I just bought Hasegawa’s Kfir C-2 in the 1/72 scale ; I was thinking about building this kit as an USMC Aggressor aircraft . I have some decals left over from a Airfix F-5 Tiger II ; However I’m not sure about the FS colour scheme . Does anyone know what colours the Marines use; I would be most greatful for any assistance . [ I saw some nice images on the Internet , Tan/brown-green and Blue/grey scheme , Kind Regards Helo 53[%-)]
In addition to the colour scheme, there are some structural differences between the C2 variant represented by the Hasegawa kit and the F-21 variant, which is, as far as I am able to ascertain, based on the C1.
The C2 as presented by the Hasegawa kit has full canards, whereas on the F-21 the canards are little more than enlarged strakes.
The C2 also has dogtooth leading edge extensions on the wings, whereas the F-21 has a “straight” leading edge.
These are the most obvious “visible” differences.
For some basic colour references - see the article about the Italeri F-21 build at ipmsstockholm.org
Addendum:
The Italeri kit gives different FS numbers compared with the review linked above:
The Italeri kit quotes:
“Grey Bluish” FS 35237
“Gray” FS 36251
“Light Gray” FS 36307
Thank’s Phil , I hadn’t noticed the difference on the wing leading edge in some of the images i’ve been looking at on the net . The modifications you’ve mentioned seem simple enough , just trim down the front canards and smooth out the dogtooth leading edge . Thank’s also for the link in regards to the colour scheme ; As I mentioned before I’m using some spare decals from the Airfix F-5 kit , it’s interesting that the colours Airfix recommend for the F-5 USAF version are very close to what the chap used on his F-21 . I was wondering about this before I posted this topic . I guess my thinking wasn’t too far off.
Just another visible feature…
The F-21 wing has the characteristic “notch” in the leading edge which is common to the Mirage III series, and isn’t present in the Kfir C2. You will need to cut/file this in.
Searching through some of my aircraft magazine’s I found an artist illustration of the USMC F-21 , which states that the aircraft was used to simulate the Mig-23 threat . The diagram shows a nice Tan/Brown/Green with a Grey underside . I would prefer to paint my model in this scheme . However Hasegawa’s Mig-23 kit instructions suggest FS 34102 medium green but my magazine illustration shows a pale green colour . Which is closer to being correct ?
Hmm…
Hard to tell…
I could only find a few pics online of the aricraft in this color scheme…
This one appears to be an “operational” pic and the green clearly appears to be lighter…
whereas the one which appears on this page ( http://www.pbase.com/xnir/israel_air_force_museum )is in the IAF museum and appears to be a darker green
I like the operational pic , the pale green just looks better . Thank’s again Phil