Airfix Tornado F3 1/48 question

[iainpeden]

I have had the dual 1/48 Jaguar/Tornado F3 boxing in the loft for some years and have finally decided to give the Tornado a go. I seem to remember a few adverse remarks about the kit and on offering up the upper and lower halves can see why - it fits where it touches  and I'm not convinced the 2 halves are the same width. However what intrigues me is why the 2 halves are moulded in different plastics - 1 the softish grey, the other an almost brown/grey more brittle plastic - and why the lower half has raised panel lines and the upper has inscribed ones. Also, why does it include 2 fins?

 

I suspect this is going to be a battle to the finish.

[Des]

The boxing that you have used the 'EF-3" release of the Tornado F.3 which included ALARM for under the fuselage and a BOZ pod for one of the outer pylons which Airfix dealt with by adding some sprues from one of their GR.1/4 kits , the ASRAAM , BOL and Phimat required for the 'EF-3' were newly moulded on a separate sprue hence the different plastics and duplicated parts.

 

Agree about the fit, it was awful by that point in the life of the basic F.3 moulds.      It was the only kit I could find when I built 43 Squadron's all-black F.3 and everything was banana shaped - fuselage, wings , fin - waste of an expensive set of decals.

[exdraken]

It can be built.... I did and it came out ok... used a lot of aftermarked designed for the HobbyBoss kit... another not to have kit by the way!

Mine here:

 

 

 

The original Airfix F3 had a problem around the canopy as it solved the problem of extended fuselage by lengthening the canopy.  That is still an issue with your copy... have to look up exact detail though...  ... the new Revell kit is the way to go!!

Edited December 26, 2018 by exdraken

[theplasticsurgeon]

I built the F3 Tornado here.

 

[Retired Bob]

On 26/12/2018 at 12:14, iainpeden said:

I suspect this is going to be a battle to the finish.

Do what I did, open bin lid, deposit kit in bin, close lid.  I only kept the decal sheet.

I was there when 11(F) Sqn at Leeming were looking at carrying out the wild weasel role in the second Gulf war, hence the EF.3 designation using Alarm missiles.  Never went further than fitting GR.4 shoulder pylons, Alarm missiles and a Phimat pod on the starboard outer and a TRD pod on the port outer.

There was no other kit then, now ignore the Trumpy thing and get the Revell F.3, it will save you a lot of stress.

[exdraken]

6 hours ago, Retired Bob said:

Do what I did, open bin lid, deposit kit in bin, close lid.  I only kept the decal sheet.

I was there when 11(F) Sqn at Leeming were looking at carrying out the wild weasel role in the second Gulf war, hence the EF.3 designation using Alarm missiles.  Never went further than fitting GR.4 shoulder pylons, Alarm missiles and a Phimat pod on the starboard outer and a TRD pod on the port outer.

There was no other kit then, now ignore the Trumpy thing and get the Revell F.3, it will save you a lot of stress.

at least it also flew!

https://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/234979454-whats-under-the-wing-of-this-tornado-f3/

,

http://www.projectoceanvision.com/vox/images/chapter10/f3_alarm.jpg

 

if it also worked... no idea!

[Retired Bob]

16 hours ago, exdraken said:

at least it also flew!

if it also worked... no idea!

It appeared  as a short term idea that the muddies (GR.4) did not want share their toys with the F3 fighter boys. I have not seen the photo's before but the link to BM reveals the full story, so it flew and would have worked but that's as far as it went.

[iainpeden]

On 1/4/2019 at 5:16 PM, Retired Bob said:

Do what I did, open bin lid, deposit kit in bin, close lid.  I only kept the decal sheet.

I was there when 11(F) Sqn at Leeming were looking at carrying out the wild weasel role in the second Gulf war, hence the EF.3 designation using Alarm missiles.  Never went further than fitting GR.4 shoulder pylons, Alarm missiles and a Phimat pod on the starboard outer and a TRD pod on the port outer.

There was no other kit then, now ignore the Trumpy thing and get the Revell F.3, it will save you a lot of stress.

