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A Pair of Lion Cubs - Wingman & Kinetic 1/48 Kfirs


Dannie

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Here is a slightly different WIP pic set (pic heavy).

For the recent Israeli IPMS Annual Show, a friend of mine and me built a quartet of IAI built deltas. I got stuck with the Kfir C1, and C2, whereas the other pair of Nesher and Kfir C7 were built by a friend of mine. As it turned out, the baseline Kfirs were Kinetic kits, whereas the early ones were Wingmans.

As I usually have more than one project on the go I decided to build these two in parallel. Reasoning that same time in build process ends with the double the result.

Both kits are well known, and I will point out some of my remarks here on the build.

As is usual both started with the cockpit.

Wingman kit comes with the resin tub / wheel well, and resin seat and instrument panel.

Well, the bang seat does not fit the tub, and if fitted leaves no room for the control stick. So luckily, basic Kinetic kit caters for both versions of bang seats fitted to Kfir so with some masking tape and careful painting you can get with around that one.

Additionally, the resin instrument panel was very different from those fitted to the early Kfirs in Wingman kit, so I opted out for the plasic one from the same kit.

Fit of the resin pit to the model on the other hand was better than in some plastic to plastic combinaions I've seen.

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Kinetic's pit just painted up, with the late version bang seat fitted. (These were retro-fitted to some C2s late in their life, about time C7s came on line).

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and side by side (will be a recurring feature here).

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So with pits closed up in place and painting the wheel wells white, the fit of the rest of the Kfirs was quite straightforward.

Wingman provides with the resin early nose, and I have to say, that the plastic one (provided in the kit) does not fall too far behind, apart from the pesky seam line down the middle of the thing.

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Some filler was needed on the top of the fuselage, and a bead was run in the wing-to-fuselage joint. Vallejo's white primer here so to save the fiddly detail.

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Also bottom wing joint, as with all deltas, was a tad troublesome. but again, Fill the seams you must, as Master Yoda said.

Kinetic's one went for the same treatment

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I did say recurring, now didn't I. Brotherly pose awaiting primer

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The cubs have been washed and primed

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After primer, some tonal variations were added, just as a test for new Italeri paints.

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Painting started with the Wingmans F-21 (Kfir C1) undersides in MM Medium Gray.

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Colour was chosen based on the pics available and some tests done. Some of the afore mentioned tonal variation can be seen in the above pic.

Kinetic Kfir was painted in air-superiority Gray IAF Camo. Colours from Italeri Acrylics range, LGG & DGG

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Paint booth job then proceeded on the upperside colors, again from Italeri's range of Reggia Aeronautica, what they deign as FS30219 and 34092. (Light Brown and Dark Green for us mere humans).

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All painted free hand with lots of cursing.

I use mineral thinner with the acrylics (don't tell the EHS). It tends to help them flow, and not to dry up on the tip.

Also checked (on the gray coloured one) the "home brew" thinner, of 6 parts distilled water, 4 parts alcohol and 1 part acrylic retarder. Worked a charm that one.

And here is the Wingman one with the Ammo Mig Israeli Desert Sand added.

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And the family pose all painted up

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Finishing touches, such as decals, gloss cotes etc, were not photographed due to the unavailability of motivation.

So Wingman's one completed deal. Added the resin fuel tank and the ACME pod (sounds like something Willy E. Coyotte would order). The other side got a redesignated Matra 530 for the acquisition round.

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Kinetic's Kfir got its loadout from the kit (fuel tanks and Python III missiles) and Hasegawa weapons (for the heavy punch) load of 2 MK-84s, 5 Mk-82s and 2 Mk-81s.

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Famous pic of the Kfir with this loadout - tried to get the same angle

(I have it in a book dated 1984!)

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So there you have it.

Thanks for looking and sorry for the pic heavy post.

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Very sweet builds, the Aggressor looks awesome. I think it's actually an ACMI (Air Combat Manoeuvring Instrumentation) pod - but your reference to ACME and Wile E Coyote did make me laugh!

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