Italeri (mostly) 1/72 Grumman EA-6A Electric Intruder

[hsr]

This is my build of the Italeri 1/72 Grumman EA-6A Electric Intruder Electronic Counter Measures aircraft, with a little help from the Fujimi kit and a simple nose mod. Italeri and Fujimi are the only big plastic companies to kit the EA-6A (Tamiya does a rebox of the Italeri kit) . I read that the Fujimi kit was the "better" of the 2 fit and detail wise, but the Italeri kit comes with folding wings and was more accurate. To save shelf space I wanted to do one with folding wings. Wolfpack makes a resin set of folding wings for the Fujimi kit but it is out of production and impossible to find. My first plan was to use the Italeri wings on the Fujimi kit. But when I put them together I realized that the Italeri wings were wider in cord then the Fujimi ones. So I broke out my scale drawings* to see which, if either, was correct. It turns out that while the Italeri ones seem to be spot on

 The Fujimi ones were too narrow

So now I decided to go with the Italeri kit. 

 

One of the issues with the Italeri kit is that it is basically their A-6 kit with some jamming pods and EA-6A decals. But the EA-6A has a longer nose then the standard A-6 so it could fit more ECM equipment, so the Italeri nose is too short by ~8 scale inches. I first thought that I would use the Fujimi nose, which is the correct length, but the contours didn't match the Italeri Fuselage, and it would have been difficult to get it to match, so I ended up using a styrene strip spacer with the Italeri nose. While I had the drawings out I also compared the 2 fuselages. What I fond was the The Italeri tail was a bit too small in cord

While the Fujimi one was a better match

So I removed the Italeri tail and used the Fujimi one. I also found out that both fuselages were too long behind the cockpit

I cheated the Fujimi tail a little forward but I couldn't move it very much and didn't see a good way to fix it, so I just ignored it.

Here it is after the mods

 

One final problem was that both kits had ALQ-76 pods that looked more like the later ALQ-99 pods used on the EA-6B. The ALQ-76 pods have flat side while the ALQ-99 are much wider at the bottom then the top. I ended up filling the insides of the Italeri pods with super glue and then sanded then flat, I also somehow managed to loose the Italeri speed brakes. Luckily I had the Fujimi ones and they were close enough to use if posed open. 

 

Once the mods were done the build progressed smoothly. The Italeri decals where the basic markings while the Fujimi ones had all the little "No Step" and other stencils. Neither kits had stencils for the jamming pods. On the Fujimi decals the white in the stars and bars was more of a cream color while on the Italeri decals white was white. So I used a combination of both.

 

After all that I am happy with the results.

 

Next up is the Sword T-38 Talon.

 

Enjoy

 

* I used drawings from the Detail & Scale EA-6B (that covers the EA-6A too), and the Aerophile EA-6B & EA-6A books. The D&S drawings where done by @Dana Bell and I could not find out who did the Aerophile ones, maybe Mr. Bell did them also. They both agreed but that does not mean that they were right, but they were all I had so I used them. I am sure Italeri and Fujimi had drawings that they thought were correct.

 

[VolkerR.]

Lots of efffort and a beautiful model.

[James G]

Nice work on the corrections and the finished model looks great in those markings!

[hsr]

9 hours ago, James G said:

Nice work on the corrections and the finished model looks great in those markings!

Thanks. I like the way the colors and markings came out.

 

[Smudge]

Hi @hsr That's nice. I always enjoy your builds. I have the Fujimi EA-6A. I didn't realise the EA was slightly longer in the nose (luckily I think I'll use the Fujimi kit anyway), or know about the ALQ pods. Interesting points to think about.

 

Shame about the rear fuselage being to long. Is there any chance the plans you have used may not be quite accurate? Just clutching at straws 

 

Cheers.

[hsr]

8 minutes ago, Smudge said:

Shame about the rear fuselage being to long. Is there any chance the plans you have used may not be quite accurate? Just clutching at straws 

I wish I knew, but I have no way of telling. Perhaps @Tailspin Turtle or @Dana Bell can chime in and say that I was just holding thing wrong. 

 

Thanks

[Tailspin Turtle]

1 hour ago, hsr said:

I wish I knew, but I have no way of telling. Perhaps @Tailspin Turtle or @Dana Bell can chime in and say that I was just holding thing wrong. 

 

Thanks

According to the Standard Aircraft Characteristics chart, the EA-6A was 55' 3" long, measured on the water line (i.e. not parallel to the ground) from the tip of the radome to the tip of the bottom of the rudder. That would be 9 3.33/16" at 1/72 scale. All of the 8" length difference with the A-6A was forward of the cockpit. I can't tell exactly from the picture on the dimensioned pad but the fuselage does look a bit longer than that. Please let us know what you get.

Edited April 9, 2022 by Tailspin Turtle

[neilspen]

Nice clean and tidy build. Cheers Neil

[hsr]

30 minutes ago, Tailspin Turtle said:

Please let us know what you get.

@Tailspin Turtle Using my Murphey's Rule 1/2 ruler the drawing in the D&S book come out to 54"9"

So @Smudge it would look to be that the drawing is off

 

[Smudge]

Great work. Looks like Italeri and Fujimi got it right. 

 

Thank you.

[Tailspin Turtle]

It's possible, even likely, that even though the artist got the drawing right, in the process of copying the original artwork to scale, laying out the page it was on, and printing the book, that it became slightly reduced in size.

[hsr]

1 hour ago, Smudge said:

Looks like Italeri and Fujimi got it right. 

Except that Italeri messed up the tail and Fujimi missed out on the wing cord

3 minutes ago, Tailspin Turtle said:

It's possible, even likely, that even though the artist got the drawing right, in the process of copying the original artwork to scale, laying out the page it was on, and printing the book, that it became slightly reduced in size.

A lot of steps and if each one introduced a small error it adds up

Thanks

 

[Smudge]

13 hours ago, hsr said:

Except that Italeri messed up the tail and Fujimi missed out on the wing cord

 

Well, yes there is also that 

[F-32]

Very very nicely done

[twinpin]

Very well done, interesting information..  Revell also had an EA6A - maybe  ex.Hasegawa ?

[hsr]

1 hour ago, twinpin said:

Revell also had an EA6A - maybe  ex.Hasegawa ?

According to Scalemates.com https://www.scalemates.com/kits/revell-04579-grumman-ea-6a-wild-weasel--148071 Revell made a 1/48 EA-6A and the Hasegawa is a rebox of the Revell kit.

 

Thanks

[Billy400]

Nice model

[twinpin]

Had not noticed revell was a different scale..   

 

Tailspin Turtle has this above  "That would be 9 3.33/16" at 1/72 scale"   does that mean the scale size is 9" plus 3.33/16 of an inch ?.

 

Not looking for this at present but just out of interest, would it be difficult to modify the Italeri tail... or maybe someone could cast the Fujimi tail ?

 

Thank you

[hsr]

7 minutes ago, twinpin said:

Tailspin Turtle has this above  "That would be 9 3.33/16" at 1/72 scale"   does that mean the scale size is 9" plus 3.33/16 of an inch ?.

That is how I interpret it, but I used my 1/72 ruler and the 55' 3" number. I don't think it would be too difficult to fix the Italeri tail with sheet and strip styrene, but since I already had the Fujimi tail I used it.

 

Thanks

[Tailspin Turtle]

4 hours ago, twinpin said:

 

Tailspin Turtle has this above  "That would be 9 3.33/16" at 1/72 scale"   does that mean the scale size is 9" plus 3.33/16 of an inch ?.

 

Yes or 23.4 cm

[twinpin]

Thanks everyone for replies