New 1/48 Chinook pics!!

**Does the lower mounting for the granade launcher look large to anyone else?**

There is a couple places that should be sanded down and/or filled in, but the deminsions seem accurate... examples:

(also note the position of the (1) Nav Light, (2) the sealed Cabin Heater exhaust, (3) the un-tinted brow glass, (4) and the gold tinted windshield panels.)     And espeically the shape/height of the Fwd Pylon...

Take care,

Frank

1 through 4 are definitely fixable (er, the gold tint could be tough). The rotor pylon though might be a little trickier to fix. Any other areas that jump out at you, Frank?

Cheers,

Alby

I've experimented with pieces of bronze window tint from the auto parts store...

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I'll respond to the others in the morning... can't hardly keep my eyes open now.. haha

Take care

Frank

Automotive window tint.....jeepers! I would have never thought of that ....Thanks Frank!

By the way......any news on those 'better' decal options?

albymoore wrote:

Any other areas that jump out at you, Frank? Cheers, Alby

Hi Alby.... (by the end of this, you may be sorry you asked! haha)    Naaa... the two biggies are the Fwd Pylon and the brow glass. (well, personally, an entirely new front clear piece would be nice, because of the mis-shaped brow glass, upper chin bubbles, and THICK post between the glass panels)

I've made the Fwd Pylon modification on one 1/72 Italeri kit, and the 1/144 Revell kit... which are the same molds as the new 1/48 issue.     It's a daunting thing to purposefully separate such a prominent part of the helicopter, but afterwards, you'll be so glad you did because of how it improves the lines! ..................However, for those who aren't inclined to cutting/rebuilding, all is not lost.... you can make the build more visually pleasing by making the rim around the sides and back more pronounced with the addition of curved sheet plastic strip, putty & smoothed, and filling in the groove on the upper front.  

Below is a diagram of the changes/clean-ups that I am going to do on mine:   **I have digitally made the corrections in the pictures....**

(1). Add strips of sheet plastic to the rim and putty/smooth the union.http://gunsagogo.org/pylon222.jpg

(2). Re-shape armor plates.

(3). Apply putty/fill in the forward part of the groove and round out the ends of the grooves forward of the inspection platform seam.

(4). Apply round piece of sheet plastic in the cabin heater exhaust.

(11). A wide seam needs to be opened here, braced on the inside by a piece of sheet styrene.

(Reference pic for 1 - 4, & 11... http://gunsagogo.org/armordetail1.jpg)

(5). Sand off the elevated rims around the window holes in the fuselage. http://gunsagogo.org/0002/0002/earlyNam/np1.jpg

(6). *Just make sure there is a rim at the bottom of the opening. (there was a 1.5" rim between the bottom of the opening and the top of the Pod fairing... *reference the pic below)

(7). MG swivels are way too high. http://gunsagogo.org/0002/0002/earlyNam/crazy82.jpg

(8). Use properly shaped blade antenna. http://gunsagogo.org/0002/0002/earlyNam/0058.jpg

(9). The upper inside rim of the chin bubble needs to continue straight to the windshield rim instead of curving inward.  http://gunsagogo.org/0002/0002/earlyNam/0091.jpg

(10). Kit decal is too big, and it needs to be positioned underneath the door rim.  http://gunsagogo.org/0002/0002/earlyNam/0049.jpg

(12). Position of Nav Light. **reference the two pics linked below**

(13). There was a piece of sheet metal at the top of the 40mm mount that curved up to join the fuselage. http://gunsagogo.org/0002/0002/earlyNam/0058.jpg

(14). Troy, you were right about this one!   The aft/rear of the 40mm fairing needs to be trimmed away, filled, and sanded.  (also, where the ammo chute goes into the top of the Chunker should be round, not squared) http://gunsagogo.org/0002/0002/earlyNam/0058.jpg

Wheeewwww....

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Okay.... now for those who want to "Go for it", along with the modifications indicated above, here is a diagram of the items that will bring the fuselage into specs!

