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F-4 C/D Phantom undernose lumps


cmatthewbacon

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Just building the Revell (ex-Monogram) F-4C/D. The nose as built has a smoothly curved fairing down to the sensor bump below the radome. Revell would have you add a piece 21 to the back of this fairing which is more facetted. The picture in the instructions bears little resemblance to the piece, and it's not at all clear whether you're meant to be left with a distinctly visible additional bulge, or just a differently shaped (longer horizontal bit at the bottom) smoothly curved fairing. The latter would need significant filler to blend it in. I can't find any pictures in my refs that show this area clearly (or consistently) and the profile drawings in the Revell instructions (and Aerospace's "Spirit in the Sky) don't look like the parts or each other!!!!

Help, anyone!!!!

bestest,

M.

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The F-4C kept the basic sensor shape throughout it's life, although when the last few came off the production line, they were delivered with a clean nose, as were the first 70 or so D's. The D changed it's sensor shape quite a few times over its career, the additional part became square with many lumps and bumps on it, at least the attack orientated units did in the 80's. The NORAD units kept the double bump shape throughtout their career.

Joel

Edited by Bandwagon 106
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The extra bump on the underside of the radome of a F-4D is the housing for the AN/APR-25/-26 pre-amplifier and antennas, they were larger units than those used on the F-4C and couldn't be housed within the confines of the fairing, the later, squared off housing was for the AN/ALR-69(V)-2 RHAW antenna.

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The extra bumps added in the 1980's to AFRES and ANG F-4D's was known as the HERPES mod. Cutting edge did this mod a few years back, and the 'Eygpt 1' boxing of the Hasegawa F-4C/D had a square fixture as moulded. If you wanted a C or NORAD D, you had to get handy with the sander!. I find the Navy approach to this sensor interesting. It started as an IRST, then changed to a 'D' style fairing in mid / late B production, and finally, a 'C' type fairing with the F-4N.

Joel

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