**** DONE: 1/48 F-111A - The Jet Age.

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Great work on the Vark! Are you going to build with operating swing wings? I'm pondering this on my Flogger... will swinging the wings scrape the paint finish? Is it better to glue to wings in fixed position?
 
This kit does not build with the swing ability, they are built full fwd or full aft. The Academy kit does, I doubt if it would mess with the paint much, but you may want to build it the way you want to display. With the F-14 and F-111 the slats and flaps deployed would preclude it from sweeping anyway.
 
The General Dynamics F-111 comes equipped with a weapons bay as per the US Navy requirements. The Tactical versions of the USAF (F-111A, D, E, F did not use the weapons bay to deliver weapons. Initially the bay was used on them for the installation of the M61A 20MM cannon. Mounted on the left side of the weapons bay, behind the pilot, the left door was replaced with a single slab door instead of the folding door.



The Hobby Boss kit though nice, depicts an end-of-life variant of the aircraft and depicts the weapons bay doors only in the open or closed with the full double folding door. I was going to display the plane with an open right door and a closed left with the gun. After researching the era on the plane I have to closed the weapons bay all the way. The F-111 carries hard points on the weapons bay (Right door) and just aft of the main gear door center-line for carrying ECM pods, data link and other such none weapons type equipment. Standard load in Vietnam was two ALQ-87 pod (see pictured above), one on the right weapons bay door and on on the aft mount and a 20MM gun in the left bay. to do this I will be closing the bay doors. I also had to remove the line depicting the fold for the door on the left side



The HB kit does not have the gun faring but the Academy F-111 does. Also the HB F-111 depicts the aft horizontal stab mount with the flare dispensers, this came late in the life of the aircraft. I will need to cut them from the Academy kit and attach then to the HB kit.









You will also node the HB kit provides to covers for the hole in front of the cockpit. The high domed one on the left is the Astro Tracker (iris closed) for the FB-111, all others get the one on the right.



 
Thanks guys for the checking and good words. I worked last night on mourning the engines and intakes. But did not do an update as it was too late.
 
I got the ECM pylons mounted and the gun fairing mounted, I found what I was looking for at Hyperlink, F-111 In Detail Part Ten - ECM Pods by Jim Rotramel

Also go to filling holes in the wing. Hobby boss instead of letting you pock holes as would be normal, posed every conceivable hole they could find and they let you fill in what you did not use. Tactical F-111's almost never used wing tanks and never on combat missions in Vietnam. and even rarer to see them with more then the two inner pylons on the wing. The wings have hole for three pylons each and they got that wrong as the F-111 can carry four pylons per wing but the two outer are fixed at a 28 deg toe in. Hobby boss and for that matter Academy make it look like the outer is a swing. On the FB-111 I did I had to figure that angle and then mount the pylon as such. After the plane takes off they set the wings back so all the pylons are aliged and take fuel from the non swing takes till it is empty and then punch off the pylon and tank.
 

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