Search the Community

Hi to all The model is the very old one, the only F20 in 1/72, so i will not bother explaining the plastic, because everyone is known. What I wanted to do is a test version with V-V Sparrow configuration. As soon as I saw photography in this configuration I was amazed that so big missiles were mounted on a relatively small plane. In addition, blue overall colour and story behind it was must for this build. So model was finished in Mercedes Blue RAL 7016 AK real colours. At the end, the totally oversized configuration, additional rails are made of styrene, the markings are laser printed, model heavy glossy varnished. I like how it looks at the end, I hope you too. Regards, and pictures at the end Referent pictures: Mercedes in same colour and heavy gloss appearance (picture is mirrored)

Hi all, built this as part of the F-5 STGB in a what-if ROCAF scheme. Decals are from Xtradecal, they're low-vis and are unfortunately lost somewhat in the grey scheme but the kit itself is fantastic. No issues with fit whatsoever and a nice level of detail for a small 1/72 kit, the ladders especially are a nice feature. And a few with my old HB F-5E kit in a ROCAF scheme... Thanks for looking in & check out the GB there's some fantastic builds going on!

Hi all, looking forward to participating in my first group build. The kit I'll be building is the Hasegawa F-20 Tigershark. Here is is... I'll be building it in a ROCAF/Taiwanese scheme, the premise here being the F-20 was purchased to replace the ROCAF's ageing fleet of F-5s like the one seen below. The decals I'll be using are from Xtradecal, and are the low-visability ROCAF markings used on their F-5s in the early 2010's. Can't wait to see everyone else's work, thanks for looking in!

F-20 Tigershark #1, USAF serial number 82-0062, civil registration N4416T. At Edwards AFB for testing done by Northrop Test Operations division. September 1982, with flight test nose boom. They don't show up well, but there are pitch and yaw vanes mounted on the forward tip of the left wing missile rail. The measurements from these vanes were being calibrated against the measurements from the nose boom so they could replace the nose boom with a production radome and still collect sensitive yaw and pitch data during stability and control testing. The two rough fairings near the top and middle of the vertical tail are strain gauges and the associated wiring covered with "speed putty" - not usually painted over so neatly, if painted at all. October 1982, Edwards AFB Open House. Flight test nose boom removed in favor of the "shark nose" radome. January 1983 Enlargement of the above image July 1983, back in the "Coca Cola" scheme with her Paris Salon registration number 339. The mid-tail strain gauges have been removed. September 1983. USAF serial number replaced with the civil registration. Orange indicates flight test unique equipment or modifications. October 1983, on Edwards Runway 22. May 1984, in the middle of the "test fleet" Original canopy configuration For comparison, the production canopy configuration on ship on #2, N3986B. 82-0062 was lost in a fatal G-induced Loss of Consciousness (G-LOC) crash during a demonstration tour in South Korea, 10 October 1984. Thanks for looking, Sven

Ressurecting this one from the archives AND the shelf of doom.... I lost some of the original "in progress" pics during the "Photobucket Scam," but did manage to recover most of them. The starting point was a Hasegawa F-20.... The original starting point photo was one of those lost... so here's a photo of the seat just to fill in the gap... from a Revell AG F-16 with some spare pfotoetch belts...(little blurry....) Should be finishing this one up soon....

In 1983, Northrop was on a sales drive to sell their F-20 Tigershark while flight test was continuing at Edwards AFB. What better way to end a sales pitch than with a flight in the aircraft - complete with prospective national markings for photos suitable for framing. The sales flights were chased by the the Northrop F-5F crewed by Northrop test/instructor pilots... Jordan, 26 Jan 83 Pakistan, 7 Feb 83 Philippines, 10 Feb 83 Kuwait, 14 Feb 83 UAE, 18 Feb 83 Turkey, 22 Feb 83 Luftwaffe, 11 Oct 83 There were probably others, but I had my own test programs to tend to... Thanks for looking Sven

Singapore Tigersharks (F-20) 1:48 Miliverse In a programme spanning two decades and costing $1.2 billion, Northrop's F-20 was perhaps one of their most expensive failures, mostly due to policy changes and political pressure. They were looking for a replacement to the lightweight and low-cost F-5 Freedom Fighter that would keep costs low while giving much improved performance to keep pace with the Mig-21s that were being exported to Soviet aligned nations at the time. Eschewing the twin engine format of the original, it had a large GE F404 engine installed in a suitably reshaped rear fuselage, while the wings, forward fuselage and empennage stayed very similar to the original. Under the Carter regime it was decided that leading edge technology shouldn't be included to prevent it from falling into Soviet hands, but after the Reagan administration took over, policy soon changed to giving allies modified versions of the F-16 and even the F-15, which rapidly eroded its market. Add to that the total lack of interest in selling the aircraft by the Government, and the customer base dwindled away until in 1986 the project was finally cancelled whilst circling the drain. As an aircraft? It was well-liked, well-tested and although two of the prototypes crashed killing their pilots, it was found that both were due to the pilots losing consciousness from excessive G-forces, leaving the aircraft's reputation unblemished. With one prototype left intact and another only partially completed, the remainder was shipped off on cancellation to Los Angeles where it hangs in the California Science Centre. It seems to have been yet another Cold War Warrior that got the first three of the four dimensions right, but fell foul of the important fourth politics. These decals from Singapore based Miliverse give an actual scheme for Singapore applied to the real F-20, as well as an interesting insight into potential users of the F-20 in the ASEAN region if it had been produced. As well as markings for multiple Singaporean aircraft in different schemes; they have included markings for Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia & The Philippines. There is one major sheet shown on the left, 3 smaller sheets shown on the right; and a small sheet of numbers which is not shown. The decals look excellent, well printed, colour dense and with minimal carrier film. Conclusion These decals will help the modeller make a good looking, believable F-20. Highly Recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Here are some shots from my 2013 visit to the LA Science Museum. A few more here if you're interested: http://www.hanger51.org/aircraft-museums/us-museums-collections/la-science-museum-2013/ A-12 Blackbird by tony_inkster, on Flickr Douglas DC-8 by tony_inkster, on Flickr Lockheeds finest by tony_inkster, on Flickr Northrop F-20 Tigershark by tony_inkster, on Flickr F-104 Starfighter by tony_inkster, on Flickr Shuttle Endeavour by tony_inkster, on Flickr Shuttle Endeavour by tony_inkster, on Flickr

Over the last 12 months I've managed to acquire 3 of the old LS 1/144 F-20 kits. They're great little kits that need a few corrections but no major surgery I'll be finishing 82-0062 in it's grey scheme and N3986B in both grey and anthracite schemes.