Last Of The Gunfighters

Post by **chief5437** » Sat Sep 20, 2014 6:51 am

Here's my entry to the Vietnam GB. Trumpeters 1/32 F-8E Crusader.

Lots of plastic! Got some extras as well.

A quick pic of the jet I'm modelling

F-8 Crusader Vietnam service.

****** swear filter strikes again! References to Cdr d i c k Bellinger have been changed to Cdr that geezer from down the road Bellinger!! ********

It was to be in air-to-air combat against North Vietnamese fighters that the Crusader was to gain its reputation as "MiG Master". The first encounter with North Vietnamese MiGs took place in early April of 1965. On that occasion, the MiGs only damaged one F-8, but they shot down two F-105s the next day. The first confirmed Navy kills came on July 17, 1965, when two F-4Bs from VF-21 shot down a pair of MiG-17s. The Crusader got its first MiG kill on June 12, 1966, when Cmdr Harold L. Marr of VF-211 shot down a MiG-17 while escorting an A-4 strike against targets in the North.

On October 9, 1966, Commander that geezer from down the road Bellinger, skipper of VF-162, shot down a North Vietnamese MiG-21, scoring the first Navy victory over the newer, more advanced MiG. At that time, Cmdr Bellinger was 42 years old, and had fought in both World War 2 and Korea. He had also been shot down once before himself, as indicated below. May of 1967 was a particularly busy month for the Crusader crews. They participated in a number of large raids, and the MiGs were up in strength and active. On May 1, LtCdr M. O. Wright of VF-211 shot down one of three MiG-17s that were attacking an A-4. On May 19, an A-4/F-8 "Iron Hand" strike against SAM and flak positions encountered stiff MiG opposition. Pilots from VF-24 and VF-211 got four MiGs that day, as against one F-8E from VF-211 being downed by a SAM.

Four MiG-17s were downed by VF-24 and VF-211 Crusaders on July 21, 1967. On June 26, 1968, an F-8H flown by Cmdr L. R. Myers, skipper of VF-51, shot down a MiG-21, scoring the first kill for the H-version of the Crusader.

For a time, the Crusader was the leading MiG-killer over Vietnam, accounting for a total of 18 confirmed victories. All of them occurred within a two-year span (1966-1968), and after that all Navy MiG kills were by Phantoms. The last Crusader MiG kill took place on September 19, 1968, when Lt Anthony Nargi of VF-111's Det II destroyed a MiG-21.

All of the Crusader MiG kills (with the possible exception of two or three) were made by the Sidewinder air-to-air missile. There were only two "guns-only" MiG kills by Crusader pilots. The cannon armament of the Crusader proved to be somewhat troublesome, and the guns would frequently jam. During rapid turns and high accelerations, the ammunition belts would often develop kinks, causing the ammunition feed to be disrupted and the guns to jam. There were three Crusader losses to MiGs. All three of them were F-8E fighters. The first loss was on June 21, 1966, when F-8E BuNo 149152 flown by by Lt. Cole Black VF-211 was shot down by a MiG. Lt. Black ejected and was taken prisoner. A VF-162 F-8E (BuNo 150908) flown by the squadron's skipper, Commander that geezer from down the road Bellinger was hit by MiGs on July 14, 1966. Cmdr Bellinger attempted to divert to Da Nang, but exhausted his fuel and was forced to eject. An F-8E (BuNo 150896) from VF-111 was lost to MiGs on September 5, 1966. The pilot, Captain W. K. Abbot on exchange from the USAF, ejected and became a POW. Overall, the Crusader achieved a six-to-one kill-loss ratio during the Vietnam war.

Cdr that geezer from down the road Bellinger, after shooting down the first Mig-21

I'll be modelling 'double nuts' 00, from VF-162 'The Hunters', during their tour on USS Oriskany in 1966. Her she is landing on deck.

That's all for now, hopefully more soon!

Cheers guys

Post by **LudvigN** » Sat Sep 20, 2014 8:17 am

Wow, thats alot of content you got in that box. And with the extras, this will surely be an epic build. Nice to see these big kits come together as I cant do em myself. Looking forward to see some updates and best of luck!

Post by **Lee** » Sat Sep 20, 2014 10:14 am

Look forward to this one coming together mate

Post by **robertw** » Sat Sep 20, 2014 3:40 pm

Gonna be watching this one.

