Revell/Italeri/Eduard EH-101 Merlin HM1

[ice225]

My first big build this year.

I´m going to build a Agusta Westland EH-101 Merlin in HM1-version of the Royal Navy. It will be ZH860 with the nice tiger-scheme: link thingy

I use the Revell- and the Italeri-kit because the Revell-decals are much better but the Italeri-kit includes the 'wrap round' rotorhead. The Eduard-set will be used for detailling and to get rid of those oversized steps shown in this firt picture.

I tuned my old electric tooth-brush a little bit (following these instructions, so it was quite easy to sand the steps down. Than the area was polished using a sand file. You can also see the cut-out-window beside the front entrance.

There also were some steps at the back that had to go. The vent on the upper left side will be worked at later. I´m a bit undecided if it will only be sanded down or if I should drill through the hull.

The steps are gone but you can see another issue I´ll have to deal with. The side-panel doesn´t fit flat - it´s placed too deep. I´ll have to find a way to raise it a bit to get a propper finish.

Tipps, tricks, critique, help and all other posts are always welcome!.

Edited January 4, 2010 by ice225

[shark 64]

My first big build this year.

I´m going to build a Agusta Westland EH-101 Merlin in HM1-version of the Royal Navy. It will be ZH860 with the nice tiger-scheme: link thingy

I use the Revell- and the Italeri-kit because the Revell-decals are much better but the Italeri-kit includes the 'wrap round' rotorhead. The Eduard-set will be used for detailling and to get rid of those oversized steps shown in this firt picture.

I tuned my old electric tooth-brush a little bit (following these instructions, so it was quite easy to sand the steps down. Than the area was polished using a sand file. You can also see the cut-out-window beside the front entrance.

What scale is that...1/72? hows the Eduard photoetched ? lookig good so far

Oliver

There also were some steps at the back that had to go. The vent on the upper left side will be worked at later. I´m a bit undecided if it will only be sanded down or if I should drill through the hull.

The steps are gone but you can see another issue I´ll have to deal with. The side-panel doesn´t fit flat - it´s placed too deep. I´ll have to find a way to raise it a bit to get a propper finish.

Tipps, tricks, critique, help and all other posts are always welcome!.

[ice225]

@shark64: no text?

Anyway - there was quite a challenge in this build because for the first time I had to work on a canopy. The wipers had to go (because it will get pe-ones) and the bar in the middle is way to broadly in my opinion (comparison picture). Damn I had doubts if this will turn out good because it´s the "face" of the model.

So I took the modified toothbrush and started sanding till all unwanted structures were gone.

Then I used a file for nail-polishing and polished it.

A bath in the german version of future (it´s called Erdal Glänzer) was made for the finish. It´s my first ever revised transparent part and I´m quite pleased with the result. Now I wonder how to do the new, narrowly center-bar.

Edited January 4, 2010 by ice225

[LemonJello]

@shark64: no text? ;)

Anyway - there was quite a challenge in this build because for the first time I had to work on a canopy. The wipers had to go (because it will get pe-ones) and the bar in the middle is way to broadly in my opinion (comparison picture). Damn I had doubts if this will turn out good because it´s the "face" of the model.

So I took the modified toothbrush and started sanding till all unwanted structures were gone.

Then I used a file for nail-polishing and polished it.

A bath in the german version of future (it´s called Erdal Glänzer) was made for the finish. It´s my first ever revised transparent part and I´m quite pleased with the result. Now I wonder how to do the new, narrowly center-bar.

Looking like a great start. What scale is this kit?

[ice225]

Looking like a great start. What scale is this kit?

It´the 1/72 Revell-kit. Unfortunatly Italeri doesn´t want to give us the 1/48 Merlin this year... ;)

[ChernayaAkula]

Wow! The windscreen looks amazing! Outstanding work! ;) I think it looks better than before.

How does that toothbrush sander work? I already bought another extra electric toothbrush to convert it to a sander, but haven't found the time yet. What grade of sandpaper did you use?

For the strut down the middle of the windscreen, how about not building it at all and instead paint it with the rest of the airframe? Or maybe a strip of self-adhesive aluminium tape?

[ice225]

Wow! The windscreen looks amazing! Outstanding work! I think it looks better than before.

