Today's Hobbies F-4 Build (modified)

[heywooood]

Using the infil method - I will post progress pics if anyone is interested, but these images are of the completed model.

[heywooood]

[heywooood]

In the beginning, about two months ago..

[heywooood]

These kits are very basic out of the box. Designed for either display or flight as catapult launched gliders.
Converting them to EDF would probably not be practical.
For display purposes they are extremely rudimentary and do not include plans or material for the cockpit or landing gear.
Similar to the work I have done on several Guillows models, I built up the cockpit and rio areas, made ejection seats and side panels, and mildly ehanced the panels. A very gifted modeler could do far more scale and detail work than I did.
Same for the landing gear. The kit supplies nothing, but a good modeler is not impeded by the kit designer in any way and can install terrific details of their own. I cut out a gear bay for the nose wheel because it is relatively exposed compared to the main gear areas - where I simply surface mounted the main landing gear with only minimal enhancement to the struts to give them a scale appearance. i supposed a real good modeler would have no trouble going all in on the landing gear and the radome / radar too. I had considered slicing the solid balsa nose off after I had shaped it - and vacuuforming a replacement - so I could model the radar unit. Maybe next time..I'll drop the flaps and slats, open the canopy and the radome, set up a diorama with a basic flight line section.
I hope it isn't a problem posting kits other than Guillow here. I build those too using the same infil method, to achieve a nice static scale model for display.

[backyardbalsapilot]

Is the construction method the same as guillow's jets and could you post some pictures of that? I know I want to see them.

[heywooood]

Construction is slightly different as these kits do not have notched formers. With these kits you lay the formers onto the plan (each former is drawn on the plan sheet with lines indicating where the stringers are to be glued) and using the drawing as a template you mark each stringer location. The stringers are either laid across the former and surface glued or but joined to the former at the indicated mark. This works alot better for the infil method as you can make longer runs uninterrupted by the formers. It's just like laying up a wooden ship model hull.
I can post some images later

[heywooood]

The fuselage is built in halves like the Guillows models.
There is a top and bottom keel that holds the left side formers in place as you glue
them to the pinned keels one by one. Once all of the formers are attached at right angles
to the keels, you glue the wing root and begin to attach the stringers.
When that's done you unpin it from the board and attach the right side formers and stringers as well
as the right wing root.
Then you begin the infil.
This kit depicts the Air Force Phantom II with the cannon and extended nose.
To make a -J- Navy version I built up the fuselage and completed the infil, then I
cut off the front end at the second former. Then attached the nose block and shaped the nose.
This corrected the profile and shortened the fuselage to the new spec.

[Coloradoken]

Excellent work!
I, too, am doing an infill (Guillows PBY-5A). Your paint work is very impressive. Did you spray it? Looks like a gloss, also.

[heywooood]

The base coat is matt light grey. Then I sprayed the matt white over all. Then the bottom is masked offand the top
is painted gull grey. I used Tamiya rattle cans. The tail flash was masked
and painted cub yellow. Then I applied the panel and control surface lines. Once that step is done a couple of clear gloss coats are applied for good decal application. Once all of the decals are on a final two or three coats of SEMI gloss clear make the final coat.

[heywooood]

Nose gear detail..I cut out and pocketed the nose gear bay because it has mor visibility
even if the plane is parked on a shelf than the mains, which I did not cut out.
I think next time I will cut and pocket them all, and drop the flaps and slats too.

[heywooood]

Main gear detail and scratch built ejection seat. Made with card stock, scrap balsa and leftover plastic model kit parts.

[heywooood]

Fully sanded and sealed fuselage of the F-4 looks very sleek.
Not exactly worthy of the 'Double Ugly' moniker...

[Coloradoken]

Kits are labelled "age12- 20 hours to build" or age 14- 40 hours to build. Wonder how they come up with these? It always takes me way longer.

[heywooood]

I never noticed that. I would say that these kits are like a blank canvas. What the plan sheet and material produce, if followed exactly, is a bare bones but incredibly accurate skeleton of the air frame.
If you simply built that and covered it in tissue, as a lawn dart / glider it would not take more than a dozen hours or so to build.
That said - if you take that same skeleton and make the attempt to build an exact scale replica using your own imagination and a ton of extra material not provided in the kit, and do some scratch building - you can have an incredible model because that skeleton is of such high quality. These kits are undervalued in a way because of the accuracy and integrity of their basic structure.

I have always thought of scale modeling as an expression of individual attention to detail and commitment. you can add as much or as little to the kit as you like.
The reason I now prefer balsa kits to plastic for these static scale planes is that there is so much more freedom in a way, for that expression...and because you just cannot find plastic kits this BIG

I want to build their F-14 Tomcat next - talk about a BIG jet

[Bluesynk]

that is super impressive. I really like your panel lines but the woodwork is gorgeous. I have to do an infill.