Saab SK 50C 'Safir' - Heller
Box with shrinkwrap plastic - let's see what's inside!
Not a lot of parts in the box. At least the trees are no longer bright yellow as they used to be in the past.
The fuselage has some really heavy raised panel lines. They look completely unrealistic and will just get obliterated when sanding together the fuselage halves, so rescribing is the only option.
Most of the "panel lines" on the wings are in reality strings of rivets. I pondered if I should try to reproduce them with my rivet wheel, but I think I will just leave them as they are, I absolutely suck a rivet punching.
The transparent part is a bit scratched - it was just rattling around inside the box with no protecting plastic bag.
I might replace them with vac-formed ones from Maestro Models, but I am not yet sure if it is worth the effort.
A surprisingly well-printed decal sheet is included. However, the yellow "10" for the Air Force Wing no 10 looks weird; the "1" being printed with a larger font than the "0". This looks super odd and does not at all reflect the look of the real aircraft, so I would definitely not use that. Also notice that the bright orange dayglo panels are not provided as decals and need to be painted.
Instead of using the provided decals, I bought this third party decal sheet from Maestro Models. But to be honest, the provided decals are just as good, except for that odd "10".
This photo-etched set from Maestro Models is just beautiful - I think this is more or less essential for this model.
Let's begin with sanding off the raised lines. The fuselage half on the top of the picture is finished, the one below still remains. I decided to do the fuselage only, the raised panel lines on the wings look quite reasonable.
After sanding off the panel lines, I rescribed them with extreme care, using electric tape as guide. I also tried Dymo tape, but it is much too stiff. Electric tape is better but is a little soft, so I needed to be really careful not to slip.
One fuselage half done, repeat on the other side. The various latches and inspection panels will have to be left out as I am simply unable to scribe such tiny details.
While working on scribing the fuselage, let's start to build the cockpit!
Main cockpit parts assembled - let's prime everything before adding the pre-painted PE parts. The photo-etched luggage net on top of the internal fuel tank is really a wonderful addition, no Safir model should be without it!
Priming done - starting to paint the cockpit according to photos. I want to make it look like an SK 50 during its active time in the Swedish Air Force and not as the vintage private aircraft they are today.
Seatbelts and fire estinguisher added and some weathering applied. It will be further detailed with joysticks, levers, pedals and dashboard once inserted into the fuselage - although not much will be visible with the one-piece transparency in place.
Back to the fuselage! Heller did not bother adding any kind of wheel well detail: you can see straight up into the cockpit from underneath. Obviously some kind of blocking cover needs to be fabricated.
There is no room to build a proper wheel well, so I made things very simple and just covered the openings with pieces of styrene and added some strips for detail.
Not a competition winner design, but with some paint it should look quite acceptable.
The fuselage halves are joined. The fuselage parts are warped from the nose to the rear, and need a lot of persuasion with clamps to stay together. The fin is slightly leaning to the left, which might be difficult to remedy. Furthermore the rudder is twisted like a propeller; it looks silly, so I definitely need to do something about that.
Bottom and top wing halves assembled and attached to the fuselage. The cockpit can be installed later once everything is nicely solid and unified.
The fit of the wings to the fuselage is awful: a one mm gap on both sides.
The cavernous gap at the wing join filled with multiple layers of dissolved Tamiya White Putty, and sanded smooth over a few sessions. This process took a few days with drying time inbetween.
The wing joins on the underside also need to be eliminated with filler and consecutive sanding sessions. Unfortunately some of the molded detail is lost while doing this and I will need to restore these as much as I can.
Let's tackle that weirdly twisted rudder! I simply decided to cut it off with a razor saw and slowly untwisted it under running, scorching hot water. It actually worked pretty well and provided me with the added bonus of being able to add a slight rudder displacement to draw the attention from the leaning fin.
Rudder and stabilizers added. Yes, the top of the rudder is supposed to go slighly below the top of the fin!
These are not guns; I drilled out the landing lights on the leading edges of the wings. I will add Kristal Klear to represent the lenses later.
Cockpit finally installed - it took quite a lot of cementing and clamping to get it to sit deep enough for the nose wheel well to get in contact with the bottom of the fuselage. If not done right, the nose wheel strut will be too short, so be be careful! The pre-painted instrument panel is blue when it should be green (blue was used for the Norwegian versions), but that's a compromise I am willing to live with.
