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Hi all and decided to take the plunge with this one. HobbyBoss_TA-7C_Corsair_Box by Dermot Moriarty, on Flickr Will be mostly out of box with a wing fold add-on by Wolfpack HobbyBoss_TA-7C_Corsair_bits by Dermot Moriarty, on Flickr Hope to finish as a "Spoofin Sluff" from the mid-1980s with a patchy paintwork HobbyBoss_TA-7C_Corsair_VAQ-34 by Dermot Moriarty, on Flickr Thanks for looking, good luck with your builds! All the best, Dermot

My first completed build this year, the 1/48th HobbyBoss TA-7C Corsair II as converted to the EA-7L "Electric Horsemen" flown by VAQ-34 "Flashbacks" who were a Tactical Electronic Warfare Squadron of the U.S. Navy. It was established on 1 March 1983 at the Pacific Missile Test Center, Point Mugu, California, under the Fleet Electronic Warfare Support Group. The squadron was formed to provide realistic training for ship crews to counter Soviet electronic and cruise-missile threats and, along with a fascinating assortment of A-3 Skywarriors, they operated six EA-7L Corsairs (or "Twosairs") until 1991 when VAQ-34 was disestablished. In her later years the EA-7L was well known for being well weathered, maybe 'grubby', as a result of their operating in a harsh maritime environment and I wanted to catch that look in this build. 20220305_153722 by Ghostbase, on Flickr Starting with the kit, this is the 1/48th HobbyBoss TA-7C Corsair II. It is a straightforward kit which goes together well, requires very little filler, does have some shape issues around the jet air intake and fuel drop tanks (which I can live with), has a reasonable weapons sprue, and quite finely detailed panel lines. 20220305_153704 by Ghosbase, on Flickr For some reason I seem to have built the kit lop-sided, not sure the wing should drop that much! I air brushed her almost entirely FS36320 Dark Ghost Gray using Vallejo 'Model Air' acrylic paints which went on perfectly. 20220305_154039 by Ghostbase, on Flickr Decals were from the Caracal Models CD48180 A-7 TA-7C / EA-7L "Twosairs" decal sheet. As always, excellent quality decals, went on no fuss at all. 20220305_154125 by Ghostbase, on Flickr What was new for me was using a wash on this kit. I have used home made washes before to pick out panel lines however I have never applied a full wash to a model kit. I had a bottle of Humbrol Dark Grey Enamel wash which I applied with a thick brush and cloth, then very rapidly learned how long to leave it to part dry before removing with a cloth. It completely changes the paint and, where I got it right, does bring out the surface detail much more clearly. This was a good subject to use, the EA-7L Corsairs did get very grubby. 20220305_154342 by Ghostbase, on Flickr Any learning points? Yes, I need to make sure the wings are level! Also, despite my best efforts there were some paint bleeds when masking / painting the canopy and windshield which is a bit of a shame. 20220305_153958 by Ghostbase, on Flickr I did look at a weapons fit for this aircraft and did fit an AIM-9 training round. The EA-7L carried an exotic selection of electronic warfare pods; the ALQ-170, the AST-4, DLQ-3, ALQ-167 and ALE-43. I might come back to this build one day and see if I can add some of these. For now though, all done. Michael 20220305_153842 by Ghostbase, on Flickr