Bruised, Battered and on the Beach - Tamiya 1/48 Phantom - Finished.

[Bertie McBoatface]

Tonight I learned from @Selwyn that when the USN pilot of the F-4B pressed the 'Clear Aircraft' jettison push, he said farewell to all the pylons as well as the stores on them. That's good news for me because I love the look of a clean winged Phantom AND I wont have to mess around with the fiddly things, their tiny decals and the dead air spaces that the pylons make when one are airbrushing. 

 

Re-sult!

 

I've just removed all the redundant parts from the kit and significantly reduced the number of boring operations. Phew.

[Jasper dog]

Another interesting and possibly unique idea Bertie.

Good luck

[Wings unlevel]

This going to be good!

[Bertie McBoatface]

Now I've seen the kit parts and done some research, the story is developing. I wanted a clear reason for the AAR probe to be extended so I was thinking fuel leaks from a wing tank. Then I found a picture of a Phantom pilot standing in the hole in his wing caused, I think, by flak passing through without exploding. The tank area, looking at a cutaway diagram, isn't particularly structural. There are no ribs or spars there at all. So I feel justified in having a BIG hole through the wing showing some tank interior details such as baffles and contents transmitters etc.

 

The latest edition of the story has the aircraft on the low level bomb run at say, 15000ft. A shell blasts through the wing, which is noticed by the back seater but doesn't really bother the pilot as he is looking out of the other side at the time. Unluckily, a second proximity-fused shell then arrives under the tail and does explode, doing all that damage to the tail as in the photos I already posted, and knocking the aircraft end over end. That's enough for the nav/wso/rio who pulls the handle and books himself into the Hanoi Hilton for the next ten years. 

 

The pilot clears the underwing clutter away and regains control. The damage to the tail, though it looks bad, is mostly to the honeycomb structure aft of the spars, so it's plausible that the thing will keep on flying long enough to get to a tanker for a 'tow' down to a nice long concrete runway in South Vietnam. (I figure that the external tanks would be empty already and he's only lost one wing tank's worth of fuel.)

 

After landing, the USAF ground crew ties up his dropped tail hook with string and tows the wreck back to a revetment where everyone comes out for a look. I might even be able to find a standing pilot figure to place in the hole in the wing, and a photographer to record the event.

 

This has simplified my build in some ways (no pylons or stores, only one seat and half a canopy) and complicated it in more interesting ways (damage). I'm really liking the idea now. 

 

For this build, I plan to take my time!

 

[Bertie McBoatface]

1 hour ago, Jasper dog said:

Another interesting and possibly unique idea Bertie.

Good luck

 

1 hour ago, Wings unlevel said:

This going to be good!

 

Thanks, guys. I will do my best to amuse.

[modelling minion]

I really like the sound of your idea, its certainly a plausible scenario.

Good luck recreating the battle damage, something that is very tricky to do but when done right looks fantastic.

[Bertie McBoatface]

1 hour ago, modelling minion said:

I really like the sound of your idea, its certainly a plausible scenario.

Good luck recreating the battle damage, something that is very tricky to do but when done right looks fantastic.

 

Thanks, MM

 

I'll use the same techniques that served me on the Mk.V tank last year, just a little more delicately.

 

 

The Phantom kit is the best plastic aeroplane I ever built. I've just been immersed for 150 minutes in making paintable sub-assemblies in the cockpit area. I've spotted a few potential improvements to make but everything I added to my recent Italeri F-4J is already there, but better. The painting of the cockpit will be a joy. Photos and more chat later. Must build. Must build.

 

[JohnT]

Bertie, nice idea there. I am pretty sure that somewhere a USN bird will have had battle damage that would make an over water return and landing on a carrier an unappealing prospect so the intrepid aviator took the option of landing at a South Vietnam airfield as a better option. 

[Bertie McBoatface]

16 minutes ago, JohnT said:

Bertie, nice idea there. I am pretty sure that somewhere a USN bird will have had battle damage that would make an over water return and landing on a carrier an unappealing prospect so the intrepid aviator took the option of landing at a South Vietnam airfield as a better option. 

 

Thank you. Yes I've read of many such events. All of the elements of the story I'm telling are true, they all happened to somebody, but perhaps not to one person and on one occasion. Eliminating the 99% of life that's boring and exaggerating the exciting 1% is the very soul of storytelling.. 

[Bertie McBoatface]

I can't believe I just spent four hours on this kit. It was such a pleasure that the time passed by in a flash.

 

 

The first step is joining the two parts of the stbd fuselage half. They do it that way so that they can chance only one sprue in a few years when they bring out a USAF version with a AAR receptacle in the spine instead of a probe in the stbd nose. This is a very important step and the first one to make me grin, The fit was perfect and as Eric Morecombe used to say, "You can't see the join."

 

 

There were some panels and structure to attach in odd places. Presumably the other marks need 'things' fitting here.

 

 

This is the kind of fit that's possible with injection moulding. The joints are the same size as the panel lines. That's the last time I'm going to rave on about the engineering of this kit by the way. It will get boring otherwise and I have to say, I paid in full for Tamiya's expertise. It's a very expensive box of plastic.

 

 

That's the little red light that illuminates the refuelling probe at night. The instructions said paint the reflector silver but there's going to be glue running into there so I played safe and stuck in a fragment of kitchen foil.

 

 

With the cover on, and later painted clear red, it looks better too. Years ago I'd have rounded off the ends of the reflector but that's beyond my eyesight now even with the magnifier. Time marched past and I didn't even salute. 

