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F-86A in 1/48


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6 hours ago, Jamie @ Sovereign Hobbies said:

Glad to hear that it's just lighting :)

 

This is just looking better and better. The F-86A has a delicacy that the later models didn't quite retain, a little like the Spitfire Mk.I.

I'd agree about the looks: they're all good to me, but for purity the XP-86 and A-series are the pinnacle.

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Bit of a rush before light stopped play: did some minor blemish removal on the tail section and rubbed down the filled tail fairing: two brass tubes glued into drilled holes rendered the vertical tail identity light fairings.

 

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And a better look at the speed brake well:

 

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And then finally a quick guide coat of primer, loosely fit the tailplanes and then have a look.

 

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Time for a beer.

Edited by Sabrejet
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I was prepared for a slight wing sweep mismatch, so first action is to add some plastic to the Revell/Monogram wing roots, so I'll have something to sand to:

 

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Then on with the wings!

 

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Filler will be required for sure, and yes I think I could have achieved a neater fit, but overall I'm happy with Dr. Frankensabre's monster... 

 

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So, filler then windshield. Yay.

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OK then: windshield. This is what you're looking to do when going from F-86F-style (and by that I mean shorthand for, "late F-86E, F-86F, Canadair Sabre 4 on plus CAC Sabre) lower photo in each pair) to F-86A (upper). V-screen on the A is parallel-sided; the centre screen on the F (etc) has rounded sides. The F centre screen is also longer than the side screens, but is often missed on kits various. Also the F-86A side screens are longer and a different shape at their forward end.

 

z1

 

z1a

 

z1ba

 

But should be possible to modify the 'F' to an 'A'. First of all sand the living bejeesus out of the kit one and aim for a curve that will change the wider part at the front to match the curve aft and aim to get that centre portion parallel-sided...

 

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z screen (5)

Then a guide coat to see if it looks about right: if I leave it like this I can do an F-86A-1 (would also need to lengthen the sliding canopy perspex portion and commensurately shorten the aft 'metal' bit).

 

 

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Polished, with the first attempt taped in place:

 

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Now glued and with tapes to show the canopy frames. I have three options for the centre v-screen but will wait til it's all painted before doing that final bit.

 

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And finally a comparison between the final version and the F-86F version (I used the Revell/Monogram screen on my kit: the one at left is the unused Eduard/Hasegawa one).

 

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Edited by Sabrejet
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Thanks for taking the time to show us the differences between the early and late configurations, there's a lot more to it than you think.

 

I doff my cap to you for having the courage to strip back and rework the windscreen like that, many wouldn't have.  I'm more and more convinced there's a need for an A and early E model kit in both 1/72nd and 1/48th.

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21 minutes ago, Wez said:

I'm more and more convinced there's a need for an A and early E model kit in both 1/72nd and 1/48th.

Absobloodylutely to that. :)

@Sabrejet Might I add my voice to the chorus of approval to the job you're doing on this & the information you're sharing at the same time. Pure F-86 magic. :) 

Steve

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Busy day. Landing gear first: a mix of Revell/Monogram main gear and Eduard/Hasegawa nose. Plus Eduard's really nice Brassin set:

 

46a (1)

 

The Brassin brake packs are really nice and they build up into very accurate assemblies.

 

46a (2)

 

46a (3)

 

46a (4)

 

46a (5)

 

The Hasegawa nose leg has a curious angular yoke, which isn't at all like the curved one on the real aircraft, so that got chopped off and the Revell one used. Why not just use the whole Revell leg? Well since the fuselage and gear bay is Eduard/Hasegawa, I wanted to try and keep the part which attaches to that gear bay.

 

46a (6)

 

Then a 0.9mm brass rod glued in place to make the new join stronger and then the whole thing gets joined and on to the next bit...

 

46a (7)

 

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Paint!

 

46a (9)

 

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Tanks and bits done plus decals on...