Post by **UKguyInUSA** » Sat Sep 20, 2014 4:12 pm

Nice choice Chief, will be following this one!

**Felis Barcinonensis YouTube Channel** · Post by **felisbarcinonensis** » Sat Sep 20, 2014 7:16 pm

Impressive kit!!

Post by **chief5437** » Sun Sep 21, 2014 5:19 pm

Made a start on this last night. I decided to start on the missiles and wheels. Usually these are done right at the end, but sometimes I'm getting impatient by that point and rush them! So I thought I'd get them out the way while the goings good, lol!

For some reason the kit only provides two aim-9d sidewinders, rather than four? Same goes for the Zuni rocket pods. Afaik, they wouldn't have been used together, so I'll have to settle for one on each side for now.

Four ejector marks on each missile that need filling, no real probs.

I then noticed that weapons decals aren't supplied either! Fortunately my refs show that early aim9's weren't festooned with signs, so a quick trip to the decal dungeon sorted that problem.

Seeker heads aren't depicted either, so I chopped the tips off, and added a blob of pva, job done.

Wheels were straightforward, tamiya rubber black, and white inners. Ak track wash on the bolt heads, and some brown oil paint to do the streaks from the hubs.

While I was doing these, I made a start on the cockpit as well. I removed all of the moulded surface detail to make way for the PE instrument panels. I also added some missing details to the rear of the cockpit, using evergreen and copper wire.

I also removed the kit barrels from the 20mm cannons, (one was a bit bent, and they all needed drilling out) and replaced them with brass tube.

That's it for now, thanks for looking, and good luck with your builds. This looks like an awesome GB so far!

Post by **UKguyInUSA** » Sun Sep 21, 2014 5:22 pm

Great detailing on those AIM 9L Sidewinders and wheels Chief!

**Felis Barcinonensis YouTube Channel** · Post by **felisbarcinonensis** » Sun Sep 21, 2014 7:25 pm

Those wheels and missiles look gorgeous with the AK finish. Cockpit looking good too

Post by **Willem** » Sun Sep 21, 2014 11:41 pm

Nice one mate. This is going to be a killer!

Think I need a decal dungeon too.

Post by **LudvigN** » Sun Sep 21, 2014 11:53 pm

Everything looks so big, awesome. Looks like a real enjoyable build!

Post by **Twokidsnosleep** » Mon Sep 22, 2014 11:19 pm

Coming along nicely already
Missiles and wheels look great, excellent weathering

Post by **chief5437** » Wed Sep 24, 2014 9:13 pm

Bit more done last couple of days.

Started on the seat, these resin seats amaze me, so much detail on them!

After painting and a little wash.

And dry fitted in the cockpit.

That's all for now folks!

Post by **LudvigN** » Wed Sep 24, 2014 9:28 pm

That seat looks amazing. The realism in those resin seats can never be achieved by using phot etch, the folding, the placement, the creases, wow. Too bad its so nasty to work with

Post by **gaz45** » Thu Sep 25, 2014 1:44 am

awesome paintwork there mate

Post by **chief5437** » Fri Sep 26, 2014 12:41 am

Bit more done on the Crusader. Gun bays finished. I added a few spare decals to add interest. Really struggling to find pics of the real gun bays in use!

Dark green wash on the panels, track and black wash on the guns.

During research, I heard that there were jamming problems with the 20mm cannons on the F-8 due it high g turns. However, After a bit more digging, and I found a Vietnam vet F-8 pilot had said that it wasn't the guns that jammed. It was down to the ammo feed belts that would break under high g stress, cutting the feed to the guns. So the poor pilot would have an indicator saying he had plenty of ammo left, yet when he pulled the trigger........ Click! Nightmare scenario!

Another interesting pic I found.

A marine F-8 flying with folded wings! Apparently, this wasn't uncommon. The pilot would have to jettison any loadout, fly round the circuit, and try to land again. Bad enough but imagine trying to get back onto a rolling carrier! These guys had balls of steel, lol!

Back to the build, I also made a start on the engine.

None of this will be seen but hey Ho I'm loving this build so far, so why not?!

Thanks for the comments guys, much appreciated!

Post by **Willem** » Fri Sep 26, 2014 12:44 am

You're cracking on with this mate. Looks great so far.

Love the folded wings pic.

