1:72 Anbarún Models de Havilland Sea Vixen FAW.1

[Navy Bird]

Hello mates! Here at Chateau Oiseau de la Marine, I am patiently waiting the arrival of a vacuform canopy for my Special Hobby Vampire Mk.3. Unfortunately, it was special ordered from Europe and cannot currently be shipped. (Hey, I didn't vote for the guy.) Consequently the Vampire project is on hold - and what better way to fill the down time than another twin boomer from de Havilland, the Sea Vixen! She was always my favourite twin boom design, but one that hasn't been served so well in 1:72 scale. More than a decade ago I built the MPM/Xtrakit FAW.2 shown here:

 

If you're interested, the summary before the photos in that post shows the work I attempted to do in order to produce a more accurate model. Yikes!      

 

Fast forward to 2019, and we were treated to some incredible work by our own @TheBaron who used his CAD crayons to design an entirely new kit that addressed most, if not all, of the previous kits' misadventures. You can follow his design process and his test builds of the 3D printed model here, all 125 pages of it:

 

When the kit was offered for sale, it didn't take me long to open my digital wallet. I received the 3D printed parts very soon thereafter, extremely well packaged, and with a 16-page instruction booklet. Oh boy! There was only one item on my mind - I'd never done anything with 3D printed parts. Should I really start with this incredible Anbarún Models kit? Yeah, baby, why not?     🤤

 

Let's have a look at the materiae primae - first, the box label:

 

 

Nice! All sorts of goodies were inside:

 

 

 

What's not shown in the photos are the foam bits used to protect the extra sharp trailing edges of the flying surfaces. I did not see any damage due to shipping or packaging. The model is designed to be shown with the radome opened, engine access doors removed, RAT deployed, and the wings folded. In addition to the 3D printed parts, you can see the photo-etched parts, vacuform canopy, two masking sheets, assorted brass tubing, and a clear die-cut sheet for the radar platen. There is also a doming tool so you can make a radar dish out of flat brass. Thank somebody for malleability. 

 

There won't be any space up front for ballast, so the finished model needs to be secured to a base. As I proceed with the build, I will try to give an honest assessment of my first 3D printed model, including any screw-ups along the way. I have a suspicion that this is where the future of this hobby is headed, so best be ready. I will also highlight areas that I think could be improved, assuming, of course, that I'm actually qualified to do so.

 

Of course, my stash already has a bunch of aftermarket goodies intended for the CyberHobby kit. I sold that kit, as it was just a nicer tooled copy of the MPM effort (right down to the ejection seats for Hobbits) but I didn't sell the aftermarket. This next photo shows some of the stuff that I might use in this build.

 

 

Not everything is 100% correct for an FAW.1, but maybe we can fake it. The kit doesn't come with a traditional decal sheet (the main markings are to be painted with the supplied masks) but I've got these in the stash which I think will allow me to choose from a variety of FAW.1 airframes. My personal preference is decals over painting, especially in this scale.

 

 

The glossy black A&AEE test bird, XJ488, is intriguing, but I think the coal hole was modified in some way. I need to learn more about that. The Model Alliance sheet has XN649 in her service scheme, and what's not to like about EDSG? So we'll see.

 

Section 1 of the instruction booklet is called The Nose. At first I thought we were going to make a replica of Tycho Brahe's artificial proboscis, but it's actually the cockpit, radar electronics, and the forward fuselage. The first thing I had to learn was how to remove the parts. The instructions recommend a fine toothed razor saw, and I used that in conjunction with a new #11 blade. To be fair, the attachment points of this veritable "forest" of supporting "trees" are typically quite small and are quite easy to remove. Once the part is free, standard sanding and filing techniques are used. The 3D printed resin seems harder and more brittle than your typical resin kit and it is easy to break the parts, so be a bit more careful than usual. My experience so far is that sanding takes a bit longer due to the hardness of the resin. This is a delight as sanding is my favourite part of the build - remember I grew up building MPM and Special Hobby kits back in the day.     

 

First up are the ejection seats, made from a combination of 3D resin and photoetch. 

 

 

They need to be tarted up further with assorted doo-dads, harnesses, oh-crap handles, etc. My plan is to see if I can use the BarracudaCast Martin Baker Mk.4 seats, knowing full well that they are intended for a Lightning and have to be modified, if possible, for a Sea Vixen. So we'll see. Ejection seats are often one of the last things I add to a build, so I've got time to ponder that.