 

 

I must digress and show you my glue cruet. This is the latest little toy that my son made for me. That's Xylene, Extra-Thin and Quick-Setting with a long brush for inaccessible places.

 

[Bertie McBoatface]

Once those fuselage details were sorted I moved onto the cockpit area, where I stayed for the rest of the day.

 

 

The fired rear seat will have left its main gun in the aircraft. This is like a hypodermic syringe with gunpowder inside. Simplified version -when the thing fires it extends in length very fast throwing the seat up in the air. The plunger stays with the aircraft too so I drilled a hole to take the ram.

 

 

Which is going to be this cheap drill with the end broken off, deliberately for once. Oddly, the superglue refused to set. I suspect oil on the drill. I'm assembling a big figure tonight using Araldite so I'll pinch a bit of that.

 

 

Kit seat vs the resin seat I used in my F-4J (since scrapped in the Xmas cull). 

 

 

The resin one is too small, so I'll be using the plastic and making my own belts from lead foil, or using the Quinta belts also left over from the Phantom GB. I think I prefer to do my own. It's very handy that I only have one to do. The kit seat is quite good, I think, made from nine parts!

 

 

The crew figures are good too but I have no use for them. One guy is in Hanoi and the other one is getting hammered in the Officer's Club. Yet perhaps I can make use of this bit.

 

 

We'll say that when the Air Traffic Jeep arrived on the runway to collect the pilot, he left his helmet on the seat in his rush to get to the clothing store and pick up his new underwear. 

 

 

He left his O2 mask as well.

 

 

He could have taken it with him. It is rather small and easy to carry.

 

 

That's today's output from the aeroplane side. All the sub-assemblies that need paint and/or additional detailing before the cockpit can be put together. The painting and extra detailing is likely to take a week! I'll take a rest from this now.

 

I will be doing a little more modelling today. I'll spend a little time on my Valentine tank project which restarted yesterday. Please come and take a look, it's quite exciting. You could even say that the sirens are screaming and the fires are howling way down in the Vally tonight...

 

 

[arfa1983]

Looking forward to seeing this one come together Bertie! 

[Toryu]

Starts great! It seems the helmet is already 'battle-damaged'... 🤔

[Bertie McBoatface]

1 minute ago, Toryu said:

Starts great! It seems the helmet is already 'battle-damaged'... 🤔

 

Cheeky! 

 

It's the best I can do these days. 👴

[modelling minion]

Off to a very good start mate, it really does look like an excellent kit that I must get my hands on at some point.

I like what have done with ejector seat gun, a very nice touch, and the pilots helmet looks good too, very good use of what comes in the kit.

[Bertie McBoatface]

1 minute ago, modelling minion said:

Off to a very good start mate, it really does look like an excellent kit that I must get my hands on at some point.

I like what have done with ejector seat gun, a very nice touch, and the pilots helmet looks good too, very good use of what comes in the kit.

 

Thanks, MM.

 

It is a nice kit, to be sure. There are a few things that I don't like so much. The plastic is very pale and slightly translucent so I find it hard to see the detail and whether I've cleaned up properly. I guess primer will fix that little moan. 

 

I'm having a bit of a downer on after-market items at the moment. I seem to have spent a lot on things that I didn't use because they weren't any better than the kit supplied items. Just unlucky I guess.

[modelling minion]

3 minutes ago, Bertie Psmith said:

Just unlucky I guess.

Not necessarily as I have found that a couple of times myself, I tend to limit myself to aftermarket seats.

[Toryu]

1 hour ago, Bertie Psmith said:

It's the best I can do these days

I couldn‘t be more sympathetic. Just overturned one of my enamel tins … again!

[Bertie McBoatface]

1 hour ago, Toryu said:

I couldn‘t be more sympathetic. Just overturned one of my enamel tins … again!

 

That's why I have the glue cruet.

[Bertie McBoatface]

Just now, Bertie Psmith said:

 

That's why I have the glue cruet.

 

Why is that making me laugh so much? Is it because it sounds like a disease of old men?

[Bertie McBoatface]

I've just found the perfect tools for the battle damage with @Model Mate's help. A set of cheap dental burrs from Amazon. Excellent!

[Lazy Modeller]

Not Happy! You said no more planes!!!

 

Cheers

LM

[Bertie McBoatface]

1 minute ago, Lazy Modeller said:

Not Happy! You said no more planes!!!

 

Cheers

LM

 

I said no more planes after this one (and the Lancaster nose section in the Big and British GB) . I had already promised to do them. 

 

And where have you been while I've been working on the Valentine Tank Series again? Get your lazy bottom over there and take a look! 😉

 

[Lazy Modeller]

4 minutes ago, Bertie Psmith said:

 

I said no more planes after this one (and the Lancaster nose section in the Big and British GB) . I had already promised to do them. 

 

And where have you been while I've been working on the Valentine Tank Series again? Get your lazy bottom over there and take a look! 😉

 

 

Well you're wright will do later no worries! ATM I was carrying my scary compressor to the attic! Can you help? I'm a bit scared to switch it in the attic...😡

Cheers

Lazy modeler was here!

[Bertie McBoatface]

22 hours ago, arfa1983 said:

Looking forward to seeing this one come together Bertie! 

 

Thank you Arfa, (I nearly missed replying, sorry)

 

You wont see anything today, my wee doggie and I have tramped the hills for hours, and are just about to fall asleep together until one of us gets hungry, I rather doubt that there will be any moddelling done tonight either. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.....