F-4J Phantom II VFA-115
"Silver Eagles"
I’m still in a USA bicentennial/flag displaying model mode. I just
completed this one, of an F-4J with a Marine outfit, the "Silver
Eagles." This kit has been around for a while, but I seldom see it in
model shows, and I saw only one with this livery on the ARC Gallery, which was
submitted many years ago.
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It’s no mystery that 1/48 Hasegawa kits were made (and still are) with
exceptional detail, and with recessed panel lines. It was a relatively direct
build, with the exception of the cockpit seats: I used True Detail resin seats
to get the most realism from this feature.
The decals are what make this kit unique, but they needed careful handling
and in some areas required pre-painting of a required color before application,
so that the decal edges could blend in location with the painted portion and not
reveal unpainted gaps. Another difficult spot for decals is the upper fuselage
walkway, atop the engine intakes and going backward to about half the fuselage
length: these decals proved hard to bend around the curved intakes without
breaking, so I masked the area and airbrushed the correct color.
I used a light
weathering on the top surfaces, but heavier weathering on the undersides, as
this was a "show bird," flown to impress the public at airports around
the US at the time of the bicentennial (Summer 1976). Yet the usual bottom areas
picked up dirt and debris, oil stains, etc., and were impossible to keep
immaculately clean.
Carl
Jarosz
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