March Posted July 22, 2020 Share Posted July 22, 2020 (edited) AMK finally released their long anticipated F-14D late last year to the sounds of various adjectives such as "yay", "Hurrah!", "Finally" and sentences such as "not sure about that rear end mate...". Having an affinity towards the F-14 - (I am after all a child of the 80's, I watched Top Gun and went "Phwoar" whenever the Tomcat or Kelly McGillis were on screen. Thankfully they rarely appear together - I digress), I seem to have accumulated a number of boxings from various manufacturers and having wrestled with the Academy, Hobby Boss and Hasegawa offerings (with Tamiya versions in the stash), I was keen to see if the AMK offering lived up to the claims. The good bits from my experience based on this build are; Cockpit - the detail is lovely. Exhausts - as with the cockpit, details is approaching resin quality, the decals performed flawlessly and the generous weapons supplied with the kit leave plenty of options. I'm not going to comment on accuracy - the end result looks like a Tomcat to me and that from my perspective is what matters. Unfortunately I did have problems with the undercarriage walls locating correctly which led to issues being manifested later in the build, particularly when it came to attaching the cockpit half to main fuselage together. This led to needing to employ clamps to perform a reverse "Wonderbra" manoeuvre, instead of lifting and separating, squeezing and integrating were required, followed with some filler to get things to look smooth and ensure no steps. Paints used were Tamiya Lacquer - Light Ghost Grey and Dark Ghost Grey for the fuselage underside and sides, with Hataka Medium Grey Lacquer used for the canopy/top of the fuselage. Jury is out as to whether the Tamiya colours are a little too blue, but having checked some references, there are certainly some photos out there of Tom's that appear to be close to these hues. I'm also aware that I got the placement of the "100" decals on the wings incorrect. Final thoughts? I'd build it again (I have three more in the stash), but I'd have the advantage of knowing what to expect and what the pain points are, those wheel wells being the main issue and cockpit to fuselage join. Having built a few different Tamiya kits I have no doubt that their offering will be an easier prospect to put together, although at the sacrifice of certain areas of detail that the AMK provides that the Tamiya does not (wings, slats, flaps and breaks deployed for instance). Having built the Hasegawa F-14, I'm inclined to state that the AMK kit is a similar, but more refined build experience to the former's offering and if you have experience of that kit, if you go into the AMK kit with expectations along those lines I do not think you will go to far wrong. I do after all like the end results. AMK F-14D Tomcat by Some Geeza' AMK F-14D Tomcat by Some Geeza' AMK F-14D Tomcat by Some Geeza' AMK F-14D Tomcat by Some Geeza' AMK F-14D Tomcat by Some Geeza' AMK F-14D Tomcat by Some Geeza' AMK F-14D Tomcat by Some Geeza' AMK F-14D Tomcat by Some Geeza' AMK F-14D Tomcat by Some Geeza' Edited July 23, 2020 by March 57 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alpha Delta 210 Posted July 22, 2020 Share Posted July 22, 2020 Who doesn't love a Tomcat? Excellent model of an awesome machine. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiger331 Posted July 22, 2020 Share Posted July 22, 2020 Great model and great finish. In addition, a very useful summary for me since I have both AMK and Tamiya F-14D kits in the stash. I'm 25% through a Tamiya F-14A so I would echo your comments and agree the comparison between the two. Well Done, Sir ! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reggie78usmc Posted July 22, 2020 Share Posted July 22, 2020 I have this kit in the stash. Thank you for the summary on the build, as I will be looking out for them as I construct the kit. I haven't build the Hasegawa Tomcat yet build I've built the Tamiya A and D as well as the Hobby Boss B. so far I love the way the Tamiya Kit goes together. I've also have taken a look at the instructions for the AMK cat, and its seems confusing to say the least. Awesome build by the way! I recently got to go visit the USS Midway Museum in San Diego and the have a Black Lions tomcat on the flightdeck! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SAT69 Posted July 22, 2020 Share Posted July 22, 2020 Excellent build. Sorry to hear about the build difficulties but the end result is a masterfully completed build. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brigbeale Posted July 22, 2020 Share Posted July 22, 2020 Simply stunning😍😍 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
exdraken Posted July 22, 2020 Share Posted July 22, 2020 great work, really looks great! love the scheme! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris148 Posted July 22, 2020 Share Posted July 22, 2020 Excellent build a fine result 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry Callahan Posted July 23, 2020 Share Posted July 23, 2020 Outstanding work, looks simply fantastic to my eyes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiger331 Posted July 23, 2020 Share Posted July 23, 2020 11 hours ago, reggie78usmc said: I have this kit in the stash. Thank you for the summary on the build, as I will be looking out for them as I construct the kit. I haven't build the Hasegawa Tomcat yet build I've built the Tamiya A and D as well as the Hobby Boss B. so far I love the way the Tamiya Kit goes together. I've also have taken a look at the instructions for the AMK cat, and its seems confusing to say the least. Awesome build by the way! I recently got to go visit the USS Midway Museum in San Diego and the have a Black Lions tomcat on the flightdeck! I must say I do find the Tamiya instruction leaflets/booklets to be some of the easiest to follow. Don't get me started on Kinetic (although they do seem to be improving a bit) or Zoukei-Mura, which appear overly complicated...I get the whole design concept piece, which is all very nice, but I would just like to get on and build the kits with clear, concise instructions. I envy your visit to the USS Midway Museum......I can still remember my trip aboard that carrier in the late 1980s. Maybe one day......... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMCS Posted July 23, 2020 Share Posted July 23, 2020 Superb 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F-32 Posted July 23, 2020 Share Posted July 23, 2020 Love it, super cool build! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmyg352 Posted July 23, 2020 Share Posted July 23, 2020 Very superb! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spitfire31 Posted July 23, 2020 Share Posted July 23, 2020 A thoroughly convincing 'Cat, looking just 'right'. Top class modelling! Kind regards, Joachim 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
