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Thought I'd post a build blog here as I'm very excited for this kit! Might get some gap weeks in the build process but I'll try to keep this updated whenever I do make progress. Right now I've started on the PE, getting all the unpainted stuff glued on before I give the cockpit its gray base color. Got the sweet Eduard PE for the C-130J cockpit, and while it's not exactly the AC/MC-130J cockpit, it's good enough. I might scratch-build the HUDs that are seen on the AFSOC Herculeses. I'm not sure if the normal Hercs have those, but in assuming not since Eduard didn't include them. Someone can probably chime in on that. Also missing a display on the instrument panel but I'll live with it 😄 The seats do look very nice, even unpainted. Also attached the fins for the Hellfires (hope I don't have to do that again anytime soon 😫). Thankfully the scale allows for a little messi- a lot of messiness in the CA glue application. The interior is a lot cleaner at least for now. The resin Hellfires & GBU-39s are gonna work great for a full Ghostrider loadout. Already got the photo references for the two tail numbers but I'm still not sure which one I'm going to do. The other one is a "purebred" AC-130J while the other is a converted MC-130J. Both got some brilliant nose art so it's gonna be a tough call!

I texted a couple of photos of my recently completed Ki-43 Hayabusa to one of my college ROTC buddies. He told me once that the Oscar was one of his favorite aircraft. After he saw the pictures, he asked me if I would build a model for him. He surprised me by asking for a C-130. He flew C-130s back in the 1980s, H models from Dyess AFB, Tx, and EC-130 Compass Call out of Sembach AB, Germany. He wants a basic trash hauler in Euro 1 lizard camo. I checked out what kits were available and the Zvezda 1/72nd C-130H seemed to be the fan favorite. I checked online shops and eBay and found that BNA Model World in Australia had the best price with shipping. I put in the order, along with Eduard canopy masks and a cockpit detail set. In a very short time the box arrived and it was Christmas in October. But, when I opened the box I thought maybe I should have gone for a 1/144 scale kit. The Zvezda kit is big. I usually build 1/48th fighters, so this one dwarfs my workspace. But I haven't started that 1/48th F-105 yet either. I had already started the kit when I took these first photos. Management of the workspace is important in the build. You can see the green dusting the spray booth filter. I glued some of the cargo bay side panels into the fuselage halves, sprayed the interior parts with Testors Model Master Sky Type S. I had an old bottle that was unopened. I thought it was too dark for use on a 1/48th Spitfire. Works well for that sickly "hospital green" that C-130 interiors were painted. I also painted the landing gear wells, struts, and wheels gloss white. After the main gear wells were painted I glued the multi-part sponsons (I think that's the term) to the fuselage sides. Fit is good, but I usually end up with seams to fill. There are insert panels forward of the main gear for different versions. This one does not have forward side doors. The white squiggle is some correction fluid. I find it fills fine seams well and wet sands very easily. I plan on cleaning up the majority of the fuselage seams before getting too far with the interior. But, when I join the fuselage halves, sanding the long seams will be a problem with keeping the interior clean. I'll probably tape the openings to try to keep the muck out. As you can see, the fuselage will be about 17 inches long once the nose cone and tail stinger are attached. The wings consist of 2-piece outer panels with a single upper mid-section that attaches atop the fuselage. The lower outer panels extend to meet up with the fuselage side, so it should be a strong joint with no wing droop in the future. Again, the size is impressive. I don't think it will fit in my spray booth. Also in the photo are the 2 external wing fuel tanks. There are only 3 seated crew members provided. I guess the Nav and Load Master are late for the flight. One of the crewmen looks a little like Freddy Mercury with the crew cut and mustache.

After the - ref. SVM-14002 - Lockheed EC-130V Hercules - AWACS https://www.modelsvit-eshop.com/c/aviation-1/ec-130v-awacs-version-144 https://www.super-hobby.fr/products/EC-130V.html Original Amodel boxings from 2010: https://www.scalemates.com/kits/sova-m-svm-14002-lockheed-ec-130v--1288482 SOVA-M is to release two new variants from the mighty Hercules: - ref. SVM-14004 - Lockheed C-130W.2 Hercules - DERA "Snoopy" weather research aircraft https://www.modelsvit-eshop.com/c/aviation-1/c-130k-w2-snoopy-222 https://www.hannants.co.uk/product/SVM-14004 https://www.aviationmegastore.com/en/modelling/lockheed-c130w-2-snoopy-weather-research-aircraft-sova-models-svm-14004-201558.html - ref. SVM-14007 - Lockheed C-130Q Hercules - NSF/NCAR atmosphere research aircraft https://www.modelsvit-eshop.com/c/aviation-1/ec-130q-research-aircraft-223 https://www.hannants.co.uk/product/SVM-14007 https://www.aviationmegastore.com/en/modelling/lockheed-c130q-hercules--athmosphere-research-aircraft-sova-models-svm-14007-201559.html V.P.

