After six months on the bench, I’m quite happy with the end result on this one. This build faced a lot of challenges and problems to solve but never stopped being a fun build. It was incredibly satisfying to update this kit to a modern standard.
I finished the model in a standard flat finish, enjoy the completed build photos Below!
With the work on the F-14’s cockpit completed, I would need to complete the nose gear and gear bay prior to sealing everything up in the forward fuselage. For this project I opted to use the Master Craft Collection (MCC) gear bays in addition to the Reskit gear for this project.
Right off the bat I was presented with a problem. MCC calls for one of the location nubs on the gear to be cut off so that it can be rotated into place within the gear well. I felt however that this would significantly compromise the structural integrity of the nose gear. As a work around, I decided to strategically break the resin in a way that would allow for the Reskit part to slot into place smoothly. To do this, I cut out grooves with a saw where I wanted the fracture to follow. I then used pliers to break out this section.
The main reason I chose to do it this way was that if I cut out a section completely, there would be a half millimetre gap (the width of the blade) which would be very apparent on the finished part. When the resin is broken, it creates a very clean break, causing the two pieces to sit very flush against each other. With this minor surgery completed, I got to work painting the gear parts, first with primer and then with Tamiya flat white.
After the white base coat was dried, I applied some dark grey paint chips using a sponge. It was important not to allow the sponge to drag across the surface as this would create an inaccurate effect. I wanted a somewhat weathered, unrealistic look here as I wanted the detail in the gear to be a focus point on the model. Following the application of the paint chips, I then picked out some details that I wanted to catch the viewers eye. These were primarily various hoses and cables that were very present on this part of the F-14.
Next, I applied a gloss coat over the paint in preparation for decals and weathering. This stage would be somewhat involved as there would be many decals to apply in this area, namely hose clamps and other markings that were present on the gear. I started with the decals that were provided with the Reskit set as they were accurate as to the kinds of placards that were required. For the other sets, I utilized various decals from Anyz, namely the hose clamp and hydraulic fluid markings present on many aircraft. Jira-Gio decals were again used for some miscellaneous placards.
With the decals applied, I sealed them with a satin varnish coat (50/50 GX gloss and matt) in preparation for weathering. The aircraft I’m depicting in this build was stationed at NAS Fallon and as such I wanted a bit of a dustier look than what might be present on an operational aircraft carrier. To do this, I started with some various dust/discolouration of the white paint. I applied a light brown oil colour on various sections of the gear, taking care not to soak it into recesses, only focusing on flat sections.
After allowing this layer to partially dry, I then loaded brush up with oil thinner and began to slowly move around the oils, fading them in with the white paint underneath. Next, I applied a dark brown oil pinwash over the various details on the gear, taking care not to overload the surface which would have required significant cleanup.
It was important to be judicious when applying the dark brown wash as applying too much can result in it overpowering the lighter brown. As with the light brown, I used a brush dampened with thinner to wipe away the excess. I repeated this process for all three gear and bay parts and I’m quite happy with how these parts turned out.
For the nose gear, I decided to omit the clear part that was included in the set for the light and instead chose to use clear UV resin instead. For the multi coloured lights, I applied clear red, yellow, green on top of silver.
For the individual wheels, I wanted to make an attempt at weathering them instead of just painting them in a rubber black and calling it a day. Rubber can have a fairly unique patina effect when it fades and I wanted to recreate that here.
After painting the wheels in black and applying a satin varnish, I applied a light grey oil paint onto the surface with a brush. After allow this to dry for several minutes, I then feathered the effect with a brush soaked with oil thinner. This helps to soften the colours here and blends them with the base colour as seen in the gear bays. I think this technique was pretty successful in adding some detail to an often overlooked part so I’ll definitely be using this approach in the future.
With the completion of the wheels, I could count the gear as completed and was able to finally move on to closing the fuselage. Enjoy the photos below!
With the paintwork sealed under a gloss coat, I then was able to apply the scheme decals. With some of the markings being painted on with masks this phase of the build was fairly quick and proceeded smoothly. Where things bogged down was with the 200+ stencils that needed to be applied over top these markings. I can’t lie; this wasn’t a particularly enjoyable part of the build and I’m glad I’m past it!
With the decals more or less completed I was able to move on to weathering. With the amount of pre-shading work completed, I knew that I wanted to keep the weathering light as to not overpower the paintwork. I opted for a simple dark wash and some light streaking effects. After these were applied, I applied a flat coat to keep everything together. With the flat coat done it was finally time to unmask the canopy and camera bay.
At this late stage of the build the last things left were the gear bays, the camera equipment and the canopy frames. I completed the gear and gear bays first so that I could get the model standing on its own legs. Painting and weathering were pretty straightforward in this area, just some Gloss white over black primer before adding some decals and weathering in the form of a brown oil wash.
I also took this time to build up the pylons and the ECM pod. These were from Reskit and the detail was fantastic.
Last but not least was the canopies and their resin frames. The set from Hypersonic models really fills out the detail in this area and makes these parts look a lot more real in my option.
Tamiya’s F-14 has been on my Wishlist for some time now and only recently have I gotten the chance to build it. I decided to go all out for this build and opted to pickup a load of aftermarket for this project.
