1/18 r/c Tomcat coming soon

Post by **aferguson** » Fri Apr 11, 2008 8:19 pm

http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=847865

New product; details just coming out now. Dimensions are virtually exactly 1/18. Looks from the CAD pic that ordnance may be included. Probably foamy. This will pretty much complete my modern US aircraft fleet. I'll have f16, f18, A10, f15, f14 and f35. Still need f22 and a stealth fighter.

kimtheredxd · Post by **kimtheredxd** » Fri Apr 11, 2008 8:47 pm

aferg Do like they did at a air show back in the 80's when"stealth" was all new they just had a set off landing gear in a tricycle pattern sitting on the tarmac and a label calling it the new stealth fighter.Cheap too!

USCGSARdog · Post by **USCGSARdog** » Sat Apr 12, 2008 6:54 am

WOW..... looks promising! I think I'll be grounding a couple of WWII planes to make room for the new center piece of my fleet. The foamy ARF's are filling the void nicely for 1/18 scale modern subjects.

FINALLY, a decent, very close to 1/18 scale Tomcat!!!!!

-Rob

USCGSARdog · Post by **USCGSARdog** » Sat Apr 12, 2008 7:28 am

aferg, which F-15 do you have, the GWS model or another? How do you like it? Is it an E model or a C?

-Rob

Post by **aferguson** » Sat Apr 12, 2008 7:51 am

i have the e-domodel F-15......it's a C. Much better lines than the GWS offering and bang on scale wise.

parrish333 · Post by **parrish333** » Sat Apr 12, 2008 7:52 am

aferguson wrote:http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=847865

New product; details just coming out now. Dimensions are virtually exactly 1/18. Looks from the CAD pic that ordnance may be included. Probably foamy. This will pretty much complete my modern US aircraft fleet. I'll have f16, f18, A10, f15, f14 and f35. Still need f22 and a stealth fighter.

So now that an f-14 is coming my interest in these r/c models is getting really piqued! So aferg, if you will, I have a few questions since you seem to have quite a few of these:

1) Are these pretty easy to assemble, or is it hours of glueing and painting?

2) Or what are the different types? Looks like some are balsa and others foam? It wasn't clear to me what the different designations meant.

3) Do most/any come with ordnance (I'm assuming not) ?

4) Do you need any add-ons to make them look good (e.g the stock landing gear looked pretty cheesy on some) ?

5) I'm assuming the canopies are usually separate pieces; i.e., so you could sneak a pilot figure in there?

6) Any manufacturers you recommend vs. ones to stay away from? What about retailers?

Thanks! And keep us updated on the Tomcat - looks awesome!

Post by **aferguson** » Sat Apr 12, 2008 9:00 am

1) Are these pretty easy to assemble, or is it hours of glueing and painting? IT VARIES BUT OVERALL THEY'RE PRETTY EASY TO PUT TOGETHER IF YOU'RE NOT GOING TO FLY IT. IF YOU ARE THERE IS A FEW HOURS WORK HOOKING UP SERVOS ETC. USUALLY YOU WILL WANT TO PAINT IT OR REPAINT IT AS WELL.

2) Or what are the different types? Looks like some are balsa and others foam? It wasn't clear to me what the different designations meant. VIRTUALLY ALL JETS ARE MADE FROM FOAM. BALSA AND COVERING IS MORE FOR WARBIRD TYPE PLANES LIKE MY C-47, C-119 ETC

3) Do most/any come with ordnance (I'm assuming not) ? IT IS VERY RARE TO GET ANY ORDNANCE.....BUT IT LOOKS LIKE THE TOMCAT WILL HAVE PLENTY IF YOU CHECK OUT THE LATEST PICTURE IN THE LINK I POSTED.

4) Do you need any add-ons to make them look good (e.g the stock landing gear looked pretty cheesy on some) ? LANDING GEAR IS USUALLY A THIN WIRE AND A WHEEL. I NEVER DISPLAY THESE ON THEIR U/C....ALWAYS IN FLIGHT. MOST OF THEM ARE SO BIG YOU WOULD BE HARD PRESSED TO FIND A PLACE TO SET THEM ON THEIR GEAR ANYWAY.

5) I'm assuming the canopies are usually separate pieces; i.e., so you could sneak a pilot figure in there? CANOPIES ARE ALWAYS SEPERATE AND USUALLY CLEAR.....SOMETIMES THEY ARE HEAVILY TINTED OR BLACK PLASTIC BUT USUALLY CLEAR. COCKPIT AREA IS OFTEN RESERVED FOR R/C PARTS SO THERE IS NOT MUCH ROOM BUT YOU CAN USUALLY GET THE TORSO OF A PILOT FIGURE IN.

6) Any manufacturers you recommend vs. ones to stay away from? What about retailers? I JUST BUY WHAT LOOKS GOOD AND WHERE EVER I CAN FIND A GOOD PRICE. THE RC GROUPS FORUM IS WHERE I GET ALL MY INFO.

Black_Dragon_One · Post by **Black_Dragon_One** » Sat Apr 12, 2008 9:17 am

aferguson

can you post pic of your f15 next to a stuka , mig 15 and figure for size comparisons?

Post by **aferguson** » Sat Apr 12, 2008 9:34 am

no i can't.....i don't have a camera. It's about 10% bigger than the bbi f-18 and is almost exactly 1/18 scale and well proportioned.

Black_Dragon_One · Post by **Black_Dragon_One** » Sat Apr 12, 2008 10:20 am

so were is the best place to buy this bad boy?

