Loach Driver Posted January 13 Share Posted January 13 It has been quite a while since I have attempted to build a kit so I am going to have a go at this ancient kit. If it's OK, I'd like to post my progress and anticipated trials and tribulations with this model here. I have built this kit in the past - 1985, in fact. I have a distant memory of it fitting together reasonably well. I do know that I was immensely proud of it, having received the kit as a gift from my parents. I finished it in overall Olive Drab and used the US Army decals. It didn't last long sadly, as my sister knocked it over and it was damaged beyond repair. 😒 This kit dates from the 1960's so it is fairly primitive, by today's standards. It does have some shape issues but despite that, is still a nice kit overall. It features an engine, four hinged opening cabin doors and a baggage compartment door that also opens. Surface detail is pretty soft with some rivets in evidence. It also has raised lines along the fuselage sides to demarcate the factory paint scheme. This was not uncommon in kits issued in the sixties! The shape of the nose and upper windscreen is not accurate for a production standard aircraft. It will have to do, though, as I don't possess the skills to fix it. Overall, it appears the kit has been based on a prototype Bell 206 but with a few modifications can be improved to approximate a production aircraft. I plan to build this helicopter in the colours of an aircraft attached to the Astro Division of the L.A.P.D. in the run-up to the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games. It wasn't a line aircraft but appears to have been a flight proficiency aircraft attached to their fleet of Jet Rangers. This kit was re-issued in 2012 and I nabbed one at the time. They are going for a princely sum online now. I did find an original issue of the kit from IMC from the sixties and it is a much crisper version of this kit. The Revell kit suffers from some flash and mould seams. Nothing that can't be fixed with a little work with a sanding stick. Here are a few shots of the sprues. The same sprue flipped over. I plan to build this kit for use in a simple diorama so I won't be trying to add lots of detail. I will just try to add some simple improvements here and there where required. The pilot's door will be open as will the engine compartment doors so those two areas will be the main focus. I don't have a full time workbench at my disposal at the moment so progress will be sporadic, as is usually the case with any model I attempt to build! Once I get a permanent workbench in place in the New Year, I can push on. The initial work has been dedicated to parts clean-up and assessing what areas need work and what areas will suffice. Thanks. LD. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Tank Posted January 14 Share Posted January 14 12 hours ago, Loach Driver said: If it's OK, I'd like to post my progress and anticipated trials and tribulations with this model here. Yes, please do. What, if any decal sheet are you using for the LAPD scheme? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
HeavyArty Posted January 14 Share Posted January 14 A great old kit. I've built a couple over the years. The biggest thing I add is the floor. There is no floor in it at all. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Loach Driver Posted January 14 Author Share Posted January 14 (edited) On 1/14/2025 at 11:20 AM, Tank said: Yes, please do. What, if any decal sheet are you using for the LAPD scheme? The helicopter I have chosen to model is a Plain-Jane aircraft and doesn't have any police markings applied. It is in a standard Bell factory paint scheme. The only decals I will need is the N-number. I hope to find someone to print these off for me. Any stencils etc will come from the Revell decal sheet. There are a few items on that sheet that will be very useful to my build. On 1/14/2025 at 1:38 PM, HeavyArty said: A great old kit. I've built a couple over the years. The biggest thing I add is the floor. There is no floor in it at all. Somehow, I had managed to completely overlook that not-so-minor detail! 😬 Thanks for highlighting this error in the kit. 👍 I am hoping some flat sections of plastic card will suffice as a basic cockpit and cabin floor. Given the shape of the fuselage floor interior, I might need to add some small mounts to hold the floor level. Perhaps some plastic strut or similar will do the job. I started things off by removing the two fuselage halves from their sprues and cleaning up the sprue attachment areas. https://imgur.com/a/4BFL4Th Then I removed the skids and pushed them into place after taping the two fuselage halves together. [img]https://i.imgur.com/PY1pAKz.jpeg[/img] The two halves are a very good fit. No seams currently stand out as needing attention. The windscreen centre pillar will need to be clamped together when being glued but other than that, it's looks really good all around. Things might change when the cockpit is mated to the fuselage! She looks good sitting on her skids. [img]https://i.imgur.com/sin6K1K.jpeg[/img] The rear section of tubing on the skids should be longer, to match the skids on a production aircraft. I will lengthen the skids a little and hopefully this will reduce its tail-sitting tendency at the moment. It will still need some weight in the nose but hopefully less than is currently required to have it sit on its skids. I am hoping to get an hour or two at the bench tomorrow so hopefully can make some progress with this build. LD. Edited January 16 by Loach Driver Attempting to add photos. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Loach Driver Posted January 16 Author Share Posted January 16 For some reason, postimg.cc have blocked my account. Maybe because of an adblocker or something like that. Can anyone else suggest an alternative and user-friendly image hosting site? Thanks. LD. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
JohnEB Posted January 16 Share Posted January 16 I built the kit in the mid-70s from an ITC boxing. IIRC, it had chrome exhaust pipes and rotor system details. The opening features did it no favors. It was probably the first kit of the Jet Ranger, so I wouldn't be surprised if it was based on a prototype. It wouldn't represent a OH-58, so I built it in the factory scheme of the period. Fun kit. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Loach Driver Posted January 21 Author Share Posted January 21 Yea, I found an original issue of this kit with the chrome sprue! The moulding is much cleaner on the original than on the Revell re-issue. Every part seems to have a mould seam in the Revell reissue. I am still enjoying this build, it just needs a little extra work. I just keep in mind that this is a kit from the 1960's! A new 1/32 kit from Revell is not likely to happen so we will make do with this old kit. I didn't know a whole lot about the Jet Ranger when I started but as I have progressed with this build and its associated research, I have discovered that with a few minor modifications, this kit can be converted into an early-production Bell 206A. I had originally intended to build a 206B II but that looks like it will need a good bit of extra work. As a result, I am probably going to finish this as a 206A. I haven't chosen a final scheme yet but I have a few in mind. Meanwhile, work continues on this kit. I am taking photos as I go and I will try to get a new post up before the weekend. LD. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
GeejeeZ Posted January 21 Share Posted January 21 Although I can't see the pics unfortunately, I hope you have fun with this one! I built quite a few of the 1/32 Revell JetRangers and besides the prominent windscreen centre pillar I consider it a decent kit (and modellers of civil helicopters don't have much to choose from anyway). If you need high skid landing gear: I bought mine at HeliScaleQuality from Germany. Looks awesome but be aware that it's 3D printed and won't hold the weight of the kit for long. Good luck, I will follow this one! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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