Ray_W Posted February 17 Share Posted February 17 I was hunting for an aircraft that first flew in 1959. A 1/48 X-15 would of been a nice choice, although the kits are now reasonably rare and going for the expected price. Option 2 was the Talon. Also first flew in 1959. Wolfpack has the kit and it's still available, plus the bonus of an aftermarket decal set for the Talon covering the period "USAF 1960 ~ 80 Era". Everything was promptly ordered and we're ready to start. The kit decals are for the early 2010's period. Nicely printed by Cartograf, but not what I wanted. The kit does come with masks. The Wolfpack aftermarket decal set has the delightful white and fluorescent orange finish - October 1961 - a boomer in a boomer finish. Good to go. Decals again by Cartograf Should look nice beside my Meteor ... Now this is one I should be able to finish in time. Two sprues and some nice clear parts. And I did add the Wolfpack T-38 Update set. This one without the early solid wheels, so I'll need to modify these. As usual, I wonder how much of it I'll actually use ... ... maybe the seats. But, when I do some investigation, these may not be correct for the period. EDIT: Found the info. Seat is correct for the version just a matter of possibly need to remove the drogue chute container. Bench is clear. Let's make a start - subject research, parts clean-up and test fitting. Ray 18 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Threadbear Posted February 17 Share Posted February 17 Fantastic subject! The T-38 looks too modern to have first flown in 1959. Must have been phenomenal when it first flew! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray_W Posted February 17 Author Share Posted February 17 9 minutes ago, Threadbear said: Must have been phenomenal when it first flew! It was, and I would say always was. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wings unlevel Posted February 17 Share Posted February 17 3 hours ago, Ray_W said: Option 2 was the Talon. Also first flew in 1959 And still going strong! Great subject choice, Ray, will enjoy watching you weave your magic on it! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
modelling minion Posted February 17 Share Posted February 17 Great choice Ray, Northrop's F-5/T-38 family has long been a favourite of mine so I'm very keen to see how you get with this one. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corsairfoxfouruncle Posted February 17 Share Posted February 17 Welcome along and with a senior citizen too. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CliffB Posted February 18 Share Posted February 18 A great choice Ray and I just love that scheme! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zebra Posted February 18 Share Posted February 18 Nice choice Ray. And I love the Meteor. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray_W Posted February 19 Author Share Posted February 19 I have seen some builds of this kit with filler. Actually, you can get away with very little, if any. I started with my usual regime with some careful parts clean up, which was not onerous just clean and check some matching joins (wing roots), and judicious test fitting. No flash and small offset sprue gates. Lovely kit, a little bit of finger pressure on assembly, extra thin cement and we should get out of it with a nice clean build. The rear fuselage benefits from adding some additional locators. Seems like I did not achieve much over the weekend, but I did devote a fair amount of time to getting the fit right while researching the cockpit. Next job is working out a strategy for thinning leading and trailing edges. Somewhat thick ... ... tricky, without losing the engraved detail and giving my self a lot of work. Then again, finer engraving and rivetting may not be a bad option. The flying surfaces are petite. Top sides only and front and rear of the fin. Not too much to do. I'll think about this one before launching into it. Ray 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
modelling minion Posted February 19 Share Posted February 19 Looks very promising Ray. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray_W Posted February 20 Author Share Posted February 20 On 2/18/2024 at 6:56 AM, modelling minion said: Great choice Ray, Northrop's F-5/T-38 family has long been a favourite of mine so I'm very keen to see how you get with this one. Hi Craig, very attractive aircraft. One of the reasons I really like these group builds is I end up choosing subjects that are not my usual genre. Have to agree, it will become a new favourite for me. On 2/18/2024 at 5:40 PM, CliffB said: A great choice Ray and I just love that scheme! Thanks Cliff, certainly looking forward to painting this scheme. On 2/18/2024 at 5:44 PM, zebra said: Nice choice Ray. And I love the Meteor. Thanks, the Meteor was a fun build and this one has started the same way. With regard to the leading and trailing edge thickness, I found sanding improved them somewhat and provided a more scale appearance. They're not too bad as is, however, as always, thinning edges is the first thing for improving realism in IMHO. I am happy with the result ... I was careful angling the sanding back so it achieved the effect without exaggerating what had been done. Also, did the same with the intakes. Let's say a little artistic licence (or cheating), trading off thick edged kit plastic versus thin flat slab sided surfaces on the actual aircraft. Some re-scribing and rivetting to replace lost detail to come - not too much. Still deciding what to do with the fin ... Ray 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray_W Posted February 24 Author Share Posted February 24 I have engraved the areas where the panelling was removed and rivetted. Now a 3 week break due to business travel. I'll be back and this one will be completed. Thankfully not an STGB. Ray 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray_W Posted April 9 Author Share Posted April 9 I am finally back at the modelling bench and back into this project. First step on return was ... where am I at? Taped a few pieces together. Nice fit. Beautiful aircraft. The intake trunking needs a little work. I had already thinned it somewhat and a little Milliput to smooth the join. I have rebuilt that top inside radius with some CA/Talc. However, still not totally happy, more thinning to come. I'll finish these external pieces to minimise any post filling and sanding and then dive into the cockpit. First up will be to modify the ejection seats and remove the drogue chute container to backdate the seat. Should see some progress over the coming days. Ray 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col. Posted April 9 Share Posted April 9 With one of these in the stash I'm particularly keen to watch your progress and take notes Ray 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
modelling minion Posted April 9 Share Posted April 9 Nice work Ray. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray_W Posted Monday at 07:24 Author Share Posted Monday at 07:24 Progress is being made. Took a lot of motivation to get into modifying the ejection seats and, with work busy, not one of those jobs you can easily just jump into. I am still working on the modifications having removed the drogue chute container and reshaped the seat top with inletting underway. Slow and steady, so not a lot to show for a number of hours on these couple of parts ... but, they are getting there. I initially thought of scratch-building the head cushions. The existing plastic parts came to the rescue and I cut-out and thinned what I needed. Wolfpack do make an aftermarket early seat for the Kinetic kit, and with a little more research up front, would of possibly (if it fits) been a better purchase. As is, though, I am happy with the progress and should provide a satisfying modification. Ray 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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