Great progress, my friend @v1pro!
Nice quality steps!

Nice steps and well documented, Bob @v1pro
Nice progress.

Here are a few shots of my progress done this past week before Thanksgiving. I used cut pieces of stretched sprue for the main rotor mechanism. The parts provided by the kit were worthless.

I also came up with a better way install the main rotor in the main frame. I used a lollypop stick to hold the main rotor and also provide a more secured way to installed the main rotor to the main frame.

4 attached images. Click to enlarge.

Nice use of stretched sprue and lollypop stick, my friend @v1pro!
Your chopper looks awesome already!

Last night I used a Testors silver paint from a spray can. I do not have any spare decals of the US Navy of during the early 50's so I went for a US Air Force silver scheme. I am going to take some spare decals from a T-33 and use the insignias and its fuselage's decals for this build. Later I will mask the tail for the yellow warning band.

I also lost one of the main wheel so I am going to use a 1/100 scale Tamiya Me-262 main wheel set on this build.

This build has been a real challenge so far.

2 attached images. Click to enlarge.

Steady progress done, Bob @v1pro
Your lollypop stick is a great idea.

While not good that your blue scheme decals did not work, your idea to do a USAF silver bird was brilliant, my friend @v1pro! Love your innovative thinking for decaling this bird, looks fantastic already!
Great wheels "save"!
P.S. I have also used Microscale decal saver, it is a good product but will not work on already destroyed decals...
Looking forward to this superb build!

I call this done!
After I have a good night sleep, I will post the rest of the final shots as an article on the Headlines. This was a really weird kit, also a not a very good kit at all. My model skills or patience was not in this build or more like lack of skills and patience. The photos don't lie!

But in another view, this was a pretty poor short run kit. On my previous article on the Amodel AIR-80 that was a brute of a build, another short run kit but I enjoyed it very much except for the engine/cowling area. On the S-51 kit, the clear parts was the killer, not one piece fitted on to the airframe properly. Plus they were not clear and they were all rough. Sanding, polishing or using Future were not able to make them very clear. The outside coat of future on the clear parts help out some but this glaze is just poor in itself. And the rest of the other parts all needed a lot of work to clean up.

But in the end I now have myself a Sikorsky S-51 on my shelf. I am sure in a few days it will start looking better to my eyes. On the second shot it is hanging out with my Frog Westland Wessex, another Sikorsky design. They look pretty happy together.

2 attached images. Click to enlarge.