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Building a HAS


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Couple more pics of the toom - tanks on in undercoat.  Although I have seen SEA camo tooms with euro 1 grey tanks.  Tempting to do the outer ones like that.  Got a bit of colour around the exhausts but need to have a look in day light to see how they are.

 

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This is definitely my favourite threads on BM. Your work is great and prolific and your HAS is just unbelievable. You're living my dream! That Wattisham inspired jet line up 😍

 

This is as far as I got a few years back.

 

F-4_E_on_pan.jpg

 

I did one pan based on those at Aalborg in Denmark and apart from buying some MDF for the base, the HAS and taxiway never even got started. And as for building some aircraft.... ☹️

 

 

Keep up the good work bar side!!

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Cheers @Filler - that photo at Wattisham kind of set the agenda for what would get built.  I have another F-16 in the plans as there are more than one in that line up.  And a Jet Provost is also a must at some point.  

Is that an F-4 in your picture?  The hardstanding looks good.  Some of my bases are nothing more than cardboard painted with a mix of white emulsion and black poster paint, so if they go wrong they can get binned and I haven’t lost anything.  Go on - you know you want to...

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2 minutes ago, Kirk said:

The HAS backdrop somehow adds so much realism to the (admittedly excellent) models...

I think what you meant to say @Kirk is that the HAS draws the eye away from the often pretty average models.  Honest, they don’t always look that great up close, but put a big structure behind them & turn off most of the lights.....

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Nah. You're being overly modest; the diorama gives a great sense of scale and context as well as encouraging a lower camera angle.  I think it draws your eyes IN to the detailed areas of the models.

Anyway, I'm always impressed by what goes on in this thread and can honestly say it has moved me from being very anti "little plastic men* to being quite a convert. The much neglected stash even has a set of NATO figures gathering dust alongside the countless Harrier boxes.

Ah well. There's something to look forward to in retirement.

Edited by Kirk
smash?? bl**dy auto correct!!
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12 hours ago, bar side said:

Cheers @Filler - that photo at Wattisham kind of set the agenda for what would get built.  I have another F-16 in the plans as there are more than one in that line up.  And a Jet Provost is also a must at some point.  

Is that an F-4 in your picture?  The hardstanding looks good.  Some of my bases are nothing more than cardboard painted with a mix of white emulsion and black poster paint, so if they go wrong they can get binned and I haven’t lost anything.  Go on - you know you want to...

I'd love to, and one day maybe I will, but just now I really don't have the room at all. Sadly I even lost that hardstanding above in a flat move.

 

It is a Phantom sat on it. It's an Italeri F-4E/F kit painted as a USAF ANG aircraft. It's a nice kit if I recall but that too sadly hasn't survived the couple of moves that have taken place since then.

 

You may have noticed in my Jaguar thread that the Hawk and F-16 are posed on a piece of apron flightline and that board does still exist in my dad's garage (or at least I think so).

 

Like your Wattisham line up, I was always inspired by this photo of USAFE aircraft in 1987. I have most of the kits to do it. Just need the time space and skills!

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@Filler like that USAF line up

 

USAFE_fighter_aircraft_1987.JPEG

 

Now let’s see, LN tailcode F-111? Yes, wrong F-111 version but SEA camo with LN tailcodes.  A-10 from Bentwaters in lizard camo - yes.  F-15A - not Bitburg but Soesterberg - check.   RF-4C from Alconbury - SEA camo not Euro 1 - in the build now.  Next build is likely to be a Bentwaters F-16 aggressor, not Hahn but I do have a Dutch F-16.  And I have a couple of agressor F-5Es. Almost a full house!  Now need to dust them off & take a picture.

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20 hours ago, Kirk said:

can honestly say it has moved me from being very anti "little plastic men* to being quite a convert. The much neglected stash even has a set of NATO figures gathering dust alongside the countless Harrier boxes.

