**** DONE: GB-65 1/72 F9F Panther - No Propellers (1 Viewer)

[Hamchuck]

Haven't seen the Quickboost nose, but the HobbyBoss model is much "fatter" in the front area (correct) compared to the Hasegawa model:
View attachment 830545

Yes, as you pointed out Hasegawa went the Borat route and decided to make it more pointy. Maybe I can re-shape it, maybe not. It was only a few bucks and I was ordering some other stuff anyways so I may as well give it a shot. At worst, well, I'll just have to build the Hobby Boss version!

 

[Hamchuck]

You could fill the gun recesses with putty (preferably a 2 part epoxy such as "Milliput"), and create to basic "holes" before lt sets, then smooth over and sand to shape.

Pretty much what I was thinking!
One of the challenges will be to get the holes lined up straight. On something like this nosecone it's so easy to get the holes pointed in four different directions. Maybe I can make up some sort of jig.

 

[Gnomey]

Looks good so far!

 

[Hamchuck]

Color me surprised, with some minor cleanup this might actually work. I have a wad of blue tack in the nose cone so I can pull the barrels out, re-pack it a bit and then reinstall the cone on the fuselage. After painting and decaling I can just stick the gun barrels back in and not worry about getting glue on the paint or decals. It will also let me tweak the alignment. Wouldn't want my pilot to have his rounds all over the place.

 

[Wurger]

 

[Vic Balshaw]

That is a cracker of a recovery Al, very nicely pulled off.

 

[AMC]

Username: Hamchuck
Name: Al
Category: Intermediate
Kit: Hasegawa F9F Panther
Scale: 1/72
Extras: Eduard photoetch, Reskit/Kelik 3D detail set


Hello gents,

This will be my first time participating in a group build. I'm generally not into building jets but there's something I love about the Panther. Maybe it's because of The Bridges at Toko-Ri. I wish I could get a decal set for the movie aircraft but I haven't been able to find one, so I'm going with a different set.

The kit set of decals depicts an aircraft of VF-781 which flew missions from the USS Bohhomme Richard from May 1951 to November or December.

I'm keeping this one pretty simple, mostly out of the box. The detail on this kit is ok, but not exactly astounding. I've cut out the hump on the fuselage behind the pilot's seat because it's simply not there on the real aircraft. I'll replace that with a flat piece. I'm also adding a cushion (or maybe it's a raft) and belts to the seat.

EDIT: So much for out of the box. This cat needs help.

View attachment 817328
View attachment 817330
View attachment 817331

Falcon Diecast…

 

[rochie]

Looks good from here !

 

[Hamchuck]

Looks good from here !

That is a cracker of a recovery Al, very nicely pulled off.

Thanks guys! As so often happens, just walking away from it for a night does wonders.

 

[Hamchuck]

Falcon Diecast…

Hey, that's pretty cool!

 

[Airframes]

Well done !

 

[Gnomey]

Lovely work so far!

 

[Wayne Little]

 

[Hamchuck]

Paint's on! I started with black primer and then a coat of dull aluminum because I was afraid leaving it black would make the dark blue just too dark. It may have also had the benefit that I got no peeling at all from the masking, which I almost always got before with Vallejo.

Now for some touch-up, gloss coat, and decals.

 

[Vic Balshaw]

Lovely finish.

 

[Wurger]

 

[T Bolt]

Looking nice!

 

[A4K]

With all, nice job!

 

[Gnomey]

Good work so far!

 

[Hamchuck]

Decals are on, but there's a bit of touchy work still to do. The decals for the red nose flash fit terribly and did not look right at all. I'm going to have paint it. I have frisket paper, which should be pretty good for this sort of thing. The top line of the red runs along a panel line, which will help. So with a sharp blade and a bit of luck I think I can pull it off.

The next delicate step will be the thin off-white border around the canopy. I think I'll just seal what I've got so far with a satin coat and leave the rest to the weekend.

Though come to think of it, some bomb mission markings on the right side might be nice...