small section of styrene tube inside the fuselage. The kit provides both swept …...
WIP : Great Wall Hobby 1/72 F-14D ‘VF-31’ Pt.1 – Construction
Time for another Tomcat build and this time it’ll be in the sunset markings with the red tails. This is my first GWH kit but I’ve read that the details on their kits are very nice and this bears out with the crisply molded parts. A quick dryfit with tape indicates that it will be …...
Build : Fujimi 1/72 Grumman F-14A Tomcat ‘Top Gun’
Kit InfoBrand: Fujimi 28010Scale: 1/72Media: StyreneMarkings: DEF Models 72004F-14 Decal set Movie collection No.1 The SubjectThe Grumman F-14 Tomcat is an American supersonic, twin-engine, two-seat, twin-tail, variable-sweep wing fighter aircraft developed for the United States Navy’s Naval Fighter Experimental (VFX) program after...
WIP : Fujimi 1/72 F-14A Tomcat ‘Top Gun’ Pt. 3 : Finishing
The edges of the gear doors were handpainted with red. This takes a bit of concentration and a steady hand of which I didn’t really have. I began with a panel wash using AK Abteilung Starship Filth. I really like the way Fujimi has done their panel lines. They are just fine enough to be …...
WIP : Fujimi 1/72 F-14A Tomcat ‘Top Gun’ Pt. 2 : Painting
Painting begins with making sure the canopy frame is in black. I then base coated the whole kit with black primer, which in this case is Mr Surfacer Black thinned with Mr Levelling Thinner, which results in a smooth and slightly glossy finish. I wanted to build up the weathered finish layer by layer so …...
WIP : Fujimi 1/72 F-14A Tomcat ‘Top Gun’ Pt. 1 : Construction
I’ve always wanted to model Maverick’s F-14A from the first Top Gun movie but I never had access to the markings. That was until I got my hands on the DEF Models JD72004 F-14A Tomcat Decal set – Movie Collection No.1 sheet. I’ve had this Fujimi kit for a long while now and had taken …...
WIP : Academy 1/72 F-14B Tomcat Pt.2 – Painting & Finishing
Painting a weathered F-14 is always challenging but fun. The key I think is to build up the effects layer by layer. I began with a base coat of black with the marble coating using white and brown. Note I avoided the panel lines and have kept them black except for areas in the rear …...
WIP : Academy 1/72 F-14B Tomcat Pt.1 – Construction
Another year, another Tomcat. This time it’s the much talked about new mold F-14 from Academy. It’s been getting raves around the community. Hopefully it lives ups to the hype and I can retire my old Hasegawa kits. First impressions though is somewhat disappointing as Academy has chosen to simply re-use the boxart from the...
