I will make F/A-18C Hornet for the first time. I am a little worried that the 1/48 scale is too difficult as I have never made it before. Some parts are faded because they have been piled up for a long time. It is like when I made Corsair II a long time ago.
This F/A -18 Hornet kit doesn’t include a decal on the cockpit panel, probably because it’s an old Hasegawa kit. This kit has photo-etched parts. I will paint it little by little.
The lower side of the main wing is glued to the upper parts, and larger parts are assembled. I wonder if Hornet is not a big-size fighter as a large ki box. I don’t know because it’s my first time making F/A-18 Hornet.
It looks a little better. Some parts are molded with seat belts. Also, seatbelt parts sold separately are attached.
(2019/12/22)
This kit includes metal landing gear parts. I think it’s probably all right, but I’ll put two small fishing weights in the tip to prevent falling the rear. It is a pretty gorgeous kit.
I built the cockpit into the fuselage. Interestingly, the seats are compatible with multiple seats, and in the case of a single-seat fighter, you can’t see it by covering it with parts later. I don’t think that’s the case with the actual airplane, but this method is quite funny.
The cockpit panel is pretty deep, and you can’t see it.
I can choose the position of the flaps of the main wing of the Hornet. As it was parked, I assembled it with both the front side and the backside down.
At the same time, large fuel tanks are being assembled. This clamp for a hobby is made by a manufacturer called Takagi, and the part to hold it is made of plastic, so it is helpful because the parts are not damaged.
(2019/12/28)
There are a lot of parts around the landing gear, which is quite troublesome. I just checked the position.
When should I turn off the parting lines? If I attach too many delicate parts, it is easy to break during work.
Is it true that the kit doesn’t have any missiles? I feel very sorry. I don’t know if I should use the Sparrow and the Sidewinder from the other kits with these items. I’ll think about if buying a Hasegawa weapon set is faster.
Hasegawa’s old kit has a parting line in the canopy. I don’t want to file clear parts.
(2019/12/30)
A fine paper file and several compounds were used to remove the parting line cleanly. I haven’t brushed it well yet.
I wouldn’t say I like assembling it after painting, so I made it as much as possible. I think I will attach the other parts after I finish painting.
Like a wire, a mold is reproduced with the photo-etched part inside the landing gear compartment.
The underside of the fuselage is slightly used in photo-etched parts. Maybe it’s made of stainless steel, but the parts are too complicated. I like the brass better.
I hope I can make a model leisurely again this year. I wonder if I can make so many. Happy New Year! I wish you good luck in 2020. The Japanese era’s name is Reiwa, 2nd year.
(2020/01/03)
I painted the sight clear green.
I was masking the canopy and attaching it to the fuselage. The rear part of the cockpit interfered and did not close properly, and the clear parts of the front sight touched the canopy and did not fit well. The space inside the canopy of a jet plane is severe. I thought it would be better than not being closed, so I moved and shaved the inner parts a little. It isn’t easy.
I wonder if Hasegawa’s jet fighter kit these days has a weapon. But hasn’t Hasegawa released a new 1/48 scale kit these days? I think Hasegawa is selling sexy female figures and cute figures these days. I have an unassembled Skyhawk A-4E and F-16 kit, so that I will convert weapons from here.
The anti-tank cluster bomb MK. 20 Rockeye and the air-to-air missile AIM -9 sidewinder were moved from other kits. I may or may not have trouble making the original kit with the parts removed.
Like other cats, my cat loves boxes. It is very good to be quiet in a box or anywhere. Today is this cat’s first birthday, 1-year-old. I heard he is a one-year-old adult cat, but he is restless.
I haven’t made a jet plane for a long time, so I don’t know how to paint it. I used gloss black as a primer this time. The vertical tail stays black, which is good because it saves working processes.
(2020/01/08)
White is used for gradation. It’s gray at this point and isn’t very clear later.
The landing gear compartment is white, so I blew it first and quickly masked it. I’ll retouch the missed points later.
