AntoineG Posted January 2, 2020 Share Posted January 2, 2020 Hello, I hope you all had a lovely Christmas and wish you all the best for 2020 with a good health, happiness, success and loads of models. Father Christmas has been kind to me this year as the lasted 1/72 release from Italeri of the LTV A-7E Corsair II was waiting for me under the tree. Despite the fact that this is in fact an old ESCI kit dating from the 80s’, it has very nice surface details and can be built from the box into a nice looking reproduction of the Corsair II. Well, I'm far from an expert in A-7 (maybe if there is one in this forum, he/she could provide his/her opinion on the kit) but I built it back in 2004 and still keep nice memories of it (I'll post some pictures if I can). From my humble point of view, the main issue of the kit comes from the massive air duct that is block by a plastic wall just a few millimetres from the inlet. Italeri proposes to hide this behind a nicely moulded cover but I prefer to see the A-7 big mouth open. So this means cutting through the wall and building a brand new duct. For the cockpit, only the minimum is provided with some decals for the instrument and sides panels. Whereas it can be sufficient (I used that option previously), I have ordered Eduard P/E to add a bit of details as I would like to finish the model with an open canopy. So this all looks like a nice little project that I hope will be finished shortly (as one wrongly says too often… ). Cheers, Antoine 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alt-92 Posted January 2, 2020 Share Posted January 2, 2020 Oooeh.. I remember that one, but in the A-7D boxing. Still have some pylons and whatnot in the spares box. Apart from the already mentioned closed intake, that also could do with a bit of mettling (check reference pictures). From your sprue shots, looks like they toned down some of the trenches that went for panel lines as well... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntoineG Posted January 2, 2020 Author Share Posted January 2, 2020 Hi, The first step, waiting for the Eduard PE, is to create that inlet ducting. In my previous A-7, I used some rolled paper. It looked ok but not very close to the real stuff. Alt, how did you managed yours? This time I decided to create a shape in air-hardening DAS paste over which I will mould plastic sheets. Eventually it would end-up into two half ducts…. So, I placed in the fuselage a sausage of DAS paste. The cockpit tube and the nose landing gear bay are also placed to help defining the shape. After a couple of hours, I carefully removed it from the fuselage and let it dry… probably for a few days… Now is time to get some references over the net. I think I’ll go for the Greek option (it is the one Santa Claus prefers….). The idea is not to have a 100% accurate replica of the aircraft. It would be more a quick built with as few additions as possible and, most of all, a lot of fun that I’ll ty to share with you. Antoine 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkdipXV711 Posted January 2, 2020 Share Posted January 2, 2020 ... making your own intake ducting ?? , looking forward to this. Always like seeing something different. Good luck 🤝👍 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntoineG Posted January 2, 2020 Author Share Posted January 2, 2020 42 minutes ago, MarkdipXV711 said: ... making your own intake ducting ?? well... I'll try... it will be a first... 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corsairfoxfouruncle Posted January 3, 2020 Share Posted January 3, 2020 (edited) Nice looking Corsair, mind if i follow along ? I do like the Fist of the fleet or Ubangi’s markings myself but the Greek option is a very good choice. Dennis Edited January 3, 2020 by Corsairfoxfouruncle 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntoineG Posted January 3, 2020 Author Share Posted January 3, 2020 Hi Dennis, Welcome on board. I should say the Fist of the fleet was also among Santa's favourites... There is still time to change one's mind Antoine 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vultures1 Posted January 3, 2020 Share Posted January 3, 2020 Cool choice! I'll follow along if I may ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntoineG Posted January 3, 2020 Author Share Posted January 3, 2020 Hi Vultures1, please take a seat! With the moulding of the duct still drying and the PE order on its way, here comes a dangerous time for a “quick built with as few additions as possible” . I don’t know for you guys, but this is the time, when: (1) one starts gluing whatever sub-assembly can be glued . In this case, the external fuel tanks and the wings. Those required a bit of filling/sanding for the joints and also some thinning down of the tanks' winglets. (2) one starts looking more closely at the kit and wonders what “little additions” would improve the end results… and with this