Afterburner Decals 1/48 F/A-18E/F Data and Stencils Decal First Look
By Michael Benolkin
| Date of Review | October 2007 | Manufacturer | Afterburner Decals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Subject | F/A-18E/F Data and Stencils | Scale | 1/48 |
| Set Number | 48017 | Pros | Versatile stencils and data blocks to address the variations out in the field |
| Cons | Skill Level | Novice | |
| MSRP (USD) | Out of Production |
First Look
This release brings back a concept that used to be a regular feature of the old Microscale and early Superscale Decals lines. They'd produce a wide variety of colorful aircraft subjects and sometimes offer a minimum of stenciling on the sheet when there was room left over, but they'd come back around and provide a full-up data and stencil sheet of the aircraft. I remember stocking up on the Phantom sheets because we needed both styles - white stenciling and black stenciling, depending on the service and color of the aircraft.
Afterburner Decals has revived that concept with this very nice decal set that provides just about every variation of stencil and data block seen on the Super Hornet to date. There are enough stencils and data blocks to render one complete aircraft, but you can see four different styles of national markings, three different styles of intake warnings, and so on. Just get some good photos of your Super Hornet and mix and match the stencils on this sheet to replicate the aircraft in question.
According to the instructions, this set was sized for the Hasegawa 1/48 F/A-18E/F kit though you can adapt these to fit any 1/48 scale F/A-18 Super Hornet.
Once again, it is time to stock up on the stencils...
My sincere thanks to Afterburner Decals for this review sample!