A bunch of fishing weights superglued into the engine compartment to avoid a tail sitting model later. Some people say you shouldn't use superglue with fishing weights as it might cause corrosion, but I have never experienced it in 20-30 years of model building. Anyway, you have been warned!
The nose is then added to the model. I replaced the molded on cooling grill with a corresponding PE part. Instead of just filing down the molded detail as instructed, I actually cut away the entire plastic part before supergluing the grill in place, giving it a bit more depth.
The plastic canopy is much too wide and tall for the fuselage. It can be fixed, but it's going to take some nerve!
Sanding the transparency to shape is a bit scary: this is the phase when some benzo pills might be needed. Just notice at the back how much plastic has been sanded off!
But not to worry, it can be polished back to its perfectly transparent appearance, by using first various micromesh cloths and then gradually finer grade polishing compounds applied by a polishing wheel on the Dremel 4000. Actually, all those scratches from having been rattling around in the box are now removed as well.
See, as good as new! Actually, the clarity is much better. OK, it's a Heller, so it's still pretty thick, but at least it now fits the fuselage. In the process some of the molded frame lines are inevitably lost, but since they will represented with paint, it should not be too visible, I hope.
Finally the canopy is cemented to the fuselage with acrylic glue (Gator's Grip Thin Blend) to avoid marring or fogging the transparent plastic. The remining gaps are filled with AK acrylic putty using a wooden cocktail stick, and the excess putty is wiped off with a moist cotton bud. TBH, the fit is still pretty poor, but I cannot be bothered trying to get it any better.
Canopy masked off with some Peewit masks I purchased.
Primed in gray (UMP Primer sprayed on with the H&S Evolution, 0.4 mm needle). Dat canopy... ugh. Why did Heller make it a one piece item?
Experimenting with color mixes for the camouflage. The blue quickly faded into some kind of deep turquoise and the olive green into a brown-greenish hue. I am not a fan of ready-mixed paints as they seldom look good in 1:72, so I just keep mixing until I am happy - and then store the mixes in spare jars.
Here are the mixes for that cold gray underside color. I started from Sky Gray, cooled it down with some Light Blue and then scale faded it with a few drops of white. (In hindsight adding the white was a mistake, it turned out a bit too light.)
The blue of the camo is mixed from Sea Blue, faded with Light Blue and then made a bit more turquoise with Flat Blue and a couple of drops of Ammo Mig-223 Turquoise. This would result a rather faded look. If I would add just a little bit white, it would look like the J 35 Draken camo. The Safir and the Draken used the same paint, but the camo of the Draken was significantly more faded than the Safir. BTW the Ammo paint can in small amounts be mixed with the Tamiya without adverse effects.
The greens turned quite brown by the sun, and to reproduce this I mixed Olive Drab and a little J.A Green and then made everything more brownish by adding some regular brown into the mix. This is also the same as for the Draken, add just a bit more white.
Starting with the underside: thinned 50/50 with Mr Color Leveling Thinner and sprayed on with the H&S Infinity, 0.2 mm needle. That was the easy part. Aaaand I just noticed that the tiny PE tail skid got lost in the void between my work bench and the floor. I guess I will need to fabricate something myself.
Undersides masked off and top sides painted blue.
I tried to vary the paint intensity to create an illusion of slightly faded paintwork, without going overboard.
So, let's continue to the brown. Well, the camo pattern as provided in the Heller instructions is not correct and does not even correlate between the left-, right- and top views, so I needed to use some online photos. And I am guilty of using a bit of artistic license.
Camo pattern cut from Tamiya masking tape and applied to the model. The tape edges are then carefully burnished down with a rounded wooden cocktail stick to make sure that there are no gaps or tape lifts.
Brown sprayed on and masking tape removed. The underside turned out to be too light when compared to the upper side, but I won't repaint it. It should look still pretty realistic when weathered with oils and panel liners.
