Ever complete a model but forget everything you did? So, when it came time to recreate a color or technique you couldn't remember how to do it? This happens to me ALL THE TIME. So I figured I would try something a little new for me. Gonna try and do a build log.
Due to a cross country move, I have been unable to work on anything for over a year. I have recently gotten my model "studio" (garage) set up and now have the chance to get started working on projects again. After more than a year I figure some skills and habits have atrophied so I want to pick a project to use as a "refresher". An inexpensive kit that I could exercise some old and try out some new techniques on.
That being said, a year or so ago I added a few inexpensive Revell model kits to my stash; the 1:48 P-50B Tiger Shark and 1:48 Spitfire Mk. II. These kits are "basic" in that they don't have many parts and are low on detail. A WWII kit seemed a perfect subject to start with, since mistakes may be more easily masked with heavier weathering more common on WWI aircraft than more modern jets.
I purchased this Revell 1:48 scale MiG-29 Fulcrum with a 55% coupon at AC Moore Craft and Hobby store and walked away with it for just under $10 USD. So the kit would have to be pretty bad to not be worth the purchase (While AC Moore sells Revell kits in their physical store locations It doesn't appear that they sell this or any kits on the web site but you can find coupons there). It was worth every dime. I am not sure I would have paid too much more ... but for $10 ... yeah ... I'm in.
OK ... Typically intimidated by the amazing results I see of other model builders efforts, I tend to regard my own builds as something akin to the pasta art my children bring home from kindergarten. Thusly, I swore it would be a a long time before I had the cajones to post any of my personal build photos. In doing so now, howecer I am not suggesting for even a moment that this final reveal is anything on par with what I see on the various forums and sites that I frequent, but despite all that is wrong with it I was, overall, fairly pleased with the outcome of my 1:48 MiG-29 Fulcrum and decided I would share it with any who might be interested.
The Plan ...
I fell immediately in love with the design of the MiG-29 Fulcrum the moment I saw it. Even standing still, it was the fastest plane I had ever seen! Gorgeous
Inspired by the Discovery Wings "Red October" where German Luftwaffe 73rd Fighter Wing MiG-29's performed as an aggressor squadron against a couple of USAF F-18 squadrons (VFA-106 Replacement Air Group & VFC-12 Adversary Squadron) I decided to keep it all in the NATO family. I would build a German MiG-29 and follow up with a Revell 1:48 F-18 Super Hornet that I also purchased for $10 USD as one of the F/A-18 Squadron aircraft.. "Red October" for $20! Awesome!!
Kit Impressions
Keep in mind that I do not pay enough attention to details to concern myself with "rivet counting" or subtle profile changes in the noses or whatever. At this point in the hobby I limit myself to OOB builds focusing on construction and painting/weathering techniques. I did, however want to point out some of the more obvious "features" and quirks with the kit resonated poorly, even with me.
Panel Lines
The first thing that struck me was the stark detail. Hardly existent at all. Only a few raised panel lines on the fuselage and control surfaces but not much else. I typically hate raised panel lines as they tend to disappear when filling and sanding the kit and are not as easily weathered. The lack of panel detail, however, freed me to scribe detail to my own specifications. I had found a "blueprint" drawing online of the MiG-29 and used that as well as other model build references to determine where my panel lines should go and was able to "easily" scribe them in. It still sucked having to do it but at least I wasn't sanding away existing panel lines then having to start all over.
"Blueprint" showing panel lines.
Scale Details
One of the things that did not become apparent to me until I was nearly completed with the build was how out of scale some of the details were. For example there were several protrusions sticking out of the rear vertical stabilizers and on the front fuselage.
In the image above; the left image is from the real MiG-29 while the right image is from my final model. I am not sure what the function of these protrusions are but notice how much larger they are in relation to the rest of the surface on the model versus the real ones, which are considerably smaller, not to mention shaped completely different.
Also the antennae or whatever they are, just in front of the canopy was also mind-numbingly out of scale.
In the image of the real MiG-29 above you almost have to strain to see three thin, short rods rising vertically from the fuselage in front of the pilot. On the model you have to wonder if the pilot would even be able to see around them!! They are HUGE!
The rest of the "issues" with the model didn't bother me too much, but perhaps may be worth noting. There was no "mud guard" on the front landing gear, and also noticeable in the above photograph, the shielding on the gun was truncated considerably compared to the original.
It's only fair to point out however that the mold for this kit dates back to 1988 (according to Scalemates.com) with no changes other than packaging and decals over the past 30 years. This means that the mold was released during the height of the cold war when details of the MiG-29 may have still been somewhat hush-hush and details about it not available. While that excuses THIS kit it does leave me wondering why a newer tool of this beautiful air-frame has not been released. It certainly seems popular enough with many other manufacturers offering more current alternatives.
The Build
All things considered the build was fine. I am one of those who subscribes to the notion that a kit doesn't have to have that perfect BanDai snap together engineering in order to be good. This kit had it's share of challenges but that's what model building is supposed to be all about right? I think the worst fit issues I had were some stepping between halves of the engine modules and the join between the upper and lower fuselage near the nose; both requiring a fair amount of filler and sanding but neither was insurmountable. That and of course the panel line scribing, which I generally loathe for the tedious and boring-ness of the task. Otherwise it went together fairly well.
Since I don't have a whole lot of photos to show regarding the actual build I'll leave it at that.
