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Sea Harrier FRS.1, XZ451, 801 NAS, HMS Invincible. Finished 20/06.


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2 hours ago, DaveJL said:

One step forward, two steps back. Filler was needed on the fuselage in several places

 

Oh boy...This sucks!

Looks like in some places Kinetic took a week off and let the intern do the work

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19 minutes ago, DaveJL said:

Thanks Pappy. Didn't noticed the other dogtooth. Just wanted to compare the difference in size between 'fleet fighters' :lol:

 

I think they're hard type, I'm not really sure. They look good and make the intake issue a lot easier to bear. I'm not overly bothered if they're not correct, anything for an easy life! 😃

 

I asked exactly the same question about the wing during my WIP!

 

As for the intake blanks, I did not mean to suggest that they are incorrect, I would like to source a set of the softer type for my own builds and was not sure if these were included in the FP set. I think yours are the hard type which are correct.

 

I found that the intakes also had a step where they met the fuselage, though not as pronounced as yours look ( which may just look exaggerated in the pic) which was not as big a problem as you would think as these could be sanded down to match the fuselage proper. It would have worse if the step went the other way. If found I had worse gaps at thre inside corners of the intakes where they met the fuselage. Luckily you will avoid that pitfall. The remaining area you will need to deal with is the wing join. The upper area is not too bad (although it can be a little untidy at thw wing root LE) as you will probably wind up with a gap and step on the underside. I am not sure if the step is some sort of design feature but it looks wrong. Luckily the sharp anhedral of the wings makes observation of the gap very difficult , especially if the jugs are installed.

 

Kinetic retooled the wing and fuselage completely for ther GR.3/T4 variants and the wing is a joy to install by comparison on these versions

 

cheers,

 

Pappy

 

 

 

 

Edited by Pappy
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9 minutes ago, coneheadff said:

 

Oh boy...This sucks!

Looks like in some places Kinetic took a week off and let the intern do the work

 

Yeah some bits need work, but I will still opt to build a Kinetic Harrier over the Airfix kit every time,

 

cheers,

 

Pappy

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1 minute ago, Pappy said:

 

I asked exactly the same question about the wing during my WIP!

 

As for the intake blanks, I did not mean to suggest that they are incorrect, I would like to source a set of the softer type for my own builds and was not sure if these were included in the FP set. I think yours are the hard type which are correct.

 

I found that the intakes also had a step where they met the fuselage, though not as pronounced as yours look ( which may just look exaggerated in the pic) which was not as big a problem as you would think as these could be sanded down to match the fuselage proper. It would have worse if the step went the other way. If found I had worse gaps at thre inside corners of the intakes where they met the fuselage. Luckily you will avoid that pitfall. The remaining area you will need to deal with is the wing join. The upper area is not too bad (although it can be a little untidy at thw wing root LE) as you will probably wind up with a gap and step on the underside. I am not sure if the step is some sort of design feature but it looks wrong. Luckily the sharp anhedral of the wings makes observation of the gap very difficult , especially if the jugs are installed.

 

cheers,

 

Pappy

 

 

 

 

Flying Leathernecks make soft covers, although they are for the Hasegawa kit. I think they could fit with a bit of fettling. That's my plan for when I get around to building my FA.2. Re the intakes, I think you're right in that the pictures make the steps look more pronounced. There's a bit of a gap at the bottom too which which will probably be more difficult to fix than the rest.

 

The dry fit of the wings has highlighted what you've said. I cannot wait :lol:

10 minutes ago, coneheadff said:

 

Oh boy...This sucks!

Looks like in some places Kinetic took a week off and let the intern do the work

I'm actually enjoying it. But coming from the Tamiya F-14 it's a bit of a sod!

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16 hours ago, Pappy said:

Awesome, thanks Dave👍

 

Pappy

Pappy, I've ordered a set of the Flying Leathernecks covers so will test fit them on my FA.2 intakes to see how they go.

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Back to this one and the work starts now! Filler along the fuselage cleaned up firstly. Not a hard job but hopefully will look tidy under a coat of primer. I then moved on and started adding some details. Firstly, I've kindly received some notes from another member, with some corrections for the kit. I've missed some due to the stage the build was at but I'll hopefully remedy some of the other bits. Firstly, the hinge on the vertical stabiliser needs removed:

 

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Rudder strakes then added:

 

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I'd also ordered a Master brass pitot tube. 

 

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The kit part was chopped off and the base fitted to the nose. This needed a bit of work as it sits a bit too high. It also needs extended back and blended to the fuselage. You also need to fit part E13, the vent to the left of the probe as you see it. The instructions omit this part 🙄

 

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I then did a bit of tidying around the intakes. A little more to do but they're looking good:

 

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A little more cleaning up needed around the rear of the airbrake too. @Pappy, I test fitted the Flying Leathernecks soft intake covers. I'm confident a little trimming around the edges will see these fit snugly.

 

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More soon.

 

Dave

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  • DaveJL changed the title to Sea Harrier FRS.1, XZ451, 801 NAS, HMS Invincible. Update 31/05.