 

I was just looking at some pics and realised the same little plastic man tends to be in the foreground a lot.  He gets about you know

 

He’s the one with his back to us

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There he is again

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And again

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i think I got a liking for them from model railway figures on the station.  But I always liked them to look static as the trains were moving.  Here they are moving as the aircraft are static.  Strange logic there!

got to see some of these Harriers Kirk!

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Quick go at your line up @Filler too wet to get to the garage & set up the HAS and surroundings

 

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the RF-4C isn’t done enough (no tailcode etc) to join in yet & the USAF F-16 build hasn’t started yet

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That's absolutely brilliant. I'll take inspiration from that and set myself the challenge to replicate it.

 

Could I ask which kits you used? I expect it's the Academy F-111, but not sure about the others.

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1 minute ago, Filler said:

 

Could I ask which kits you used? I expect it's the Academy F-111, but not sure about the others.

Cheers Filler

The F-111 is an eBay sourced reissue of a FB-111A, and not an F-111F that it should be (but it was cheap!) Think the A-10 and F-15 were both Monogram, the F-4 is ERTL/ESCI  and the F-16 and F-5 are both ESCI.  All fairly old & cheap kits - probably £10 - £15 from eBay with a couple of after market decal sets.  All have a few bits including FOD covers & rbf tags that to my mind make them look a bit nearer to the real thing.

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They might not be the latest state of the art kits but they all look the business to me. More often than not these older kits are said to have got the shapes correct whilst many of the newer all singing kits with their finely engraved panel lines and detailed wheel wells are reviewed as being mere caricatures of the real things. I built an Esci Mirage 2000C and it was a great kit - went together like a dream, engraved lines and it had the correct dihedral (unlike the Kinetic version) and cost little more then a tenner.

 

I think I'll maybe tackle an F-15 next. And no wraparound camo is extra encouragement!

 

 

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I do like an old monogram kit.  The ESCI ones can be a bit iffy at times - fit & part warp on the F-5 isn’t great.  But didn’t most  of the old monogram kitts pass over to Revell anyway?  The monogram F-15 is a big chunky old model but the detail is great.  Give it a go.  Do fancy a mirage 2000 sometime.  Or a mirage iv - that’s a big beast

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Finally back on the RF-4C now more paint has arrived.  Humbrol 93 can safely arrived earlier this week, so here is a shot of the wrap around underside.  Some of it is made up as the decal paint instructions get themselves very confused.  

 

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Might even get a clear coat on this weekend and think about decals

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Right so the RF-4C has its identity today.  She is 68571 of RAF Alconbury.  In wraparound camo rather than in this shot

 

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the main decals are on but the stencils are still to come, but she is starting to look good

 

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once the stencils are done I will spray over a clear coat of matt and maybe a quick wash to bring out the panel lines

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Cheers Peter - it is really me building the aircraft I saw at early 80s airshows.  There is a guy in France who is pretty much building Spangdahlem airbase in 1/48, but I never saw the active side of the bases, only the open days.  So it’s the variety of kit that attracts me.  Bit like this website shows

 

https://www.airshowspast.com/mildenhall-airshow.html

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Update on the RF-4C - now with FOD covers and some rbf tags.  Also a close up of the ARN-101 antenna on the spine.  Had to make this up as the kit didn’t include it.

 

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might try to get the HAS out later to pose her in situ.

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And then there were 4 Phantoms

 

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And the RF-4C said “say hello to my little friends “

 

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An Alconbury F-4 needs a couple of aggressors about.

 

Did some HAS shots of the Phantom today, but might put them in to an RFI post.  Sun was low & late getting around today so not easy to get the pics done 

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so the HAS shots of the RF-4C are on the aircraft RFI section at

 

need to have another go soon, but the sun is getting so low I might need to do a night shoot.  also need to build a portable light trolley with working lights...

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need a couple more lights on sticks above the HAS door & a couple of mobile light units.  plus the tanker or land rover lights.

so @Filler set it up & BYOM (bring your own model)?

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