Mark V Posted October 13, 2020 Share Posted October 13, 2020 Finally finished the Italeri 1/48th JAS-39A Gripen. The kit is kind of clunky with thick parts and only an ok fit. I got it second hand for cheap and it looks ok once it's together. The speedbrakes are a little small for the openings, the canopy was too short in length to fill the opening if closed, and the AIM-9 missiles had deep ejector pin marks on the outboard sides. I used Hataka lacquer (orange line) paints and they went on great. My first mistake was use this as my first attempt at airbrushing Pledge/Future as a gloss coat. Major runs and pooling that once dry I had to strip off the bad areas. I reapplied Pledge with a brush but it wasn't an even coat. The kit decals were thick and very matte. I hesitated to use them but couldn't find aftermarket replacements for cheap so used the kit decals. I should have trimmed the large tail numbers down because I had some silvering on them. I sprayed Testors spray can dullcote thinking it would be ok over the Pledge. I tried doing light coats, but it still got through the Pledge and caused some paint runs and separation in the Hataka dark gray. Had some blueing and a weird purple color in a couple of places. I was able to touch it up with a brush of Hataka but it's not great. I used Master brass pitot and AoA probes. They look much better than the kit parts which were way too thick. The kit nose pitot boom was broken on the sprue so it would have had a knot of glue if I tried to use it anyway. The Master probes are nice but very delicate and easy to bend. Next time I'll just use straight pins. The brass pieces need to be painted and pins generally can be left alone. I checked several online build reviews but in the end did not do any of the "corrections" identified - canopy sill outline, canard size, shoulder strake thinning. Anyway, here she sits. I might try another one some day. I would try the 1/48th Kitty Hawk kit next time, even though I've read it's a bit difficult in places too. 12 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vlamgat9 Posted October 13, 2020 Share Posted October 13, 2020 Looks the part! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reggie78usmc Posted October 13, 2020 Share Posted October 13, 2020 Looks Great! I've heard this kit has fit problems, the alternative is the Kitty hawk one which Ive read has equally bad problems! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris148 Posted October 13, 2020 Share Posted October 13, 2020 Very nice indeed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
exdraken Posted October 13, 2020 Share Posted October 13, 2020 Great job! Rarely seen lately.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SAT69 Posted October 13, 2020 Share Posted October 13, 2020 Wow! Beautifully built clean jet! It looks wonderful! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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