Revell-Monogram 1/72 scale F-14D Super Tomcat with historical book

Kit: No. 85-6866
Scale: 1/72

Manufacturer: Revell-Monogram, 8601 Waukegan Road, Morton Grove, IL 60053-2295, 847-966-3500, www.revell-monogram.com
Price: $27.99
Comments: Injection-molded, 111 parts, decals
Pros: Good detail overall
Cons: Poor fit between fuselage subassemblies, no ground-attack ordnance, some parts thick for the scale

Having struggled with balky TF30 engines through most of the F-14's service life, the U.S. Navy started retrofitting many A models with better and more-powerful G.E. F110 engines, making them "A+" and eventually redesignating them B models. At the same time, Grumman developed the F-14D with these new engines, other improvements to the radar and tracking systems, and new NACES ejection seats. Eighteen F-14As were rebuilt as F-14Ds, and 37 were newly manufactured as the D model, the Super Tomcat.

Revell's new Kitty is actually a repackaged Revell Germany kit. A bonus 48-page book, Jet Fighters of the U.S. Navy by Bert Kinzey, is included. The parts are molded in light greenish-gray plastic with some flash. The clear parts and some of the small detail parts are a bit thick for this scale.

All panel lines are recessed but a little wide by today's standards. The cockpit detail includes NACES seats and raised instruments. Like many Tomcat kits, Revell's features movable swing wings. Under the wings (and fuselage) you get a full complement of Phoenix, Sparrow, and Sidewinder missiles, but there are no bombs or LANTIRN pods commonly seen on current Tomcats. Decals for Super Tomcats from VF-213 Black Lions and the all-black "Vandy 1" from VX-9 are provided.

Revell's 16-page instruction booklet is easy to understand and provides FS paint recommendations and a brief history.

Before committing the parts to cement, I dry-fitted the fuselage assembly. Yep, there were fit problems. The forward fuselage section didn't mate well with the main section, and it required filling and sanding. The upper and lower main section traps the swinging wings. There's enough play there for the wing gearing to skip and misalign the wings. I glued a strip of sheet styrene on top of one wing's gears to keep them from getting out of synch. Even without this fix, the wings interfere with the main gear-well detail molded into the fuselage. I had to shave off the corner of the well to allow the wings to sweep all the way aft.

Other problems include a gap between the inner edges of the intake ducts and the fuselage bottom. There's a panel line molded in the middle of the radome that shouldn't be there, so fill and sand it smooth.

Revell's Sidewinder missiles look like U.S. Air Force training rounds rather than live missiles (according to Jim Rotramel's "The Modeler's Guide to the Sidewinder" article in the November 2001 FSM). I wanted my Super Tomcat to represent a current machine dropping laser-guided bombs, but I would have to get bombs and targeting pods from Hasegawa weapons sets.

I painted my model overall light ghost gray (FS 36375) and accented panel lines with a .3mm drafting pencil and HB lead. I had problems with the decals. The markings I chose were from VF-213 Black Lions, assigned to USS Carl Vinson. The lion's head marking on the nose is too large and as a result couldn't make the bend around the compound curves of the radome. The marking for the squadron is given as "VF-123" instead of VF-213. Also, the decals tended to silver, even over a gloss coat. I ended up pricking them with a sharp blade and applying a coat of Solvaset. The numbers on the decals for the Sidewinder missiles don't agree with the numbers in the instructions.

The accompanying book is a good reference on the Tomcat. The finished model scales close to published dimensions found in my references. It took 20 hours to build my Super Tomcat.

I was impressed that a model company would issue a subject that is currently in the headlines. I can't wait to have this model on display at our club's annual Armed Forces Day open house. With its upgrades and weapons load, this 'Cat can still say "Any time, baby!"

Tom Foti