That bad ? Still I'm not a major Tornado fan (is that sacrilegious?) and it came from my late dad's stash and he won it in a raffle and I'm too much of a cheapskate to buy t eRevell one so this will keep me entertained over the next few months. 

[Retired Bob]

15 minutes ago, iainpeden said:

That bad ? Still I'm not a major Tornado fan (is that sacrilegious?) and it came from my late dad's stash and he won it in a raffle and I'm too much of a cheapskate to buy t eRevell one so this will keep me entertained over the next few months. 

Don't say you weren't warned. 

[Des]

2 hours ago, Retired Bob said:

It appeared  as a short term idea that the muddies (GR.4) did not want share their toys with the F3 fighter boys. I have not seen the photo's before but the link to BM reveals the full story, so it flew and would have worked but that's as far as it went.

Various articles at the time suggested that the F.3 was better suited to the SEAD mission than the GR.4 because of the way its threat location system was set up (or maybe that was only what whoever briefed the writers told them) and there were also suggestions that with Typhoon eventually starting to make an appearance using redundant F.3 for this role and possibly carrying podded recce systems would have taken some of the pressure of the GR.4 fleet.     

 

Some also  claim (with the same caveat as above) that 11 Squadron expected to be involved over Iraq with ALARM in 2003 but the call never came because with defence cuts inevitable the GR.4 lobby in the upper ranks of the RAF wanted it to be their show, same general reasoning is alleged to have prevented the Jaguar from being deployed once the initial problems with basing them in Turkey were resolved.  

 

Of course to suggest such tribalism in a British institution would be unfitting but then again look at what survived to eventually be taken out of service later this year.

Edited January 5, 2019 by Des
added F.3

[Retired Bob]

9 minutes ago, Des said:

Of course to suggest such tribalism in a British institution would be unfitting but then again look at what survived to eventually be taken out of service later this year.

Impossible to believe that anyone in authority would put their own interests before the nation good. 

[stever219]

1 hour ago, Retired Bob said:

Impossible to believe that anyone in authority would put their own interests before the nation good. 

Tried looking at our elected representatives in government since 1945 (and before!).  Sorry guys: I just got this thread ternimated.🙄

[Des]

3 hours ago, Des said:

Of course to suggest such tribalism in a British institution would be unfitting but then again look at what survived to eventually be taken out of service later this year.

And of course with not a thought to any second career in 'industry'.

[Retired Bob]

17 hours ago, Des said:

And of course with not a thought to any second career in 'industry'.

Pigs at the trough, comes to mind.  But pigs probably behave with more decorem. 

[Pete in Lincs]

Well, at least the Jaguar kit in that box isn't too bad.

Take your time with the Tornado, question and check most things.

Treat the fuselage halves like a vacform and glue tabs to the inside.

You may wish to bevel the joint line a little, so the filler has somewhere to go.

[iainpeden]

It's started but back in the box until dry January has gone - reckon I might need a medicinal dram or 2 while I'm working on this.

[Retired Bob]

On 11/01/2019 at 19:09, iainpeden said:

It's started but back in the box until dry January has gone - reckon I might need a medicinal dram or 2 while I'm working on this.

Me thinks you will drink to forget it. 🍺.......Forget what? 

[iainpeden]

Oh my goodness.

 

I got the wings and fin glued together, the cockpit painted/decalled and stuck into the upper fuselage half and then started to fight the upper/lower fuselage join.. I decided to build it without wings - the only way I could figure out to get a decent join - and got to a point where I was about to go to Wickes for an electric sander with the aim of removing the step in the join. Then I offered up the intakes .........

 

If anybody wants it for spares or want the Xtradecal sheet with the black 43 squadron one on for the price of a pint pm me; otherwise it's going to add to the plastic pollution heap at our local landfill.

 

A nice little, well fitting P-51D is on the (therapy) bench.

[Harley John]

I opened a long forgotten box today to find that I'd basically abandoned mine more than a few years ago and the only bits I'd retained were the tanks. missile rails and the missiles, the rest went to the great landfill years ago! I've two of the new Revell F3 on the shelf to get round to.