F-35A 388th Fighter Wing - Tamiya 1/72

[cpoud117]

Hi guys,

 

This is my humble take on Tamiya's recent F-35A kit. I'm usually more of a cold war kind of guy, but I had heard so many good things about the kit that I wanted to see what Tamiya's excellence in kit engineering would actually build like.  

Long story short, it builds exceptionally well. Clever kit design and precise molding make for a very easy kit to put together, even for beginners. 

 

What's not for beginners though are those pesky ram panels. Even with Eduard's RAM mask, it's a bit of a chore and you'll soon find yourself cursing the folks at Lockheed Martin who came up with the stuff. RAM really stands for "Really Annoying Masking".

I ended up using the kit decals which are well printed but unfortunately still on the thick side. One can hope Tamiya will someday embrace thinner film carriers.

 

 

 

 

 

Quick project inventory

 

• Tamiya 60792 F-35A
• Eduard CX655 and CX651 masking sets
• I used Tamiya LP range following the instruction mix ratios which allowed for a good match between the painted RAM panels and the decal RAM panels.
• GX-100 and GX-112 Gloss varnish
• MRP-126 Super Clear Varnish Semi-matt
• The canopy was tinted using Tamiya and Mr Hobby Aqueous clear paints. Smoke, Orange and Purple were used.

 

All in all, a nice kit, highly recommended to all modern aviation enthusiasts (and grayscale afficionados).

 

Have a great evening! 

 

[Alan P]

Beautifully done, a sharp and neat result. Perfect symmetry on that head-on shot, looks bigger than 1/72 as well 👏👏👏

[Ingram]

Looks like a nice and clean result. : )

Great work!

[Harry Lewis]

Nice work. Your build reinforces what I have heard about the Tamiya kit. 

And the joke about RAM panels was spot on! Very funny.

Thanks for sharing.

 

Harry

Lutz, FL

[Doccur]

Lovely build. The best thing about these aircraft is they are kept pristine, so you can produce a lovely clean build like this without upsetting the weathering fanatics!

 

Ash

[Fred piket]

Beautiful F-35, I will use this as a guide how to build mine..

[cpoud117]

Thank you guys, highly appreciated! 

[HOUSTON]

Absolutely  PRISTINE  and IMPRESSIVE  build .

She looks GORGEOUS. 

KUDOS. 

 

 

I LOVE it.....

:

[Longhorn]

I still struggle to get excited about F-35s, but that doesn’t stop me appreciating a quality model build when I see one. Great job. 

[Parabat]

Super job, that looks really impressive, this jet is really growing on me (the A and C models anyway). Very nicely done.

[cpoud117]

Thanks guys, I'm glad you enjoy it!