1:48 F-14A Tomcat

The real subject

The Grumman F-14 Tomcat is an American two-seat carrier fighter with a variable-geometry wing. The wing sweeps back and forward automatically in flight according to speed, and on the deck it can be folded further still to save space. The crew is a pilot and a weapons systems officer seated behind him. The A version is the first production form; the Tomcat was the only aircraft to carry the long-range AIM-54 Phoenix missiles, and it therefore guarded the airspace around carrier groups.

What the set contains

Photo-etched parts from thin metal sheet. Photo-etch suits the places where the real thing is sheet metal, a grille or a strap and where a plastic part necessarily comes out thicker than it should be. The individual parts are held on the carrier fret by thin tabs, from which they are cut only at the moment of fitting.

Building and painting tips

• Cut the parts out with a sharp blade on a hard surface, as nippers ripple the edge.
• Make the folds in a bending tool or over the edge of a ruler in one movement, not piece by piece.
• Bond the metal with super glue; cement for plastic does not hold on metal.
• Degrease the surface before painting and apply a primer, otherwise the paint comes off smooth metal.
• With a two-seat cockpit plan the order of work in advance, because once the canopy is closed you cannot reach inside.

Who it is for

For modelers who build the Tomcat for a display case and want the small areas and edges to match the real thing even from close up. Working with photo-etch is slower than building from plastic alone, but it shows in the result.

The package contains photo-etched parts. The kit, paints and glue are not part of it, unless stated otherwise.