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Magic Factory’s 48th scale USMC A-4 Skyhawk…

Magic Factory's 48th scale USMC A-4 Skyhawk...

Follow his build in Part I today…

Build Review Pt.I: USMC A-4 Skyhawk light attack aircraft

From Magic Factory
1/48th scale
Kit No #2007

Plastic injection model kit
Two marking choices in the box

I think it’s fair to say that Magic Factory received plenty of feedback on the Corsair tooling, some good and some bad. However, they diligently continued engagement with Follow his build in Part I today…

Build Review Pt.I: USMC A-4 Skyhawk light attack aircraft Facebook page From Magic Factory
1/48th scale

Kit No #2007

Plastic injection model kit
Two marking choices in the box
I think it’s fair to say that Magic Factory received plenty of feedback on the Corsair tooling, some good, some bad, but they diligently continued to engage with the modelling community, mostly via their
, as they worked on their next release.

I feel this has served them well as many potential problems with their A-4 kit have been avoided, based in no small part to the feedback from knowledgeable folks in the community. Magic Factory has shown that they are not only listening to feedback, but also acting on it. As with any kit, there will be some things that I don’t enjoy (let’s wait and see what they do with surface details this time). However, to be fair to everyone, it’s the same for every build. The Magic Factory has a great deal of room to grow and learn, like Kinetic and Trumpeter before them. The aircraft was initially designated A4D in the United States Navy’s pre-1962 designator system. The U.S. Navy used the Skyhawk as their primary light attack aircraft in the Vietnam War. They carried out the U.S.’s first air strikes during that conflict. Israeli Air Force used the Skyhawk as its main ground-attack aircraft in both the War of Attrition, and Yom Kippur War. Argentine Air Force Skyhawks attacked Royal Navy ships during the Falklands War. They sank the Type 42 destroyer Coventry, and Type 21 frigate Ardent. Kuwaiti Air Force Skyhawks saw action during Operation Desert Storm. In 2022, nearly seven decades after the aircraft’s first flight in 1954, a number of Skyhawks remain in service with the Argentine Air Force and the Brazilian Naval Aviation.

Designed specifically for use by the U.S. Marine Corps, the A-4M improvements included the 11,200 lb thrust Pratt & Whitney J52-P408 engine; a smokeless burner can; a larger, increased-visibility canopy; a ribbon-type drag chute; and a repositioned IFF antenna atop a squared-off vertical fin. The first A-4M was flown by Douglas test pilot Walt Harper on April 10th, 1970 at Douglas Palmdale in California. VMA-324, at MCAS Yuma in Arizona, was the first to receive a fleet introduction on February 26th, 1971. Subsequent improvements in a majority of the A-4Ms included “heads-up” cockpit instrumentation; integrated weapons display & delivery systems; “laser spot” target acquisition; tracking; advanced ECM & defensive ECM; and a new electrical generator.

Ironically, the A-4M was the only Skyhawk version, other than the A-4A, to not see combat. A-4M entered service as Vietnam War came to an end in 1971 and was retired from front-line service before the Gulf War in 1990. Foreign versions of A-4M were used in combat throughout the Middle East. The Israeli A-4Ns, and Kuwaiti A-4KUs were involved. The Magic Factory Box for the 1:48 A-4M Skyhawk is large, and contains a lot of pieces. There are 24 different sprues, including weapons, the main airframe and clear or vinyl parts. The “2 in one” refers to the fact that you only get all of the parts needed for either an early or late A-4M, not both. It appears that the 2 in 1 boxing includes all of the necessary parts to construct either the early A-4M or the late A-4M. As there are no decals included, I expect to see more boxings of this variant in the future. Six detail pieces were provided on a small photo-etch sheet. There’s also a metal pitot (positioned on the tail vertical) and self-adhesive reflective surfaces for the rear view mirrors of the canopy. It’s been a while since I have seen new kits with vinyl/rubber parts, especially for tires. The vinyl sprue comes with a belt set for the seats, which is actually not a bad idea. It’s the rubber tires that I wish they would have given us instead. They could also include vinyl tires for those who want them. I’ve never had much success with vinyl tires and will be swapping these out for a more traditional solution but more on this later in the build when we get to assembly.
This kit is also the first time I have seen small lead beads included for the nose weight. There are not many of these provided, and as you can see I am not sure they would hold the nose in place. This 16-page assembly manual is in black and gray and appears to be well organized and thorough. You wouldn’t think it at first, but when you dig a little deeper you realize that Magic Factory has cleverly chosen both the first and the last A-4M operational aircraft. This allows modellers the opportunity to cover the whole USMC A-4M career. It’s an excellent idea. The first A-4M was built under the number 158148. The aircraft is painted in black and white on the Naval Weapons Evaluation Facility’s A-4M, February 21st 1975. On the fuselage is an insignia of the Naval Air Test Center. On the other side, black and white colors were inverted. The A-4M “Double Nuts” from Marine Attack Squadron 131 Diamondbacks was selected to be painted in a Hi-Viz scheme as a tribute to the retiring of the US Marine A-4. Magic Factory’s markings are designed to correspond with the final scheme of the A-4M squadron, which was retired on 22 June 1994. For more information on the
, check out the informative article written by Dave Aungst. Cartograph printed the decals, and the colours, clarity, and artwork are all excellent. The decals will be perfect when applied to the model. Build – Magic Factory A-4M Skyhawk 5002