How does that toothbrush sander work? I already bought another extra electric toothbrush to convert it to a sander, but haven't found the time yet. What grade of sandpaper did you use?

For the strut down the middle of the windscreen, how about not building it at all and instead paint it with the rest of the airframe? Or maybe a strip of self-adhesive aluminium tape?

Thank you! The sander is a perfekt tool! I used these instructions to build it: LINK

I started with grit 400 , then 1200 and then I used the nailpolish-thingy. After sleeping on it I think I just paint the bar. After removing the mask, it should look quite close to the original raised line there.

[ice225]

Some small progress - I prepared the cabin floor for the sonar station.

Some of those raised lines have to go, to let it fit:

Most of the work is done with a cutter and my toothbrush-sander:

and this is, what i will look like:

The nose had to be modified too. Those suggested hinges have to go:

Here the nose is ready but it will need some extra work to make it a perfect fit:

And this shows one of the major "problems" of this kit. Revell says you have to complete the front-section and the back-section of the fusalage first and then fit them together. I wouldn´t do ot that way. I´m, going to fit the cabin halfs to the tail arm-halfs first and then glue the long halfs together to finish the cabin. this should make it possible to reduces the areas that need filling and sanding on the top and the bottom, where are less details that could be destroyed.

Edited January 4, 2010 by ice225

[ice225]

Necessity is the mother of invention.

On primeportal I came across this picture of a Merlin interior LINK and since then I wondered how to do the sound isolation. I read about toiletpaper or those paper towels that are soaked with glue but I wanted to get the smooth finish of the original.

Italeri/Revell does it this way:

In the first picture you can already see the solution of my problem - it was there right in front of my nose all the time. It´s an old cut board from IKEA of Sweden, that I use for my work.

So I took some aluminum foil...

...and wiped over it with my finger to press the structure in the foil.

I´m quite pleased with the result but I´ll go to IKEA and try to get a new board without so many cuts.

Edited January 4, 2010 by ice225

[shark 64]

Necessity is the mother of invention.

On primeportal I came across this picture of a Merlin interior LINK and since then I wondered how to do the sound isolation. I read about toiletpaper or those paper towels that are soaked with glue but I wanted to get the smooth finish of the original.

Italeri/Revell does it this way:

In the first picture you can already see the solution of my problem - it was there right in front of my nose all the time. It´s an old cut board from IKEA of Sweden, that I use for my work.

So I took some aluminum foil...

...and wiped over it with my finger to press the structure in the foil.

I´m quite pleased with the result but I´ll go to IKEA and try to get a new board without so many cuts.

What a great idea. Whatever it takes to get the final results. Thanks Ikea!

Oliver

[RNLAF]

Great progress! Why are you wearing gloves?

- Rick

[Aaronw]

Neat idea with the toothbrush. The site is not in english, the pics work for most of it but are the round pieces just plastic and is the yellow tape just two sided tape?

I would not have believed you could hack up a clear piece like that and get it nice and clear again like you did.

[arkhunter2002]

Okay, am I the only one that doesn't see the first sets of pictures? All I see is "Direct Upload (dot) net NO HOTLINKING ALLOWED! blah blah blah"

For some reason, I can see the last set of pictures though.

Take care,

Austin

[ice225]

What a great idea. Whatever it takes to get the final results. Thanks Ikea!

Thank you - I´ve searched the appartement to find something that could do the job and finally got lucky.

Great progress! Why are you wearing gloves?

Thanks! I try to keep the plastik clean. First thing I did was to rinse all the plastic parts to let the paint stick perfectly on it later on.

Neat idea with the toothbrush. The site is not in english, the pics work for most of it but are the round pieces just plastic and is the yellow tape just two sided tape?

I would not have believed you could hack up a clear piece like that and get it nice and clear again like you did.

Thank you! My round piece of plastik is just a small part of a wooden spoon and the yellow tape is normally used to fix carpets. I think´you could any two sided tape for the job.

Okay, am I the only one that doesn't see the first sets of pictures? All I see is "Direct Upload (dot) net NO HOTLINKING ALLOWED! blah blah blah"

If there´s a problem with the pictures feel free to pm me. I can see them all but perhaps there´s something like an IP-filter for some areas (...the fairy tale of the WORLDWIDEweb,,, ). If this is the case I´ll load them up somewhere else like imageshack.

