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North American FJ-2 Fury


Sabrejet

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I really, I love the KH kit too. I can hardly wait for the version I want to be finally released, the -3/3M. I also thank Sabrejet for his posting of his voluminous reference materials both drawings and photos of the Fury. His material has exponentially expanded my refence base of the Fury and I certainly appreciate it as I'm sure many here do that have an interest in this airplane. 

 

Thanks for the comparison photos Gene. QED

Edited by jpk
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Here's a link to some color photos of a FJ-2 that is on display at the USS Hornet Museum. There are three folders with the last two being of the FJ-3 Fury. The first folder has a walk around of the Hornet's -2 Fury and the cockpit photos are on the fifth and sixth pages. Shows to good effect the blue/green color of the cockpit.

 

http://svsm.org/gallery/fj_family

Edited by jpk
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  • 1 month later...

Glad to see that Eduard has released a number of sets for the KH FJ-2 kit:

 

FJ-2 Fury seatbelts STEEL 1/48 - Cat.No.: FE1077

PE (painted) FJ-2 Fury 1/48 - Cat.No.: FE1076

PE FJ-2 Fury 1/48 - Cat.No.: 491076

FJ-2 Fury masks for wheels & canopy (interior & exterior) 1/48 - Cat.No.: EX693

FJ-2 Fury masks for wheels & canopy (one side only) 1/48 - Cat.No.: EX692

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There’s a good review of the Kitty Hawk FJ-2 Fury in the current (May 2020) issue of FineScale Modeler. One error I noticed in either the build or more likely the kit instructions was that the access door to the cannon bay was mounted as if it were hinged at the bottom and lowered to be a shelf. It was actually completely removed and could be hung on the side of the fuselage above the bay (at least on later FJ-3s and the FJ-4; I can't find a picture of an FJ-2 with the requisite "keyholes" to mount it) or simply set aside. See https://tailhooktopics.blogspot.com/2020/04/kitty-hawk-48th-scale-fj-2-cannon-bay.html

Edited by Tailspin Turtle
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I’m curious to hear folks’ opinions on the leading edges of Kitty Hawk’s FJ-2.  
 

There aren’t a whole lot of reference photos of the leading edges with the slats extended.  From the few I’ve looked at however, the step down from upper surface of the wing to leading edge underneath the slat seems exaggerated on the kit.  On the real aircraft, I believe the slat just sits on top of the upper wing skin, with no “slat well” (same as the F-86 and the A-4.)

 

Do you folks agree with my assessment?

 

Unfortunately I didn’t think to correct this until late in my build, but I’m exploring some ways to fill the step.

 

thanks!

Corey

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19 hours ago, Corey in Colorado said:

I’m curious to hear folks’ opinions on the leading edges of Kitty Hawk’s FJ-2.  
 

There aren’t a whole lot of reference photos of the leading edges with the slats extended.  From the few I’ve looked at however, the step down from upper surface of the wing to leading edge underneath the slat seems exaggerated on the kit.  On the real aircraft, I believe the slat just sits on top of the upper wing skin, with no “slat well” (same as the F-86 and the A-4.)

 

Do you folks agree with my assessment?

 

Unfortunately I didn’t think to correct this until late in my build, but I’m exploring some ways to fill the step.

 

thanks!

Corey

The Hasegawa A-4 series of kits have the same "issue" in that there is a step where the slat would nest into the wing if you wanted to build it with the slats retracted. No doubt the Fury's wing would be similar to any aircraft with aerodynamic slats, ie: no step. The Tamiya F4D Skyray has that step as well, the real thing did not have it.  The Trumpeter A3D series also molded a step in the slat wells as it had aero slats too. The only kit that I am aware of these, that molded the slats correctly is the Classic Airframes A-4J. There is no step in their wing. So if you don't like the step you will need to remove it. Narrow lengths of thin strips of styrene with some putty might work.  

 

Reviewing my kit, it looks like trying to correct the step may destroy the very fine engraved detail along the edge of the step.