After having experimented with various mixes for a whole evening, here's the combo I came up for the dayglo panels: Tamiya XF-7 flat red mixed with a few drops of Mr Hobby Acrysion 98 Fluorescent Orange. They mix beautifully and can be thinned with Mr Hobby Leveling Thinner. When sprayed on a flat white base, it results in just the right kind of toxic dayglo red color. I will tone it down though, as I want my Safir to look a bit old.
The dayglo areas are masked off and almost everything else is covered. Maybe a bit overkill, but masking tape is cheap and red paint mist is an absolute nightmare. Some gaps between a few pieces of tape are covered with Mr Hobby Masking Fluid (the green stuff in the photo).
The areas are first coated with Tamiya white to create a uniform base for the dayglo. I deliberately tried to make the white a bit brighter in the middle of the panels. And yes, it was stupid of me to add the landing gears, they make my work a bit more difficult now.
The orange paint is sprayed on in wafer thin layers so I can vary the amount of paint intensity to make a slightly faded look. The paint gets more and more fluorescent with every layer, so I needed to stop at just the right amount. A bit of a guesswork, since I cannot see the camo color to judge the relative brightness of the dayglo areas. Well, we'll see soon!
The moment of truth: the masking tape is removed. Phew, it seems to have worked out, so I can continue!
Sprayed with Tamiya X-22 clear gloss varnish to protect the paintwork and prepare for decaling. This is just an utility gloss and will be toned down to a nearly completely flat finish as the last step.
Decaling underway - I am building an aircraft from F15 Söderhamn that I might have even flown. I am definitely starting to see the finishing line! But I lost one of those lovely golden F15 coat of arms decal - it slipped out of place while drying and since I didn't notice it until it was too late, I had to remove it. Damit.
The yellow printing of the Maestro Models decals is strangely double-printed and is therefore not quite as crisp as it should have been, but still looks quite okay in real life. For some of the smallest stencils I resorted using the Heller decals instead (notice the difference of the "LYFT HÄR" stencil from the Heller sheet and the the serial number stencil from the Maestro sheet). The 83 on the fin is from the Maestro sheet, here you can really see the printing error.
Propeller painted - the Swedish SK 50 did not have a spinner attached, so do not use the provided one.
Some weathering applied with Abteilung 502 oils, heavily diluted with AKI Odorless Thinner (turpenoid). Basically just some dirt streaks.
The model is finally sprayed with a thin layer of Tamiya XF-86 Flat Varnish for a satin like sheen.
Wingtip position lights painted with Tamiya Clear Red (on the left wing) and Clear Green (on the right wing) over a silver base.
Landing light openings filled in with Micro Kristal Clear. When dry it turns transparent like glass.
And there it is! Not perfect, but let's call it finished!
The finished model
The finished model
The finished model
The finished model
The finished model
The finished model
The finished model
Kommentarer
72 13 February 2020, 17:56
Łukasz GlińskiI have to watch this 👍
Regarding the orange - I have rather good experience with the Revell Aqua Colour from my Vampire project, maybe you could give it a try?
14 February 2020, 11:18
Thomas KolbBernd and Harry, I will try not to disappoint! 🙂
Łukasz, thanks for the tip! Revell Aqua is unfortunately not available from my local hobby shop, but I was told that Vallejo fluorescent orange would be a good match. Anyway, I bought a bottle of the Vallejo and also a jar of Acrysion Fluorescent Orange, and will test later which one is better. TBH, I think both look far too vivid, so I will probably need to fade them with white and yellow for a more realistic look.
15 February 2020, 17:35
Thomas KolbAfter some time working on other projects, the fuselage parts are now rescribed so I could start with the cockpit. Having a real, flying Safir at my flying club, I could actually go to town with superdetailing, but I think I will just keep it simple.
30 May 2020, 09:40
Moreno BaruffiniCiao! I take a seat now! Glad you are working again on this tiny model!
4 January 2022, 17:58
Thomas KolbYes, ha ha, it has been collecting dust on the "shelf of doom" for too long.
4 January 2022, 18:24
Robert PodkońskiCockpit looks cool already. You made me think about finding the PE set for Safir, too... 😉
6 January 2022, 13:45
Thomas KolbMoje Hobby doesn't have them in stock, but you can still buy them from Rebell Hobby here in Sweden. rebell.com/saab-91-s..or-and-exterior.html
6 January 2022, 19:42
Werner GeroldThese are very nice pictures that motivate me to start my model, thank you.
