Airfix 1:7 Westland Whirlwind HAS.22 [FINISHED]

[klr]

For my third build in this GB, I went back to another old favourite that I first built almost 40 years ago. I picked this up again second-hand a couple of years ago, and have been looking for an excuse to build it ever since. The HAS.22 was an anti-submarine version, but since this subject does not carry a torpedo, it is presumably unarmed.

 

 

 

First step: Those horrible multi-window side transparencies. To best fit these, I cut and trimmed them into individual window parts:

 

The end results look OK. The lower windows are not so good, but they'll have to do for this somewhat rushed build.

 

To weight the nose, I used a spare sonar housing half from the "new" Westland Sea King kit, as a container for the weight. The instrument panel is actually hollow, so I just closed it up with some card, not that anything would be visible through those very thick transparencies. For the same reason, the pilot figures just went straight to the spares box.

 

 

If the main windscreen was just very thick, that wouldn't be too bad, but it's also a very poor fit at the top and bottom:

 

 

Much blood, sweat and toil later. Actually, there was still more work done after this photo.

 

Proof that enough nose ballast was used. The undercarriage and wheels were only average in terms of fit, but then this tooling is from the dark ages.

 

I didn't have any Humbrol 02 Emerald Green to hand, but Revell 61 seems to be a near-perfect match. Note how unrealistically "thick" some of the windscreen spars are.

 

The decals were very thin, but were reasonably still behaved. Even so, I still sealed them in with varnish as quickly as I could.

 

I'm currently working on the tail boom and on the rotor sub-assemblies. I just have to accept that this kit is never going to look perfect, it's just too old and crude in places, even though I'd probably build it yet again ... sometime.

Edited August 8, 2021 by klr
kit completed

[Brad]

That's fast work mate, still a few hours left!

[klr]

... and it's done, except for the winch, which (as this is an anti-submarine variant), I decided not to attach for now. If I find evidence that it was used, I can always add it later.

 

 

 

More pictures in the gallery in a jiffy.

[Brad]

Sharp work and they look good in the green and white.

[JohnT]

One I did as a kid and even back then with copious amounts of glue I thought it a very iffy fit.  Not an easy kit to make even a passable model of far less the sterling job done by you here.

 

I also recall labouring away on a second one a year or so later to open the door and sticking an airfix "guy" at the hole and painting it bright yellow and calling it an air sea rescue version.  Nowt in the hole but good enough for a nine year old thank you !

 

 

[Jeepboy]

I made this when I was about 8 in the 1970's.  It was a complete mess and I remember it squatting on its undercarriage as I hadn't allowed the glue to dry.  I think mine was mouded in the famous Airfix silver.