1/48 Typhoon FGR.4, II(AC) Sqn, Op Shader, 2020. Finished 27/03.

[DaveJL]

Hello all,

 

Here is one of my entries for this GB. Having looked through my stash, I don't think there's ever been a GB that so many of my kits qualify for - F-15E, F/A-18E/F, Harrier GR7/9, Vulcan, Valiant, Tornado GR.4, Tu-22, Su-27, F-4, F-8, Corsair, B-17, F-35, B-1B, B-52.... you get the idea. 

 

I decided to plump for something multi-role - Revell's 1/48 Eurofighter Typhoon in FGR.4 spec. I've built a few of these over the last few years and they've all been in QRA fit with a full air to air load. So this one will be in Op Shader fit with air to ground weapons.

 

Kit:

 

 

Aftermarket:

 

 

I'll be using BAM exhaust, BAM auxiliary exhausts, Phase Hanger inner pylons & FOD covers, Eduard etch, Olimp detail set (for centre line pylon), Eduard mask, L'Arsenal Paveway IVs, Brassin Brimstone & ASRAAM along with a Hasegawa Litening pod, Tamiya AIM-120C and some Quinta straps for the seats. 

 

Decals will be a mish-mash  of Xtradecal and Caracal to eventually produce ZK369 of II (Army Co-operation) Squadron in 2020.

 

 

Should end up looking something like this:

 

 

2x AIM-132, 2x Paveway IV, 2x fuel tanks 4x Brimstone (have seen images with 4 being carried but can't find them now), 1x Litening pod and 1x AIM-120.

 

I also have a great reference, bought for me as a Christmas pressie:

 

 

Stay safe

 

Dave

[Col.]

That's a fine selection of aftermarket goodies you have there Dave. @trickyrich will be proud of you Sounds as if you know your way around this kit as well so sure a few of us will be watching for tips  

[trickyrich]

👍

 

The Rich stamp of approval!!! 

[Wings unlevel]

All the stuff!

10 hours ago, DaveJL said:

Aftermarket:

Looks like a great build in the offing!

[Marlin]

Nice project Dave.

Will be very interesting to see how you incorporate all that resin goodies in your build. 

 

/Bosse   

 

 

[exdraken]

wow, great project!

how is that book? readable and factually credible?

thanks!

[coneheadff]

Wow...that's a lot of resin. Great project!

[desert falcon]

What can I say but WOW!

 

Seeing you have a passion for EF Typhoons, I’ll attach a photo I snapped of a Luftwaffe Eurofighter on short final to ETSI Fliegerhorst Ingolstadt/Manching in Bavaria. Not a very good picture by any means but i literally just jumped out of the car and pulled out the camera as it passed over the fence by the end of the RWY. 

 

Have fun and keep us updated  
 

[DaveJL]

Thanks all!

 

@exdraken I haven't started reading it yet but I'm sure it's pretty credible given it's written by a pilot who flew in Op Shader! I will keep you appraised

 

@desert falcon that's a lovely picture, thanks for sharing. I've a Luftwaffe Typhoon in the stash to do, likely to in Richthofen markings.

[DaveJL]

Made a start on this one today with several hours spent on the ordnance. Firstly, I assembled all the pylons and the fuel tanks. The resin inner pylons from Phase Hanger are very nice indeed as are the Brimstone racks from Eduard, which have been attached to their respective wing pylons:

 

 

Ordnance itself. I went through all my references again and cannot find any images of the 4x Brimstone fit; all the images over the last 2 years show a fit of 2 Brimstone, so that's what I'll go with. Actually quite a relief as those etch fins are a nightmare!!

 

 

Not much but there was about 5 hours work in those 2 photos!

 

More soon and stay safe

 

Dave

[Col.]

Tidy work on the Death bits Dave. Those will look great hanging off your 'phoon.

[DaveJL]

4 minutes ago, Col. said:

Tidy work on the Death bits Dave. Those will look great hanging off your 'phoon.

Cheers mate. The Eduard bits are very nicely done but goodness me they're fiddly!

