Hawker-Siddeley AV-8A Harrier
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Kit Review
This new AV-8A is basically a slightly revised reissue of the new-tool Harrier GR Mk 1 released in mid-2013. The main changes are the revised ejection seat, various antenna, and the inclusion of Sidewinder missiles and rocket pods with associated pylons; basically any part on the new 'G' sprue. Construction is straightforward and the interior builds up nicely with the decal for the instrument panel being quite effective. About the only things I added were seat belts, which are just made from Aizu micro-masking tape. The combined intake trunking and half the nose wheel well looks complex, but it goes together well and all you have to deal with is the seam in the wheel well, which you will only see if you look really hard for it, because once the oleo leg is in place there is precious room to spare! You will need to add some nose weight, although in this instance I actually added the weights behind the compressor fan in the mid-fuselage, as that was forward of the main and outrigger undercarriage. Initially I left the tailerons (#A4) loose, but they soon got on my nerves slopping about, so they were glued in place. The tail cone (stage 16) and the intake fronts (stages 19 to 21) are not bad in their overall fit, but I had to do sanding with both to get a flush fit all along the joins. The wing fits in nicely, and although a little gap exists at the front, this can easily and quickly filled and smoothed over. Take you time to make up the gun packs and get good alignment of the two halves, as these will need subsequent sanding and the less of this the better to preserve the raised detail. All the pylons, ordnance and tanks, exhaust shields (#A19 andA22), exhaust nozzles, undercarriage and doors and canopy were all assembled and painted separately, only being added at the final stages of construction. I did replace the kit pitot with sliding aluminium tube from Albion Alloy. a suitable diameter piece was cut to length, then superglued a hole drilled in the nose. A little excess superglue was allowed around the new pitot, so that this could later be sanded to blend the pitot into the nose cone.
Colour
You get the option of two schemes for this one, the first is a USMC AV-8A of VMA-513 at Misawa Air Base, Japan in October 1976. This machine is Dark Sea Grey and Dark Green over Light Aircraft Grey. The second option is an V-8S Matador of Essla 008, Arma Aérea de la Armada, Rota Air Base in Spain during 1982. This machine is Light Aircraft Grey over white. This second scheme was my choice, as I love the Harrier in these colours. Once all the openings were blocked off (intakes, exhaust outlet sockets and cockpit (the front and rear sections having been secured in place), the whole model was primed with Gunze-Sangyo Mr Finishing Surfacer 1500 Black. Once this had dried I could start to create the white undersides by first filling in the middle of each panel. Once this was completed to my satisfaction I started to built up an overall coat of white, layer by layer, until I got sufficient contrast and yet it still looked 'white'. This is a a lot easier option than trying to apply a solid white coat and then post-shade it back. This dried overnight, then was masked and the upper grey was applied in exactly the same way. Once that had dried overnight, the masks were removed and the whole model received two coats of Johnsons Klear, and left again for 24 hours to cure. I must admit that the drop tanks should be grey and white, but I thought that a bit boring so went with them being white overall with the port one fitted with that replacement nose cone in Dark Sea Grey.
Decals
These at first sight may seen a little matt, with opaque carrier, but once applied over a good gloss base and with lots of Gunze-Sangyo Mr Mark Softer decal softener, they settled down nicely. There are quite a few stencils to apply, so this took a couple of hours one day on its own. I tend to work by the decal numbers, from lowest to highest, and cross them off the decal placement diagram as I go so that I know they have all been applied. The main markings were another couple of hours work the next day, then the whole lot was left to dry overnight and the next day a coat of Johnsons Klear sealed them all in place.
Final Assembly
The last task before final assembly was to dull down the gloss paintwork and for this I used Vallejo satin acrylic varnish, as I find it gives sufficient sheen to look right in this scale. Two coats were misted on, about an hour apart, with the upper and lower sections done on separate days so I could rest the built model on the Tamiya paint stand with either upper or lower sides showing. All the other parts were also given a coat of varnish at the same stage as the airframe and when all were dry enough to handle the final assembly began. I found that all of the pylons were of average fit, they tend to have locating tabs that are slightly too long and too wide, but this is not hard to deal with. The drop tanks actually just push-fit onto the painted pylons, the pins are that snug, whilst the rocket pods have to be glued in place. The undercarriage all fitted well, with the exception of the main oleo, which just did not want to seem to fit in the hole in the bay? In the end I trimmed it on all sides until it slotted into place, but even then the 'contact' was not a positive one. All the various antenna went on with ease and the anti-collision light on the dorsal spine fits into its corresponding hole with the need for just a dab of PVA to hold it.
Verdict
This really is an excellent kit, not too complex, and pretty easy to put together. I am certainly glad that the GR Mks 1 and 3 versions are sitting in the wings waiting to be built. Airfix are certainly producing some very nice kits nowadays and this is one that I most highly recommend to all, regardless of your experience. Oh yes, and before you all tell me, I know, I have done the panels in Dark Sea Grey instead of Medium Sea Grey..., well they look better anyway!
