This is a kit that I started 7 or 8 years ago. When I first started on this build, I had a number of Gundam kits and ancient Arii 1/100 VF-1S kit under my belt. Thus, I was feeling somewhat confident in being able to take on a Hasegawa kit. Initially, it went well. I got up to a point where the forward fuselage, main body, and legs were put together. But then I started painting some of the built up sub-assemblies and noticed areas that needed more filling and sanding. In addition, I messed up with the painting. The attempt to strip the paint off did not go well and so I started a 2nd Hasegawa VF-1 kit. After building another forward fuselage and pair of legs again, I got tired and completely lost interest in completing the kit. What was done was boxed up and put on the shelf with a promise to come back to it sometime in the future.
Then, last year, Calibre Wings announced a diecast version of the VF-1 in 1/72 scale. With that in mind, I decided that I wanted to finish the Hasegawa kit so that I can put it next to the Calibre Wings model and compare them. I pulled out that 2nd kit that I started and began work. And now it is completed!
Now that it has been completed, I'd like to put forth some of my thoughts and comments.
Over the years, I've gained some skills in kit building but it's still not anywhere near what others can accomplish. From my perspective, this kit is definitely NOT for the beginner. I don't think this is a kit that you can put together and finish in a weekend or 2. It's a demanding kit that requires a good amount of patience, thinking ahead, some tools, and steady hands. If you don't look carefully and think out what pieces to put together/paint at what times, you can potentially find yourself in difficult situations where it is hard to make corrections or experience fragile pieces breaking off as you move along on the build. There are also some microscopically tiny pieces that need to be glued on. A sneeze at the wrong time or dropping it onto the floor can become a long night of searching for the piece or needing to buy a 2nd copy of the kit. 😅
I painted the main body with Tamiya AS-16 USAF light gray. Instead of using the supplied decals, the black on the tail and both colors on the ventral fins were painted. The black trim stripes on the rear engine section (ie. the legs) were also painted . It has been mentioned before but the lower legs are incorrectly positioned. They are situated slightly low in relation to the backpack tailfin section and have somewhat of a downward slope.
I have read a solution to this issue, but it was beyond my abilities (or rather I was too scared to try it). If I had used the decals for the black trim stripe, the downward slope would have been accentuated as seen in the instructions. So instead, I adjusted the angle of the trim stripe by painting and made it look a bit more horizontal in hopes of tricking the eye a bit.
The one thing I did not use from the kit were the landing gear wheels. The wheels included with the kit were so small, thin, and under-detailed that they looked ridiculous. I threw them out and swapped in aftermarket F/A-18 Hornet wheels. I think they really improve the look of the undercarriage.
That all said, the kit does build into a superb looking VF-1 Valkyrie. The level of panel-line and rivet detail is amazing (something that perhaps only Hasegawa could do to a kit of a fictional aircraft). And to be honest, I am just proud of finally completing this kit.
A few photos below. Canopy looks a bit cloudy due to my poor buffing skills. The panel-line detail is a bit washed out due to lighting, me using a very light gray color for the panel-lining, and these photos being taken via my phone camera (Galaxy S8).
There is no pilot in the cockpit. Although I have a Hasegawa pilot all ready to be placed in, it doesn't fit. 😖