1/72 Westland Wessex HAS 31

[parsifal]

These old aircraft were remembered fondly in the RAN. By the time I joined they were no longer working in the ASW role, but were very active in the SAR role. They continued in that capacity until 1989. They joined the fleet in 1962, so they enjoyed a very long career

In this build I simply want to improved my painting and detailing skills. Some of the problem with my last build was that the paints I was using I had diluted far too much, which caused problems with runs and generaly streaky and patchy paintwork. I also would like to improve the standard of detailing in the cockpit...


Anyway here are the progress shots so far.....

 

[vikingBerserker]

Not too shabby at all!

 

[Airframes]

Nice! Got a soft spot for the old Wessex, having fallen out of them, or dangled from them a few times. I think Karl (rochie) might be interested in this build too, but I'll let him explain why.......

 

[Wayne Little]

Nice start P looks good so far!

 

[109ROAMING]

Sweet build 8) Love Wessex's

 

[jamierd]

have the same memories and fondnes of the wessex as terry am looking forward to this being finished dont know about the RAN wessex but the RAF wessex seemed to be held together with black masking tape very diconcerting i can tell you

 

[Vic Balshaw]

Nice! Got a soft spot for the old Wessex, having fallen out of them, or dangled from them a few times. I think Karl (rochie) might be interested in this build too, but I'll let him explain why.......

have the same memories and fondnes of the wessex as terry am looking forward to this being finished dont know about the RAN wessex but the RAF wessex seemed to be held together with black masking tape very diconcerting i can tell you

Same here and it's looking fine P.

 

[parsifal]

Ill do my best guys. I dont have photos for tonite, but the two halves are togeter, along with the undercarriage. I discovered some significant details that are different between our Mk 31 and the RN HAS3s. For starters our main hatches have a viewing panel in them, and appear to be smaller than the RN.

Its a pity that the kit does not include interior cabin arrays of the main deck. I was thinking of attempting a scratch build but decided not to in the finish. When I was near these aircraft, they were being used as SAR and assault choppers, so I dont have any personal memories of them as AS platforms. They were last used in the ASW role in 1974, but continued to give great service until 1989. I did my survival training using these machines (basically winched out of the water).

They had a very good reputation as all weather choppers. Someone told me they did not require a real horizon to stay horizontal....All I know is that these machines could fly when no others could, and were considered very reliable machines

 

[rochie]

only been in two wessex's both on the same night, they sent the second one to pick us up after the first one suffered engine failure on take off and came back down rather quickly, bounced then turned on its side !!!!!

luckily the only injuries were to my mate who knocked his two front teeth out with the muzzle of his SLR when we hit the ground, scared the s**t out of me at the time though !

 

[parsifal]

Wow, an amazing story. You were pretty lucky then.

What was the course of the crash???

 

[Wayne Little]

only been in two wessex's both on the same night, they sent the second one to pick us up after the first one suffered engine failure on take off and came back down rather quickly, bounced then turned on its side !!!!!

luckily the only injuries were to my mate who knocked his two front teeth out with the muzzle of his SLR when we hit the ground, scared the s**t out of me at the time though !

sounds like you were real lucky Karl....when did this extremely short ride take place?

 

[rochie]

yeah i was lucky it happened just as we lifted off so we wern't that high up, just high enough up to make it interesting !!
never did find out the cause but just heard a loud crunchy sort of bang and down we went a bit quicker than normal all happened just over 20 years ago, god i feel old now

 

[parsifal]

well some progress shots for the last two days. The thing is going together fairly easily, and generally Im happy with my efort this time around. Any advice or comments are welcome.....

 

[rochie]

looks good Parsifal
pic i took from Duxford it might help with forward detail

 

[Vic Balshaw]

Such fine detail in 1/72. It's good

 

[parsifal]

Thanks, I do appreciate the positive feedback. And yes its getting better, an d getting closer to where I want to be. But compared to the fantastic detailing Ive seen some guys do, Ive a way to go yet.

The beast actually looks better than the camera reveals. It (the camera) tends to pick up details that you just cannot see or acknowledge in the flesh. Some of the shots I have done, the camera is only about 2-3 cm from the subject

 

[vikingBerserker]

Nicely done, the cockpit looks great!

 

[Geedee]

Looking good mate, not enough choppers being built I say

OK, I know its not a RAN Wessex, but I'll add these shots if they are any use to you for details. I took these way back in 2003 with my first ever digital camera (a little 2 Megapix jobbie that cost me an arm and a leg !) at the sad day when the RAF retired their last Wessex...whats plural for Wessex ?...Wessexi ?....from squadron service with the RAF, at RAF Akrotiri.

84 Squadron converted to the Wessex 1981 with four aircraft. They had a blue band to reflect the UN association, and the traditional Squadron card suit individual marking. 84 Sqn is unique in being the only RAF Sqn to have been based overseas for its entire Service history and the Sqn's official badge of a scorpion reflects its long association with the Middle East. They now fly the Bell 412 Griffon.

The last two pics highlight the continued problem of operating in a hot and dusty environment and the continual need to keep the clockwork fully wound, and the final approach prior to landing and shutting down. Incidentaly, flown by Sqn Ldr Nicki Epps...the first female RAF Officer to command an Operational Squadron.

 

[Airframes]

Great pics Gary. It's not the most beautiful of parafin budgies, but I've always had a soft spot for the old girl. Wonder where they all ended up?

 

[parsifal]

Yeah thanks Gary, the cockpit details and winch assembly details are very intersting and useful.

I should have some further progress shots ready for tonite. Has been somewhat of a disastrous couple of days. I broke one of the main rotors whilst fitting, and botched some of the paintwork I had so painstakingly done whilst fitting the nose section. Whilst I managed to repair the broken totor, using a plastic dowel and glue , and marry the front and rear sections (of the fuselage), neither operation was cost free...... I chewed the rotor assembly up a bit with my drilling to install the dowels, and the bog I had to use to marry the two fuselage sections has resulted in a less good paint finish than I wanted. But at least I managed to recover from a distraous evening of botch ups.


I think I might leave the rotor assemby and the cockpit glass as unglued part of the model, to allow viewing of the interior of the model, which looks pretty good to me

I think the Wessex is one of those great unsung heroes to nbbe honest. They were more reliable than than the later Sea Kings, and could undertake a pretty wide range of roles. They had a useful lift capability, and proved to be great value for money in Australian service