Jump to content

1:72 Hasegawa Boeing F/A-18F Super Hornet VFA-2 Bounty Hunters


Recommended Posts

A day late and a dollar short - story of my life. Actually, it's more like several weeks late for the Group Build deadline, but hey at least she's finished.    :)

 

I'm pretty sure I don't need to give any back story about the F/A-18 Super Bug. <rant on> One thing that "bugs" me though, is this Boeing thing. The original YF-17 design came from Northrop, the follow-on development of the F/A-18 was done in conjunction with McDonnell Douglas who did the final assembly (due to their experience with USN aircraft). Development of the Super Hornet was done by McDonnell Douglas at the McAir facility in St. Louis, and the first seven full-scale development aircraft were built and flown prior to Boeing's acquisition of McDonnell. So all of a sudden it's the Boeing Super Hornet. Well, OK, if that's the case then I guess the P-51 is a Boeing Mustang as well. <rant off>

 

My usual long and boring (or is it Boeing?) executive summary:

 

Project: Boeing (it's really McDonnell Douglas) F/A-18F Super Hornet

Kit: Hasegawa Kit No. 00809
Scale: 1:72 (that's as big as it gets honey)
Decals: TwoBobs sheet 72-046 Rockin' Rhinos #3; Galaxy Model G7205 F/A-18 Bounty Hunters OEF; kit sheet
Resin: Aires 7282 cockpit set, 7327 exhausts (open); RES-IM 7209 wings/flaps down set; ResKit RS72-0126 wheels and tyres
Photoetch: Eduard 73229 cockpit and exterior set

Masks: Eduard CX133
Paint: Mr. Hobby H11 Flat White, H12 Flat Black, H25 Sky Blue, H90 Clear Red, H94 Clear Green, H307 FS36320, H308 FS36375, H309 FS34079, H317 Dark Gull Gray, H329 FS13538 Insignia Yellow; MRP Super Clear Gloss MRP-048; Mr. Color GX114 Super Smooth Flat, SM205 Super Titanium 2; Alclad AC103 Dark Aluminum, AC111 Magnesium; Tamiya XF-69 NATO Black

Weathering: Colour modulation on the greys, washes in the gear wells and on gear struts

 

Improvements/Corrections

  • Replaced kit cockpit with Aires resin set
  • Detailed cockpit with Eduard photoetch
  • Added HUD with photoetch frame and dual combiners from film
  • Detailed canopy (hand holds, mirrors, latches, cross brace) with Eduard photoetch
  • Replaced kit wheels and tyres with ResKit resin
  • Add photoetch brake lines on all landing gear
  • Replaced kit wings with RES-IM resin wings and flap down set
  • VFA-2 red, white, and blue stripes painted on
  • AIM-9L/M Sidewinders from The Island of Misfit Missiles

WIP can be found here. If you visit the WIP you can learn all about my adventures with VFA-2 decals, and why I chose to paint the stripes on. It's not Homer (is anything?) but you might find it interesting. Enough - now for some pictures!

 

IMG_6413

 

IMG_6417

 

IMG_6415

 

IMG_6423

 

IMG_6421

 

IMG_6426

 

IMG_6418

 

IMG_6432

 

IMG_6434

 

IMG_6429

 

IMG_6427

 

IMG_6424

 

IMG_6414

 

Now I'm off to finish a real McDonnell Douglas bird - the F3H-2 Demon! One of McDonnell's "Spooks," the Demon was a descendant of the FH-1 Phantom and an ancestor of the F-4 Phantom II. Good company. Since I'll be building the Emhar kit, it might take a while.    :)

 

Cheers,

Bill

  • Like 54
Link to comment
Share on other sites

A Navy bird from @Navy Bird, what's not to like? :D 

 

This is typically gorgeous, and the painted stripes really set it off (not to mention all the fine detailing you put into it)! :clap: :clap: 

 

Ciao

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well…always excited when I see a « Navy Bird » rollout. 
I know before opening that it’s gonna be awsome 😎

 

I really really like your (Boeing…) SH and it’s not too worn look. 