 

The cockpit comes in two main bits which combine to create the environments for the crew. The larger of the two contains the radar equipment upfront and the coal hole. It will slide into the forward fuselage from the bottom. The other portion of the cockpit is for the pilot, and once the first section is in place, this bit slides in from the back of the forward fuselage. The two cockpit components overlap a bit, and this creates the unique raised pilot position compared to the radar operator. Clever engineering. You can see here that the main instrument panels for both crewman consist of a single folded bit of PE. I folded it wrong several times and was lucky that my refolding did not result in any breakage. The eagle-eyed amongst you will notice that I broke off a piece from the larger part of the cockpit - what looks to me to be a shoulder rest for the pilot (I'm sure that's not what it is). I lost the broken-off part, so I had to scratch something. You'll see that later.

 

 

The radar screen and hood is a separate bit that is glued in place, along with a few of the radar electronics parts. I used superglue. Here's another view of the cockpit parts:

 

 

Did I ever mention that I hate black cockpits? If not, I just did. I don't spray them black; I use a dark grey instead. These parts got a coat or two of Tamiya XF-69 NATO Black, and then I picked out some of the details with Mr. Hobby H12 Flat Black. I used a silver pencil to try and coax out some of the details, and after that a light wash with a dark grey. Rather than trying to paint the instrument panel dials and switches (which I'm absolutely dreadful at) I used the Eduard pre-painted PE which had to trimmed a bit to fit. Not too bad though, I was pleasantly surprised. (Yes, I know the Eduard PE is for an FAW.2. I won't tell anyone if you won't.)

 

 

 

 

Note that I've added the "shoulder rest," easy to see here:

 

 

I still have some PE levers to add to the throttle, and maybe some other details from the Eduard set. The two cockpit sections will ultimately link up like this, once they are inside the fuselage:

 

 

So, it's time to assemble The Nose. There is a bulkhead between the cockpit and the radar equipment, and as designed this bulkhead incorporates the pilot's coaming, gun sight, and the upper portion of the main instrument panel. I could not for the life of me get this to fit properly. I'm sure I'm doing something wrong, but I decided to compensate for my deficiency by departing from the instructions. I cut the coaming and upper instrument panel from the bulkhead and glued it into position on top of the lower instrument panel. Putting this cockpit section into the forward fuselage results in a great fit - now I just have to get the bulkhead in place. So far, I haven't been able to do that. It seems like the bulkhead is too large, or it's not fitting into the correct location - something is preventing me from closing everything up. 

 

But I'll figure it out. Someday. Maybe even before the vacuform canopy arrives for my Vampire.      

 

Cheers,

Bill

 

PS. I'm also exploring ways to repair the cracked injected canopy for the Vampire in the event that I never get the shipment from Europe. My probability estimate for success in this endeavour - 15%.

[David H]

Finally! A Sea Vixen that does not look like an artists impression of Keanu Reeves which looks like Adam Driver.

 

-d-

[perdu]

A Sea Vixen, ah yes that reminds me...

 

Popping in to watch Bill, and to be prodded into doing my very crude cast resin Mk1 I had from a different daddy.

 

That doesnt look even remotely like one of Tony's masterpieces but it means I might be able to see how to handle resin by watching you.

 

I'm at the back scrutinising every move from the bar, fancy a pint while I'm there?

[AdrianMF]

13 hours ago, Navy Bird said:

cracked injected canopy

On my recent old Airfix Lightning build I replaced the kit canopy because it had a bubble in it. I've put in a link to the relevant post above. Hope that helps if you can't get  a third party one.
 

Thank you for building one of these. It's great to see another perspective of that fantastic kit. I'm not saying @TheBaron was biased or anything...

 

Regards,

Adrian

 

 

[Hamden]

 

I'll join Bill @perdu at the bar and watch this come together in your very capable hands

 

       Roger

[Hook]

Consider another stool picked up, sir! Mine's a Shoggoth's Old Peculiar.

[Terry1954]

So, I guessed correctly!

 

OK, I cheated. When you gave us a clue it would also be a twin boomer, I took a quick peek at your Scalemates stash entry and saw that you had Tony's kit 🤫 ..................worth a guess I thought........