March Posted July 23, 2020 Author Share Posted July 23, 2020 Thank you all for the positive comments - this is the first time I've showcased a finished model here on BM for my peers, it was not without a certain element of trepidation given the high and inspiring standards on display. 21 hours ago, reggie78usmc said: I have this kit in the stash. Thank you for the summary on the build, as I will be looking out for them as I construct the kit. I haven't build the Hasegawa Tomcat yet build I've built the Tamiya A and D as well as the Hobby Boss B. so far I love the way the Tamiya Kit goes together. I've also have taken a look at the instructions for the AMK cat, and its seems confusing to say the least. Awesome build by the way! I recently got to go visit the USS Midway Museum in San Diego and the have a Black Lions tomcat on the flightdeck! One piece of advice I would offer is when build the AMK version, have the Tamiya paint and decal 'poster' to hand. It came in very handy as a reference for this build as even the AMK colour drawings leave a lot to be desired when it comes to delineation between different colours. 10 hours ago, Tiger331 said: I must say I do find the Tamiya instruction leaflets/booklets to be some of the easiest to follow. Don't get me started on Kinetic (although they do seem to be improving a bit) or Zoukei-Mura, which appear overly complicated...I get the whole design concept piece, which is all very nice, but I would just like to get on and build the kits with clear, concise instructions. I envy your visit to the USS Midway Museum......I can still remember my trip aboard that carrier in the late 1980s. Maybe one day......... I've wrestled with the Kinetic instructions for the F-16 and the F/A-18 - I've stopped calling them 'instructions' and now refer to them as a 'hints' sheet. I even had a look at the Kinetic website and was disappointed to discover that no effort has been invested in updating the PDF instructions found there, even when it comes to basic errors such as giving wrong numbers for parts. This you would think would be straightforward to do - At least Zoukei-Mura provide updates on their site when issues are found and corrected. It seems that there is some synergy between our build choices - I am eyeing up a GWH MiG-29 9-12 as my next build along with an HB F-111A. I just need to invest in the Begemot decals for the GWH MiG. Below are a couple of photos of the clamping required for the cockpit to main fuselage join. I left the clamps on for a couple of days to ensure the glue had dried fully and maximise the chances of a solid join. AMK F-14D Tomcat by Some Geeza', on Flickr AMK F-14D Tomcat by Some Geeza', on Flickr AMK F-14D Tomcat by Some Geeza', on Flickr 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Serkan Sen Posted July 23, 2020 Share Posted July 23, 2020 Wonderful finish... Serkan 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiger331 Posted July 23, 2020 Share Posted July 23, 2020 I am part way through a build of the aforementioned GWH MiG-29.....one thing I would say is do not be fooled by all of those glowing reviews that have appeared in the mainstream press over the years. Don't get me wrong..... it does eventually turn out to be a very nice model but it is no 'shale and bake'. I found it to be a bit of a curates egg with the fit....for example, the fit of the intake 'louvres' and associated photo-etched grilles on the upper surfaces of the intakes is sublime but I lost count of the number of plasticard shims I had to insert in all sorts of odd places (wing joints, slats, air brake fairing etc) and the main intakes leave a lot to be desired in terms of fit. I followed the instructions and fitted the fully detailed engines (which are then completely hidden) but I have read elsewhere that some have left these out to help improve the fit of the rear engine fairings. I also needed several shims to 'close up' some of the flying control surfaces otherwise there would have been some unsightly gaps. I'll see if I can post domr photos to show you what I mean. As I say, it eventually comes together nicely. I should also say that your photos of the AMK build fill me with some trepidation too. It does not seem to have the fit quality of the Tamiya kit and reminds me somewhat of the Dragon aircraft kits from the mid-1990s....Looks very nice in the box but when you start to put it together, the result is a little less impressive. I am a modeller rather than an assembler of parts so I don't mind the challenge but it does slow up the process somewhat. Anyway, good luck with the GWH build when you start. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orion Posted July 24, 2020 Share Posted July 24, 2020 Hello March, Excellent model and great presentation on the rotating plate. Regards, Orion 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZHOU Kun Posted October 8, 2020 Share Posted October 8, 2020 Really pleased to see another AMK Tomcat build since I have also built one recently. Your building is neat and I really love it. AMK did live up to the high expectation with its high qualities of details and decals, although it does have some shape and fitting issues. Congratuations! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhantomLover Posted October 14, 2020 Share Posted October 14, 2020 Although I would always make a high-viz Tomcat (there are so many great markings to choose from...) your cat really looks the part. Stunning build! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sky Keg Posted October 15, 2020 Share Posted October 15, 2020 Absolutely beautiful!!!!! Mike 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hewy Posted October 15, 2020 Share Posted October 15, 2020 Smashing finish 👍 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John B Posted October 15, 2020 Share Posted October 15, 2020 I'm basically echoing everyone's compliments on this project - Lovely finish! The perfect balance of realistic weathering without going overboard. Your perseverance to finish a model with assembly issues comparable to a Hasegawa F-14 is extremely commendable. To that let me add a "Thank you for posting your in-progress pictures!" It's informative to read about build/fit issues on a kit, but seeing/reading the solutions to those problems are invaluable! 🤜🤛👏 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phildagreek Posted October 15, 2020 Share Posted October 15, 2020 Very nice! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kapam Posted October 16, 2020 Share Posted October 16, 2020 Fantastic Tomcat! I readily admit, if it looks like a Tomcat, that's good enough for me - I don't have the intricate knowledge that some aficionados do. But you have produced a fine replica, with your skills evident in the result. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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