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Well, having gotten Gypsy 203 over and across the finish line, i wanted to try something original; one you almost never see... CORKTIP 603 by convairb58 It is a Chance Vought RF-8G Crusader, one of about 70 or so RF-8As that were selected for an airframe life extension programme. It was flown by Lt Douglas K Simpson, who served a full career in the Navy Recce community and flew RF-8s up until their retirement, before becoming a corporate pilot, where i met him. CORKTIP 603 by convairb58 Believe it or not, modelers hadn't been well served by decent Crusader kits until fairly recently, and the case is even worse regarding the Photo Recce versions. Despite the availability of several RF-8 conversion kits in 48th, they all suffer from 2 main failings: an inaccurate depiction of the windscreen and nose, and an inaccurate fuselage cross section. Fact is, There's a lot more to making a photo recon Crusader than putting a flat belly on it. By the time the RF-8 was designed, the aerodynamics of the F8U-1 were well understood and Vought engineers were ready to (reluctantly) incorporate area-ruling to the forward fuselage. Incorporating a flat belly for cameras, as well as flat sides and a fully-integrated in flight refuelling probe (the original IFR equipment was something of an afterthought) changed the fuselage cross section to more of a "horseshoe" shape rather than the squared oval of the original F8U. Incorporating this fatter cross section onto the slimmer rear fuselage also resulted in tailoring the wing-fuselage interface, giving the RF-8 it's distinctive "Hump" behind the canopy. Paul Fisher had been working on a 32nd scale conversion for the Trumpeter F-8E but was at a standstill until some of us were able to provide him with Vought factory drawings. The end result is a (very large) resin conversion that captures all the subtle nuances of the RF-8's "pointy end". It's up to us the modelers to transform the resin shapes into something that resembles a great white shark with a 2 position variable incidence wing. To kick things off, i block sanded the mating surfaces of the big parts, and then taped em all together to get a feel for general fit and potential weak spots. DH RF8G 001 by convairb58 DH RF8G 003A by convairb58 DH RF8G 004 by convairb58, I got started by "blocking in " the colours of the cockpit tub (tub, side consoles, Instrument panel coaming, canvas boot for the stick, etc.). Fisher gives you two ejection seats in the kit (the original Douglas-Designed, Vought-Modified Escapac seat, and the later Martin Baker F5 Seat), but after priming the Martin Baker Seat, it looked like it would be awfully tricky to paint well. So, i ordered a 32nd scale Quickboost replacement from Hannants. While i was waiting for that, i installed the camera windows. Unlike polystyrene windows, these resin ones were quite resilient; not brittle at all, and they fit pretty well into the fuselage openings with some minor sanding with a stick. I press-fit the windows from the inside out, adjusting them to stand ever so slightly proud of the exterior skin so i could sand them flush. They were a tight friction fit, and i filled gaps around the outside with multiple iterations of a CA mix of thin viscosity and gap filling CA. DH RF8G 007 by convairb58 Once dry, there was some CA-induced fogging on the insides, but this polished away with a Q-tip and some toothpaste. After this was rinsed away, i brushed Future on the window insides and left them to dry a few days. I then masked off the window insides and shot the fuselage interior with flat black to make the insides 'light tight" as it were. DH RF8G 009 by convairb58 Fisher gives you a compliment of cameras to install inside and i got a start made on em, once i figured what colour they were supposed to be. I have to put this project aside for a few weeks, owing to work committments, and the IPMS Nationals in Phoenix early next month. Hopefully i will return to cooler climes and a renewed sense of enthusiasm. Watch this space. -d-