MattBlack33 Posted January 30, 2015 Share Posted January 30, 2015 Hi all, I've been thinking about adding some USAF birds to my stash and was considering a 1/72 65th squadron F15C Eagle in either Flanker or digital camo. I'm interested in trying out some detailing sets to add a bit of depth too. So, you already know what's coming...what kit, detailing sets and decals for this squadron would people recommend? I've seen a few online but thought I'd consult the Britmodeller oracle before I parted with my hard-earned cash! Thanks, David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeVi Tophatter Posted January 30, 2015 Share Posted January 30, 2015 Well, what do you think with regards to what you have seen...? My thoughts: The Academy F-15C 'MSIP II' release will be the best place to start as it has all the 'MSIP II' bits in the box, in injected plastic. The 'Bay 5' area is pretty generic looking and the cockpit itself has decals for panels. Does the job though. There are tape masks and photo-etch sets (big), (small) or a big combo set for this particular Academy kit also. Expensive with all the aftermarket niceties but it should look stunning... The only F-15C 'Aggressor' splinter scheme in 1/72 I've seen, is from Two Bobs but they seem to have the properties of Unobtanium... Some folks will say use the Hasegawa kit but all the F-15A, F-15C and all but one F-15J kit are missing the 'MSIP II' bits. If you're convinced into using the Hasegawa kit, you'll need to buy the F-15J 'MSIP II Configuration Aircraft' release as well as Hasegawa Weapons set V, which has the relevant missile launcher/adapter combo as well as the ACMI pod, AIM-9 and AIM-120. It's an expensive route to take... Again, unless you don't mind ordering from Japan!!! The aftermarket for the Hasegawa kit is also similar to the Academy kit above, although Aires does some nice resin cockpit (technically not applicable to your plans) and nozzle bits... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattBlack33 Posted January 30, 2015 Author Share Posted January 30, 2015 Hi LeVi, thanks for the reply, it's really useful. I've looked at the Hasegawa and Revell kits so far. The Hase one seems to have the better reviews so I was thinking about getting that one. I'd not considered the Academy kit, mainly because I'm not familiar with them as a company (I've always done Airfix and Revell kits). The aftermarket details look particularly good, I must say and are exactly what I'm looking for. Have you built one yourself? I had these schemes in mind for a maintenance diorama with the Hase ground crew set: 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scotthldr Posted January 30, 2015 Share Posted January 30, 2015 You'll have to bear in mind also that some of the colours in both the Blue schemes aren't available to us modelers and will need to be mixed( sorry can't remember off the top of my head which colours they are, but I 'll look into it over the weekend for you). 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mungo1974 Posted January 30, 2015 Share Posted January 30, 2015 Didn't Hobbyboss do a 1/72 Eagle with Aggressor markings?. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeVi Tophatter Posted January 30, 2015 Share Posted January 30, 2015 Hi LeVi, thanks for the reply, it's really useful. I've looked at the Hasegawa and Revell kits so far. The Hase one seems to have the better reviews so I was thinking about getting that one. I'd not considered the Academy kit, mainly because I'm not familiar with them as a company (I've always done Airfix and Revell kits). The aftermarket details look particularly good, I must say and are exactly what I'm looking for. Have you built one yourself? I had these schemes in mind for a maintenance diorama with the Hase ground crew set: No worries amigo!!! The Aggressor schemes are always a head turner, though I'm more partial to the brown 'Flanker' schemes... I've built the Hasegawa and Academy kits over time for different reasons, just my experiences/opinions: Hasegawa: Typically refined, sharp detailing that captures the shapes of the F-15 very well. Bit tricky to build in areas such as the fwd/aft fuselage join, intake/fuselage join and making sure the separate wings are level. Nothing that time and test fitting can't cure!!! Academy: Good detailing overall but can be a little soft and generic in places, the shape overall is pretty good too... It's a lot easier to build in comparison to the Hasegawa kit as the entire fuselage is basically split top/bottom with wings integral to the top half. The intake ducts will eat up most of your build time