kit, there are plenty. The first to me was the main landing gear bays. Italeri/ESCI proposed some fine details in the bays with what looks like an actuator. Unfortunately, when looking at some walkarounds on the net (for instance: http://nabe3saviation.web.fc2.com/waA7.html), nothing matches. In the reality, the bays are VERY crowded. So I’ve started adding a few bits of platicards, stretched sprue bits and copper wires of different gauges. Still working on it . Hopefully, I’ll have something to show tomorrow. Cheers, Antoine 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Posted January 3, 2020 Share Posted January 3, 2020 One thing you can do to the wing tanks is to add a 45 degree notch in the trailing edge where it attaches to the tank. have a look through here https://www.militaryfactory.com/aircraft/detail.asp?aircraft_id=116 Regards Robert Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vultures1 Posted January 5, 2020 Share Posted January 5, 2020 The MLG bays of an A-7 are a great opportunity to dress things up with some 'plumbing' etc to make things look busy! Looking forward to seeing what you do with yours Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntoineG Posted January 5, 2020 Author Share Posted January 5, 2020 Hi, Good progress on the A-7 this weekend. First, thanks Robert for the tip on then fins. Correction done. And I also took the occasion to add some lines on the tanks as well as a full port. To be honest, it was quite a bit weird to have fuel tanks without at least one fuel port. Second, the P/E reached home. Fast service as always. Before starting gluing, I checked on internet for references on the cockpit… just to discover that everything behind the seat is wrong if you want to present the canopy open. I’ll come back later on this. Third, I’ve reach a level of detail in the MLG bays that I find satisfactory. As you mentioned it, Vulture1, there was a lot of pipes to add. I’ve probably missed some… Fourth, the mould for the duct was dry enough to start shaping it. So I gave it a go and had a something that looks a duct. Not finished yet. Cheers, Antoine 12 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hoops Posted January 5, 2020 Share Posted January 5, 2020 Great work so far, I'm excited to see how the intake turns out! I've never built the Esci kit, but looking at your sprue shots, I'm surprised at the similarities with the Fujimi kit in the same scale. According to Scalemates the Fujimi kit was tooled two years earlier, and I think it's probably a bit finer detailed, but there are so many things that look very similar. Cheers, Hoops Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vultures1 Posted January 6, 2020 Share Posted January 6, 2020 Nice work on the MLG bays, which are looking suitably busy! The intake is looking promising too You are right about the area behind the seat - it is totally wrong for a canopy-open build! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntoineG Posted January 8, 2020 Author Share Posted January 8, 2020 Hi, With the end of the Christmas break, the A-7 progress is slower but I try to keep it steady. On 1/5/2020 at 10:59 PM, Hoops said: According to Scalemates the Fujimi kit was tooled two years earlier, and I think it's probably a bit finer detailed, but there are so many things that look very similar. I'll be interested to know how Fujimi managed the duct. I've got Heller's offering in my stash. As far as I remember, they do propose a full duct with the NLG bay attached to it. In fact, after checking on Scalemates, the duct includes everything (duct, cockpit, NLG bay) in a -very- simplified way. But at least you've got a nice duct On 1/6/2020 at 7:04 PM, Vultures1 said: Nice work on the MLG bays, which are looking suitably busy! The intake is looking promising too Thanks Vultures1 Considering the A-7 architecture, the adaptation of an inlet duct evolved into a full sub-assembly (as proposed by Heller) including the duct, the nose landing gear bay and the cockpit: the duct as to be inserted between the two other elements, keeping in mind that: · the cockpit tube position as proposed by Italeri is considered as correct · according to my interpretation of the pictures, the roof of the NLG bay is the bottom of the duct · there must be enough space in the NLG bay to accommodate the NLG wheels (we may have some compromise here…) I’ll finish the duct (in particular by removing the seam) duct once I’m happy with its positioning. Thanks to the picture, one can also see that the curvature of the bottom of the duct is wrong (it should have been more concave).... to be honest, I think I can turn a blind eyes to that... As you can also see on the picture, I’ve started the work on the cockpit, cutting the back wall just above the cockpit opening. The plasticard squares will be used to provide support to the flat area behind the seat. I've also remove the attachment of the NLG and