[Bertie McBoatface]

Yes, it's a good idea to get the stores done early, while motivation is still high. I hate those parts when I leave them to the end.

[DaveJL]

On 2/10/2022 at 10:03 AM, Bertie Psmith said:

Yes, it's a good idea to get the stores done early, while motivation is still high. I hate those parts when I leave them to the end.

I like to get it out of the way. Always find it's a good way to start a build as you can clear a load of sprue or aftermarket out of your box so looks like there's much less to do! Art of deception and all that

[Bertie McBoatface]

16 minutes ago, DaveJL said:

I like to get it out of the way. Always find it's a good way to start a build as you can clear a load of sprue or aftermarket out of your box so looks like there's much less to do! Art of deception and all that

 

Ha! I'm a huge fan of emptying the box. If I have a sprue which is empty at one end, I cut that end off and discard it!

[DaveJL]

40 minutes ago, Bertie Psmith said:

 

Ha! I'm a huge fan of emptying the box. If I have a sprue which is empty at one end, I cut that end off and discard it!

Glad I'm not the only one who does that!

[Bertie McBoatface]

19 minutes ago, DaveJL said:

Glad I'm not the only one who does that!

 

I thought it was just me!

[AntPhillips]

Nope, I do that too, build up little sub-assemblies clearing out the empty sprue as I go along. 

 

I also invariably build up the munitions/things under wings early on, although I rarely finish painting and decalling them before the end of the build, maybe I should 🤔

[DaveJL]

30 minutes ago, AntPhillips said:

Nope, I do that too, build up little sub-assemblies clearing out the empty sprue as I go along. 

 

I also invariably build up the munitions/things under wings early on, although I rarely finish painting and decalling them before the end of the build, maybe I should 🤔

Maybe it's more common than I thought

 

I tend to paint and finish all the sub assemblies first, before any paint goes near the aircraft itself..!

[Corsairfoxfouruncle]

1 hour ago, DaveJL said:

Glad I'm not the only one who does that!

You aren't, I do it to make it easier to find bits, and its easier to dispose of bits into the recycling bin. As a secondary trick I clip the hard “L” shaped bits and use them to stir paints in my jars. 

[arfa1983]

4 hours ago, Corsairfoxfouruncle said:

You aren't, I do it to make it easier to find bits, and its easier to dispose of bits into the recycling bin. As a secondary trick I clip the hard “L” shaped bits and use them to stir paints in my jars. 

Yeah that's a technique as old as time itself!

[DaveJL]

A little more done today. Firstly, I fitted the BAM models APU. The easiest way is to sand the area from behind to thin down the plastic:

 

 

Then drill from the front:

 

 

Then pop in the resin piece. I of course drilled the opening a little too big so some Mr Dissolved Putty required:

 

 

Definitely improves the look of the APU. Cockpit was painted next. As always, the colour of the Eduard etch is impossible to match! No big deal as not much is seen once the seat goes in:

 

 

And, thanks to @David W, I have a set of Airwaves resin MK.16 ejection seats. Just need to respray and detail:

 

 

More soon, stay safe and lets hope things don't get too out of hand.

 

Dave

[David W]

Nice work Dave, I have this kit in primer awaiting a few touch ups here and there. Bought it when first released so it’s been a long on and off build even by my standards! Probably not helped that I decided to have it in flight and drop the leading edge slats! 😑

Recently finished the Hasegawa 72nd kit which is far superior. 

[Col.]

Nice progress Dave. Everything looks good so far 

[DaveJL]

14 minutes ago, David W said:

Nice work Dave, I have this kit in primer awaiting a few touch ups here and there. Bought it when first released so it’s been a long on and off build even by my standards! Probably not helped that I decided to have it in flight and drop the leading edge slats! 😑

Recently finished the Hasegawa 72nd kit which is far superior. 

Thanks mate. It's not a great fitting, or easy kit to build up, but does look good when done. I can't even fathom trying to drop the slats!

13 minutes ago, Col. said:

Nice progress Dave. Everything looks good so far 

Cheers mate!