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Italian F-104S - Hasegawa 1/48 + DACO


Jens

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I caved in...

 

This is the Hasegawa Starfighter I will try to build (and actually finish) for this GB:

 

F-104S_DACO.jpg

 

I haven't decided on the scheme yet but I am leaning towards a grey ASA or ASA-M.

 

Jens

 

 

Edited by Jens
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Thanks for the comments.

 

There are so many nice Italian Starfighters that I would like to build, so the hard part is deciding which ones. As for the weapons I would like to load it with 2 AIM-9 and 2 Aspides, but I might go with one of each and the wing tip tanks in the earlier green/aluminum colours.

 

Jens

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4 hours ago, Jens said:

Thanks for the comments.

 

There are so many nice Italian Starfighters that I would like to build, so the hard part is deciding which ones. As for the weapons I would like to load it with 2 AIM-9 and 2 Aspides, but I might go with one of each and the wing tip tanks in the earlier green/aluminum colours.

 

Jens

Just like the photo above :D

There are pylons mounted as well... so maybe inboard tanks?

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*Sigh* I just had a look at some of my Hasegawa Starfighters and decals in order to figure out which one to build. I found an Italian Tiger Meet F-104S that I also want to build now... One step forward, two steps back... :D

 

Jens

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Well, the obvious answer would be build them all... :D

Of course this is rarely possible, so it will be a difficult choice.

Regarding armament, the common operational configuration for interceptors was one misile of each type, both on underwing pylons. Configurations with 2 of each type were however flown for sure, as there are several pictures showing them. Ok, they were mostly PR shots, but means that they were possible.

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While slowly working on the interior I have changed my plans. This will now be the Tiger Meet 1988 Tiger F-104S, and instead of using the Daco intakes I will use the Cutting Edge F-104S conversion kit.

 

Jens

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The CE intakes are shorter and have better panel lines but they are also thicker. I think the correct length is somewhere between the CE and the Daco/Hasegawa intakes. Also, the CE set does not include (nor mention) the changed large ventral fin.

 

My first choice would be Daco any day, but for an F-104S without weapons I have no problem using the CE parts.

 

Jens

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I have now fitted the CE intakes to the kit. Although I did remove about 1 mm or so from the rear of the intake insides there is still a gap to fill as you can see.

F-104Sintakes.jpg

 

Since a correct ventral fin is not included in the CE conversion set I modified the one from the kit using the Daco part as a guide. You can see the modified kit fin in the top of the photo.

Now, where did I put my Evergreen... :D

Jens

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32 minutes ago, gingerbob said:

Other than that horizontal "bar", is there something different about S intakes?  I'm just wondering why there are new ones to choose from.

The horizontal bar is the hinge for a large rectangular auxillary air door that opens outwards (also in flight). That door is quite different from the one on all other F-104 variants. Also, the S intake lips are further aft, and the intake itself is slightly larger than that of the other F-104s. Would anyone notice the size difference? Most likely not, but the panel lines and the large hinge are quite prominent.

 

Jens

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I see, thanks.  I've got a full Daco set coming, so hopefully that does, as claimed, give me "everything I need" to make an actual S out of the basic G.  The decals arrived the other day- for "9-99", the nice flashy one.

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I remember the discussions on the larger size of the S intakes and one comment from a person I consider a real expert was that the larger intake area was simply achieved by shortening the intake lip, with no other changes (apart of course from the larger auxiliary door on the side.

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The only thing you don't get in the Daco set is a modified instrument panel for the ASA. 

As for the intake sizes they might have been the same. In the scales we operate in it wouldn't matter anyway.

 

Jens

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True, it's very difficult to see certain differences on scale models. The intake should have been bigger as the S engine required more air to get the extra power, reason why it also had a larger aux door, however the Phantom managed to go from one variant of the J79 to the other without changes in the intake size...

I though I had pictures of the intake of an S taken at a museum but I can't find them unfortunately

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  • 1 year later...

I didn't really cancel the project. It just got sidetracked like so many other projects before it. That said I have decided to build it as a Tiger Meet F-104S. I recently started drawing correct tiger stripes in order to be able to cut masks for them. The decals provided in the Hasegawa kit are not correct.

 

This is the first test cut (in vinyl, but I will use another project for the real masks). I have adjusted the stripes a bit since then.

F-104Smasktest.jpg

 

Jens

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