crushkill Posted March 27, 2017 Share Posted March 27, 2017 This will be my first WIP ever, and my first build (other than a no paint snaptite for the kiddo) in 15 years. No pictures yet as the kit is in the mail, but I do have questions I'm hoping some of you masters can help me with prior to the start of construction. First, did any Huey's fly without pilot's doors? I know in the GWOT the Kiowa's rarely if ever did, and there's something sexy about a bird with no doors. Second, I'd like to splurge on aftermarket, I'm a "grown-up" with a real job now and I can actually afford them, but I don't even know where to begin, any recommendations? And finally, all I have for paints are enamels, but I'd like to make the switch to acrylics, so if you were starting from scratch, what colors would you buy? ((Primarily for the UH-1, but some general purpose colors always help)) I know this is a pretty significant request for information, but hopefully in a week or so I'll start uploading pictures as the build begins. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
perdu Posted March 28, 2017 Share Posted March 28, 2017 Sexy without doors, I'm duty bound to agree aren't I? So yes I agree. When I came back into this hobby I switched from enamels to acrylics but I have never found an acrylic that can 'colour' the surface like enamels All the acrylics seem to have a similar property, the ability to lie on a surface quite thickly Most are soft and, I find, flexible and can be lifted off with an accidental thumb nail Hence, I've just started buying new stocks of recent enamels again I'm very happy with Colour coats from Jamie at Sovereign Hobbies, lots of useful shades in the range But if acrylics is your think I like Vallejo for a massive colour range and Tamiya make decent stuff too Not too impressed by Humbrol these days but they do a decent range of colours too bill 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crushkill Posted March 28, 2017 Author Share Posted March 28, 2017 55 minutes ago, perdu said: Sexy without doors, I'm duty bound to agree aren't I? So yes I agree. When I came back into this hobby I switched from enamels to acrylics but I have never found an acrylic that can 'colour' the surface like enamels All the acrylics seem to have a similar property, the ability to lie on a surface quite thickly Most are soft and, I find, flexible and can be lifted off with an accidental thumb nail Hence, I've just started buying new stocks of recent enamels again I'm very happy with Colour coats from Jamie at Sovereign Hobbies, lots of useful shades in the range But if acrylics is your think I like Vallejo for a massive colour range and Tamiya make decent stuff too Not too impressed by Humbrol these days but they do a decent range of colours too bill I've always used enamels but with a baby in the house (and no longer a building room) Household 6 said I can't build anymore cause the paints smell too bad. So acrylics it is. I've heard a good bit about Tamiya paints, and they're easy to get so that's probably the route I'll go. Thanks for the input! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
perdu Posted March 28, 2017 Share Posted March 28, 2017 If its about the 'niff' of them bear in mind that Tamiya is a sort of spirit based paint which has its own quite pungent, sharpish niff too, Humbrol and Vallejo are nose safe Mr Hobby paint is niffy too, never tried Gunze though but I hear that is a kind of spirit based paint too b Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bell209 Posted March 28, 2017 Share Posted March 28, 2017 10 hours ago, crushkill said: First, did any Huey's fly without pilot's doors? Not as a matter of course. They are easily removed but I've only ever removed them for firefighting bucketing on civil Hueys. Never done it for Australian Army Hueys, though - those used in Vietnam may have from time to time but I was just a kid then! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crushkill Posted March 28, 2017 Author Share Posted March 28, 2017 3 hours ago, perdu said: If its about the 'niff' of them bear in mind that Tamiya is a sort of spirit based paint which has its own quite pungent, sharpish niff too, Humbrol and Vallejo are nose safe Mr Hobby paint is niffy too, never tried Gunze though but I hear that is a kind of spirit based paint too b Change of plans then, I will be trying Vallejo as it is easier to get Stateside (so I'm lead to believe in my very limited research) 1 hour ago, Bell209 said: Not as a matter of course. They are easily removed but I've only ever removed them for firefighting bucketing on civil Hueys. Never done it for Australian Army Hueys, though - those used in Vietnam may have from time to time but I was just a kid then! A fellow over on ARC found a unit that did! His father was with the US Army's 190th AHC and it was their unit standard to fly with no pilot doors, but crew doors were still mounted, so looks like I've found my unit; just need to chose an airframe now. Thanks for the help though! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crushkill Posted March 31, 2017 Author Share Posted March 31, 2017 The kit is opened and washed. Hopefully my aftermarket goodies will be here soon and I can really get cracking on her. I've decided to build a 190th AHC aircraft, though I haven't decided on a particular aircraft just yet. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crushkill Posted April 6, 2017 Author Share Posted April 6, 2017 Finally got started on the bird, although I'm still waiting on my aftermarket stuff to arrive. The exhaust vents are molded closed, so naturally I pulled the trigger on a much harder job than I thought and started opening them, after an hour of work, I was able to get 2 of the 8 opened, though the pictures are after first opened vent. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crushkill Posted April 7, 2017 Author Share Posted April 7, 2017 Completed both sides, now waiting on my photoetch to get here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crushkill Posted April 16, 2017 Author Share Posted April 16, 2017 The Eduard PE set finally arrived, but due to a busy work week and the in-laws visit this weekend I wasn't able to get much done. First up was to open up all the necessary holes in the floor. Next, applied the PE to ammo chute openings in the floor (a significant improvement IMO) Started the update on the center console, once again a HUGE improvement Completed center console. Finally, mounted the rear bulkhead and the electronics bay. Looks like it'll be another busy week, but hopefully I'll get the seats completed by the weekend! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now