Douglas F4D-3 Skyray

[DogfighterZen]

So, this is what it looks like after painting...





The tub is already glue to one fuselage half and now i have to build the area behind the seat to cover up that huge gap.

[kerick]

Looks so much better with the new handles! Carry on!

[DogfighterZen]

Looks so much better with the new handles! Carry on!

Thanks, Ken! 

I've been digging through the spare parts box and chose a few bits left over from other kits to put on the back of the ejection seat...



Lets see what i can get done with these...

[Old Wombat]

Nice work on the bang-seat! She seems to be coming along well!

[The Rat]

Ok, so i bit the bullet and tried my luck with the ejection pull handles using electrical wire and i have to admit that they came out better than i expected. This was really the first time i used these wires and i can see myself using more of these on other details in the future.
Thanks for the push, Rat! 



Now i'll just have to paint them and the pit will be ready to be glued to the fuselage.

[DogfighterZen]

Nice work on the bang-seat! She seems to be coming along well!

She is indeed! 
Today was a very productive day with this build... besides the research that helped me narrow down to 2 options for a user and weapons load, i got a lot done.
First, i used up some of the bits i'd gathered from the spare parts box to fill the space behind the cockpit...



After that area was painted with XF-69 Nato Black, i googled some info regarding the weapons of the Skyray and that made me notice that this kit doesn't have a single hint of the gun ports on the wings' leading edges and that was a big problem for a guy going by the name of "DogfighterZen" on this forum...
Surprisingly enough, i read on Airvectors.com that the US Navy Skyrays often had their cannons removed and the ports covered...
That wouldn't do for me so, after looking for pics to find the exact spot, i thought: "Wait a minute, t'is a whif so, if IRL they removed 4 20mm cannons, i'll just remove 2 and give it some more fuel!"
After i marked and drilled the ports out, i just added the cannon barrels...









After that i glued the wing halves together and moved on to the nozzle, which was simply cut down to the proper size to fit the existing tailpipe's diameter and then glued some steel bits right behind the cockpit's firewall for some extra weight forward of the CoG so it won't need as much inside the radome.



I also spent a bit reading up on which radar would be the correct to give it all weather interceptor capability, which would be the F3H Demon's AN/APG-51. Makes some sense because it would enable the Skyray to fire some nice "Go get'em" sticks...

So, tomorrow i'll close up the fuselage and begin the nose job.

[zenrat]

This is making me want to build another Skyray.

[Dizzyfugu]

In the wake of my F-F build I came across a proposal for an F4D update with Sparrow I missiles, and IIRC the radar that was proposed was the AN/APG-50. The early Sparrows were rubbish, though, so I do not think that this would have gone anywhere.

[DogfighterZen]

This is making me want to build another Skyray.

Go for it, mate! 

In the wake of my F-F build I came across a proposal for an F4D update with Sparrow I missiles, and IIRC the radar that was proposed was the AN/APG-50. The early Sparrows were rubbish, though, so I do not think that this would have gone anywhere.

That got me intrigued... 
Just came across this: https://www.alternatewars.com/SAC/F4D-1_Skyray_and_YAAM-N-6_Sparrow_MSC_-_1_July_1957.pdf
Almost there, Thomas, looks like it was not the AN/APG but the AN/APQ-50. 
And you're right about the Sparrows, they weren't as efective as the contemporary Sidewinders, even compared to the early Aim-9B.
But they do look cool though...
So, i just have to leave the house to go buy bread a some other things at the supermarket so i'll be working on this baby as soon as i get back home... after i've washed my hands properly, that is...

[Old Wombat]

i googled some info regarding the weapons of the Skyray and that made me notice that this kit doesn't have a single hint of the gun ports on the wings' leading edges and that was a big problem for a guy going by the name of "DogfighterZen" on this forum...
Surprisingly enough, i read on Airvectors.com that the US Navy Skyrays often had their cannons removed and the ports covered...
That wouldn't do for me so, after looking for pics to find the exact spot, i thought: "Wait a minute, t'is a whif so, if IRL they removed 4 20mm cannons, i'll just remove 2 and give it some more fuel!"
After i marked and drilled the ports out, i just added the cannon barrels...

This is because they were the dreaded Colt Mk.12 20mm cannon (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colt_Mk_12_cannon), which was ... very prone to not firing for various reasons.

For a 2-gun fighter, perhaps they're replaced by the much more reliable, British-made Hispano Mk. V (from which the Colt was derived)?

[Dizzyfugu]

And you're right about the Sparrows, they weren't as efective as the contemporary Sidewinders, even compared to the early Aim-9B.
But they do look cool though...

Of course! 

[DogfighterZen]

i googled some info regarding the weapons of the Skyray and that made me notice that this kit doesn't have a single hint of the gun ports on the wings' leading edges and that was a big problem for a guy going by the name of "DogfighterZen" on this forum...
Surprisingly enough, i read on Airvectors.com that the US Navy Skyrays often had their cannons removed and the ports covered...
That wouldn't do for me so, after looking for pics to find the exact spot, i thought: "Wait a minute, t'is a whif so, if IRL they removed 4 20mm cannons, i'll just remove 2 and give it some more fuel!"
After i marked and drilled the ports out, i just added the cannon barrels...

This is because they were the dreaded Colt Mk.12 20mm cannon (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colt_Mk_12_cannon), which was ... very prone to not firing for various reasons.

For a 2-gun fighter, perhaps they're replaced by the much more reliable, British-made Hispano Mk. V (from which the Colt was derived)?

Yup, that's what i read about the Colts, so at first i was thinking of a 30mm pair but then decided to go with the 20mm Springfield M39 cannons to have a higher rate of fire and muzzle velocity, as well as more room for ammo. 

So, i can say i'm very happy with how this build is coming together... The Skyray has a new nose and nozzle! 



The nozzle and canopy are just tacked onto it but i couldn't resist just ot get the feel of it and i'm very pleased with the way it looks.
Had to change my plans regarding the part to use for the new nose so, i dug up my 1/48 Hasegawa F-16E and robbed one of the 370 gallon tanks to chop it up.
I started by cutting off the Skyray's nose way too much and then had to cut a section off of the chopped off bit to create a more fluid transition down to the drop tank's maximum circumference radius, that's why it has two seam lines.
Those seams were filled with CA glue for a strong bond but as it was gel CA, it's taking a bit to dry completely so, i'm going to work on the engine nozzle and cockpit area to close the gap between the canopy and fuselage.

[Tophe]

i'm very happy with how this build is coming together... The Skyray has a new nose and nozzle! 

We are happy also seeing it!

[PR19_Kit]

That's looking VERY smart already. 

The Skyray is a sort of delta Hunter, in that it's intrinsically a good looking aeroplane, and our type of enhancements just add to that.

[Dizzyfugu]

With that pinted nose it looks even MORE Anderson-esque to me! 

Looking good, already curiosu about the livery.