Top Gun Viper’s Douglas A-4 Skyhawk 1/72 Italeri 1422 Full Build Video | RWO Models

This model depicts one of the Douglas A-4 Skyhawks shown in the famous 1986 movie "Top Gun“ starring Tom Cruise and Kelly McGillis. The aircraft is piloted by CDR Mike "Viper" Metcalf, played by Tom Skerritt, during a training mission against LT Pete "Maverick" Mitchell, played by Cruise, in his legendary Grumman F-14A Tomcat.
The A-4 Skyhawk is a single-engine, single-seat light attack aircraft designed for the United States Navy and the United States Marine Corps. A total of 2,960 aircraft were built between 1954 and 1979.
The kit is part of the Italeri Top Gun F-14A vs. A-4F model set No. 1422. It is a pretty simple kit with relatively low parts count and not too much detail. The included decals are actually of good quality, however I am not sure about the coloring. For the build I chose Vallejo Model Air paints, using the Federal Standard codes from the build instructions as a reference. Decals, the illustrations on the box as well as the aircraft shown in the movie look a lot different, so I can’t tell if my model has the correct colors.
Let me know what you think of this build. Your comments and opinions are highly appreciated. Please bear in mind I am not a professional modeler, I just build these models for fun and relaxation and to help me regain my mental and physical health.
Stay tuned to my channel and don’t miss out on upcoming build videos and more! Please Comment, Like, Share and consider becoming a Subscriber to my channel. Thanks for watching! Cheers, Oliver/RWO

[@MichaelCasanovaMusic]

"Good morning, Gentlemen. The temperature is 110 degrees." Great build!

[@RWOModels]

Holy shit, it's Viper! Thanks for watching! 👍🙂

[@user-ml8wy4my6k]

バイパー トゥディ！⤵️

[@allgood6760]

Nice build!... we flew A4 Skyhawks with our RNZAF.. thanks from NZ 👍🇳🇿

[@Leptospirosi]

What a Fantastic model company Esci was back then! Their families were well ahead of what Japan was doing and Italeri still profits from the mold they got for peanuts in the bargain bins: the A4, the F4, the F-104, the A7, the Harrier the Mirage F1, the F-100 and many more molds which are probably lying in some forgotten basement, like the F5A F-8, the C-130, the F-15, the F-16, the F-14... You immediately see the difference between an original Italeri mould (rised or uneaven badly defined engraved panel lines with poor assembly and plenty of putty required) and the crisp, well fitting and well engineered parts of the old (35Y+) Esci kits, made when CAD was yet to come. It reminds me of when Otaki and the Trimester took the model world by storm and failed for the their enthusiasm leaving others to profit from their works... 😢

[@ahahm]

Such an iconic A-4 Skyhawk from the first Top Gun movie! Always wanted to see a built-up model from a plamodel expert... Thank you for sharing this!

[@brianc1701]

Beautiful little Scooter, Jester would be proud! Especially like the tack worm camo.

[@RWOModels]

Thank you! I actually wanted to paint the whole camouflage free-hand, but I had problems with a defective seal on my airbrush and was unable to spray such exact patterns. Tack worms worked great however. 🙂 Cheers!

[@06okieh]

What a nice little jet! And you did again a great job!

[@nackdibby7960]

What an excellent build! I forgot how tiny the 1/72 Skyhawk was but you really made this one pop and I love the Top Gun subjects!

[@RWOModels]

Thank you! The A-4 is indeed a very compact aircraft, in 1/72 it’s really tiny. More Top Gun stuff coming in the future, stay tuned... 🙂

[@cnfuzz]

Lovely paint scheme , looks very good

[@lgmnowkondo938]

I like it better than the 14a tomcat!

[@SprueFascinationChannel]

Outstanding build 👍

[@my_daarlin]

Wow mate looks great!

[@tiane73]

Holy shit! It’s Viper! 😉 Very nice build. Hope to see more from Top Gun.

[@zarifamsyar6274]

Keep up on with these build

[@Minutemman]

yo wusup Zarif it is Sean woooooooow what a coinedence I like RWO models TO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@zarifamsyar6274]

@@Minutemman wait what!. Sean Cox. Is that really you

[@Minutemman]

@@zarifamsyar6274 yep I do not know how, I found this channel today and just barley saw you out of the corner of my eye lol!

