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Westland SikorskyS-51, Mk. 1A, French Air Force, ELA52, TanSonNhut, 1952 Indochina


John Masters

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I guess I have a French thing going on.  Hmmm...Air Force this time.  

 

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I haven't decided which one I am going to build...

 

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I will make sure that I will be more careful before I plenge them into the water!

 

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--John

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now this is a bit different for #3, a slightly weird look chopper....well the front is.

 

Plus it nice to see some of the Indochina stuff being built.

 

Hmmm I think you may need a bit of "Anti-lead" in the tail.........or the crushed souls of those having a go at your spelling! :D

 

Good luck with this build, should be fun to follow.

 

Plus wasn't one of these in an early James Bond movie?

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7 hours ago, trickyrich said:

or the crushed souls of those having a go at your spelling! :D

Hey now...I am just repeating what the instructions tell me to do.  If the instructions say 'plenge', then plenge I must.  

 

Perhaps the heaviness of your jokes might suit?  😆

 

Check here...I don't see Mr. Bond listed...

 

https://www.impdb.org/index.php?title=Category:Sikorsky_H-5

 

 

6 hours ago, zebra said:

Maybe forget about nose weight and fill the tail with helium!

🤣

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2 hours ago, trickyrich said:

gosh I was sure it was a Bond movie

You mean...(aghast!) you never saw 'The Flying Businessman'?...

 

I bet you are thinking of the episode of The Saint.  Or the helicopter in 'From Russia With Love'?  

 

https://www.mi6-hq.com/news/index.php?itemid=3738

 

Let's all pitch in a few and buy it for the Forum...Mike can take care of it.  😉😃

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A maddening amount of minuscule PE that I probably could've ignored, but I'm a masochist and chose to do it anyway.  So...panels A,B, C and D are done.  'D' is that bit of PE on the porteuse interior of the fuselage.  'E'?  Way too far ahead...that's the nose wheel...This whole thing took about 2 hours.  I cursed a bit too.  But I never got my fingers stuck in the CA!  

 

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And it looks like this...

 

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Tomorrow it get complex.  Glass.

 

-John

 

 

 

 

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10 minutes ago, modelling minion said:

That is really nice work John,

Thanks Craig.  In reyrospect I could have skipped it all or used little bits of plastic.  There's a lot more in the rotor, btw. No way around that.

 

 

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6 hours ago, trickyrich said:

Brings back horrible memories of all the PE on my Hind!!!! :yikes:

I know...I always look with dread at a PE sprue...as if a poisonous snake has suddenly appeared on the bench.

 

9 hours ago, modelling minion said:

Sounds like your etch skills will be even better by the end of this build John.

I am not sure of that's a good thing or a bad thing!  😁

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The cockpit is primed....

 

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The next day, having left the majority Primer Grey, I picked out some utilitarian colours with a pointed brush for the seats, harnesses, IP, etc...Russian Uniform Green, Deck Tan and black.  A wee bit of aluminum thrown in for fun.

 

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Next up...windows!  And more PE!  Joy!

 

--John

 

 

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On 10/5/2020 at 1:13 AM, trickyrich said:

being behind the greenhouse canopy it won't be lost either.

I really wish it would!  Man...so many issues.  This build is mirroring the Oscar in some ways.  Short-run issues...ghastly gaps...

 

The bench of a madman...how did I get there?  

 

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To be blunt...the cockpit component does not fit inside the fuselage very well.  Not very well at all.  Grinding, fettling, swearing, wishing it were an Eduard product!

 

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And the IP is too far forward, preventing the nose from fitting.  I removed it, sanded it down and replaced it further back.  Easy fix.

 

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All of this can be fixed.  I have the tools, the technology.  Let's look again...yes...

 

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Better...

 

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Not great, but workable...

 

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Clamped, it is tighter...top and bottom.  The boom shows a clean seam and is even at the ends.  Everything else can be fixed.

 

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This is what I get at the end.  Like the Oscar, not great, but workable and fixable and by the time I am done, it'll look great at 70cm....I gots lotsa putty. 

 

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--John

 

 

 

 

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