Fly Fly F-100 Build

[Maximus]

Hi all, new to the forums and I’m a n00b when it comes to jets and electrics! It’s interesting after being in this hobby so long and then starting something so new, it makes me feel just as I did when I started RC as a kid so long ago, pretty unsure of what I am doing!

My goal in this thread is to receive advice when I need it so that I’m not building this thing alone, and if I run a build thread it will make me feel a certain obligation to finish this project and not leave people hanging that may be following along. I’ve already started the build, but I will post pictures over the next few days until I catch up to where I am now.

I will be heavily modifying the plane, building is where it’s at for me, we have all seen many of the stock ones fly already, so I’m going to be doing something different.

Please feel free to step in at any time and comment or ask any questions you may have, thanks!

[Maximus]

Next mod will be to fix the landing gear. This is pretty easy really, the full scale F-100 had the gear facing out, the Fly Fly model has the gear facing in. I used a strip of PC board to strengthen the center section after cutting the new wheel wells. The wheels are in the same location as the stock kit because when the gear legs are moved in the wheels are facing out, so they are not any narrower.

[birdDog]

Hi Maximus. Looks like you may have done some modeling before! Subscribed.

[Maximus]

Next I glued the stock ailerons back on and then cut them out at the scale location. I will then move the aileron servo closer to the center section eliminating about 14” of servo wire. I also fixed the smashed wing tips by cutting a slot and inserting 1/32” ply, then I added foam as needed to fill the void.

[Maximus]

Originally Posted by birdDog

Hi Maximus. Looks like you may have done some modeling before! Subscribed.

Hi BirdDog, thanks for your comment, nice to have you along! I've been messing around with models for a while I guess you could say!

I’m not sure what the stock ordinace is really, but I wanted something a little bader (?)! So I carved the things into the awesome Martin/Maxon GAR-8 Bullpup. I will be making the inner racks to hold these bad boys also.

[Maximus]

I picked up the lighting system from EJF by RCLander, it says it’s for the Mig-17, but I got it to fit. I cut a groove 2” forward from the stock tail pipe and glued the lights in.

[Maximus]

I sanded the fin to a nice shape, relocated the aileron servos and fixed the nose intake.

[Maximus]

I used a mixture of water putty, water and light weight spackle painted on the parts to smooth the surface in preparation for glassing. It works very well and actually stiffens the foam quite a bit and it sands very nice.

[Maximus]

This is how she looks so far, I’ve also finished the cockpit. I ordered the cockpit from Skylake models, the pilots are not correct but they look cool anyway!

[dumo01]

Nice looking model
Subscribed

[Maximus]

Originally Posted by dumo01

Nice looking model
Subscribed

Thank you dumo01, and it's nice to have you along with my build.

The little details always take up tons of time, it just nickel and dimes you to death! I am making the tanks droppable using the old Vortac bomb drops, I bought tons of these when they were available because I liked them, so I have enough for several more models. I've made the inner and outermost racks just for carrying stuff around that looks cool, I will be able to manually attach whatever I want.

I'm not really impressed with the lighting system, I could not get the radio shut off to work, they are just always on. So I will have to do without the landing light. I burned a hole from the wing tip to the aileron, then cut a slot in the back of the wing to bury the wire for the lights, then the wire just follows the servo wire trough.

[Maximus]

I thought I’d give my loyal readers an update, I’ve been making progress but I just have not been taking the time to post or take a lot of pictures, I’m making an extreme effort to get this thing done! Don’t worry though, I’ll keep you posted.

I finally finished the ordinance, just some final finishing and fins on my drop tanks. I’ve added the low drag dumb bombs with fuse extenders to the outer racks, I just carved them free hand out of foam, added 1/32” fins and aluminum fuses. I will detail them after I get the finish mostly done. So now everything is removable and I have the option of dropping whatever I attach to the middle racks.

Now, back to work!

[mustangpilot]

Awesome job Maximus! I'm on board. This is going to be my next winters project. But your going to make it tuff on the old man Hugh. You have some pretty slick scale upgrades. I'll be watching. Jim

[capn chaos]

Maximus,
Amazing stuff. Some of these kewl planes get bypassed with all of the "hot" items, F-16, F 18, Mig 17 etc...
Super job and have been watching from the "wings". Don't think I'm ready to tackle one like this but had to subscribe just for future reference.
Keep on "keepin on"
CC

[Maximus]

Thank you very much for the encouragement gents! I have been really working on this baby!

