1/48 Westland Wasp HAS1 Op Corporate *** FINISHED ***

[Martian]

The engine is looking majestic Ralph.

 

Martian 👽 

[The Spadgent]

I’m pinning this for when I eventually get into my little smokey box, that engine is sublime as is the rest. @perdu Bill to the rescue as always. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. The BM kindness is second to none. ❤️

[Guy]

Lovely work, only time I have had the pleasure of being winched into a helo was into a Wasp - wasn't wet though from a field near Dartmouth.

[exdraken]

GREAT!

looks very delicate!

 

[Chewbacca]

Thanks everyone for your kind words.  I'm now calling the engine and transmission deck complete:

 

 

 

Tasks left to do:

 

• Attach the tail rotor (having just wasted an hour investigating which way around it goes because I had photos that appeared to show both options only to realise that the one that showed it as clockwise when viewed from port was in fact an inverted image and had the tail rotor on the starboard side).  This photo clear;y shows that it goes anti-clockwise when viewed from port just like the early variants of the Lynx though why any of the Westland's designers thought that was a good idea has always baffled me).

• Make and attach the windscreen wipers
• Make and attach the SACRU (cargo hook)
• Paint the non-slip tread on the undercarriage
• Finish the wheels
• Decals (doing a test print on another computer/sprinter tonight)
• Final gloss coat
• Light weathering

It's then onto the base which will be a cross section of HECLA's flight deck.  I've got some rough plans sketched out but haven't yet finalised how much of that I'm going to represent

 

 

 

[Terry1954]

That is looking so good Ralph. The engine especially is so convincing, I'm sure I can even hear the whine of the turbine starting up......... !

 

Looking forward to seeing this one finished, and hopefully one day eventually see it in the flesh down at Pelhams Park!

 

Terry

[hendie]

that is a fantastic looking engine and transmission deck.  That's the bar set a bit higher for anyone who chooses to follow with any wasp/scout build

[TonyOD]

Blimey. That engine is something else.

[Daedalus72]

That is an awesome Wasp. My kit may have to come out of the loft.

Yours shows what can be done with what is an obsolete and very basic product with a lot of perseverance and attention to detail

[Ex-FAAWAFU]

Best model Nimbus I have ever seen; really excellent work, Ralph!

[perdu]

Lovely Nimbus Ralph, may I be permitted a small interjection, borne out in your photo of XT781

When I was deetailing my Wasp engine I had the temerity to colour the jetpipes dirty burnty as I did for my Scout.

 

Howls of protest arose, "This naval aircraft wouldn't be sent to sea with mucky tail pipes they need to be kept clear in use!"

 

781 shows what the interjectors meant, pipes kept clean

 

As you can tell I have nothing but admiration, never seen a 1/48 scale Wasp so lovely.

[Chewbacca]

Thanks everyone.  Coming from the expert modellers in this community, I am truly humbled by your comments.

 

You do make a very good point about the jet pipes Bill.  They should be much lighter and brighter as this photo of Wilbur over West Falkland shows:

 

 

In my defence, it was the first time that I had used Alclad and let's just say it was a learning experience 🥵.  Primed with grey Halfords primer from a rattle can, then a couple of coats of Alclad gloss black base followed by about 5 coats of, I think, airframe aluminium, but it just wouldn't go any lighter than it is now.  I did have these photos in the reference library which showed a darker finish so I left it (though I do concede that both of these images are of restored aircraft in private ownership).  With hindsight, I should have stripped it and started again.

 

 

[The Spadgent]

In total agreement that engine is ace!! You’ve set the bar rather high. 🤩 Bravo.

 

Johnny

[Chewbacca]

Time to turn my attention to the base.

 

You'll recall that I said in #155 that I had some ideas of how to do this.  We;;as I explained to my son at the weekend, I could either do it the simple way and just have a cut out of part of the flight deck with a "bum-line", centreline and centre circle markings, or I could create a large section of HECLAS's stern.

 

Yep, you guessed it, why keep it simple when I could make more work for myself!

 

So armed with the scantiest of information, I started yesterday to craft not only the flight deck but also the quarterdeck underneath it.  If i'm honest, this was always the approach that I wanted to do and having been inspired by @Dancona's 1/200 VICTORIOUS scratchbuild and @phantom61's 1/72 ENDURANCE flight deck, I thought I might as well go for it.

 

Issue is of course that the flight deck isn't as long as the quarterdeck and so with the Wasp on the spot and spread, the tail boom extends over the quarterdeck so it would look odd without the quarterdeck underneath.  At least that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it!

 

Drew up some plans based on what photographic evidence I do have - which is not a lot, mainly limited to these photos:

 

 

(HYDRA, which incidentally is back to front)

 

(HECATE)

 

 

 

 

Plan is to cut the quarterdeck and flight deck from some 2 mm styrene sheet.  Cut a slightly smaller quarterdeck shape from 1 mm thick balsa wood and stick that to the quarterdeck to represent the teak decking (slightly smaller to allow for the 6-8 inch gap around the deck edge that was always left painted) and stick some wet and dry paper to the flight deck area to represent the camrex textured finish.  Add the metal spurnwater to both from 4 mm strips of 10 thou styrene, sheet then build up the general "stuff" on the quarterdeck (mostly from my fairly hazy memory) including fairleads, bollards, capstan, the hatch down to the tiller flat, fire baskets, hydrant, petrol stowage and flight deck supports.  Make the flight deck nets from styrene rod with some fine mesh netting and fit them in the down position.  Make the flight deck to quarterdeck ladder from styrene strips with handrails from fuse wire, then add the guardrails around the stern and the solid bulwarks on the sides of the quarterdeck.  Finally, mask the flight deck and spray the flight deck markings.  Sounds easy, so there's bound to be something that'll bite me (most likely having to scratch build 4 near identical fairleads with complex inner and outer curves).

