SA-16A Albatross in Portuguese service; Sova-M, 1/72 kit
This article is part of a series:
In the 1950s/60s, Portugal had 3 SA-16A Albatross operating (together with some SB-17g) on ββSAR missions in the Azores archipelago.
Due to a series of accidents and other events and options, the career of these aircraft in the FAP, although short, was memorable.
This aircraft is included in the series because it was flown by the same commander.
(This is a build from november 2022 that was missing here)
So:
The Sova-M kit is basically miserable, requiring extra work to achieve anything minimally capable in the end. The fit of the parts leaves a lot to be desired, there is no fitting for the wings (so I decided to drill them and insert small metal bars), the plastic of the windows and their cutout is also not exact, some/many detail parts (antennas, etc.) are missing, etc., so some scratch work is necessary.
After many hours of assembly, putty and sandpaper, something presentable for painting was finally achieved.
In the absence of decals, I decided to get masks and paint what I could. In the end I ended up getting decals, but that's another story π
I'll leave you with photos of the build, with tooltips for some details, as well as a photo of the real plane moored.
I've built the model wheels up as I intend to build a same base to it π
I hope you like it.
Cheers,
M
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- 1. great opportunity for practicing gap filling
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- 1. creating a structure
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- 1. the real 7102
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- 1. SB-17g and the SA-16's
I have this kit in my stash so I can see what I am in for down the road someday. You were able to get it looking very presentable considering the fit issues. Looks great to me. I've wanted to build an Albatross for some time, but its one of those birds, rare enough that it will probably only ever be released as a short run kit. Looking forward to seeing the model in it's base.
Hi @clipper! thanks for your message. Yes, short-runs are like that... I didn't mean to scare anyone, but it's not really a good kit...
You might consider getting the old Monogram kit, which is obviously vastly superior to this collection of scrap plastic, and modify it - you only have to take out the wingspan extension to get an acceptable SA-16A.
No worries Manuel (@magrus), these sorts of challenges don't scare me off or even factor into when I might build something. I have a fairly long history of taking old kits and trying to improve them. It challenges my abilities and makes for interesting experiences.
@clipper I understand π but on one hand I like these challenges, on the other hand, as a friend of mine says, 'life's too short for bad kits' π
The finish on this 1/72 build is superb. Great result.
thks @coondog , much appreciated
The weathered look of the nmf is fantastic. Looking forward to seeing the diorama!
thks @fxrob ! will have to find the time... ruined the first try π
Lots of good work here, @magrus, and in the end the model "flips you off" with that anhedral that was impossible to cure. Just consider it a "good 12 footer" and all is well. π
thks Tom @tcinla! The camera distortion accentuates the anhedral but it's there...
Despite the challenges, you ended up with a lovely model! The NMF and weathering are great. Well done!
Thank you π
A great model, Manuel!
A vast departure from the original less then perfect kit.
Congratulations!
Thks Spiros π π
You clearly showed you skills in turning this kit into such a beautiful Albatross, Manuel @magrus
Well done.
Thks @johnb, tried my best on this one π
Great result on what looks like a seriously rough kit.
Thank you π
Excellent model! A pity that the kit is so bad.
Thank you!
Wow, great job on taming this beast. The end results came out looking "Awesome!"
Thank you π