Mirage F1P

[PR19_Kit]

Yes, this the third build I'm starting for this GB, and the other two are nowhere near finished. It's my 'shotgun approach' to GB builds, if I start enough of them there's a good chance that one will prove trouble free and actually get finished. Yeah, right.................. 

This one's  Dassault Mirage F1P of Flotille 16F of the Aeronavale.

Oh, the Aeronavale didn't fly Mirages F1s? Well in your world maybe they didn't, but in mine they did, OK? The P on the end means it's a photo-recce version, which even the Armee de l'Air didn't fly either, but this is WhiffWorld.

The kit's another Special Hobby one, (I must be a glutton for punishment after the cockpit problems on the Barracuda!) and as usual SH don't use 1 part where 27 would work better, at least in their eyes. There's also LOADS of parts not used in this 2 seater trainer. The kit's like a Revell Tornado, it's actually a weapons set with a gratis airframe! I'm sure I'll use a lot more of the stores than SH intend,  they only tell you to use the drop tanks. Mind you I've no idea what many of the stores are so I'll be asking questions later I'm sure.

As this is a PR bird it needs cameras, right? And as no Mirage F1 ever carried any, for a dedicated PR version anyway, I've got a resin camera nose and belly pod to stick onto it from an Etendard IVP conversion that I just happened to have to hand.

It'll follow Fred Zenrat's technique of naval aircraft modelling by me scribing wing fold marks and adding a hook. Nothing more will be needed really.

And why is it a two seater? I just like the look of the 2 seater Mirage F1s.



Here's the obligatory box lid pic.




And here's the first steps of the build, jet pipe and nose wheel bay added to one fuselage half, wings assembled and a tiny bit of the cockpit done too.

[loupgarou]

It looks so short! The fin separate from the fuselage is another SH's trick tannoy modellers?

[PR19_Kit]

It is short, the F1's a remarkably small aeroplane.

The kit has three different fins, depending on the version modelled, which is why they moulded it separately I guess.

[PR19_Kit]

Actually it turns out the Armee de l'Air did fly a PR version of the F1, the F1CR, but the camera bay was just a small bump on the underside of the fuselage, hardly noticeable.

The F1Ps were very obviously PR types with that angular nose.

[comrade harps]

I love the Miarge F.1, but haven't built a two-seater. A beautiful looking plane. Many decades ago I had a fighter plane poster on my bedroom wall and my girlfriend at the time picked the F.1C as her favourite.

Can't wait to see what you come up with. 

[Tophe]

I just like the look of the 2 seater Mirage F1s.

I love also the 2-seat version of the F1.
Will you have a two-wheel nose undercarriage like on the navy Jaguar (if I remember well)?

[NARSES2]

I to didn't realise how small it was, attractive airplane though  Probably wouldn't need much of the wing to fold ? Perhaps just the tips ?

[zenrat]

There are three parts to by technique.  The third is paint it blue.  Don't forget that one.

[PR19_Kit]

Will you have a two-wheel nose undercarriage like on the navy Jaguar (if I remember well)?

That's a good idea Tophe, thanks for that, and I'll try it if I can find a spare nosewheel. 

I'm 120 miles away from my Loft at the moment so supplies are a tad limited.

There are three parts to by technique.  The third is paint it blue.  Don't forget that one.

Yes Fred, I forgot that bit, sorry.

I'll figure out a suitable scheme with blue in it.

[PR19_Kit]

With the amount of extra bits that you don't use in this kit you can actually build any variant of the RW Mirage F1.

They actually include the bits to build the land based Mirage F1CR PR version, and I may use some of them in this version.

They also include some resin wingtip missile rails, but why I have no idea as there are no less than FOUR styrene wingtip rails included on the main sprues, and they're better than the resin ones. 

[DogfighterZen]

Gotta get me one of those Mirage kits... Looking forward for this build! 

[Gondor]

Looking forward to immageshack allowing me to see the progress so far

Gondor

[PR19_Kit]

Lots of progress on the F1P today. I got the rear cockpit installed, complete with its four piece ejection seat (Why?) and it's a different seat to the front one too, very odd. I did a quick check to see how it balanced and I reckoned it'd work with NO nose weight, but I stuffed a couple of pieces of Blu-Tak in there anyway, just in case. Then I glued the two fuselage halves together. They fitted very nicely and I was quite impressed with SH's design work.

After that lot had dried off I started the major part of the conversion, sawing off the spikey nose of the F1 and installing the blunter camera nose from the Etendard IVP. The IVP nose isn't the same cross section as the F1, it's much squarer, but nothing a big file and some PSR won't cure. Getting the position of the cut took some close measurement with my trusty Vernier calipers, but it looks as if it's worked out OK. I also glued on the under fuselage camera pod from the IVP, a larger item than the one from the F1CR that's already in the kit.

So here it is at present, lots of filing and PSR to do on the nose yet,  but you get the general idea I'm sure.




And here's what it should look like when it's done, approximately. The wings, tail and fin all plug in niccely, the starboard wing so 'nicely' that I can't actually get it out again....................Ho hum...... 

[DogfighterZen]

Lots of work ahead but it's looking good already! 

[zenrat]

Those wings look a bit short to me...