Paints used;
Alclad II
White Aluminium
Jet Exhaust
Gunze-Sangyo Mr Aqueous Hobby Color
H331 RAF Dark Sea Grey
H332 RAF Light Aircraft Grey
H335 RAF Medium Sea Grey
Tamiya Color
X-1 Black
X-2 White
X-27 Clear Red
XF-85 NATO Black
Vallejo
Satin Varnish
Dark Rubber (Panzer Aces)
This new AV-8A is basically a slightly revised reissue of the new-tool Harrier GR Mk 1 released in mid-2013. The main changes are the revised ejection seat, various antenna, and the inclusion of Sidewinder missiles and rocket pods with associated pylons; basically any part on the new 'G' sprue. Construction is straightforward and the interior builds up nicely with the decal for the instrument panel being quite effective. About the only things I added were seat belts, which are just made from Aizu micro-masking tape. The combined intake trunking and half the nose wheel well looks complex, but it goes together well and all you have to deal with is the seam in the wheel well, which you will only see if you look really hard for it, because once the oleo leg is in place there is precious room to spare! You will need to add some nose weight, although in this instance I actually added the weights behind the compressor fan in the mid-fuselage, as that was forward of the main and outrigger undercarriage. Initially I left the tailerons (#A4) loose, but they soon got on my nerves slopping about, so they were glued in place. The tail cone (stage 16) and the intake fronts (stages 19 to 21) are not bad in their overall fit, but I had to do sanding with both to get a flush fit all along the joins. The wing fits in nicely, and although a little gap exists at the front, this can easily and quickly filled and smoothed over. Take you time to make up the gun packs and get good alignment of the two halves, as these will need subsequent sanding and the less of this the better to preserve the raised detail. All the pylons, ordnance and tanks, exhaust shields (#A19 andA22), exhaust nozzles, undercarriage and doors and canopy were all assembled and painted separately, only being added at the final stages of construction. I did replace the kit pitot with sliding aluminium tube from Albion Alloy. a suitable diameter piece was cut to length, then superglued a hole drilled in the nose. A little excess superglue was allowed around the new pitot, so that this could later be sanded to blend the pitot into the nose cone.
Colour
You get the option of two schemes for this one, the first is a USMC AV-8A of VMA-513 at Misawa Air Base, Japan in October 1976. This machine is Dark Sea Grey and Dark Green over Light Aircraft Grey. The second option is an V-8S Matador of Essla 008, Arma Aérea de la Armada, Rota Air Base in Spain during 1982. This machine is Light Aircraft Grey over white. This second scheme was my choice, as I love the Harrier in these colours. Once all the openings were blocked off (intakes, exhaust outlet sockets and cockpit (the front and rear sections having been secured in place), the whole model was primed with Gunze-Sangyo Mr Finishing Surfacer 1500 Black. Once this had dried I could start to create the white undersides by first filling in the middle of each panel. Once this was completed to my satisfaction I started to built up an overall coat of white, layer by layer, until I got sufficient contrast and yet it still looked 'white'. This is a a lot easier option than trying to apply a solid white coat and then post-shade it back. This dried overnight, then was masked and the upper grey was applied in exactly the same way. Once that had dried overnight, the masks were removed and the whole model received two coats of Johnsons Klear, and left again for 24 hours to cure. I must admit that the drop tanks should be grey and white, but I thought that a bit boring so went with them being white overall with the port one fitted with that replacement nose cone in Dark Sea Grey.
Decals
These at first sight may seen a little matt, with opaque carrier, but once applied over a good gloss base and with lots of Gunze-Sangyo Mr Mark Softer decal softener, they settled down nicely. There are quite a few stencils to apply, so this took a couple of hours one day on its own. I tend to work by the decal numbers, from lowest to highest, and cross them off the decal placement diagram as I go so that I know they have all been applied. The main markings were another couple of hours work the next day, then the whole lot was left to dry overnight and the next day a coat of Johnsons Klear sealed them all in place.
Final Assembly
The last task before final assembly was to dull down the gloss paintwork and for this I used Vallejo satin acrylic varnish, as I find it gives sufficient sheen to look right in this scale. Two coats were misted on, about an hour apart, with the upper and lower sections done on separate days so I could rest the built model on the Tamiya paint stand with either upper or lower sides showing. All the other parts were also given a coat of varnish at the same stage as the airframe and when all were dry enough to handle the final assembly began. I found that all of the pylons were of average fit, they tend to have locating tabs that are slightly too long and too wide, but this is not hard to deal with. The drop tanks actually just push-fit onto the painted pylons, the pins are that snug, whilst the rocket pods have to be glued in place. The undercarriage all fitted well, with the exception of the main oleo, which just did not want to seem to fit in the hole in the bay? In the end I trimmed it on all sides until it slotted into place, but even then the 'contact' was not a positive one. All the various antenna went on with ease and the anti-collision light on the dorsal spine fits into its corresponding hole with the need for just a dab of PVA to hold it.
Verdict
This really is an excellent kit, not too complex, and pretty easy to put together. I am certainly glad that the GR Mks 1 and 3 versions are sitting in the wings waiting to be built. Airfix are certainly producing some very nice kits nowadays and this is one that I most highly recommend to all, regardless of your experience. Oh yes, and before you all tell me, I know, I have done the panels in Dark Sea Grey instead of Medium Sea Grey..., well they look better anyway!
Paints used;
Alclad II
White Aluminium
Jet Exhaust
Gunze-Sangyo Mr Aqueous Hobby Color
H331 RAF Dark Sea Grey
H332 RAF Light Aircraft Grey
H335 RAF Medium Sea Grey
Tamiya Color
X-1 Black
X-2 White
X-27 Clear Red
XF-85 NATO Black
Vallejo
Satin Varnish
Dark Rubber (Panzer Aces)
