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Which brand F-4J Phantom II?


Modelman9912

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You haven't mentioned the Academy kit. If you are going 1/48, definitely worth a look.

Your best bet here is to google some online reviews.

I've done Italeri, Hasegawa and Academy in 1/48. I would rate them in that order based on the Academy kit being the best.

 

Atb, Steve.

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Best out of the box detail is probably the Z-M kit, followed fairly closely by the Academy kit. Hasegawa’s is an older kit that isn’t quite as detailed, but can be built into a very nice model by adding a resin cockpit, intakes, and afterburners. Hasegawa and Academy generally have the best exterior shape. Z-M’s is a little fat in the aft fuselage but it’s kind of hard to see unless someone points it out. There are a lot of little detail differences between the three, but they all end up looking very much like an F-4 when finished. I think Hasegawa’s is the simplest to build out of the box, but I found the Academy kit to be a fun build,too. The Z-M kit is a little more complex than Academy’s, but I’ve heard it’s also a fun project. I have one in my stash, but I haven’t built it.

 

Monogram released a J back in the 80s that had a very good shape and better cockpit detail than Hasegawa’s, but it has raised panel lines and typical 80s Monogram fit.

 

Italeri’s can be built up into a good looking model, but it isn’t up to the level as the first three. Hasegawa also had a much older J that had raised panel lines, so be careful which kit you buy if you decide on Hasegawa. I think the old kit had a Jolly Rogers jet on the box. 

 

Ben

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2 minutes ago, Ben Brown said:

Best out of the box detail is probably the Z-M kit, followed fairly closely by the Academy kit. Hasegawa’s is an older kit that isn’t quite as detailed, but can be built into a very nice model by adding a resin cockpit, intakes, and afterburners. Hasegawa and Academy generally have the best exterior shape. Z-M’s is a little fat in the aft fuselage but it’s kind of hard to see unless someone points it out. There are a lot of little detail differences between the three, but they all end up looking very much like an F-4 when finished. I think Hasegawa’s is the simplest to build out of the box, but I found the Academy kit to be a fun build,too. The Z-M kit is a little more complex than Academy’s, but I’ve heard it’s also a fun project. I have one in my stash, but I haven’t built it.

 

Monogram released a J back in the 80s that had a very good shape and better cockpit detail than Hasegawa’s, but it has raised panel lines and typical 80s Monogram fit.

 

Italeri’s can be built up into a good looking model, but it isn’t up to the level as the first three. Hasegawa also had a much older J that had raised panel lines, so be careful which kit you buy if you decide on Hasegawa. I think the old kit had a Jolly Rogers jet on the box. 

 

Ben

Thank you so much for the in depth explanation. I went with the Zoukei-Mura mostly because of the detail and they are one of the only ones with a Marine variant.  

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Good choice! If you really want to go nuts with it, check out the canopy details from Hypersonic. That’s one of the few details where Z-M missed the mark, just like every other manufacturer has. Jeffrey has just released a set for the Z-M kits. Other than that, the only other addition I personally would make to the kit would be some resin seats. I think the afterburners are pretty good and the intakes are accurate; you just need to fill the seams. If the model’s rear end bothers you, Hypersonic also has a fix for that, but it’s a little more involved.

 

Cheers!

 

Ben

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