Airfix Vintage Classic Jetstream - Vietnam What-If

[alhenderson]

Evening All,

 

Having had some complicated builds of late (which shouldn't have been, but various builder related cock-ups got in the way) I was looking for something quick and simple that I could bosh together.  I picked up the Vintage Classic Airfix Jetstream from Sywell Aviation Museum the other year - they sell them to raise funds for the restoration of their jetstream.  I briefly considered trying to turn it into the one at Sywell but realised that was way beyond my skill set.  Someone then mentioned it might make a good what-if subject.  The kit is base don the USAF C-10 which was cancelled before any could be delivered, so the whole kit is basically a what-if anyway!

 

I've always fancied doing something in USAF SEA camo, so thought this might be a good subject.  I initially thought of doing some kind if tactical/in-theatre medevac version which would allow me to have the SEA camo and leave everything else pretty much as is.  But then I thought it would look really neat with a black underside rather than the more normal grey.  I figured a role that would need the black underside would be nocturnal monitoring of the seismic sensors that were laid along the Ho Chi Minh trail.  And so I arrived at an EC-10 modified with some workstations and aerials for the role and SEA/black camo.  

 

Obligatory box contents shot:

 

 

And my first attempt at drawing out a camo scheme loosely based on the C-130:

 

 

Really quite tricky doing that and making all the colours line up across the various surfaces.  

 

The kit has some stretchers in the cabin, I won't be needed those for the sneaky-beaky role I have in mind.  Will probably have a go at blanking out the windows on one side of the fuselage and adding some plastic card aerials.  Did think of trying to make some basic operator stations for the interior, not sure about that, we'll see.  Scratch building stuff is not something I usually have patience for.

 

So already my nice simple mojo-restorer has grown legs and started sprinting away from me! 🙂  Don't think progress is going to be that fast as I have a Lightning to finish once I recover from the satin varnish disaster that it suffered last week.  Plus real life is getting in the way at the moment...

 

Al.

 

 

 

[k5054nz]

SEA looks good on pretty much anything so I'm excited to see what you do with this!

[TheyJammedKenny!]

I like it!  This is a cool project.  Don't forget to add a few VHF/UHF antennas to the belly just to make the whole thing "real."  Also, the USAF would have insisted on the aircraft having a wire HF antenna somewhere--likely between the vertical stabilizer and the cockpit.

[alhenderson]

14 minutes ago, TheyJammedKenny! said:

I like it!  This is a cool project.  Don't forget to add a few VHF/UHF antennas to the belly just to make the whole thing "real."  Also, the USAF would have insisted on the aircraft having a wire HF antenna somewhere--likely between the vertical stabilizer and the cockpit.

Thanks.  Antenna are definitely on the list, I think I even have a spare LORAN aerial from a Phantom which might work?  As to the HF wire, I've always shied away from such things as they look really fiddly, but maybe now's the time to give it a go.  I think I've seen people use rigging wire or something?

 

Couple of decisions made last night.  In thinking how I was going to cover over the windows on one side it occurred to me the kit provided the perfect things for doing that - the windows!  They need a bit of work to make them smooth and flat but hopefully do-able.  Also though I'd try scratch building some interior work stations to give it a little bit of detail.  Will experiment with cardboard first before cutting any plastic.

 

Nice, simple build.. 🤷‍♂️

 

Al.

[TheyJammedKenny!]

Back-enders don't need windows!  Just ask 'em!  By all means, smooth out the fuselage sides.  Also, I think LORAN would be a good sub for OMEGA, but others can comment.

5 hours ago, alhenderson said:

I was going to cover over the windows on one side it occurred to me the kit provided the perfect things for doing that - the windows!  They need a bit of work to make them smooth and flat but hopefully do-able.

 

[TEXANTOMCAT]

Someone suggested eh Al?  and its your Jetstream as you're part of the Museum!

 

Looking forward to seeing this - how about a thimble nose AKA Black Spot Providers? Or an IRST ball... after all the T3s had thimble noses so did the Saudi AF '31s... so there is a precedent... deffo a spot in the Museum cabinet for this one! 

 

http://www.roden.eu/HTML/058.html

 

TT

 

P.S I probably have some decals in the bank you could use - you now need a name for the EC-10 - Jetseeker? Jetbeam?

 

Edited January 12, 2023 by TEXANTOMCAT

[Pantherhawk27263]

I love this idea!! I have several what ifs I intend to build, I should try one of them sooner rather than later. 

[alhenderson]

2 hours ago, TEXANTOMCAT said:

Someone suggested eh Al?  and its your Jetstream as you're part of the Museum!

 

Looking forward to seeing this - how about a thimble nose AKA Black Spot Providers? Or an IRST ball... after all the T3s had thimble noses so did the Saudi AF '31s... so there is a precedent... deffo a spot in the Museum cabinet for this one! 

 

http://www.roden.eu/HTML/058.html

 

TT

 

P.S I probably have some decals in the bank you could use - you now need a name for the EC-10 - Jetseeker? Jetbeam?

