Monogram 1/109 F-101B Voodoo

The Monogram F-101B Voodoo instruction sheet (1967) inspired young kids like myself with this little amount of information on the plane – but ignited our imaginations and propelled us into building huge amounts of BB Gun targets. But here is what the instructions read: “The McDonnell F-101B Voodoo was a long range, two seat, all weather interceptor powered by two Pratt and Whitney J57 engines with afterburners. An earlier version of the Voodoo F-101A, set a new world speed record of 1207.6 mph on December 12 1957 over a measured course at Edwards Air Force Base, California. The F-101B was designed to achieve a high rate of climb and to operate at extreme altitudes. The second crew man was a radar observer.

The Voodoo was armed with 4, 20-millimeter cannons and carried 2 Douglas MB-1 Genie unguided air to air nuclear missiles externally. Smaller missiles or bombs were carried internally on a rotating bomb door. The Voodoo was a large airplane, with an overall length of 67 feet 5 inches. Wingspan was 39 feet 8 inches and it had a height of 18 feet.

This is an ultra-simple kit consisting of basic parts as pictured and promises to be a fast build. This F-101 is ideally suited for a beginner or the advanced modeler waiting for something to dry on a better detailed model. There is no interior except for two crew. I did not recall that there are actually basic wheel wells. The Genies seem to be a bit out of scale and are crudely basic.

Modern photography and planes in museums show us that a lot of parts are missing like the pitot tube and other details. The rivets are large scale – but that was common place back in the ‘60s. I have to chuckle that the nose is painted red - but I think we all know better (remember the red Revell P-51D?) .

So, why did I preview this kit? Just for the fun of it. I’m that modeler waiting for some paint to dry on another old classic to be reviewed later. Don’t misunderstand me that this is a bad kit, but it will make into a really nice model in box-scale. Now… Do we build it OTB, or fix it?

Chris Mikesh

March 2023