Minicraft is to release a 1/144th Lockheed C-130J-30 Hercules kit - ref. 14700 Source: http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/blog/1509254 V.P.

Great Wall Hobby is to release a 1/144th Lockheed C-130H Hercules kit - ref. ? Source: https://hobby.dengeki.com/event/2090004/ V.P.

I finally completed this build today. This kit started life as an Italeri boxing of the AMT AC-130H. The conversion involved: Plugging the 'AC' holes Lengthened the fuselage for and aft of the wing Adding AE2000 engines from Jen's Bits Adding various parts from the Hamilton Hobbies conversion set. Scratch building the Satellite Wifi dome Scratch building various antennas modified the long range tanks with chaff dispensers Added a Litening pod from Quickboost/Eduard It was finished using SMS, Gunze and Tamiya paints and decaled using the Southern Sky C-130J-30 decal sheet.

Zvezda is to release in 2020 a 1/72nd Lockheed C-130 Hercules kit - ref. 7321 Source: https://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/235061306-zvezda-2020/ V.P.

Hello dear colleagues! Today I want to show you my first non-civil aircraft in my standard scale. What can I say about C-130? Some people says that it's most beauty-looking plane. But in my opinion it looks ridiculous, short and fat fuselage looks strange enough. But anyway, it has own charm, especially in old schemes with naked duralumin body. And I think the most popular military cargo plane will be a good replenishment for my collection. Hercules was produced in many different modifications, the most famous of them is monstrous AC-130 Spectre, the flying artillery battery. Also, C-130 is the biggest plane ever landed and taken off from aircraft carrier. The kit from Amodel was purchased about half a year ago, but for long time I didn't dare to start with it. I've read a lot of negative reviews about this kit. OK, it's short-run technology. How we say in Russia, swearing removed And I have to say that this proverb describes progress of building the model good enough. There was no one connection that didn't need many time, sanding paper and putty to get it acceptable-looking. Usually I spend much more time for paint-works, but when you have a deal with Amodel, you have to be ready to spend some days before you will take airbrush in your hand. On the picture there are two engines from left side - one before and another after correction of them. Also kit has incorrect geometry, when I've placed the wing over fuselage, I've discovered that there is a big fail with engines. They were inclined down. After saying some kind words to Amodel manufacturers, I disconnected engines and took putty and sanding paper again... Taking stock of building progress, there was very long and complicated work to get something looking like Hercules from that sadly-looking plastic pieces, that you can find in the box. BTW Amodel writes in their instruction that "Kit destined only for skilled modellers". I think it's something like disclaimer of responsibility. Paint work was easy enough after finally getting assembled model. First I've used black Decorix primer from the balloon. Then I masked nose and areas behind engines and painted the plane with Tamiya X-11. Then I tried (not very successfully) to imitate panel effect on the fuselage and wing-edge. Red colour for tail was mixed from red and orange Master-Acrylic paints. First, I had an idea to paint the whole plane in metallic, like it is pointed in instruction. But discovering hundreds of C-130 photos, I've found one with red tail and metallic body. It was C-130A from one US museum. I liked this scheme very much and decided to paint my model in something like that prototype. And here I've to say that there is no any real prototype of my model. It only can be named collective fashion of Hercules from the Golden Era of 1960's, with fantastic design of cars, fascinatingly-looking planes and time of Elvis Presley 🤟 Decal from Amodel matches all the (un)quality of the kit. Though it was covered with lacquer, anyway it has crumbled. So it was "US air force' stencils for fuselage. But after it had crumbled, I had to content only with "USAF" instead of correct stencil. Big "S" letter on the upper part of the wing had crumbled as well, but fortunately there was another one in reserve. I"ve used Pledge Future prior and after decals. Also I've applied gray and deep-gray wash from Pacific-88 to get effect of old and exhausted plane. Finally, I've covered model with Master-Acrylic matte lacquer. Summary, what can I say about the model. I haven't create a masterpiece, sure, and there are a lot of mistakes. Painting is not very pretty-looking as well, especially on the photos. But I wanted to get Hercules in 1/144 on the shelve, and I've got it. Will I build Amodel kits in the future? I don't think so. But never ever say "never" and maybe some time I'll want to get another one special plane and the model will be non-alternative.. May be. Wish all of you modelling inspiration! Respects, tMikha.