 

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Then need to sort out the wingtip nav lights: F-86A (and early F-86E) are faired-in:

 

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While the F-86F (and also F-86D, which is the source of my wings) are set further back and sit proud of the wingtip:

 

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So out with the clear sprue, drill a small hole, paint respective colour) and superglue it into a filed-out recess:

 

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Then sand and polish, as per the windshield:

 

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Then finally - mask-up:

 

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And paint the thing. I have sanded all the filler (not much in the end) and re-scribed panel lines etc. This was a guide coat to see how the fuselage vents looked:

 

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And with fading light, some base colours then mask and on with the first coat of Mr Color silver #8.

 

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1 hour ago, franky boy said:

Nice work.

 

Your mr colour silver looks very nice. I can never spray that stuff without getting a glittery finish.

 

James

Mr Color stuff is nice: however avoid their 'Shine Silver', which is glittery!

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20 hours ago, Biggles87 said:

I also can't think why the A and E models have been neglected. I'm a big fan of extended slats and there is a huge variety of markings for Korean Sabres of both marks.

 

John

 

John ,

 

It's a mystery to me too but I live in hope, having seen Special Hobby's approach to how they've done their 1/72nd P-40's, they could easily do the earlier Sabre variants (and clean up in the process)!

 

10 hours ago, Courageous said:

Lots of good detail work Duncan.

I'm envious of your 1/48 6-spoke front wheel, I've got an idea on how to scratch one but things will be a little difficult in 1/72.

 

Stuart

Stuart,

 

Have you seen these, a bit pricey for what you get but could save a lot of hassle.

 

Duncan,

 

Superb work and I'm loving how this is all coming together, point noted about the forward nose gear yoke, I wonder if that was a local mod the Japanese had done which Hasegawa picked up on not realising it wasn't typical?

 

Looking forward to the next instalment.

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1 hour ago, Wez said:

Have you seen these, a bit pricey for what you get but could save a lot of hassle.

Thanks for that Duncan, that would save a lot of work. The description says it''s for an F-86D, so why don't I look/ raid/ copy one from the box :hmmm:...good thinking Batman.

 

Stuart

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40 minutes ago, Courageous said:

Thanks for that Duncan

I'm not Duncan, he's the bloke whose thread this is, I'm Wez, easy mistake to make though reading my post.

Edited by Wez
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Another good morning for spraying (it's not raining) and it's still light enough to take photos.

 

@Wez: that yoke isn't a local mod, but it may be that Hasegawa studied a preserved F-86F which had been restored that way: I can imagine if you were missing that part of the hear it would be easier to weld up two straight sections instead of making a curved piece. However I'm open to suggestions because for sure it's not normal!

 

Right then. To that centre wing top/bottom skin: the anodised bit. Painted using a mix of Mr Hobby/Mr Color Silver #8 and white. Something strange going on in the text of the paper I used to mask the aft fuselage I see 😗

 

48 (1)

 

48 (2)

 

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48 (3)

 

Then the masking off:

 

48 (5)

 

Then masking on again: the first of a lot of masking. First off the tail colour and I saw (too late) that my camera was set to "Impressive Art" which has made an impressive mess of the photo but you get the idea.

 

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There I was thinking we'd be off for an afternoon walk but wife was called in to work last-minute, so a bit more time on this: I'd already pre-cut the masks for the tail, back when my camera was in 'impressive art' mode.

 

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Then it was just a case of masking, demasking, masking, demasking and repeat etc. Final bit was the interior green landing gear and speed brake wells, plus the speed brake panel interiors.

 

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This was a quick look at the windshield before it all went back under the paper and tape again:

 

52 (2)

 

And tail markings:

 

52 (4)

 

Then after further panel masking:

 

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54 (4)

 

Note that I managed to break off one of the slat supports on the left/port wing: managed to find it and glue it back on before the next bit.

 

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And finally for today (probably :)), jet pipe installed, thin panel wash and sealed with a coat of gloss. Looks OK.

 

 

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I'm not far off decaling now and waiting for a couple of bespoke ones, so it may be a week or so before I can report much. I'll see how it goes.

Edited by Sabrejet
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