Dutch Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 (edited) I recently purchased one of the re-issued Revell 1:139 Boeing 720 United Mainliner kits. It is the same Revell 707/707B/720/E-3A basic airframe plastic with indented cabin windows. Engines are the JT3C / J-57 engines halves with each strut having the long narrow turbo-compressor hood and short trailing edges. However, the turbine bullets have been deleted and replace by a tiny bump in the center of a flat thick disk. Not sure what I can do about that. Most probably add larger bullets. The United decals do not impress me. I am open to suggestions. So, what are my legitimate options? AFAIK, United did not operate the 707-120, they bought DC-8s instead. However, they did purchase the 720 because of the increased speed. For a true 720, I will still have to make a fuselage cuts fore & aft, as well as add the wing glove and remove the turbo hoods on #1 & #4. Can I cut it down for a C-135A, or a 707-138? [Same overall fuselage length for both, just different cuts fore & aft.] I only have a few 720B decals in the stash, mostly for the several AWACS kits in the stash. I could use the Pakistan Airlines decals from the old Microscale 44-21, just modify the reg. K/r, Dutch Edited March 9 by Dutch added detail. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Planegeek Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 (edited) I went through two sets of the United decals but they were brittle and disintegrated after 20 years. I did scan a high resolution copy and uploaded it to Scalemates so I could print new decals on water transfer paper. I fabricated a vestigial dorsal fin to make it look like a 720. Pictures online show the United 720s without the HF antenna since they were used for domestic routes only. Oh, and the horrible cockpit windows I filled and printed a windshield decal for too. I was building it for nostalgia and it turned out way better than when I was ten. Edited March 7 by Planegeek Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Dutch Posted March 7 Author Share Posted March 7 1 hour ago, Planegeek said: I went through two sets of the United decals but they were brittle and disintegrated after 20 years. I did scan a high resolution copy and uploaded it to Scalemates so I could print new decals on water transfer paper. I fabricated a vestigial dorsal fin to make it look like a 720. Pictures online show the United 720s without the HF antenna since they were used for domestic routes only. Oh, and the horrible cockpit windows I filled and printed a windshield decal for too. I was building it for nostalgia and it turned out way better than when I was ten. @Planegeek Thanks for the comments. Yes, I forgot the vestigial fin. I would have to add that for a 707-138 as well. I will have to look in the box to see if the fin tip HF antenna is there or not. Based on your comments, I suspect that it is not. Not that hard to scab on, tho. I was just over at the Hannants.co.uk store site and noticed Lima November decal set LN144-555 for a Conair 720/720B, so I may go that route. I suspect that it is sized to fit the Roden 720 kit, which is 1:144 scale, while the Revell kit is 1:139 scale. I will have to see if it will fit after the fuselage cuts are made. K/r, Dutch Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Vidar_710 Posted March 8 Share Posted March 8 (edited) Vintage Flyers Boeing 720 & 720B (vintageflyerdecals.com) Tracy Edited March 8 by Vidar_710 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Dutch Posted March 9 Author Share Posted March 9 On 3/7/2022 at 11:36 PM, Vidar_710 said: Vintage Flyers Boeing 720 & 720B (vintageflyerdecals.com) Tracy Thanks Tracy, Many nice schemes there. I have been wondering how difficult it would be to model the 367-80 prototype. I realize that decals do not exist, but I could make the fuselage cuts, putty the windows, scribe both cargo doors and modify the engine intakes with the ring inside the nacelle much like the B-52C/D/E J57 engines and add the APU bumps. The few decals could be custom printed. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
habu2 Posted March 9 Share Posted March 9 Interesting, I was looking at their repop of the Convair 990 in NASA markings.... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Dutch Posted March 9 Author Share Posted March 9 2 hours ago, habu2 said: Interesting, I was looking at their repop of the Convair 990 in NASA markings.... That will be nice! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
habu2 Posted March 9 Share Posted March 9 (edited) https://atlantis-models.com/amp/preorder-convair-990-coronado-1-135-plastic-model-kit-atlantis/ . Edited March 9 by habu2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Dutch Posted March 10 Author Share Posted March 10 Oh! At that price, way too affordable. And it comes with the NASA decals! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
JohnEB Posted March 15 Share Posted March 15 (edited) Another option would be to build it as one of the three VC-137 A/Bs... No cutting required. they were short fuselage commercial 707s bought for VIP transportation...and the first U.S. Air Force jet transports. USAF decals in the scale are easy to find. Over the years they had several paint schemes...silver/white before going The silver/white/blue AF one-style scheme. The 367-80 and any C-135 require a narrower, shorter fuselage, and a slight re - profiling of the fuselage (due to the the "double bubble" or figure eight on the 707, the 135 has a more oval sectional profile)...these differences, along with about a foot different wingspan are pretty much moot in this scale. The C-135 is 12" wider than the 367-80, the 707 is four inches wider than the C-135. Length differences: 367-80: 127'10" C-135: 136'3" 707-100: 144'6" Here is an interesting article on the history of the Revell kit and it shows the steps necessary to build a decent 720. https://www.dembrudders.com/atlantis--revell-707-and-kc-135.html Edited March 15 by JohnEB Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Dutch Posted March 15 Author Share Posted March 15 John, A VC-137A would be much simpler. Hadn't thought of that and I thank you for the suggestion. Yes, I am well aware of the fuselage cross-section differences between the 367-80, KC-135 & 707, but as you say, a moot point in this scale. No need to take the calipers out of the box. But an early VC-137A with day-glo orange nose, tail and wingtips does pique my interest. K/r, Dutch Quote Link to post Share on other sites
JohnEB Posted March 16 Share Posted March 16 Dutch.. I'd like to see it when you're finished with it. Revell has misrepresented those molds for years....calling it a 720, long fuselage 707 and of course the E-3. And that's not even counting the typo on one box where they called the E-3A the "E-A3". A friend is a consultant for Atlantis, at my urging he suggested the C-137A decals to them for their latest release but they went with a Boeing demo. They say license fees for some airlines have become prohibitivt, which is why they 707 (and forthcoming large 727) are in Boeing markings and the Convair 990 is in NASA colors.I If it keeps the cost of the basic kit low, I don't have any issues with that. Serious modelers will use quality aftermarket decals of they want a particular scheme. And kids (and parents, grandparents, relatives and friends...for birthday parties...) don't care. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.