[@zarifamsyar6274]

@@Minutemman By the way I prefer people calling me AMSYAR because I don't have any first name or last name like that

[@Minutemman]

@@zarifamsyar6274 oh okay will do boss

[@EddiesGarage]

What a lovely work! 😍

[@RWOModels]

Thank you! 😊 To be honest I actually wanted to start with Maverick's F-14 also included in the Italeri Top Gun set but I didn't like the kit. So I built the little adversary plane first... :)

[@DMStaxi]

Perfect job!

[@RWOModels]

Thank you very much! 👍

[@sergioizzisavona8365]

First of all, you did a splendid job of this Skyhawk. Regarding the kit, when one considers that this is the old (sadly defunct) ESCI Skyhawk, released in the early 80's the quality is quite ahead of its time.

[@RWOModels]

Thank you! To be honest, I actually didn’t know much about the origin and the age of this kit when I started it (received the Italeri Top Gun set as a gift). In fact I didn’t like this build too much although the finished Skyhawk is a nice little model with an interesting color scheme, even if some details and the decal colors are off. 🙂

[@willhendriks3059]

You take kits that are not the best and make wonderful models with them. Well done!

[@RWOModels]

Thank you, appreciate your kind comment! 👍🙂

[@RobertBardos]

Awesome technique. 👀👍

[@RWOModels]

Thank you very much! 🙂

[@josealejandroalvaradobotei8584]

Gran trabajo 😎👍👍🇨🇱Excelente video desde chile

[@gigr1863]

Great job! Tamiya's X-22 thinned with Mr. Levelling Thinner is the best gloss coat, avoid Humbrol's like hell!

[@RWOModels]

Thanks for your feedback! X-22 is my standard gloss varnish, never had any problems with it. I usually thin it with X-20A, but may also try Mr. Color Leveling Thinner soon. I just wanted to test Humbrol Clear after it had been recommended to me. It was much worse on the actual model than it appeared in the video. Thanks again! Oliver/RWO

[@fredtedstedman]

Humbrols paint is real crap at the moment -some has a texture like jelly ! I have contacted them (now part of Hornby .)on several occasions but they don't reply . It's the only paint I can get locally unless I want to drive for 2 hours !!

[@svenva]

​@@fredtedstedman then drive for 2 hrs

[@maxbrandt6]

Great job on this!

[@RWOModels]

Thank you! Cheers!

[@okkami676]

I really liked how you painted the wheels at 5:39. Nice technique!

[@RWOModels]

Thanks! Discovered this technique on another modeling channel myself (can’t remember which one) and find it very useful every time. 🙂

[@Minutemman]

Man you are really good I saw F4F Wildcat video thought it was really good so visited your channel watched 2 more of your videos now boom you have another subscriber!

[@RWOModels]

Awesome, welcome aboard! :)

[@patrickhagelstein1810]

Hi Oliver, great build and great craftsmanship! I see you prefer acrylics for painting. I love working with lacquers though they come with a smell. Even if staying with acrylics, I would recommend using one lacquer product: Gunze GX112 thinned with Mr. Leveling Thinner. Works great every time and is a strong layer between the paint scheme and any weathering (even when using enamel based products). Hope this helps! ☺️👍🏼

[@RWOModels]

Hi Patrick, thanks for your kind comment and your recommendation! I’m actually going to shop for a few new products in the next few days and will check out your suggested products. I wanted to buy and test Mr. Leveling Thinner anyway. 🙂 Very helpful, thanks again. Cheers, Oliver/RWO

[@thomasbrown7420]

Great build my man! Italeri didn’t get the nomenclature correct though. The bureau number in the kit is 151095, which IS correct for this aircraft, but it’s not an A-4F, it is an A-4E. These stripped down Top Gun A-4Es and Fs were pretty much indistinguishable even in 1:1 scale without looking at the bureau number. Don’t mind me, I’m an A-4 nut. Again, sweet build. Thanks for putting it out for us.

[@RWOModels]

Thanks for sharing your knowledge regarding the A-4, much appreciated! 👍🙂 It seems like Italeri quite often mess up pretty obvious details on their kits, get the colors or decals wrong etc. ... I think I'll need to build another, more accurate A-4 soon. 🙂 Thanks again!

[@papermodelss]

Nice 👍

[@jetsofthecoldwar1149]

Very very nice 👍

[@RWOModels]

Thank you! Cheers!

[@antoeknee4511]

Good job on this A-4. I have read too many horror stories about the Humbrol clear, from it clouding up due to not being stirred enough, to humidity in the air too high when being sprayed.

[@RWOModels]

Thanks for your comment! Humbrol Clear had been recommended to me so I gave it a try but was so disappointed I will not use it again. Cheers!

