When I heard the
Labrador was going to be retired from Canadian service I was reminded that I had
the Hobbycraft kit awaiting me on the shelf and now was a good time to give it a
go. The Hobbycraft kit is the only kit of the Labrador helicopter, to my
knowledge, and provides a reasonable starting point for creating a Canadian
Forces SAR craft. ARC walkaround photos and some taken by me at various
airshows provided the motivation for doing some rather extensive (for me)
modifications to the OOB kit. The most obvious additions to the outside are
the antenna on the left fuselage, various bits like the searchlight bracket
and landing lights and the radome on the nose.
The rear ramp and clamshell doors
were cut away from the body of the model and the interior was filled with
padding, racks, seats, SAR equipment, radio racks and general
"busyness" based on the walkaround photos and some artistic licence.
Click on
images below to see larger images
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The model was
airbrushed using Model Master and regular Testors enamel paints with an Aztec
airbrush. The fiddly masking of the cockpit "glass" was done
using Parafilm "M". I love this stuff! It really adheres
to compound curves, resists lifting at the edges and cuts very cleanly with a
SHARP blade. The nose masking represents the Labrador modifications of the
Voyageur with the additional clear areas.
Decal markings are mostly Belcher
Bits which are considerably sharper and more accurate than the kit decals and
some use of the kit decals. A light weathering with a dash of soap and
watercolour paints and I figure it's done..at least as far as I can take it.
I wish I would have had a chance to study the "Lab" in the
Aviation Museum at Ottawa and I might have made some other changes but it had
not yet retired when I finished this model.
Mike
Click on
images below to see larger images
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