 

It may not work, so in that case I can revert to plan B, or C, or D...

 

[Bell209]

On 7/20/2020 at 1:33 AM, Chewbacca said:

This photo clear;y shows that it goes anti-clockwise when viewed from port just like the early variants of the Lynx though why any of the Westland's designers thought that was a good idea has always baffled me).

Me, too. Why would you make the tail rotor go down through the down-going air when it would get an advantage from rotating the other way? Bell used to do it, too.

[phantom61]

On 7/27/2020 at 10:03 PM, Chewbacca said:

Time to turn my attention to the base.

 

You'll recall that I said in #155 that I had some ideas of how to do this.  We;;as I explained to my son at the weekend, I could either do it the simple way and just have a cut out of part of the flight deck with a "bum-line", centreline and centre circle markings, or I could create a large section of HECLAS's stern.

 

Yep, you guessed it, why keep it simple when I could make more work for myself!

 

So armed with the scantiest of information, I started yesterday to craft not only the flight deck but also the quarterdeck underneath it.  If i'm honest, this was always the approach that I wanted to do and having been inspired by @Dancona's 1/200 VICTORIOUS scratchbuild and @phantom61's 1/72 ENDURANCE flight deck, I thought I might as well go for it.

 

Issue is of course that the flight deck isn't as long as the quarterdeck and so with the Wasp on the spot and spread, the tail boom extends over the quarterdeck so it would look odd without the quarterdeck underneath.  At least that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it!

 

Drew up some plans based on what photographic evidence I do have - which is not a lot, mainly limited to these photos:

 

 

 

let's do it

 

👍😎👍

[Chewbacca]

Sorry for the lack of updates for the past 3 weeks or so but more and more bits of plain white styrene and plastic covered foam board were a bit boring while I cut out the flight deck, quarterdeck, 2 deck superstructure and scratch built a range of doors, hatches, firebaskets, fairleads, bollards and ventilators for the quarterdeck.  But it is starting to come together.

 

Flight deck dry fitted to the quarterdeck external supports:

 

Just the quarterdeck.  The capstan is being made by a friend on his lathe.  I've got a wooden deck cut from 2 mm thick balsa sheet.  The 2 deck superstructure (and fire hose basket and 2 hoses) are in the paint shop having been primed.  Still lots more to be built for this area though.:

 

And to put it into context - sorry about the quality of these photos:

 

 

 

[Ex-FAAWAFU]

Wow!  I too have been largely absent from these pages for a while.  My excuse has been marking and starting to fit 1/350 scuttle to Ark’s port side.  You seem to have accomplished about 50 times more than me.  Respect.

[perdu]

I think mine is going to look even more puny now, I love this concept and your Wasp looks magnificent in its proper setting.

 

 

[heloman1]

Excellent work with the cab and liking the aft end deck. Superb!!!

 

Colin

[Chewbacca]

Thanks everyone.

 

12 hours ago, Ex-FAAWAFU said:

Wow!  I too have been largely absent from these pages for a while.  My excuse has been marking and starting to fit 1/350 scuttle to Ark’s port side.  You seem to have accomplished about 50 times more than me.  Respect.

I wouldn't have said that.  Mine just looks more because of the scale.  I must admit it's very remiss of me but I haven't looked at your ARK build for months.  Problem was that we were away for a month on holiday at the back end of 2019 with minimal internet access and by the time I got back, about 15 pages had been added to the thread which I didn't have time to read so put it off "until the weekend".  By the next weekend more had been added and it spiralled.  I only caught up about 2-3 pages; I think I am now over 30 pages behind!

[Terry1954]

13 hours ago, Chewbacca said:

Thanks everyone.

 

I wouldn't have said that.  Mine just looks more because of the scale.  I must admit it's very remiss of me but I haven't looked at your ARK build for months.  Problem was that we were away for a month on holiday at the back end of 2019 with minimal internet access and by the time I got back, about 15 pages had been added to the thread which I didn't have time to read so put it off "until the weekend".  By the next weekend more had been added and it spiralled.  I only caught up about 2-3 pages; I think I am now over 30 pages behind!

Well I can say it's worth the catch up time IMHO, although if you are short of time, you could wait until the film is released 😂

 

Superb work on the that flight deck and general rear end there Ralph.

 

Terry

[Chewbacca]

Well, despite my airbrush conspiring against me - see here: 

 

progress has been made.  All of the quarterdeck components bar one are made, primed and painted (sort of).  It looks a bit patchy but that's because most of the quarterdeck will be covered with a balsa "teak" deck.  The one missing part is the capstan which a friend is turning for me on his wood-lathe.

 

 

In the back row is the quarterdeck itself, with the aft end of 2 deck superstructure in front of it and underside of the flight deck on the RHS.  In front of that are the flight deck net frames, the ladder from quarterdeck to flight deck, the hydraulic crane (used for the sidescan sonar), various hatches and ventilators and the fuel stowage (thanks for the photos Roger).  At the very front are the fuel canisters, fire hose rack (with 2 firehoses in the pegs on the left hand side and the sidescan sonar and winch (under grey covers).  there are a few other bits and pieces still on the bench such as the ventilator covers but they'll be painted by brush probably just prior to fitting as they're too small to secure while spraying.

 

 

 

[phildagreek]

Goodness, there’s some proper modelling going on here.

[The Spadgent]

Impressive. 🤩