The Official F-4 Phantom II Group Build 2011

Son Of Medicine Man

Hi Everyone,

I wanted to give everyone here an update on Berny.  I talked to his wife this evening and Berny is still alive, but has gotten worse.  She said he cannot open his eyes and when he talks, it is hard to understand him.  She thinks he is holding on long enough for his son to arrive tomorrow.  I believe this is true because Berny is most certainly a fighter.

Ken

Wow Ken, I'm in shock. I was just reading this to my wife, I just found out about it. These are very sad news indeed. Berny sent me his spare decals to finish the Phantom featured on this GB. He was truly a gentleman exchanging PMs with me. Our prayers go to him and his family. Thanks for the update.

Hi Everyone,

I wanted to give everyone here an update on Berny.  I talked to his wife this evening and Berny is still alive, but has gotten worse.  She said he cannot open his eyes and when he talks, it is hard to understand him.  She thinks he is holding on long enough for his son to arrive tomorrow.  I believe this is true because Berny is most certainly a fighter.

Ken

26carlos

Thank you Bockscar

It was a pleasure to participate in the Group Build.

I saw fabntastic works here. Looking forward to see them all finished.

Regards

If you are waiting to see mine finished, I hope you are a young man!

Thank you Bockscar

It was a pleasure to participate in the Group Build.

I saw fabntastic works here. Looking forward to see them all finished.

Regards

Than you Mike, I enjoyed very much participating in this Group Build !

Very sorry to hear the news about Berny´s health , my condolences to his family.

Regards.

Carlos

26carlos

Hi all:

My Rhino is FINISHED !

Kit: ESCI 1/48 th  OOB with the adition of resin seats. This was my first Group Build in the frorum and I enjoyed it very much. I´ve seen wonderful jobs here. Congratulations to all the participants.

Hope you like it.

 

 

 

Now it´s in my shelf with my other loved kits.

 

Even if I can't repost Carlos' handi work, it's like I said, We like!!!

Yes Carlos, We Like!!!

Beautiful work! Congrats,

26carlos -- spectacular finish! That model is a tour de force of finishing skills and you've built one to be proud of! Updating p1 at this time...

I'm so sorry to hear that Berny is going downhill but I think he has amazed us in these last few months with his tenacity and capacity to make the most of life. Those who knew him personally I hope will raise a glass to him and celebrate an amazing life!

Mike/TB379

Son Of Medicine Man

Hello fellow Phantom builders,

Berny’s family just called and said that Berny’s health is deteriorating at an accelerated rate.  He may pass as early as this evening or could last until this weekend.  I am afraid he may not ever have the strength to log into this forum again.  Having personally met Berny, all I can say is that a wonderful compassionate person is about to leave us.  I will miss him a great deal.

Ken

I think we will all miss him a great deal.  I had the privilege of meeting him in person and I can tell you he is a really great guy who will be badly missed.  Our family's warm wishes are with Berny and his family.

Son Of Medicine Man

Hello fellow Phantom builders,

Berny’s family just called and said that Berny’s health is deteriorating at an accelerated rate.  He may pass as early as this evening or could last until this weekend.  I am afraid he may not ever have the strength to log into this forum again.  Having personally met Berny, all I can say is that a wonderful compassionate person is about to leave us.  I will miss him a great deal.

Ken

Hello fellow Phantom builders,

Berny’s family just called and said that Berny’s health is deteriorating at an accelerated rate.  He may pass as early as this evening or could last until this weekend.  I am afraid he may not ever have the strength to log into this forum again.  Having personally met Berny, all I can say is that a wonderful compassionate person is about to leave us.  I will miss him a great deal.

Ken

Thank you Glenn.

The ESCI Phantom is a good kit, fit is ok, the engraved panel lines and detail are good, and the result is a nice looking Phantom. You´re right, the cockpit is very sapartan but even with the adittion of a pair of resin seats the kit is still cheaper than the Tamigawas F 4´s.

Your F 4C looks great.., nice job. Looking forward to see your finished F 4J 

Cheers

Great job on the "J", Carlos! It's a good kit; the only problem with their kit is the cockpit (how ESCI could mess that up?). Those seats were a great addition.

Glenn

Hi all:

My Rhino is FINISHED !

Kit: ESCI 1/48 th  OOB with the adition of resin seats. This was my first Group Build in the frorum and I enjoyed it very much. I´ve seen wonderful jobs here. Congratulations to all the participants.

Hope you like it.

Now it´s in my shelf with my other loved kits.

Great shots O'l Man River!

Many thanks!

Hi all:

The armament was attached and final touches given.

Tomorrow with daylight  I will take the final pictures to present the finished model. This ESCI kit was an enjoyable build.

Hi y'all!

I haven't been this way in a while, working on a B-36 for the MMGB, but I still have that "J' lookin' at me for some TLC. Lots of great work goin' on, I don't want to point individuals out because I'm afraid I'll miss someone. Anyway, I was at the Blue Angels' show in Memphis, TN, and lo and behold, there're Phantoms in the sky! Thought I'd post a couple of pics for inspiration...

Glenn

jimbot58

Ken, i want to know where you got the giant dime! No way that part is that small!

Finally made a bit of progress with the F:

Splinter pattern painted and Glosscoat added:

I haven't added the splitter plates yet, nor have I done the nose and pitot tube-plus a few assorted antenna as I always seem to break them off anyway and wait 'til last. I also hope it will forgive me for the rather large paintbrush shoved up its tailpipe!

This is off topic, but I wanted to share a bit of my own insanity with you: The F-105G build.