8 January 2022, 15:34
Roland SachsenhoferThese are wonderful pictures! I know the kit - hats off, my full respect! I will continue to look at this with interest!
8 January 2022, 15:43
Thomas KolbAlec, yes, I simply couldn't cut it out so it would fit seamlessly to the fuselage. After messing up two sets, I gave up. Werner & Roland, thank you mates!
8 January 2022, 17:47
Bernd KorteVery nice project! I think I'll also switch to a blue backdrop for the in-progress-shots of my next model. Makes it easier to show light grey plastic parts than in front of a white backdrop.
8 January 2022, 20:35
Thomas KolbBernd, thank you! Yes, I have been using this blue backdrop for some time now, it makes it easier to get an even exposure with my iPhone camera. It is really the replaceable, self-healing blue plastic coating of my main work bench (kind of the same stuff as the usual cutting boards).
8 January 2022, 20:42
Elias KorompilisYou do an axcellent job with this old kit! The safir is one of my favorite airplanes.
Please note: Never glue lead or lead containing metals with cyanoacrylate. It starts a chemical reaction that produces an oxide which expands for ever. After some time, months or even years, the expanded material will break the model. Me and many others (you can find more reference on the net) learned this the hard way 🙂
10 January 2022, 12:07
Thomas KolbThank you Elias! I have quite a few flying hours in the Safir as well! 🙂 About the weights, yes, I actually mention this in the picture description. But to be honest, I have been using CA to cement fishing weights into my models for many years (several decades actually), and so far never had any kind of adverse reaction ever. Maybe I just got lucky?
10 January 2022, 12:32
Elias KorompilisMaybe 🙂 it depends on how much confined is the space you put in the lead weights, but better safe than sorry.
10 January 2022, 13:04
CuajeteI agree with Elias... Take care with cyanoacrylate and lead. It can mess up your model in the future due to a chemical reaction. In any case better safe than sorry 😉
Good job with the canopy, Thomas!
10 January 2022, 19:54
Elias KorompilisTake a look here:
ratomodeling.com.br/..lead_ca/lead_ca.html
I had built an airfix B-26 long ago with lead shots as balance weights. It took 10 years to "explode" like the He-219 in the photos.
11 January 2022, 17:40
Alec KElias, thanks for the link. On the one project I had to use nose weight, I used two part epoxy. Fingers crossed…
11 January 2022, 19:38
Spanjaardi heard about the problem, but seeing those pictures of the He-219 is scary!
13 January 2022, 13:35
Thomas KolbI checked with a friend who works with industrial chemical adhesives (aircraft). This effect is called "chlorosis" or "cyanoacrylate blooming" and occurs when too much CA is used in a confined and non-ventilated space. It occurs while the CA is curing (polymerizing) and is caused by airborn monomers reacting with the humidity in the air and resettling on the surface as a white porous substance. It does not affect the strength of the join but looks bad when a smooth join is needed and might cause other issues as the join is "swelling", which might cause short-circuits in electric circuits or cause deformation of the confinement.
13 January 2022, 16:22
SpanjaardSo the issue is not the interaction with lead, but the combination of excess and a tight space? Very interesting!
13 January 2022, 18:07
Greg BakerI'm no chemist, but I believe those are two different issues. The CA blooming certainly does occur, as anyone who has used CA on clear canopy parts will certainly attest. You can also do a fun science experiment using some CA trapped inside a clear upside down cup to find fingerprints!
I did a bit of reading about this in the past and I understood that the issue with the lead is that it reacts with the CA in a slow but continuous chemical reaction that produces material that builds up year on year until it expands beyond the tensile strength of the cemented plastic.
Either way… I use Future on all my canopies, because it protects from CA blooms, and I use white glue to attach any lead fishing weights. 😉
13 January 2022, 18:26
Alec KI am wondering the same Greg. What is driving that slow reaction over the many years? Or is the cracking of plastic due to chlorosis happen only under certain conditions (like packing the space full of lead and CA, or just closing it up too quickly under humid conditions) 🤔
13 January 2022, 18:34
Thomas KolbFinally, primed! It's always a nice feeling to see the model unified in gray.
15 January 2022, 19:49
CuajeteLooks great, Thomas!