Post by **rwsmith14** » Fri Sep 26, 2014 1:56 am

Cockpit and gun bays look fantastic ! Interesting picture of the f-8 flying with folding wings

Post by **rwsmith14** » Fri Sep 26, 2014 4:17 am

Here's the story to go with that picture

Night Infamy & Folded Wings

http://mofak.com/Night_Infamy.htm

Post by **Nige201980** » Fri Sep 26, 2014 6:45 am

Wow mate stunning work so far

Post by **SyntaxModels** » Fri Sep 26, 2014 9:38 am

Oh my golly golly goodness, that is some damn fine detail there mate! Shame I can't even hope to do stuff like that yet

Oh well, I actually though for a moment to do the Crusader once I heard of the group build but alas, I had already bought a Huey down at an air display. I might have to go and get another kit to enter in this, maybe a jet, don't know yet :p. Anyway looks great mate good luck on the rest of it, if the going gets hard, don't give up!

Post by **MarkVerploeg** » Fri Sep 26, 2014 10:40 am

Very nice work Chief
I have resin seats for my Phantom aswell
It is almost a crime to put a pilot on those nicely detailed seats
Keep up the good work

Post by **UKguyInUSA** » Fri Sep 26, 2014 2:47 pm

Awesome looking Ejection seats Chief! With those, your wheels and AIM 9L's, one can already see this is going be an exquisite build!

Post by **chief5437** » Sat Sep 27, 2014 11:04 pm

Thanks for the kind comments guys, much appreciated!

Got the engine done, as far as it going to get anyway! All that detail and you end up shutting it away!

Did this while watching the 'pricks of plastic' doing their 1/144 2hr build on YouTube very funny!

That's it for now, thanks for looking guys!

Post by **rwsmith14** » Sat Sep 27, 2014 11:59 pm

The engine detail and paintwork looks awesome !!

Post by **chief5437** » Sun Sep 28, 2014 12:18 am

rwsmith14 wrote:The engine detail and paintwork looks awesome !!

Cheers mate!

I would've liked to have gone to town on this with details, found loads of ref pics. Unfortunately none of it will be seen, so I just gave it a wash, some pigments and a few spare decals.

Thanks for looking though

Post by **SyntaxModels** » Sun Sep 28, 2014 3:23 am

chief5437 wrote:Thanks for the kind comments guys, much appreciated!

Got the engine done, as far as it going to get anyway! All that detail and you end up shutting it away!

Did this while watching the 'pricks of plastic' doing their 1/144 2hr build on YouTube very funny!

That's it for now, thanks for looking guys!

That looks awesome cheif! Again my previous comment applies, I couldn't hold a candle to that

Oh well, we all have varying skill levels and sometimes it can be the kits! Looks great, good luck with the rest of it, you definetly deserve a mention if nothing else at the end of the GB!

Post by **Loopyduck** » Sun Sep 28, 2014 3:31 am

That's going to be one big bird when she's finished. Looks stunning so far, keep up the excellent work

Post by **SqzMyLemon** » Sun Sep 28, 2014 5:04 am

You are inspiring me to complete my 1:48 Crusader F-8J. Fantastic progress and enjoying the detailed build log. Is that the Quickboost ejection seat you used? I think that is what I saw in your photo?

Post by **Nige201980** » Sun Sep 28, 2014 9:15 am

Looks great mate looking forward to the next installment.

Post by **martin57** » Sun Sep 28, 2014 10:35 pm

great job so far

Post by **martin57** » Sun Sep 28, 2014 10:36 pm

great job so far

Post by **bobbewieter** » Mon Sep 29, 2014 10:32 pm

Wow this build is looking great

Makes me a bit afraid to start at my GB kit

Post by **chief5437** » Wed Oct 01, 2014 11:14 am

SqzMyLemon wrote:You are inspiring me to complete my 1:48 Crusader F-8J. Fantastic progress and enjoying the detailed build log. Is that the Quickboost ejection seat you used? I think that is what I saw in your photo?

Cheers buddy,

yes, the seat is from quick boost, really nice detail. Highly recommended!

Post by **grover** » Wed Oct 01, 2014 11:18 am

awesome detail. I'm in love with the ejector seat and the engine.

Post by **chief5437** » Wed Oct 01, 2014 7:46 pm

Hi guys, just a quick update this time.

Got the wheel wells and 'wing bay' assembled and weathered. Again, using spare decals for the placards.