[@farkinarkin5099]

One absolutely sexy build. :-) Your skills are about 100 times that of mine. ...1... Yes, as you noticed, the decal colors are a bit bright. They look fine in the end. ...2... As someone else mentioned, clear coat (Humbrol Gloss) is probably getting some moisture in it ... maybe it was a humid day? ...3... Always amazed at how scooters don't get the burnt paint around the exhaust (like F-100's). They probably have good insulation. ...4... Aggressor units have lots of in-service paint patching... probably because of all that sand in their operating area. I kept making jet sounds when watching ... time to go watch Top Gun. P.S. ...5... Are the decals for the consoles too large... or... is it because the fuselage sides are too thick, hence, the consoles and instrument panels are scaled down to fit...

[@RWOModels]

Appreciate your comment and support! After all this was not my best or most satisfying build... I think the decals are pretty much messed up in this kit, not the only time I saw this with Italeri kits... Enough said, I should go and watch Top Gun now as well! :) Thanks and stay safe! Oliver/RWO

[@alexandremarcelino7360]

Perfeito!!!

[@duncanling2127]

Very nice :))

[@RWOModels]

Thank you! 🙂

[@lesthiele4921]

Hi Oliver, that was a fantastic build, I do have a soft spot for theA-4, what's next on the desk?

[@RWOModels]

Thank you Les! I think there is another, much more prominent plane appearing in the movie, maybe that could be the next build... ? 🙂

[@DanakarEndeel]

I recently got this box-set from Italeri today! I already had Maverick's F-14 from Revell (it was an Easy Kit version though that missed the name decals for the cockpit). What is peculiar though is that the F-14 in the Italeri kit do have the tail markings for both Maverick/Goose and Iceman/Slider but Italeri only added one set of name decals for the cockpit! Only Maverick and Goose are available; not Iceman and Slider. That was very unfortunate as both should have been present imo. Another thing that kinda bugged me is that none of the Italeri jets have any pilots. Even my Revell "Easy Kit" had little figures in them and the AirFix kit of Jester's A4 also comes with a figure; so I guess you can only use these as parked versions and not flight versions as depicted on the box due to Italeri not including any figures (even though it would have cost them next to nothing to add them on the sprue). I also noticed something peculiar on both the Italeri F-14+A4 combo-kit and the A4 from Airfix. Both decal sheets only had Lt. Hendricks "Pyro" as the name next to the cockpit; who is NOT even in the movie. So neither Viper nor Jester have decals on the Italeri (or AirFix) sheet. From what I read over on another forum was that only a special repack (Fujimi No. F-24S1 or F-24) released in the 1987 included Viper's name on the decal sheet (however, it did not include Lt. Cmdr Rick "Jester" Heatherly though but instead had slides for someone called "Lt. Bull Schutt" and a "Cpt. W.J.Schurr"). The funny thing is that the Fujimi kit wasn't even a movie tie-in kit unlike the Italeri kit. Massive oversight for Italeri (and Airfix) to not include Viper nor Jester's cockpit tags and apparently also having the wrong color nose-number. Now the Fujimi decals were also wrong as their numbers are in red and they only have 55 and 56. I believe Viper's A4 number was 53 (but I could be mistaken and it might have been 56). Both Italeri/Airfix kits only have the nose-number 55 in blue whereas the actual ones should have been black for both Viper and Jester if I'm not mistaken. Still a real shame that none of the slides from any kit I've seen actually have Jester's name. Lastly, I'll have to watch the movie again but dit both Jester and Viper use a similar camo pattern on their A4's or were there differences in color (ofcourse for all we know the director could have simply used the same A4 as I don't think they were ever both in the same shot). I also keep seeing conflicting reports; with some even claiming that Viper's A4 was grey when I can clearly see that it had a camo patter similar to Jester's (especially during the fight where Viper lures Maverick away from protecting Hollywood that Viper's A4 also has a camo pattern). EDIT: My mistake! There appears to be a kit from Testors which actually includes a decal sheet that has Jesters name on it as well as the correct colors for the emblems. Most notable the sand-colored military aircraft logo. So it seems at least in terms of decals; the Testors kit has the most accurate ones. They even have the correct color nose number in black instead of blue.

[@franciscodelacerda8368]

Este es un excelente kit armado de RWO Models,de la antigua marca Esci,tiene buenos detalles,la única crítica al fabricante es la carlinga y las ruedas principales muy chicas.

[@RWOModels]

Thank you very much for your comment, Francisco! (Sorry, can't answer in Spanish...)

