USAF F-4 markings question.. With a side of USN

RedCorvette wrote:

berny13 wrote: That is it, a painting, not an actual photograph.  The author of the painting made several mistakes.  He painted a F-4D, not a F-4C.  He could paint very well but wasn't accurate in many of his paintings. I did go back and do some research on the type of aircraft shot down that day.  You are correct that they did engage MIG-21's on that mission.  I made a mistake and got my mouth (or typing fingers) ahead of my brain.  I am sorry for any confusion I caused. However, I can't believe that the ECM pod would be carried on an outboard pylon when the inboard pylons were wired for them.  I have never seen an ECM pod loaded on the outboard station in all of my years working on the Phantom.  Let me go back and check my tech data on configuration.  Yes Col Olds was quite a man.  I had the pleasure of meeting him when I was in SEA. My understanding is that USAF Phantoms did carry ALQ-71 pods asymmetrically on the outboard wing pylons early in the war.  In early 1967 Col. Jones Bolt pushed to get the inboard pylons re-wired to allow the pods to be carried there.  Getting approval to modify the pylons was a big deal because they were originally wired for nukes.  In similiar fashion, Col Olds led an effort to modify the Sidewinder rails on the inboard pylons with spacers to allow TER's to be carried along with the AIM 9's.  Mark

The inboard pylons were wired to carry more than Special Weapons.  The F-4C was wired to carry the AIM-4 Falcon from the begining, as well as any ordinance in the USAF inventory.  TCTO 1F-4C-521 had the wiring to the pylon so it would be AIM-9 capable pre installed.  The relay for the Sidewinder was installed into the ACRP.  The wiring for the AIM 9 was jumpered off of the Falcon missile wiring. 

TCTO 1F-4C-523  added the control box, relay, and wiring for the ECM pod.  The wiring went along the inboard leading edge, behind the LEF and BLC duct.  From there it was sent to the pylon main electrical harness located just forward of the pylon.  Additional wiring was added from the main harness to the pylon with the cannon plug connector located in the aft part of the pylon.  A relay was installed into the ACRP.  All aircraft that came off of the line starting with the F-4D had the relay relocated to the #3 MRP.

Col Olds did order his machine shop to manufacture Donuts so the Sidewinder wings would not hit the TER sway brace lugs on launch.  That was done with approval from a MDD Tech Rep.  MDD was informed after the fact and a TCTO came out for the pylon to be equipped with the Donut. 

berny13 wrote:

Rand, post a request on this site.  Hasagawa included that pylon in all of their 1/48 Phantom kits which wasn't used.  If anyone has the pylons in their spare parts they should be able to help.  Right now I have most of my kits and spare parts boxed away and in storage.  I had to do that because the roof is leaking in my model room.  An improper repair from Huricane Ivan damage five years ago.  We will be tearing down our old house (35 years old) and building a new one.

 Thanks Berny! I'll take your suggestion and hope someone here has them.

That means that my F-4EJ should have them.

ikar01 wrote:

That means that my F-4EJ should have them.

Yes, it should have one pylon.  I don't know why Hasagawa only included one in each Phantom kit.  Even their F-4B/N and F-4J/S kits only had one pylon.

Give me a sprue and part number of what you want and I'll check.

I ordered my markings for my 482TFW F-4D 66-7554. I found the Generic number and letter sheets on Squadron. A big thanks to whoever suggested that. I need to create an orange/black checkered stripe for the tail and the intake.. I don't suppose someone knows of anyplace I can buy one? Buying one aside, does anyone have any suggestions on the best way to make these stripes? My initial plan is going to be tamiya tape, paint, and a lot of time.

I have the kit a couple days from being primed and painted. It is a Revell kit and was way better than I planned. There was a little flash but the fit has been exceptional, even if the kit is a little weak on fiddly details... But an afterburner inside the tailpipes would have been nice (in case Revell is reading this)

I am planning on painting it in the late 1980s gray on gray scheme. I was planning on going with light ghost gray and Gunship gray... But I am open to suggestions if anyone knows better (I am sure someone does).

A lot of references indicate this is a three tone scheme.. I am not seeing it, but all the pictures I have dug up are less than stellar.

Also, I am hunting for Low-vis national insignias. I think I have some off of an F-15. Would those be about the right size? I am thinking a set from an F-16 would be too small. That just leaves me hunting for a black AFRES insignia.. Which I might have somewhere in my stash.. But if I don't is there a decal set with those insignia I could buy? I am not afraid to pay a few bucks to throw another partial decal sheet in the spare bag.

It seems like an insanely high percentage of all F-4 aftermarket decals are for USN/USMC.

Are you talking about the Hill Gray scheme or the ADC gray scheme?  As for the AB cans, if I had known you needed a set I would have sent you some from the Hasagawa kit.  I just sent Eddie Miller some -15 and -17 AB cans from the Hasagawa Phantom kits.  Contact him and he might send you the set you need.  I only have one extra set left and the box is already packed up and in storage. 

I am not too worried about the cans, thanks for the offer though. This thing is going to be sitting on a bookshelf with its rear against the wall. I have a Hagesawa kit I could pirate if I was really that upset about it, I just thought it was a little cheap on Revells part.

This paint scheme.

I have nearly perfect color vision and that looks like two shades to me. Unless the nose is considered a third shade. It just looks less faded to me.