Here’s another one for you guys (and gals)…
I want to do a 1/48 F-15C sometime this year for a buddy of mine and would like your input (best kit, decals, etc). I’ll be doing one from the 18th Fighter Wing “Shoguns” (tail letters ZZ). I’ve seen the Revell kit, so-so as usual. I’m assuming Tamiya and Hasegawa are good (but pricey), but what about the Academy? Let er rip…
Academy has one of the best kits for the price , very good decals ( not too thick ) good fit with very little filler needed. Better quality plastic than the Revell kit. You should be able to pull up pictures of some completed Academy F-15 models in this scale.
I WOULD SAY, FOR ACCURACY; GET THE TAMIYA KIT OR HASEGAWA! FOR PROOF, JUST CHECK THE NOSE GEAR AND YOU CAN SEE THE DIFFERENCE FROM THE ACADEMY.[;)]
man!!! do not go cheap on the model!!!..personally I think that academy sucks when it comes to decals and parts are not that accurate…if it is for a friend give him the best[:O]
Ronstyle
I built the Tamiya kit. There are a few issues with the intakes but it builds into a nice C model.
Hello “gedenke”!
You need to ask Yourself some Q´s first!
-Does Your friend have any idea about plastic-modelling? Panel-lines, weathering etc. etc.???
-Could he/she be comfortable with a Corgi-desktop-model? … in any scale??? Use of model???
Anyway - what I´m saying, is that if Your friend is a “passive” aircraft-buff, with no knowledge of modelling and the like… then You go build a model You would be satisfied with. You might even use it as a project to improve Your skills for Your own homebased showcase.
I did a similar thing a few years back.
My two first airbrush models - an A-10 & AH-64, both in 1/72. My preferred scale is 1/48, but I did those testings on some of the notorious models that one keeps buying! :)) Both kits ended up as “out of the box”…allright then… I did do a lot of work on the A-10 cockpit - I wept inside as I gave it all away! 
None the less, my friend - who got these on his birthday - confined in me that those where the best gifts that evening. And he´s just one who gets arroused by those great “Discovery-Channel” programs concerning weapons…Air-Sea-Ground!!!
I hope Your friend gets pleased as well!
Gunnar - Denmark
As for my friend, he’s definately not too interested in our hobby, so I don’t think that he’ll need the absolute best. It was one of those things where we over at my house drinking one night, and it came up that he worked on 15s in Japan, so I offered to build him one. Besides, he’s funding the project, I’m just doing the work, and he’s implied that he doesn’t want to spend a fortune. He just wants one to put on top his TV stand. I do however, want to give him something presentable. I thought about the Revell kit, but my friend said the decals were the wrong color (i.e., smaller black “ZZ” instead of large pale grey, colored stars/bars instead of grey stencil, etc). Anyway, thanks for all your input, I may try the Academy option.