Seamless Suckers

Product #unknown 

1/32 Resin intakes for F-4's 

by Ben Brown

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The bane of the jet modeler is the intake duct(s). If the manufacturer bothers to include them in a kit, they are usually too shallow, have nasty seams inside, or just don't fit.  Enter Seamless Suckers.  Every week or so on the various modeling forums, someone asks about Seamless Suckers intakes.  These are great intakes made to drop into the appropriate kit with just a little modification to the kit parts.  They have recently updated their intakes for the Tamiya F-4s so that the intake and duct are all one piece.  No more splicing the duct to the kit intake. 

Since everything is large and easy to handle on the Tamiya kit, installation only took about an hour.  This included the swearing, jumping around, and First Aid for an XActo-induced wound.  Careful test-fitting will yield a good fit, requiring just a little filler.  The only downside to these ducts is that the vari-ramps (not called "splitter plates" on an F-4!) from the kit must be used. This leaves a seam to fill between the ramp and the fuselage, but it's still easier than filling the seams inside the kit intakes.  The picture doesn't show them, but there were large casting blocks on the engine ends of the ducts that were short work for a razor saw. 

The Seamless Suckers catalog lists intakes in 1/48 for the entire Hasegawa F-4, A-7, F-86, and F-16 lines, as well as Monogram's A-6 and F-15E.  1/72  F-4 and F-16 intakes are covered, as well as the Revell 1/32 F-4 kits and Hasegawa's 1/32 F-16.

Give 'em a try! 

Seamless Suckers

406 N. Hoover Rd.

Wichita, KS  67212-2550

Update: After attempting to add the lower wing, I found I had fit problems and had to start over. I removed the intakes and added .030 styrene strip to the aft edges where they meet the fuselage. If left as-is, the intakes will sit too far aft and interfere with the forward edge of the wing where it meets the intakes. Taping the lower wing section to the fuselage will ensure the intakes are fitted properly. Even with this small problem, it still only takes about an hour to install these intakes and they look great! 

Ben Brown (no relation to the proprietor of Seamless Suckers)