Edited by jpk
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35 minutes ago, jpk said:

The Hasegawa A-4 series of kits have the same "issue" in that there is a step where the slat would nest into the wing if you wanted to build it with the slats retracted. No doubt the Fury's wing would be similar to any aircraft with aerodynamic slats, ie: no step. The Tamiya F4D Skyray has that step as well, the real thing did not have it.  The Trumpeter A3D series also molded a step in the slat wells as it had aero slats too. The only kit that I am aware of these, that molded the slats correctly is the Classic Airframes A-4J. There is no step in their wing. So if you don't like the step you will need to remove it. Narrow lengths of thin strips of styrene with some putty might work.  

 

Reviewing my kit, it looks like trying to correct the step may destroy the very fine engraved detail along the edge of the step.


I have a spare Kitty Hawk Fury wing and I have started trying the strip and filler method.  Preserving detail is definitely a problem, but I’m taking it slow and using Tamiya tape to try to mask as much as possible.  I’ll see how the test looks before I proceed on my model.  
 

I think if I had thought of this earlier in my build, I would have cut the leading edges off and repositioned them. This would have been one more complication though, in trying to build the wings extended.

 

corey

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25 minutes ago, Corey in Colorado said:


I have a spare Kitty Hawk Fury wing and I have started trying the strip and filler method.  Preserving detail is definitely a problem, but I’m taking it slow and using Tamiya tape to try to mask as much as possible.  I’ll see how the test looks before I proceed on my model.  
 

I think if I had thought of this earlier in my build, I would have cut the leading edges off and repositioned them. This would have been one more complication though, in trying to build the wings extended.

 

corey

Cory, that would be the other method to correct the step, remove and reposition the well. That would be the more likely method I would use if I were going to do the mod. The razor saw's kerf can be replaced with thin strip Evergreen.

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15 minutes ago, jpk said:

Cory, that would be the other method to correct the step, remove and reposition the well. That would be the more likely method I would use if I were going to do the mod. The razor saw's kerf can be replaced with thin strip Evergreen.

I only wish I had thought to tackle this problem earlier! I guess my mind was focused on other things?  Lol

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2 hours ago, jpk said:

Step or not, I think it is a great little kit. I'll probably buy another as well as two -3's when they appear.

Yeah, It’s a shame that the -3 kit is delayed, that’s the one I was really excited about.  I am enjoying the -2 despite the Kitty Hawkisms (improved over the Banshee.). 

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Hi folk's can I just hijack this excellent thread for a moment as I'm building Trumpeter's Fj-4,what colours were the interior's of the air brake housing's?

Trumpeter state white but I'm not convinced.

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1 hour ago, stevej60 said:

Hi folk's can I just hijack this excellent thread for a moment as I'm building Trumpeter's Fj-4,what colours were the interior's of the air brake housing's?

Trumpeter state white but I'm not convinced.

I will check Ginter's book for any info.

 

After consulting my Ginter FJ-4/4B book I would go with an interior green well with the inner side of the brake in insignia red with natural metal hydraulics. The wells are certainly not white. Now if you are doing a 4B with the lower rear brakes deployed, it appears that they are the same color as the underside, white.   

 

There are many photos online of the only FJ-4 flying. It shows the wells as red. It is a restored aircraft so your choice. However, coloring of the wells of the contemporary F3H Demon were interior green with inner sides of the panels in red.

Edited by jpk
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  • 1 month later...

Hi All

 

I've just completed my build of the KittyHawk FJ-2 Fury and as I gained a lot of invaluable information from this thread, due mainly to the generosity of people sharing, I wanted to contribute something back. I'm no Fury expert but I have documented my build of the Kittyhawk kit and some of the things I fixed and found along the way, many based on what I learned right here :)  I hope that someone in the future may find my experiences useful if they undertake a build of either this FJ-2 or the later FJ-3 kit.

 

cheers

Gary

 

My Build Log

https://scalespot.com/onthebench/fj2fury-kh/build.htm

 

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Edited by gpwickham
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Man oh man! That is one awesome FJ-2! The underside, wheel and speed brakes bays are especially nice! Not my scale, but I know an outstanding build when I see one! :like: (If Duncan liked it- you done good!)

Mike

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  • 3 weeks later...

This is a valuable resource for builders of the FJ Fury Sabrejet - well done and the Kittyhawk FJ Fury by gpwickham is a very nice neat inspiring model

CJP

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