Like all aircraft, construction started with the cockpit. The Eduard set is very well detailed and a definite upgrade over the already fantastic stock cockpit. I also chose to include Master Craft Collection (MCC) 3d printed seats as the Eduard set does not include the later model GRU. 7A ejection seats. Work started by drilling out the side consoles in preparation of adding Anyz switches and dials. I’ve found that adding decals over top the molded on switches is difficult and I preferred to remove the all together.
Unlike my Phantom project, the addition of the resin cockpit meant that I needed to complete no scratchbuilding work. This was a welcome change and it meant that work quickly progressed to the painting phase.
After a coat of black primer and a silver chipping coat+hairspray, I applied Tamiya Sky grey for the majority of the cockpit with the side panels emphasized with Nato black. I then did some cockpit chipping by soaking the cockpit in water before rubbing a stiff brush over the areas where I wanted wear to accumulate. On my recent Phantom project, I chose to use sponge chipping instead of the hairspray method and I wasn’t super pleased with the results I managed to achieve. I found that using the Hairspray method here was far better and got the result I was after. That said, It was still important not to overdo this effect, especially on the side consoles as the chips were particularly visible.
I then moved on to working on the front and rear instrument panels. These were somewhat less straightforward than the cockpit tubs as the paintwork required for them required some delicate masking. As indicated by the instructions and reference photos the instruments themselves were painted black with the panel itself finished in grey. I chose to try out a new technique for painting the instrument panels and I opted to first paint them black, followed by hairspray chipping, with grey following over top.
This would allow me to use the raised detail of the instruments to chip off the grey, revealing the black underneath. I think this approach worked ok, although there is some definite improvement to be found. I finished the panels with a medium grey drybrushing to highlight details.
With the paintwork completed, I then moved on decals. I chose to use decals from Anyz and Jira-Gio to placard the side and instrument panels. This really helps to bring the cockpit alive and is a really key step in finishing the cockpit. After the decals dried, I applied a grey wash in-between the panels and a dark brown wash on the cockpit floor. After sealing the cockpit in a matt varnish, I decided that I wanted to try something new when it came to the main displays. I chose to use photography film to recreate the displays as they provide a really nice reflective finish.
Next up, I decided to work on the ejection seats. These were 3d printed from MCC and are very well detailed. After a primer coat of Mr. Surfacer 1500 black followed by a layer of Tamiya Nato Black, I got to work brush painting all the various elements of the ejection seat. This meant painting the seat cushions/belts in the appropriate browns and greens, along with the various wires and cables attached to the seat.
Weathering the seat was done with oils to recreate years of staining and discolouration on the seat cushions. I chose two shades of oils, a dark brown shade and a lighter dust colour. I first flicked on each of the two colours before blending them with oil paint thinner. This helped to create random shapes and intensities of both colours and really helps to achieve a weathered look in the fabric which is what I was looking for. I utilized this same technique for the fabric coverings behind the instrument panels as I wanted to recreate what the fabric looked like after sitting in the sun for some time.
With the completion of the ejection seats, the cockpit on the F-14 was more or less completed. I added the Anyz swtiches along with the required cockpit parts (Control sticks and throttle). I was really quite happy with the end result here and I think it was a definite improvement over my previous Phantom cockpit. Next up: the Gear bay!
After several months on the bench, it came time to apply paint to the model. As with the majority of the models I build, I utilized the black basing technique to apply pre-shading to the model.
After the initial coat of Mr. Finishing surfacer black 1500, I used a generic light grey to serve as the initial marble coat. I wanted to make sure that my marble work was sufficiently light enough as if the base layers turned out too dark, the final paint coats would also appear too dark and require too much paint to bring the colour back into the final finish.
I then got to work adding some variation to the pre-shading, opting to scatter some different colours on select panels. In the end this effect was not as apparent as I had hoped but It’s still fun to play around with new approaches to techniques. The next step would be to begin blending everything together in two blend coats. The first was a thinned down coat of Mr. Color JASDF “Light Blue Impulse” which tinted the pre shading to be more in line with the final colours.
After this was done, I then tried a new technique that I have been wanting to for some time now, the layered ink patina technique. This is done by utilizing liquidex acrylic inks to achieve even further surface variation. This technique was popularized by Modeller Kris Sieber (@Luftraum72) who has a great guide on how to utilize this approach available on his website.
With the many pre-shading layers done, It was time to apply the final camouflage coats to the model and see if all the prior work was worth it. To do this I utilized two main shades, the first was SMS Midnight blue, the second being the aforementioned Light Blue Impulse from Mr. Color. I applied the light blue shade first, taking care not to overlap with the darker areas so not to overpower the pre-shading. I was fairly happy with how this turned out and I think that my approach here captured the duality of this distinctive scheme, in that it is incredibly vivid and striking yet also faded and worn at the same time.
With this initial camouflage coat down, I then turned my attention to other areas that needed to be addressed. This included adding color discoloration to selected panels, painting the markings as well as the radome and anti-glare shield. Also of note was one of the scheme decals, a triangular graphic present on the tail of this aircraft. I opted to apply this decal at this time because from reference photos I could tell that it was very faded and barely noticeable on the real aircraft. To recreate this effect, I chose to paint over the applied decal prior to sealing my work in a gloss varnish
