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As I was working on
painting the airframe, I was also working on building the "working"
end of the F-16.
Some notes on the
ordnance included with the kit. I know it's a bit wordy here, but please
bear with me
What is included is
limited --
AIM-120B or AIM-120C
AMRAAMs (4 of them)
2 AIM-9M Sidewinders
2 GBU-31 2000lb JDAMS
2 AGM-88 HARMs
2 370 gallon drop tanks
1 AN/ALQ-184 ECM pod
1 300 gallon centerline drop tank
1 HTS pod
4 LAU-129 (think that is the right one) rails for AMRAAMS or Sidewinders
There are no
LANTIRN pods
Lightning pods
Mk 80, 82, 84 bombs
GBU-1x LGBs
ATERS (Aerodynamic Triple Ejector Racks)
Or any of the
various things that F-16s can carry and shoot or drop.
The 1/32 Academy
F-16 kit that is due out sometime this spring will have a lot of the missing
gear included.
| 370 Gallon
drop tanks and pylons
They fit very well, and
only minor fill is needed on the tank. Once assembled and painted,
the pylon is held on the wing by poly caps inside the wing. That's
probably a good thing, as the completed assembly is rather heavy |
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300 Gallon drop
tank and centerline pylon
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filler needed here and there on the drop tank.
The centerline pylon is
designed to be able to swap out the tank for the AN/ALQ-184. The
mount is actually glued to the tank or ECM pod, and there are pins on the
mount designed to fit into poly caps inside the pylon.
Some sanding is needed on
the pylon to ensure a smooth seam free surface.
I went ahead and
built the drop tank, even though the picture on the decal instructions show the
AN/ALQ-184 mounted on the centerline.
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| GBU-31s
It appears that these are
direct copies of the GBU-31s included in the 1/32 F-15E "Bunker
Buster" version. Just a bit of sanding here and there is
needed. |
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| AIM-120Bs
The AIM-120Bs can be built
as either B or C models.
After building these, I
realized that it would be easier to paint the fins and mask them off prior
to assembly. |
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| AIM-9Ms
The Sidewinders in this kit
are improved over those included with the F-15C/E kits, especially in the
fusing section.
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| LAU-129
launch rails
I'm glad Tamiya included
the proper launch rails for the AIM-120 missiles in this kit. It was
something that was missed in the F-15E Bunker Buster Edition.
Some sanding/rescribing
will be needed to get rid of the seams top and bottom. |
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| AN/ALQ-184
ECM pod
The pod consists of 7
parts, and the will only fit together 1 way. Just standard seam
sanding was needed.
According to www.fas.org,
the AN/ALQ-184 deliveries started in 1989, so if you are building a Desert
Storm jet, check your references to see if the unit had them.
Since the jet I'm building
is from 2002, and the pictures show it mounted, it's appropriate for this
jet. |
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| Painting the
weapons
Here are the colors I used:
Drop tanks, missile bodies,
ECM pod: Light Ghost Gray
Pylons: Neutral gray (same color as underside if airplane)
AIM-120 seeker head: Flat White
AIM-9M seeker head: Dark Anodic Gray, and a bit of aluminum
GBU-31 -- Light Ghost Gray for the after body and guidance package, and
34087 olive drab for the foward section
Black areas of ECM pod: Flat black
There will be more photos
of the weapons completed in the decaling section of the build. I've
shot almost 200 photos during the build, and haven't sorted them all out
yet |
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Some painting notes
1. I hate painting JDAMS.
There is a lot of masking required to get the guidance section painted.
2. On the exhaust nozzle of the AIM-9M, a photo I saw (it was a 9L),
showed it as white, with a ring of gold color (I used Titanium gold), and the
actual exhaust had a yellow "cap" over the throat.
3. I have no idea what colors the nozzle of the AIM-120 is
Steve
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