Pappy Posted December 20, 2007 Share Posted December 20, 2007 G'day people, Here are some pics of my 1/48 Hobby Craft A-4 Skyhawk converted to A-4K standard. There were lots of small changes carried out as per my reference pictures (new antennas etc) but no major surgery required. I painted the kit using the Gunze Sanyo acrylics and then base shade was lightened by varying amounts to depict a heavily weathered aircraft. According to the decal painting instructions, this aircraft also sported an aileron and nosewheel door that were painted in the previous three tone colour scheme, possibly scavenged from another airframe.The various stains were achieved using Windsor and Newton artist oils.The kit is finished using the excellent Gekko Graphics A-4Kiwi Skyhawk sheets. The pilot is from one of the Hasegawa spares sets. The aircraft is depicted in-flight. The jet is mounted using a short length of acrylic rod that is keyed to fit into the exhaust pipe. The rod then fits into another piece of acrylic sheet that is screwed to a simple wooded base. The subject chosen was involved in a wire strike. Whilst undertaking a low-level sortie, the aircraft struck a power line. The impact nearly severed the fin cap off, however there was just enough metal remaining to retain the fin cap. The aircraft recovered to a nearby airfield (Woodburn) where the pilot was able to safely recover the aircraft without further damage. The details are explained in the decal painting guide. cheers, Pappy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aeroplanedriver Posted December 20, 2007 Share Posted December 20, 2007 Very nice! The A-4 is one of my all-time favorites, and I love it in NZ markings. Great looking weathering too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angels49 Posted December 20, 2007 Share Posted December 20, 2007 Sweeeeeeeeet that damage looks spot on like the pic. Excellent work Steve; very very nice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pappy Posted December 20, 2007 Author Share Posted December 20, 2007 Sweeeeeeeeet that damage looks spot on like the pic. Excellent work Steve; very very nice. Um, who is Steve? Pappy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Modelling Mushi Posted December 20, 2007 Share Posted December 20, 2007 G'day Pappy Very nice build, glad to see some in flight models being done. Wire strike? Fin cap? Low level? Just how low level was this bird? Are we talking a strike with a normal power line, or one of the high voltage transmission lines? Couldn't have been more than 10 meters above ground level. Andrew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KiwiSteve Posted December 20, 2007 Share Posted December 20, 2007 Emmmmmmm thats a nice scooter Pappy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
periklis_sale Posted December 20, 2007 Share Posted December 20, 2007 Great job mate!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary West Posted December 20, 2007 Share Posted December 20, 2007 Very effective panel tone variations, brilliant Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J35 Draken Posted December 20, 2007 Share Posted December 20, 2007 That's one great looking kit, nice one Pappy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mentalguru Posted December 20, 2007 Share Posted December 20, 2007 Mental likes Mental likes very much! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stéphane Posted December 20, 2007 Share Posted December 20, 2007 Hello, Sweet scooter ... I like the weathering, and the unusual scheme ... and, scooter as phantoms, you never have too much ! Cheers Stef (#6) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian Posted December 20, 2007 Share Posted December 20, 2007 Just excellent, that patchy paintwork and really 'real' weathering. One of the best Scooters I've seen. Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ancient mariner Posted December 20, 2007 Share Posted December 20, 2007 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pappy Posted December 20, 2007 Author Share Posted December 20, 2007 G'day PappyVery nice build, glad to see some in flight models being done. Wire strike? Fin cap? Low level? Just how low level was this bird? Are we talking a strike with a normal power line, or one of the high voltage transmission lines? Couldn't have been more than 10 meters above ground level. Andrew G'day Andrew, I can't give you a better answer I am afraid, all I have is what is in the decal notes. I assume though, that since the wire struck the fin, the jet was actually flying below the level of the power lines. I have seen these boys in action (before the New Zealand govt disposed of their fighter aircraft assets) and they did practice flying very, very low, cheers, Pappy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pappy Posted December 20, 2007 Author Share Posted December 20, 2007 G'day all, Thanks very much for the kind words. People are usually surprised when I let them know that the kit is actually the Hobbycraft kit and not Hasegawa. I actually have a 1/48 Hasegawa kit and it is worth the money based on what I have seen in the box. In fact, I actually used many of the Hasegawa parts as a guide to fabricate/improve the Hobbycraft items that were required. Hasegawa also issued a limited edition A-4K boxing, however the instrument panel was not altered, a key feature of the "Kahu" modification programme. The NZ A-4K's were refitted with the AN/APG-66 radar (as fitted to the F-16) and their cockpit instrument panels had two MFD's (TV screens) to facilitate the transition of NZ Air Force pilots to the Skyhawk's replacement aircraft (F-16's). Unfortunately, their govt decided to scrap the deal, and all fast jet capability with it. I bought the kit at a club swap for about 1/10 of the price of the Has kit. Bearing this in mind, I was happy to be a little adventurous. In choosing to build the kit in flight, I didn't have to worry about detailing the kit cockpit and undercarriage, which are the kits weakest points detail wise. Also, the kit does not have separate slats, so again, the in-flight display avoided the issue of the 'relaxed' slats when on the ground. cheers, Pappy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dswoofie Posted December 20, 2007 Share Posted December 20, 2007 Great Scooter Pappy! Fantastic weathering on it, it looks a treat! Well done! Karl. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest snipersmudge Posted December 20, 2007 Share Posted December 20, 2007 very nice scooter, love the subtle weathering and a great way to display the model Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dahut Posted December 20, 2007 Share Posted December 20, 2007 I especially like in-flight models and you have done a cracking job of it. The Scooter is an all-time fav of mine. I really like the way you've worked out the base and the pipe up the bung. Well done.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angels49 Posted December 20, 2007 Share Posted December 20, 2007 Um, who is Steve?Pappy My deepest apologies Pappy.For some reason I thought my favorite Kiwi built that kit. It's still and excellent build though. It must have been the meds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
InFlames Posted December 20, 2007 Share Posted December 20, 2007 hehe I was wondering why did you photo it with detached fin cap, until I saw a description at the bottom of your post. A very nice model and I love the way you weathered it... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
atdb27 Posted December 20, 2007 Share Posted December 20, 2007 Pappy That is one very lovely Scooter. Adrian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike in Aotearoa Posted December 21, 2007 Share Posted December 21, 2007 Nice work there bro! Always good to see a Kiwi Scooter, and you've done a nice number on it. Regarding the low flying, this was commonplace. I remember watching a Kiwi Red display from up a hillside in Wellington (for those that don't know, Wellie's topography is very hilly with lots of narrow valleys, most of which are packed with buildings of various descriptions) and watching as two of them came rarking down the valley at low level, disappeared behind a four storey building, and pulling up slightly to join up with their other team mates before beating up the city a few more times. All in all a very impressive display, not only for the flying skills involved, but also how they used the terrain to make the most of it. I wish I could have video'd it... I'm sure they weren't much above roof-top height... at least that's how it seemed. Cheers from NZ Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil Posted December 21, 2007 Share Posted December 21, 2007 They did indeed fly very low, but the wire strike wasn't actually that low. The wire was strung between two ridge lines, and the Skyhawk was flying in the valley between them. I actually had a piece of the wire somewhere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skybert Posted December 21, 2007 Share Posted December 21, 2007 Oi!! Great Scooter! shame they were around just so short.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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