F-15J Peace Eagle "Shiro Ruyu"

This is a Tamiya kit with some updating to the intakes and exhausts. I used some vacuform intake trunking that my dad gave me a long time ago for a Monogram kit to carry the intakes behind the main wheel wells. I also modified the Monogram exhaust cans (w/o the turkey feathers) to fit the Tamiya kit and used them. I cut some quilting pins to length for the actuator rods on the exhausts to give them a better look that the flat surfaces on the Monogram parts.

The kit went together well with some minor fit issues in the main wing halves and the intakes to the fuselage. The cockpit was a bit sparse with a flat instrument panel and consoles and little detail in the avionics compartment behind the seat. I decided to use the stock cockpit with the canopy closed since the instrument panel and console decals were decent and I wouldn't have to worry about the avionics compartment.

I originally wanted to make an Israeli F-15, but the available markings were so expensive, so I decided to do this beautiful Japanese Air Self Defense Force show bird with markings provided by Two Bobs Decals. The decals were excellent for their size, but there was one significant problem with the size of the large white dragon - it was too big. I had to cut down and overlap the three pieces quite a bit to get them to fit on the wings. I'm not sure if Two Bobs or Tamiya got the size wrong but I think things turned out OK in the end.

This was a fun kit to work on and if one does not want to update the intakes or exhausts, the kit can go together rather quickly. However, if you do want to do some heavy detailing, it is a good platform to do so.

F-16C "Gridiron Viper"

This kit is from Academy and despite what you may think about Academy, I feel this kit makes a good model. Aside from the poor fit in places (intake-to-fuselage and wing halves) and a vanilla cockpit, one can make a good F-16A Block 15 or C Block 25 from this kit. The biggest problem that I could not fix was the main gear are set too wide and too low, tipping the tail down too far.

This kit was built OTB, the only thing I scratch-built was the HUD box. It was way too shallow on the instrument panel, so I simply extended it outwards. I chose to put the pilot in so that I could paint the helmet like an Indianapolis Colts helmet. I think it looks rather unique.

I chose the markings because my father-in-law is a big Colts fan, and I wanted to give this model to him. The subject is the show bird (an early Block 30 but my father-in-law wouldn't notice the difference) that was painted up to perform fly-overs at Colts home games after their Championship season in 2007. The decals are Two Bobs, which is a good sheet. It comes with the same markings in 1/72, 1/48, and 1/32 scales. I still have the 1/72 and 1/32 decals, so if anyone wants them they are more than welcome to them. Just leave a comment and I will get in touch with you.

As mentioned before, I think this kit is good, especially for someone who wants a good early F-16 version, and doesn't want to shell out a lot of cash for a Hasegawa or Tamiya kit. The cockpit can be updated with aftermarket pieces, and with a little research and ingenuity, one can get the version they are looking for up to an early Block 30 by replacing the exhaust pedals or Block 32 by adding or deleting a few vents.

Bf 109K-4

I obtained this Hasegawa kit off of Squadron's Comsale list. I used the savings to get an aftermarket resin cockpit and wheels by True Details and decals by Aeromaster. The build of this model, its advantages and shortcomings have been well documented. I must say, however, that this has become my favorite model so far.

The aftermarket cockpit went easily into the model and added a lot of interest. I really had no fit problems with the model to note, but I did close the tail wheel doors, and opened the main wheel wells underneath the wing bulges. I decided to attach the outer doors of the main wheel wells, even though they were commonly removed in the field, because it is the easiest way to identify a K-4 version (although several versions of the 109 were slated to have these doors, only the K-4 was produced with them). I repositioned the elevators as well to give it a more realistic look.

I chose the markings of "Black 4" from JG 52 because I loved the red tulip on the nose. It made a beautiful model. This is a popular subject of the K-4 version, probably because it is so striking. I had a little trouble finding a color match to the red tulip decals, but decided that Model Master "Gloss Red" was as close as I was going to get and went with that. The decals were good, in fact the tulip decals went on without as much work as I had anticipated; the only exception was that Aeromaster didn't provide decals for the white stripes on the stabilizers, I had to paint those myself. I enjoyed working the airbrush on this model as well; I liked doing the sharp edges in areas and heavy over-spray in others.

I had a blast building this kit - it didn't take very long to detail, and it turned out beautifully. I hope to add more 109s to my collection soon.

Me 262A-1a

I built this Tamiya kit straight out of the box. I even used the decal seat belts (which I didn't really like). I think that Tamiya hit a home run with this kit. Despite the seat belts, the cockpit was very good, the wheel-wells, especially the main gear wells, were excellent and the fit was superb. I really liked the ingenuity of the nose weight part doubling as the nose wheel-well ceiling and gun compartment floor. The gun compartment could probably use a little bit of detailing, but I chose to leave it closed anyway.

Even though the instructions indicate differently, I chose to put the R4M rockets on the version from JV44. I figured that this subject probably carried the rockets at some point, seeing as how JV44 developed anti-bomber tactics using the R4M rockets.

I chose the JV44 option because I wanted an example the squadron of elite pilots who developed important jet-powered tactics in its infancy. I also liked the two-tone green over light blue better than the two-tone gray over light blue scheme. Although WWII Luftwaffe fighter schemes are somewhat difficult to paint, I enjoyed the practice using my airbrush techniques and feel that the overall paint job turned out well.

