discussion Academy 1/72 A-37 "The Black Eagles"

[Guest]

The latest in my series of aerobatic teams build, the A-37 Dragonfly as flown by the Korean Air Force circa 1998.

The kit itself is a bit strange. It goes together and fits ok, looks pretty accurate. It has good detail in some places ( namely the cockpit and main gear wells ) but in others ( nose wheel well and engine faces ) absolutely nothing !! The nose wheel is also moulded to it's strut, and the cockpit tub is done in a bit of a strange way, compared with the real thing. I added some tape belts and the odd detail to the interior, and some representation of the engine fronts in the air intakes. I also dropped the elevators, as it seems this is how that were usually parked.

On the plus side, it has some nice panel detail, and has the option of an open canopy. The kit can also be built as an OA-37, with associated lumps, bumps and load-out.

However, the main bugbear of this kit are the decals. Thick, ultra-sticky and when they've had enough of being pulled around, quite happy to break in lots of small pieces. To be fair, a couple of them are asked to do a fairly impossible job ( around the nose and on the tip tanks ) but they were a bit of a pain, even on a flat surface.

So, there's quite a lots of touch ups, some better that others. It's not my best work, but to be honest, towards the end I was loosing the will, so I cut my losses and called it a day. It looks ok sat on the shelf, just don't get too close.......

If I had my time over again, I'd have done the OA-37, open the canopy, work the cockpit and do a nice loading dio, and hunt down the Hasegawa kit to do the Black Knights version. Its a lot more expensive, but can't be any worse to build, and you get two goes at it !!

Anyway, hope you enjoy. Any and all comments gratefully received

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Cheers, Neil

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[Dave W]

Looks good Neil.i really like it.Nice work with those decals.

 

[flyjoe180]

Another stunning scheme Neil, this is great stuff. The A-37 is a really awesome aircraft to see in action, it doesn't look much but it is loud, carries a big war load for its size, and has two coal burners.

 

[Guest]

That's gorgeous, I've not seen that scheme before.

 

[Guest]

Wow! Terrific scheme!!

Looks very good Neil, fantastic work.

Polux

 

[Guest]

It reminds me of the "Snowbirds". Our aerial acrobatic team still flies them.

 

[yak face]

Looks excellent to me Neil , and those decals are a nightmare to get round the curves but youve managed it , great work mate , cheers tony

 

[Alan 45]

This looks very good I like it

 

[Guest]

Well I can't see the ancient Hasegawa in the stash looking anywhere near this good.

 

[The Migrant]

Great job on a tricky scheme

 

[Guest]

Thanks for the kind comments, gents. If you get your nose against it, it doesn't look too clever, but my lack of photography skill has nicely covered that up !!! But it doesn't stand out on the shelf, so I think I can live with it

I think something in blue, next.......

Cheers, Neil

 

[Guest]

how the heck did i miss this,its first class mate,you did a stirling job

 

[Guest]

It just hit me. "black eagles" looks more like "white pigeons"...

Especially when you compare them to the F18s of the "blue angels"...

 

[Guest]

It just hit me. "black eagles" looks more like "white pigeons"...

Especially when you compare them to the F18s of the "blue angels"...

Funnily enough, I thought it was an odd scheme for a team named that !! Their current mount is painted much more suitably...

Cheers, Neil