And made a start on the intake. As you can see, a bit of tricky filling and sanding to come!

Hoping it will look more like this when it's done, lol!

That's all for now, thanks for looking. Really appreciate the comments, cheers.

Post by **Nige201980** » Wed Oct 01, 2014 8:15 pm

Wow mate those wheel wells looks amazing

Post by **SyntaxModels** » Thu Oct 02, 2014 12:48 am

Stunning stuff dude! You'll have to keep us posted on the progress of that tricky filing!

Post by **rwsmith14** » Thu Oct 02, 2014 1:59 am

wheel bays look great !!

Post by **Hillbilly** » Fri Oct 03, 2014 4:14 am

Awesome weathering

This build is coming together nicely.

Post by **chief5437** » Sun Oct 05, 2014 8:30 pm

Thanks for the comments guys!

Bit more done on this.

Say goodbye to the engine, won't be seen again.

Got the fuselage halves together. Only problem was the cockpit wouldn't sit level. So made a rig to hold it in place and used copious amounts of glue to get it in position.

Worked a treat! Need to touch up the paint now though.

Gratuitous PE panel shot! Lol.

Fuselage together. Needed a fair bit of filler. Although I realise now, that it's no more than on any other kit, just seemed a lot as it's so big.

Then I started on the wings. At first I thought they were a bit small...

But then offered up the other wing parts!

If you build this kit, and want the wings extended, I'd advise leaving out the hinge parts (parts h16,17,18 & 19). I had a hell of a time getting a decent fit with those parts in. Had to carve most of them out to avoid huge gaps between the main wing and wing tip.

Got there in the end though!

Just a quick mock up to show the size!

Then I started to look at the missile rails. Both the kit rails are symmetrical, however, I've seen a pic (but can't bloody find it now!) which shows that each side is different. No real drama, but looking at the next two pics, the IFR probe door wouldn't be able to open when a missile is on the upper rail.

Not sure if this is a fault with the kit? Looking at this ref pic, it looks like if a missile was fitted, the door would still foul.

Anyway........ It's all irrelevant, as you only get two missiles with the kit, so I'll just put them on the lower rails! Lol!

Sorry for wasting your time with all that drivel!

So that's where we are right now, thanks for checking in

Post by **rwsmith14** » Sun Oct 05, 2014 8:48 pm

she looks beautiful !! at least you will know what the engine looks like when it is all sealed up. My wife comments about that all the time.. "Why do you paint all that detail.. no one will see it " she says.... I say.."I know that paint detail is there, that is all that matters". your Instrument panel looks awesome !! great work!

Post by **rwsmith14** » Sun Oct 05, 2014 10:40 pm

Chief,
here is a good reference for the missile rail issue.

http://thanlont.blogspot.be/2013/03/a-b ... ament.html

Post by **chief5437** » Sun Oct 05, 2014 11:48 pm

Cheers buddy! That shows the problem I was trying to convey. A picture paints a thousand words!

I'd seen a pic of the real thing from this angle, but lost it! Either way, the rails are glued on now, so I'll have to live with it! It'll be ok with just the two missiles. If they had provided four I would be very annoyed right now, lol!

Although I'm going to have to have a closer look at the RAT bay on the other side now, Sod's law says it will foul on a missile mounted on the lower rail!!!

Cheers dude

Post by **UKguyInUSA** » Mon Oct 06, 2014 3:36 am

Great start chief, your cockpit is looking great mate

Post by **SyntaxModels** » Mon Oct 06, 2014 8:03 am

Wowee cheif! You Impress me every time you add to this post!

**Felis Barcinonensis YouTube Channel** · Post by **felisbarcinonensis** » Mon Oct 06, 2014 4:15 pm

WOW!

Amazing job so far! I can clearly see you're enjoying yourself!

Post by **Jamesday1998** » Mon Oct 06, 2014 5:55 pm

the work youve done so far is absolutly amazing the cockpit is stunning espicailly the seat!
the missiles and gun bays are amazing too!
your weathing is just amazing on all the things youve done! kutgw:)

Post by **planemaker** » Mon Oct 06, 2014 6:15 pm

Wow!

Amaizing work Chief! Can't wait to see it finish.

Post by **rodrant** » Mon Oct 06, 2014 8:46 pm

Amazing work on the interiors (cockpit , engine , gun bay ...) looksvery promising Chief