 

I have this kit also, and It is certainly better than anything (Sea Vixen wise) that has gone before it, and I'm really looking forward to seeing your take on it, Bill. This will be a delight to watch.

 

T.

[Navy Bird]

16 hours ago, David H said:

Finally! A Sea Vixen that does not look like an artists impression of Keanu Reeves which looks like Adam Driver.

 

I quite like Adam Driver. Even in Megalopolis, although The Man Who Killed Don Quixote is probably my fave. I suppose that's because I think Terry Gilliam would destroy the Renaissance masters in a doodling contest.     

 

13 hours ago, perdu said:

but it means I might be able to see how to handle resin by watching you.

 

First tip: Don't put it in the range on the "Broil" setting.

 

12 hours ago, AdrianMF said:

On my recent old Airfix Lightning build I replaced the kit canopy because it had a bubble in it. I've put in a link to the relevant post above. Hope that helps if you can't get  a third party one.

 

Thanks Adrian. I've attempted plunge moulding several times but I've never been satisfied with what I ended up with. However, I never went to the trouble of doing it correctly as you did. I just bashed away.   

 

I have one of those "Dental Lab" vacuform machines that I've never used - bought it in Hong Kong during a business trip for about $40-$50 US. I've been retired for over a decade, so, yeah, it's been on the bench for a while. I just fired it up and holy moly, does that sucker get hot. Somewhere I have pre-cut sheets of whatever kind of plastic you're supposed to make vacuforms from. If I look hard enough, maybe I'll find them. If I remember correctly, I have to use the kit parts to make a female mould, which I then use to make a male "master" from some kind of material that can handle the heat. Sound right? I wouldn't want to take the kit canopies and watch them melt as the machine heats up...

 

12 hours ago, seledom said:

Hello all, Since joing the forum recently after beginning to experiment with modelling at a larger scale, I thought I'd stick up an example of a previous project at 1/72.  As there's never been a decent kit of De Havilland's Sea Vixen FAW.1, I found myself having to create one myself from scratch -  In fact I ended up making two versions: XJ481 in its Martel trials livery, and XN708, which as sadly lost in Lyme Bay on a night mission.

 

I would like to see what you came up with. Do you have a link? I remember someone doing a Frankenbash Sea Vixen using CyberHobby/High Planes/Xtrakit bits. I recall it looking quite good. @J.C. Bahr perhaps?

 

11 hours ago, Hamden said:

I'll join Bill @perdu at the bar and watch this come together in your very capable hands

 

Capable or culpable? It's usually the latter with me.     

 

9 hours ago, Hook said:

Consider another stool picked up, sir! Mine's a Shoggoth's Old Peculiar.

 

Sounds good. I'll have a Doom Bar. Ever try Olde Frothingslosh? It's the only beer that foams on the bottom, which is why the cans were packed upside down in the case.    

 

1 hour ago, Terry1954 said:

I have this kit also, and It is certainly better than anything (Sea Vixen wise) that has gone before it, and I'm really looking forward to seeing your take on it, Bill. This will be a delight to watch.

 

I hope it turns out OK. The whole 3D printing thing is new to me, but so far it's just a few changes to the basic techniques (famous last words). 

 

2 hours ago, seledom said:

Witty Wings, in their time, produced very interesting models. On the one hand, they had a fairly accurate shape. But on the other hand, most of them had certain shortcomings. Most often there were problems with the Canopy.

 

My only recollection of Witty Wings are their diecast models. Did they make kits too? 

 

*****

 

Success with the bulkhead! I have to say, though, that I removed a bit of material to make it less tall, maybe a mm or so. I don't see how it could be anyplace other than where it now is, but I've been wrong before. It's tacked in place now with some white glue and the fuselage closed up and taped in place. Once the white glue dries, I will disassemble, secure the bulkhead with superglue, and then close up for good. 

 

Cheers,

Bill

[wellsprop]

Well this looks excellent 

[Ad-4N]

23 hours ago, Navy Bird said:

(Hey, I didn't vote for the guy.) 

 

👍

[J.C. Bahr]

10 hours ago, Navy Bird said:

I remember someone doing a Frankenbash Sea Vixen using CyberHobby/High Planes/Xtrakit bits. I recall it looking quite good. @J.C. Bahr perhaps?

