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Built Review
172
F -8E Crusader
Vought F -8E Crusader
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by: Andy Firth [ ANDYMODELLER ]

Introduction
The one thing I have noticed about these two Academy kits I've been working on (See Academy 1/72 F-18A here) is how detailed they are straight out of the box. I'm a lover of detail and have a habit of throwing lots of resin and photo etch at my projects. But these 1/72 offerings really don't need any aftermarket parts.
That being said I thought I would try out a detail set from Aires just to see if I could add a few areas of interest.

The aftermarket set
When the Aires set arrived I found it to be jam packed with resin and photo etch, cockpit tub, ejection seat, gun bays, wheel wells and doors, refueling probe and housing, air intakes, 50cal machine guns and a full engine. The photo etch fret contained a burner can ring, seat harnesses, machine gun ammo belts and various bits for here and there.
And so to the build.

The build
As ever the resin cockpit was first and I was quite surprised at how good the Aires control panel looked once completed.
A little fiddly at this scale but well worth the effort.
The resin ejection seat was another little gem but the face curtain handles where again quite a challenge to add without bending.
After this it was just a question of painting and adding detail to the knobs and dials. I deliberately didn't do too many fading effects in the cockpit due to the scale.

On to modifying the fuselage halves by cutting out two panel sections, one from each side. The first being the gun bay and the second the fuel probe housing. Once these sections were removed I did a little careful sanding to square off all the edges.
At one point I was a little worried about all the resin that was going into the fuselage (the cockpit, gun bay, fuel probe housing and the engine) but fortunately after a little sanding here and there everything fit snugly.
Although the Aires resin set was quite extensive I decided not to use all of it as some pieces were identical to the kit parts and it would have been pointless to just make work for myself, so I left out the wheel wells.

The resin engine was another great little addition with its photo etch burner ring. After everything was fitted in place it was time to button up the fuselage and after a little sanding of resin it went together nicely.

Painting
Once the general construction was done I turned my attention to painting. Not too complicated as it's just grey!
Although as usual I did do a little pre-shading and then after the initial coat of ghost grey I lightened the mix with white and sprayed here and there to fade the paintwork. I repeated this step four times, adding more white on every pass.

Decals
I always had a fondness for the US Navy's Sundowners (VF-111) Squadron, so it was a no brainer that I would use some aftermarket decals for this build.
Sadly the Print Scale decals I went with were to be honest, terrible. Very thin and prone to folding up on themselves or tearing. I found once I placed them on the model, even with copius amounts of water they would bearly move. So enormous care had to be taken.
After everything was sealed in I coated the Crusader with some general dark dirt weathering and some hydraulic streaks. The undercarriage and refueling probe were added and there we go, all done.

Conclusion
In conclusion these Academy kits are great and really don't need any resin to upgrade them unless your a total detail geek. I would definitely recommend them to anyone who wants a good solid kit that goes together with little or no trouble.
SUMMARY
Highs: A great kit with no real downside, a joy to work on.
Lows: Strangely for any kit, I really can't think of a downside at all.
Verdict: A wonderful kit, full of detail straight out of the box. No need for aftermarket parts unless your a total detail freak.
Percentage Rating
99%
  Scale: 1:72
  Mfg. ID: 12521
  Suggested Retail: $31.00
  Related Link: F-8E VF-162
  PUBLISHED: Apr 17, 2016
  NATIONALITY: United States
NETWORK-WIDE AVERAGE RATINGS
  THIS REVIEWER: 99.00%
  MAKER/PUBLISHER: 82.72%

Our Thanks to MRC!
This item was provided by them for the purpose of having it reviewed on this KitMaker Network site. If you would like your kit, book, or product reviewed, please contact us.

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About Andy Firth (AndyModeller)
FROM: ENGLAND - NORTH EAST, UNITED KINGDOM

Copyright ©2021 text by Andy Firth [ ANDYMODELLER ]. Images also by copyright holder unless otherwise noted. Opinions expressed are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of AeroScale. All rights reserved.



Comments

vought f-8 crusader the last of the gunfighters .1,200 were made.
APR 17, 2016 - 03:13 AM
Andy, Thanks for an excellent review of the Academy F-8E Crusader. Glad to hear that the Academy kits are of such high quality and detail, as I'm moving my jet building back to 1/72 scale. My 1st kit is the Academy F-4B Sundowners. Joel
APR 17, 2016 - 04:05 AM
Nice build
APR 19, 2016 - 02:30 PM
Looking forward to seeing the F-4 Joel, she'll look great in the Sundowners livery.
APR 22, 2016 - 06:25 PM
   
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