I figured the cold winter months would be a good time to undertake a build log. I have decided to start work on a Trumpeter 1/32 Scale Republic F-105D Thud, one of my all time favorite fast-movers. I plan to use the Scale Aircraft Conversions Landing Gear set since a large airplane with a long landing gear like this will need white metal struts. I am undecided on markings as of yet but I do have the Zotz 1/32 scale sheet which features several well-known Takhli birds, including one with some rather revealing upper nose art which must have been a little distracting for the -135 tanker crews. The Trumpeter kit also provides a sheet, printed by Two Bobs, which depicts "The Polish Glider" and "Alice's Joy". Anyway, I will get the decal option sorted in the coming weeks but in the meantime I will get the Thud started.

Happy modeling and stay tuned.....

Ian

The after-market decal sheet is actually by Albatross, not Zotz as I had originally posted.

Regards,

Ian

I started work on the Thud cockpit this afternoon. The relevant parts were removed from the trees and marked.




I will use the film instrument panel which will be laid over the kit part which will be painted with Vallejo white so the instruments show up.



The cockpit parts are primed with Model Master Enamel Primer to ensure a good undercoat is in place over the Trumpeter plastic.




The film instrument panel is installed. A dot of Testors CREATE FX Silver is applied where the scope will be. It does not have to be a perfect circle since it will be covered.



The cockpit is painted with Model Master Enamel Dark Gull Grey and then post-shaded with Tamiya Sky.



The instrument panel is then painted and Vallejo Colors are used for the switches and knobs. Tamiya Clear Red is used for the scope.



The cockpit is painted and detailed. A wash of Pledge Floor Wax mixed with Acrylic Aircraft Interior Black is applied. Over that, another wash of Burnt Umber Oil Paint diluted with mineral spirits is added.




Finally the sidewalls are painted and detailed and washes are added there as well.





The ejection seat will be next.


Best wishes,


Ian

I love this bird as well. I have 3 kits in 1/48 just waiting for me to get started. Such a Vietnam Icon with a sleek, yet aggressive profile.

Nice start, Ian. Incredible how much detail can be packed into a 1/32 scale kit.

Looking forward to see more.

Hey Jesper! Thanks for looking. Yeah, the -105 is an impressive beast. There will be plenty of things to detail in this kit.

Regards,

Ian

Ian,
The F-105D is a fantastic choice for a build blog, especially in 1/32 scale. I'll be following right along. The Thunderchief is another Long Island home grown aircraft that's on my ever growing list of future builds.

Really an excellent start to the cockpit. The IP really looks quite good.
Joel

Hey Joel!!! Thanks for stopping in. Yeah, the Thud is my all-time favorite Air Force jet and I have been wanting to get this 32 scale version going for quite some time. Thud aircrews and groundcrews are truly legendary and I still can't wrap my brain around takin' one of these jets down Thud Ridge into an Air Defense Zone second only to Moscow in density. I still can't decide which decal option to go with yet but I will get it figured out. Going to start on the seat next.

Best wishes,

Ian

Ian,
You've got plenty of time to figure out what decal scheme to use. On my F-15C build I changed my mind almost weekly.
Joel

I did some work on the F-105 for my build log. I got the seat done, although no washes or harnesses have been applied yet. The Trumpeter kit supplied a back cushion but I left that off since the actual seats did not have it.








The horizontal stabs were also assembled and marked:



The drop tanks have been assembled and are about 9 1/2 inches long:



The 750 pounders have been assembled, minus the fuses:




The metal landing gear mains are ready for installation:





The right wing has been assembled. I think Trumpeter slightly over-engineered the control surfaces by making them all separate. Usually the wing surfaces are neutral when a Thud is on the ground so a one-piece wing could have simplified everything:







And the left wing:




Several gaps around the separate control surfaces will have to be dealt with:



The fuselage has been joined and the fit was remarkably good. The metal nose strut was installed when the nose bay sections were joined:




A little cockpit detail:




A slight gap will have to be dealt with where the vertical stab meets the fuselage:



Right side view of the cockpit:



The nose gear strut is very sturdy and will support what will be a very heavy airplane:




The cockpit sidewalls fit nicely against the cockpit tub:



Tamiya Clear Red was added to the radar scope in the center of the panel:



That should do it for now. My next step will be the seams and general clean-up regarding the basic construction.


Best wishes,


Ian

Ian,

Looking forward to your next installment. The Thud ain't no dud!

Hey Frederick, hope you are well! You are correct...the Thud was quite an airplane and I have the utmost respect for the Thud crews.

Best wishes,

Ian

Excellent progress and I am really looking forward to this build log Ian. The Thud is a subject I have always fancied building, but have never got round too.
tim

Thanks for stopping in Tim. I have always loved the Thud too. It's one of my favorite jets.

