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Who said that two objects can't occupy the same space at the
same time?
(The step by step building article is here:
https://wingsofintent.blogspot.com/2021/09/gulfstream-g-450-172nd-welsh-modedls.html
My dear friend David the Logarithmically Tall flew in the
real plane and wanted a model of it. In order to replicate the version intended,
G-450, since it doesn't exist in natural state in the modeling 1/72nd universe,
two kits had to be combined: Amodel's Gulfstream G-550 and Welsh Models' Gulfstream
IV (in its C-20G boxing). I hereby freely and willingly declare my almost total
ignorance on the matter, or any jet matter, in fact. And I wish to remain as
ignorant as possible, since it is not within the envelope of my modeling
interests. Give me a Farman Jabiru any day.
I can't really write a fair review of either of the two kits
involved in this endeavor, as I combined parts of the two, but I am familiar
with Amodel, as I built some of their kits, and I must say that they are not the
friendliest to build, but they do
have an array of very interesting and truly appealing subjects, if many times with
some issues: ill or indifferent fit, plenty of inconvenient engineering,
absence in many cases of locating devices, accuracy issues, and too often
puzzling or vague instructions. Being completely uninterested in jets as I mentioned,
can't comment much either on Welsh Models, but I am thoroughly familiar with
resin and vac kits and multimedia releases, and I also have built a great deal
of them. If you are willing to put the hours and the effort, you will end up
with a nice model, provided you have enough experience. Welsh Models vac parts
have surface detail and a good, convenient gage; the resin parts are fair, but need
a small degree of filling and re-working; the kit has no instructions
whatsoever. The white metal parts in general are good and well defined, and
have nice detail, but in contrast the instrument console is crude, and the
solution for the (clear vac) cockpit transparencies is not very practical, plus
there are no cabin windows provided, only decals for them. No real
interlocking, or locating devices, or securing means are offered, assuming I
think that the buyer will be experienced enough to provide the necessary engineering
solutions. So be prepared for the extra engineering and work, and no little
head-scratching. I tend to be lenient with a cottage endeavor like Welsh
Models, but I expect more from an established company like Amodel, that has greater
resources. Neither kit provides masks, but the Amodel kit has a few P.E. parts.
So far my personal nitpickings, and yet, you can see an encouraging number of
Amodel and Welsh releases made into very nice models on the Net, so it can
surely be done if in able hands.
Due to the high amount of kit surgery needed to be
performed, I -needless to say- ended up with much more that I had bargained for
(when the project started, my friend thought that the Amodel kit was the right
variant, but, of course, it wasn't), which consumed much more time and effort
than either kit alone would had, so I ended up enacting a strange version of "Dances
With Sandsticks", not very happily, if I may add.
To add interest, I opened the cabin door and fabricated some
of the interior to the extent it could be seen from the entrance, and acquired
a wonderfully detailed aftermarket 3D-printed stair. The same company,
Click2detail -in Shapeways-, offers cabin and cockpit transparencies and flaps,
if you really want to go to town.
This time-consuming, kit-crossing, detail-adding enterprise
produced what I think is a fair representation of the type and -at least to me-
a credible model, being this my first corporate jet. Sometimes, for some reason
or other, we extend our subject horizons, and thus get involved in some curious
modeling adventures. This time we were fortunate enough to get away from the
Knights Who Say "Ni!".
My gratitude to friend and fellow modeler Christos Psarras
and his unsinkable dogs, who provided important input for the build (I am referring
to the dogs, of course), and to Mika Jernfors of Arctic Decals for producing
the wonderful sets that save many of my builds from oblivion.
From these two kits the new bird arose:
A bit of the interior was scratched to reveal a partial interior with the opened door:
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