Adrian's Airfix SRN4

[Adrian Hills]

Finally got around to starting. For this build I have chosen my Airfix SRN4 kit that I bought shortly after 1973. It has been with me ever since, moving from house to house and even to Canada and back. As a result the box got battered and it lost a few parts. Getting on for 20 years ago I bought another kit as it was re-release. I am using both kits for this build as some of the early parts, such as the main base and the hanger floor are warped and 'if I was going there I wouldn't start here !

 

When they were going to discontinue use of these hovering behemoths I took a flight on one, just to Calais and back. Mobile phones had come in, but I hated them. However, I borrowed a phone just so my first call was "Hello Mum, I am on the hovercraft". I saw this same machine, Princess Margaret, a few months later looking very sorry for itself - now just a museum piece.

My original box, released 1973 below and above it the 2002 release.

This fuzzy picture illustrates the warping of the hanger deck

Not all the old stuff is bad. The 1973 roof is the clear one on the left whereas the 2002 one has already yellowed. I will be choosing the clear roof option.

And here you see the start of my build. 'Eee lad, for forty seven years I have dreamed of painting the hanger deck floor that particular brick red'

 

 

[Brad]

Good to see another being built, welcome along.

[Mjwomack]

I wait years to see one and here they all come. 

I have the same recollection of you; went on one and thought it noisy smelly and cramped. The image was far more glamorous than the reality

But I'd still get one if airfix fancy a classic re-release

[PeterB]

AFAIK Princess Anner is in a museum and after many years rotting away outside Princess Margaret was scrapped a few years back. Back in the late 1960's I think, I went across the channel and back on one of these - no idea which and I seem to remember that the coach holiday we were on crossed to Boulogne outbound but came back via Calais, though I could be wrong. No doubt these days they would use the Tunnel.

 

Pete

Edited May 6, 2021 by PeterB

[Marklo]

I do remember building one of these as a kid and most definitely would get one if it were rereleased. Should be a fun build. 

[Adrian Hills]

I will be going to see Princess Anne on Saturday 22nd of this month. It is the re-opening of the hovercraft museum. 😊

[CliffB]

A great choice Adrian.  I only managed a short return trip to the IoW on a 5, but I still remember it very clearly .  Enjoy your museum trip.

[Adrian Hills]

In the summer I do get rather busy with other things. Here you have a little visual story of me picking up 1/1 scale colour reference for the seats for the actual hovercraft I am building. The seats were so cheap and as they 'could' be the ones I sat in I couldn't resist buying some.

These chaps at the hovercraft museum loaded the seats into the back of my car

 

 

 

[davecov]

Nice seats, Adrian. I will be following your build closely as I have always loved the Airfix SRN-4. I built one in the Seventies when it came out and I am currently building the later boxing of it. I have been finding the softish, warped plastic bit of a pain and it has been causing all sorts of alignment issues. I hope you have better luck than me. Due to real-life and holidays, my build has stalled slightly but hope to get it finished before this decade(!) is over:

 

Dave

[Andwil]

You realise you’re going to have to paint those black and yellow checks now don’t you?

 

AW

[dnl42]

I burn for one of these. 

 

Seriously, I do keep an a weather eye out...

[Adrian Hills]

11 hours ago, davecov said:

Nice seats, Adrian. I will be following your build closely as I have always loved the Airfix SRN-4. I built one in the Seventies when it came out and I am currently building the later boxing of it. I have been finding the softish, warped plastic bit of a pain and it has been causing all sorts of alignment issues. I hope you have better luck than me. Due to real-life and holidays, my build has stalled slightly but hope to get it finished before this decade(!) is over:

 

Dave

Dave, I’m in the same position as you. Busy. But let’s make an effort to get these ones wrapped up by the end of this group build 😊

[Adrian Hills]

It has turned July so it is time to get my skates on. Had a very zenlike afternoon fitting the skirt and enjoying just how interestingly the kit is designed. I'm sure those that have built this kit will say "Yes, but what about the back end?" My theory is the kit designer spent his genius on the front and side and then - quite rightly - his brain exploded. Nothing a half decent modeller can't fudge 🙂

 

 

 

Those that have seen my stuff on here before will realise what an obsessive nutter I am. Perhaps I have already proved it by buying three seats from the Princess Margaret ! However, I saw on ebay that a chap is selling the "Six inch" Kellogs snaptite kit. Just couldn't resist (He has another one up for sale). I reckon it is about 1/397 scale and might be fun to put it alongside the bigger one, both Princess Margarets but I think the little one could be done in the blue Seaspeed livery - it comes with the decals !

 

 

[Adrian Hills]

I have now bit the bullet and attended to the misfitting skirt bits. Actually it wasn't that difficult as I just used plasticard, superglue and a modified wheel to fill the biggest gap on the back.

 

An aircraft wheel was plugged in here and then another little bit of plasticard

 

I then masked the top and hosed the entire underside and skirt in Gunze flat black

 

 

 

[Adrian Hills]

What has been exercising my mind is the decalling. I played with the computer and found Calibri bold font wasn't too far from that used by Hoverspeed. I have some clear printable decal film so when I have worked out all sizes by printing on plain paper will have a go at making decals !

 

[Brad]

Good work mate, keep going it's progressing nicely.

[Adrian Hills]

Actually I'm happy with my filling job at the back of the skirt. Not smooth or neat, but then again the real skirt isn't. Polishing the Gunze flat black gives a good rubbery look.

 

I have looked at some sub assemblies as I need to paint things like rudders and propeller pylons ahead of time, the latter when I paint the edges of the main body red.

