First Gun Kill - Lt. Eugene Chancy VF-211 - 1/48 Hasegawa F-8E

[Ray_W]

Perfect timing for the STGB with Hasegawa doing the recent re-pop of their lovely 1/48 F-8E Crusader kit. I pre-ordered to ensure I snared one (wish I bought two).

 

 

And the usual box of plastic.

 

 

A lot of really nice decal options in the box. However, I had Furball's wonderful decal sheet MiG Masters 48-007 with markings for 26 aircraft. Printed by Cartograf. Who could resist?

 

 

This gave me the problem of what scheme to choose. Adding the kit's 4 options gave me 30 aircraft and 1 kit. So many to choose from. I decided to go thematic rather than pretty and focus on the "Last of the Gunfighter's" only two gun kills achieved out of the total 18 (now sometimes increased to 19) kills credited during the Vietnam War . The last gun kill was an F-8C flown by LCDR Robert Kirkwood. I did not feel like back dating the E to a C so an E it must be. This leaves only one option, the first credited gun kill, LT Eugene Chancy VF-211 USS Hancock June 21, 1966.

 

 

Just to make life interesting, I plan to throw a fair bit of resin at it. Whether I use it all will depend on how we go. 

 

 

Plus some Reskit wheels if this aircraft had the later hubs.

 

 

The two aftermarket kits that would add to this build would be Wolfpack's Air Brake and Wing Folding kits. As rare as the original Hasegawa kit. Yes, can be tracked down, but expensive. I'll probably scratch-build these additions. The air brake is a must. Always seems to be cracked open when the aircraft is at rest.

 

Now, looking forward to the starting gun. 

 

Ray

 

 

 

 

[modelling minion]

Looks like you're throwing everything but the kitchen sink at this one Ray, going to make for a fantastic model.

Nice choice of scheme too, going with the Gunfighter option.

Very much looking forward to seeing this one mate.

 

🇺🇦

[Hewy]

Exellent choice, and a good selection of extras there too ray

[Corsairfoxfouruncle]

Nice kit and scheme options. 

[Retired Bob]

On 14/03/2023 at 17:53, Ray_W said:

Just to make life interesting, I plan to throw a fair bit of resin at it. Whether I use it all will depend on how we go.

Have checked on how well the resin parts fit?  I'm just thinking about the usual fit of Aires resin parts and the amount of sanding and fettling that's usually involved. 

[Ray_W]

7 hours ago, Retired Bob said:

Have checked on how well the resin parts fit?  I'm just thinking about the usual fit of Aires resin parts and the amount of sanding and fettling that's usually involved. 

 

Bob, highly likely. I'll do some investigation this weekend. I plan to cut off the casting blocks and go through my usual dry-fit regime. We will see. 

[Hewy]

9 hours ago, Ray_W said:

plan to cut off the casting blocks and go through my usual dry-fit regime. We will see. 

I've  got much of the same resin for mine ,sorry but  you'll  be my Guinea pig for the fit  of that if you dont mind ray🤗

[Ray_W]

9 hours ago, Hewy said:

I've  got much of the same resin for mine ,sorry but  you'll  be my Guinea pig for the fit  of that if you dont mind ray

 

No problem. Hopefully some learning from my trials and tribulations, and entertaining at least.

 

Ray

[Ray_W]

I was deciding how to fabricate the wing fold mechanism and then noticed a new entrant Mini Craft Collection offer it as an aftermarket solution.

 

The parts look excellent by these images:

 

 

 

 

The 48ers have them in stock. Promptly ordered. Hopefully they're OK. Irrespective, so long as they arrive in time, they will provide the raw material for a far better rendition than I could do. 

 

Ray

[modelling minion]

Those wing fold parts do look very nice Ray, I shall have to look into getting hold of a set of them for myself.

 

🇺🇦

[Ray_W]

58 minutes ago, modelling minion said:

Those wing fold parts do look very nice Ray, I shall have to look into getting hold of a set of them for myself.

 

🇺🇦

 

Hi Craig,

 

I was really happy to be find this set. Not having a satisfactory solution to the wing fold was taking a little shine off the project. I am confident of scratchbuilding a reasonable air brake and interior. Not so much the wing fold due to its small size and complexity. Now I have a solution I'm raring to go. 

 

Ray

[Retired Bob]

On 17/03/2023 at 15:15, modelling minion said:

Those wing fold parts do look very nice Ray, I shall have to look into getting hold of a set of them for myself.

They do indeed look very good, there is a problem with getting them from 48ers though.  They have a minimum order value of 160 Euros to send items to the UK now that we are no longer in the EU. 