 

Someone who's very well connected to Sywell Aviation Museum suggested it, didn't mean to make it sound like all my own ideas 👍 

 

I think I'll put the thimble nose and IRST on the back burner - going to be stretching my skills to do some kind of interior consoles!  I'm thinking she's going to be an EC-10A Rivet Jenny as a nod to G-RAVL's nickname 🙂  Any relevant decals you have would be handy - would love to put a tailcode on the tail, would need some white lettering for that, but needs to be quite small.  Also red markings for under the wings would be nice.  Have got some smaller star and bars for the fuselage coming in the post.

 

Al.

[alhenderson]

2 hours ago, Pantherhawk27263 said:

I love this idea!! I have several what ifs I intend to build, I should try one of them sooner rather than later. 

I'm not generally a very imaginative person, so quite happy with following the instructions to a large extent.  But, this kit is a what-if out of the box anyway, so I'm not going to mess anything up here!  I have another vague what-if for a TSR2 one day, but that's a bigger job than this one..

 

Al.

[Pete in Lincs]

What if's are great fun and keep the rivet counters at bay! Now then, if it's going to loiter over the trail, would it need a couple of drop tanks?

[alhenderson]

1 minute ago, Pete in Lincs said:

What if's are great fun and keep the rivet counters at bay! Now then, if it's going to loiter over the trail, would it need a couple of drop tanks?

Don't you start!!  I think they'd actually shut down one engine to increase loiter time.. 🤣

 

Al.

[TEXANTOMCAT]

3 hours ago, alhenderson said:

Someone who's very well connected to Sywell Aviation Museum suggested it, didn't mean to make it sound like all my own ideas 👍 

 

I think I'll put the thimble nose and IRST on the back burner - going to be stretching my skills to do some kind of interior consoles!  I'm thinking she's going to be an EC-10A Rivet Jenny as a nod to G-RAVL's nickname 🙂  Any relevant decals you have would be handy - would love to put a tailcode on the tail, would need some white lettering for that, but needs to be quite small.  Also red markings for under the wings would be nice.  Have got some smaller star and bars for the fuselage coming in the post.

 

Al.

I was just joking matey 😆 also you missed the AGM tonight! 
 

Rivet Jenny is genius! Let me know what codes you need and I’ll have a looksee! 
 

ATB

 

TT

[TheyJammedKenny!]

...And beware of "requirements creep" as you build this....

[alhenderson]

Small update, not had much time on this lately - been stripping back a Lightning for respray after a cock up.  I need to scratch build some kind of an interior which has been putting me off a bit as I didn't really know where to start.  Well tonight I decided to just start - with the floor.   The kit doesn't really have one, the seats and stretchers all attach to the sides of the fuselage.  I want some consoles and seats to sit at them so will need a floor.  Plus, if I'm going to make an interior I'm going to want to have the cargo door open so it can be seen and it'll look daft without a floor.

 

 

Having got hold of some thin enough plastic, I've fashioned something that looks reasonable.  There's a gap between the door frame and the floor which will need sorting.  I'm hoping that a bit of filler will deal with that.  Will need a similar floor to the rear of that bulkhead as well, that can come later.

 

To the consoles themselves.  Not going to cover the whole side, so I need two side walls to the consoles:

 

 

Lots of shaping, sanding and cutting to be done here.  I'm thinking it'll be a few straight panels between these two, representing the screens, controls and a bottom panel.

 

Still lots of work to do here as its all very haphazard!  

 

 

Hoping to attach the consoles to the side walls and have the floor attach to the wing box panel.  At the moment I can poke the floor in through the cargo door, but I don't think that'll work if there are seats attached so I need to think about that.  Might have to split the floor into sections and have one section glued to the wing box with the seats on it which can then go up into the assembled fuselage.. 🤔

 

Making this stuff up as I go along, if you hadn't noticed!

 

Al.

 

 

[rob Lyttle]

30 minutes ago, alhenderson said:

Making this stuff up as I go along, if you hadn't noticed!

It's the best way! 

Boldly going where no modeller has gone before.... 😎

I had some fun with this kit, and ended up with a floor and passenger seats. I recall I did it in the 2 separate halves for most of the cabin length. My floor centre line joint can't be seen as I reduced the entrance door to the single style rather than your big double doors. And finished with a floor inside the entrance.

So, whatever works for you is the way to go. Great project with a nice old Airfix moulding. 

One thing I ought to mention is, I made some effort to refine the outlet exhausts with drills and needle files etc. Much improved but in the process I had wiped out the main legs attachment points thoroughly! 🤭 Had to scratch an alternative. So mind out for that if you try finessing the chunky outlets 👍

Looking forward to seeing this develop 

[alhenderson]

9 hours ago, rob Lyttle said:

It's the best way! 

Boldly going where no modeller has gone before.... 😎

I had some fun with this kit, and ended up with a floor and passenger seats. I recall I did it in the 2 separate halves for most of the cabin length. My floor centre line joint can't be seen as I reduced the entrance door to the single style rather than your big double doors. And finished with a floor inside the entrance.

So, whatever works for you is the way to go. Great project with a nice old Airfix moulding. 

