Help with BBI F/A 18 USMC Red Devils

[JOC]

Does anyone on this board have any photos of the BBI Red Devils USMC F18?
I got a loose one today and some of the parts don't seem right.
First on the front section it has a name on the nose wheel door "ADAN ORTEGA
ISLAND PRIDE"
Has no ladder or pilot. Also no pilots name on the bird forward of the Canopy.
Also no aircraft number on front section.
Back section has two small rubber sections that should be where the A/C number is but has VFA 190 printed on them. At first I thought this was a marriage of parts but the rear section does have the factory VMFA painted on it.
Any ideas on how can get the A/C number changed on those little pieces?
I do not have the skills to make the decal or patch needed for the numbers, so I am left with, either just paint those pieces flat black or if there is someone on this board that would know how to make some sort of number patch to cover the VFA-190
I would gladly pay for their time and materials. Also do I need a number on the fusalage front section? It does have the 301 (black over red) on the tails.
Thanks for any help you guys can give me.
JOC

[Folkwulfe]

Maybe I can shed some light on this for you. The "Red Devils" Hornet does not have an aircraft number on the nose or near the cockpit. On the upper inboard flaps it should have "301" on both wings. There should be a red pitchfork along both side os the spine above the LEX area behind the cockpit that has "VMFA 232" overlay on the pitchfork. The "VFA 190" markings may be from the Golden Dragons version (it should be VFA 192 but were misprinted on the LEX vanes just above and behind the air-bleed doors on both sides). To my knowledge, the Red Devils version did not have a pilot's name on it. There should be a red devil on both vertical fins, "Marines" on both sides of the aft fuselage, and "WT" in black on both vertical fins. Other than that, the three drop tanks should say "Red Devils" in red on both sides of all tanks.

[JOC]

FW:
Sounds like everything you described is on this bird. Other than VFA 190 difference and name of ADAN Ortega it should be correct and all the parts are there. ADAN is a Navy aviation rating not Marine Air. Does all other versions of this bird have the ADAN rating on the front gear door?
Should I just leave the VFA 190 as it is or try to just cover it up?
Again, Thank You for clearing up these things for me.
JOC

[grunt1]

Not sure if these will help?

http://www.sshqdb.com/18/displayimage.p ... =403&pos=3

[VMF115]

Not sure if these will help?

http://www.sshqdb.com/18/displayimage.p ... =403&pos=3

Two of those pictures of the Red devil s where taken by me...lol

[tkjaer21]

And the other two (pictures 3 and 4/The 3'4th shot and the one of the Tail) were by me in my old garage display room.

[VMF115]

And the other two (pictures 3 and 4/The 3'4th shot and the one of the Tail) were by me in my old garage display room.

Thats Cool!!!!!!!

[Folkwulfe]

I am not sure about the Red Devils version having the "ADAN" on the nose gear door, but remember that Marine carrier aircraft are usually serviced by Navy personnel when "on ship". Marine personnel would service the aircraft when at home station.....at least that's my understanding (I was Army). The "VFA-190" markings are definately bogus and you should at least paint over them even if you do not intend to re-mark the aircraft. Somebody could ding you for missing small markings, but they can't ding you for incorrect markings.

[JOC]

Grunt 1 thanks for the link to the photos in the database. That bird shows the aircraft number on the vanes (301). Other collectors who I have corresponded with about this bird have the VFA-190 on theirs. Are there two versions out there now? I would appreciate hearing from those who have one to find out just what went on with this bird. If I decide to sell it, I do not want to deceive anyone in the process.
Thanks
JOC

[snake]

Very interesting.

Seems like there are two versions.And they are both wrong.

Seems like such a simple mistake.

Folkewulfe's suggestion about painting them over seems like a good idea, if you are looking for something "more authentic".

[tkjaer21]

Badcat released stickers to put over the vanes as every version of this bird has 301 on it. The sticker was to correct the issue. That is why you see some with the 301 and others with the corrected look.

[VMF115]

Badcat released stickers to put over the vanes as every version of this bird has 301 on it. The sticker was to correct the issue. That is why you see some with the 301 and others with the corrected look.

Those stickers also did not stay on. I put them on mine but they just curled up and fell off.

[snake]

Badcat released stickers to put over the vanes as every version of this bird has 301 on it. The sticker was to correct the issue. That is why you see some with the 301 and others with the corrected look.

Those stickers also did not stay on. I put them on mine but they just curled up and fell off.

You need something better than a "sticker".

I didn't know about this before.Thanks guys.

Any ideas as to how to make these vanes correct?

Simple is best.

[JOC]

BadCat will always take the easy way out, i.e. stickers to fix a mistake.

I finally used red automotive striping tape to cover them up. The vanes are rubber and not that easy to paint, and the red tape covers it quite well. Now that's easy. Anyway the bird is on deployment, so let them wait until they return to their home station, and let the AM's take care of the repaint
JOC