1/72 F-84E Thunderjet

I'll be looking forward to your first ever jet plane build!

Toshi

Tis a cool plane! I do prefer the later "ThunderStreak" though.

The 1/48 Revell kit is GREAT...highly recommended!

These Hobby Boss kits are a bit hit-n-miss. This looks like an "easy", should go together lickety split. They're good practice for finish work!

I built that one several years ago. Goes together real easily. Looking forward to your build.

One of my heros flew a thunderjet when I was a Kid. He still lives today and I remind him often that he's still my hero. He did the Korea thing and even later practiced tossing a early nuclear weapon from the F-84. I built the 1/48 Revell kit with the nuke for my collection. I highly recommened the kit as it is excellent for an inexpensive Revell. It's posted several months ago on the forum. One of my favorites. Anyway, good choice and I'm looking forward to your progress.

Max

I started working on the Thunderjet tonight folks! I've got the ejection seat, instrument panel and control stick painted and in place. The interior of the cockpit is all set as well. You guys were right about this kit- it's definitely easy so far. I dont even have to glue together the fuselage halves!

More progress on the Thunderjet. There are two side panels that belong underneath the cockpit on either side of the fuselage. There are tabs on each of these panels that attach to the fuselage. If you plan on building this kit, do yourself a favor and cut those tabs right off. They cause the panels to line up incorrectly, and it's easier to arrange the panels without them.

The wingtip tanks needed a bit of..shall we say, backdating? Some Thunderjets  were equipped with inflight refueling probes on their wing tanks...but not the one that I'm making. Regardless, Hobbyboss molded them onto the tanks. A sharp no. 11 blade took them right off.

Hobbyboss also molded two different exhausts. Since my Thunderjet will be the "E" variant, I used the smaller one.

 It's starting to look like a jet, but there's still work to be done!

 very nice. I should get this kit for my kids. 

Coming along very nicely. Keep up the good work. 

Jim  

Thanks!! I ended up getting a lot done tonight. I had to perform a little cosmetic surgery on certain parts of my thunderjet. For starters, I didn't like how the perforations on the air brake were more like indentations. I drilled them out with the smallest bit I had for my dremel. I must have stared at photos of air brakes for a good half an hour before i decided to add what I can best describe as baffels to each hole. Unfortunately I made the holes a bit larger than they should have been, but I'm not trying to win any awards with this. It's just going to look awesome on my shelves, especially in a sea of prop jobs!

The other issue I had with this kit was the machine gun ports, or lack there of. There was no attempt by Hobbyboss to create any ports on the engine intake. Panel lines marked where the wing guns and guns near each corner of the ammo access panel would be. But that's the fun in these easy assembly kits: they put your detailing skills to the test! I used the smallest bit for my Dremel yet again, and made six gun ports. The four ports on the nose weren't the easiest things to drill out. I had to think hard about how I was going to put them in. I decided to drill a hole straight down first, and then angle the bit backwards against the surface of the nose. This created the desired effect I was looking for.

That's all for now. Hope everyone is having a good start to their weekend!

F-84 names:

Straight wing versions: Thunderjet

Swept wing versions: Thunderstreak

Turboprop versions: Thunderscreech; http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republic_XF-84H#

Swept wing Recon version: Thunderflash

You're moving along very nicely with this kit!  Great job on the gun ports.

Toshi

Thanks Toshi!

I got a chance to work on my Thunderjet a bit more this weekend, seeing as how this week is going to be nuts with Thanksgiving coming up. I've sealed off the engraved in-flight refueling port on the wing with squadron putty. I've also filled any seams along the wing roots.

I also masked the canopy, and attached it to the airframe using clear parts cement. There was one section that required me to use liquid mask, as there is a circular porthole-style frame set within the canopy. I've checked all of my sources, and none of them explain this design in the canopy. But regardless, it's going to look great when it's all done! I will hopefully start priming/painting at the end of the week.

After waking up from a turkey-induced sleep this morning, I decided to take full advantage of my day off from work and work on my Thunderjet. I had primed it the day before Thanksgiving, and this morning it was ready for a bit of paint. I started with the anti-glare panel in front of the cockpit and behind it.

Sexy.

I have the 1/48 Revell Thunderjet in my stash. Up on the bench next, after I finish the Swift Boat and a little civilian plane.

Good looking build so far. Nice job. 

--Chris

Thanks Dirk! You got any photos of that swift boat?