[@budgey0065]

I think the sand colour you picked looks right, the decal colours looked off to me. Nice build! I have the exact same kits in my stash, looking forward to my build now! Cheers!

[@RWOModels]

Thanks for your comment! 🙂 Enjoy your build and take care! Cheers, Oliver/RWO

[@michaelhooper3300]

Great job again 👏, would say decals are wrong with colour as you suggested. I have same problem with humbrol varnish. So stored using it and use vajello varnish with tamiya varnish instead. Keep good work up.

[@RWOModels]

Thanks for your nice comment! I will also put Humbrol aside and not use it anymore. I also prefer Vallejo matt varnish and Tamiya gloss varnish. 👍

[@bartleeuwis7780]

It looks very nice. Wich sanding sponges did you use for the sanding of the filler ?

[@RWOModels]

I use Tamiya sanding sponges (different types between 600 and 3000 grit). Thanks!

[@SUP_Bigans]

So we're waiting for Maverick & Goose's F 14 A!!!

[@RWOModels]

Of course it’s on my list and I’m currently planning the build! Next up will be another build but Maverick‘s F-14A will follow soon. Stay tuned! 🙂

[@BennyCFD]

Very nice build. Free hand airbrushing cammo is much more realistic............

[@RWOModels]

I agree, initially I tried free hand airbrushing on this build but my airbrush refused to work properly so I switched to masking the areas with masking putty. Cheers!

[@markusfrombgen2967]

Hallo Oliver. Sehr schönes Modell mit interessantem Tarnschema. Gefällt mir echt gut. Bezüglich deiner Probleme mit dem Humbrol Hochglanzklarlack, ich nutze seit Jahren den Klarlack von Mr.Hobby H-30. Der hat mich bisher nie enttäuscht, ist selbstausgleichend und sehr angenehm zu verarbeiten, einzige Ausnahme ist der Geruch, ansonsten uneingeschränkt zu empfehlen. Ich hoffe, es hilft Dir ein wenig weiter. Gruß. Markus Frömbgen

[@RWOModels]

Hallo Markus, danke für deinen Tipp! Mr. Hobby werde ich sicherlich auch noch probieren, momentan fahre ich mit Tamiya X-22 mit 50% Tamiya Lacquer Thinner ganz gut - und vor allem bekomme ich das Zeug vor Ort bei meinem Modellbauladen. ;)

[@antoniomorren9755]

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@theodoreolson8529]

Stupid question. Dry brushing is ? Dabbing into wet paint to achieve the affect of chipping? Something else entirely? Time 4:40

[@RWOModels]

Hi, you dip the brush very lightly into the paint and wipe it off on a towel, piece of paper etc. so that there's almost no paint left in the brush - it's almost dry. When for example you use silver/aluminium color and brush over edges or corners it looks like the paint on the part has scuffed and the bare metal shines through. Hope this helps. Cheers, Oliver/RWO

[@mikeylikesit3393]

What are the camo paint colors? Disregard, saw them in your video.

[@2-Hands]

The molds for this kit are from the ESCI line of kits, the Cockpit Colors should have been FS:36231 Dark Gull Gray (71.277) NOT Light Gull Gray FS:36440 (71.121), the kit Decals are totally WRONG. If you can find the Testors issue of the "TOP GUN" kit the Decals are the right colors, however; the Testors kit is that of a A-4M used by the USMC. The Tail Hook was NOT Black & White, Tan and Brown like the colors used on the model. Your colors are CORRECT that you used from Vallejo when you painted the Camo. The ECM "Bump" that is under the Nose of the A-4 should NOT be there as well, all A-4's that were used as "Aggressors" had a lot of equipment removed off them to make them lighter including the "Blue Angels" when they flew the A-4F's also. Your video was one of the first I seen of someone building the ESCI A-4E/F in 1/72nd scale, "Thanks" for sharing this with us. Hope this helps!

[@RWOModels]

Thank you for your detailed feedback and sharing your knowledge on this subject, I really appreciate it! When I started this build I actually didn’t want to put too much effort in it and decided to build it out of the box following the build and paint instructions included in the kit. After all I should have done more researching, and now that I see the mistakes on the model I’m actually close to building it again with a new kit. 🙂 Once more I realise I can’t solely rely on the manufacturers‘ instructions since sometimes they don’t seem to do their homework... Thanks again, greetings from Germany, Oliver/RWO

[@2-Hands]

@@RWOModels No Problem, "Thanks" for sharing this with us.