Results
I snapped off a handful of photos of the final result. While there is plenty to find wrong with the results, I felt that there was a lot accomplished that represented forward progress in my overall model building skills, so I am all-in-all pretty pleased with it. Been struggling with the color scheme. Not a whole lot out there for the German Luftwaffe MiG-29 squadron, so I had to wing it as best as I could. I think I came close though ... I hope.
Zoinks! A personal note I had to share. With not a lot in my local area for model shops I am limited to a couple of big box craft stores in the area; AC Moore and Michael's, both of which carry a VERY limited selection of a Revell USA kits. Primarily 1:48 scale.
One of the perks to these stores however is that they are almost always offering a 40% off coupon which can drop a $40 USD 1:48 F-15E Strike Eagle kit down to $24 ... not a bad deal. On occasion however, they drop a 50% off coupon on you and even more rarely, as they did this past week, an uber coupon of 60% off any single item. And while only one store offered the 60% coupon the other always matches so it's essentially 60% off both stores!!
Needless to say I made a couple of trip to both AC Moore and Michael's and gave those coupons a work out!
QTY
Paid
Reg.Price
Manufacturer
Scale
Model
Kit #
Discount
1
$19.99
$39.99
Revell
1:48
F-15E Strike Eagle
#85-5511
50%
1
$15.99
$39.99
Revell
1:48
F-15E Strike Eagle
#85-5511
60%
1
$8.80
$21.99
Revell
1:48
A-10 Warthog
#85-5521
60%
1
$9.89
$24.99
Revell
1:48
MiG-29 FulcrumA
#85-5865
55%
1
$14.99
$24.99
Revell
1:48
F/A-18 Super Hornet
#85-5950
40%
1
$9.99
$24.99
Revell
1:48
F/A-18 Super Hornet
#85-5950
60%
1
$7.60
$18.99
Revell
1:72
YF-22 Raptor (Snap-Tite)
#85-1198
60%
The haul!
So that's a total of about $200 USD in plastic for just a shade North of $85 USD ... just wanted to say BOO YA! If you have a Michael's and/or an AC Moore around, they won't have much, but with some patience you could land yourself some pretty amazing deals!
These will be great for me since I am a beginner. It made buying the same kit affordable so I can either build it twice or have one in store for later or spares. Great practoce projects. The YF-22 is actually a pretty decent kit. It will give me something to practice painting on and, since I have two of those as well, I will try some scratch building on the cockpit to see if I can add some details there.
Anyway I thought I would share my find!
Now ... I guess I had better get to building something ...
I have built several 1:72 scale F-15's. Lately, I have been deciding whether or not to buy a larger version of the F-15E Strike Eagle and I am definitely excited at the prospect. Without driving 30 minutes through the snow to the nearest hobby store however, I am limited to whatever I can find in my local Michael's or AC Moore craft stores. Both of whom have plastic scale modeling sections that leave very much to be desired.
Stocked with only Revell America kits the selection is tragically limiting, however I have found this Revell 1:48 scale F-15E Strike Eagle that by all accounts ... looks pretty good.
The number of you tube videos published on this specific kit is pretty limited but I have managed to discover a few in-box reviews as well as some useful links to articles on scale modeling sites which provide first impressions of not ony the kit but their own experiences building the kit.
Now what I have learned is that this kit is provided by both Revell America as well as Revell Germany and they appear to be, build-wise the same kit. So the links and videos include information on both.
Revell Germany kit box
Currently, at my local Michael's craft store the kit is retaining for about $40 USD, but there are always coupons available so I am hoping that I cross paths with a 50% off coupon and land one for about $20. That would be a great deal indeed!!
Online Kit and Build reviews
It seems that the only reviews I can find relate to the Revell of Germany version. I am assuming that these two versions of the kits are the same so I am posting links to them here.
One of my all time favorite fighter planes, the SU-27 is a gorgeous piece of engineering. It just looks fast! I am still waiting to add a scale model of this to my collection, but in the meantime I have not wasted anytime hunting down video build for various different versions of this aircraft.
I want to give a shout out to Phil Flory from Flory Models for his excellent 9 hours of video going through a complete build of the 1:72 scale Trumpeter kit. I really enjoyed this build and his videos immensely, so much so, I subscribed to his site. I highly recommend Flory Models to anyone who's serious about joining a modeling community.
I stumbled into a couple of tutorial sites for the SU-27 and was compelled to bookmark them here so that I will always be able to find them . I hope that you will also find them inspiring and useful!
The most amazing aircraft model I have ever seen! See the howto build here ... www.naritafamily.com
I recently added my first 1:48 scale model to my "stash"; a Revell F/A-18 Super Hornet. I have collected some nice F/A-18 documentaries here for a little back story.
I just added a Revell 1:48 scale, F/A-18 Super Hornet to my "stash". As I have been building and focusing exclusively in 1:72 scale this will something of a leap for me. Upon initial glance I am excited about the level of detail although I have no idea what I will do with a model this size when complete. Part of the thrill of this hobby I suppose!
As with most of my models I started collecting video tutorials on F-18 builds. Looks like a pretty popular aircraft to model, however it also sounds like the Revell version is going to be something of a challenge. As I am just a Noob in this hobby that does not bode well for me! LOL ... I guess you can't get better without working through being bad first. :) Besides I got for 40% off at the craft store so for $13 USD I figure it's still a pretty good deal.
This Model Build: F/A Super Hornet playlist includes 18 video, from 7 channels and span 3 - 3.5 hours when watched straight through. I wanted to issue a special call out to Doog's Models for his particularly informative multi-part build, something I have come to expect from Matt's videos. Thanks!