[merlin101]

looking good so far 'ice, you adding much interior detail? If you need any help just ask!

Dave

[troschi]

Thanks! I try to keep the plastik clean. First thing I did was to rinse all the plastic parts to let the paint stick perfectly on it later on.

No offence meant, ice, but I believe that wearing gloves in this stage is a bit disproportionate. You can wash you hands beforehand and even if you wetsand the fuselage, it becomes dirty anyway and you're forced to clean it anyway. Before i apply the first coat I always clean the surface to remove remaining sanding dust, finger grease and all this stuff which should not be there.

If you have to handle the model when all the paint is applied, then one could think about weain' gloves, but I would rather prefer medical gloves than fabric ones, bcz of the risk of havin fuzzez overall.

A good modeler is not distinguished from the beginner by the fact that he's wearing gloves during construction or not.

Greets

[ice225]

looking good so far 'ice, you adding much interior detail? If you need any help just ask!

Dave

Thank you. If you have any more interior pics it would be great. Especially the housing for the sonar would be interesting. This is the only picture I found and the box in the front makes it difficult to guess how the rest could look like: http://data4.primeportal.net/hangar/howard...m1_10_of_47.jpg

I´m also looking for pics of the sonar operators workplace and the "gangway" between cockpit and the rest of the cabin.

No offence meant, ice, but I believe that wearing gloves in this stage is a bit disproportionate. You can wash you hands beforehand and even if you wetsand the fuselage, it becomes dirty anyway and you're forced to clean it anyway. Before i apply the first coat I always clean the surface to remove remaining sanding dust, finger grease and all this stuff which should not be there.

If you have to handle the model when all the paint is applied, then one could think about weain' gloves, but I would rather prefer medical gloves than fabric ones, bcz of the risk of havin fuzzez overall.

A good modeler is not distinguished from the beginner by the fact that he's wearing gloves during construction or not.

It´s just a try and while sanding the canopy, those gloves made a great job because I could wipe away the dust with the thumb and didn´t leave fingerprints on the canopy. But I wanted to give latex gloves a try later anyway.

I just don´t get your last sentence completely.

[Flyboyf18]

Here's another method for the interior sound proofing mats, scroll down to the EH101 part.

http://www.arcforums.com/forums/air/index....howtopic=156089

[ice225]

That looks even better - I´ll have to think about that.

[ice225]

Well after some research (Special thanks to a very nice ARC-member! ) I came across the following issue: The cabin interior is too short.

In THIS picture from primeportal you can see the carousel for the sonar buoys. It´s placed a little bit behind the side window. If you now look closely at the kit you see, that the cabin interior ends right behind the window (where the front half of the fuselage ends) so there is no space for the carousel. The yellow line shows, were Revell/Italeri placed the back wall and the red line shows, where it should be.

So if you want to place a scrathbuild a carousel and place it right you´ll have to expand the cabin interior. :blink:

Edited January 4, 2010 by ice225

[dzejo]

Hi

it is very nice in-progress, good work. here you got some of my observations I made during my unfinished yet building

Well after some research (Special thanks to a very nice ARC-member! :lol:) I came across the following issue: The cabin interior is too short. :bandhead2........................

So if you want to place a scrathbuild a carousel and place it right you´ll have to expand the cabin interior.

- I think that cabin interior is not a problem, especially that it is back part of it and not very good visible.

Please be aware of other small mistakes like f.e. parts on bottom. In Revell instruction places to glue them are mistaken. What is strange in last page with camouflages the bottom view has correct positions of antennas and"boxes". Use also as a reference photos

- Second point - if you use Eduard PE some parts are only on one side (not like on eduard instruction on both) f.e. cover nr57 is ok , but 58 should be cancelled, small part nr 50 only on one side, you can resign from parts nr 56 and step 103

- Alignment of fuselage and back part , as you noticed is rather poor - it make me a lot of troubles ;-). The same situation is with glueing interior - but maybe it was only my problem ;-)

- and main gears - it is better to glue them before you assemble small wings/whell buys because if you forget , like I did, you will have to cut horizontals shafts on it (Im still wonder if they are necessary)

And this is the way I did interior "soft" surface

I used plastic 0,25mm sheet and made a lot of lines

and this is result

Regards

Andrzej

Edited January 25, 2009 by dzejo

[ice225]

- I think that cabin interior is not a problem, especially that it is back part of it and not very good visible.

