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1/72 RAAF Short Empire, scratch conversion from Airfix Sunderland with AdrianMF vacu fuselage and RedRoo parts


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Hi,

This is what is said already in topic name: a scratch conversion of Airfix (1/72) Sunderland III using @AdrianMF home made vacu fuselage and Red Roo Models conversion set for RAAF military Empire (dedicated originally to CMR resin kit). The WIP thread is here:

The model presents Short Empire S.33 A18-14 (No S.1025) somewhere between April and August 1942, when she wore already "red free" style of RAAF roundels but still have installed armament and served wit 33 Squadron RAAF in Townsville.

 

Here she is:

 

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The most characteristic bull nose of Empire :)

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On shelve with her sistership - the Sunderland

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Again many thanks for AndrianMF gift of his jome made vacu fuselage and for really great support with photos, infos and RedRoo conversion set from EdRussell.

One can say that the model has three fathers, but what then to say about its mother? ...

 

 

Comments welcome

Regards

Jerzy-Wojtek

 

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Superb! A great conversion. You have blended it all together seamlessly and the colours look spot on.
 

You will be relieved to hear that a “G” class is not in the works!

 

Regards, and many thanks for taking up the challenge,

Adrian

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Great build, Brother... Something like the Sunderland plus (much) more 👏. Congratulations!

34 minutes ago, AdrianMF said:

Superb! A great conversion. You have blended it all together seamlessly and the colours look spot on.
You will be relieved to hear that a “G” class is not in the works!

Yeah, the colours... This camo was (AFAIK) the only one sported by the RAAF Empires, thus the choice was nil. However it was not the case with her sister Sunderland, which could be finished in the Temperate Land Scheme as I suggested JWM privately. But maybe then the last photo (inside the cabinet) wouldn't underline their family resemblance so strongly.

And concerning the G-class it wouldn't be possible to build her by mating the vacuformed fuselage with any existing plastic kit wings - this aircraft is almost 20 per cent larger in every dimension than S.23/30 and Sunderland/Seaford.

11 minutes ago, woody37 said:

Absolute corker, such a great build. as Adrian says, how you've blended the wings in is amazing.

The blending itself is great, but also thanks to the airfoil shape and size precisely caught by the fuselage-maker (i.e. Adrian himself).

The success always have at least two fathers, whereas the failure is usually an orphan.

Cheers

Michael

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Invidia, Woody, Adrian and Michael - many thanks for comments :)

AFAIK the Short S 33 was only a small modification (engines and fuel tanks) of S 30 which was basically only  a different engines S23. However, regarding the historical info on A18-14 given in RED ROO  conversion kit, although this particular machine was build original;y as S.33, but when impressed to RAAF the engines were unified with other RAAF Empires . There are minor other differences especially with fuel tanks in wings, but the shapes are the same.

(Edit: Wiki says: originally G-AFPZ, Clifton in BOAC, to RAAF as A18-14, to QANTAS in 1942 as VH-ACD)

 

The G class (Short S26) and was a completely different, larger machine, however still called "Empire".  But this is not the case here :)

Best regards

J-W

Edited by JWM
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What a nice job. I was an unbeliever that it would work but it looks just like a CMR one. Probably more work though...!! A really great piece of work you have done. It looks great alongside the Sunderland.

 

4 hours ago, KRK4m said:

This camo was (AFAIK) the only one sported by the RAAF Empires, thus the choice was nil.

Not quite - they were operated in allover Aluminium dope at first, then camouflaged.

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10 hours ago, Wulfman said:

Wow! An impressive conversion , this is great modelling !
 

Wulfman

Thnks, I appreciete!

 

9 hours ago, Ed Russell said:

What a nice job. I was an unbeliever that it would work but it looks just like a CMR one. Probably more work though...!! A really great piece of work you have done. It looks great alongside the Sunderland.

Ed, without your help it would be more difficult. The photos you've sent me were very useful. Many thanks once more!

 

Regarding the CMR kit (and the model background) - likely I would buy it in the end, I do not like resin kits but I dont avoid them. The problem was that I had in stash Airfix Sunderland, which I started to consider not suitable for build  now, when SH and Italeri kits are around. I did not thought that I can easily sell it from the same reasons. So from a couple of 10 years I was thinking on conversion Airfix Sunderland to Empire in style how now I am working on MB220 from MB210 or on Potez 651 from Potez 540 (WIP exists):  scratch buid fuselage and wings and other details from existing model. I was studying how to cut Sunderland fuselage to convert it to Empire one. This was at least one horizontal cut and at least two vertical for upper part .... But ....   when Adrian had similar concept for conversion of Airfix Sunderland to Empire and he even did vacu form for completly new fuselage everything changed. He was very kind and willing to share with spare fuselage remaining from trials - so I abandoned my idea of scratch construction of fuselage and the CMR Empire was not the option at all....

 

 

Regards

Jerzy-Wojtek

J-W

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55 minutes ago, stevehnz said:

Even so, I think I wait for Special Hobby or whoever to do one of these

 

They have announced they will do one for the 100th anniversary of the Empire boat -  that would be 2036.

 

(just kidding)

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 @TEXANTOMCAT Many thanks!

 

On 6/15/2020 at 10:49 AM, Ed Russell said:

They have announced they will do one for the 100th anniversary of the Empire boat -  that would be 2036.

Ed, It would not be that bad! My current stash content is for over 10 years of intense builds... And for  more then 10 years I was planning one day to build Empire :)

 

 

On 6/15/2020 at 9:51 AM, stevehnz said:

That is brilliant J-W, some wonderful modelling & huge credit to @AdrianMF & @Ed Russell for their part in it too. Even so, I think I wait for Special Hobby or whoever to do one of these. :)

Many thanks Steve.  It was really a added  value build due to BM pan-world cooperation!

 

On 6/15/2020 at 9:50 AM, DennisTheBear said:

Yea, my current home!

Nicely done!!!

 

 Dennis, thank you. I have looked at map and finally found where the Townsville is (with a bit mysterious Magnetic Island across harbour)!  Was it subject of air raids of Japanese at WW2 times?

 

Regards

Jerzy-Wojtek

 

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Wow. What an impressive beast. It looks great next to the Sunderland.

 

Congratulations on a team effort, although the final artistry is yours! 

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Amazing work and brilliant results!  I followed your thread on this really tough project and I'm so glad you saw it through to conclusion.  It really makes me happy when people reach the results they intended/wanted.  Bravo!  Alex

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On 6/14/2020 at 11:52 PM, Ed Russell said:

Not quite - they were operated in allover Aluminium dope at first, then camouflaged.

Sorry, Ed - English is not my native tongue, so I could be a little misunderstood.

Saying "camo" I had on my mind only the scheme aimed at blending the aircraft silhouette into the surrounding landscape, which excluded overall Alu dope scheme.

Cheers

Michael

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7 hours ago, JWM said:

Townsville   Was it subject of air raids of Japanese at WW2 times?

 

Yes indeed. There were three raids by Kawanishi H6K flying boats but they caused rather less damage than most Japanese attacks - total casualties one palm tree and two fence posts!

https://www.slq.qld.gov.au/blog/70th-anniversary-bombing-townsville-during-world-war-ii

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