because the exterior is a lot smoother than the interior, fancy that!!! With the updated F-15C 'MSIP II' release, it's also great value for money... I guess the choice is up to you but you'll have to use the kits in my first post to build them as per the schemes on the decal sheets. To sway your decision slyly, I have a PE radar antenna, turned brass M61 cannon and a few other things for the Academy F-15 kit that I don't think I'll get round to using. PM me if interested... Didn't Hobbyboss do a 1/72 Eagle with Aggressor markings?. They did... Take a look. It's basically the F-15E kit with a sprue for the F-15C cockpit. Terrible, you just can't defend it. If you're an F-15 aficionado, just walk away or buy it for Lil Johnny... What's a bit difficult to see in the link is that the wing is just flat, there is no trace of the signature 'scalloping', at all. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattBlack33 Posted January 31, 2015 Author Share Posted January 31, 2015 You'll have to bear in mind also that some of the colours in both the Blue schemes aren't available to us modelers and will need to be mixed( sorry can't remember off the top of my head which colours they are, but I 'll look into it over the weekend for you). Thanks Scott, I'd really appreciate that. LeVi, I'm going to get the Academy kit based on what I've seen and your recommendations. My next concern is sourcing the decals. Again, I've found a few online, but I'm only finding 1/32 or 1/48 Aggressor sets. Any ideas? I think based on Scott's post about having to mix the blues, im likely to be going for the desert scheme. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scotthldr Posted January 31, 2015 Share Posted January 31, 2015 (edited) My reply last night was rushed and maybe misleading. What I meant to say was that one of the Blues(FS35109) is limited in choice but couldn't remember which one at the time, however here you go. FS35109 is available from Xtracolor X124, Testors 2301 FS35450 is available from Xtracolor X601 (although they have named it Su-27 Medium Blue) Testors as 1508 Vallejo 967.67 Lifecolor UA037 FS36176 and 36622 are both available widely including Xtracolor as X157 and X140 respectively. If using Xtracolor I very highly recommend that you thin it with Revell Colormix thinners to achieve the best results. It's also Gloss so you don't have to Clear coat it for decalling, but will have to put on a Flat coat on to finish. HTH Edited January 31, 2015 by scotthldr 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mungo1974 Posted January 31, 2015 Share Posted January 31, 2015 My statement about the hobbyboss kit was only for the 1/72 decal not the joke they call a kit. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeVi Tophatter Posted January 31, 2015 Share Posted January 31, 2015 Thanks Scott, I'd really appreciate that. LeVi, I'm going to get the Academy kit based on what I've seen and your recommendations. My next concern is sourcing the decals. Again, I've found a few online, but I'm only finding 1/32 or 1/48 Aggressor sets. Any ideas? I think based on Scott's post about having to mix the blues, im likely to be going for the desert scheme. Hehe!!! Well, I once bought the Afterburner Decals Aggressor sheet in 1/72 from Ebay a few eons ago (used it all up, sorry!!!), I've never seen it anywhere since, not even on Afterburner Decals website... I faced the same dilemma of sorts before I found the Afterburner 1/72 sheet, what you could do is find Superscale Decals F-15A/C 72-583, it's not spot on perfect but you could easily adapt it into a modern day Aggressor... From experience, Superscale printed two of these sheets. The only, minute difference between them being the 57th FWW badge on the fuselage has a grey background, rather than a clear one... You'll want the one with the grey background if you happen to find it. Hasegawa also released their F-15C 'Aggressor USAF' kit a few years ago, it has the markings you want but not the 'MSIP II' parts you'll need!!! It's also hard to find and expensive. Here is 82-0028, so very close to what you want!!! With regards to detailing items, an alternative to the Eduard PE set(s) are the following PE sets form Part, all designed for the Academy kits; There is a comprehensive F-15A/B/C/D detail set and a specific F-15A/C set. They can be ordered from this webshop (scroll down a little) at a very respectable price with great, swift service. The Part PE F-15A/C instrument panel can be modified into the F-15 'MSIP II' type by simply cutting out the Academy kits multi purpose display decal and placing it in the blank area