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More Droning: RQ-2A, RQ-5B, RQ-7B, MQ-8B, and MQ-8C


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This is the next to last installment of my "Large" drone project. These are the smaller large drones and since they are so small and they all get the same color I built them all together. They are the RQ-2A Pioneer, RQ-5B Hunter, RQ-7B Shadow, MQ-8B Fire Scout and the MQ-8C Fire Scout. The first 2 are by Unicraft (spit) and the last 3 are from Attack Squadron. To keep any post from getting too big I will add a post for each model to this thread. Starting with the RQ-2A

 

First some general comments. These range from really tiny to just small in size, they are pretty monochromatic, and they are all resin. Given that they were very quick builds. I am not going to belabor the poor quality of the Unicraft kits other then to say that as far as resin kits go, they are the bottom of the heap. For more details seem my WIP thread on their YO-3 at  

In stark contrast the Attack Squadron kits are really excellent and a pleasure to build. They had real detailed step buy step instruction and great decals. It is just a pity they are no longer in production and I just hope that their new owner, Brengun, can keep up the quality. But enough droning on and on to the pictures.

 

  

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First the RQ-2A Hunter. I have to say that for a Unicraft kit this one wasn't too bad. I still have to carve the pieces out of the flash but the pin holing was minimal. The engine was just a blob that I thought was more flash so I found some cylinders from the junk box and used them. I could not find a propeller, so I fabricated one from styrene strips. The decals were useless and I  borrowed some excess ones from the Attack squadron kits;

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Next is the RQ-5B. This lived down to the usual Unicraft standard. Just to drive the point home this is the wing after a first coat of Mr Surfacer and some sanding. Each dark smudge is a pin hole:

 

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 But the finished model came out OK;

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Next is the RQ-7B Shadow by Attack Squadron. This thing is really tiny and small enough to sit on top of a Humbrol paint tin, but a nice kit;

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Next is the MQ-8B Fire Scout. This was a fun kit to build with a slew of tiny decals of the stencils. About the Attack Squadron decals; they are thin and go down with just a minimal amount of silvering, but they love to fold and bend and once you put them down they will either float on a puddle of water or they will just stick where you first put them and be very difficult to move.

 

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Edited by hsr
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Finally the MQ-8C Fire Scout. Other the both being helicopters the MQ-8B and MQ-8C have nothing in common and I suspect that they were given the same designation and name for some political reason. Again the kit was a pleasure to build. The rotor hub is a 3D printing and a thing of requisite detail and beauty. I was afraid that gluing the blades to it would be problematic but Zap CAA+ worked fine and seems to be holding. 

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Way at the beginning I said that this was the next to the last of the large drones. The last one is the MQ-1C Gray Eagle. For some reason no manufacturer makes a 1/72 kit of one. Italieri makes a die cast kit of what they call a -1C but it is a -1B Predator in size and shape.  I am working on a plan to get something and if it works out I will post it here so stay tuned.

 

Thanks for looking and enjoy.

 

 

 

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