I've always liked the H-19 Chickasaw and always wanted to add a nice one to my 1/48 collection however the only kit even close was the old 1960s Revell kit and in truth it was not even 1/48 but more like 1/50. Okay, that part I could deal with and the abundance of heavy rivets was something I could deal with but the cockpit and interior, oh boy, was that ever a mess. Nothing even close to the real thing plus the clear pieces in that kit were like coke bottle bottoms. More than a year ago I began to address these issues starting with the wind screen. I constructed a concave mold and vacuformed a new windscreen successfully. Next the interior. I mastered a seat, instrument panel and center console based off actual cockpit photographs and made molds. I had to revise things several times before I achieved a level of success that was acceptable to me and this happened in little spurts with months of inactivity between them. Today I have cast my first 1/48 H-19 interior pieces. It is far from the complete front office I desire but it is a large step towards that goal. These pieces shown, other than one seat, are fresh from the molds and not trimmed yet.
When this is all done and I am happy with it I will run off a couple sets for those Helo fanatics that care to pick them up but of course by that time Eduard or Trumpeter will put a well detailed kit of the H-19 on the market and all my work will be for naught.