Rather than a long historical treatise on the Phantom II, let me just give some info on the J model. The Navy was very pleased with the initial production aircraft, the F-4A and F-4B. The USAF also liked their Phantoms, and while the F-4C was very much like the Navy's F-4B, the F-4D was a much improved aircraft in both engines and avionics. The Navy adopted several of the modifications that were made in the F-4D when it came time for an improved Phantom. This aircraft would eventually become the F-4J

Differences between it and the F-4B were not so obvious when looking at the aircraft. Major clues were the lack of an IR seeker head under the radome and larger afterburner petals on the engine. The outside of the intakes on later F-4Js had sprouted short, skinny ECM antenna bulges. In addition, it had the thicker wings and wheels of the USAF F-4C/D and a slotted stabilizer to help improve slow speed handling. 

The main differences were, as in most aircraft modifications, internal. This included uprated engines, a more powerful electrical generator, new radar system as well as a lot of newer radios and navigational aids.  An ASW-25 Automatic Carrier Landing System was also part of the upgrade. Nearly 600 F-4Js were built between December 1966 and January 1972. Many of these aircraft saw service in Vietnam and those that survived were later modified to F-4S standard.

It is hard to believe that this particular kit is now over ten years old, however, it is still considered by many to be the finest US F-4 kit around. Hasegawa went whole hog into current tendency to offer as many common sprues for a basic airframe and then adding additional sprues for the type being kitted. This means several things. One is that there are usually a number of spare parts left over from the kit and secondly, there are a lot of smaller sprues which makes for a really full box.

The kit was state of the art in 1990 and still holds up very well. All the parts have engraved panel lines, which is the expected norm, and there are lots of them. In fact, many think that these multi-version kits are a bit too intricate with too many parts. In several ways, I must agree. The greater the number of parts, the greater the chances of messing something up! However, it is the most cost effective way for Hasegawa to produce multiple versions of an aircraft, otherwise the additional tooling cost would have to be passed along to the consumer. 

Hasegawa cockpits are usually devoid of sidewall and instrument panel detail in 1/72 and this one is no exception. The instruments and side console detail is provided by a decal and that is adequate for this scale.  Also typical of Hasagawa kits is that there are no external stores beyond the wing and centerline drop tanks. For these items, you need to buy the Hasegawa weapons sets, an additional expense.

All of the sprues, including the clear bits are packed together in a single clear bag. Drawback of this is that by the time the modeler gets the kit, the parts are all well scratched by rubbing against each other during shipment. Other kit makers use multiple bags to prevent this damage. Why Hasegawa still does not do this is beyond me.

The only real option on the kit is for open or closed canopies. Missing are the canopy actuating arms that hold the canopies open. The kit also has no provisions for lowered slats, speedbrakes or flaps. Phantoms on the deck are often seen with drooped flaps or speedbrakes. 

Instructions are typical of later Hasegawa kits. It has 14 construction steps and an excellent paint guide using Gunze Sangyo paints. FS 595 numbers are given where needed. There is also a weapons load chart showing you where to put what weapons. Decals are for three aircaft, two of them in gloss gull grey over white and one in overall gull grey. The box art aircraft is the overall gull grey bird and is for the CAG bird from VF-21. The black canopy and nose markings are given as decals. Next is a VF-31 bird which sports a Mig kill on the splitter plate. Whether this is an actual Mig Killer or not is unknown as all of VF-31s F-4s were adorned with this kill mark at one time. Finally a VMFA-212 F-4J. This particular aircraft has an all white tail. The decals are Hasegawa in-house ones and as such will be a bit thick and not respond well to setting solutions. Also typical of Hasegawa decals, the white in the national insignia is a cream color. Interestingly, the white in the VMFA-212 tail marking is a pure white. Why this doesn't carry over to the insignia is a mystery. As another note on the VMFA-212 markings, I believe the blue on the sheet is too light and should be darker. As always, check real photos to make any determination on that.

Now in spite of all the nitpicking, this is still a superb kit and one that you should actively seek if interested in modeling US Phantoms in this scale. Careful construction and attention to the building steps will provide you with a superior kit that will look great on your model shelf. If there isn't enough detail in the kit, then there are a number of aftermarket detail sets and decal sheets to customize your F-4. 

A final note on this kit. This was later released as an F-4J/S with the same box art. Not sure if the decals are the same, but it would definitely have had the updated leading edge maneuvering slats that were fitted to all but the first F-4S aircraft.

McDonnell Douglas Aircraft since 1920: Volume 2, by Rene J Francillon, 1990, Naval Institute Press

Review kit courtesy of me and my wallet!

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