(15). Cut pylon just above the horizontal seam (leave base for reference and to smooth putty)... start cut at the back and work your way around.   A hobby saw would work fine because they'll not be any mating surfaces on the exterior.  Mount pylon on one or more internal devices (pieces of plastic), then before you attach it, glue pieces of sheet styrene along the inside of the fuselage cut, which will serve as extra bonding surface, and a filler for the space that will be puttied.    Question: "But how high do I raise the pylon?"     Here's a back room reference for that.....  get something and measure/mark the distance between the bottom of the cockpit emergency exit door, to the rim where the upper glass begins.... (dang, that's confusing!!) Example: http://gunsagogo.org/pylonheight.jpg    This distance is the same as the pylon height between the horizontal seam and the upper rim.

(16). I haven't got the fix completely figured out on this one yet, but probably will have to thermoform new brow glass section that will wrap around the front pylon base to form the correct angle.....  If you look at two profile pictures showing the brow glass in the comparison photo below, you can see that the KIT piece slopes at too great an angle from back to the upper rim of the windshield, where it should be a more gentle angle and then curve down to the top of the windshield.      Also, if you compare again, you will see the angle of the front of the windshield is slightly different.   (yes, a new clear front piece and a resin fwd pylon *from the seam up* would make this a most accurate depiction)

(17). Wipers: I know, this fix should have been included in the first diagram, but what the hey...

Here's some side by side comparison shots of the aforementioned area's...

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Troy wrote: By the way......any news on those 'better' decal options?

Hi Troy,

I'm currently painting reproductions of the artwork so they'll have good clean/crisp images to use for the production process.  (big discount for doing this!)      Once I get it finished and get me a couple sheets from it, I'm going to see about selling him the master.... or marketing it myself...?   Hmmmmm

Hope this helps,

Take care all,

Frank

COOL! sounds great Frank! .....and thanks for the correction tips!

Hi Frank,

Thank you for the comprehensive list of corrections (and photos!). I can handle the majority of the fixes, however the rotor pylon fix is beyond my skill level (at this point anyways). Thanks again!

Cheers,

Alby

Frank,

That is some "exhaustive" detail research you made available to everyone interested.  Too bad they didn't use you for a "technical" expert before they finalized the molds.  A shame such knowledge didn't get utilized by the model manufactures, but I forget it's just to make money not get it "right".  I hear they don't listen even when they do get a good expert on the subject. 

Thanks for the info! 

LOL

Thats true))))

Besides they have to leave some for aftermarket companies))))))) I am pritty sure they have a deal between them))))

Thats what they call "Job security".

Andy

Thanks Alby, Mel, Andy & John

    Looking at pictures of the real thing, alongside pictures of the model, and locating the differences is what I thought the model manufacturer research dept was suppose to be doing..... building moulds is no cheap undertaking, so it would seem they'd strive to make it as accurate as possible?      But as you all say; the manufacturer has to leave some opportunities to the aftermarket guys... no doubt.

    Unfortunately, the discrepancies in the fwd pylon, in my opinion,  would be darn near impossible to resolve without building it up, but by no means am I complaining.       Here is an illustration I done of the steps required to modify the kit pylon: **I didn't include instructions for adding internal bracing, but would highly recommend doing so for structural integrity**

   That Aurora Chinook I re-done several years ago, and the more recent Model 347 scratch build,  kinda made me get beyond being intimidated by radical modifications, so I just jump right in and do 'em myself... then by the time the aftermarket items are on the shelves, I'm finished!       

Take care,

Frank

Frank,

You are absolutely amazing!  Thanks for sharing your wonderful talent!  A real "artist"!  Heh, heh! 

Thank you, John and Mel,

Military or no, the technique actually works pretty good and it's not that hard to do... just scary!       The hardest thing is to not freak out when you look down and see that you have effectively tore your high priced model apart... and also maintain control when the re-assembled pieces are covered in rough hardened putty!     But ohhhhhhhh  when the sanding is done!!

Oh yeah, another little hint that may save me from being cursed at for bringing this up;  when I apply the putty, I put it on thick and sand my way down, going a finer grade as I go.     I've tried smoothing the putty while it's wet, but I always seemed to create a rut in the dried surface later when I was trying to smooth it all down, and I really hate to have to keep going back over and over the same area, filling & sanding.

Thanks again my friends, and all the best to your wife, John.

Take care,

Frank