So, you just bought the Hobbycraft F4F-3 or are backdating a Tamiya kit and you need decals. Well, no worries as Yellow wings has produced a sheet that should pretty well cover you in terms of the colorful stuff. This particular sheet has a full range of fuselage bands and wing chevrons in all the different section colors. The sheet also includes prop tip warning stripes, a selection of thin stripes for the forward cowling and some unit badges for VF-41 and VF-72, two of the units that flew the yellow wing Wildcat.

Of course, you can see that you'll need codes and insignia from another sheet, but Yellow Wings has provided full placement markings for an aircraft in each of the four squadrons that flew this plane in this scheme. Two of them, VF-71 and VF-72 flew from the USS Wasp, so will have a black tail section. The other two, VF-41 and VF-42 were aboard the USS Ranger and so will have Willow Green tails. These schemes are from early 1941, before the Navy started repainting its planes in overall light gull grey and then with blue-grey upper surfaces. Like all of Yellow Wings' sheets, this one is superbly printed by Microscale.

The instructions are first rate and give a step by step application sequence in case you are new to aftermarket sheets. The sheet indicates that the colors are matched to ModelMaster enamels and gives the pertinent information so that one has no problems when it comes to painting the tail surfaces and cowlings. As the main instruction sheet is used with all their decals, you'll find a few items discussed, like LSO stripes, that are not germane to this particular set.

Overall an excellent set of decals with superb instructions. If your local shop doesn't carry them, ask them to start!

September 2008

Thanks to Yellow Wings for the review samples. You can get these at your local shop or order them direct from the link.

If you would like your product reviewed fairly and fairly quickly, please contact the editor or see other details in the Note to Contributors.