British United Vickers V.833 Viscount in 1/144

[Skodadriver]

Here is the F-RSIN Viscount 800 finished as V.833 G-APTD of British United circa 1967.

 

Tango Delta started life in 1959 with Hunting Clan which became part of BUA a year later. In 1970 BUA sold her to Arkia and she remained with them until retirement in 1979.

 

I’m a fan of F-RSIN kits generally and their Viscounts in particular. This is my fourth Viscount and as I have said before they are among F-RSIN’s best kits, an easy build within the limits of short run moulding. Lining up all four engines takes a lot of checking and it is necessary to source alternative props since the separate blades and hubs provided in the kit are unusable. My replacements came from Aeroclub and had been in my “bits and pieces” stash for a couple of decades. As usual I filled the fuselage panel lines and did a bit of refining but generally everything was pretty straightforward. The only other point worth noting is that the nose wheel leg is rather vulnerable. My S.O.P. is to attach the undercarriage before applying the decals and I made a small sleeve from thin card held in place with masking tape which kept it safe.

 

Paint is Halfords Appliance Gloss White and Racking Grey with Revell and Tamiya metallics.

 

Decals are by Two Six. Like the Aeroclub props, the sheet was in my stash for years and I would guess it was designed for the S&M kit. Generally the decals fitted well except for the fin. I had to cut the fin decal into individual sections and apply the two halves of the stripe separately. The “BUA” titles looked too big on the F-RSIN fin so I reduced them to 80% using Affinity Photo my preferred (and much cheaper) Photoshop alternative. When I see the model photos I think I might have slightly overdone the reduction but there were variations between individual BUA Viscounts and I can live with the result.

 

Thanks for looking and constructive criticism is welcome.

 

Dave G

 

 

 

 

 

Just for fun, an F-RSIN Viscount group portrait.

L-R: Cambrian/BOAC V.701, Alitalia V.785D, GB Airways V.807 and British United V.833

[Zephyr]

That's lovely!

 

[HKGBravo1]

Hi Dave, More excellence in action. I had not realised that the F-RESIN Viscount kits were so good. I will have to get a couple as I would like to do both the BOAC and the BUA versions. They both look wonderful in your ‘family’ photo. I just had a Quick Look at the Hannants site and it seems that the Aeroclub props are no longer available? Are they available from any other manufacturer as the F-RESIN props are generally not brilliant?
 

David

[Alex1978]

Wonderful build(s) Dave.

The Viscount is a very attractive plane.I remember it faintly,seeing the British Air Ferries Viscounts at our local airport,if I am correct still in the early 90s.

 

Thanks for sharing

Alex

[stringbag]

I've had limited success with F-RSIN kits in the past Dave so it's nice to see that at least the Viscount is one of their better ones. Especially in the BUA livery.

With so many nice schemes available I may have to get one if your results are anything to go by.

 

All the best

Chris.

[Skodadriver]

Thanks for the comments and likes. These are much appreciated 

 

19 hours ago, HKGBravo1 said:

Hi Dave, More excellence in action. I had not realised that the F-RESIN Viscount kits were so good. I will have to get a couple as I would like to do both the BOAC and the BUA versions. They both look wonderful in your ‘family’ photo. I just had a Quick Look at the Hannants site and it seems that the Aeroclub props are no longer available? Are they available from any other manufacturer as the F-RESIN props are generally not brilliant?
 

David

 

Thanks David. Hope you don't mind me pointing out it's F-RSIN, not F-RESIN. The name is a play on a French airliner registration. John Adams wound up Aeroclub and retired a few years ago. His departure has left a bit of a gap in the market. Welsh Models offer a small range of metal accessories but you need to contact Densil directly to see if he has any Viscount props available. 

 

Dave G

[Viking]

Another lovely dose of nostalgia, great shot of all 4! Superb job as usual Dave, with your customary superb finish. 

We really need a source of Viscount props for both this and the S&M kit.

 

Cheers

 

John

[TheyJammedKenny!]

On 4/24/2024 at 4:24 PM, HKGBravo1 said:

Aeroclub props

Check with Joe's Models in Fulton, Missouri, USA for a great selection of Aeroclub parts in 1/144, 1/72, etc.  He likely has what you're looking for.  Do not, however, mention Churchill!  He can't stand him.  Tell Joe that Alex sent 'ya.  I'm a satisfied customer.