HAPPY VETERAN’S DAY

My next build is the 1/32 scale Trumpeter A-7E Corsair II. The scheme will be that of VA-37 “The Bulls”. This has been a project I have been planning to do for a while. Back in 1982 while serving in the U.S. Navy I checked into my new duty station at NAS Cecil Field in Jacksonville Florida and was assigned to the Attack Squadron VA-37. I spent 3 years with this squadron which included a cruise aboard the USS Carl Vinson CVN-70 during her 1983 maiden deployment and a 6-month deployment to Iwakuni, Japan where we were part of “Team Spirit” in 1985.

As a tribute to my time serving with this squadron I will be making this aircraft number 300 which was flown by my commanding officer CDR R.L. Ramsay. I will be building and detailing this aircraft to match his aircraft as well as illuminating the cockpit, wingtip, fuselage, and landing light using LED’s. It will be on a display base replicating the tarmac at NAS Cecil Field. I will be using Cutting Edge’s decal set. I should also note that this kit comes with photo etch, metal landing gear struts, and rubber tires. I will actually be officially starting this tonight so these first photos are setting up to start the build. I will be designing the backlit side panels and the instrument panel which will be illuminated with red LED’s. This is how the cockpit was illuminated at night.

Check out my build log at https://davidsscalemodels.com/1-32-a-7e-corsair-ii-va-37-the-bulls/

7 attached images. Click to enlarge.

A great kit for a tribute, David @davids_models
Looking forward to a beautiful highlighted A7.
Quite a lot of sprues to deal with.

@davids_models, that means a lot of ordnance can be added.

Wow! Modeling at another, higher level, my friend @davids_models!
Looking superb so far!

Moving onto the second week I continued working on the instrument panel by building the light box. I am using a 3mm red LED mounted thru the bottom. The front was detail painted for the switches, knobs, and markings. I then assembled, detailed and painted the resin ejection seat. I also made the decals for the seat warning labels. While the instrument panel assembly and ejection seat were drying I was looking over the other areas that will be illuminated.

The recognition lights on many Navy aircraft sit on the nose landing gear. On the A-7 specifically the panel is mounted on the port nose landing gear door. The kit has this panel molded in clear. This made it easier to illuminate. I drilled a 0.25mm hole from the backside halfway into the panel. I then attached three 0.25mm fiber optic lines. On the front side the molded light locations were painted using Tamiya red, green, and yellow clear paints. The fiber optic lines will go to a light box to be mounted later. I did a quick check and the effect worked great.

Next was the belly light. The kit has the light molded into the bottom panel. I cut off the “lens” and drilled out the hole. Using a clear styrene tree I cut, trimmed and shaped a new lens. I then mounted a flashing red LED behind the lens.

Next I needed to detail the main gear bays. Using reference photos I added the lines and hoses to the port side bay. I also added the aircraft ground point and markings. The wire coiled up in the photos will be one of the power wires for the LED’s. This will travel down the strut replicating the hydraulic line and pass thru the wheel and tire to a spot under the display base. I will add the other power wire on the starboard side gear as well.

With all the cockpit assemblies completed I did a test fit into the fuselage. I needed to do some minor trimming of the cockpit tub for the instrument panel light box but everything lined up perfectly. I am now working on detailing the starboard side main gear bay then will need to get the intake and nose wheel bay built and detailed so I can start putting the fuselage together.

More details and photos can be seen from the start in my build log at https://davidsscalemodels.com/1-32-a-7e-corsair-ii-va-37-the-bulls/

10 attached images. Click to enlarge.

Your techniques to illuminate the interior are nothing short of spectacular, David (@davids_models). The cockpit and instrument panel look amazing. I flew into Cecil Field several times when I was flying C-141s. Looking forward to the rest of the build.

John, You need to use either acrylic gel or canopy glue. Regular model glues will not adhere to the fiber optic lines and super glues will damage the fiber optics and make them very brittle. I use Liquitex Acrylic gel personally. It adheres a little better than the canopy/PVA glues.

As I move into the third week of the A-7E Corsair II I detailed the port side main gear bay. There is a panel of nine gauges. The kit version just has them portrayed as rings so I made the panel and gauges from scratch then hooked up all the lines to them. I added a few more lines as well as the other power line that will run down the landing gear into the display base.

Next I turned my attention to the port avionics bay. Many of the avionics had lines marking the handles. I removed these and then using some small staples I cut and bent them to make the handles. I then drilled holes to fit the 32 awg wires to represent the electrical cables for the equipment. I then made some small label decals for the equipment. I used the reference photo to duplicate these. The reference photos show a green tank (Oxygen?) in the forward section. I used a fishing weight and some PE scraps to replicate the tank and then scratch built another piece of equipment.

While certain steps were drying I located the parts for the landing light that sit on one of the main gear doors. I drilled a slot on the rear side and inserted a PICO size LED and used acrylic gel to glue it into the back of the light bezel. I painted the inside with chrome silver then put the clear lens on it.

I am now starting to work on the starboard side avionics bay. I started by removing some molded in details to replace them with the equipment shown in my reference photos. Once this is completed I then need to start on the intake, nose gear bay, and the exhaust which is getting me closer to assembling the fuselage together.

More details and photos can be seen from the start in my build log at https://davidsscalemodels.com/1-32-a-7e-corsair-ii-va-37-the-bulls/

9 attached images. Click to enlarge.