One thing I ought to mention is, I made some effort to refine the outlet exhausts with drills and needle files etc. Much improved but in the process I had wiped out the main legs attachment points thoroughly! 🤭 Had to scratch an alternative. So mind out for that if you try finessing the chunky outlets 👍

Looking forward to seeing this develop 

Thanks for the hint about the exhausts.  Hasn't got round to looking at anything but the interior yet 🙂 I'll see how much enthusiasm I have left for such things after completing the cabin!

 

Al.

[alhenderson]

Update time again. Although, looking at that last post I did, I seem to have gone backwards if anything 😟 Struggling with the interior, tbh. My attempts at fashioning a floor have so far come to nothing. Turns out it's like playing 3D chess, and my little brain's not cut out for that. 

 

I couldn't find a way to make the floor in such a way that it would fit snugly by the open door and also over the wings. Plus I really need to be able to attach it to the fuselage prior to closing her up so that I can install the consoles.

 

I'm now wondering if I can make the floor in sections using the wing as a base for the middle part.

 

 

Doing it this way would mean I could only have consoles in the centre of the cabin, leaving a fair bit of empty space by the door. Plus I'd still need to fashion a bit of floor to go by the door. 

 

While I struggle with all that I've been filling and sanding the windows that are going to be blanked out. Filling and sanding is something I *can* do 🤣

 

 

The transparencies are not at all flat, there's a dimple in the middle of most of them so just trying to improve that. 

 

Back to pondering the interior. I'm getting close to deciding to close the back door if I'm honest.. not sure I've got the patience to work this out 😡

 

Al

 

 

 

 

 

 

[rob Lyttle]

22 hours ago, alhenderson said:

I'm getting close to deciding to close the back door if I'm honest..

That would be a pity though.... 🤭

Before you throw the towel in, consider the option of doing half the floor lengthways in each fuselage side plus the entrance floor added later. 

I've been searching the forum for my Jetstream build to lift a couple of pictures for you to see what I did. Darned if I can find it.... 

I made seating etc but I think consoles and equipment would work OK too. 

And bear in mind that even with the double doors open, visibility and light is poor esp further forward. 

If you do have a go this way, just make sure the floor structure does not interfere with the fuselage assembly 👍

[alhenderson]

7 minutes ago, rob Lyttle said:

That would be a pity though.... 🤭

Before you throw the towel in, consider the option of doing half the floor lengthways in each fuselage side plus the entrance floor added later. 

I've been searching the forum for my Jetstream build to lift a couple of pictures for you to see what I did. Darned if I can find it.... 

I made seating etc but I think consoles and equipment would work OK too. 

And bear in mind that even with the double doors open, visibility and light is poor esp further forward. 

If you do have a go this way, just make sure the floor structure does not interfere with the fuselage assembly 👍

Thanks for the information, didn't occur to me to look for other builds.. 🤔 I did briefly consider splitting the floor lengthways but for some reason didn't pursue it. Might have a think about that..

 

I'm not yet ready to give up on opening the doors, there's no point putting anything inside if I'm going to close the doors.

 

Lots of dry fitting and tape to make sure I can still put everything together 👍

 

Al

[rob Lyttle]

OK Al, I finally found the old WIP of my Jetstream. Fact is I only started documenting the build halfway through, as I got to the engine modifications. I didn't photo the inside of the fuselage construction, or some of the other challenges. 

So not much there probably that's of use to your build. But I'll stick a link on anyway in case you want a read. Some info on leg length, gear doors mod., and so on. My main undercarriage outer doors required a fair bit of work but may not apply to your type. 

Good luck 👍

[alhenderson]

Following on from the suggestion from @rob Lyttle I had a go at making the floor in two halves lengthways, and not going all the way back.  So I now have:

 

 

I've had to do more than half the width to accommodate the seats, but I don't think the other side can be seen through the door anyway.  Will do the floor by the door separately - there's going to be a sizeable step there, I think but so be it.  Drew the console detail with posca pens.  Looks a bit naff in the daylight, but hopefully when she's closed up it'll just add a bit of colour and interest.. 🤞

 

Got a bit of mojo back now I can see how it might go together..

 

Al.

 

[rob Lyttle]

Alright....! That's looking like a viable plan of action 😎👍

[fatalbert]

The first time i went aboard a Jetstream, i nearly broke my neck on the mainspar.It sticks up in the middle of the floor and i went flying lol.

Edited January 31, 2023 by fatalbert

[alhenderson]

2 hours ago, fatalbert said:

The first time i went aboard a Jetstream, i nearly broke my neck on the mainspar.It sticks up in the middle of the floor and i went flying lol.

Excellent - my step up to get to the consoles won't be entirely inaccurate! 👍

[TEXANTOMCAT]

12 hours ago, fatalbert said:

The first time i went aboard a Jetstream, i nearly broke my neck on the mainspar.It sticks up in the middle of the floor and i went flying lol.

Yep it gets me every time I walk through ours. The real strap line was ‘walk tall in a Jetstream’ ! (omitting ‘immediately before you faceplant by the cockpit partition’ )

 

looking good Al!

 

TT