I also painted the landing gears and bombs. Let’s paint the landing gear white from the beginning.
After painting FS36375 gray on the underside, it is easily masked.
The basic painting is completed. Now I can finally put it into a fun decal working. We can’t enjoy decals with tank models, so this work is only fun for model airplanes.
(2020/01/13)
Whoosh! Suddenly, the essential for this marking decal broke apart when it was soaked in water. It’s like laughing at my expectations.
I thought it would look okay, so I started working on it without hesitation, but the surface of this decal is arid. It was rough like skin without any skin cream in winter. It may be difficult to see in the picture, but the color is a little dull. Yellow and red are not bright. I think it was printed about 27 years ago, so it’s no use complaining.
The paint on the black vertical tail came off when I peeled it.
I bought a Super Scale Decal number 48-473, just in case. I want to switch to a Nighthawk. I didn’t want to use it because it’s an emergency stock, but I don’t have a chance to use it here.
If I take a closer look at this, I can see that the warning display of the air intake is for the right side only. It’s a misprint. I cut and pasted it to use for the left side.
It’s hard to mask again and paint the walkway next to the cockpit black, so that I will use liquid decal film for old Hasegawa decals.
I finally finished attaching all the decals. The walkway part forcibly used with the kit was cracked, and a gap was made even if liquid decal film was used. I have no choice but to retouch with a brush.
(2020/01/18)
I managed to complete the Hasegawa F/A-18C Hornet. The 1/48 scale is big for me but worth making and fun. I painted the primary paint for Hasegawa’s attached decal, but I repainted the vertical tail in gray to change the decal during the painting. This kind of recovery work is quite troublesome.
F/A-18 type A and B with improved engines and combat systems are type C and D. The F/A is so-called because it can perform fighter and bombing attack missions. The later E type and F type are called Super Hornet, and they were improved to a higher level of performance. On the other hand, this is sometimes distinguished from the Legacy Hornet.
This time, The Superscale decal is marked by VFA-136, the 136 Fighter Attack Squadron Night Hawks. It looks like the marking when they visited the United Kingdom on the D-Day anniversary with the USS George Washington. This may have happened in 1994 when they attended ceremonies for the 50 years of the Invasion of Normandy.
The jet engine nozzle has been changed by the color of baked iron, silver, and clear orange, but the part itself is small, so I don’t recognize much about it.
I wonder if it’s low-visibility paint and marking? The caution marks are gray and not very noticeable, and even if I cut and paste a fine decal, the body doesn’t change so much, so I don’t think it’s worthwhile. Just in case, I put on all the things I can.
The Sidewinder AIM-9 is a relatively long-lived air-to-air missile, with a variety from the 1950s to the present. This F/A-18C seems to match AIM-9L with the 3rd generation Sidewinder. It isn’t very clear about the missile operation status.
When I removed the masking of the canopy, the front part got dirty. Also, paint was left on the frame, so I retouched it with a brush. It is probably the one when it is bonded.
I took these two pictures with super digital zoom. I didn’t make the details, so it’s good if you can see a little. When I close the canopy, I can’t take detailed pictures.
The Mk-20 cluster bombs were painted with olive drab. The yellow band means live ammunition. There seems to be a bomb painted in white, so I’m unsure of the right color.
The top and bottom parts of the plane are painted with the gray FS36320 and the gray FS36375. It looks the same color. I think it is affected by blowing the airbrush from black and white gradation. I don’t think I made a mistake with the paint…
This time, I forgot the point of making a jet fighter for the first time in a long time, so I put the inking and washing it very hard. I like a little cleaner coating. Some carrier-based planes are pretty dirty when you look at them closely, so that might be correct.
I was wondering where to get additional bombs from, and the decal crumbled and changed to another decal after the basic painting, and the finish didn’t go so well, but it was a high fatigue level. I lost my concentration on the way. But I’m glad that the Hornet I would make someday was completed.
(2020/01/21)