 

and re Boeing vs MDD I will never get used to it. 
for me, those birds will always remain MDD. 
or how does it sound to you:

Boeing F-15 Eagle?…come on :)


Great job Bill. 
Looking forward to the Demon. 
btw: why emhar and not sword?

 

Cheers

 

Ben

 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

17 hours ago, Terry1954 said:

Looking forward to seeing the Boeing Demon come to completion. 😂

 

Oh, don't you start! Technically, it's a McDonnell Demon as Douglas didn't join the fray until 1967. So if we follow the trend, the DC-3 was Douglas first, McDonnell-Douglas second, and is now Boeing. Ugh.

 

I guess I can understand calling the Super Hornet a Boeing product as it's still in production after the merger. But it still bugs me.    🐞

 

17 hours ago, Bertie Psmith said:

She’s a beauty. I think I can see where the extra weeks went into a superb looking model.

 

I thought for sure that I'd have it finished before the Group Build deadline, but the decal fracas cost me a few weeks and then the extended family had some fun with Covid, and generally life got in the way. But we all survived and the model is finished.     :)

 

17 hours ago, giemme said:

A Navy bird from @Navy Bird, what's not to like? :D 

 

This is typically gorgeous, and the painted stripes really set it off (not to mention all the fine detailing you put into it)! :clap: :clap:

 

Yeah, I should have painted the stripes right from the get-go. Ultimately they look better than a decal would have. I was really surprised with the problems with the TwoBobs sheet (printed by Microscale). On close examination (my magnifier) I honestly think they forgot to add the carrier film. I could see no trace of it - and once I added clear lacquer over everything the decals performed fine, although I had to trim everything real close. Weird.

 

12 hours ago, bearmatt said:

Looking forward to the Demon. 

btw: why emhar and not sword?

 

Thanks Ben. I'm doing the Emhar kit as I already had one in the stash (which I bought when the kit first came out), along with all the aftermarket that was made for it. Besides, I like a challenge that turns me into a berserker.

 

11 hours ago, SAT69 said:

The cockpit alone is gorgeous. I can't do that in 1/32 scale!

 

I couldn't either - it's too big! I think it's much easier to add detail in 1:32 scale (I did that with my Tamiya Spitfire) but you have to add so much more of it or it doesn't look right. With 1:72, I can add just a bit and it looks good. Since I'm naturally lazy, it's a good scale for me.    :)

 

9 hours ago, billn53 said:

Agreed! That HUD looks really fiddly, I can’t imagine doing that in 1/72.

 

Actually, it wasn't too bad. The HUD framework was one photoetch piece with two folds, and the combining glasses were easy to cut out of the film (just follow the printed outline). The hardest part was getting the film positioned correctly on the frame - hard to see without the correct lighting and a good magnifier. My old man eyes didn't help! But we got there.

 

7 hours ago, Vultures1 said:

Very nice work Bill, especially given your tribulations with the decals.  The end result looks fantastic

 

Thanks. Hopefully I'll not have problems with the Demon, although some of the decals I want to use are a couple or three decades old. No doubt I will give them a coat of clear lacquer just in case!

 

*****

 

Thanks to everyone for the nice compliments!

 

Cheers,

Bill

  • Like 5
Link to comment
Share on other sites

16 hours ago, Cookenbacher said:

Impressive Navy bird, uh, Navy Bird (Boeing better not buy you!) I really like the drooped flaps and the markings are exquisite.

 

Thanks Cookie. No chance of Boeing buying me, I don't think they could afford the debt burden.    :)

 

9 hours ago, cardiff guy said:

nice work, well done.

 

Thanks! I got pretty frustrated with the decal shenanigans, but I like the final result. She looks good next to my other two Hornets (Canadian Tiger Meet and USN Centennial).

 

Cheers,

Bill

  • Haha 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1/72nd scale modelling at its best and a finished kit to be proud of.

 

I think the one detail which competes the scene is the very credible load of inert/training munitions which you would probably expect to see the aircraft carrying during routine training operations.

  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...