Dr. Don to surgery, Dr. Don please report to minor surgery!
OK so I don't want to lose too much work already done. I want the Hasie wings and the nose gear for a cat shot stance, and I've already done the cockpit tube so here we go.
The Academy layout is quite a bit different from the Hasegawa kit and requires some surgery to make it all fit. The kit sizes are near perfect mating wise so that's not a real issue. While the Hasegawa has an aft fuselage and a forward fuselage that mate in a near void from the aft with no alignment pins, the Academy lower section of the aft fuselage comes forward a couple inches for the forward fuselage to mount on. While Hasegawa made the nose gear well all in one section, Academy made the aft section of the nose gear well part of the aft fuselage.
Academy wings are made to be able to swing the full sweep and there for the slats and flaps can not be dropped. This is stance will be needed for a cat shot display. The Hasegawa, Hobby Bos, and AMK kits do allow the slats and flaps dropped. So since I have already done the Hasie wings I had to get them to mate with the Academy!
I started by dropping paint on the Academy wing pin and placing the Hasegawa wing on to get alignment.
I then used the drimmel to clean out what I needed!
I then test fit the Hasegawa cockpit tube into the Academy and found where my issues were going to be. The Academy has a series of alignment pins that were in the way, both top and bottom. I the clipped them ot and sanded down.
I had also had a bit of Hasegawa kit clinging on for dear life that had to be cleaned off but it fits.
Then because the Hasegawa nose gear well is all one item, I had to remove the aft gear well from the lower aft fuselage of the Academy kit, luckly it's pretty soft plastic and cut out easily, like my finger! Dang.
and I figure all in all it should not be too bad a mate, err I still hope!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!