Airfix Trident

[Rb277170]

Looks like Airfix are re introducing their Trident 1 as part of their Airfix Classics range . The other airliner this year seems to be the HP42 .. looks like it’s the old red square BEA livery version . Was the first airliner kit I ever got as a boy probably aged 6 ! 

[Graham Boak]

18 minutes ago, Rb277170 said:

The other airliner this year seems to be the HP42 .. looks like it’s the old red square BEA livery version .

Loved the thought!

[Eric Mc]

That would be an interesting "What If....?"

[Homer]

Yes me too, this was the first ever Airfix aircraft kit i ever built ,in the mid 60s .Looking forward to seeing it again ,hopefully in its original livery. 

[Britman]

I wonder if Ray at 26decals had a nod on the Trident from Airfix given the new release of the lovely Channel airlines scheme.

 

Keith

[Eric Mc]

Be aware that the Airfix Trident has some accuracy issues - although it's nice to see it back. It does look like it will feature the BEA Red Square livery as that is the picture they are showing in the catalogue.

 

I have a couple of Tridents in the stash anyway but I'll probably buy at least another.

[The Tomohawk Kid]

Here's hoping the BEA decals are more accurate than the ones supplied with their (recentish repop of) Comet 4B.

 

Tommo,

[Paul J]

The art work shown is of the original kit when it came out in 1966!

[theplasticsurgeon]

I remember chosing this kit, with this boxart, as Christmas pressie as a kid.  So a very welcome return.

I've built it twice since,  this one first.  Donated to Jet Age - where we have a Trident forward fuselage.

 

Then this one.  Completed to represent the transition period from BEA to British Airways.

Looks like I offset the nosegear correctly.

 

So yes, looking forward to building another in BEA livery.

[Eric Mc]

The nosegear IS offset. The Trident had quite a unique undercarriage. The nose gear retracted sideways into the nose and the main wheels rotated 90 degrees before swinging up into the wing.

[Pin]

I only see a nostalgic value in this reissue. If I wanted a Trident in 1/144 I would rather wait for Eastern Express

 

I tried to fix known inaccuracies for this build, eventually it took far longer than I hoped it would 

 

[Eric Mc]

The one on the right looks like a very big Hansa Jet:)

[halcyonjet]

On 13/01/2021 at 08:30, Eric Mc said:

Be aware that the Airfix Trident has some accuracy issues 

But only from the nose to the tail -and most parts in between! Still a favourite of mine though.

I seem to remember Eastern Express showing a Trident as a future release a few years ago, which would have been an interesting comparison.

 

Dave

[Eric Mc]

I'd like to think that Eastern Express will get it more correct, But at a price, no doubt.

As well as having some Airfix Tridents squirrelled away, I also have one of F-RSIN's Trident 3Bs in the stash.

[Rb277170]

Wasn’t aware there was an Eastern Express model coming . I’ll  definitely get the Airfix one though for the nostalgia factor . 

[Skodadriver]

There is very little wrong with the Airfix Trident which can't be sorted with skill and care as @Vikingshowed with his Cyprus and BKS conversions. Probably the most difficult fix is the "kink" in the wing (something that F-RSIN got spot on in their 3B) but very few people would notice its absence.

 

The Airfix kit is a bit of a blank canvas. The wing/body fairings differ slightly between the 1C and the 2E and since Airfix don't bother with the fairing at all it's a simple Milliput job to replicate whichever version you want. I'm hoping to do a Channel Airways 1E at some point this year and I'll be using the Airfix kit no matter what Eastern Express might produce.

[Pin]

19 hours ago, Skodadriver said:

There is very little wrong with the Airfix Trident which can't be sorted with skill and care

 

I was thinking so until I dived deep into the build. The hardest part is not the kink (there is no kink, btw, it is an optical illusion) in the tail where cylinder turns into cone, Airfix got it totally wrong. 

[Skodadriver]

3 hours ago, Pin said:

 

I was thinking so until I dived deep into the build. The hardest part is not the kink (there is no kink, btw, it is an optical illusion) in the tail where cylinder turns into cone, Airfix got it totally wrong. 

 

Sorry @Pin but I'm not clear what you're referring to. I'm pretty sure I've read every article on correcting the Airfix Trident ever published and the only tail issues mentioned are the fin leading edge, the upside down APU and the dubious shape of the No.2 intake. Can you post or link a photo? 

 

I know what you mean about the "kink" being an optical illusion but everybody calls it that! For strict accuracy the same optical illusion needs to be replicated on a model.

[skippiebg]

 

 

The Airfix Trident fuselage and fin needs to be sawn across the aft end, parallel to the fin trailing edge. The sawn-off bit needs to be repositioned up to 5mm (1/5th inch) further to the rear. (It's not quite so simple, but we get the drift.)

 

The wing dihedral break (de Havilland/Hawker Siddeley Aviation terminology) can be done by a bit of sanding and perhaps glueing a tiny triangle of plastic card to the underside of the wing. It affects only the forward quarter of the wing chord, or less. F-RSIN, sadly, overdo it.

 

The rest is easy. The nosecone needs shortening by 1/2mm. The centre intake needs building up with filler and sanding out. The fin leading edge needs straightening. The fin/tailplane bullet needs sharpening.

Edited January 17, 2021 by skippiebg

[T-21]

found this excellent correction article on a Ukrainian  forum with thanks https://www.greenmats.club/forums/topic/3005-1144-airfix-hs-121-trident-1c/   

Edited February 23, 2021 by T-21

[bootneck]

Do you have a link?

Mike

[T-21]

Tried to paste the link but not playing ball try Google Green Mats club. If not i found it by Googling HS Trident plans . Best i can do.

 

Another interesting  airliner model site www.pas-decals.ru

Edited February 23, 2021 by T-21

[T-21]

https://www.greenmats.club/forums/topic/3005-1144-airfix-hs-121-trident-1c/

[Dave Swindell]

3 hours ago, T-21 said:

found this excellent correction article on a Ukrainian  forum with thanks 

Also on Britmodeller here:-

and original drawings from this Britmodeller thread here:-

 

[skippiebg]

3 hours ago, T-21 said:

found this excellent correction article

Thank you so much, T-21! (Great forum for other topics, too!)

 

I love the techniques and especially the way the author, Pin, has handled the wing "dihedral break." The dihedral break (as de Havilland/Hawker Siddeley termed it) is very evident from the front and not at all evident from the rear. Sanding (as I propose on Britmodeller) does not really cut the mustard. Cutting the whole wing doesn't, either. Best/only way of doing it would appear to be as proposed by Pin.