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Revell (Matchbox) 1/72 Handley Page VICTOR K Mk 2

Started by Spiros Pendedekas · 87 ≡ · ↻ 3 years ago · 1/72, Handley Page, Matchbox, Revell, The Falklands War, Victor

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Spiros Pendedekas said 3 years, 1 month ago:

Hi everyone!

Here's my entry on the TFW GB! The Revell (Matchbox) 1/72 Handley Page VICTOR K Mk 2.

The Victor was used as a tanker for aerial refuelling, during the war.

The Revell kit is a rebox of the venerable 1983 Matchbox kit, a lesser kit than the recent Airfix one.

Here's what's in the box (downloaded from https://www.super-hobby.pt/):

Instructions are nice and clear.

The decal sheet is really nice, boosting this old mold's posture!

The depicted scheme will be for XL163, as it stood in Marham, 1983:

I am pretty sure it participated in the war at exactly the same scheme, a few months before.

More to come!
Erik Gjørup said 3 years, 1 month ago:

Strapped in!
Spiros Pendedekas said 3 years, 1 month ago:

Glad to fly with you, Sir, my friend @airbum!
John Healy said 3 years, 1 month ago:

Nice pick, Spiros. I’m a Victor fan and look forward to seeing what you do with this one.
Spiros Pendedekas said 3 years, 1 month ago:

Thanks my friend @j-healy!
Colin Gomez said 3 years, 1 month ago:

Welcome aboard, Spiros! I have this kit in my stash as well. The shapes are mostly good and it has engraved panel lines, so no re-scribing is necessary. It's great that it is set up as the tanker version, which was so important in the Falklands War. I have a long shelved Airfix Vulcan that could complement your build in the Black Buck raid story. I got it re-scribed on top and filled and sanded the intakes. I even built this crazy bomb bay - which is all I can find of the model right now (its in a box somewhere).

Finally, I got hung up on re-scribing the panel lines underneath, which are incredibly intricate. That's why I boxed it up. Now, of course, Airfix has a new tool Vulcan with no challenges to worry over. A familiar story. Anyway, glad you decided to do the Victor. IMHO, amongst the V-Bombers, it is second only to the Vulcan in aerodynamic beauty.
Colin Gomez said 3 years, 1 month ago:

Hey Spiros, Here is a link to a very good doc on the Black Buck mission. Heroic almost to the point of absurdity and the most memorable Victor/Vulcan mission ever.
David Mills said 3 years, 1 month ago:

Great choice Spiros - I will look forward to this one!
Spiros Pendedekas said 3 years, 1 month ago:
Thanks my friends @coling and @davem!

Colin, this is some spectacular job you did on that bay! Man, this looks wonderful!

I usually close my bays, so much less work to do (but a lesser model is produced as well!

Thanks for the video, gonna watch it tonight, after my young boys go to bed...

Anyway, my Victor, being the old Matchbox one, requires some "modeling skills"...

So, here we go..

The mad gluer at work!

Here are some subassemblies initially put together
1. Ummmm, fit?
1. Subassembler's Paradise...
Fit? Fit? We don't need no stinking fit!

More to come!

Cheers, FWGB!
Morne Meyer said 3 years, 1 month ago:

Awesome choice Spiros. This is my favourite V-bomber. Never dropped a bomb in anger but without Victor support the Black Buck missions would have been impossible. Interestingly, the South African government in 1982 did not agree to a British request to use Simonstown naval base or Ysterplaat AFB in Cape Town as staging point for the British Expeditionary Force from which British ships could replenish or operate from. Ysterplaat AFB would have been ideal for missions against targets in the Falklands as it was closer to the Falklands than Ascension Island. Argentina was one of SA's closest Allies during the era of 'apartheid' and a strong trading partner which benefitted both countries economically. The Thatcher government was not pleased with SA's 'neutral' stance.

I will definitely follow this one closely!
David Mills said 3 years, 1 month ago:

Great work Spiros - I love Matchbox kits - and Modelling skills!
Spiros Pendedekas said 3 years, 1 month ago:

Thanks my friends @mornem and @davem!
Yep, SA's neutrality was, to me, totally understood, given the pertaining circumstances.
Tom Cleaver said 3 years, 1 month ago:

Good choice. Since this group goes for a year, I can wait for the new Airfix Vulcan to do the Black Buck bomber.

For those contemplating doing another of the tankers, let me say - having built this kit and the new Airfix kit as a bomber (it's now available as the tanker) - the new Airfix kit is the winner by a thousand kilometers for not driving one nuts during the assembly process. It is indeed more expensive, proving "you get what you pay for."

I'm also sure that @fiveten - the group experte on taking dogmeat kits and turning them into small gems - will have no trouble transforming this thing. We lesser mortals need the help of better kits.
Spiros Pendedekas said 3 years, 1 month ago:

Thanks my friend @tcinla!

Yep, compared to the Airfix offering this kit REALLY looks like it's coming from the stone age.

The toylike appearance and soft detail is evident in many areas. Apart from the super decal sheet, the rest of the kit is on the discouraging side, not that easy for the modeler make it look like a model and not a toy, whereas the "winner" Airfix looks nice and "serious".

Just happened to have it in my stash (well, two of them actually...)
Colin Gomez said 3 years, 1 month ago:

Great to see you jumping right into the build, Spiros. I like the old Matchbox kits for buildability. You can see it taking shape already. I fuss a bit too much with micro details before getting major parts together. I like your approach for getting momentum going.

Viewing 1 - 15 of 87 posts

The Falklands War / Guerra de las Malvinas

Revell (Matchbox) 1/72 Handley Page VICTOR K Mk 2

The mad gluer at work!