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EC S.A.565 Panther


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G'day people,

 

I cannot resist a good wokka kit and despite having mixed success completing GB entries, I couldn't help joining this one

 

Box shots

 

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cheers,

 

Pappy

Edited by Pappy
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Welcome to the party :) I've heard KittyHawk's heli kits are their better efforts so hopefully this one will go smoothly for you.

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2 minutes ago, Col. said:

Welcome to the party :) I've heard KittyHawk's heli kits are their better efforts so hopefully this one will go smoothly for you.

Thanks Col,

 

KH tries to get the maximum value from their moulds so they can be a bit of a jigsaw puzzle to put together and this is no different but it looks like a corker in the box,

 

cheers,

 

Pappy

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You're here to have fun Pappy.  That's all that matters.  Finishing in time is just a secondary bonus.  Look forward to seeing this.  I keep eyeballing KH's Seasprite...but thus far have been able to keep talking myself out of it.

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10 hours ago, trickyrich said:

I know they certainly pack their boxes to the max!!

 

From what I've read a very detailed if complex model...... one to follow for sure.

 

G'day Rich,

 

Yeah, it even comes with a little PE (seat belts and IP) so definitely good value which is good because it is really the only choice available!

 

8 hours ago, helios16v said:

You're here to have fun Pappy.  That's all that matters.  Finishing in time is just a secondary bonus.  Look forward to seeing this.  I keep eyeballing KH's Seasprite...but thus far have been able to keep talking myself out of it.

Oh, I'm always up for some fun. I have the KH Seasprite 'almost done' (ironically, it was also started in a GB, my WIP here if interested:

 

http://www.arcforums.com/forums/air/index.php?/topic/296686-148-kittyhawk-sh-2g-super-seasprite/&tab=comments#comment-2840653

 

There are a couple of gotchas with that kit. If you want to build the"F" the doghouse is completely wrong as it sits too far forward. I think KH basically designed the kit mouldings as "G" and either didn't notice or care to change the moulds for the "F". Also, in both boxings the tread pattern in the cabin is actually moulded on the underside - WTF?

 

So, I have been playing around with the various parts and decided to deviate from the kit instructions and devise my my own construction sequence  instead as this will better suit me. As more bits are added to this kit, it will become increasingly fragile so I intend to keep the more delicate parts and assemblies off until as late as possible. Unusually for an aircraft kit, the instructions would have you start with the main rotor gearbox, so naturally enough, I chose to start on the cockpit instead

 

DSCN2732_zpsel1jn3nc.jpg

 

Withe the cockpit base colour on, a quick drybrush popped out the fine details.

 

I went back and started building up the engine bay and gearbox accessory assemblies next

 

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cheers,

 

Pappy

 

There is a wealth of detail included in the kit here and it would be great if all kit manufacturers were  this generous. Nevertheless, there is always room  for a little mere detail.

 

 

 

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Goodness me thats detailed, you had best keep away from the carpet monster going by the number of parts you have been given.

I really hope that all this detail remains visible as the kits progresses

Good luck

Cheers Pat 

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Cracking start there Pappy!

I enjoy watching Dauphins regularly flying over my home, one quite often piloted by my best friend's son, so I will be interested to see how it goes with a view to a possible future project.

 

Dave

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15 hours ago, JOCKNEY said:

Goodness me thats detailed, you had best keep away from the carpet monster going by the number of parts you have been given.

I really hope that all this detail remains visible as the kits progresses

Good luck

Cheers Pat 

G'day Pat,

 

I have managed to keep the carpet monster at bay for now but it is a regular predator at Chez Pappy. KH provides the engine access doors as separate panels to allow either, both (or none) of the engines to be displayed. Dry fitting indicates that although the engine doors fit, they would would probably put up a fight as I think the kit is designed to have the doors open.

9 hours ago, halcyonjet said:

Cracking start there Pappy!

I enjoy watching Dauphins regularly flying over my home, one quite often piloted by my best friend's son, so I will be interested to see how it goes with a view to a possible future project.

 

Dave

G'day Dave,

 

As self confessed Dauphin fancier I expect you will let me know if I start to get off track as the Dauphin/Panther is not quite as common in my neck of the woods

 

G'day people,

 

I spent today painting up the cockpit and cabin details in addition to assembling the fuselage as manageable sub-assemblies to ease seam clean-up and to try and get the best fit. The cockpit flight controls were cleaned up and added after the centre console details were picked out. The instrument panel PE supplied in the kit fits great and will be highly visible through the cockpit transparencies and doors

 

DSCN2756_zpsptq69phs.jpg


spacer.pngDSCN2755_zpsg9llg9th.jpg

 

Next up, the aft cabin firewall has been assembled and painted

 

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Likewise the forward cabin door pillar section

 

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I temporarily taped the cockpit/cabin floor to the lower fuselage section

 

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Time to check the fit of all the sub assemblies so far,

 

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DSCN2739_zpsas8ez1m2.jpg

 

So far, so good, thanks for looking

 

cheers,

 

Pappy

 

 

 

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On 7/5/2020 at 5:00 PM, helios16v said:

Stunner.

