My latest entry into the Good From Afar but Far...
My latest entry into the Good From Afar but Far From Good Collection: Monogram's AV-8B Harrier II, 1/48 scale.
Scratch built enhancements include the nose and main landing gear doors, auxiliary inlet door interiors, and lead wiring on the landing gear struts. Most but not all panel lines have been re-scribed throughout the build. More on that later.
Parts that I designed on my computer and printed at home include the outrigger landing gear struts and wheels, exhaust nozzles, Mk 82 bombs, blade antennas and the gun muzzle for the GAU12 (that cant even be seen!)
This build went smooth until it didnt, then after overcoming a series of self inflicted and unfortunate events it all still gets hung up on the canopy and windshield misalignment.
I could have taken the time to correct that but by this point I was ready to move on. that is also the reason why I couldnt be bothered to finish rescribing the panel lines that still needed it. I have a plan to address that with my next one but after a certain point, a build just becomes a time vampire instead of a recreational activity.
I know I want to make the next one better. I almost always want a do over and I am ok with that. They cant all be spectacular builds. Besides, no matter how happy I may be with something today, if I am doing it right I will look back in five years and cringe, knowing I CAN do better. I am quite happy to not let perfection get in the way of production.
With that, this one gets put aside, and lessons learned will be applied to the next build.
Lastly, I know where a lot of flaws are, but I post it here to discuss and grow. Besides, maybe you see a flaw that I cant.
Any and all critique is greatly appreciated and wanted!
Having seen one of these machines up close in vertical take off, flight and landing I can say you’ve done a masterful job of recreating it. Looks solid. Clean. Well defined. Good modeling.
thank you Graeme!
Well done
thanks!
Well from the images I can’t see the issues and the 3D printed mods/scratch built are very well done.
We’ve all had those builds that for whatever reason just go off the rails, but we must solider on to prove the kit won’t beat us. I’d say you won this one.
Thanks Matt! This one was especially derailed - after I finished putting the decals on and went to clear coat, there was an ugly chemical reaction. I ended up having to strip the entire thing back to bare plastic and start over! That's when I decided to just finish it and move on. There were plenty of lessons learned here!
Looks excellent from here, Ramon!
This is a super looking Harrier with a lot of extra quality work on it!
Well done!
thank you Spiros!
Looks good from here, too, Ramon.
thanks George!
A fine looking Harrier to me, Ramon @anvil6
Even the close-ups show your quality work.
thanks dude!
Looks great, Ramon. I like the term “Time Vampire”. At age 60 it’s about finishing models for me now.
thanks John! i wish I could take credit for that term, but I first heard it on a podcast called DOOMSDAY: History's Most Dangerous Podcast. If you are into dark humor, you should give this one a listen.
Great Harrier, Ramon. Nice work with the addions.
thank you!
That looks great, Ramon @anvil6! 👍 I really like the paintwork. 😃 And I'm impressed to see the main gear actually touching the ground! 😉
The Monogram Harrier was one of the first models I built after returning to the hobby in the late '80s. I was never able to get those wheels on the ground; but I did modify the exhausts so that all four were movable. Thanks for showing us this one! 👏
Thanks Gary! I have built this kit a few times before and the landing gear got me every time. This time though, I was determined to make all wheels have contact with the ground. My cheat: I cut the strut off from the mounting tab, drilled a hole in it and inserted some brass tubing. Not only did this allow me to adjust the position of the strut, but it made it easier to paint the fuselage. This definitely helped!
That's a great workaround, Ramon! 👍
Ditto with all the above comments - looks like a great build to me!
thank you Greg!
Fantastic. Something about the 2nd picture, bottom row...looks like a painting! Nice work on the bombs!
Thanks Brian!
Hey Ramon (@anvil6). Despite your personal thoughts on this build (sounds like it's been fun 😀 ), I think from what I can see from the photos, you have created a very cool model.
I am biased though as starting with the GR1 & 3 BAe Harrier, this plane has been a favorite of mine since childhood.
Thanks Scott, cheers mate!
Great build and great post title! That’s what I am after - something that is rewarding to look at, but not to study in detail!
Thank you! I stopped insisting that all my builds be winners. I start out wanting them to be that way but after a certain point, I just finish and move on. i can always apply lessons learned to a do-over build!
That Harrier looks good to me… nice work on a difficult kit… paint looks great! A+
thanks Jay!