The Kit

The Revell kit is without a doubt the best kit of an F-14 in this scale. I have built many in 1/144 and the lines and detail Revell has designed are second to none. They even provide decals for the petal imprints on the exhaust cans!

Constructuion is straight forward with no major difficulties. I sanded down the intakes a bit with a file. The forward instrument panel is touchy to glue in place. The chin pod was taken from the sprue of a DML kit in the same scale.

I bought the base at the local arts and crafts strore. I first varnished the wood then painted top oval portion gloss black. I then cut out the skull and cross bones from the decal instruction sheet (this is not a decal, but a printed image on the back page of the instruction sheet. I covered the base with an acrylic compund; allowing it to cure for a few days. I then brushed Tamiya "concrete" on the right side to replicate the apron of a master jet base. I painted it and weathered the right side with pastel chalk.  

The decals are from Fightertown decals and I take my hat off to them! Their attention to detail is amazing. They even provide warning data for the black ejection seat warning triangles on the side of the cockpit! I can only hope they produce more colorful sets in this scale for F-14s in the future/ Hint Hint... "VF-211" fellas!