Call me biased if you want, but the F-4 Phantom is probably my most favorite post WWII aircraft. I have built more Phantom kits in my life than any other (over 75). Oddly, I have built darn few in the last 10 years or so, only averaging about one a year in recent times. Haven't done one this year so I need to get my butt in gear and get one going!

I also have a real fondness for the colorful Navy F-4s, though I do like the ADC grey ANG versions as well. If you told me that I could build nothing else for the rest of my modeling life other than F-4 kits, there would be enough to keep me very busy!

Not at all ignored by the decal makers, the F-4 probably has as many if not more decal sheets dedicated to it than just about any other aircraft. And that includes the usual hoards of Bf-109s, Mustangs, and P-47s. This is just a gut feeling and not really scientific, but I wouldn't doubt it to be true. Like many long time modelers, I have more decals than aircraft to put them on and the F-4 section is VERY large!

This sheet by Eagle Strike is one of the newest on the market. I must confess to a bit of sticker shock when looking at the price tag on it, but it seems like sheets are now selling in the $8-10 price range. There is an identical 1/48 sheet that costs a buck more. You have to do a lot more painting with that sheet as the decals for that scale won't fit on a single sheet.

Anyway, this one has some very nice schemes in it. So without any additional ado, let's get on with it.

First aircraft is an F-4N from VF-41. This is a CAG bird so has a small amount of extra color on it in the place of stars on the back of the rudder. For a CAG bird, it isn't really that much extra color. 

The VF-142 F-4J that is next is a bit different. It is also a CAG bird and has multi-colored stars on the rudder as well. However, the standard colors for VF-142 at this point were very nice. The sheet gives you the colored tail and fuselage stripe.

Finally an F-4J from VF-171. This unit was a training squadron that was based at Oceana with dets in Key West. The Key West dets were mostly for aggressor training. This has a very nice red, white and blue tail marking.

You will notice that each aircraft has a slightly different paint job on the nose radome.

The instructions are superb giving all the color information as well as a small historical note and other notes on each specific aircraft. There is also a bibliography of where you can find info on these aircraft. You can tell this instruction sheet was for 1/48 kits as well as 1/72 as all the kit references are for Hasegawa and Monogram 1/48 kits. Frankly, you should be able to use the Monogram and Hasegawa 1/72 F-4J kit and the Hasegawa 1/72 F-4B/N for this sheet. It should fit the Fujimi family of 1/72 F-4s as well.

There are enough common markings for two planes. Stencil and wing/fuselage walkways will have to come from other sheets or the kit decals.

As a final note, the scan of the sheet is a bit fuzzy and a bit too dark to dissuade any copying.

Review copy courtesy of me and my wallet!! 

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