Squadron vacuform canopies?

Even if you cut them perfectly, they are difficult to glue.  The thinness means gluing area is minimal, you must use a very strong glue.  I find white glues inadequate and CA can fog them- get out the epoxy.

mobnick

We had a silverlit transformer and a Chinese one for my son. There is a difference. Native fasteners are better, and plastic is of a different quality. Bought last year, relatives are still whole. The transformer is very simple. A 3-year-old child can do fine. The cars are distinguished by the fact that there are just iron ones, they are di cast, inertial (they are slightly larger and made of plastic) and smart, which need to be charged and they drive along the track themselves. The child likes everything.

 

Wut?

We had a silverlit transformer and a Chinese one for my son. There is a difference. Native fasteners are better, and plastic is of a different quality. Bought last year, relatives are still whole. The transformer is very simple. A 3-year-old child can do fine. The cars are distinguished by the fact that there are just iron ones, they are di cast, inertial (they are slightly larger and made of plastic) and smart, which need to be charged and they drive along the track themselves. The child likes everything.

Most of the time all the aircraft's canopies are included but not always.  It is best to check the description before you buy.

 

With the squadron sets are turrets also included with the canopys or are they sold seperatly?

I don't have a ton of experience but I have have used the set for my He111 from Falcon, the folks who make Squadron's canopies. I stuffed em with kneaded eraser (available at art supply stores) 'cause it leaves no residue and is easily pushed into the canopy. I then cut around it with a new scalpel blade- a new xacto will do just fine. Score lightly, making three or four passes around the edges. You can gently flex the base material and crack it off. Flat parts like gun turrets can be separted from the base by rubbing it on medium- fine sandpaper on a flat surface- no filling needed here, just patience. When cutting out hatches and windows or separating a windscreen be sure to apply tape to both sides of the seam, leaving a track for the blade- you're less likely to have an "oh, crap!" moment. The kneaded eraser lends a lot of stabilty here. Another "masking" material would be the thin aluminum heat tape used to wrap joints for dryer vent connections. I got a roll from Home Depot and it's great for use as a guide for scribing panel lines- kind of like using Dymo label tape, I'm guessin'... I really like vacuform canopies. One last bit of advice- I really wish I'd made a lip of styrene strip along the edge of the fuselage where the main canopy butt-joins- these things are flexible and the join keeps cracking, spoiling the filler. Live and learn, and share your hard-earned tips, my friends! Happy New Year to all!

I've sworn by them for years, but I'm sure there must be a better way than mine for first removing them from the backing plastic, and second, cutting the windscreen and the caonpy itself apart. I have got into the habit of filling the canopy with modeling clay to give it some stiffness while I make a number of cuts with a NEW No. 11 blade. A dull blade will increase exponentially your chances of it straying off the line of the cut and through the part that's suppsed to be cut and scratch free. Don't be a cheapskate here. After all, you got quite a bargain on two canopies for two bucks. But I'd like to hear tips from others on cutting and, masking.
For the latter, I use either pre-cut AM masks where they fit, or if I have none that fit, or none at all, I use painted decal solid color film The best of these, like Bare Metal's sheets, have the color going all the way through, instead of being white on one side like some are. What's cool about this is that you can get, say, black, or a dark interior green, and paint the outside your fuselage or camo color, while the inside will be black or chromate green. I leared this little benefit entirely by accident while doing a
Mosquito canopy frame.
But I'd rather hear from others on how they deal with these delicate vac-form canopies.
TOM

They are good quality, but no vac form canopy is easy to use. Removal from the blister is the tricky part. One slip of the knife & it's goodby canopy.

Regards, Rick

I agree with the others.
But being the first time I used one, last night actually, they are a little scary at first, but the results are very worth the effort if your after that little bit more for realism.

One thing I would mention about Squadron canopies that was not mentioned (beside the fact that they are very good) is the detachment process, it's a little hairy if you never worked with them before. There molded all in one piece so you'll have to remove the canopy from it's base and susequently remove the front half of the windscreen from the aft. It takes a little patience and a sharp exacto blade! any rough edges can be sanded with fine grit paper. once you get used to them there a nice finishing touch to add realism

I have used a couple in the past with good results. They are basically vacu-forms of the oringinal canopies so they are much thinner and more realistic than the ones in most kits.

I have used them once or twice and I like them alot. one good thing is they are cheap and they give you an extra in case you mess one up