left for the older variants PE part. Simple and effective!!! My reply last night was rushed and maybe misleading. What I meant to say was that one of the Blues(FS35109) is limited in choice but couldn't remember which one at the time, however here you go. FS35109 is available from Xtracolor X124, Testors 2301 FS35450 is available from Xtracolor X601 (although they have named it Su-27 Medium Blue) Testors as 1508 Vallejo 967.67 Lifecolor UA037 FS36176 and 36622 are both available widely including Xtracolor as X157 and X140 respectively. If using Xtracolor I very highly recommend that you thin it with Revell Colormix thinners to achieve the best results. It's also Gloss so you don't have to Clear coat it for decalling, but will have to put on a Flat coat on to finish. HTH Sweet!!! Thanks for posting this info. I still very much like the enamels, even though they have the reputation of dinosaur paints. I find that lacquer thinners help enamels to touch dry at around the same speed as acrylics. That said, acrylics and enamels using their respective thinners tend to fully cure around the same from my experiences... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeVi Tophatter Posted January 31, 2015 Share Posted January 31, 2015 My statement about the hobbyboss kit was only for the 1/72 decal not the joke they call a kit. Yes!!! I'm a bit of a 'penny pincher' and thought that at around £10/£11 just for the decals you'd want to be able to do something with the leftover plastic, apart from putting a firecracker in it...!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scotthldr Posted January 31, 2015 Share Posted January 31, 2015 Didn't the Two Bobs sheet 48-238 cover all scales in one sheet(well 3 sheets) I've seen a lot of these built in 1/48 so there must be an abundance of leftover 1/72 decals out there? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mungo1974 Posted January 31, 2015 Share Posted January 31, 2015 IIRC Twobobs did a sheet that covered the Splinter camo jet in all 3 scales. Afterburner's 72nd sheet just covered the first jets obtained by the unit in the Flanker Blue/ Desert Flanker schemes. Both a very rare and you'll pay a premium for them thesedays just like the 48/32 sheets As I said earlier the only other place I recall seeing the markings in 72nd was in the HB kits....although I have no idea how accurate they are. Did Superscale do it in 72nd?... I know they did one jet in 48th Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mungo1974 Posted January 31, 2015 Share Posted January 31, 2015 Just remembered Hasegawa did a limited edition rebox of their 1/72 kit with 65th AS decals Hasegawa kit #00860 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeVi Tophatter Posted January 31, 2015 Share Posted January 31, 2015 IIRC Twobobs did a sheet that covered the Splinter camo jet in all 3 scales. Afterburner's 72nd sheet just covered the first jets obtained by the unit in the Flanker Blue/ Desert Flanker schemes. Both a very rare and you'll pay a premium for them thesedays just like the 48/32 sheets As I said earlier the only other place I recall seeing the markings in 72nd was in the HB kits....although I have no idea how accurate they are. Did Superscale do it in 72nd?... I know they did one jet in 48th The Hobby Boss decals for a 'Blue Flanker' scheme look OK... Probably the best choice considering your valid points, unless someone here is willing to part with the 72nd scale section of the Two Bobs 'Digi-Flanker' sheet... Long shot. The Superscale sheet I've used and linked in post #10 is for a Compass Ghost 65th jet, you could use them but I forgot to add, you'll have to figure out a way to include the white/blue 'Bort Numbers' on the sides of the fuselage... I used these sheets to do the experimental Mod Eagle, Disruptive and F-15E schemes of the mid 1980's. Sadly, they've still not done Blue or Brown 65th schemes in 72nd scale. Just remembered Hasegawa did a limited edition rebox of their 1/72 kit with 65th AS decals Hasegawa kit #00860 It was nice, had both Blue and Brown schemes. Just a shame it lacked all the 'MSIP II' parts. The cheeky devils. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jabba Posted January 31, 2015 Share Posted January 31, 2015 The strange thing about the Afterburner sheet is that it was the only one that the company did in 1/72, and it did not sell all that well and so the owner said that they would never do another sheet in that scale. Now you can't find one. I do have the remnants of the sheet having only used one option, pm me if you would like more details. