1/32 Tamiya F16-CJ 

by Rob Knox

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I have just completed this kit, after continually deciding it wasn’t quite finished, and this is an updated article with new pics and details added since my last article about the same model. This is an incredible kit. I really enjoyed making it and it took about 4-5 months so I think it was worth the money. Since the last article I submitted, I made the following changes (and probably more that I can’t remember):
  • -I added more wires and cables in the landing gear bays
  • -I added more detail in the cockpit, including a modified yellow lever on the left cockpit wall
  • -I did some weathering with combinations of tamiya smoke, flat black and thinner, pastels and (primarily) lead/graphite pencils.
  • -I completed the weapons, canopy and decals (which I hadn’t done in my last article) 
I decided midway through construction that I would use all the weapons.

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The black communications handset on the right cockpit wall was made from plastic tubing with the coiled cable made by tightly winding thin wire around another stiff piece of wire then carefully sliding off the coil.

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I painted red on some of the wires on the side of the engine after finding more reference photos that show this. I thought I would use the dolly for display but I haven’t really bothered. Maybe one day I will do a diorama with this model and utilise the dolly.

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Most of the grey streaks on the wings were done by smearing lead pencil towards the rear of the plane. The panel lines were done with washes in some cases, or by simply drawing through them with lead pencils in many other places.

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This kit was the first time I’ve made a serious attempt to use future, dull coats, and decal solutions, and I couldn’t be happier with the results! I removed the canopy seam line with a sanding stick with 3 grades on it, then applied future using the method of dipping the canopy in the future. I discovered beforehand that brushing it on is a very bad idea! As for the decal solutions, I hadn’t really used them before because I usually make car kits which are glossy and don’t really have decal issues. I had a few practice runs on some scrap with my new setting and solvent solutions from model master, then I was ready to go. After using this stuff, all I can say is it is a necessity!

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I used Tamiya acrylics for the detail painting and Tamiya spray cans for the larger areas. I have been using spray cans for a long time because they have no cleaning and maintenance time like an airbrush, and they also have a rapid drying time. Besides, after using spray cans often, you get used to them and how far you need to be from a part to get the correct paint coating. I have also discovered that using paper, slightly raised from the model surface (to get a nice blend/fade between camo colours) is a very versatile technique when spray painting, and this method can even be used to allow repair of damaged paint jobs without re-painting an entire fuselage. For the final dull coat, I initially tried Tamiya flat base mixed with future, but no matter what mixtures I tried I couldn’t get rid of the white ‘specks’ and cloudiness. So, I tried Testors dull coat for the first time, and it worked perfectly! I highly recommend it! I hope you liked the model, my email is rob_k16@hotmail.com if you have any questions. 

Rob  

Photos and text © by Robert Knox