It´s one of those "You cannot see it but it´s there"-issues. I´d like to scratchbuild one of those carousels and so it´s a problem for me. Not a big one but I have to handle it.

Please be aware of other small mistakes like f.e. parts on bottom. In Revell instruction places to glue them are mistaken. What is strange in last page with camouflages the bottom view has correct positions of antennas and"boxes". Use also as a reference photos

Yes, I learned my lesson already with other kits. There is nothing better than goo reference pictures.

- Second point - if you use Eduard PE some parts are only on one side (not like on eduard instruction on both) f.e. cover nr57 is ok , but 58 should be cancelled, small part nr 50 only on one side, you can resign from parts nr 56 and step 103

Thank you! :)

- Alignment of fuselage and back part , as you noticed is rather poor - it make me a lot of troubles ;-). The same situation is with glueing interior - but maybe it was only my problem ;-)

We´ll see. I think it won´t be as horrible as my last Airfix Sea King but I´ll dry-fit every little part before glue is used.

- and main gears - it is better to glue them before you assemble small wings/whell buys because if you forget , like I did, you will have to cut horizontals shafts on it (Im still wonder if they are necessary)

So you say I should do step 21 before 20?

And this is the way I did interior "soft" surface

I used plastic 0,25mm sheet and made a lot of lines

and this is result

That´s very nice! looks like an afternoon with the ruler and the knife.

Thank you for your hints and tipps - I appreciate that very much!

[dzejo]

Hi

It´s one of those "You cannot see it but it´s there"-issues. I´d like to scratchbuild one of those carousels and so it´s a problem for me. Not a big one but I have to handle it.

you will handle. I'm very curious of your results

We´ll see. I think it won´t be as horrible as my last Airfix Sea King but I´ll dry-fit every little part before glue is used.

you right Airfix is horrible ;-)

And about PE I forgot to mention that Eduard has two sets for this merlin ,I have the second , coloured 73287

And another thing with mistakes in instruction. Sides windows: 1) window on big cargo doors should be smaller, exactly like on part (no enlarging like Revell shows in instruction) ; 2) window close to small doors on opposite side is necessary to cut (like revell shows) but size of this window is smaller than the rest on this side (as I remember part 12 should be use here)

So you say I should do step 21 before 20?

yes , that's right. It is not possible to assemble gear when the wing is glued ;-)

That´s very nice! looks like an afternoon with the ruler and the knife.

ruler yes and a needle not knife (to easy to cut). And not afternoon , just an 1-1,5 hour :)

Thank you for your hints and tipps - I appreciate that very much!

you welcome, hope that maybe you will find in this model something what help me ;-)

Cheers

Andrzej

[ice225]

That was a bigger break because the pe-set didn´t arrive in time. It was the first time for me to use photoetched parts so I had some doubts but it turned out to be much easier than I thought.

I started with the cabin-seats because they looked not to hard to do. Beside the pe parts I added a crossbrace and drilled some holes into the front legs.

Here I placed them to see, how they will appear. The safety belts will be added after the painting.

i didn´t follow the revell instructions and used a semi gloss black. I think it looks more like the original seats. Here´s a foto from primeportal:LINK

And this is the sonar station. All pe parts that will be painted in grey are allready placed. The color pe parts will follow later.

Like I already said this was my pe premiere and i had more fun than I expected. I´m really looking forward to the next steps.

If there are any problems with the pictures please let me know and I´ll use another hoster.

Edited January 4, 2010 by ice225

[ice225]

Some more progress in the last 2 days.

First building site was the nose gear. Yes, i have seen that ejector mark on the photos and it will be dealt with later.

Tie down points, brake hose, landing lights were added.

Here´s the side wall. Because it´s sitting too deep in the body half, I added some aluminium.

On the outside I added the pe parts. Below the air grilles i drilled holes to give them more "depth".

Here some grilles and steps are placed. The front and back half of the body already assembled.

Last but not least the sonar console has been painted...

...and equipped with the colored photo etched parts. It´s a shame you won´t be able to see a lot of it later. It will get a little wash before the body will be closed.

That´s it for today.

Edited January 4, 2010 by ice225