I had to add one more detail, the very prominent and interesting refueling boom. She is now ready to glass...

[Maximus]

For glassing a bird like this where weight is critical, you must use a light weight method. None better than thinning the resin about 40 percent resin to 60 percent denatured alcohol. It really simplifies the application and there is no need to do anything during or after the application. All you are doing is bonding the glass to the foam, but it really does make it much more ding resistant, no need to pile the resin on, it also stiffens the foam quite a bit. You have to fold it over on the parts, you don’t want to go around and cut the glass off with sandpaper, because then you would leave some rough edges, because no more glass is used. I then fill the weave with a mixture of spackle, putty and water as we did before, this sands very easy and then you are ready to prime. I prime with regular water based house primer, wet sand and then she is ready for paint.

[Maximus]

Time for colors! I used Model Masters paints, first the basic colors then the weathering. I’m going to try my hand at detailing the aft aluminum skin with some burnt effects, we’ll see how I do!

[Maximus]

Forgot to add some pictures!

[Maximus]

I’m a little behind on the wing, just getting it painted now. I used CA hinges filled with 5min epoxy for my ailerons in case you all want to know. I also have my various air brushes that I used for this job there for you to see. The first one I’ve had for about 15 years, it’s an old Testers external single action brush, it works great for larger areas. The next one is a much more precise air brush, good for the edges of your camo pattern and small details but not larger areas. The last one is my auto detail gun, used for priming. Tomorrow I’ll finish painting the wing and maybe start on the weathering.

[Maximus]

Made my decals, just printed them out on clear and some on white decal paper.
I’m getting all the servo’s and stuff installed now, so it won’t be long!

[Alpea42]

Nice looking model.

[mustangpilot]

Originally Posted by Maximus

This is how she looks so far, I’ve also finished the cockpit. I ordered the cockpit from Skylake models, the pilots are not correct but they look cool anyway!

I like what I see. You said the pilots are not correct? Are you saying they are to small? Because in the pic's so far they look fine. I've been on the fence for a while now about doing one of these. But seeing your jet I'm about ready to jump off and get one coming. Keep the pictures coming. Jim

[Maximus]

Thanks Alpea42!

Thanks Jim, I should have clarified that a bit about the pilots. I just meant that the pilots helmets are of the wrong era, not 1970 Vietnam style, they are modern. I liked the way they looked and decided to not sand them down and modify them, so I guess they could be accurate if my plane was of a modern restoration! As far as getting one of these, I say do it! I love the Hun but I did not want to spend thousands of dollars or spend a thousand hours building one from scratch, it’s a perfect size for me also.

While I wait for my new rotors to get here I decided to start on the weathering. This really is the most artistic point of any build, it can be extremely easy to over do it. I wanted to start with the aluminum rear section, it should look burnt to a degree. I stared by drawing on the panel lines with an ultra fine permanent marker. Next I mixed black with silver, masked off individual sections with electrical tape and lightly sprayed the panels. Not much paint is used so I just use a few strips of tape, over and over again.
Next I mixed some tan with yellow and white. Then I added some metallic blue, and then finally highlighted that with some metallic purple. I used a internal mix double action airbrush and had to go over the areas several times because so little paint is coming out, you want to add it in fine layers. I still want to touch this up a bit, and the lighting distorts the colors, but I wanted to give you an idea of how it looks.

[Maximus]

I may fly this thing this weekend, so wish me luck! I have not finished my drop tanks and bombs, but I will have time for that after the maiden.

[f82fan]

VERY NICE!
Thanks for doing this bird.
My dad flew 'Huns in England & F-4s in Viet Nam, so I have a soft spot for them both.
Looks like I need to get one of these... I just don't have the time to beautify one like you've done.
Here's wishing you the best on the maiden and the future!
Wally

BTW... Hope you can bring some EDFs and a bunch of friends to our All-Electric-Jet-Festival on September 11 at the NWRCC Field just outside of Houston!
www.nwrcc.com
It is the weekend before Bomber Fields B-17 fly-in.