 

Thanks Chris

 

On 7/5/2020 at 6:37 PM, Andwil said:

Wow, that cockpit is brilliant!

 

AW

G'day Andy, cheers, the raised cockpit details were just a joy to paint,

 

thanks for looking,

 

Pappy

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12 hours ago, Hewy said:

Looking good👍

Cheers Hewy

12 hours ago, modelling minion said:

Great looking cockpit, excellent work.

G'day Minion, cockpits are my thang

1 hour ago, DAG058 said:

This looks like it's going to be pretty special.

Thanks Dag, the kit is a real gem, I am surprised that there are not more on the modelling tables but I suppose the subject does not have the mass appeal of a Huey or Apache. KH have a somewhat true reputation for being a jigsaw puzzle but so far this is behaving with very little filler used (but lots of test fitting) and the fit is precise and will not tolerate any sloppy builders.

 

So, I have assembled and painted up the donks, while they look good OOB  I think they could do with a little more wiring and plumbing. The engine deck was glued to the assembled rear fuselage.

 

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The rear fuselage went together without a fuss and only required a smidge of filler to clean up.

 

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I then test fitted the rear fuselage/engine deck assy with the lower fuselage assembly and although a tight fit in the corners, the fit was otherwise precise with no gaps

 

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008(6).JPG?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bo

 

thanks for looking,

 

Pappy

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Tidy work so far :thumbsup:

Agree with you that the engines would need a bit of extra detailing to be worthy of display. Without looking at reference photos there must be a mass of pipes and wiring and control rods going on in that area! Quite the scratch-builder's dream :lol: 

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On 7/12/2020 at 5:28 PM, Col. said:

Tidy work so far :thumbsup:

Agree with you that the engines would need a bit of extra detailing to be worthy of display. Without looking at reference photos there must be a mass of pipes and wiring and control rods going on in that area! Quite the scratch-builder's dream :lol: 

Well, following that blistering admonition from Col  I dared not surface without adding some additional detail to the engine bays (TVFIC!)

 

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I used a variety of lead wire, copper wire and stretched sprue to add some additional 'interest' based on my reference picks without slavishly copying every wire. I  have not finished painting this area but you can start to get an idea.  Incidentally, there is a part provided for the 'roof' of the engine bays (D10) but curiously there is no reference to it in the instructions. It fits well. In fact the only 'problem' area to date has been the join of the rear fuselage to the lower fuselage/cabin assembly.

 

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As I had mentioned previously, the corners were the culprit and following some test fitting and sanding in between, an acceptable fit was achieved. I have quickly brushed on some liquid putty which will be wet sanded when dry. As this join seems to fall on a natural panel line, I don't want to eliminate it completely,

 

cheers,

 

Pappy

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On 7/19/2020 at 5:33 PM, modelling minion said:

More very nice work, the engine looks nice and busy now, should even satisfy Col!

Thanks Craig, let's hope so!

 

On 7/20/2020 at 1:59 AM, Hockeyboy76 said:

Nice plumbing in the engine bays. 

Cheers HB,

 

G'day people,

 

I spent a little more time on the doghouse today. I don't know what is inside the upper section, but I did not want a 'see through' effect so I ended up scratching a radiator to block  the view aft when looking at the rotor head

 

002(16).JPG?width=1920&height=1080&fit=b

 

I also dealt with some ejector pin marks in the doors that would be visible by dropping a thickish mix of sprue gloop and sanding back


001(16).JPG?width=1920&height=1080&fit=b

 

The wheel arches are a separate items and I took the opportunity to thin these down for a better scale appearance, the one n the left is OOB, the thinned item is on the right

 

003(16).JPG?width=1920&height=1080&fit=b

 

I also scratched up a forward bulkhead for the front of the doghouse. Once this assembly was painted, the radiator was installed

 

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Still with the doghouse, the two piece forward engine access panels were tidied up and sprayed

 

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Turning my attention back to the cabin, my references show that the aircraft typically has an orange waterproof cover on the rear bulkhead. Depending on the role configuration, ther whole of the rear cabin may also have additional orange covers but I decided to stick to one of the aft cabin bulkhead. I used some wine bottle foil suitable wrinkled up

 

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The kit supplied aft seat is typical of those found in the civilian variants of the Dauphan, however the French Navy version has a more spartan accommodation. I used the kit seat but discarded the back rest and seat cushions and scratched up a simple shape from plastic card based on the kit seat dimensions but with a new  forward supports. The box of Evian mineral water (Francais bien sure!) was added for additional interest

 

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Thanks for looking,

 

Pappy

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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