Airfix Model World – September 2019

INTERMEDIATE BUILD
AS565 PANTHER

INTERMEDIATE BUILD

AS565 PANTHER

http://www.airfi xmodelworld.com 37

Cruising

Before priming the fuselage, the

final exterior detail was added.

Once again, Trumpeter’s ‘design

team anomaly’ arose, as a well-

appointed radar unit was provided

for the nose, but again there was

no means of displaying it. The

nose cone shape was also slightly

troubling when compared with

reference images, so a liberal

application of Milliput White Putty

(www.milliput.com) and a Flex-i-File

(www.flex-i-file.com) soon yielded

an accurate profile, with minimal

work required to reinstate panel

lines and rivet detail.

At this point the final assemblies

were finished: the main rotors

(taking care to ensure the moulded

droop was not over-emphasised),

the starboard winch, hydraulic

rams, tyres and wheel hubs, and

lastly the boom stabiliser fins.

These were finished independently,

so they could be added upon

completion of the final top coat,

together with the re-shaped

starboard windscreen which had

fallen out during attempts to

remove the cracked panel beneath

it. Note a study of reference photos

revealed the winch and wheels

were probably the wrong style, but

this was discovered too late in the

project to change them.

On approach

An overall coat of MRP-84 Fine

Surface Primer was applied, and

any blemishes were addressed

before a further touch-up layer

was sprayed. Next, key panel lines

were pre-shaded with XF-1 Black,

which would create an element

of tonal variance to the two-tone

grey camouflage. Following a rub-

down of the primer/pre-shading

with 2,000-grade Wet and Dry

abrasive paper, the lighter shade

of grey C308 Gray FS 36375,

diluted equally

with the

firm’s proprietary

Leveling Thinner was sprayed

in several light layers until the

pre-shading was almost covered.

White Tack ‘worms’ were used to

set the camouflage pattern and

the darker C307 Gray FS 36320

was sprayed in a similar fashion,

until the balance of colour, tone

and coverage looked comparable

between the two shades.

Two airbrushed coats of Klear

provided the base for the limited,

but high-quality, kit decals – these

all settled easily into the moulded

detail without any issues. A further

layer of Klear sealed everything, in

preparation for A.MIG-1611 Panel

Cruising

Before priming the fuselage, the

final exterior detail was added.

Once again, Trumpeter’s ‘design

team anomaly’ arose, as a well-

rams, tyres and wheel hubs, and

lastly the boom stabiliser fins.

These were finished independently,

so they could be added upon

completion of the final top coat,

which would create an element

of tonal variance to the two-tone

grey camouflage. Following a rub-

down of the primer/pre-shading

with 2,000-grade Wet and Dry

abrasive paper, the lighter shade

of grey C308 Gray FS 36375,

diluted equally

with the

firm’s proprietary

Leveling Thinner was sprayed

in several light layers until the

pre-shading was almost covered.

White Tack ‘worms’ were used to

set the camouflage pattern and

the darker C307 Gray FS 36320

was sprayed in a similar fashion,

until the balance of colour, tone

and coverage looked comparable

between the two shades.

Two airbrushed coats of Klear

provided the base for the limited,

but high-quality, kit decals – these

all settled easily into the moulded

detail without any issues. A further

layer of Klear sealed everything, in

preparation for A.MIG-1611 Panel

 After studying reference photos, it was decided to pose one of the cockpit doors open,

to this end, further detail was added to the interior, for further visual interest.

 While the entire unit was primed, painting was restricted to the nozzles, which received

blended Engine Manifold over a Pale Burnt Metal base; Jet Exhaust was applied on the edges.

Orientation markings were applied to the

blade holders and swash plate control

rods using spare decal strip