Academy/MRC has released a new North American F-86F-40 Sabre in 1/48 scale with leading edge slatted wings. There are two new sprue-runners (I & H) with upgraded wings, slats, 200 gallon drop tanks, main landing gear wheels wells, and wheels. From Scalemates.com, the original molding was created by Academy in 1998 for all the other sprue-runners.

This is Part 2 of the review and focuses on the assembly and completion.

Review Process:

This is a box stock build, but I did add simple tape seat belts. The only assembly deviation I did for this review was taking liberties of the assembly sequence to help make the process go faster. To try and make a simpler build, I decided to not open the fuselage speed brakes or the nose gun bays.

Assembly starts in the cockpit along with the intake scoop since they are molded on the same part. For the final configuration, I decided to use the kit provided covers for the intake and exhaust and not deal with fixing the interior seam line. The instrument panels are well molded, and I was able to drybrush the raised surfaces to reveal the raised details.

The engine is a nice sub-assembly, and for the super detail modeler, it is an open canvas to go all out if one decides to do so. Prior to gluing the fuselage halves together, make sure to install some nose weight just forward of the cockpit. It is noted in step 4 of the instructions. If more weight is needed later, it can be installed into the intake, but you’ll have to use the intake cover to hide the added weight.

Wing assembly is next and straight forward. I do recommend waiting to install the slats until the very end to not have them accidentally break off during the building process.

For the clear parts, there is a centerline mold line down the canopy exterior. This was wet-sanded with progressively finer sandpaper (800 – 1200 – 2000) until smooth. Next, I dipped the clear parts in Future to give it a clear-glass finish.

Final assembly of fuselage, wing, and horizontal stabilizers (HS) was without drama; however, I do recommend you look at your references for the final angle for the HS since they do have an engineered dihedral.

Paints used were Alclad White Aluminum and Tamiya. To darken some of the access panels I used a mixture of Future with Vallejo acrylics and brushed it on. I decided to paint the yellow and black tail band instead of using the decal.

The kit decals are thin and went on easily. They reacted well to Micro Sol when having to apply them over any complex surface. There are a lot of stencil decals, so take your time when applying, and be careful with maneuvering the model to not accidentally move (or remove) a stencil you just placed.

Next coat was Vallejo Clear Satin in preparation for minor weathering. I used ground up charcoal applied with a soft brush. Finally, I installed the fuel tanks, landing gear, and pitot probe and considered it done.

Conclusion

This was a very fun kit to build. The addition of the new sprue-runners (H & I) adds a new variant to the Academy line of the F-86 with a slatted wing Sabre. This kit can be built by the novice to the expert modeler. Just know that working with a natural metal finish will need extra attention for the seam line clean up since craftsmanship errors will be amplified if not filled properly.

I want to thank Academy/MRC for providing the F-86F-40 Sabre kit and IPMS-USA for allowing me the opportunity to review.

Highly recommended!