Scale Aircraft Conversions 1/48 F-16 Landing Gear First Look
by Michael Benolkin
| Date of Review | December 2010 | Manufacturer | Scale Aircraft Conversions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Subject | F-16 Fighting Falcon Landing Gear | Scale | 1/48 |
| Set Number | 48114 | Primary Media | White Metal |
| Pros | Nicer/tougher gear for the Hasegawa kits | Cons | Nothing noted |
| Skill Level | Basic | MSRP (USD) | $16.95 |
First Look
Scale Aircraft Conversions (SAC) produces an impressive array of white metal replacement landing gear for a variety of models. Some of these sets correct different issues that appeared in production kits, while others are simple common sense replacements to have stronger landing gear on your model.
This release is one of more than 100 landing gear sets available in 1/48 scale and is targeted for most of the Hasegawa 1/48 F-16 Fighting Falcon releases. This set is a drop-in replacement for the kit's gear, though cast in white metal to provide stronger legs for your kit to stand upon.
This set includes the two main gear assemblies and their retraction arms, the nosegear strut and its integral retraction arm, and disc brake details for the main wheels. Note that I said that this set will work with most of the Hasegawa 1/48 F-16 releases - these are not accurate for the F-16CG or F-16DG Block 40/42 nor the F-16CJ/DJ Block 50/52 kits. If you look at the main gear struts in the image below, you see a circular detail between each of the main gear struts - these are the landing light housings that were on all F-16s from Block 1 to Block 20 in the F-16A/B family and from Block 25 to Block 30/32 in the F-16C/D family before the landing lights were moved up to the nose gear door in the later blocks.
One nice aspect of aftermarket landing gear like these from SAC is that you can make the change anytime, even after the kit's gear buckles for whatever reason. Unlike an aftermarket cockpit or other details that need to be incorporated during construction, you can easily extract the old styrene gear and plug in these replacements once you've got them primed and painted. Of course you can plan ahead and use them during your build-up and avoid the problems in the first place.
You can obtain SAC landing gear from your favorite hobby retailer or online hobby shop. If your retailer can't get these for you and you can't this set at your favorite online retailer, then you can get quick service from Scale Aircraft Conversions directly.
My sincere thanks to Scale Aircraft Conversions for this review sample!