1/32 Tamiya F-4E Phantom

Gallery Article by  Chuck Sawyer on May 3 2012

 

 

Here is my representation of F-4E 68-0393 when it was stationed at Ramstein Germany for “Tactical Air Meet” in 1980, or “TAM80” as it was called.  I chose this subject because I wanted SEA camo paint, leading edge slats and a shark mouth, so this post-Vietnam bird fit the bill on all counts.  Yes, I know that the inboard slats are usually down in the parked position, but they weren’t all the time and I even have some pics to prove it!   

For those who want all the gory details of my long journey, I have a LONG WIP thread here on ARC:  http://www.arcforums.com/forums/air/index.php?showtopic=224033

 

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I won’t go over every detail of how I put this model together since it is well documented within the WIP thread, but I must send out a very special THANK YOU to Scott Wilson our resident F-4 Expert, who guiding me all along the way and tried to keep me on track and as accurate as possible.  Even though he tried, I apparently still forgot to paint a small antenna on the front gear door black, which is still easy to do at this late stage but there’s no way I’m re-taking all these pics!   

I threw everything but the kitchen sink at this project and did a lot of scratch building, especially in the cockpit, front gun and drag chute areas.  Aftermarket parts and accessories included:  

  • DMold 32001 Seamless Intakes.  

  • Eduard Photo-Etch Everything, including:  

    •     1.   32079 (X2) Ejection Seat.  

    •     2.   32511 (X2) Ejection Seat. 

    •     3.   32080 Exhaust.   

    •     4.   32503 Interior.   

    •     5.   32509 Placards.   

    •     6.   32531 Formation Light.   

    •     7.   32073 Exterior. 

  •  Burner nozzles from “Fox3tornado” on ebay (Joe Lortie), heavily modified with the Eduard etch kit above  

  • AirDoc decals and stencils.  Early USAF F-4’s in Germany

  • Hobbydecal dry transfer stencils

  • Hobbydecal pitot tube and AOA probe

  • Cutting Edge CEC32024 slatted wing conversion set

  • Nautilus Models belly strap

  • Plastic World Modeling  NBR 3211, F-104 bomb dispensers (2), converted into SUU-21 bomb dispensers

  • Isradecal AVQ-23 Pave Spike pod

  • Avionix F-4E Cockpit, AV32019

  • Quickboost F-4 seats, QB 32 069 

  • 1/32 Tamiya F-4EJ Phantom #60314 Kit.  This is the same kit as the regular F-4E, but it has both regular plastic and clear plastic for the nose section.  For all my re-scribing and rivet work, the regular plastic option is a must.

And, last but not least….

  • The Modern Phantom Guide by Jake Melampy, Reid Air Publications, the must-have F-4 Bible if you plan on building an F-4 accurately.

After 14 months and about 600 hours of work, she’s Phinally Phinished!

Chuck Sawyer

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Photos and text © by  Chuck Sawyer