This
is the Revell F-14A in 1/32 scale. It’s not as detailed or accurate as the
Tamiya version, but is molded in very tough plastic and feels pretty robust when
assembled. I built this as a practice run before I have a go at Tamiya’s using
the Tekniks aftermarket Bombcat conversion. I remodeled some of the front
fuselage (gun vents, cockpit interior and glareshield) and the pilot figures
using components from the Tamiya kit. The kit cockpit is much better than
Tamiya’s. I also remodeled the flaps and slats and the nose gear oleo to
simulate a “ready for cat launch” pose (like everybody else seems to do
since Masa Narita’s inspirational example at www.naritafamily.com
) The Revell kit is probably the worst fitting one I have ever made and required
about a pound of model putty and Milliput to fill all the gaps and overlaps. To
be fair I also made a few mistakes as you can see, but I was more interested in
practicing weathering techniques and getting the finish to look right. I added
some details like hydraulic pipes in the wheel bays and in the cockpit, but my
biggest headache was primer leakage through the masks on the canopy, which I
couldn’t rectify without damage. That really spoils the overall effect and
obscures the view of the cockpit which otherwise was my best to date!
Click on
images below to see larger images
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The
colors are Tamiya and Mr Color Lacquer, with the weathering in Humbrol enamels
and pastel chalks. I also did the rubbing marks from the wing sleeves backwards
(duh!) but I thought this wasn’t bad for a first-time effort at weathering.
The decal sheet is from Aeromaster and shows a VF-21 Freelancers CAG bird from
USS Independence in 1996 with low-vis national insignia. I had a near disaster
when the matte varnish dried solid WHITE (must check the “use by” date in
future) but the lacquer paint was robust enough to take the repair/rescue work.
The finishing touches were anti-ice, missile details and gun port in Bare-Metal
aluminium, and some MV railroad lenses for the nose gear and TV camera optics. I
am pretty pleased with the result and it is a great big eyecatcher on my desk
– I can’t wait to get stuck into the Tamiya 1994 version and do the job
properly next time!
Alan
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