Great progress Dave. Good to see that the soft intake covers can be 'persuaded' to fit.

 

One thing your friend either forgot to mention (or was ignorant of) is that part E25, the tail RCV panel is moulded incorrectly. The two circular vents should be forward of the rectangular opening. Kinetic stuffed this up and got the details reversed  (but thankfully they have corrected it on their GR.3 kits!) and it is not quite as simple as reversing the part and gluing in place as the tail boom tapers in two planes.

 

I mentioned this and many other gotchas during my WIP. I did glue the part in backwards and ended up drilling two new vents. you will end up with an overhang of plastic on the aft side which is simply sanded back to profile and a step at the front end which I built up with putty.

 

cheers,

 

Pappy

Edited by Pappy
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7 hours ago, Pappy said:

Great progress Dave. Good to see that the soft intake covers can be 'persuaded' to fit.

 

One thing your friend either forgot to mention (or was ignorant of) is that part E25, the tail RCV panel is moulded incorrectly. The two circular vents should be forward of the rectangular opening. Kinetic stuffed this up and got the details reversed  (but thankfully they have corrected it on their GR.3 kits!) and it is not quite as simple as reversing the part and gluing in place as the tail boom tapers in two planes.

 

I mentioned this and many other gotchas during my WIP. I did glue the part in backwards and ended up drilling two new vents. you will end up with an overhang of plastic on the aft side which is simply sanded back to profile and a step at the front end which I built up with putty.

 

cheers,

 

Pappy

Cheers Pappy.

 

Regarding E25, it is mentioned about it being the wrong way round but that was one of the parts I’d already fitted prior to receiving the notes on the kit so I’ll have to make do with it as it is now!

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Just now, DaveJL said:

Cheers Pappy.

 

Regarding E25, it is mentioned about it being the wrong way round but that was one of the parts I’d already fitted prior to receiving the notes on the kit so I’ll have to make do with it as it is now!

 

Bugger!

 

Oh well I doubt too many people will notice or care,

 

Onwards.

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Slogging on with this one. What a pain it's proving to be! Firstly, some fixing was needed on the wings. The inner 'dog tooth' has a step on it which is incorrect so this needs levelled off. The ailerons were then fitted. Terrible, terrible fit. It's almost as if the trailing edge of the wings is too thick to accommodate the part. The actuators are also left with a hobble gap underneath.

 

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Horrible. Moving on, I test fitted the wing to the fuselage. Horrible again. I added some plastic shims at the rear to keep this part level with the fuselage:

 

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On with the wing. 

 

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The fit, well, it leaves a lot to be desired for a kit that was moulded not that long ago. This being a family forum and not wanting to lose my posting privileges, I will sum it up as positively poop.

 

On with the filler:

 

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Lots of grafting ahead. I'm off for a pint.

 

More soon.

 

Dave

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  • DaveJL changed the title to Sea Harrier FRS.1, XZ451, 801 NAS, HMS Invincible. Update 03/06.
1 hour ago, DaveJL said:

it leaves a lot to be desired for a kit that was moulded not that long ago

Not good, but the work you're having to put in will pay dividends and I'm sure it will look fine when the filler is hidden under paint!

 

1 hour ago, DaveJL said:

I'm off for a pint

Best idea:idea: I've heard in ages, I'll join you!

 

:cheers:

 

Cheers!

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2 hours ago, Johnson said:

Not good, but the work you're having to put in will pay dividends and I'm sure it will look fine when the filler is hidden under paint!

 

Best idea:idea: I've heard in ages, I'll join you!

 

:cheers:

 

Cheers!

Thanks mate. I'll persevere... as it is a SHAR and I need one in my collection :lol:

 

On a side note, the pint(s) went down just lovely. A fine start to the Jubilee weekend for me!

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G'day Dave,

 

FWIW, the Kinetic GR.3 fuselage was re-tooled and the wing fits much better, though it still has a few little pitfalls to trap the unwary

 

Pappy

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Dave,

Great perseverance on correcting "Interns" mistakes. You have done a lot of work to renovate their inaptness

 

I love the Sea harrier and acquired the Tamiya model at the Scottish model show in Perth

 

IMG_6743

 

Reading up on the kit I heard it had a bit of flaws too.

 

Ill tag along for the build mate if that's ok

Edited by PlasticUtopia
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1 hour ago, Pappy said:

G'day Dave,

 

FWIW, the Kinetic GR.3 fuselage was re-tooled and the wing fits much better, though it still has a few little pitfalls to trap the unwary

 

Pappy

Good to know Pappy as I've recently added one to the stash!

1 hour ago, PlasticUtopia said:

Dave,

Great perseverance on correcting "Interns" mistakes. You have done a lot of work to renovate their inaptness

 

I love the Sea harrier and acquired the Tamiya model at the Scottish model show in Perth

 

IMG_6743

 

Reading up on the kit I heard it had a bit of flaws too.