[modelling minion]

Just now, Retired Bob said:

They do indeed look very good, there is a problem with getting them from 48ers though.  They have a minimum order value of 160 Euros to send items to the UK now that we are no longer in the EU. 

They seem to be available on Ebay from China.

 

🇺🇦

[Retired Bob]

On 16/03/2023 at 07:06, Ray_W said:

 I'll do some investigation this weekend. I plan to cut off the casting blocks and go through my usual dry-fit regime. We will see. 

So far I have had a look at the Aires resin cockpit set, the resin replacement cockpit does not appear to be much larger than the kit part, though to fit it to the Hasegawa fuselage all the internal detail will have to be removed.  The resin ejection seat is a nicely detailed Martin Baker Mk.7.  The resin instrument panel is the early one with a rectangular angled radar screen, this was changed later to a normal round, vertical screen.

[Ray_W]

10 hours ago, Retired Bob said:

The resin ejection seat is a nicely detailed Martin Baker Mk.7.  The resin instrument panel is the early one with a rectangular angled radar screen,

 

Thanks Bob for the input. As you point out, Aires provide a very nice Mk.7. Disappointingly this beautifully detailed ejection seat is incorrect for an F-8 prior to 1970. The Mk 5A being correct for my F-8E.  I have two options - detail the Hasegawa or try and source a Mk 5. A fall back option may be a Mk 4. The Mk.5 being a US navalised Mk 4. This is today's research subject.

 

 

 

 The angled square radar screen is correct for my subject.

 

 

I decided to clean up the resin parts and see what the fit was like in anticipation of next week's start.

 

Aires provide a replacement nose wheel well. This involves removing the moulded plastic version from the inlet trunking and attaching the resin replacement. Here I have already cut, filed and sanded off the plastic.

 

 

Note the tiny clevis sticking up from the wheel well. One already broken off (which I found) and I have since removed this second one to re-attach later. I also discovered no fit issues with this assembly once placed in the fuselage. 

 

 

The replacement resin part for the variable incidence wing bay also slides in nicely. Full removal of the casting block is not necessary. I just wet sanded on a 240 grit sheet and kept testing until the part slipped in. A small amount of adjustment at the front will allow the fuselage to close up.

 

 

A similar story with the main gear wells. Full removal of the casting block is not needed. Same wet sand and test process. No change to the kit parts were necessary for the resin part to drop in. Very pleasing.

 

 

Typical Aires, once I came to the cockpit I was wondering how much to remove and where does it locate. No instructions are given. In the end I found I had to remove the lot. Simple I suppose. 

 

 

Once I did I found everything went into position.

 

 

And closed up. I will play with this some more to get as best fit as possible but, it's close. 

 

 

The IP coaming has no positive position so you scramble for your references to check on its location (it just touches up to the cockpit side panels). I started by leaving some of the Hasegawa moulded coaming in place but was unhappy with the transition so removed it completely. This left some gaps. The whole cockpit assembly needs to move forward about 1 mm. This will assist but the gaps will remain. I suspect Aires has the coaming correct. For example, this image shows the forward gap which will be largely hidden by the canopy and the IR sensor once is in place.

 

 

More research needed and I will close the gaps as required.

 

All in all I did not need to spend too much time to tidy the parts and be ready for some serious building. Will I add the guns and refuelling probe detail? Still undecided. Time for more research and get ready for next weekend.

 

Ray

[Retired Bob]

55 minutes ago, Ray_W said:

The Mk 5A being correct for my F-8E.  I have two options - detail the Hasegawa or try and source a Mk 5. A fall back option may be a Mk 4. The Mk.5 being a US navalised Mk 4.

Eduard provided a very nice Mk 5 seat in their boxing of the Hasegawa seat, it might be available on their site.  I have no chance of finding a Vought early seat or an early spoked nose wheel for my F-8C conversion, I'm going to have to do it the old way. (Which is : Option A, ignore it.   Option B, Convert/scratch build)

I'll try Option B and if all fails, revert to Option A. 

[franky boy]

Just cartching with this GB.
 

That’s a lot of resin Ray. Looks great once in place though and I look forward to seeing the wing folds when the time comes. 
 

James

[Ray_W]

1 hour ago, Retired Bob said:

Eduard provided a very nice Mk 5 seat in their boxing of the Hasegawa seat, it might be available on their site. 

 

Hi Bob, I think you will find the Eduard is also a Mk. F-7 ejection seat. 