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gmat Posted February 1, 2015 Share Posted February 1, 2015 This has sparked my interest in the F-15C MSIP II so I looked at available kits. I prefer the Hasegawa kits and also live in Tokyo, so my situation differs from the usual Brit Mod audience. I found out that the recent F-15J MSIP kit provides parts for the JASDF version, (IRST seeker before the canopy, larger RWR mounted on the side of the intakes and GPS antenna in the rear of the cockpit) which cannot be used on the USAF version. Not sure about the GP antenna, though. So I guess any of the earlier cheaper revised version kits will do. Hope this saves someone from some anguish. Best wishes, Grant Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murph Posted February 1, 2015 Share Posted February 1, 2015 BTW, it's just MSIP (pronounced missip). MSIP I was a paper only program, and all jets were eventually modded to the MSIP II standard, as a result the "II" was never used or if it was, it was dropped in any pilot's documentation I've seen going back to the mid-late 80's, which is when those jets were first entering service. Regards, Murph Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hardtarget Posted February 1, 2015 Share Posted February 1, 2015 (edited) FYI other than the Tail Boom ECM Ant. and other Antennas there is very little external differences for the MSIP upgrade so the Hasegawa kit is fine, just need to source some new LAU-128 launch rails and weapons to make it look like an upgrade kite. Edited February 1, 2015 by Hardtarget Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattBlack33 Posted February 5, 2015 Author Share Posted February 5, 2015 Thank you all again for the information, really appreciate it. I've sourced some kits, paint and detailing sets, still struggling for decals. I know I'm being a pain, but can those of you who've got spares etc. could you inbox me with what you have as I may be interested in what you have! F15 Agressor added to the 'to-do' list! Just need to clear a few more bits first! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cabbie Posted February 6, 2015 Share Posted February 6, 2015 Judging by what others have posted so far, the likelihood of locating the 1/72 Afterburner sheet is pretty much nil. Do what I did, get the Hobbyboss kit for the DECALS ONLY (that is what I did) and you will be set as the quality is good. I was able to locate the 1/48 scale Afterburner sheet and was lucky as they tend to sell for high sums since it retailed at $25US!! I got lucky asxa modeler just wanted the 1/32 markings and I got all the 1/48. Also look for the Js Work masks for the camouflage as it is advertised as being for the desert scheme but is identical for the blue aggressor. Hope that helps, Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattBlack33 Posted February 20, 2015 Author Share Posted February 20, 2015 UPDATE: After considering giving up on the Aggressors briefly I've finally managed to find a bunch of parts that I hope will go together nicely. Thanks to the kind help and suggestions of you guys on here I have gone for: Main kit: Academy 1/72 F15C MSIP II Decals: Hobbyboss Blue Flanker. Detailing: Eduard "Big Ed" F15C set, Hasegawa 1/72 Aircraft Loading Set (missiles trolley) Ground Crew Set (figures and other accessories) and Aerospace Equipment Set (other loading equipment etc). My aim is to do an in-progress loading crew competition diorama with plenty of activity going on around the aircraft similar to the three pictures, bottom left of this page: http://www.nellis.af.mil/photos/mediagallery.asp?galleryID=1564&?id=-1&page=1&count=48 I thought this scenario would give some interest other than simply 'an F15 with a load of equipment around it'. As I've not been able to find a set of decals for the Digital Flanker, I'll be doing the Blue Flanker instead, although I'm not complaining! As I said previously, I've got a few bits to clear off the bench so it might be a while before I get up and running with it. Keep your eyes out for the WIP as I'll probably be needing your help through the build too! Thanks again for everyone's help, feel free to add any further comments! David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scotthldr Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 Does your planned build have to be 1/72, as I can point you towards a source for the Afterburner 48-081 sheet? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jabba Posted February 27, 2015 Share Posted February 27, 2015 PM sent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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