 

Probably me... (if only Photo-Phucket hadn't messed up the images) 🙄

 

 

[Navy Bird]

8 hours ago, J.C. Bahr said:

Probably me... (if only Photo-Phucket hadn't messed up the images) 🙄

 

I think I have copies of some of your images before the Photobucket watermark. I'll try and find them...

 

*****

 

So, the BarracudaCast seats are too wide - I would have to sand off most of the side detail to make them fit. However, Squadron had a different set of Mk.4 seats (Quickboost) that look like they might be what I'm looking for. They say "in stock." Hopefully that doesn't mean "special order in Europe after bipartisan exemption for hobby products is passed by the next Congress." But like they say - pro is the opposite of con. Progress must therefore be the opposite of...      

 

I'm moving on to the main fuselage. Very nicely moulded cast printed intake tunnels. If I recall, these appear a metallic grey kind of colour, perhaps being the material they are made from as opposed to paint. Is my memory functioning? Wait, don't answer that. Just let me know what the inside of the intakes should look like.     

 

Cheers,

Bill

[81-er]

A bit late to the party, but I'm pulling up a seat at the bar. Nice work with the cockpit, Bill

 

James

[Taylor Durbon]

Navy Bird builds a navy bird? I‘m in for shure!

[Navy Bird]

XJ488, the all-black A&AEE test bird, had the window in the coal hole hatch faired over. I assume I can just add the window and then paint it black. I haven't found the reason why they did this, but I suppose it might have something to do with test equipment. If anyone knows, post it here. I'm curious if there were any other external modifications. Is there a Sea Vixen SIG? 

 

Cheers,

Bill

[Navy Bird]

How about some modelling? Here's a shot of the forward bulkhead in its final position (determined by wherever it ended up so I could close the fuselage and cockpit section - in other words, science):

 

 

The cockpit sections were then added and secured in place (superglue again) and it was time to attach to the main fuselage section. The profile around the rear edge of the forward fuselage needs to match that of the front of the main fuselage for a "good fit." And it's not bad, but in my case not perfect. Accordingly, there will be a very small step somewhere along this join. In line with the Principal of the Inevitability of No One Ever Looking at the Underside, I decided to line things up on top, and go wild with the putty on the bottom. So, some more glops of superglue, a smattering of red glazing putty, some grit stuck on paper, and here we are.

 

 

 

Nice trunks, eh?

 

 

There is still more work needed with the putty, but it's pretty close. I'll do the final "puttying upping" after the inboard wing sections are added. Which, by way of segue, is the next step. First, though, you have to remove the wing section from the Forest of Fingers™. Get out a fresh #11 blade, a micro-saw with a gabillion teeth per inch, some choice Anglo-Saxon, maybe a plaster or two, and away we go. 

 

 

Now that was fun, wasn't it?     

 

It's not mentioned in the instruction booklet (at least the parts I've read) but it's very important that you don't remove the hinges for the wing fold while you're going crazy with the blades. I almost took them off before thinking - wait, those don't look like the others. I wonder if they are supposed to be there. Yup, I got it right for once. No need to worry, I'm sure I'll screw something else up to compensate.    

 

Before I attach the inboard wing sections I want to do some research. I seem to recall that the Vixen had a small amount of dihedral, one or two degrees. I need to see if that's true, and if it applied to the inboard section. It seems like there is some room for adjustment in this regard when you glue it to the main fuselage. That might be because I didn't do a good job of removing all the fingers and sanding things smooth.

 

Hey, I'm learning! And at my age! Next thing you know I'll figure out how to use my phone without four-year old Dexter for tech support.    📱

 

Cheers,

Bill

[perdu]

Hmm, scary so far but incredibly interesting fascinating more like.

 

What is that red putty again Bill?

 

Red glazing putty, hmm.

[heloman1]

Hi Bill, late to the party! I must have missed the muster, master? Anyway, what is not to like a Fleet Air Arm cab and a Sea Vixen to boot. The prints look superb and your progress speedy.

Crack on...

 

Colin FLY NAVY

[81-er]

That's coming along well, Bill, and the parts look beautiful

 

James

[Navy Bird]

7 hours ago, perdu said:

Hmm, scary so far but incredibly interesting fascinating more like.

 

What is that red putty again Bill?

 

Scary was too mild of a word to describe my first thoughts on opening the kit. Yikes! What have I got myself into?     

