Subject: Re: Academy MRC 1/48 CH-53E Super Stallion
From: "Submissions for ARC" <[email-masked]>
To: "proacheesq" <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 7 Dec 2007 14:41:35 -0800

Hi,
I just wanted to let you know your article went on ARC today.  Thanks again for sending it in.

Steve Bamford
Aircraft Resource Center
http://www.aircraftresourcecenter.com

Live like there is no tomorrow;
Love like you've never been hurt.
Work like you don't need the money.
Dance like nobody's watching.
Sing like nobody's listening.
Live like it's Heaven on Earth.

  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: proacheesq 
  To: [email-masked] 
  Sent: Friday, November 23, 2007 7:00 PM
  Subject: Academy MRC 1/48 CH-53E Super Stallion

  Gallery Template #05

  "Academy 1/48 CH-53E Super Stallion" 

  by "Phillip Roache"
  --------------------

        Steve Bamford will insert full sized version of photo 01.jpg here  

  This is my first ever offering here on ARC, and I certainly hope that I don't disappoint. I am far from being the perfect model builder... FAR FAR FAR from it. This is one effort of mine which is full of tiny mistakes (though no large mistakes!!!!!!!).

   This is Academy's rendition of the mighty CH-53E Super Stallion. As far as all the individual parts go, it is quite crisp in it's moulding with no flash whatsoever. The surface detail is reasonably good with plenty of recessed panel lines, however there is not a rivet in sight, and the real beast is covered in them! It would have been nice too if the skin of the fuselage had some buckles in it... but you can't have everything! I have read quite a few reviews where the kit is praised as being nearly perfect, well I can dispell that myth right now! This kit is NOT anywhere near perfect, it is better though than the Airfix, Revell, Monogram and the Hasegawa AV-8B, but there is still quite a bit of putty and elbow grease to be used in construction of this model. 

    This kit ends up being HUGE! That's why I chose to have the rotor blades folded and not extended. Make sure that you have plenty of spare space to display this monster. I didn't check my spare space, so when I finished the Super Stallion I had nowhere to put it. After an argument with a 1/350 scale USS Hornet, the Super Stallion won and the Hornet lost and has been relegated to the nearest closet. The Super Stallion is now enjoying it's room in the display cabinet. It is nearly as big as the 1/32 Tomcat currently residing in my cabinet.

  Click on images below to see larger images

        Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 03.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 03.jpg 
       Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 04.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 04.jpg 
       Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 05.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 05.jpg 
       Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 06.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 06.jpg 

   The build on this kit is quite complex, and certainly not for the faint-hearted. It is very important to follow the instructions in regard to the angles on the rotor blade roots when choosing the folded rotor blade option as I did. I made an error and thought I knew better than the instructions and paid for it later in the build. The rotor head kind of looks a bit nude with the rotors folded so I got in there with some stretched sprue, a bit of wire and plastic card to give a bit more of a "real" look. I used the CH-53E photos in the ARC aircraft walkaround section as reference, and I have to say they were extremely helpful indeed!

   I chose the ugly grey scheme as I know the real helicopter gets filthy dirty, and I wanted to do some dirtying up myself, plus I have a soft spot in my heart for low-vis grey markings. I love to take a nice clean paint job and weather it... weather it a lot! Mind you, I tried not to get too carried away in my love for "dirty".

   In Australia we can't get Future, but I found a product (PASST, Poly Acrylic Suface Sealing Topcoat) which is just as good and it is made just for modellers. I honestly don't know how PASST rates against Future. The canopy was treated to a PASST bath and came out quite good. Eduard canopy masks ensured that no paint would make it's way where it wasn't wanted. The cockpit got a treat with Eduard PE seatbelts from the ACH-47, which can be made to fit well enough to look good. I wasted a lot of effort on the interior of this bird, and you can't see any of it!!!

   Overall, the model was first airbrushed with the required three different shades of Gunze acrylic grey for the camoflage on the fuselage, and the various sub-assemblies (tail rotor, engine pods, sponsons and drop tanks. All built separately). Then a coat of Tamiya X-22 clear was airbrushed over the lot. The thick decals were then applied and settled into place with a judicious amount of Micro Sol. Another coat of X-22 was then applied and allowed to dry over about a week. Then a wash made of Acrylic paint, water and dishwashing liquid was liberally spread over panel lines and into any ducts, vents, engine air filter inlets. The raised part of the airfilters was drawn over with a black permanent marker, and the result was impressive.

   Once the wash had been allowed to dry for a couple of days, I then airbrushed the fuselage and sub-assemblies with Gunze acrylic flat clear. I then attached all of the sub-assemblies to the fuselage. Care must be taken with attaching the engine pods as the air filter supports can become misaligned. Tamiya X-19 smoke was then airbrushed along the panel lines, and a touch added here and there to simulate dirt. Then I gave the side of the fuselage behind the 3rd engine a squirt of Gunze soot to simulate the exhaust staining which is quite common. Once everything was attached and the glue allowed to dry, another shot of Gunze flat clear went over the lot to hide any shine from the glue which may have "leaked" out and the shine from the Tamiya smoke. Now the masking was removed and the nice shiny windows and canopy shone brightly compared with the dull fuslage. The FLIR pod was then attached and a couple of wires had to be added to ensure a bit more realism. Black painted Tamiya masking tape strips were added as clamps around the wires.

   Then came the rotor blades, and my earlier mistake came back to haunt me. The rotor blades only have supports for 2 blades. My suggestion to anyone is to go through and scatchbuild supports for the other 5 blades. My model is going to suffer from sag as the rotor blades ever-so-slowly move. I let the glue completely cure before removing any support I had for the large blades as I attached them.  

        Steve Bamford will insert full sized version of photo 02.jpg here  

  Overall this was not an easy build. The kit was good yet it tested my patience on many occasions. It very nearly learnt how to fly from my 4th floor balcony. Finally after a 7 month long build I finally finished this beast, and it is a very impressive helicopter. I have loved the CH-53E for a long time and was glad to be able to finally have a model that represented this 3 engined monster of the skies.

  Click on images below to see larger images

        Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 07.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 07.jpg 
       Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 08.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 08.jpg 
       Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 09.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 09.jpg 
       Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 10.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 10.jpg 

        Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 11.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 11.jpg 
       Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 12.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 12.jpg 
       Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 13.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 13.jpg 
       Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 14.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 14.jpg 

        Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 15.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 15.jpg 
       Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 16.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 16.jpg 
       Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 17.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 17.jpg 
       Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 18.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 018.jpg 

        Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 19.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 19.jpg 
       Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 20.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 20.jpg 
       Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 21.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 21.jpg 
       Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 22.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 22.jpg 

        Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 23.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 23.jpg 
       Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 24.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 24.jpg 
       Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 25.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 25.jpg 
       Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 26.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 26.jpg 

        Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 27.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 27.jpg 
       Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 28.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 28.jpg 
       Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 29.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 29.jpg 
       Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 30.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 30.jpg 

        Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 31.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 31.jpg 
       Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 32.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 32.jpg 
       Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 33.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 33.jpg 
       Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 34.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 34.jpg 

        Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 35.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 35.jpg 
       Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 36.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 36.jpg 
       Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 37.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 37.jpg 
       Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 38.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 38.jpg 

  Photos and text © by "your name goes here"