Hi, I'm about to share my done
up Hasegawa 1/72 F-14A Alantic Fleet. This is the new re-boxed version which
featured recessed panel lines and a set of photoetch unlike the old
version which is rised panel lines. The decals provided give the
choice to do a
few squardon choices like Jolly Rogers, Tomcatters and Diamondback etc.
Since Hasegawa's F-14 has been a popular subject, the mass production of
this kit has defaced the mold. The few boxes of this kit that I purchased
experienced distortions, mass amount of flash and missing
panel lines.
Click on
images below to see larger images
Despite so many flaws, this is
still one of the most motivated builds as you can already imagine the
amount of detail on this aircraft after completing it. These pictures
show my F-14 completed totally out-of-the box.
Nevertheless, during construction I had to alter each part to make them
fit properly due to the flash issues. The left intake piece was so
distorted that the entire panel lines in this area was re-scribed based
on the right side intake. Furthermore deepening of panel lines was done on the
whole aircraft as they were quite shallow. One problem with all of Hasegawa's
F-14 is when joining the nose section and middle fuselage section, a wide
gap will appear. I managed to fill it up using some placards of uniform
thickness followed by putty to smooth out the filling.
As I mention, the details are good
on this 1/72 scale with comparison from the Daco F-14 book. The photoetch
provides cockpit panels, canopy hook, engine details and some small vents
details. The cockpit panels when aligned nicely with the decals will look like
Eduard coloretch with popup color buttons. No weathering has been done on this
aircraft because I wanted it to look like a trophy-like display.
Lastly it is about the type of
presentation I decided to use. I selected a standing mirror and have the stand
removed to look like a base. I masked the mirror with my crossbone image and sprayed
the surrounding area with a layer of matt coat to make it look like crystal
effect. Somehow matt coat paint is not so adhesive to the smooth surface but
then, lesson learnt and maybe I would go with glass frost next time. The base is
simple and cheap yet the finished product is very well presentable.
Ray
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images below to see larger images
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