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This is Monogram' s vintage (mid '60's) F3F biplane kit. The F3F had the distinction of being the last biplane fighter in the Navy's inventory. She was replaced by the F4F Wildcat. I remember building this very kit in my youth but I don't think I ever finished it. I picked this particular kit off of ebay. It has a lot of 'gimmicks' which were in voguee at the time. These included moving control surfaces and fully operational landing gear that retracted when you spun the propellor. I managed to maintain these features on my model. You can really tell this is a vintage kit. The kit has been in circulation on and off for the last 30 years and the molds are showing their age. Lots of putty is needed and there are ejector pin marks everywhere. I added additional detail to the cockpit since the kit supplied one is rudimentary at best. The flying wires are a mix of music wire and styrene strips. All in all it was a fun build. You even get an Al Williams pilot figure. They include that since this same kit is used for Monogram's Gulfhawk bipe (Al's personal plane). Paints were ModelMaster and the kit decals were excellent (Cartograph ones I believe). I've always liked those colorful 'between-the-wars' planes.
May 6, 2005 |
