Revell 1/48 F-86F Sabre Jet Build Thread

[RalphSarc]

Revell 1/48 F-86F Sabre Jet Build Thread.

History

The North American F-86 Sabre, sometimes called the Sabrejet, is a transonic jet fighter aircraft. Produced by North American Aviation, the Sabre is best known as the United States' first swept-wing fighter that could counter the swept-wing Soviet MiG-15 in high-speed dogfights in the skies of the Korean War (1950–1953), fighting some of the earliest jet-to-jet battles in history. Considered one of the best and most important fighter aircraft in that war, the F-86 is also rated highly in comparison with fighters of other eras. Although it was developed in the late 1940s and was outdated by the end of the 1950s, the Sabre proved versatile and adaptable and continued as a front-line fighter in numerous air forces.

[RalphSarc]

Good Morning!!
Well the Sabre and s started!! Really simple kit so should build rather quickly and looking forward to using metallic paints again!
Step 1 and 2 complete. 
Built the really simple cockpit, seat, control stick and seat. Since the cockpit is so small I’ll do some simple detailing before attaching the canopy.
Installed the exhaust cone and glued the fuselage halves together.

[Peterpools]

Nice start on a classic aircraft - will be following  

[RalphSarc]

2 hours ago, Peterpools said:

Nice start on a classic aircraft - will be following  

Oh thanks. I have a few Korean War kits I’d like to build this winter.

[RalphSarc]

Moving along!! Assembled the flaps and wings in step 3 plus drilled the holes to attach the under wing hard points and fuel tanks. I then attached the wing to the fuselage. Skipped ahead to step 8 I installed the real tail feathers just for fun!!

[Peterpools]

Ralph

Nice progress and your Sabre is looking real good.

[RalphSarc]

Completely step 4 assembling the main landing gear. I’ll paint and detail them however wait until the end of the build to install.

[RalphSarc]

While enjoy a quiet Saturday morning cup of coffee I completely step 5 assembling the nose wheel assembly and remembered to add weight to the nose. The instructions give no mention of a possible tail sitter or adding weight however it’s always better to be safe than sorry!!

[Peterpools]

Nothing like nice steady progress at the bench.  Looking mighty good.

 

[RalphSarc]

44 minutes ago, Peterpools said:

Nothing like nice steady progress at the bench.  Looking mighty good.

 

Thanks Peter.

For an old kit it’s still a fun build. Looking forward to using the metallic paints again,

[harv]

Nice work really like it….harv

[RalphSarc]

12 minutes ago, harv said:

Nice work really like it….harv

Thanks Harv.

[RalphSarc]

Might be sorry for this decision however I installed the nose gear and intake nose from step 5.
Any bets on how many times I break off the nose gear, lol??

[Peterpools]

Happens way too often and we wonder why manufacturers design kits that way? Surely a sign that most likely none or just a few of the engineers are actually model builders. How hard would it have been to design the kit where the gear is added at the end as it should be and not sticking up in the way during construction, flaunting the builder to break it off unknowingly? 

[RalphSarc]

2 hours ago, Peterpools said:

Happens way too often and we wonder why manufacturers design kits that way? Surely a sign that most likely none or just a few of the engineers are actually model builders. How hard would it have been to design the kit where the gear is added at the end as it should be and not sticking up in the way during construction, flaunting the builder to break it off unknowingly? 

Good point!! I usually wait to add gear, panels, antennas etc until the very end of a build!! Just got excited on this one, lol!!!

[RalphSarc]

Okay I got excited and installed the main gear!!! 
What have I done, lol!!!

[RalphSarc]

No tail sitter here!!!

[RalphSarc]

Sanding, sanding and more sanding of seams!!! No wonder I love armor builds so much!!!
Sanding seams sucks the life blood out of a person, lol!!!

[RalphSarc]

So I did it, lol!!! Broke off one of the main gear while sanding the damn belly seams!!!
Did I say I hate seams work???

[RalphSarc]

Thanks to some superglue and hardener the landing gear has been repaired!! However I still hate sanding seams lines!!

[Peterpools]

Ralph

Nice progress and looking mighty good.

 

[RalphSarc]

2 hours ago, Peterpools said:

Ralph

Nice progress and looking mighty good.

 

It’s coming along nicely however lots of seams to fill and sand.

[KevinM]

Bump?has she crossed the finish line?

[Peterpools]

Right with Kev.

[RalphSarc]

Kevin

Actually almost. I’ve finished painting the stripes etc and just now finished setting the decals!! Hope to finish today!