It looks like a 3D render like the current molds. No one would say it's an old Heller mold 👍
15 January 2022, 20:00
Thomas KolbCuajete thank you. Yes, it looks really smooth, and now I am a bit scared to do the camo paintjob.
15 January 2022, 20:23
Moreno BaruffiniI totally agree with Cuajete and Thomas! If one is a good modeller, every kit could be a masterpiece! Great great job!!!
16 January 2022, 12:03
Thomas KolbBeen busy with finding the right colors for the camouflage. Since almost every Safir model I have seen depicts a brand new aircraft, I decided to build one that is really weathered, faded and worn. The green should be almost brown and the blue kind of pale turquoise. It was more challenging than I thought, but I think I got it, so I am almost ready to start the painting. But you know, work and family.
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17 January 2022, 21:07
Bernd KorteI guess I know what you must have been going through, trying to find the "correct" camo pattern. I experienced exactly the same with my Canberra PR.9: All profiles and photos seem to differ in small details. And even photos of the same aircraft from different points in time show slightly different patterns...
19 January 2022, 18:00
Łukasz GlińskiHave you considered a silver/alu base for the dayglo? Me thinks it should cover nicely the camo.
19 January 2022, 18:38
Thomas KolbBernd, exactly so! Heller's instructions are rubbish, the camo pattern absolutely doesn't add up from left to right. In the end I went for a mix from photos of several different aircraft. It may not be precisely right, but looks reasonable.
19 January 2022, 22:02
Thomas KolbŁukasz, I think I managed to find the right dayglo color by mixing Tamiya Flat Red with Mr Hobby 98 Fluorescent Orange. Sprayed on a flat white base, it covers the camo perfectly. But masking those dayglo fields so they are perfectly symmetrical is really, really difficult, I wish they had been provided as decals.
20 January 2022, 05:55
Erik De SmetThomas, you could spray the dayglo paint on white decals sheet and cut out the parts you need
20 January 2022, 07:46
Bernd GrünPerfect build! It's always a pleasure to see the progress in your builds. Cheers Thomas.
20 January 2022, 08:36
Thomas KolbRobert thanks, it's a pig of a kit really. I was really hoping that Tarangus would make a 1:72 scale version of their Safir kit, but it doesn't seem to be happening.
20 January 2022, 14:23
Spanjaardamazing job everywhere. looking at that cockpit (fantastic job to get it to fit!), i wonder why not cut it in two with a thin saw, and then cut again in two pieces, to remove the material in the center-line instead of the sides. the cut that area will be painted and it will require a lot less work since you do not need to polish it back to perfect transparency. you could even have one of the windows open after that. just an idea (too late, i know)
20 January 2022, 14:33
Spanjaardof course, if the cockpit was scratched, then maybe there was no other choice than what you did.
20 January 2022, 14:34
Thomas KolbSpanjaard, that could indeed have worked. I originally planned to have the windows open, but the plastic is as thick like a medieval castle wall. The canopy is indeed the weakest point of this kit. A stupid solution to mold it as a one piece part.
20 January 2022, 15:00
bughunterGreat paint job 👍
Thanks for the trick with press down the masks with the tooth stick!
20 January 2022, 15:47
CuajeteGood job with the dayglo panels, Thomas!
In your tests, did you evaluate if the effect would fade when you apply the pre and post varnish to the decals?
20 January 2022, 18:37
Thomas KolbCuajete, I am not sure I understand. The dayglo panels are just sprayed on, they are not decals.
20 January 2022, 19:13
CuajeteThomas, will you cover the entire model with protective varnish or will you cover the entire surface except those dayglo panels?
20 January 2022, 19:24
Thomas KolbUsually I coat the model with glossy varnish before adding the decals and doing some weathering. Afterwards I add a flat or semi-gloss varnish to seal everything. I plan to do the same on this model, dayglo and all.
20 January 2022, 20:39
Spanjaardhow many kits have we seen with that kind of error, Thomas? 😉 they certainly look thick! 🙂
20 January 2022, 20:44
Thomas KolbDecals applied, some mild weathering applied and flat coat sprayed on... well, I think this project is finished and all that remains is to post some pictures. For some reason I goofed up a lot on this build. Not sure why... it annoys me, because I know I can do better. But, since I have another of these little kits in the stash, maybe I will build it again in a not too distant future.