[@SteveZhangRealEstate]

what is the rubber like think you use for painting the camo？ t h x

[@RWOModels]

Hi, this is a kind of adhesive removable putty called "Uhu patafix" here in Germany (not sure if it's sold under this brand name elsewhere). It comes in small pads and can be manipulated into the desired shape. Hope this helps. Thanks!

[@Olivier02000.]

Bonjours Oliver très très belle vidéo et vraiment très enrichissante et j'adore ce que vous faites et je me dis que j'ai encore beaucoup de travail pour arriver à votre niveau, par contre si je peux me permettre serait-il possible de me dire comment vous diluez votre peinture vallejo car je l'utilises également et j'ai de petits soucis de séchage de buse, alors voilà ma dilution 5 parts de peinture pour 2 part de thinner et 2 parts de Flow improver, j'utilise un évolution vec une buse de 0,2 mm et je suis à 1 bar de pression. En attendant votre réponse je vous remercie pour tout ce que vous faites. 😁😁😁😁😁😁😁👍👍👍👍👍👍👍

[@RWOModels]

Bonjour Olivier, sorry for not responding any earlier. I only understand a tiny bit of French so I had to run your comment through machine translation. :) If I understood correctly you have problems with your Vallejo paints clogging your airbrush. I guess you are using Vallejo Model Air? Your setup is basically identical to what I use, except I'm using Vallejo Flow Improver very rarely. The original Vallejo Airbrush thinner works great for me, however there are certain colors that are a bit tricky and need a bit of fine-tuning when diluting them.... I would also recommend to thoroughly clean your Evolution's nozzle every time and regularly check for the seal at the back of the nozzle as well as the o-ring on the air head. I found out that even the tiniest defects or paint residues can lead to air leakages and make it difficult to spray smoothly... Hope this helps... Thanks for your comment, stay safe! Cheers, Oliver/RWO

[@Olivier02000.]

@@RWOModels my daughter just translated your message so I understand what you said so thank you for your advice , I'm gonna try that ASAP!

[@KJ-kn8pg]

Will f-14 be your next build video? I am really looking forward to see it

[@RWOModels]

Thank you! I have to do another build first but Mav's F-14A is scheduled to come right after that. Stay tuned! :)

[@lloydstephens2994]

Viper’s A-4 was grey not camo like jesters

[@Steevels]

Hard to tell just by looking at the film, I think the sand might be off a little or it could be that it needs to be a little grimier decals look correct

[@RWOModels]

Thanks for your feedback, appreciate it. Meanwhile I'm convinced the decal colors are wrong. Too bad I really noticed this when the painting was already completed. I should have built another, better kit from my stash instead... :)

[@Steevels]

@@RWOModels you did a great job on an italeri (aka italscary) kit which is pretty impressive. Don't worry about the colour as film reference is different from IRL. It's well built and you painted it really well, you can tell this was a project you were really fired up for.

[@RWOModels]

Thanks for your kind comment! „Italscary“, I like that! 😂 Greetings from Germany, Oliver/RWO

[@SteveZhangRealEstate]

what backgound do you use for photo？

[@RWOModels]

This is a firm plastic sheet in a dark color that was actually included in a cheap photo lighting booth my wife bought a couple of years ago. I think the correct term for this kind of background is "infinity cove". You place the object on top of it and bend the rear part 90 degrees upwards so the background seems to disappear. The one I use is pretty small so I'm currently looking for an alternative.

[@dpswets]

Are these (F-14 and A-4) paintscheme's ever used by the US Navy and agressor squadrons? I've always felt the paintscheme's in the movie were fictional but I can't see why they would put that much effort in painting and designing them when you've got those planes already. And with the Navy using them as well during the making of the movie I don't think it's very likely that they would let them paint their planes.

[@SUP_Bigans]

7:41 did you forget to paint black the internal air intakes? Awesome!!!

[@RWOModels]

Thank you! The engine intakes are separate parts which need to be attached to the sides of the fuselage. You’ll see it later in the video. The insides of the intakes are painted white and they are so small you actually can’t see all the way through them to the back. 🙂

[@billpandos7962]

The decals' colours are not accurate. they don't have the FS hue they supposed to have. For a company like Italeri that already have the aircraft's mould for a few decades, they could had invest on offering us at least an accurate (from colours' hues perspective) decals' sheet. BTW, lovely build mate!

[@ralphnich153]

don't use humbrol use mr hobby

[@RWOModels]

Will do for sure, Humbrol disappeared from my desk and won't be touched again. :) Thanks for watching!