Best wishes,

Ian

Ian,
Just great process on the Thud. I was going to suggest that with the white metal landing gear you either polish it with some steel wool to get it really smooth and shiny, or with a polishing wheel and polish if you have a Dremel. The difference is amazing. You can still do the main gear with some steel wool.

As for the flying surfaces, even though they should be in the neutral position while parked, in 1/32 scale, I think that the actual separation of parts really makes a positive difference in the overall look. They actually do look like separate flying surfaces, rather then just recessed lines with a pin wash.

Joel

Joel, hope you are well. The white metal landing gear will be sanded, plumbed and primed at a later point in time. I didn't even want to install the nose gear yet but had to because it has to go in the slots when the bay was assembled. There is much more to be done to it. With most kits, I would agree with you about the control surfaces but the control surfaces in this one were notoriously poor fitting. The gaps and panel lines were inconsistent and there was bad warpage with the leading edge slats. Essentially, there will be a lot of rescribing, re-riveting and re-shaping regarding the wings. On a good note, the fuselage was completely trouble free.


Best wishes,


Ian

Ian,
Sorry to hear about all that is wrong with the wings. Trumpeter seems to be infamous for major parts issues. I've never built a Trumpeter kit, and I'm still leery of taking the plunge.
Joel

Hi Ian,
I'm following.
A bit of a fan of the Wild Weasel variant of the Thud.

Chris

Chris---Thanks for stopping in. I love the F's and G's too, mainly because of how hairy those Wild Weasel missions were and what those crews went through. I plan to build Revak and Goldstein's "Crown 7" in 48th scale at some point. I think the Keith Ferris painting of "Crown 7" says it all----BIG BRASS ONES.

Joel----Trumpeter aircraft kits can be kind of a trade off. You get subject matter no other model company offers but the models can be a tad quirky. Nonetheless, we are model builders and it's nothing CA and sanding sticks can't cure. You don't have to avoid 'em if they have a subject you like but you might have to tame the kit slightly. And as I said they do over-engineer somewhat....make you go from Florida to Georgia by way of Gibraltar.

Best wishes,

Ian

Managed a slight update on the F-105, in between bouts of yard work. I attached the completed wing assemblies to the fuselage and the fit was very good.



There was a small seam on the left wing joint but this was caulked with Titebond Wood Molding Glue.



The seam forward of the instrument panel was very bad. Since that area is concave, it was going to be very difficult to fill without sanding down the area where the windscreen will mate to later. Instead, I made a cover with 3M 2090 tape and placed that over the seam. It was sealed with super thin CA glue. This allowed it to be covered without damaging the area with a lot of sanding. The gunsight and plumbing will be added to this area later.



Another view of the front office:



Happy modeling.....Ian

Ian,
The F-105 is really looking good.

Is that seam under the where the windscreen attaches just a gap, or it has to be sanded? If it's just a gap, the easiest way to deal with it is with Vallejo white acrylic putty. You just wipe the excess right off. You usually have to do apply it a few times, but there is no sanding needed.

Joel

Watching this one with interest, I have the 1/48 Thud in stash, but after what I saw so far, I might add a bigger brother to it one day.

Joel----Thanks. That was a seam/gap/trench forward of the instrument panel. The simplest remedy was just to plate over it. As I mentioned before, the area was countersunk as well. Anyway, it's taken care of and is ready for the wiring and gunsight.

Naseby---Thanks for stopping in. I agree...the Thud is an impressive beast, especially in 32 scale.

Best wishes,

Ian

I have another update for my F-105 blog. The S.E. Asia camo has been applied over the past two days:



I used Model Master paint for the Camo Grey undersides, and the Medium Green and Tan on top. I used Aeromaster Warbird Acrylics for the Dark Green because it is slightly darker than the Testors offering and lends more contrast.




Post-shading was applied on each successive layer of camo. The greens were tinted with Model Master Acryl Yellow Chromate and the Tan was tinted with Acryl Sand.















The Camo Grey undersides were post shaded with a mixture of the base coat which had been lightened with Model Master Insignia White.








Next, I will begin work on the panel lines and all the sub-assemblies.

Best wishes,

Ian

Ian,
A most impressive camo paint scheme. I really like your post shading process, as it's about the same technique as I use.

Of course the use of Legos does get you extra Brownie points.

Joel

Thanks Joel. Yeah, the Lego jig saved me on this one because the nose strut had to go in before I was ready to do the mains. Hopefully I will make some progress on the sub-assemblies this week. I have my decal option picked out, finally. It's going to be "JEANIE II" from the 355th TFW flown by then Capt. Jack Spillers. I also will have a THUD 100 Mission patch to go with the completed build.

Best wishes,

Ian