some plastic behind the seat. More on this later. Cheers, Antoine 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alt-92 Posted January 8, 2020 Share Posted January 8, 2020 Interesting As an aside, I never did anything with the intake back then, but that was after all some 20 years ago. I did just pick up a HobbyBoss A-7P 1/72 which has the same duct approach you're doing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corsairfoxfouruncle Posted January 8, 2020 Share Posted January 8, 2020 40 minutes ago, AntoineG said: I'll be interested to know how Fujimi managed the duct. I've got Heller's offering in my stash. As far as I remember, they do propose a full duct with the NLG bay attached to it. I built a Fujimi A-7 last year, both the duct and NLG bay are split right up the middle. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
72modeler Posted January 9, 2020 Share Posted January 9, 2020 On 1/2/2020 at 8:50 AM, AntoineG said: So this means cutting through the wall and building a brand new duct. So a FOD cover is out of the question? Big time saver! Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntoineG Posted January 9, 2020 Author Share Posted January 9, 2020 19 hours ago, 72modeler said: So a FOD cover is out of the question? Big time saver! Sure, And Italeri provides a nice one. But where the fun would be? And I definitly prefer to see the "insides" of my kits. That also probably why I'm trying to have the canopy opened on my models whenever possible. Cheers, Antoine 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vultures1 Posted January 9, 2020 Share Posted January 9, 2020 As @Corsairfoxfouruncle says, the Fujimi intake splits up the middle, incorporates the NLG bay and attaches under the cockpit. I did a lot of filling, smoothing and sanding on my Fujimi A-7E build to try to get as seamless an interior as possible: That said, I've got an Italeri A-7E in the stash and plan to keep this one simple with the intake FOD cover provided in the kit. I'm going to try and fold the wings though ... 5 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corsairfoxfouruncle Posted January 9, 2020 Share Posted January 9, 2020 3 minutes ago, Vultures1 said: my Fujimi A-7E build to try to get as seamless an interior as possible: Thats a good looking Corsair. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
72modeler Posted January 9, 2020 Share Posted January 9, 2020 AntoineG and Vultures1: You guys are certifiably insane, but I salute you! Mike 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntoineG Posted January 9, 2020 Author Share Posted January 9, 2020 3 hours ago, Vultures1 said: I like what you've done with this kit. Hope I'll be able to propose something as nice as yours. 1 hour ago, 72modeler said: You guys are certifiably insane, but I salute you! Thank you 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vultures1 Posted January 11, 2020 Share Posted January 11, 2020 Thanks @AntoineG, you are too kind! I think the Esci kit is a good basis to work from and you have made a great start. Looking forward to seeing where you take it next! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntoineG Posted January 11, 2020 Author Share Posted January 11, 2020 Hi Guys, After reviewing Vultures1 pictures and some references, it looks like my initial approach was not the right one. Indeed, as dry-tested, the angle of the tube was too small and the duct was going straight into the MLG gear bay. This could have been corrected but there was a second issue: the top of the edges of the inlet “mouth” are to be sharp. Mine were not and with the method I used, there was no way to get it. So it was not too bad, but it was far from good. Hence, a change of approach was required. As the only fix point in the fuselage was the cockpit, I decided to use it as a reference and to start with the top of the inlet. This part is the continuation of the random which has a round section. Unfortunately, I don’t have any tube with the right diameter. So I used the larger one, I opened it and using the heat of a candle flame, I enlarged it up to the right diameter. After that, it was just a question of cutting it to the right size. The next step was to work of the lower part of the inlet. For this, the tube shape was a bit rework to give it a more “round” profile. And then a catastrophe stroke: the shape broke. Anyway, the plan was to place it on a block of modelling clay in order to have space to press the plastic down enough. Once the plastic shaped, it was cut at hopefully the right length. The following dry fit showed that it should not have been shorter… The top and bottom sections of the duct were glued together, but only at the front, in order to enable some adjustments. So here I am tonight, with the parts gluing quietly. Cheers, Antoine 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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