Clear the Stash #16. McDonnell F2H-2/2P Banshee

[Properjob56]

My last stash clearer for the moment is the much liked Airfix Banshee F2H-2/2P. The last kit from an independent Airfix it was first released in 1980. The kit has not been reissued since 1987 which I find surprising. Perhaps the moulds have been lost or destroyed ?

 

It has raised line detail, fits well ( I only had to use filler on the wing/fuselage joint) and is accurate.  As per kits of the era it had limited internal detail so I busied up the cockpit with wire and plastic bits and pieces. I found no aftermarket goodies currently available so it was built OOB save for the various cockpit additions. Gloss Sea Blue was Hu.15/21 in a 4:1 ratio.

 

Its main failing are the decals. I used the original ones and they were fine which after 40 odd years is remarkable. Good density, robust and settled well with setting solutions. So what’s the problem? Well, for the version I modelled, a -2 from VF-172

-The fin top colour is given as red. Contemporary photos show it to be blue. I worried the shade chosen (Hu.14) is too dark but the photos show it to be close.

-Said photos show the stencilling to be prominent. None are provided.

-VF-172 were known as the ‘Blue Bolts’. A lightning bolt decal is provided ….but it’s yellow. Fortunately some aircraft didn’t have the blue bolt graphic so I didn’t try to replicate it.

(There was a Microscale sheet produced for the kit at the time it was released but I should imagine it’s as rare as hens teeth nowadays).

 

The only other criticism is that the wing tip tanks’ attachment point is too central whereas the point was nearer the rear of the tank and slightly above the tanks’ horizontal datum line. Not an easy thing to replicate. So I didn’t as it’s hardly noticeable.

 

Problems

1. I attached the undercarriage leg struts after the main units had been applied and the glue had dried. As I found out, they serve to ensure correct alignment so unfortunately the undercarriage is splayed.

2. I was too impatient to measure out the black/white stripes on the arrestor hook accurately so their widths vary and the number of stripes is wrong.

 

I was quite pleased with my first attempt to show canopy sealing strips. I used 0.2mm white decal stripes. Fiddly but not as much as I thought. I didn’t attempt the windscreen as the frame was curved…unlike decal stripes and I had neither the skill nor the equipment to draw/paint a reliable line that thin.

 

I enjoyed it.

 

 

 

Edited April 23, 2022 by Properjob56

[HAMP man]

Nice build of an honest little model. 👍

[Mig88]

Very nicely done!

It's indeed a nice kit. I built it as the -2P (I posted it here somewhere) and managed to find another one afterwards with the intention of making the standard -2. I was aware of the error in the decals. It's a shame it hasn't been re-released but maybe, as you say, the moulds have been destroyed or lost.

 

Miguel

[Vultures1]

Very nice work! Well done

[Bertie McBoatface]

Nice one. 

 

What's the stash clearing all about? I may have missed an explanation in the first one, I suspect.

[Properjob56]

1 hour ago, Bertie Psmith said:

Nice one. 

 

What's the stash clearing all about? I may have missed an explanation in the first one, I suspect.

I have acquired for the first time ever a man cave in which I can at last indulge my hobby w/o interference. No more mucking about on dining tables which all has to be cleared away periodically. No more kits and books and magazines secreted around the house and in the loft. 
So first task was to stack all the kits in one place. Found I had acquired over the decades more than 400. A start to reduce the stash had to be made so here we are…..

[Bertie McBoatface]

1 minute ago, Properjob56 said:

I have acquired for the first time ever a man cave in which I can at last indulge my hobby w/o interference. No more mucking about on dining tables which all has to be cleared away periodically. No more kits and books and magazines secreted around the house and in the loft. 
So first task was to stack all the kits in one place. Found I had acquired over the decades more than 400. A start to reduce the stash had to be made so here we are…..

 

GO FOR IT!!!

[Wulfman]

Beautiful Banshee, lovely build. One of Airfix’s best at the time !

 

Wulfman

[stevej60]

One of my favourite Airfix kit's,cracking job.

[Roberto]

Iconic and nice!