Hi there! My choice of model for this GB: The fuselage. Hellcat is there for size comparison. Masks are the only aftermarket item I'll be using. Decals. Huuuge walkway decals for the wings. I think I will paint them instead. Not sure yet on my choice - but it will be either the ROKAF one with green/grey camo or the Japanese grey/blue camo. Both look really nice. I was so excited that already made a start, but I just realised that the GB has not started yet! Oh well, I think I'm still safe below the 25% mark - I'll just wait up few days until I continue It is looking really sweet model and excited to build something BIG for a change.

Lockheed C-130 Wheels (672263 for Zvezda) 1:72 Eduard Brassin ` Kit wheels are generally in two halves, which means you have the resultant joins to deal with, possible mould-slip issues on single part wheels, and sometimes less than stellar detail due to the moulding limitations of styrene injection technology, especially in the tread department. That's where replacement resin wheels come in, with their lack of seamline and superior detail making a compelling argument. They are also usually available at a reasonable price, and can be an easy introduction to aftermarket and resin handling, as they are usually a drop-in replacement. This set arrives in Eduard’s standard flat packaging with a card insert and instructions behind the four resin wheels within. The wheels are attached to their blocks by the contact patch, with narrow out-riggers to each side that improve casting reliability and mould release. The detail is pretty good, deep circumferential tread is engraved and the wheels have the right amount of sag you seem to see on a full loaded Herc In addition, you get a sheet of yellow kabuki tape (not pictured – it doesn’t photograph well) with six pre-cut donut masks ready to assist you in cutting the demarcation between tyre and hub with as little effort as possible. Conclusion It’s a drop-in replacement for the kit parts, and the detail is excellent, adding some welcome realism to your model, while simplifying construction and making painting easier. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Here is my 1/72 Italeri Lockheed Hercules C5, ZH883 of 47 Sqn, RAF Brize Norton from 2016. Built OOB using the Xtracolor decals set for the '50 Years' of Hercules operations. The only whitling that was done was moving the position of the prop blades to the feathered position as they would be normally on the ground, from the fined in flight position for flight as they are in the kit. Painted with Xtracolor enamels, mainly NATO Green with some white and blacks added to try and get the change in shades that are evident on the real aircraft. Maybe not an exact match but I don't think it's come out too bad. It's a large model so doesn't fit into the cabinet 🙄, didn't realise that the wing span was so large. Photo's not great as were taken on my iPhone.

My first build will be an L-100-20 Hercules in the colours of TAAG Angola Airlines in 1/144. I'll be using the Minicraft kit with a Welsh Models fuselage. I'll photograph it before I start but for now here's a link to a photo of the real thing: https://aviation-safety.net/photo/292/Lockheed-L-100-20-Hercules-D2-THA Can't wait to get started!

Can anyone suggest where I might find images of the C-130J cockpit. I am looking for the general layout to try and improve on the 1/72 Italeri kit for the RAF version. Thanks Alasdair

RAF Hercules C1 1/144 Minicraft It was partly memories of the old Airfix kit that inspired me to build this one. You know, the one with the 'crud and custard' colours. with a Land Rover towing a bloodhound missile towards the loading ramp. I remember receiving this kit on Christmas, when it first came out. This is the Minicraft kit, recently re-released by S&M Models at a very reasonable price. Apparently it has some faults, I'm happy with it, it looks like a Herk and I have finished it in the colours of XV196, the one on the Airfix box art. I even found a little Land Rover! My usual 'with something else' shot 😀 T'aint that big! Thanks for looking John

