I am glad to
present here my first submission for ARC with my Spangdahlem O/A-10A
Thunderbolt in 1:32 scale. The kit is from Trumpeter, what else. It
is the only O/A-10A in 1:32 available and unfortunately has a couple of
errors, which are fixable. Since I am living in the Mosel valley, which is
not far away from Spangdahlem AB and seeing the Spang´ jets almost
every day flying, the decision for the model markings was an easy one.
The construction of
this model took approx. 500 hours, this kit is everything else than a quick
built. My hardest headache came, after I noticed the mishappen shape of the
front fuselage section in this kit. I reconstructed it with the aid of
plasticcard and a lot of epoxy putty. Combined with this effort was the
construction of a new windshield. I built a template and thermoformed a new one
over it. I got the rivets on the windshield frame after punching those from
plasticcard and glued piece for piece on (120 parts). My choice for an
aftermarket cockpit was the Black Box one. The fit was o.k. after some
trimming and sanding. I took some more attention to the turtledeck and refined
it with some tubing and small bits. An other error of the kit are the location
of the fan blades, which must be placed further inside the gondolas. This was a
lot of work, since I had a large gap has to be filled. Since this area is easily
visible, very careful work has to be done here. Other detailing sets, which I
have used are the Cutting Edge Exterior Detailing Set, the CE AIM-9 dual
launcher, the CE resin wheels, both Eduard PE sets (interior and exterior) and
the Flightpath AN/ALQ-131 ECM pod. The two Maverick missiles are coming from an
Academy F/A-18C and the single AIM-9 is from Cutting Edge.
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images below to see larger images
The
representation of the recessed panel lines on the Trumpeter model are somewhat
heavy here and there. Here I decided to rescribe those. I have dropped the
flaps, but here again, some reconstruction and refinements according to
close up shots were conducted. I airbrushed the model with Modelmaster
Enamels and after 3 coats with Polly Scale Clear Gloss, I put on the
decals from ASTRA/ Daco.
All in all, the
Trumpeter O/A-10A in 1:32 is a welcome kit and in my opinion a good one. In
general, I am not loosing too much time to complain endless about kit errors, I
rather use the time to correct those. Out of the box, the result can be a very
attractive model. With some work, it can be the centerpiece of any 1:32 aircraft
collection.
Christian
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