I highly recommend this kit for all amateur to advance modelers, especially fans of 262s. The A-1a kit is a bit pricey, but less expensive than the A-2a. Plus, the A-1a kit has most of the parts for the A-2a version, and with a little bit of parts modification and some after market decals, one can still make a A-2a.

RF-4B Phantom II

I really enjoyed building this Hasegawa model. The fit was generally good, and it was a very interesting subject - an unusual RF-4B with the thick tires, bulged wings, and large engine afterburner canisters of the F-4J/S. I like to call it an RF-4J.

There were a couple of things that I did not like about the model that I did have to change. The ejection seats were sparsely detailed, and the intake trunking was non-existent. I remedied this by getting some True Detail intakes and ejection seats. The intakes came with the intake fans attached, but they looked too shallow, so I cut them out, added some vinyl tubing to extend them back further, filed the intakes to fit the fuselage halves, and voila, the intakes looked much better.

The decals are from the kit, mostly because this was such an unusual subject that it limited the aftermarket options, this being the most colorful one. Most model paints are not that brightly colored so I had to search for the bright green paint for the tail. I finally found an enamel from Kustom Kolor called "Bright Green" that I think matched almost perfectly. The only problem was that the tail fin decals did not adhere really well, leaving a silvery film visible in certain lighting angles. I did my best to hide the film by using a lot of SolSet and painted the larger areas over with the bright green paint.

After everything was painted, decalled, and put together, I think that the model turned out very well. As mentioned before, I love the Gloss Gull Grey over Insignia White color scheme, and this RF-4 with the bright green tail does not disappoint.

F4D-1 Skyray

This was a model that I purchased on my mission in Russia ten years ago. I don't remember what the conversion rate was, but I do remember that it was cheaper than in the States. It is a very good 1/48 Tamiya kit. The wings came positionable up or down, the cockpit and wheel wells are very finely detailed, and the fit is nearly perfect. The only thing that I felt lacking was the intake trunking. I thought about adding in the ducts in, but decided that it looked well enough and made the kit straight out of the box.

Once I finished painting and weathering the interior pieces (jet intake fan, wheel wells, & cockpit) the rest of the fuselage pieces went together without a hitch. I didn't have to spend very much time filling gaps and sanding because it didn't really need it. I chose ahead of time that I wanted to show the unique wing shape as well as a folded wing by folding the port wing only. The other advantage to this was that I saved a little bit of shelf space for other models.

I love the U.S. Navy paint scheme in the late 50's, 60's, and 70's of Gloss Gull Grey over Insignia White, so naturally I was pleased with the look of this aircraft. The decals are Aero Master decals. I chose the VF-141 "Iron Angels" markings (Aero Master must have misprinted their instruction sheet because they say this was from VMF-542 which it obviously isn't). I chose them because I liked the unusual orange delta shape painted with the delta-wing. The decals went on well.

I wanted a simple armament package, so along with the drop tanks, I added the Sidewinder missles and that was it. I think the Skyray looks sleek but deadly with this set-up. Overall, I am very pleased with this model. No wonder it has been a popular kit.

AV-8B Harrier II Plus

I really wanted to build an early version Harrier, but nothing decent is currently on the market, so I went with the Hasegawa release of the latest version of the Harrier. Overall, this is a very good model. There were a couple of fit issues with the shoulder fins, but with careful gluing and a little bit of gap filler I was able to overcome this. The most noticeable trait of this kit was the incredible number of parts for such a small aircraft. It took me nearly 3 weeks to complete the build after painting and decalling because of all the accessories, antennae, etc. However, the final product is striking, even in a low-viz. scheme and markings.

The paint scheme is Light-Gull Grey under surfaces, Dark-Gull Grey upper, with the radome and leading edges of the pylons painted in a Medium Blue-Grey. I really like this scheme; it has a bit more blue hue that the US Marine Corps Harriers. Despite all of the different facets of the Harrier painting went quite easily with little touch-up. I tried a new technique (for me) to weather and accent the panel lines. I used a water-based Gunship Grey wash with a little bit of dish-soap to keep the paint from adhering where I didn't want it. After painting the lines, I let the wash dry, then used a Q-tip to wipe off the excess while leaving the wash in the lines. I used a black wash to highlight more prominent lines such as the landing-gear doors, intake vents, and flying surfaces. I am extremely pleased with the effect and will probably stick with this process for the majority of my models.

This subject carries the markings of the "Wolves" of the Italian Navy. I chose number 04 because I like the false canopy marking under the forward fuselage. I originally was not going to pose the model with missiles, but an AMRAAM-burdened Harrier is an unusual sight so I went with it. Plus, the representation of the missiles were very good. I also chose to put a pilot in the cockpit which I think turned out very nice. The pilot helmet was included, but not the torso so I used a torso from my Hasegawa RF-4B. After a little bit of trimming the pilot figure fit quite well. I wanted to pose the canopy in the open position, however it would not fit between the two large scoops just behind the canopy. So I closed it up and the aircraft is depicted the a take-off-ready configuration.

I am quite happy with this model. This kit was essentially right out of the box, and it makes a show worthy piece. I highly recommend this kit to Harrier fans, but I still hope somebody releases an early-version Harrier beacause I would love to do an example from the Faukland Islands conflict.