I'm working on a MultiCast's resin conversion (1/72) of the Italeri C-130 Hercules to an RCAF C-130J-30. The MultiCast set is great, beautifully molded, and the decals are world class. I made things more difficult for myself by using and ancient and incomplete Testors boxing of the AC-130a Spooky. This meant I had to fabricate all the missing doors, and fill the extra gun ports. step one was, after cutting the fuselage apart, tape the whole thing together, and find the appropriate nose weight. The easiest way was to wire fishing weights to the forward cargo bulkhead. I wasn't sure how much would be visible in the cockpit, so I scratchbuilt a lot of details, adding side consoles, belts, flight engineer center, crew rest bunks, etc ... The resin stretch fuselage sections were attached with 5 minute epoxy, all locating pins removed, tabs installed, and because the fuselage shells were to flexible, I had to add a lot of bracing. A wing spar (wooden dowl) was added to prevent wing droop, and the bending moment and cracking from such a long wing. The airframe was completely rescribed, then filled (milliput white), scribing touched up, primed and the prominent external doublers were added. The doublers were added with .010" x .040" strip, then .003" thick tape placed on either side a sanded down to flush. The engines were attached ( the inboard kit engine nacelles had to be trimmed back by 2.25 mm to align all the engines) and faired in with milliput, and rescribed. At this point, I've installed and masked the fuselage windows - but not the canopy, filled the fuselage seams and primed again, loosely fit the wings, tanks, and stabs to check everything. Still miles to go, but it looks like and airplane. Hope you like so far ... Colin

Here's my 1/72 Italeri/Wingman C-130J-30 Stretched Hercules operated by the RCAF. It started out as a Testors/Italeri AC-130a 'Spooky' with a lot of scratchbuilding and modifications. I'm very happy with how it turned out, hope you like ... Thanks for looking, Colin

Source: http://sandmmodels.co.uk/misc-news/1144-scale-c-130-kits-arrive-2/ Source: https://www.hannants.co.uk/product/SMK44-68 Source: https://www.hannants.co.uk/product/SMK44-69 V.P.

Hi, all. I've recently picked up a copy of Italeri's 1/72 Hercules in its KC-130F boxing, aka Fat Albert. I got a bargain, but unfortunately that means I didn't get an instruction sheet with the kit. Does anyone know where I can find one online? 1999.co.jp is my usual go to, but I've had no luck there for this kit. Thanks in advance.

I recently got another eBay bargain, the 1/72 Italeri Hercules, which of course I'll be doing as the RAF C.1 option, as much OOB as possible (XV215). However, the decals have the 'last three' of the serial number for the nose and tail fin in black, despite painting instructions being for light aircraft grey undersides. I want to build the kit as circa 1980-85, light a/c grey undersides, am I correct to believe that all RAF Hercs at this time had white last three serial numbers, which only went black with wrap round camo in the 90s? Also, is the upper grey camo medium sea grey or dark sea grey? It looks a bit lighter than the DSG on Buccaneers or Jags for example.

Morning all Is it still possible to get a 1/72 Herc kit that can be built almost OOB as an RAF Herc from the 70s to 90s period? There seem to be a few American ones but are they suitable to build as a C-130K?

OzMods is to release a new tool 1/72nd Lockheed C-130A Hercules conversion set - ref. OZCONV 7216 - for Italeri C-130E/H kit. Source: http://www.ozmods-kits.com/ozmods-conversions-upgrades-accessories-172 V.P.

Just a few un-edited (apart from cropping) from the distant past .... 1. Little Rock AFB, Arkansas - May 1982 2. Jackson, Mississippi - October 1980 3. Mildenhall, UK - date unknown 4. Nashville, Tennessee - May 1982 5. Woodbridge, UK - February 1978 Martin

Never really ventured into this part of the website before. I'm still relatively new here. Anyhoo, I took a few photos of a C-130K that I got to refuel a little while ago here in Winnipeg, Canada. I'll post a few photos here. The rest can be seen in my album up on Flickr. Just click on the photo to get there. Thanks for looking. -matt 20151123-MJS_3469-2 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20151123-MJS_3470-2 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20151123-MJS_3479-2 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20151123-MJS_3481 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20151123-MJS_3525 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20151123-MJS_3513 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20151123-MJS_3528-2 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20151123-MJS_3504 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr

My ongoing project is to build an example of each RAF Squadron in existence at the time of the 2010 SDSR. So, to represent 24 and 30 Squadron here are a Hercules pair. The original plan was to use a second airframe for the C4 extensions, but since the release of the Wingman Models conversion, the spare airframe is in reserve in case of any cock ups on my part when performing surgery. Here's the start. The parts. Getting ready for cutting. More tomorrow.

Source: https://www.facebook.com/wingmanmodels/posts/457647281088668 V.P.