1/72 Italeri Lockheed F-104G Duo

Gallery Article by Alex Cimenti on Jan 27 2012

 

 

Lockheed F104 G Duo – Back to the 60's with Belgian and Norwegian Air Force Starfighters

A lot has been written about modelling the F104 in 1/72 so if you want to know more just recall to my previous articles about 104s or read some more comprehensive reports of other more expert modellers.

Some time ago I received a set of old ESCI decals (dedicated to the F-104 G in European service, they were printed about 30 years ago and despite their age were in good condition) as a gift, so I decided to build two models in their natural metal pattern with full insignia and markings, typical of the beginning of the Starfighter service in Europe.

 

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The two models I made belong to the Norwegian Air Force (331st fighter squadron) and Belgian Air Force (10th Fighter Bomber Wing of Kleine Brogel), 1965 circa, and are resplendent in their full colors with natural metal fuselage and tail surfaces, with the lower wings and radome in ADC grey, while the upper wing surfaces are painted in gloss white.

These paint schemes were later replaced in Belgium by a three tone (Vietnam style pattern) camo scheme, while in Norway the fighters belonging the the 331st fighter squadron were painted in an overall air superiority grey, with national markings and insigna reduced to the minimum.

The construction of this kit is quite simple, I decided to add some improvements to the kits as usual (thanks to the expert French modeller Fabien Antonietti that sent me some spare parts) in the form of the usual Hasegawa wingtip tanks and the Lockheed C-2 ejection seat, as well as the Sidewinder rails for the Belgian example, while the two Aero 3B underwing rails typical of the Norwegian version were modified using two underbelly rails for the S version of the same kit.

Some scratchbuilding work was done as usual for the main gear as well as for the cockpit, while the canopy was assembled closed (the only option that offers this old but still good kit) but had to be slightly modified to fit perfectly with the fuselage, the exhaust nozzle of the J-79 Engine is that from the box, I didn't want to spend extra money with Aires and CMK detailing kits.

Painting: 
Instead of using expensive ALCAD II Lacquer colors I opted for a more economical Humbrol 2002 alluminium, while the upper wings were airbrushed with Tamiya gloss white, Humbrol ADC grey for the underwing surfaces and the radome.

Decals: 
The ESCI set is a bit outdated and once dried, despite I cut them with care, they show a bit of silvering or yellow spots on their transparent portions, someone will argue that they are not accurate, and I could opt instead for Daco and/or Vingtor Decals, but I wanted to make two economically sustainable models using a gift, that otherwise should have been put inside a desk's drawer forever; the last picture shows the two aircraft with full loads of Sidewinder missiles and wing tanks.

Happy modelling to everyone and see you with the next model: Another F104 G (of AMI) and a RAF BAC Lightning F2.

Alex Cimenti

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Photos and text © by Alex Cimenti