BACKGROUND

You just have to love the F-104 if you grew up during the Cold War and liked jets.  Back then, the F-104 seemed like Star Wars technology to me, the so called “missile with a man in it”, with wing leading edges so sharp they had pads on them to protect the ground crew.  I still remember the distinctive resonant howl or moan that these jets made at low altitude and certain throttle settings.  If you heard that howl, you missed the F-104.  It was long gone.

THE KIT

This TF-104G is an older Heller Kit with raised panel lines.  It was the only two place F-104 kit in 1/72 scale I was aware of years ago when I bought it.  The model was painted with Model Master enamel and Metalizer.  I decided to use some vintage Microscale decals for the Lockheed Company demonstrator.  Unfortunately, I had robbed some of the decals for another project years ago so I had to fake it with some paint, phony tail numbers, and some missing fuselage striping.  Finally, the model was lightly weathered with with a thin oil paint wash and given a final coat of Testors gloss.  

Click on images below to see larger images

BRIEFING STICKS

This model is finished in “ briefing stick format”, with minimal external stores, retracted landing gear, and no internal detail.  I enjoy being able to handle and admire my models once they are completed without worrying about knocking off fragile parts.  I also like the clean look of the basic airframe that results from this no frills building technique.  As with most of my models, there are many deviations from scale, but being able to finish a model in a few weeks and store/display it on a carbon rod appeals to me.  Along the way, I am enjoying myself doing on line research, basic assembly, seam filling, masking, painting, decaling and weathering.

 Anyway, here is the low calorie Lockheed  F-104 Company Demonstrator, another of the famous Century Series breakthrough aircraft.   It probably carried a few nauseous potential customers in the back seat in its day.  

Hope you enjoy it.  

Dennis