Post by **aferguson** » Sat Apr 12, 2008 10:40 am

will be up for sale sometime in May.....dont know where yet

USCGSARdog · Post by **USCGSARdog** » Sat Apr 12, 2008 12:08 pm

Where is the best place to score that F-15?

-Rob

Post by **aferguson** » Sat Apr 12, 2008 12:12 pm

i've forgotten now where i got mine......some place in hong kong. Check the forum that the above link is in and there is a thread on the E-domodel F-15. There are a few places to buy mentioned in it. The place i bought had them on sale at the time so it might not have the best prices any more.

I got mine for $107 plus shipping. There are two models available.....F-15c and F-15e but they're both the same except for colour and decals, so you might as well get the cheaper one you can find.

Black_Dragon_One · Post by **Black_Dragon_One** » Sat Apr 12, 2008 2:23 pm

is it easy to paint? do you think that it might be easy to cover the f15 with fiber glass or vacuum form..

Post by **aferguson** » Sat Apr 12, 2008 2:37 pm

i've never done fibre glass but i know it's not uncommon for guys to glass these foamy planes. I've never done vacuform either so i don't know if you can use it for a mold or not.

Painting is just like painting anything......you just have to make sure that the paint won't eat the styrofoam. Krylon and Testors sprays usually work but test first before spraying.

parrish333 · Post by **parrish333** » Sat Apr 12, 2008 6:55 pm

Aferg - thanks for all the info! I'm not much of a painter, so that seems like the main thing that would scare me off. But if the F-14 comes with ordnance like it looks like it will - I will be hard-pressed to not get it! What a beautiful bird in 1:18 glory!

And overall these sound like a great choice while we await somebody like 21C, AT, or BBI to make these awesome jets. And since that won't be happening anytime soon, well, these seem like a great way to build a 1:18 modern airforce!

Post by **aferguson** » Sat Sep 20, 2008 8:37 am

Looks like this is just about ready for sale. I'm expecting around $200, hopefully less.

Looks good. It's 1.5% too big, so virtually spot on 1/18 scale.

http://www.x-flight.hk/e/products/produ ... -SKYRC-F14

Coreyeagle48 · Post by **Coreyeagle48** » Sat Sep 20, 2008 6:54 pm

Greetings

Foam has come along way but just doesn't do it for me with the R/C aircraft. I grew up flying with my grandfather and spent many hours building balsa frames, covering and doing nice details.

I had some foam WWI planes hanging here for awhile and something just didn't look right about them. I'm glad they work for some but being an old time R/C guy, there's just something missing with these, although this is the way all the companies go for these days.

Corey

smokey1 · Post by **smokey1** » Mon Sep 22, 2008 7:34 am

It's not going to be $200 or less. If you look at the other ducted fan models you will see why. The red arrows model is going for $385.

Post by **aferguson** » Mon Sep 22, 2008 8:05 am

I think it will be about $200. Look at the other 'ducted fan ARF's'. There all pretty much under $200. I'm fairly familiar with the prices of these things having bought a few and most are around $110-$150. The Tomcat is a bit more complex so that's why i figure it will be $200. There's a lot of competition in the ARF field these days keeping prices down too.

The Red Arrows is a 'large size' and is huge. A whole different category.

I'm quite looking forward to the Tomcat. The lines look good. May need to repaint it; we'll see how accurate the colours it comes in are. Decals look nice. And it comes with some sparrows, phoenix missiles and drop tanks...very unusual for a kit like this and a nice bonus.

olifant · Post by **olifant** » Mon Sep 22, 2008 6:43 pm

aferg, I am giving serious thought to buying a B-25, Mosquito or Beaufighter from Hobbylobby. I have heard you state before that if interested buy the detailed version which I plan on. I don't know if you have any of these, but I am assuming so. Is the finish on the planes good enough to stand alone or will this require a repaint? The photos looke pretty good as-is.

Post by **aferguson** » Mon Sep 22, 2008 8:09 pm

I have the beaufighter and b-25. The mosquito is way too big....around 1/14 scale. I bet it looks great though. There's also a Ju-88 coming that is also pretty big at 1/15.5 scale. Should be available for sale in a month or two. I'm probably going to pass on it though, because of its size.

Only the b-25 has the option of a regular kit or super detailed kit and yes you'd probably be happier with the detailed kit.

The beaufighter comes with pretty good details as it is.

Both have nice paint jobs that don't require repainting unless your very fussy. They are both a bit shiney though, so you may want to dullcote them, especially after adding the decals.

I will probably repaint my beaufighter as i'd rather have a coastal command grey one than a desert one...but that's my preference.

Both planes have a slightly noticable styofoam texture to them which will be less obvious after dullcoting and all but disappear from about 5 feet away. There so nice and big it's easy to forgive little imperfections like that.

Both the b-25 and beaufighter are a bit over scale at 1/17-ish.

olifant · Post by **olifant** » Tue Sep 23, 2008 9:08 am

Thanks aferg. I think you have sold me on one of these.

Black_Dragon_One · Post by **Black_Dragon_One** » Tue Sep 23, 2008 10:37 am

were u get the f14?

Post by **aferguson** » Tue Sep 23, 2008 1:09 pm

http://www.x-flight.hk/e/products/produ ... -SKYRC-F14

they're not for sale yet, hopefully soon.

Small Scale Military Headquarters

1/18 r/c Tomcat coming soon

1/18 r/c Tomcat coming soon

Re: 1/18 r/c Tomcat coming soon

Thanks!