A-4C Skyhawk - Airfix - 1/72

[Long 1,698]

 

Now you're probably thinking 'Longy old bean, that's clearly more than 25% complete and also not from the Falklands war!'.

Well, yes; how about now?

 

I've ordered the Aztec D-063 War for the Falklands 2 decal sheet for the IAI Dagger I'm building, and, assuming it ever shows up, I'll be left markings for nine additional aircraft after using the Dagger ones.

I also came across a box of models that my brother and I built when we were younger, they used to hang from our bedroom ceiling.

So it felt like a good idea to rebuild my brothers Skyhawk(I have his permission).

 

I believe this is a 1990's boxing of Airfix's 1958 tooling. It's rather basic so I'll end up scratch building a lot anyway.

Some of it was barely stuck together, and some of it was well and truly fused, but it's mostly apart.

 

Hopefully this is allowed and now counts as less than 25% done?

 

[Gorby 18,587]

I think we gave up on enforcing the 25% a while ago and if we hadn't I think this should have a special dispensation due to, well, due to the photo above. 

Thankfully all my childhood builds have been pushing up the daises in some ancient landfill for many years, so I don't have to relive the full horror of what I did to kits back then.

[Long 1,698]

It's going to be glorious, maybe

 

3 hours ago, Gorby said:

Thankfully all my childhood builds have been pushing up the daises in some ancient landfill for many years

I think I have all of mine, and my brothers, so there's plenty of restoration opportunities.

[Long 1,698]

After soaking in alcohol for some time, most of the paint scrapped off fairly easily.

I then started constructing a front wheel well:

 

The wings were stuck back together, sanded, and the ailerons cut out:

 

I printed out some scale drawings which showed the nose needed replacing:

 

The rudder was also cut out:

 

Ah yes, the two halves line up perfectly

 

Added some bucket sides to stop the pilot sloshing out:

 

I actually bought a resin replacement nose, but since it's for the new tool Airfix kit it doesn't quite line up. So I'm going to fashion a new nose from the bit I cut off.

 

[Hutch6390 2,425]

33 minutes ago, Long said:

After soaking in alcohol for some time, most of the paint scrapped off fairly easily.

Yep, happens to me, too...

I've only got a couple of builds from my childhood, and only done one rebuild, but nothing as extensive as this - good for you!

Edited September 30, 2022 by Hutch6390

[Long 1,698]

Some of mine and my brothers later builds are quite good, by my standards anyway. So I think my skill will have to progress quite a bit before I go rebuilding them.

But I feel confident slicing open these fairly terrible early ones.

[Gorby 18,587]

I suspect that was the same sort of build/paint 'quality' I achieved when I was a kid. Fortunately none of them survived, so I can fool myself into believing that they were quite good. 

[Huntsman’s Close 656]

Likewise, in fact probably a lot better! I still wish they weren’t all propping up some landfill, it would have saved me the money buying them all again! I kept some of the ‘better ones’ (which gives a sobering idea how bad the others were) and have refurbished some of those, with others waiting their turn. It would have been fun to attempt them all.

[Long 1,698]

I've made the nose extension from the Dagger engine. Filled it with lead and capped it off with filler. Still needs some filing before I attach it.
With the the fuselage halves joined it became apparent that the bottom was sunken and warped. I don't know if that's how the kit was originally, if it went like that when my brother glued it, or if I caused it when I tore it apart. Regardless, a strip of takeaway container filled the dip and re-enforced it nicely.

I sketched on some panel lines to see how it looked, then remembered I still haven't got the hang of scribing them, so I think I'll skip them.

 

I also created the intake internals and cockpit floor, but forgot to photo them.

[Gorby 18,587]

9 hours ago, Long said:

then remembered I still haven't got the hang of scribing them, so I think I'll skip them.

It is worth practising on a bit of scrap first.

I found that the trick is to start the line very lightly and then do a couple more increasingly heavy passes. Never try to do it in one go.

[Huntsman’s Close 656]

Wot the man said above.

Go lightly and secure whatever you are scribing against. I use old bits of etch fret for curved surfaces, others use Dymo tape.

[Long 1,698]

Some filling and sanding was inflicted on its bottom:

 

The nose was attached and somewhat sliced about, with some scrap bits being added to build up in front of the cockpit. The cockpit sits a bit too low.

 

Assuming these drawings are accurate, the wings are too far back:

 

I subscribe to the RWG school of filler use

Edited October 9, 2022 by Long

[skwonk 8,727]

I admire your perseverance when easier options are available.

[RWG686 35,365]

14 hours ago, Long said:

I subscribe to the RWG school of filler use

Another convert..at this rate we'll soon have @Mad Steveusing it on a Tamiya bike.

For some reason your shot of the engine extended nose reminded me of this

 

 

[Long 1,698]

14 minutes ago, RWG686 said:

 

Fascinating. What are they, and what are they from?

[RWG686 35,365]

43 minutes ago, Long said:

What are they, and what are they from?

SHADO Interceptor from the TV series 'UFO.'

[PaulTRose 9,091]

43 minutes ago, Long said:

Fascinating. What are they, and what are they from?

SHADO interceptors from UFO......gerry anderson classic!!

 

 

 

[Long 1,698]

Ah, and the bit on the front is a nuclear missile like an AIM-26A.

[Long 1,698]

Attached the wings, further forward than they originally were. They'll be extended backwards slightly later, which also means I can have properly thin trailing edges.

Some rough shapes were added which will be carved into fairings once the cement is fully cured.

 

The underside will need more shaping:

 

[Gorby 18,587]

I don't think even Richard has ever done a kit which is 90% filler. 

Probably 85% but not 90%. 

[Long 1,698]

There's actually not as much filler as there appears to be, I'm only on my first tube of perfect plastic putty

[Long 1,698]

I extended the trailing edges to their correct length, shaping the plasticard a little beforehand.

The underside of the fuselage was then carved away somewhat, since the underside of the wings should be flush with it.

It was flexing far too much as I carved it, so I drilled two holes...

... then two lengths of sprue were pushed through and up against the inside of the top of the fuselage, and glued in place:

 

The gear bay sticky out bits were then removed so the whole underside is flat, and the area was given an aggressive sanding until it looked symmetrical:

Bits of scrap were also pushed in between the wing halves, via the gear bay, of the right wing to give it the same thickness and shape as the left.

I also roughly shaped the wing root gun fairings.

I'm having great fun with it

[Grunhertz 17,463]

Nice one it's coming on 

[Gorby 18,587]

You don't like to make things easy for yourself do you. Sanding is my least favourite task so that would be a nightmare for me.

That's a good idea with the sprue to stop the flexing.

[Huntsman’s Close 656]

This is great stuff! Keep going!

The thing about this kind of exercise is you learn so much about problem solving and the limits of different materials. It all comes in useful on other kits.

Dare I mumble the word Milliput? We all do things differently, but it’s my go to for major shape changes.