 

Ill tag along for the build mate if that's ok

Thanks mate. It's a tricky build but I hope it will be worth it in the end. I've seen a few built up and they're great looking models. Other than the iffy fit, the instructions are woeful! If only Tamiya would make a new tool of their kit :lol:

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A little more to show before I hit the pint(s) for the last day of the Jubilee weekend! All very sensible of course! I think I've just about sorted the mess that was around the wing joins. It looks ok at present but goodness knows what sort of horrors a coat of primer will show up. Cross that bridge when I come to it. A few panel lines need re-scribed too. Other than that, I added the majority of the antenna, which is a bit hit and miss if you go by the instructions as they pretty much just leave you to guess where they go. Thankfully by following some notes sent to me by @NG899 and by following @Pappy's build thread, I managed to get them them on.

 

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I didn't drill out the APU behind the cockpit as I didn't want to make a total hash of it so I'll paint this area a little darker to simulate some depth. Again by following advice, I popped on the wing tip lights as these aren't the best fitting. Once dry, some Mr Mask added. I also added some sort of intake guard/hand rail to the front of the nose intake.

 

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I had also fitted the wing root light, but on looking at images of XZ451, it appeared as though this was absent so I just sanded off the detail when I was cleaning up the wing join. It looks a bit of state at the minute but once all the clean up is done I'll give it a wet'n dry before I throw on some primer.

 

Next job will be to add some detail to and then fit the cannon pods.

 

More soon

 

Dave

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  • DaveJL changed the title to Sea Harrier FRS.1, XZ451, 801 NAS, HMS Invincible. Update 05/06.

Hi Dave,

 

I’m currently building the same aircraft from the same kit.  I have had the same fit issues you have, which surprised me really due to the reputation this kit came with.  I am sure it can be hammered together and make a passable model of the Shar..

 

Good luck and keep going..

 

 

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3 hours ago, Grey Beema said:

Hi Dave,

 

I’m currently building the same aircraft from the same kit.  I have had the same fit issues you have, which surprised me really due to the reputation this kit came with.  I am sure it can be hammered together and make a passable model of the Shar..

 

Good luck and keep going..

 

 

Thanks mate. It's not a bad kit, just needs a lot of care and attention. At least I'll know some of the pitfalls for my FA.2 build. The main issue that I'll know to sort will be to sand down the inside of the trailing edges of the wings so that the flaps and ailerons don't have a horrible step on them.

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A little more done. I added some basic detail to the cannon pods by drilling out the muzzle and cooling holes, along with adding some vents and the blister to the inner sides with shaped putty. They're not the most accurate, but look a lot better than the plain examples offered by Kinetic. I need to give the blisters another quick tidy up just to get the shape more streamlined.

 

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A point to note, don't add the clear parts (F8 & F9). Not really sure what these are meant to be! The pods themselves fitted well to the fuselage. I just ran some liquid cement around the edges to close them up.

 

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What appears to be a slightly oversized Airfix 1000lb bomb test fitted:

 

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Might order some resin alternatives for that. Next job will be to add the HUD, windscreen and mask off the cockpit. I might also test fit the stabilisers incase they need to go on pre-painting.

 

More soon

 

Dave

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  • DaveJL changed the title to Sea Harrier FRS.1, XZ451, 801 NAS, HMS Invincible. Update 07/06.

A little more done. Added the HUD frame to the coaming. I had to fit a small shim of styrene sheet on top of the IP to allow this to sit flush.

 

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The airframe is just about ready for a lick of primer; no doubt some horrors will show themselves!

 

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Details added to the rear of the canopy frame. Could anyone advise what colour the inner portion is? I'm guessing it's the same as the cockpit but I've been wrong before!

 

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FOD guards build up. Lovely detail here and the etch is nice and firm so easy to work with.

 

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Stabilisers built up. The plates, or whatever they are, on the inner faces required some fettling to get to sit correctly.

 

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All the odds and sods, ready for priming.

 

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In other news, Covid has finally caught me after 2 years of avoidance; so I should be able to make some decent progress over the next few days. Every cloud and all that!

 

More soon and stay safe

 

Dave

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  • DaveJL changed the title to Sea Harrier FRS.1, XZ451, 801 NAS, HMS Invincible. Update 08/06.
20 minutes ago, Dansk said:

loving the etch work dave 👍😎

Cheers Paul. I'm just crossing fingers and toes that it all looks ok under a coat of paint. Looks a mess at the minute :lol:

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G'day Dave,

 

Canopy interior is same as cockpit i.e Dark Admiralty Grey (DAG) so whatever you used for the cockpit tub should suffice.

I like Tamiya XF-54 myself.

 

One thing I noticed with my stabs is that they had a weird 'swirl' pattern to the upper surfaces. I noticed in the unpainted parts but thought it was just the way that the plastic had cooled or something but after painting I noticed a faint pattern peeking through the primer. It only need a light rub back with a sanding stick and a re-prime but may be worth noting  when you have primed yours?

 

Also, dunno if I missed something but why are both the wingtip lights green? I think the port one should be red?

 

cheers,

 

Pappy

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