If you saw any of my other posts elsewhere, I told the tale of my dis-satisfaction with the cockpit kit decals and a decision to go with a pre-painted PE set. In the meantime, an accident destroyed the cockpit tub which I then painstakingly scratch-built a replacement using styrene and a few brass bits. The result, I thought, looked better than the original.  The PE set sson arrived and in my haste, I not only lost one important piece, I damaged another beyond use-so I sent for another. As I assembled the tiny parts of the cockpit, I thought it would be a shame to close it up. The problem with this is that Trumpeter did not provide hinge tabs on the canopies and they were actually molded into the tops of the fuselage as just visible panel lines.  I then cut notches into the fuselage and added tabs to the canopies. Also, I should mention the fact that Trumpeter provided no instructions for many of the decals provided and after much searching actually had another member here send me a copy of his 1/32 scale kit instructions.

Now why is it taking so long for me to get anywhere on the Phantom?????

(Should I even mention the fact that I have now also added an exterior PE set for the Thud? This kit has now tripled in cost! )

Berny: I just wondered if the 'Geasel' nickname was ever applied to the F-105G? Thanks!

Jim

Hi Jim,

You caught me.  That is a giant dime!    Thank you for the compliment!

I have been wondering where you were since we had not heard from you for a while.  Nice job on the F!!      And very good work on your Thud!     

Ken

Ken, i want to know where you got the giant dime! No way that part is that small!

Finally made a bit of progress with the F:

Splinter pattern painted and Glosscoat added:

I haven't added the splitter plates yet, nor have I done the nose and pitot tube-plus a few assorted antenna as I always seem to break them off anyway and wait 'til last. I also hope it will forgive me for the rather large paintbrush shoved up its tailpipe!

This is off topic, but I wanted to share a bit of my own insanity with you: The F-105G build.

If you saw any of my other posts elsewhere, I told the tale of my dis-satisfaction with the cockpit kit decals and a decision to go with a pre-painted PE set. In the meantime, an accident destroyed the cockpit tub which I then painstakingly scratch-built a replacement using styrene and a few brass bits. The result, I thought, looked better than the original.  The PE set sson arrived and in my haste, I not only lost one important piece, I damaged another beyond use-so I sent for another. As I assembled the tiny parts of the cockpit, I thought it would be a shame to close it up. The problem with this is that Trumpeter did not provide hinge tabs on the canopies and they were actually molded into the tops of the fuselage as just visible panel lines.  I then cut notches into the fuselage and added tabs to the canopies. Also, I should mention the fact that Trumpeter provided no instructions for many of the decals provided and after much searching actually had another member here send me a copy of his 1/32 scale kit instructions.

Now why is it taking so long for me to get anywhere on the Phantom?????

(Should I even mention the fact that I have now also added an exterior PE set for the Thud? This kit has now tripled in cost! )

Berny: I just wondered if the 'Geasel' nickname was ever applied to the F-105G? Thanks!

Jim

Hi Casper:

Those seats look fantastic

Bockscar

Ken:

Where did you and Cas study neuro-surgery?.....lol.....

Thanks Dom for the compliment!  I appreciate it.  I do owe Berny thanks for pointing out how it should look.  I am going to start on the other side belts tonight.

Ken

Ken:

Where did you and Cas study neuro-surgery?.....lol.....

Greetings Everyone,

Well they say practice makes perfect.  I would not say that I have achieved perfection, but I think my second attempt is much better than my first.  After studying the pictures of the seat belts again, I realized that the upper belt is actually two belts.  So I duplicated that as you can see in these photos:

Here is a side view:

Next came some careful bending, addition of the "elastic loop", a little CA, then "Presto"!

Some touch up paint is still required, but I am real happy with this one.

Ken

Casper the Chihuahua

Ok, got my seats done. Still a bit damp from the light oil wash but these should dry out well.

Nothing left but to fix them into the cockpit and tack on the canopies. Then I need to wait for my Phancy Phantom decals so I can replace the damaged tail fin artwork.

Cheers

Bockscar

I called those sensor wires, but I realize on second thought I should have said radio cables/wires. " alt="" onload="resizeImage(this);" />" alt="" alt="" onload="resizeImage(this);" />" onload="resizeImage(this);" />

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It is string to hold back the ear phone cups.  You would release them to let them spring tight against the ear .

I called those sensor wires, but I realize on second thought I should have said radio cables/wires.

Ok, got my seats done. Still a bit damp from the light oil wash but these should dry out well.

Nothing left but to fix them into the cockpit and tack on the canopies. Then I need to wait for my Phancy Phantom decals so I can replace the damaged tail fin artwork.

Cheers

berny13

Dom, here is my old helmet that I wore when I flew.

So you had the clear lens, the dark sunglass lens, and the final blast lens from the look of it. Just replicating the webbing as it wraps around the mask would be a challenge......

Thanks for sending that along, very cool item.

I am still getting a big kick out of Spooky telling us how to "read!"

Berny, those shots look real great!

Ummm....that Spook seems to be telling us how to "read between the lines"...."turn the page sideways"......LOL

Nice Helmet, can almost make you out in the reflection....

Thanks man....saving those......

berny13

Son Of Medicine Man:

Hi Everyone,

Berny, I sent the email yesterday about your stabilators but have not heard back yet.

Here is the result of my second battle with the seat belts.  It will require some touch up paint but I am going to let the CA set overnight before I touch it.  Berny, please tell me what you think of it.

 

Ken

 

 

I didn't get the e-mail.  Seat harness looks real good.  Don't make them all look the same as each one would hang differently from the chute.

Thank you Berny for the compliment!  I don't think I will have a problem with making them look different since I am making each one from scratch. 

I wasn't clear when I mentioned the email.  What I meant was that I sent the email to the person I have purchased resin from in the past to see if he could make some replacement stabilators for you.

Ken