1/48 Revell F/A-18E 

Super Hornet  

by Tyler White

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Modeling on a budget can be tough, especially when your appetite is a little more Hasegawa and a little less Revell, but as this kit points out, there are some hidden gems out there.  When Hobby Lobby has its 1/2 off sale every now and then I rush over to pick through their very mixed offerings.  I was surprised to see Revell actually come out with something new!  So this kit cost me a whopping $8.99 (US) or so.  I long for the Hasegawa "F" Super Hornet, or "Rhino" as I like to call it, but until I can save all my pennies I figured I would try out my skills on this one. I also included a picture or two of my last Revell Hornet.  This shows the difference between the "Super Hornet" and the "Legacy" bird.  I love the Blue Angles, and although they give you a "Legacy" C model (The Angles fly the A) it was a fun build. I was really surprised by the kit fresh out of the box.  Unlike the Blue Angels kit this had rivet detail, recessed panel lines (albeit a little shallow in places, but recessed nonetheless) and a great offering of payload.  So this "Rhino" is built right out of the box with 2 small exceptions: the "remove before flight" tags from Eduard, and the big GBU's from a Hasegawa armament set (also purchased on sale). 

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I went with the canopy down because I am always putting the canopy up and I wanted to try something new.  That and I just wasn't too keen on my detailing. The fit is tenuous in places, certainly not up to the standards of the Hasegawa (I imagine).  I wish that all of the flaps were posable, but I definitely liked the fins in the rear!  After some putty and sanding I was ready to paint.  I decided not to prime this one since the recessed lines seemed a little shallow, though well detailed.  I also wanted to use a few different greys to mottle the finish and I have seen on real Hornets.  It worked well I thought.  After I got the two tone grey scheme done I used Future for a gloss coat and then weathered the beast. 

For weathering I like to use Citadel inks.  I use a smaller brush and fish the ink down into the panel lines.  This is why I like the lines to have some depth because then I take either a cotton bud or a flat cotton pad that I stole from my wife's make up cabinet and lightly wet it with Windex. I then lightly rub the model and it takes up the ink everywhere but the lines. It is close to weathering with pastels and wiping away. This is where the Revell kit gave me the most fits because some of the lines were shallow and I wiped away all the ink. But I seem to have worked through them well enough. Final thoughts on this kit: Hey you really can't go wrong with this one for the price that you are paying. Seriously, if you want to brush up, so to speak before you might tackle the more expensive Hasegawa kit this is your best bet. And if you just want a decent kit for a great price then this is also a good deal. I have noticed that Revell has already reboxed this new kit with new decals, so there are already some more choices out there. Have fun everyone, hope you enjoyed my humble attempt!

Tyler

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Photos and text © by Tyler White