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Saro Skeeter, 1:72 Royal Navy ++++ Finished ++++


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The Navy trialled three Skeeters, WF112, WF113 and WF114 around 1950/51. The trials didn't go anywhere and the Skeeters were handed/sold back to Saro and subsequently went to the AAC.

I picked up this Aeroclub kit at SMW a year or so ago and it is an engaging little thing. The WIP is quite far along as I didn't keep a record and I have only just managed to sort out photobucket. It's mixed media, injected, white metal (including the cockpit which makes it stand on its tricycle undercart) and a vac formed canopy.

It's a little stalled mainly as I attacking a couple of Hurricanes for the Battle of Britain GB and my inmate fear of vac formed canopies. But here is the little fellow so far. It is tiny, about 3 inches long. It's built pretty much OOB with a little detailing in the cockpit and some of the drive details.

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The drive details are from a corner of plastic packing smoothed out with filler while the drive wheel is a circular piece of plastic mounted on wire.

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The fire extinguisher is a Blenheim anti personnel bomb trimmed, the instrument panel wires are indeed wires and the straps Tamiya Tape, with the cyclic a piece of wire. Aluminium paint is brushed on Revell aluminium thoroughly thinned with Flow Improver.

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Edited by 825
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That looks like great fun

I curse the day at SMW when I walked past John's stand and didnt pick up one of the remaining two :(

Especially since our own General Melchett DID :banghead:

Then bought it back to show me AND GLOAT

I like what you've done so far, smashing work

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Lovely. I had no idea the FAA tested the Skeeter - but I can see why it went nowhere. The thought of trying to do anything useful from a ship in one of those? Not to mention night deck landings...

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  • 4 years later...

Following on from Ced starting his Skeeter I've been shamed into finishing mine. And with good reason, I don't really need to do very much to finish. I did do some work in a KUTA a few years ago but it's been sitting in a corner largely forgotten. So time to get it finished. It'll take a little time as I'm away for much of the next week for the rugby but I'll work away in it bit by bit to get it done.  Here's what it looks like now. 

 

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To complete the rotors need painting, and a few sticky out bits added and transfers put on. The canopy framing isn't quite finished so a little bit of work needed there. All little jobs so can probably be done piecemeal between other things. 

 

It is tiny though. 

 

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Edited by 825
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So today I've painted the ends of the main rotor and the tail rotor with a couple of coats of white and started to bulk up the framing on the canopy. I initially used a very thin strip of Aluminium decal but checking with photos of the real thing my attempt looked really puny so I've bulked them up a bit. There's a limit to what can be done at one sitting as the adherence of the strips isn't great if you subsequently expose them to water when putting the next strip on. I've put a thin layer of Kleer over the work so far so it should be nice and solid when I start again tomorrow. 

 

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I've also added the struts for the second undercarriage leg/wheel since then took the photo and rubbed down the rougher parts of the paintwork. I'm not 100% happy with the canopy/body join. I think my skills and standards have improved since I started this little one. I'm reticent to do too much for fear of damaging what's already done but the front especially isn't great. I might try some Krystal Kleer followed by some PPP, a little at a time. 

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I've been away for the last week so nothing has been done. Today I've done a little, some transfers to bulk up the canopy framing and some filler under the canopy to try and smooth off the transition. 

 

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I'll leave it to firm up overnight before smoothing it off. Mind you I'll have to up my work seeing Ced's brilliant modelling on his Skeeter. 

 

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Framing finished and some paint on the rotors. I've sealed the frames with Kleer as the adhesive loosens as soon as it gets wet. 

 

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I didn't quite get the white band on the tail rotor in the right place so I'll sand it down a little and repaint it. Nowhere near the detail as on Ced's but my excuse is its small and my fingers big and clumsy. After all the masking on the tail rotor, I think I might have got away with hand painting. It will be the metal front edge that will be the challenge. Now to get on with adding some sticky out bits before finding some transfers. 

Edited by 825
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A bit of detail done. First a tube which could be an air inlet or outlet. Made from a piece of plastic tube that I think was a paint brush protector. I drilled a hole in the fuselage and then reamed it out with a file before glue it in with cyano. It's not perfect but looks OK. 

 

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This meerkat shaped piece of sprue will suffice once painted, trimmed and drilled out for the exhaust pipe on the other side which protrudes behind the undercarriage.

 

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The exhaust added. It's probably a little overscale but it does added some much needed detail. I had painted it and dry brushed it to slightly stained look but cutting it and drilling it out, followed by some awkward manoeuvring to get it into place meant I've rubbed most of it off so will need redone. I don't propose much staining as the Skeeters didn't spend long with the Navy, they were just trialled before being handed on. 

 

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Some transfers from the kit on, I'll now need to get some Royal Navy branding and serial number from a generic sheet. Apart from the roundels and tail warning sign that she al,that seems to be in the FAA trial machines. Even the 'Beware to the rotors' warning on the cab doors are not in evidence. 

 

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Nice job, about the size a Bell Soix I guess. Our ATC squadron 2466 at Ramsgate Kent had a complete Skeeter in our headquarters at Manston in the seventies and where it is now I don't know. It could be tucked away in the adjacent Manston history museum although I haven't visited for some time.

 

Keith

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  • 1 month later...

The transfers are now on. The serials took a little time as they are quite small and if you don't let each one glue/dry properly the next one just shoves it around. Also the small bits are all attached and painted. 

 

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Almost finished, rotors on. There are three struts needed needed on the main rotor. And it will be done and ready to go into the RFI. Not quite 5 years after starting. 

 

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Finally finished, only 5 years after starting. 

 

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I enjoyed this build although it was a bit fiddly and some bits such as the canopy took a fair amount of time and to be honest are not quite perfect. But from normal viewing distance it looks ok. 

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