 

 

Looks very much like a Mk. F-7 seat here:

 

http://www.ejectionsite.com/frame_sg.htm and select the Crusader Mk.F-7

 

Interestingly, Wolfpack, also use the above design and call it a Mk. 5. Looks like a Mk.7.

 

 

And yet once you start looking into the Mk.5 you typically see a soft chute enclosed within the seat frame which continues down side of the seat.

 

 

 

Also see:

 

https://martin-baker.com/products/mk5-ejection-seat/

 

Squdron/Signal No.38 Walk Around F-8 Crusader pages 16 and 17 clearly shows the two different types. Well, three types as they show the Vought seat. 

 

Now someone might have NAVAIR AFC-491 detailing when the Crusader changeover to the Mk. 7 occurred. Although, in my case, being 1966, I think the Mk 5 is a safer bet. And, I am still hunting for a suitable solution.

 

As to your 8C dilemma - aftermarket Vought ejection seat - tricky. Another option is to choose an F-8C subject after the retrofit of the Mk.5 or later Mk.7. As to the spoked nose wheel   spares box? Something close? Modifiable? 

 

Ray

[Retired Bob]

48 minutes ago, Ray_W said:

Interestingly, Wolfpack, also use the above design and call it a Mk. 5. Looks like a Mk.7.

The ejection seat conundrum, it was so much easier in the good old days when there was just an 'L' shaped piece of plastic.

I've had another look at my Detail & Scale book, there isn't much visual difference between the Mk.5 and the Mk.7, the main thing was the rocket pack under the seat pan which is on the Aires seat.  The other difference appears to be the parachute pack, on the Mk.5 it's in a 'soft' canvas pack, the Mk.7 has a 'hard' plastic pack with nylon cover over the top section.  Both of the seats have the parachute pack in a metal shroud, unlike on the F-4 seats where only the mk.5 seat had a metal shroud. these are the visual differences

You are similar to me in that you want to get the details correct.  You are correct, the Eduard one is a Mk.7, just better proportioned but missing the small canvas bag on the side for the seat pins.

[Ray_W]

1 hour ago, Retired Bob said:

it was so much easier in the good old days when there was just an 'L' shaped piece of plastic.

 

So true.

 

I found just the seat I was hunting for from Sparkit and promptly ordered. 

 

 

Sparkit - a new 3D printing company. Some discussion on Britmodeller here:

 

 

They look exceptional. Hopefully receive them very soon.

 

 

Ray

 

 

[modelling minion]

Very nice work on the resin parts Ray, looks like you got a very good fit without having to resort to the use of C4, most unlike Aries.

 

🇺🇦

[Ray_W]

26 minutes ago, modelling minion said:

Very nice work on the resin parts Ray, looks like you got a very good fit without having to resort to the use of C4, most unlike Aries.

 

Thanks Craig. I think one thing working in your favour is not having to try to fit a piece of resin into a thin wing. The usual resin battle. I just wish Aires gave some more detail on what to remove in the cockpit area and the required finished location so there was a little less trial and error.

[Retired Bob]

4 hours ago, Ray_W said:

I found just the seat I was hunting for from Sparkit and promptly ordered. 

That seat looks really good Ray, no such luck with my seat, I've only found a 1/32nd Vought seat, at least the photo will help me make one.

The photos of VF 84 with their flame effect F-8C's clearly show that they have the Vought seat fitted, finding out information on seat changes is difficult, Detail & Scale states that the Vought seat was fitted into early marks and was changed to the Martin Baker Mk.5 on the 144th F-8C built and re-fitted to the earlier aircraft, but no dates given.  The Mk.7 rocket equipped seat was fitted as as aircraft were updated, ie the F-8C to F-8K, F8-D to F-8H and the F-8E to F-8J.  Squadron/Signal F-8 Crusader in action states the F-8C having the Mk.5 seat from the start of that model, as the Vought seat with it's distinctive head box can be seen in photos of early F-8C aircraft we know this is incorrect.  Here is a photo showing the distinctive Vought seat head box.

 

[Hewy]

Good info for the resin fit ray, thanks

[Ray_W]

34 minutes ago, Hewy said:

Good info for the resin fit ray, thanks

 

Glad it was of some value. Hopefully I can work out what is happening with the IP coaming before the weekend. I also tried the front canopy fit and this seems good, possibly a small amount to shave off the inside forward edge of the resin sidewalls.

 

I'll play with this some more and try and get everything fitting extremely well. My goal is to be able to glue everything in place in the time honoured right fuselage half and have the left fuselage side close up with no forcing and no gaps. We will see.

 

Ray