F-14 Tomcat-What is the best 1/72 scale kit?

[Ali62]

Hi

 

Just seen the Hobbyboss F-14 built by Tony Oliver in ready for inspection, obviously he has made a good job of it, but at a quick look it looks quite good.

It got me then wondering and asking what is the best kit, Hobbyboss, Academy, or the older Hasegawa kit......or something else

I am not looking for anything highly critical super accurate, just a good solid kit, also not phased on an A, B or D version / decals

 

cheers Ali

 

 

[dfqweofekwpeweiop4]

I believe in previous threads it's always been a case of the most recent tool Hasegawa kits are deemed the best. In defence of the Hobby Boss kits, they certainly look like a Tomcat to a non Tomcat expert (or even much of a fan) like me and they obviously build up well and have decent detail. Also the Hobby Boss ones pop up real cheap every so often. I've got a Hobby Boss F-14A in my stash but that's only because I remember the film 'The Final Countdown' and I've never made an F-14 ever!

 

thanks

Mike

[Giorgio N]

We've discussed Tomcats before but to summarise Mike alrady nailed the best: the newer mould Hasegawa kit. This is available in many variants and the various boxes cover all the correct details for every version in different timeframe. It's an expensive kit, but the amount of details and option included is fantastic. The moulds are now a bit worn, an older issue may be a better option. Decals vary in quality depending on the boxes, the later ones are pretty good, the earliest ones less so. The main drawback is the lack of any weapon and the use of PE parts for the cockpit may not be to everyone's taste.

As you don't mind which version, the Fine Molds F-14D is also at the same level, better than Hasegawa in some areas but less so in others. Unfortunately this kit is not easy to find as it was only issued together with a Japanese magazine.

A close second is the Fujimi kit, almost as sophisticated as the Hasegawa one and with some details that even better its Japanese rival.

All these 3 kits are very detailed and would rate among the best 1/72 kits ever. The Hasegawa and Fujimi kits also allow slats and flaps to be deployed, the Fujimi kit even has all the parts to represent an aircraft ready to be launched from a carrier.

 

Then there's the rest... my personal list would be:

Revell and Hobbyboss at a similar level. Each has pros and cons, the HB mould is IMHO better but some details are better in the Revell one. The Revell decals are also better IMHO

Academy, this is let's say "inspired" by the old mould hasegawa kit but with more options and recessed panel lines. I built one and didn't enjoy it much, fit wasn't great and there were plenty of ejector pins in some very annoying places. Decals in the latest releases are very good, those in the original release are almost useless..

Old mould Hasegawa... a kit that is only let down by its raised panel lines and a poor cockpit. Really if this kit had recessed panel lines, I'd have ranked this above all the various Revell/HB/Academy kits... Today the old mould is still in production and the boxes named "F-14A High Visibility" and "F-14A Low Visibility" contain this mould.

Italeri, again raised panel lines and some suspect shapes, some details are not too bad though.

The Esci, Matchbox and Airfix kits are IMHO not worth bothering. Same for the Monogram kit that represents the wooden mock-up... none of these kits is in production at the moment, apart from the Esci one they are however easy enough to find. But what's the point of searching for any of them ?

 

Now let's talk money.... The Hasegawa and Fujimi kits are not cheap, some Hasegawa boxes are ludicrously expensive ! All others are much cheaper. If money is a problem, then you'll not like the price tag of the Japanese kits and will settle for an HB or Academy. My view is however that it's worth searching for the best possible kits. Japanese shops sometime have the Hasegawa Tomcat cheap enough, particularly the "basic" "Atlantic Fleet Squadron" box. Then there's the second hand market... I have several Hasegawa in my stash, all coming from swap meets and similar. The most I paid for one was €22, less than £20. Same for the Fujimi ones. I'd rather spend that money on these kits than say £15 on a HB kit. Not that I don't have the HB kit in the stash, I have two... but then I love the Tomcat and for this reason I've bought almost every kit ever made of this aircraft.

Edited March 15, 2017 by Giorgio N

[Ali62]

Thanks for the replies Mike and Giorgio, especially your detailed one, Giorgio I think this sums it up all pretty well for me.

Today the old mould is still in production and the boxes named "F-14A High Visibility" and "F-14A Low Visibility" contain this mould.

Is this the wording that I need to look out for recognising OLD and NEW box offerings for Hasegawa, just to avoid being caught with the older kits.

 

cheers Ali

[fewr9fkr9595]

Yes mate.

 

The old tool Hasegawa are called 'low visibility' and 'high visibility' boxings. 

 

The new tool mold (A spec only) comes in the 'Atlantic fleet' and 'pacific fleet' boxings. 

 

The new tool Hasegawa also comes in several squadron specific special edition type markings. Also perhaps sometimes with extra parts to suit variations.

These cover the A, A plus, B & D. 

 

Will put some pics up of the box types on the weekend. 

 

Ps thanks for the love 👍🏿

 

[Navy Bird]

Scroll down on this page:

 

https://www.scalemates.com/kits/950462-hasegawa-00532-grumman-f-14a-tomcat

 

...until you see the chart of kits underneath the heading Product Timeline. The top line on this chart is the old tool, raised panel line Hasegawa F-14. There have been many more than two releases of it. This chart is large, and scrolls horizontally (use the scroll bar at the bottom). The lines joining the kits indicate lineage, although sometimes the lines have a gap. But I think you can figure it out.

 

The chart may not contain every Hasegawa boxing - but I think it's a pretty good start.

 

Cheers,

Bill