Cutting Edge 1/32
F-105B/D Open Canopy Correction Set

When Trumpeter released their 1/32 F-105D Thunderchief, I was elated! I had wanted a 1/32 Thud since the early 1970s after I spotted a scratchbuilt 1/32 F-105D on display at the Squadron Shop just outside of Washington DC. What Trumpeter produced was a beautifully detailed model, though the kit presented a few challenges as well.

While most people would build the kit straight out of the box and be rightfully proud of the results, the die-hard Thud-lovers spotted a few shape problems in the tail, radome, and ventral fin. These were corrected by Cutting Edge with a replacement vertical stabilizer set and a fuselage correction set. Cutting Edge went above and beyond with a new nose section to backdate the F-105D kit into an F-105B (CEC32171).

Two more small glitches remained - the windscreen was a bit off, and more importantly, the canopy could not be posed open with the molded design of dorsal spine. Not nice if you want to show off all of that detail in the cockpit. Once again, Cutting Edge to the rescue. This set addresses both of the above glitches in one step. Two absolutely clear resin parts are provided for the canopy and corrected windscreen, and four parts in gray resin complete the set. The gray parts represent the rear frame and rails for the canopy. The last gray part is a replacement for the forward section of the dorsal spine that has the corrected shape of the canopy lift hinge so that this canopy can be posed open.

To facilitate the conversion, you'll cut a section of the dorsal spine alone indicated panel lines. You'll also remove the instrument panel coming along a line offset inboard from a kit panel line. This will allow the differently (corrected) shape of the windscreen to perch properly. The removed coming is reinstalled under the windscreen.

This set also applies to correct the canopy area of the F-105B when used with the nose conversion mentioned above. This may sound like a bit of work with the various correction sets, but if you're a true Thud lover, you'll want to go the extra steps to get your Thunderchief just right.

This set is definitely recommended!

My sincere thanks to Meteor Productions for this review sample!

References

The F-105 Online Reference