1:72 TA-4J

The real subject

The TA-4J is the two-seat training version of the light carrier-based aircraft Skyhawk, brought into service with the US Navy for advanced pilot training. The instructor and the student sit one behind the other, the fuselage is lengthened against the single-seat version and the glazing of the cabin is conspicuously long. On a model the cabin is therefore the first thing to draw attention.

What the replacement canopy is for

A clear canopy replaces the part from a kit. You reach for it when you want to display the cabin open and show both seats, when the original part does not fit the frame of the fuselage, or when it is scratched and yellowed with age. On the two-seat version the glazed area is long, so even a small flaw on it is glaring and a clean replacement part is noticed on a finished model at once.

Work tips

• Take the part only by the edges; fingerprints are hard to remove from a clear surface.
• For the joint use a glue intended for clear parts; ordinary cyanoacrylate glue will haze the surface.
• Mask the frames before spraying and apply the paint in thin coats.
• Tone the inner side of the frame with the color of the interior, the outer side with the color of the upper surfaces.

Try the seating dry first and even the gaps out by sanding the mating edge lightly. Fine scratches disappear after polishing with a sanding sponge and compound and after a thin coat of gloss varnish, which closes up the remaining marks from sanding.

Terms of supply

The model of the aircraft, paints, masks and glue are not included in the package, unless stated otherwise.