Hailing
from Taiwan, DXM Decals (which stands for “Double Excellent Model”) has
produced a great many quality decal sheets in 1/32, 1/48, and 1/72 over the
past decade, mainly for modern jets. One of their more recent offerings is
this delightful set for Navy and Marines F-4 Phantoms of the 1970s. I just
received this sheet so I can build something fun for a Hasegawa F-4B/N in my
stash. There are four options:
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F-4B of VF-11 “Red Rippers,” USS Forrestal, 1972
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F-4J of VFMA-451 “Warlords,” USS Forrestal, 1976
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F-4J of VF-92 “Silver Kings,” NAS Miramar, 1975
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F-4N of VF-161 “Chargers,” USS Midway, 1976
Just one
glance at the sheet and you’re faced with the impossible task of even
knowing which one to build. That may be an exaggeration—but seriously,
excellent job by DXM for picking four very colorful and impressive looking
jets for this sheet. There’s a couple that are decked out in special
Bicentennial livery (VFMA-451 and VF-161), a CAG bird with rainbow diamonds
on the fin (VF-11), and the VF-92 jet was even flown by a “LT Santa Claus.”
That’s right, your finished Phantom could greet viewers with a cheery “Merry
Christmas!”
DXM included a full set of stencils, so you can build at least one jet from this sheet, and they even helpfully point out in the instructions that more than one could be built with the help of kit decals. And why not? It seems a shame to not build all four eventually. The sheet is printed by the ever-excellent Cartograf, so you know you’re in for a high-quality experience. If you like to build in the Gentleman’s Scale, and are interested in building a carrier deck Phantom, this sheet looks like an amazing choice for making your Spook really pop.