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With the (currently) 4 F-14 Tomcats still on the go and the Airfix one virtually finished, I think a breather is required to keep the modelling mojo going. SWMBO asked which helicopter I was going to do next. I have two Mistercraft kits (Desert Huey and a Cobra) which I intend to get round to, but the obvious choice, considering the US Navy theme I’m on with said Tomcats, would be the Seasprite. I bought this kit off eBay for around £5 IIRC about 4 months ago when I was building the AW Merlin. It had been part built with no paining done whatsoever using what appears to be polystyrene cement a fair while ago judging by the yellowed colour of the cement - which means (hopefully) and easier strip down. There were a few gaps in the fitted parts which also would allow for easier dismantling. A trial of removing the engine pod proved this to be the case. The parts which were not fitted are still on the sprues, so all in all, it’s going to be like a not quite new kit once it’s dismantled. The kit even has its original decals which is useful - yellowed but present. I’ll try the sunshine trick to see if they clear up a bit (but I might have to buy replacements). As purchased using the seller’s photos.

After the 1/72nd kits (link), Clear Prop Models is to release 1/48th Kaman UH-2A/B Seasprite new tool kits. Source: https://www.facebook.com/Clearpropmodels/posts/3151703748445436 V.P.

Hi all and this is the second build I'm in with, Airfix's lovely SH-2F Seasprite.. Airfix SH-2F Seasprite Box art by Dermot Moriarty, on Flickr I've never built this kit but judging by the contents and ones I've seen made, it's a little cracker and one of Airfix's best (and underated) I think. Airfix SH-2F Seasprite contents by Dermot Moriarty, on Flickr If you're interested in their story, here's a short documentary about Kaman - I think Anton Flettner joined them after WW2 Cheers, Dermot

Hello! Here is another my model! This is a test assembly of the new model from Clearprop models. The assembly was easy. The only thing was to pay more attention to the rotor of the rotor. There is a lot of etching and it was necessary to assemble everything very carefully. The same for the tail rotor. The spider is made of etching and it is very small. In addition, the part had to be bent in several places. I painted the model with MR Color paint. I ddonemodel not dirty . The helicopters in all the photos that I saw are clean.

Fujimi's 1/70th (close enough, eh?) HH-2D Sea Sprite. A nice kit, but it does suffer from some serious flaws. I started building it as a companion for my YSH-2E, then there was an accident in the paint-shop, so it got whiffed.....

Found this is the stash and decided to move it up the to do list so here it is It is said that this is one of the best kits that Airfix made and looking at it I can see where they are coming from. I have yet to decide the markings but I am inclined to do one of the 2 original trials aircraft for the RNZN seeing as my daughter lives in that far away country. As you can see the box features the kit made up and the inside is cramed full of sprues. Lots of pieces Unfortunately the model as lots of sink marks as well as injector pin marks but then again that is what Mr Surfacer is made for. I wonder how I got along without this marvellous product before. This is the radar screen that hangs down from the roof and as you can see there is an awful sink mark but it will be filled and you wont know the difference. So onto the building I don't normally take long to build a model and I cant see this being any different Rodders

