Orange Hobby F-35C 1/72

This is the Orange Hobby 1/72 F-35C with Eduard 1/72 GBU-31(V)3/B

I intended to make this a VMFA-214 F-35C but couldn't figure out how to make the custom decals in time, so I got impatient and just used the VFA-101 decals that came with the kit. This is the reason why I didn't paint the ram details in the signature light grey, because newer F-35s have RAM tape in the same color as the hull (or at least pictures of VMFA 214 I saw did). I also wanted to load up this F-35 so I put the gun pod and 4 bombs on it as well. Maybe not the most realistic loadout but it looks really cool in my opinion.

The kit was a pretty good build and only really needed a tiny bit of filling at the nose. I didn't know what to expect with orange hobby and was pleasantly surprised!

This is also the first kit that I really modified:I used a razor saw to put the flaps down (which I think really breaks up the otherwise rather large wings of the F-35C) and used some wires to make various hydraulic or electrical lines in the weapons bay and on the landing gear.

I tried to go for a more subtle weathering and discoloration that I think works out alright. I think it may be a bit too muted but I didn't want to go overboard.

This kit really gave me a love for modern naval planes. The ability to have the wing tips folded up and big flaps down really give the plane a lot of depth that I feel a lot of other jets don't have. It also came with a bonus aircraft carrier tug thing that will be useful if I decide to make a diorama later! I've got two super hornets in my stash, and this kit made me excited to build them up!

The eduard resin bombs were also the first bits of resin aftermarket I've used. The resin itself was great and I think the bombs look good, however the decals were a bit lower quality than I was expecting.