My build almost never follows the instructions. My builds are rarely built in the order outlined by the kit instructions. Instead, I like to skip around and focus on any areas that may need special attention, or pose problems down-the-road. Early attention to these issues will help me avoid problems as I progress with the build. To make my articles easier to read, I have reorganized them into a logical step-by-step order. In this case, I’ll be sticking closely to the sequence provided by Magic Factory, ensuring the process is clear and methodical for anyone following this guide.

Kicking off in the cockpit, the kit seat is one of the more detailed I have seen out-of-the-box. Harness belts are one of the most important things missing from kit seats. Magic Factory has provided vinyl/rubber belts. Flexible belts can be bent to fit around the sides of cushions and then secured on the top. To my eye, the belts are probably a bit overscale for 1/48, but it’s a much better option than having no belts at all (or even PE Belts). The ESCAPAC ejection seat series was used by Douglas Aircraft on the A-4 Skyhawk aircraft. These are one of the most significant American designed/manufactured seats with Escapacs being fitted to many U.S. Navy aircraft including the A-4 Skyhawk, the A-7 Corsair II, and the S-3 Viking. Escapac IG-3 seats were installed in the A-4F, and other variants including the M. It is notable that the primary seat safety handle (nicknamed a “headnocker”), which can be found in the middle of the headrest on the MF seats has been omitted. The Quickboost Seat shows that this has been locked in the down position. It also appears that the Magic Factory kit seat lacks the finer details found on the resin version. However, these are minor niggles. I still think the Magic Factory kit is an excellent effort. This means that you’ll need to choose your scheme very early in the cockpit. While I build an A-4M, I will focus on the instructions with the yellow borders. Both early and late cockpit side consoles and main IP are provided, and even here you get more choices between flat decal-only parts (J10/F5) or raised moulded detail parts (J11/F6).

It’s particularly important to use the appropriate parts for your chosen variant, as there is considerable difference between the early (non HUD) and late (HUD with ARBS) cockpits. To my knowledge, Magic Factory are the first kit manufacturer to offer the early A-4M variant out-of-the-box.

For my build I opted to use the raised detail parts as these are so nicely done it would have been a pity to not use them, plus the flat decals just don’t look very realistic to me. For the preparation of detail painting, I applied a layer of FS36231 Dark Gull Grey. I then masked off the areas that would not then be painted black. This will only work if you use a strong decal-softening product that can coax decals into raised details. The VMS

