HOBBYBOSS TA-7C Corsair II 

This Chinese kit brand also issued several kits (see above)  for the 1/72 A-7, including a twoseater kit for the US Navy or Marines TA-7C Corsair II, kitno. 87209. 

The Hobbyboss A-7 Corsair II kit is a well-detailed model that comes with five sprue sets and approximately 140 light grey/green plastic parts. One of the best features of this kit is the inclusion of a large variety of external stores, such as fuel tanks, FLIR pods, bombs, and Sidewinder missiles. The parts are impressively crafted, with finely engraved lines and rivets that replicate the real plane's texture. Additionally, the kit boasts raised details that add a tactile feel to the model. It also includes several open avionics bays and an emergency power unit with intricate detailing, which adds to the kit's overall realism. 
 

The decals are good for a US Navy VA-174 squadron plane. 

The cockpit may benefit from adding some extra detail from rod and sprue, but the kit seats are adequate in this scale. The right rotating canopy has a very good cross section but there is a seam mark in the middle, this needs to be removed with a polish/sanding stick and the canopy polished with Tamiya polish pasta. 
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Looking at the Hobbyboss kit, comparing it to the Fujimi kits and looking at pictures (see references), I found the exhaust pipe in this kit (and in fact all other Hobbyboss A-7 kits) being far too wide. I solved this by cutting, prior to starting the assembly, two vertical slots in each fuselage tail section ; say 3 cm in front of the ends and bended the exhaust area end and reduced the width about 1 mm on each half. The result is a 2 mm reduced tail exhaust area width and a far more convincing look in this area. This sounds a minor correction but it is really visible!
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Next, the kit was assembled as per instructions. I really liked the main air intake with its tunnel and the nose gear with its detailed launchbar and its storage area. In the gear bays also nice detail is present as on the insides of the doors. 

The refuelling boom flat rear part #E1 was cut off and the gap/panel filled.

The fuselage was assembled but wing halves (also here as with the Fujimi kits) were kept separate for painting/spraying and applying the decals.

The canopy hinge details were suggested by adding tiny bits of sprue and card. Also the mirrors in the canopy were added from cut thin metal (3 for pilot, 1 for instructor). Canopy and windshield were painted with the brush in Gull grey. 

I could not find any after market decals for a TA-7C, so opted to use the kit decals. The scheme is the standard US Navy scheme with Gull grey and white.

I found the kit decals to be of decent quality and the overall scheme quite attractive. Following the instructions, I applied the decals for the US Navy VA-174 plane with the code "AD". However, I did modify the width of the AD code slightly, by cutting out a section of the "D" to make it 1 mm (0.05 inch) narrower. To ensure a neat finish, I used a fine brush to paint the edges of the black and yellow diamond markings.

I applied all the decals carefully to both the fuselage and wing halves, but I encountered some difficulty with the yellow canopy framing decals. These required me to trim away the inner decal film with a fresh X-acto blade before applying them. It was a fiddly process that demanded both care and patience, but the end result was worth the effort. I fixed the frame decals in place using Johnson Future clear, applied with a fine brush.

After decalling, I fitted the wing halves to the fuselage, filling the junction gap with white glue and then painting it gull grey when dry. I also added various gears, doors, and other details to the model. To add further realism, I kept one of the avionics hatches open on the left side, while closing the one on the right. However, I did encounter an issue with the hatch part #D30, which I discovered too late was a poor fit. To rectify this, I trimmed the part and filled the edges with white glue before painting them white once dry. 

Time for finishing the model with details, like the cockpit. The cockpit is quite well detailed, some white glue was used to close the gap between the rear instrument panel #C15 and the cover #C5. I also used the instrument decals. 

Inside the canopy, the rotating mechanism was suggested with some card and rod. The yellow framing is from the kit decals. Also mirrors were added cut from thin metal. The result:

Some extra "wire" and cables were suggested in the avionics bay from copper wire and sprue. Some drybrushing was done in areas.

The anti collision light was added as well as some tiny antennas and 2 small nose pitot tubes from rod which are missing in the kit. The model was finished with adding some stores with their pylons to the model. (Note: the fueltanks can also be fitted on the inner stations #3 + 5 ).

Finally, a coat of Johnson Future/Pledge was airbrushed on to protect the decals and have a nice even sheen.

   VA-174 TA-7C
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  FLIR pod seen on inner pylon

And that is it! Three nice A-7 Corsairs II models in the 1/72 scale collection. 

and F-8 Crusader as compared to A-7 Corsair II

   

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