Enzo the Magnificent Posted October 15, 2022 Share Posted October 15, 2022 Yep... you and I know it as the Draken. In fact, the initial issue of this kit, in 1957, did actually label it as Draken. But the 1968 release of ths kit called it a "Dragon". So that's what I'm going with... https://www.scalemates.com/kits/revell-h-189-saab-j35-draken--159152 https://www.scalemates.com/kits/revell-h131-100-saab-j-35-dragon--194123 The boxing that I will use is from Mistercraft. Mistercraft release older kits from different manufacturers. They tend to rebox them with modern decals. You have to be careful which ones you choose though - although the decals are usually reasonable, the kits themselves can vary greatly. The Mistercraft Mirage III is the Heller kit, which makes a nice package. This Draken kit isn't quite as good. Given that the kit represents the earliest production versions, it is very inappropriate for the markings provided. I bought a couple of different boxings just so that i could use the decals in other projects. The plastic went back into The Stash with me expecting only ever to build them when I needed a paint dummy. Then along came this groupbuild! So I will build this kit as a nostalgia build to represent the 1968 Revell Dragon boxing, complete with incorrect camouflage pattern, as per the box art. However, I'm very likely to add upperwing national insignia. I mean, why wouldn't you? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corsairfoxfouruncle Posted October 15, 2022 Share Posted October 15, 2022 Welcome along, I do love the Draken and I think any scheme looks good on her. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enzo the Magnificent Posted October 15, 2022 Author Share Posted October 15, 2022 Let's have a look at the parts. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enzo the Magnificent Posted October 15, 2022 Author Share Posted October 15, 2022 1 minute ago, Corsairfoxfouruncle said: Welcome along, I do love the Draken and I think any scheme looks good on her. I was originally intending to build the box art scheme but I thought that the classic box art scheme would be more in keeping with the spirit of this groupbuild. There will be a Draken STGB in 2023 so plenty of opportunity for different schemes. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corsairfoxfouruncle Posted October 15, 2022 Share Posted October 15, 2022 5 minutes ago, Enzo Matrix said: I was originally intending to build the box art scheme but I thought that the classic box art scheme would be more in keeping with the spirit of this groupbuild I agree the camouflage on the early boxing looks good. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enzo the Magnificent Posted October 18, 2022 Author Share Posted October 18, 2022 There is no interior detail whatsoever on this kit. The pilot and seat come as one component and I wouldn't call that "detail". So interior prep is easy peasy, 🍋 squeezy. A quick blast of aluminium paint from a rattle can around the gear bays and matt black, again from a rattle can, around the cockpit. Including snipping the parts from the sprues, cleaning them up with a craft knife and painting, that's approximately 90 seconds work before I was ready to put the fuselage together. Pretty much the same as it would have taken me as a kid. Fuselage assembled. Outer wings fitted. Rear fuselage, nose and intakes fitted. All of them needed filling and sanding - not surprising really. One can see that this kit reprents either a prototype or very early service aircraft. The rear fuselage and jetpipe is very short with no provision for the cooling ducts and tail bumper of the later marks. That's why it is totally inappropriate for the markings that Mistercraft supply. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enzo the Magnificent Posted October 22, 2022 Author Share Posted October 22, 2022 Fin fitted. Canopy fitted and masked. I blasted a thin coat of clear laquer over everything and then primed using grey car primer from a rattle can. It always seems to me that the olive drab colour on Drakens - sorry, Dragons - has a slight brown tinge. I used Lifecolor UA-270, which normally represents SCC-15 olive drab on British tanks. The disruptive pattern was masked off using my usual technique of Blutak worms, masking tape squares and Copydex. And then the blue was sprayed using Lifecolor UA-517 RAAF Dark Ocean Blue. I don't know whether the camouflage pattern is accurate. It certainly doesn't match any pattern that I have seen on Drakens before. However, I'm trying to replicate the orginal Revell box art. I rather like the look of it. Looking forward to the Draken STGB next year. 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete in Lincs Posted October 22, 2022 Share Posted October 22, 2022 Back when I was at Scampton we had one come into the Hangar. I'm sure it eventually went to Newark air museum. But for a while it sat there looking all shiny dark green and menacing. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enzo the Magnificent Posted October 22, 2022 Author Share Posted October 22, 2022 11 minutes ago, Pete in Lincs said: it sat there looking all shiny dark green and menacing. They're very good at doing that, aren't they? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete in Lincs Posted October 22, 2022 Share Posted October 22, 2022 How about this for a shot? 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enzo the Magnificent Posted October 25, 2022 Author Share Posted October 25, 2022 The undersurfaces were sprayed with Xtracrylix XA1006 Ocean Grey. The natural metal belly and leading edges were sprayed with aluminium from a rattle can. 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AaCee26 Posted October 27, 2022 Share Posted October 27, 2022 On 10/22/2022 at 8:18 PM, Enzo the Magnificent said: I don't know whether the camouflage pattern is accurate. Hi Enzo, This was the first, short-lived, camouflage in early Drunkens between natural metal and the familiar camouflage. Cheers, AaCee 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enzo the Magnificent Posted October 29, 2022 Author Share Posted October 29, 2022 I may have been a bit naughty with the decals. Originally I intended to build the model in the way Revell intended. This would have meant having no national insignia on the wings. I'm not sure that is accurate. I went looking in the decals spares box for some suitable decals and came across a pristine sheet from the Airfix Draken. At that point I lost control. How can I be expected not to apply this iconic scheme? So now I have a model that vaguely represents a J35A, wearing a marking scheme for a J35F which may or may not be accurate... The reason that I question the accuracy of the marking scheme is because of the national insignia on the lower wings. On most Drakens the lower national insignia were painted on the inner wings while the upper ones were painted on the outer wings. Airfix would have the modeller apply the national insignia to the outer wings on this scheme to make room for the exercise markings on the inner wings. The alternative scheme provided by Airfix, without exercise markings, has the underside national insignia applied in the usual position. I'm not convinced that the national insignia would have been repainted purely for the duration of an exercise. On the other hand, the aircraft number is 01. Was this a special marking scheme for the commander of F10 wing, similar to that of CAG markings in the US Navy? 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enzo the Magnificent Posted November 10, 2022 Author Share Posted November 10, 2022 Greeblies painted up and ready for fitment. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enzo the Magnificent Posted November 10, 2022 Author Share Posted November 10, 2022 Finished! And now that I'm in the mood, I can barely wait for the Draken STGB... 4 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theplasticsurgeon Posted November 10, 2022 Share Posted November 10, 2022 Top build of a poor kit Enzo! It's very good to see another one get built. Could you post the Revell boxart that you're basing your camo on? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enzo the Magnificent Posted November 10, 2022 Author Share Posted November 10, 2022 11 minutes ago, theplasticsurgeon said: Could you post the Revell boxart that you're basing your camo on? It's this one. https://www.scalemates.com/kits/revell-h131-130-saab-j-35-dragon--194298 With the fancy Airfix decals as well... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enzo the Magnificent Posted November 10, 2022 Author Share Posted November 10, 2022 46 minutes ago, theplasticsurgeon said: Top build of a poor kit Enzo! It is an objectively poor kit - at least by modern standards. Mistercraft should not be re-releasing this in the 21st century and charging 2st century prices for it. The parts do not allow anything resembling the box art to be built from the kit and the "Super Decal Incuded" emblazon on the box is disingenuous to say the least! However, I thoroughly enjoyed building it whereas a couple of years ago I would have simply sneered at it and left it mouldering in The Stash. So because of the fun I had building it, I'm going to say it's a subjectively good kit. I have a couple more in The Stash - bought for the decals which are better in some boxings than others - so they could possibly get built as fun builds in the Draken STGB. I will have the extended rear fuselage parts from a Hasegawa kit left over in one of my planned builds so I might see if I can graft them onto the Revell/Mistercraft kit. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corsairfoxfouruncle Posted November 11, 2022 Share Posted November 11, 2022 God I love that airplane ! Great work on an old classic. I wonder if the USAF ever considered one ? Make a heck of a WHIF. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AaCee26 Posted December 6, 2022 Share Posted December 6, 2022 Hi all, Just one idea that came into my mind: This might be easy way to get a two-seater J35C/35CS Draken with long canopy and rear cockpit parts from a Heller kit. Just adding fins below the outer wings and lenghtening the brake parashute fairing would be the most labour-intensive phases of the conversion. Cheers, AaCee 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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