Accurate Miniatures F-4J Phantom II "USN/USMC Fighter Bomber" Model Kit

Intended as a gift for my dad. He was VMFA-251 back in the day and I remember breaking a model he got from the squadron. That was 25 years ago and I still remember it vividly. Eventually, I picked up modeling as a hobby and got the great idea to build him a replacement. Unfortunately, VMFA-251 squadron decals seem to be the only ones that don’t exist in 1/72. I took some artistic liberties by cannibalizing the usable decals and hand painting the rest. Also, since he stayed in civil service as basically a rocket scientist, I upgraded the kits included arsenal of AIM-9B’s to AIM-9X’s as a nod to the platform that helped pay for my education. Overall, the kit was pretty good. Plenty of little details that were free of flashing. The edges did need to be cleaned up a little bit, but ultimately, everything went together quite well; just be prepared to do a bit of sanding. For the price, I’d say I am pretty pleased with this kit.

Very nice kit.

I have recently returned to scale modeling after many years. I have made many different kits, but that was quite some time ago, and I bought this kit as a gift for my brother. I figured that returning to the hobby could do me some good and help out with my eye-hand coordination as it has taken a nose dive over the years. This is NOT a simple or easy kit -at least for me. I have never been an "expert" modeler and was at best merely a decent modeler at my prime. The kit comes together nicely, but the instructions are NOT the best. and the pieces are very fragile and easy to accidentally bend or break. I did not have terrible fit issues, and most could be fixed with time and some putty. However, for me the decals were ABSOLUTE TRASH!!!! Not sure if I simply got an old kit, but those decals were unbelievably difficult to work with (I used Mr. Mark setter and softener), and the decals simply fell apart with the slightest adjustments. With the decals looking terrible -the model looks terrible. This is my third kit this month, and nothing compared to the issues I had with these decals compared to other kits. The price is decent, (I paid $27), but the decals alone drove me to the brink of insanity. If you are a very experienced and patient modeler, this kit would likely be an excellent build, for me it looks like an 8 year-old on redbull, double-shot espresso, and methamphetamine built it! My skills are part of the problem, but the kit (DECALS) definitely contributed to my failure. I would not recommend this kit, I would/will find another kit maker and try again.

Looks good so far. Haven't gotten around to full assembly yet.

I will stay away from 1/72; I am 74 and they are too small for me to see.

Kit came in good condition

Definitely not the kind of model that will look great with minimal effort. Without time and attention to detail, this could end up being pretty horrible. Overall, I would not recommend this model for a beginner, as its pretty expensive and a little tricky to build (mainly because of how delicate it is). The raised panel lines also require a little more work than usual to deal with. But, then again, with patience and attention to detail, it'll turn out great.

Great model