Here is my 1/48th scale Revell F-14D Tomcat. Despite years in this hobby this is the only model I'm completely satisfied with! The tips I got from this site were invaluable in making this kit. The kit is the old Revell tooling of the F-14D. I know it is not as nice as the Hasegawa offering but it can still be built into a nice model given some work - after all, who wants to build a kit that just falls together?!

I started by re-scribing all the raised panel lines on the kit, using my carbide-steel scriber and a metal ruler. Construction was fairly straightforward, but as I wanted to depict my Tomcat ready to launch from bow cat one I cut off and repositioned the horizontal stabilisers and dropped the flaps. I also built flap actuators from scrap plastic.  The only other external modification I made was to cut off one of the
aerials aft of the cockpit, as I could not see it in any of my reference photos.

The pilot and RIO are from the Hasegawa deck crew set A, and both had to be modified for them to sit properly in the cockpit. I built seat straps from Scotch tape with fuse wire buckles. Other cockpit modifications include a photo-etch HUD from Flightpath, photo-etch canopy mirrors and handles from the same source, and various other small scratchbuilt details from scrap plastic.

On to the painting - ignore Revells painting instructions, they are wrong! I used good old Humbrol enamels (no.'s 126, 127 and 128, I don't know FS numbers sorry) applied with a Badger airbrush. My first attempt at preshading wasn't very successful-so the weathering on my Tomcat was all done with pastels. I also tried lightening some panels with lighter grey pastels with moderate success. The weathering (mainly by a happy
accident) was to my liking.

After consulting my literature I gave my 'cat a full load-out of a two Sidewinders, a Sparrow, A Phoenix, a LANTIRN pod and two GBU-24's (GBU's and LANTIRN pod were from  Hasegawa set D). Finally, the decals are for a CAG bird from VF-2 'Bounty Hunters' on the USS Constellation circa 1998. I love the combination of low-viz markings with colourful tails on this aircraft. The decals were from Aeromaster; they went on quite nicely, but didn't take a matt coat very well.
All in all my best build, by a long way. I am currently building a large diorama of the Constellation, which will feature this aircraft, two Hornets and a Viking. Watch this space!! 

James