In-box Review of Academy's 1/48 CH-53E posted

No rivets again

Even 20 year old Monogram kit had them nicely done...

Hello, Big Iron!  Cannot wait to get one of these into the stash.  Thanks for the link.  I didn't think it was possible to get any more excited about a kit, but I was wrong. 

intruder_bass,

I believe you mean the Revell kit of the CH-53D.  I think is is well over 20 years too!  Monogram hasn't made a "53" in any scale.

AH1Wsnake wrote:

Can't wait; here's the link: http://www.cybermodeler.com/hobby/kits/aca/kit_aca_ch-53e.shtml Best part, Chris, is they include decals for a Condor bird!!!

Yes Yes Yes.  I can't wait to see which one.  I'll have to check the BN

intruder_bass wrote:

No rivets again Even 20 year old Monogram kit had them nicely done...

In 1/48 scale, the rivets would be barely noticable.  It looks acurately depicted to me.  Revell's (not Monogram's) 1/48 HH-53C/D from the late '70's had rivets that were huge.  Yeah, they were there, but they would have been about as big around as a roll of quarters and stand off the surface about an inch in real life. 

Oh.... yeah! My mistake - it was Revell's not Monogram (but does it really matter?)

Gino, I am pretty sure you are familiar to such thing as scale approximation or simplification. Of course rivets would have been bigger then they should be in real life! Even the ones on your 1/35 Huey!!! But they still are there!!! And it makes model look more like real machine not a toy.

Same with panel lines on  1/72 and even on 1/144 aircrafts. They are HARDLY SEEN ON REAL BIRDS but modelling manufacturers still imitate them in 1/144 models. If you enlarge this model to size of the real thing – panel lines will be “trenches for mice”. And they still do them… Why? Because it makes model look like real! But lets get back to 1/48 rivets…

   Have you ever touched plastic of 1/48 Hasegawa Apache? That’s what I consider – GREAT DETAIL and accurately depicted scale model. It does have rivets! Oh yes – 1/48 rivets Very nice ones! And the kit didn’t hit the market this year… It’s been with us for a while now….

  So what I am trying to say – it is great that Academy released this new kit… but it would be awesome if (for 90 bucks) they made or at least tried to make rivets.

LOL

I am always relaxed. I have my opinion which I have right to post here.

Totaly agree with you on that it depends on what you like... Some ppl like quantity - others choose quality

I'll just throw this out there: How much more would a kit cost if every little detail was reproduced in the making of the molds?  Quality vs. quantity?  I don't see it.  Sure, if there were 4 or 5 kits of the -53E, then I could see where rivets or no rivets would be a factor in choosing one kit over another. 

I guess I just don't see the sense in finding (or looking?) for shortfalls in a kit that most of us have only seen photos of on the 'net.  It'll still build up into a sweet kit that we've been begging for, right?

LemonJello wrote:

I'll just throw this out there: How much more would a kit cost if every little detail was reproduced in the making of the molds?  Quality vs. quantity?  I don't see it.  Sure, if there were 4 or 5 kits of the -53E, then I could see where rivets or no rivets would be a factor in choosing one kit over another.  I guess I just don't see the sense in finding (or looking?) for shortfalls in a kit that most of us have only seen photos of on the 'net.  It'll still build up into a sweet kit that we've been begging for, right?

Couldn't agree more.

I have a feeling that we are still talking on different languages))))

It was not about "every little detail" - it was about handreds of rows of rivets which add a realistic "helecopter look". How much would it cost? 1/48 Hasegawa Apache costs about 30-40$. Like I said before - it has all neccessory detail including beautifull rivets. I would call it the best  1/48 helo-kit on the market.  You will say - "but -53E is much bigger!"

Oh yes it is! And the price is 3(!!!) times higher!

Of course there is no choice and we all will buy Academy kit... thats why I am a little dessopointed that Academy makes money on half-done homework

Let me chime in on the rivet topic real quick.  I consider myself an expert because I use to buck rivets on these things.  (I checked out a couple of weeks ago).  The largest rivets used on the CH-53E have 3/8" diameter heads.  Most rivets used to hold the airframe together are 3/16."  That's pretty tiny for for 1/48 scale.  If you look at a 1/48 scale model from 1 foot away would be like looking at the real thing from about 15 feet.  At that distance, you couldn't see the rivets.  I'm not saying don't add rivets.  It's been said before, it's a matter of preference.  I'm saying that making the detail would be tough, very very tough.  I'm sure someone will pull it off.  I'm thinking about how many tens of thousands of rivets are on that thing.  There are hundreds of rivets holding together 1 cubic foot of helicopter.  Good luck to whoever tries it. 

I'm going to dress my academy kit for HMH-464's 02 in it's current service colors. 

Semper Fi,

Chris

This is a sample of the Academy CH-53E from the IPMS Northern Virginia show back in March. The guy that works for Academy that did the design and built the model was there.

badbird356 wrote:

This is a sample of the Academy CH-53E from the IPMS Northern Virginia show back in March. The guy that works for Academy that did the design and built the model was there.

Man, I can not go any longer. I need this thing.

June 06, God its killing me.

 http://www.modelrectifier.com/products/plasticModels/product.asp?ID=2088&Subcategory=Aircraft

That's just around the corner, now I just have to hope that my LHS can keep them in stock long enough for me to snap one up later in the summer. 

Those photos show a -53 that is much, much too clean...

LemonJello wrote:

Those photos show a -53 that is much, much too clean...

Very true, It must have just gotten back from SDLM. 

One note, the review says that the 461 decals represt an aircraft from OIF.  Aircraft and crews from HMH-461 have gone to Iraq as part of HMM's (Reinforced).   However, HMH-461 hasn't gone to Iraq as a squadron or a detachment.  No aircraft carrying 461's marking have been over Iraq since the first Gulf War.  The markings provided in the kit are accurate for MCAS New River, NC.  I saw that aircraft there last month.  The markings may be accurate for Djibouti, Africa since the spring of 2003 as part of OEF. 

If anyone intends to model an aircraft currently serving in OIF or OEF you'll have to add BPS (Balistic Protection System) plates on the cabin floor.  You'll also have to add a tail mounted GAU 17 .50 cal on aft ramp.