 

The putty is Nitro-Stan Red Spot Glazing Putty, sold by Standard Coating Corporation but no longer manufactured. This type of putty is used in automotive body repair, and 3M make a product that is virtually identical. So does Bondo, I think. I got a new tube (0.45kg) many, many years ago (I'm guessing over 20) and the tube now weighs 0.4kg. It takes more short run kits than I've done to use up a tube that size! My dad used to do some body work and I stole lifted purloined borrowed a tube from him back when I first realised that seams needed to be filled sometime in the late 60s.     

 

6 hours ago, heloman1 said:

Hi Bill, late to the party! I must have missed the muster, master? Anyway, what is not to like a Fleet Air Arm cab and a Sea Vixen to boot. The prints look superb and your progress speedy.

Crack on...

 

The prints are indeed quite nice. Bravo to @TheBaron! 

 

5 hours ago, 81-er said:

That's coming along well, Bill, and the parts look beautiful

 

See above.      

 

*****

 

Not much work for the next few days, as I am required to attend a 52nd high school reunion with the events spanning three days. In general, these kind of things are OK, but specifically I never liked any of these folks back then (other than my wife and best man) and I'm not expecting to like any of them now. I got on with some of the faculty, but I imagine they're all dead. 

 

Cheers,

Bill

[David H]

12 minutes ago, Navy Bird said:

 

Scary was too mild of a word to describe my first thoughts on opening the kit. Yikes! What have I got myself into?     

 

The putty is Nitro-Stan Red Spot Glazing Putty, sold by Standard Coating Corporation but no longer manufactured. This type of putty is used in automotive body repair, and 3M make a product that is virtually identical. So does Bondo, I think. I got a new tube (0.45kg) many, many years ago (I'm guessing over 20) and the tube now weighs 0.4kg. It takes more short run kits than I've done to use up a tube that size! My dad used to do some body work and I stole lifted purloined borrowed a tube from him back when I first realised that seams needed to be filled sometime in the late 60s.     

 

 

The prints are indeed quite nice. Bravo to @TheBaron! 

 

 

See above.      

 

*****

 

Not much work for the next few days, as I am required to attend a 52nd high school reunion with the events spanning three days. In general, these kind of things are OK, but specifically I never liked any of these folks back then (other than my wife and best man) and I'm not expecting to like any of them now. I got on with some of the faculty, but I imagine they're all dead. 

 

Cheers,

Bill

i can fill in the gap with more Wyvern pictures if you like....

[scautomoton]

1 hour ago, Navy Bird said:

Not much work for the next few days, as I am required to attend a 52nd high school reunion with the events spanning three days. In general, these kind of things are OK, but specifically I never liked any of these folks back then (other than my wife and best man) and I'm not expecting to like any of them now. I got on with some of the faculty, but I imagine they're all dead. 

I just don't get school reunions, for exactly the reasons you mentioned. Luckily for me, neither the middle nor upper school I went to exist anymore. One is a housing estate, and the other was demolished and a new academy built in it's place.

[Navy Bird]

On 10/09/2025 at 09:55, David H said:

i can fill in the gap with more Wyvern pictures if you like....

 

There's always room for more Wyvern pix...      

 

On 10/09/2025 at 10:48, scautomoton said:

I just don't get school reunions, for exactly the reasons you mentioned.

 

We have events scheduled over three days! We have a dinner cruise on the Erie Canal (no need for seasick pills, if there are any waves you better not get on the boat 'cuz it's a heck of a storm), a catered BBQ picnic with open bar, and a sit-down dinner at a local country club (with another open bar). Seriously, can't we just meet in the McDonalds car park and have it over with? To top it off, everything was paid for in advance by an anonymous donor who was in our class. Admirable, but we'll know who he/she is when they arrive by helicopter.      

 

Cheers,

Bill

 

PS. I'm only going for the open bar(s).

[perdu]

5 hours ago, Navy Bird said:

PS. I'm only going for the open bar(s).

I'd come

 

 

 

 

 

If it were closer, but a barbeque isn't enough of a draw.

 

It'd be good to see you though Bill...

[scautomoton]

12 hours ago, Navy Bird said:

To top it off, everything was paid for in advance by an anonymous donor who was in our class. Admirable, but we'll know who he/she is when they arrive by helicopter.      

 

So its just someone's ego trip to show everyone how successful they are? How very humble of them. Rinse that bar!