Kaman SH-2F Seasprite Kitty Hawk 1:48 The Kaman SH-2 Seasprite was originally developed for the US Navy as a fast utility helicopter. Only later would it be developed into the Anti-submarine Helicopter we know. In the late 1950s the US Navy launched a competition to meet its requirement for a compact all weather utility helicopter. After looking at all the submissions the USN chose the then model K-20 for further development. The K-20 was a conventional single engine helicopter with a four bladed main rotor and a four blade tail rotor. The first flight test was 1959 for the by now HU2K-1 Seasprite. This would then become the UH-2B under the 1962 Tri-Service system. The original helicopters were found to be underpowered and were extensively re-manufactured bringing in twin engines. In the late 1960s the US Navy had identified an urgent need for a light helicopter to operate from and support non-aviation ships. This was to be The Light Airborne Multi-Purpose System of LAMPS as it became. The UH-2 was selected for conversion to the SH-2 anti-submarine configuration. The small size of the SH-2 allowed it to be operated from decks which were to small for other helicopters in use at he time. The SH-2 with its radar and other sensors allowed ships to extend their situational awareness over the horizon of the ships own radar, and for submarines further out than the shipboard sensors would allow. The SH-2 was then upgraded to the SH-2F configuration in the 1980s. The upgraded countermeasures and additional equipment allowed the helicopter to operate in hostile areas such as the Gulf where the submarine threat was limited. The US Navy retired its SH-2F Seasprites in 1993. The only other operator for the SH-2F was the Royal New Zealand Navy who operated the type in an interim role between retiring its Westland Wasps and taking delivery of SH-2G Super Seasprites. The kit There has been some excitement amongst helicopter modellers since Kitty hawk announced they would issue a 1:48 Seasprite. The only previous kit of the helicopter being the old and basic Matchbox kit. On opening the full box you get six sprues of grey plastic, one of clear plastic, a decal sheet, a small Photo etched fret and the instruction booklet. The two main fuselage sides are not moulded on a sprue but are loose inside their own plastic bag. These look to have been moulded on their own so there are no sprue attachment points to clean up, just a few injector pin marks depending on how much you open up the doors. These parts are that well made that they in fact clip together! Generally the parts are well formed, they feature fine engraved detail, and raised detail where needed. The detail especially on the main fuselage parts is so fine I am worried it will disappear under a few coats of paint. The sprue gates seem to be thicker than some manufactures and care will be needed to remove parts. There as been some thought in how some parts fit together. For example the engine pod halves have the seam on the model parts where the seam is on the real parts. Some parts though like the nose (which is split into four parts) seem to be over engineered (though I hate to use that term) Why use 4 parts for this I dont know? A couple of areas of disappointment are; there is just a simple bench seat provided in the rear, not much in the way of the sensor station and no seat for the third crew member. The seat and its occupant can be seen on all shots of the helicopter from the left side. I cant understand why you would provide sliding doors for this area and not include the correct interior? Additional I am told the transmission cover above the cockpit looks to be from the SH-2G and for the SH-2F needs to be further back, and lack some of the detail shown. Construction of the kit starts with the interior. The Pilot and co-pilot stations are both provided with full flight controls. The seats are three parts with photo etch seat belts being provided. Decals are provided for the instrument panel and are added at this stage. Once these parts are assembled the wheel wells are made up and fixed into each fuselage half and the front lower windows are added. The rear left door is added at this stage as it appears to fit from the inside. Once all of these parts are in the fuselage halves can be assembled. The next step is to add the glazing to the front of the helicopter. Care will be needed here as the clear parts need to attach to each other. The horizontal tail parts and tail rotor drive shaft are also added. Following this the main transmission housing is completed and added to the top. PE parts are provided for vents in this area. The four part nose is then assembled and added to the front. Crew doors are also added at this time. The next step is to assemble the two engines, and also the covers for the landing gear. These are then added to the main fuselage. Next you get to assemble all the parts which hang of the side of the helo. Two different sized fuel tanks are provided as well as two torpedoes. The sprues also include maverick missiles though they are not mentioned anywhere. The MAD (magnetic anomaly detector) is also assembled at this time. Part of this is formed by bending a PE part into a cone. It is not shown on the instructions how to do this and no plastic part is provided if you dont want to do this. All of the external fittings and landing gear are then added to the main fuselage. The main rotors are then assembled. The rotor head seems fairly well represented and the rotor sandwich the head parts with a backing part. Hopefully this will make for a strong join. The main rotors have the signature Kaman parts which will look good. The tail rotor is also assembled at this time. Once these are finished they are attached to the finished model. Lastly a set of PE windscreen wipers are added to the front. Canopy As you would expect for a Helicopter there is extensive glazing. Kitty Hawk have captured the blown side windows and general shapes of the glazing very well indeed. The parts are clear and free from any problems. Due to the complex shapes of some of these parts there are more attachment points than usual. The modeller will need to take care when removing these. Decals The decal sheet is quite small and contains insignia for one aircraft, with schemes for three. Also included as decals are the stripes for the tail planes and supporting struts. SH-2F 151309 of Helicopter Anti-Submarine Squadron Light THREE ONE. SH-2F 151314 of Helicopter Anti-Submarine Squadron Light THREE SEVEN. SH-2F 149750 of Naval Air Test Center Patuxent River. There is no manufacturer listed for the decal sheet. It looks to be all in register with good colour definition and depth for the white parts. The carrier film seems very minimal and these should present no problems to the modeller. A second small sheet is provided with cockpit instrument decals and Squadron markings. It should be noted that the prominent white walkway markings for the topside of the airframe are not included on the decal sheet. Lastly I would like to mention the instructions. On these whole these are good, and printed so that there are colour profiles for all three decal options. There are some steps which are a little vague but nothing a competent modeller will not be able to work through. The colour call out for the main helicopter is wrong though. Midnight Blue is called for when by this time the helicopters should be Engine Grey FS36076. For the China Lake example the Orange should be International Orange FS12197 and not fluorescent/Dayglo. Conclusion On the whole this is welcome release from Kitty Hawk who seem to be giving us kits we have asked for. There are a couple of areas they could pay more attention to, but as a new company they should be applauded for releases like this. We also have a Walkaround of the Seasprite Review sample courtesy of and available soon from major hobby shops

Kaman SH-2 Seasprite, pics thanks to Stephen.

The old Airfix SH-2F Seasprite has a reasonable amount of interior detail for its day. Can anyone please help with internal colours? According to the instructions, the floor is in light grey (M13 - yes, it's that old) with sidewall and most interior components dark blue-grey (M22, the same colour as recommended for the exterior Engine Grey), seat cushions in gloss red (G1) and control columns, cyclic sticks, pedals and radar scope matt black (M6). What are the correct FS shades and can anyone add any more info? I'm not planning on doing a superdetail here but would like to use correct colours. Thanks in advance.