 

From the above picture you can see the sink holes in the fins. I have some knackered Squadron white putty and have revitalised it by mixing with thinnish glue. A technique I learnt at my model clun back in Canada 

 

[Troy Smith]

On 05/05/2021 at 21:14, Adrian Hills said:

Eee lad, for forty seven years I have dreamed of painting the hanger deck floor that particular brick red'

Which would Airfix M1 to be precise.....

well, that was the Airfix matt colour for brick red.... i think  they did a gloss maroon as well. (A check reveals it's G11 Crimson...) 

I did see an ebay seller recently selling old shop stock of original Airfix paint.   Made by Joy enamels I read somewhere on here.  I was vaguely tempted to buy some.  I know I have a can of M7 flesh still, and I think a bottle of G5 green..... somewhere.....

 

 

1 hour ago, Adrian Hills said:

From the above picture you can see the sink holes in the fins.

CA and talc,  make it thick, with lots of talc, dries fast, is much softer than neat CA, and sands/scrape really well......  Just use to fill gaps in my wall... a plastic one,  https://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/235095700-matchbox-176-morris-c8-mk-ii-17pdr-gun-willys-jeep-set/&tab=comments#elControls_4128713_menu

 

though it does work on 1:1 window frames too      I'm waiting to see how long it last used like that......  

 

I'll have to look up the Kellogs one.   A mate had the Hovercraft kit in the late 70's, but I don't think he finished it,   

 

Anyway ..looking good.  Done by the 22nd? 

 

cheers

T

 

PS For ease of reference, the Kellogs snap kit build is here

  

On 02/07/2021 at 20:30, Adrian Hills said:

However, I saw on ebay that a chap is selling the "Six inch" Kellogs snaptite kit. Just couldn't resist (He has another one up for sale). I reckon it is about 1/397 scale and might be fun to put it alongside the bigger one, both Princess Margarets but I think the little one could be done in the blue Seaspeed livery - it comes with the decals !

 

 

[Adrian Hills]

Just to be a bit more pedantic than you Troy, Crimson was HM 14 - or at least it was when I bought this kit in 1973. This Humbrol tinlet is my oldest and used to be my brother's. It is still serviceable, if I gave it a longer stir, at least for brush painting, after 46 years 🙂

 

 

 

I hope to have both hovercrafts finished by end of this Group build on the 8th August and then be ready for our model club theme competition 'hovercraft' on 19th.

 

[Troy Smith]

19 minutes ago, Adrian Hills said:

Just to be a bit more pedantic than you Troy, Crimson was HM 14 - or at least it was when I bought this kit in 1973.

Amazing how the old paint keeps if sealed up....  neat.

 

But Airfix only started using Humbrol paint numbers in the late 80's,  if you check the original instructions all the paint codes are for Airfix own brand paint.   

The later boxing will probably have Humbrol paint codes,  some kits from the late 80's have both paint codes I believe.

 

There is a list of the Airfix paint codes here with their Humbrol 'match'

http://www.ipmsstockholm.org/colorcharts/stuff_eng_colorcharts_airfix.htm

though the Humbrol 'equivalents' were always pretty approximate....   

*cut to long long digression on how Airfix M3 was not the same a Humbrol 30 at any time I ever was using both paints......*

 

Still, for the seats you can do you own matches  

 

More seriously, since you have made some decals, have you considered tying to make some seat decals? I'd suggest just trying to print some black chequers to go over a yellow basecoat....   actually, looking at the model, unless you do the top clear like @davecov then you are not going to see much inside.

I presume Dave's figures are generic railways figures?  I don't recall any in the kit. 

 

Anyway,  enjoying this build, and the little Kellogs kit looks rather good for a breakfast cereal freebie.... have you started searching for the two you and your brother had yet to make up the set? 

 

cheers

T

[davecov]

@Troy Smith, you are correct in that the kit doesn't come with the figures. Mine were ready-painted N Gauge figures purchased on eBay.

 

Dave

[CliffB]

8 hours ago, Adrian Hills said:

and then be ready for our model club theme competition 'hovercraft' on 19th.

 

I'm very impressed by that innovative theme!  

 

Cheers

[Adrian Hills]

For figures I have a bunch I bought on ebay. Need them as using the excellent clear roof from the 1973 kit, unlike the 2002 one which has yellowed.

 

if I ever get around to getting another kit I will paint the roof. That will be on a major conversion to make the mk III. The final version which was 16 metres longer and 5m wider - which means my model only ‘represents’ the one I flew in, it being the mk I shape.

 

Not sure about doing decals for 1/144 seats. It probably wouldn’t be seen and not sure if my printer is fine enough to even print that fine - yet along anyone’s eyesight to see it. Besides would be another major faff which would delay getting the kit finished. 

[Adrian Hills]

Julian, my brother, bought the Crimson paint for some OO railway stuff he was painting. According to one online source they were introduced in 1968 in packs of four with individual paints sold in 1974.

 

 

[Troy Smith]

On 07/07/2021 at 07:54, Adrian Hills said:

my brother, bought the Crimson paint for some OO railway stuff he was painting. According to one online source they were introduced in 1968 in packs of four with individual paints sold in 1974.

 

This one?

https://robdebie.home.xs4all.nl/models/authentics.htm

 

HM12 is a uniform colour BTW.  Part of this set.  Can't find details of the 4 can set.   I'd have go through my 60's Airfix mags, as they have adverts for them.

Most were done as 6 colour sets as listed in the link.

22 Ceremonial Uniforms

HM9 Scarlet

HM12 Dark Blue

HM13 Dark Green

HM14 Crimson

HM15 Flesh

HM16 White

 

On 06/07/2021 at 23:23, davecov said:

Mine were ready-painted N Gauge figures purchased on eBay.

Hence the authentic 70's fashion colours then  

 

cheers

T