1/72 Academy F14A Top Gun

[kyledehart5]

As most of you know I built this for my nephew for his birthday. This is the fairly new Academy Tomcat. It’s a beautiful engineered modern kit that I’d recommend to anyone. It has a ton of different variant options and a good bit of ordinance included as well. Had a great time with it and I’m pleased with the results. 

My nephew requested I build him the hero plane from Top Gun. Decals were sourced from Jeight Designs and they were really nice. Didn’t fight me at all. Most stenciling and detail decals came from the extensive Academy sheet. Beautifully printed by Cartograf. Built almost entirely box stock with the exception of Quinta Studios goodies in the cockpit. Took it outside for some photos since the sun was out. 

WIP thread is here: modelerssocialclub.proboards.com/thread/16574/1-72-academy-f14

[tcoat]

See! Doing jets is the same as doing cars with just more wingy bits and not as shiny.

[handiabled]

Excellent all around Kyle! I'm sure your nephew will be thrilled with this great gift from you

[kyledehart5]

Jul 24, 2024 6:13:29 GMT -5 tcoat said:

See! Doing jets is the same as doing cars with just more wingy bits and not as shiny.

Ha!! Just that easy!! Thank you. And I’m sure I’ll build another jet or two

Jul 24, 2024 8:19:37 GMT -5 handiabled said:

Excellent all around Kyle! I'm sure your nephew will be thrilled with this great gift from you

Thank you!! He picked it up yesterday and he really seemed to like it!

[project510]

Great job, Kyle!

[Medicman71]

Awesome work! It looks great!!

[kyledehart5]

Jul 24, 2024 15:21:10 GMT -5 project510 said:

Great job, Kyle!

Jul 24, 2024 15:23:59 GMT -5 Medicman71 said:

Awesome work! It looks great!!

Thank you gentlemen! Very much appreciated. 

[eaglecash867]

Pretty Kitty, Kyle! Somebody needs to tell the ground crew that they need to do a better FOD sweep next time though. 

[kyledehart5]

Jul 24, 2024 17:06:08 GMT -5 eaglecash867 said:

Pretty Kitty, Kyle! Somebody needs to tell the ground crew that they need to do a better FOD sweep next time though. 

Lol!! Thank you. I was in a hurry to get pictures outside before work so the ground crew has been reprimanded for their lax attitude. 

[oortiz10]

That's sweetness. Makes me wanna build a Tomcat.

Must resist...

Nice work!
-O

[kyledehart5]

Jul 24, 2024 23:13:53 GMT -5 oortiz10 said:

That's sweetness. Makes me wanna build a Tomcat.

Must resist...

Nice work!
-O

Thanks O!! I enjoyed this so much I want to get another one to keep for myself!!

[bradley25mm]

That is one sweet build Kyle. I’m sure your nephew was blown away when he got it.

[brandonk]

So cool. Love those F-14s. Well done!!

[kyledehart5]

Jul 30, 2024 6:44:01 GMT -5 bradley25mm said:

That is one sweet build Kyle. I’m sure your nephew was blown away when he got it.

Thank you!! I really appreciate it. He was pretty happy! Hoping this all interests him in doing some more modeling. 

Jul 30, 2024 8:58:26 GMT -5 brandonk said:

So cool. Love those F-14s. Well done!!

Thank you! Appreciate it. This was a lot of fun

[spook]

Definitely Nailed it !

[kyledehart5]

Jul 30, 2024 16:47:54 GMT -5 spook said:

Definitely Nailed it !

Thank you!!

[stikpusher]

Very nice finish on your Tomcat! The bogus squadron movie markings always cracked me up.

[406 Silverado]

I've gotta tell ya Kyle......I'd be MORE than happy with that turn out brother. Exceptional work on the painting and decaling of this one and the Quinta details just puts the cherry on top of this one. I've always admired folks who could pull a good jet build off and you've most certainly done that here. Your nephew, if he hasn't seen it already, is probably gonna flip when he sees it.

[kyledehart5]

Jul 30, 2024 18:10:27 GMT -5 stikpusher said:

Very nice finish on your Tomcat! The bogus squadron movie markings always cracked me up.

Thanks Carlos!! The movie markings would never have been my first choice but I can understand my 13 year old nephew wanting them. Lol. 

Jul 30, 2024 18:52:07 GMT -5 406 Silverado said:

I've gotta tell ya Kyle......I'd be MORE than happy with that turn out brother. Exceptional work on the painting and decaling of this one and the Quinta details just puts the cherry on top of this one. I've always admired folks who could pull a good jet build off and you've most certainly done that here. Your nephew, if he hasn't seen it already, is probably gonna flip when he sees it.

Thank you Joe!! It’s all down to Academy and Quinta. A very painless build overall. I had a really good time with it. 

[dukemaddog]

You did sensational work! Well done Kyle!

[kyledehart5]

Aug 3, 2024 15:38:59 GMT -5 dukemaddog said:

You did sensational work! Well done Kyle!

Thank you very much! Much appreciated.