Yellowhammer 1/48 F9F-2/3 Panther Decals
With the release of the Trumpeter and Hobbycraft Panther kits, I knew
it would not be long before we would see some aftermarket decals for them.
Yellowhammer was first off the blocks with three decal sheets covering
everything from the prototype Panther to Korean War Navy and Marine aircraft.
Some are silver, some are blue, and there’s even a Gull Gray/White
Panther in this selection. The decals are well printed across the board
and there should be no problems in using these on your new Panther.
 YHD48038
Starting with this sheet, there are four aircraft provided, all of which
served in Korea. The first two are from VF-71 off the USS Bon Homme Richard.
First up is LT H. C. Palmatier & LTJG M. J. Signorelli’s aircraft,
White 113. On the port side is the name “Sweet Violetta,”
corresponding with Signorelli’s name, while the starboard side has
Palmatier’s “Potato City Flash” name. The nose flash
and fin tip are red, while the rest of the aircraft is overall glossy
sea blue. The second VF-71 aircraft is LCDR J. M. Hill’s White 101
“Papasan.” Like the other VF-71 machine, this plane has the
red nose flash and red fin cap, as well as the squadron badge on the fuselage.
Both aircraft also have a white L on the tail.
Switching carriers for a bit, the next option on this sheet is LTJG
Leonard Plog’s F9F-3 from VF-51 off of the USS Valley Forge in July
1950. This aircraft and pilot claimed the first USN jet kill, shooting
down a Korean Yak-9. It carries the number White 109 and has red flashes
on the nose and on the central fin, as well as a red fin cap. Interestingly,
it also has no white NAVY on the rear fuselage, a feature that was common
to VF-51’s Panthers in 1950.
Returning to the USS Bon Homme Richard, the last aircraft on this sheet
comes from VF-781 during the fall of 1951. This aircraft has the rather
fanciful white outlined red lightning bolts on the tip tanks and nose
and carries the name “Paper Doll.” It also has a block of
mission marks on the fuselage, a red fin cap, and a small white D on the
fin, with the word “NAVY” written underneath it.
 YHD48039
This sheet treats us to a pair of painted up Marine aircraft, as well
as a Panther in a slightly different shade of blue, the number 1 aircraft
from the Blue Angels’ 1949 season. Starting with that one first,
as it is the easier one to describe, the research put into this aircraft
is very welcome. The people behind Yellowhammer worked with the Blue Angel’s
historian to make sure all the markings and color information was correct.
The surprise here comes with the color of the aircraft, which is not glossy
sea blue or Blue Angels Blue. Instead, it is a slightly lightened version
of glossy sea blue, where they mixed one part white with three parts blue.
This is darker than what many expect for the Blue Angel Panthers, but
some of that confusion could come from the fact that this formula changed
with the Cougar through Tiger, using two parts blue to one part white.
There is no match for this paint, so you’ll have to mix up your
own. The yellow markings are likewise different from what many expect,
leaning more towards a paler yellow than the more familiar orangish-yellow
used later. With all that research done, this is a very simple decal set
to apply, as there is just the tail number, U.S. NAVY on the fuselage
and wings, pilot’s name, Blues badge, and BuNo block.
If applying decals is your forte, the other two options on this sheet
are just what the doctor ordered. Both aircraft are from VMF-311 and both
carry the WL tail code in white. Both also have blue fin caps. The first
option, an F9F-2 out of K-3 Pohang in 1952, features a large cat’s
head on the nose, done in white with some red detailing. This also includes
some cat’s paws as well. The second option, an F9F-2B out of K-3
Pohang in 1953, carries the name “Jet Cats” on the nose. This
is overshadowed, though, by the very impressive lines of mission marks
on both sides of the fuselage. I thought about counting these, but then
I came to my senses and I will just take for granted that Yellowhammer
got the number right. This adds quite a bit of white to the sea blue Panther
and will really look impressive on the finished model.
 YHD48040
This sheet is the one to get if blue is not your color. Three aircraft
are included on this sheet: two prototypes and one gray and white Panther.
Starting with the gray and white one, this is an F9F-2 from ATU-206 at
NAS Pensacola in 1956. This aircraft has added quite a bit of color to
the scheme with lots and lots of red accents. The nose has a red flash,
the rudder and fin cap is red, as are the elevators, and there are red
stripes on the fuselage, extending out over the wings. The tip tanks also
get the red stripe treatment, while underneath, the aft section of the
wing is painted solid red. Definitely no chance of missing this aircraft!
For the prototypes, you get both the XF9F-2 and XF9F-3. For the XF9F-2
there are three iterations, while the XF9F-3 gets two. There are subtle
differences between all the options presented here, so pick your aircraft
and decal it accordingly. Both aircraft feature the leaping panther on
the nose and are polished natural metal with light gray sections (such
as the control surfaces). Both aircraft flew without tip tanks, although
the XF9F-3 added them late in its career. That would be the one to go
with if you wanted to build the kit out of the box. For the others, you
will want to pick up the prototype conversion from Teknics, as it has
the proper wing setup.
Any one of these sheets will give you some interesting Panthers to build.
My thanks to Meteor Productions
for the review samples. |
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