Airfix 1/48 AH.7 Lynx, SFOR Headquarters, Ilidza, Bosnia 1998
Hello all! I present to you my Airfix 1/48 scale Lynx helicopter. I wanted to build this one to represent a Lynx that we landed next to in Ilidza, Bosnia, back in 1998. All I had to go on was one less-than-stellar photo that I took, so I had to do a bunch of research online to get the markings correct. In the end, I used the serial numbers that came with the kit, but just added the SFOR stencils by masking and painting and built it without the exhaust bins and sand filters. Apparently, Lynx helicopters come in a variety of configurations regarding mission equipment, so I went off of what I could make out in my photo. This means I had to scratch build the steps at the front of the skids, as well as the searchlight on the right side. I also scratch built the FOD screens on the inlets out of steel mesh and stock plastic. That was a bit of a pain but I managed to get something close to what they are supposed to be like.
For the interior, I used the Eduard photoetch detail set, as well as some leftover seatbelts from a different PE set for the back row of seats. My son gave me the first aid kits that mount behind the pilot seats from his spares box. The kit itself had such a fine tolerance for the fit of the parts that when I installed the PE set, it threw off the fit of the fuselage and cockpit. The worst part about that was a big gap between the windshield and fuselage. I hid most of that with Milliput and a lot of patient and careful sanding.
The bird in my photo had the door gun pintle mount installed but no weapon. I went ahead and took the liberty of installing the machine gun that came with the kit on the left side. As for the other side, I read somewhere from some guy that when in Bosnia, they would mount the door gun on the left, and the TOW missile system on the right. It was also stated that they only mounted the outboard missiles since the inboard ones where a pain to install, so I went ahead and configured my model as such. Hopefully I am not too far off of plausibility.
I had some technical advice from a buddy with personal experience around Lynx helicopters so he helped my get the green right, and showed me a most awesome pic of the cargo hook so that I knew where to add the electrical harness. I also added the power cable to the searchlight mounted on the skid. These were made from steel wire.
I installed the landing light in the extended position, since it wouldn't fit flush into the fuselage. On the rotor blades, there are supposed to be clear parts that represent some sort of fluid reservoir on the real thing, but the parts were very tiny and the attachment to the sprue was a bit thick and clunky. When I tried to hold the first one with my tweezers to trim and clean up the part, it pinged away from my tweezers into my carpet, never to be found again. Thanks for setting me up for failure on that one, Airfix.
Lastly, I wanted to make a base for my Lynx similar to the one that we landed on way back then. The helipads were steel planks, so I tried to represent that with popsicle sticks on a pine base, trimmed to fit and covered in foil to hide the wood grain and make it look like metal. That was followed with silver spray paint and weathered with pastels and other powders to make it not so uniform in color. The dirt came from my front yard and the grass from a Woodland Scenic diorama making set. I am not sure if I am completely happy with the results, but it will do for now.
Overall this was a great kit and fun to build. I would highly recommend it but if you use photoetch in the cockpit/cabin, dryfit, check and recheck before gluing the parts together. Sorry for being so long winded and thanks for viewing!
Cheers!
-Ramon
Nicely finished and photographed, sir...a good job all around indeed. That headline pic really sells it. Excellent work at the bench AND in the field. ๐
thanks Craig, i think i lucked out with the sun rays coming through the trees!
Great job Ramon. This kit is on sale in my LHS. Your build is inspiring me to get one. Excellent job on the paintwork and weathering mate.
go for it! it is a fun kit to build out of the box, and despite the fit issues i had i would gladly build another one! thanks for the kind words Gregor!
Awesome Lynx Ramon! It is one of the fastest helicopters in the world. You did a great job on her. Well done!
Thanks Morne!
Nice Helicopter! Super photography!
Thanks Maurits! i got better pics from my cell phone telephone than i did with my point-n-shoot camera, so those are the ones I posted! Cheers!
stunning detail
thank you Bob!
Ramon,
This is an absolutely awesome build. In a couple of your photos it looks real. Great job, you have my vote and thank you for your service.
Thanks Frank! ๐
Very nice work Ramon, especially like the giant car you slipped in,
(OK, sorry I couldn't resist saying that !). Nice thing about photographing outside, every once in a while you get a nice surprise, That first picture made me take a second look, as it looks very real. Good job.
Haha, yeah, that car is MASSIVE! i took these in my driveway early sunday morning, and i was trying to get different lighting angles and totally spaced on my car in the background... i aint good enough at photoshop to fix that, but maybe if i crop some of the other ones... thanks anyways for the kind words Terry! ๐
Great looking helicopter in a cracking presentation. Superb !
thank you Bernd!
Those photographs really set off a great model, excellent, Ramon.
you are too kind, George, but thanks!
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Fantastic chopper mate!
thanks Richard, looking at your models, that is a nice compliment! ๐