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Avro Vulcan B Mk2 XH558 "Vulcan to the Sky", Airfix 1:72


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There have been quite a few builds of the new Vulcan kit recently, so apologies for the Vulcan overload.

 

But many of you will probably know I mostly make 1:144 airliners, so for me, this is a bit of a change.

 

I've had this Airfix kit sitting waiting to be built for the last 8 or so years.  This is the old tooling of the Avro Vulcan in the "XH558 Vulcan to the Sky" red box edition.

 

I only saw the Vulcan fly once, over Gloucestershire Airport in 2015 I think it was.  I didn't get there in time, so I stopped on a bridge a mile or so away just in time to see it swooping low over the airfield.

 

For this build, I used Humbrol 165 spray, which is mid sea grey.  The instructions say 164 dark sea grey, but 164 isn't available in a spray.  In any case, I think 165 works well with the camouflage.  The green is Revell 68 dunkelgrün, brush-painted.

 

I would like to build the new one just to compare.

 

I've really enjoyed this build - it's given me something different to do, and for me at least, it's a nice subject to display alongside my airliners.

 

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XH558 wears a non-standard camouflage scheme of Medium Sea Grey and Dark Green (Humbrol 165 and 163 respectively).  The pattern itself is non-standard but the colours were standard for the V-Force from 1964 the the mid-eighties.  Two Vulcans, XM597 and XM600 were re-painted in Dark Sea Grey and Dark Green upper surfaces in the late sixties but reverted to Medium Sea Grey by the mid-seventies.  Towards the end of their service lives some Vulcans were re-painted in Dark Green and Dark Sea Grey wraparound camouflage, e.g. XL426 and XM575.

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Lovely build, the camo is very convincing.

 

However it is another victim of the faulty instructions in the kit. Intakes should be camo and tfr should be sanded off. You'd think Airfix could get this right charging I think it was £40 for a nearly 40 year old kit when this version was last produced.

 

I wouldn't worry about not having the exact colours specified, the ones you've used good enough. The colours should just be a match for raf dark green and a grey which doesn't quite look like medium sea grey. It's got a bit more of a blue tint I think.

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9 hours ago, Adam Poultney said:

Lovely build, the camo is very convincing.

 

However it is another victim of the faulty instructions in the kit. Intakes should be camo and tfr should be sanded off. You'd think Airfix could get this right charging I think it was £40 for a nearly 40 year old kit when this version was last produced.

 

I wouldn't worry about not having the exact colours specified, the ones you've used good enough. The colours should just be a match for raf dark green and a grey which doesn't quite look like medium sea grey. It's got a bit more of a blue tint I think.

 

I was thinking of correcting the nose, but I didn't know if cutting off that nubbin would leave a hole that would be awkward to fill.

 

The new kit looks like it has different nose options, so I will have a look at that kit soon.

 

I noticed the painted intakes when I looked at some pictures of XH558 - I think I might be able to mask them and brush-paint the insides of the intakes fairly easily.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I have been rescribing mine for a few years on and off, this has given me the incentive to get it done. Very lovely build and finish.

 

Regards

Robert

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