is the softener I use for these jobs, it is one of the most powerful on the market. One way to solve this problem is by cutting the decal up into small sections, and applying them one at a time. This was done for the side consoles that were relatively simple. The black edge had to be removed and the decal cut in half. You don’t have to go through all of the backing paper to get to the decal. A light cut with a new, sharp blade is enough to remove the decal. The two parts of the decal are then applied to the plastic raised parts, aligned with the detail and generously covered with VMS Softener using a soft bristle brush. From here, the best option is to leave it alone. The decals will become soft very quickly and pulling or prodding them will likely cause them to tear. The decal should settle around the raised details by itself. I was able to navigate effectively around taller components that tend to cause the decal to be distorted if it is placed on top of them. After letting the VMS Softener work overnight, I was pleasantly surprised at the results. It’s not perfect but it looks great to me. It can easily be corrected with two light coats Mr.COLOR’s Super Smooth Flat Clear (GX114) to get rid of the semi-gloss finish. Of course we then need to re-instate the glass covers over the instrument dials and for this I find Mr.COLOR Super Clear III Gloss (GX100) hand brushes consistently.
The cockpit tub floor and the roof of the nose wheel well are connected and will be installed in the forward fuselage later as a single piece. It’s my preference to wait until the end of the project before adding the seat, but that is just me. The cockpit of this kit is very detailed. It’s great to see the seat rails on the rear bulkhead, D41. I also appreciate how realistic the fabric quilting is reproduced in the rear wall and side walls. The cockpit is one of the most realistic in-box cockpits that I have seen in quite some time. Magic Factory deserves a lot of credit for this. There will not be any need to add aftermarket parts or scratch built upgrades. This colour is available from virtually all paint manufacturers, so there’s no need to struggle with matching. Before joining the fuselage half halves it is important to prepare the interior. I used Mr Finishing Surfacer Black 1500 followed by MRP 100 Dark Gull Grey. First glue in the cockpit sidewalls D58/D63. Install parts D18 & D22 if you plan to show the engine inspection panel in an open position. Drill four 0.7mm hinge holes and attach the D18 & D22. Install the interior parts of the rear brakes at this time. You can also paint them if desired. This particular plane may not look worn, but it does convey a feeling of being well used and lived in. The custom-mixed colors are Dark Brown (87140), and Black (87131), both from Tamiya Panel Line Access Color. The wash serves a dual purpose: it highlights the details while also giving them a grimy appearance.

Magic Factory has taken the effort to pack quite a lot of detail inside the small fuselage. The cockpit is accompanied by a full intake section, an engine section with detailed side doors (for those who want to show the access door open), and the exhaust nozzle and engine. It featured aiming circle to estimate the lead. The main cockpit (and the nose gear bay), fit into the starboard half of fuselage. Magic Factory has provided solid alignment slots behind the intake to make sure everything fits (and stays in place) exactly where it should. The interior of my engine is mostly hidden after assembly so I leave it black. Europe Earth Pigment powder (A.MIG-3004) was used to create a subtle brown color on the nozzle. I set this with AK Pigment fixer (AK048). The realistic scaled texture that pigment powders create is something I use more and more in my aircraft models. The newer version of the engine provided a 20% increase in thrust. This improved performance for the aircraft. This improvement did not increase fuel consumption. The A-4M was able to enjoy improved performance and range without having to sacrifice operational efficiency. The engine upgrade was particularly useful, since it improved agility and performance while maintaining fuel efficiency. This section doesn’t need to be painted if you intend to close the doors. However, I still recommend it, because it gives the fuselage more structural rigidity. This area is not well-described in the kit, so I used reference images to help me choose a colour scheme. Even though it’s a small part of the build, adding this internal detail can enhance the model’s realism if the access doors are left open.

With the four main sub-assemblies–cockpit, intakes, engine, and exhaust–fully assembled, it’s time to fit them into the fuselage. Magic Factory designed this step so that it is incredibly simple, with well-engineered slots and alignment pins to ensure accurate positioning of each component. It’s so easy to assemble, even by less-experienced modelers. The fitting is flawless. Each sub-assembly clicks into place neatly, and only requires a small amount of glue. The engine interior is visible from the hatch. I had initially been unsure how much detail would be revealed. I was very pleasantly surprised. The extra work of painting and detailling the engine is well worth the effort, since it enhances the model’s realism. This is where the attention to detail pays off, as it adds depth and interest. All major components of the fuselage are now securely attached. The next step will be to focus on assembling the tail and wings, bringing this project closer to completion. While I work, I will also pay close attention to the surface details, particularly those rivets. It’s important to address them properly if I want the model to look as realistic as possible. Keep an eye out for my next installment, in which I will tackle these finer details to bring this model alive! Gary Wickham A-4M 160024 Retirement Re-Painting.

You’ll find more about Gary Wickham and his model-making on his website.

 

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About Haluk Cetin

I'm Haluk, everyone calls me Hulk. Skydiver, Scale modeler, and Frontend Developer. Hobbyzero.com author.

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