I've done a bit more painting in the last few days. I'm using four different model master paints - Aluminum, Steel, Chrome Sliver and Jet Exhaust- to paint my Thunderjet. I'm working without an airbrush in my workshop, so I'm hand painting it. All of the reference photos I've found of Thunderjets in Korea show that some panels on the aircraft look tarnished and grungy, while others look bright and shiny. That's why I've decided to use the three differenty metallic paints. So far it's looking good, I'm hoping to have it all squared away in a few days.

A package came in the mail yesterday: twin Tiny Tims! I glued the fins on to the bodies as soon as I opened up the package. These are the True Details Tiny Tims, and overall they're pretty awesome. There are no exhaust ports molded into the rockets however, so I'll have to make use of my dremel tomorrow night. Once they're all squared away and painted, They'll look mighty awesome on my Thunderjet. Took a bit of a break tonight from model building- work was especially killer today and I'm resting comfortably in front of the tv with no real inclination to do much of anything. Rest assured, I'll be back in the workshop tomorrow night!

Got a bit more work in last night. With the exception of the tip of the nose and gear bays, this jet has it's first coat of paint on it! I've decided to paint the nose red, as opposed to using a long red band decal that was provided in the kit.

Those are very interesting color variations.  Can't wait till the final reveal!

Toshi

Thanks Toshi!

Happy New Year folks!

I took advantage of the holiday break to work on both model kits currently on my bench. As a result, my Thunderjet is nearing completion! I've since finished all painting, and added all of the decals. One decal on the sheet for this kit- #55 - is not mentioned in the directions. After a bit of sleuthing, I realized that this decal belonged on the port mainwheel door closest to the fuselage. The red and white striped decals that belong on the tail were a bit cumbersome to deal with, but taking care of them with extreme patience paid off. I opted to paint the nose red, rather than use the red stripe decal provided with the kit. I used MM insignia red, which is actually a darker shade of red than the decals. I'm not too worried about it however, as it gives a bit more variation in the color scheme. I carefully sliced the knight's helmet decal from the sheet and applied it after the red paint had dried.

The next step will be to seal the decals in with a coat of clear gloss, and then cement the remaining parts on.

Happy New Years sir.  I really like the direction this kit is going in in your hands.  It just really stands out.  Can't wait for it's final reveal!

Toshi

Hello!

Your Thunderjet is lookin' good!

I have also wondered what do they need that round frame in the canopy for?

But what really got me wondering are those side panels in front of the wing leading edge. The funny thing is in your kit you got panels that have those rectangular openings - those are air doors that let additional air for the engine in. But you do the E version, that didn't have it. I'm currently doing the G version that should have those doors - well in my kit I got the panels that were flush - without the doors, I had to scribe them in. Then I looked at the review of the kit I have - Hobby Boss F-84G - and it also had those damn doors. So now I think, regardless what it says on the box it's a question of luck if you actually get an -E or -G version, dependeing on the panels they pack for you...

Anyhow - good luck with your build and have a nice day

Paweł

Pawel, you bring up a couple of good points- I'm not sure what that round frame in the back is either! I've always wondered what it is - perhaps it's something to do with the radio. I'll check my sources later today and see if I can find the answer. I'm glad you brought up the doors - I didn't even realize that they were the wrong ones until you said something! They were definitely the doors that came with the kit, and I'm really surprised that Hobbyboss would include the incorrect ones. Although the kit was molded with an in-flight refueling hatch, and refueling probes on the wing tanks. The E variant did not have these in fact, and I made the necessary corrections. I've heard wonderful stuff about Hobbyboss' 1:32 F-84E. I wonder why they dropped the ball with the 1:72 scale versions! But I digress.

I was able to finish up my Thunderjet last night! I'm really quite happy with it. The only thing I would have changed would be the framework on the canopy. Guess I didn't press down hard enough on the masking tape! But it still looks like a million bucks, and now it's up in my display case looking like it's ready for action. I gave it a wash with black craft acryilic paint, and created a some smudges with testors model master flat black. I sealed it with a coat of dull clear.

 

Thank you all for checking out my Thunderjet, and for offering your words of advice and encouragement! 

Beautiful model! I've always liked the 1950s fighter jets. The colorful markings and natural metal finishes might have screamed, "Here I am, Mr. Enemy! Shoot me down!" but they sure looked sharp! 

Looks really great!  Awesome job on the build.

Toshi

Thanks Jim and Toshi! Let me tell you guys, this jet really stands out in my display cabinet due to that natural metal finish, too!