North American F-86F Saber
This is the North American F-86F Saber. It was first flown in 1947, and entered service in the Air Force in 1949. It was the primary fighter in the Korean War, and several pilots became aces in the plane. Its a pretty famous plane, and has served in several country's air forces. It's also one of my favorite early planes in the early jet era.
This is an Academy model. The detail is fantastic, and the fit was great. Of course, it cost a little more than normal, but it was totally worth it. I wish all model companies made models this well. The only real problem is that the plane is bare metal. Painting a model to look like its really bare metal is very difficult, and I only managed to do an ok job on it. The decals were also very thick, and defied conforming to the surface details, so that didn't help either.
Another problem I had was the yellow nose. It was supposed to be painted on, and I kind of rushed it. I should have taken my time, but I was getting lazy. I think next time, I'll do it correctly. You can see in the picture above that the black line around the nose isn't quite straight. I was being lazy.
I learned a few things about bare metal finishes on this model. Like don't do them. But seriously, I may refinish the model with new decals and a fresh paint job. I think I can do a better job if I just take my time to do it.
I still liked the model, though. However, it is dead now. One too many moves and a desire to make a better model. I like the plane, and my over all job wasn't that bad. I'll just do it better next time.