A Boy Named "SuE"....RAN Super Etendard-DONE!

[AeroplaneDriver]

So I hear there's a Group Build thingy going on....

[AeroplaneDriver]

OK...progress for tonight...

I've got three of these kits in the stash and I've only ever looked at it through the plastic bags, which shows nice surface detail, so I had high hopes.  Maybe it's because I just did a Tamiya Corsair, but this one's a bit disappointing so far.  There is no detail in the shallow nosegear bay, even though the mains are fairly good for the scale.  I'd been contemplating an inflight build with the gear up, so that helped sway the decision.  To call the cockpit detail "sparse" is generous...no detail on the panel or consoles and no decals.  I improved this a bit with some spare panel decals from the decal box.  The kit seat is also pretty bare, but since the canopy will be closed up and a pilot in the seat I didn't worry too much about it, just making stretched sprue firing handles for the headbox.  Fit isn't horrible, but not excellent either.  It's going to be more sanding than filling so it wont be too tough though.  The fuselage is together, tomorrow I'll smooth out the seams then get the intakes and wings on her. 

Trying to figure out the scheme it will wear now...torn between a mid-70s US-style Gray over white, a late 90s two blue/gray camo, or a late 2000s gray/blue/tan camo for ops over Afghanistan.  We'll see how that progresses...

[tc2324]

Admittedly the title of this build has gone completely over my head, but I`m still looking forward to the coloue scheme on this one.

[scooter]

OK...progress for tonight...

I've got three of these kits in the stash and I've only ever looked at it through the plastic bags, which shows nice surface detail, so I had high hopes.  Maybe it's because I just did a Tamiya Corsair, but this one's a bit disappointing so far.  There is no detail in the shallow nosegear bay, even though the mains are fairly good for the scale.  I'd been contemplating an inflight build with the gear up, so that helped sway the decision.  To call the cockpit detail "sparse" is generous...no detail on the panel or consoles and no decals.  I improved this a bit with some spare panel decals from the decal box.  The kit seat is also pretty bare, but since the canopy will be closed up and a pilot in the seat I didn't worry too much about it, just making stretched sprue firing handles for the headbox.  Fit isn't horrible, but not excellent either.  It's going to be more sanding than filling so it wont be too tough though.  The fuselage is together, tomorrow I'll smooth out the seams then get the intakes and wings on her. 

Trying to figure out the scheme it will wear now...torn between a mid-70s US-style Gray over white, a late 90s two blue/gray camo, or a late 2000s gray/blue/tan camo for ops over Afghanistan.  We'll see how that progresses...

And Academy kits, I've experienced, are usually pretty decent.  Go for the gray/blue/tan scheme.

[Old Wombat]

Sue-per Etendard, I'd guess, tc.

Referenced to via the (Johnny Cash?) song "A Boy Named "Sue"".

[scooter]

Sue-per Etendard, I'd guess, tc.

Referenced to via the (Johnny Cash?) song "A Boy Named "Sue"".

Yep. 

And this is one of those builds I'm going to look forward to

[AeroplaneDriver]

Right you are Scooter!  The Super Etendard was/is nicknamed the SuE, and the thread title is a reference to the classic Johnny Cash song.  Ring of Fire is my favorite Cash song though, so maybe it'll be loaded up with napalm tanks!   

Construction is coming along today...it's not a BAD kit, just not a Tamiya, but I knew that.  One thing I'm impressed with is the fit of the gear doors.  I like inflight displays but so often it takes so much work to get the gear doors to close up properly, but on this kit I've actually sealed up the main gear fuselage doors without even using glue.  Just a blob of blu-tac and a tight enough fit that they stay right in place.  I'll secure them with a dab of CA, but it's nice that the fit is so perfect. 

[AeroplaneDriver]

I managed to get quite a bit done on this between last night and tonight.  She's sitting with the base coat of paint drying for the night so I can start on some camo tomorrow.  I'm strongly leaning towards a three-tone scheme with blue and tan added.  It'll be an 805 Sqn machine, probably in the Desert Storm-era, though I'm not 100% sure of the time period yet.  Somewhere between mid 90s and late 2000s...



More tomorrow.

[Old Wombat]

3-tone could be interesting, esp. grey, blue & tan. I assume you're going wrap-around, as per the 2-tone scheme the Sh*#ducks wore in the 80's?


(PS: With that nose it almost screams to be called the "Petrel"!)

[AeroplaneDriver]

Well...bit of a setback for this project today.  Apparently in my year+ away from modeling I've lost my eye for camo...I feel like I've produced some fairly attractive and realistic schemes in the past, but my idea of gray/tan/blue for this build looks like an abomination.  The colors are wrong, the shape is a disjointed mess...just bad all around.  I've given up part way through and will respray the Light Ghost Gray and start over.  



Feel free to express your disgust...

[tc2324]

Sue-per Etendard, I'd guess, tc.

Referenced to via the (Johnny Cash?) song "A Boy Named "Sue"".

Cheers mate. Never knew that.

Lovely camo so far AD.

[AeroplaneDriver]

Alright...back to a plain gray canvas.  Off out to pub trivia now, but I may give it another shot later tonight. 

[Army of One]

Looking forward to ur work on this.....hope ur happy 2nd time around....1st time looked good but if ya ain't happy,ya ain't happy............H

[Old Wombat]

Perhaps a brownish tone light sand instead of the slightly pinky tones of the tan?

[AeroplaneDriver]

I started out with US SAC Tan, but it was too dark so I went with Israeli Tan, which as you observe looks pink...not sure now how it's going to end up.