23 January 2022, 11:06
Robert PodkońskiWow, so it is a kind of a sentimental journey, Thomas! That's really fantastic you were actually piloting a Saphir!
23 January 2022, 11:13
Thomas KolbRobert indeed, I was young and life was limitless. These days, not so much.
23 January 2022, 11:31
Robin (WhiteGlint)A very nice teaser, Thomas. 👍
Looking forward to more daylight pictures. 🙂
23 January 2022, 13:12
Robert PodkońskiOn final photos your Saphir looks absolutely awesome, Thomas! Congrats.
23 January 2022, 14:31
Rui SSo many important information, and a beautifully made model in the end. Great as always 👍
23 January 2022, 16:22
Moreno BaruffiniI totally agree with the above, especially concerning the information and the beautiful finish!
23 January 2022, 17:03
Thomas KolbThank you very much, gentlemen! But honestly, I think I can do better, I made too many mistakes with this kit.
23 January 2022, 17:13
Rui SI'm quit sure you can do better. But mistakes happen and make we all learn with them 😉
Nevertheless great work & most informative album 👍
23 January 2022, 17:21
Bernd KorteThe beauty is that, once you've passed a certain level, which you have without question, most of the mistakes are only noticed by yourself.
23 January 2022, 17:23
Thomas KolbThank you! I am happy to have salvaged this kit from the shelf of shame where it lingered for over a year!
23 January 2022, 18:43
István SzücsYes, you made it! I watch the whole project from the beginning, and it was good to see your fight with this old kit. The result is awesome, congrats!
23 January 2022, 19:23
Daniel Klinkfantastic project and the outcome speaks for itself...
Wonderful work Thomas 👍
23 January 2022, 20:24
Robin (WhiteGlint)You turned this kit into a beautiful little piece of art. 👍
24 January 2022, 07:16
NeulingMission accomplished! For me there is no mistake visible, just a beautiful model.
24 January 2022, 16:48
CuajeteIt seems to me that the result is a beautiful and really charming model 🙂 👍.
Congrats!
24 January 2022, 19:31
Charlie Spitfirewow i love it i want to build it do you by any chance know where i could find this in new zealand
28 January 2022, 05:54
Thomas KolbAll of you, thank you for your encouraging words! I am pleased that you liked it!
28 January 2022, 11:32
Thomas KolbCharlie, I am sorry, I am not familiar with where you can buy a model kit in New Zealand. Surely you can order from a web shop?
28 January 2022, 11:33
Moreno Baruffini@Charli: usually eBay is a good place for these kits! Have a look 😉
28 January 2022, 12:01
CuajeteI think Scalemates has a store locator, although I don't think all of them are.
28 January 2022, 20:11
CuajeteIn New Zeland:
scalemates.com/shops/?q=*&am..ops&fkCOUNTRY[]=%22NZ%22
You will have to search if they have this kit... Or call.
28 January 2022, 20:14
Charlie Spitfirei could cheek it out for later builds at the moment my mum wont let me get any more models as i have 13 waiting for me to build them plus my go to brand is airfix but i appreciate you help
28 January 2022, 20:17
CuajeteBuild your models before you buy more, Charlie. You still are at time. Don't be tempted to stock so many kits that you won't be able to build in 3 lives, like many of us, 😄
28 January 2022, 20:43
Robin (WhiteGlint)Yes, please take that advice to heart, Charlie. 😄
Besides, to me it feels like the more kits you have the harder is it to choose the next one from your stash you want to build.
28 January 2022, 21:45
Riho SakritsIduno, is it connected by blood (my grandmam was swed), or our Estonian good remembering from good old Sweden times, but three crown decals look very good for me! 😄
8 February 2022, 01:32
Thomas KolbRiho, that is possible! 🙂 I think those blue-yellow three crowns insignias looked very pretty, the modern grayscale version is a bit meh.
8 February 2022, 14:32
Michael KohlYes, the swedish insignia definitely have a charme to it - especially on a Viggen or a Draken. 😉
Nice model you rolled out, Thomas. The satin finish is really special.
8 February 2022, 17:58
