Artie Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 (edited) Hi all...... I've got two of these old kits at home, and I'm planning to build one of them as a Spanish Navy example. AFAIK, Spain received both Sikorsky and Westland made machines, under the MAP program. Now the questions: Given the fact of its age, is it an accurate kit???? Not talking about detail or lack of it, but about general shape. The interior comes absolutely empty, except for some spurious cockpit detail, raised rivets (golf balls, in 1/48 scale), and a set of very weird looking wheels....So a complete sanding and rescribing will be mandatory, as well as some scratchbuilding for the cockpit and the starboard fuselage crane. So far, i've just got a few pics of the "Pepo", as they were nicknamed in Spain.... The tail boom is absolutely straight, and I've seen some models had a "twisted" tail...I suppose that's right for early H19B models, but not sure about it....the "twisted" tail was introduced from the H19D onwards, I think....It's a question of choosing a straight tail example, or doing major surgery..... Any info will be very helpful.... A late friend of mine used to say: "Pepos don't really fly.....they're so ugly that Earth repels them". TIA and best regards from Tenerife.... Edited March 27, 2018 by Artie 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
71chally Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 I've often wandered about the same thing about the overall accuracy of the kit, even if the details are 'toyish'. Seems to me if there was an aftermarket detail set for it, covering say the canopy, undercarriage, rotor head etc, that a maybe a decent model can be made from it. The Marina had a mix of HRS-3 and H-19D. the HRS-3s at delivery they would have had the straight tail booms, the H-19D drooped booms. The one in your picture is a HRS-3, lovely colour scheme, very tempting. The Ejecito del Aire received four Westland WS-55 Srs2, and they appear to have the drooped boom. The drooped boom wasn't always mark specific and was also a modification rolled out across some service machines with the straight boom. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
huvut76g7gbbui7 Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 3 hours ago, Artie said: Given the fact of its age, is it an accurate kit???? I believe that it is the only one in 1/48 and is like hen's teeth but I have no idea how accurate it is. As you are doing a major rebuild in any case I would suggest that you have a good base to start with as it looks like a Whirlwind. I do like the one in the photo you posted although at first glance I thought the tail rotor pylon had been modified,then I realised it was the flag Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don McIntyre Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 Check out Lonestar Models. If Mike West hasn't released his H-19 cockpit set, he ought to be very close. http://www.lonestarmodels.com/store That kit is probably older than most of the guys on this forum. I just turned 60 last fall, and I think the kit originated before I did. This may be worth a look if you're curious: https://www.scalemates.com/products/product.php?id=1092892&p=timeline 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
72modeler Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 (edited) A couple of reviews here, for what they're worth. It was the only model kit that I was so frustrated with that I threw it against the wall! I was ten at the time, and could not for the life of me get the rotor blades to stay on the hub! To this day I have yet to build another helicopter! The last link is to an article in the Sikorsky company newsletter with specs and some good detail photos. Mike https://www.cybermodeler.com/hobby/kits/rm/kit_rm_h173.shtml https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYACfg9OLyg https://modelingmadness.com/scott/korean/48h19preview.htm http://www.sikorskyarchives.com/S-55.php Edited March 27, 2018 by 72modeler added additional link 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tempestfan Posted March 28, 2018 Share Posted March 28, 2018 It may be worthwhile to look out for the late 70s Deutsche Rettungsflugwacht boxing or the early 90s SABENA one, perhaps on ebay.de. Both used to be around aplenty, though I have no idea about the current situation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rodders154 Posted March 28, 2018 Share Posted March 28, 2018 I think the kit has been reissued as there was a chap selling a couple at the Yeovil show last weekend. They deffinatly looked new to me They are the USAF colours Rodders Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Artie Posted March 28, 2018 Author Share Posted March 28, 2018 (edited) Thanks for your replies, mates..... So far, I've got two of them in my stash, a USAF Rescue machine, with huge floats, and a Sabena re-edition.... At this point, and after spending and hour checking the kit last evening, I'm thinking about leaving all those rivets there...the overlapping panels effect is quite appealing to my eyes (childish mind, I'm afraid). The cockpit is another strory...some scratchbuilding will give some interest to that area, not planning to buy any resin aftermarket, my budget is quite limited...!!! I'm building this kit as a tribute to an old friend who owned them and gave them to me (along with a TON of other kits) before passing away....Not sure about that yellow/blue scheme, or an overall aluminium SAR machine..... By the way...the plastic has some letters there saying "Revell, 1956" Bye ....!!!!! Edited March 28, 2018 by Artie 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bentwaters81tfw Posted March 28, 2018 Share Posted March 28, 2018 I have a couple of these, one Revell and one Lodella boxing. One will be RAF 22 sqn and the other a RN planeguard in yellow and sky. Shapeways do replacement wheels, I bought 2 sets recently. Who else is going to give us a 1/48 S.55? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corsairfoxfouruncle Posted March 28, 2018 Share Posted March 28, 2018 Yes i think Revell did a recent re-pop of these. I think about 5-6 months ago. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
71chally Posted March 28, 2018 Share Posted March 28, 2018 (edited) 4 hours ago, bentwaters81tfw said: I have a couple of these, one Revell and one Lodella boxing. One will be RAF 22 sqn and the other a RN planeguard in yellow and sky. Shapeways do replacement wheels, I bought 2 sets recently. Who else is going to give us a 1/48 S.55? Mikromir/AMP hopefully! Where do you find the wheels? Edited March 28, 2018 by 71chally 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bentwaters81tfw Posted March 28, 2018 Share Posted March 28, 2018 15 minutes ago, 71chally said: Mikromir/AMP hopefully! Where do you find the wheels? https://www.shapeways.com/product/H5N9E7DJF/sikorsky-h-19-quot-chickasaw-quot-landing-gear-wheels?optionId=62431427&li=marketplace Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don McIntyre Posted April 5, 2018 Share Posted April 5, 2018 I keep hoping that Gallery will do an H-19/S-55 in 1/48 as a follow-up to their very nicely done H-34/S-58. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Artie Posted April 6, 2018 Author Share Posted April 6, 2018 Given my previous experiences, the only think I need to get a mainstream, state of the art, kit of any subject I want, is to spend two years working with a toyish kit from the days of Gene Vincent....... That's the only reason why I'm wanting to start working with it...!!! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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