Savoia S.65 Schneider Cup - Modified Karaya 1/72 resin

The exceptional lines of the Savoia S.65 are a sheer delight, and although it never delivered what it promised, and did not actually compete in the Schneider Cup, the mere act of contemplating it is a source of aviation bliss.

Karaya is a firmly established model manufacturer with a wide catalog that includes, to my delight, many Schneider planes. Karaya's reputation is good, but apparently my first encounter with their products was unfortunate, as I purchased a sadly inaccurate S.65.

To start to make this flawed look like the real thing, the following was done:

-Correct the spurious cut out on the fuselage top and sides, restoring the correct, continuous shape

-Install the side windows, deleting the spurious extra radiators (located above the correct fuselage radiators)

-Correct the shape of the elevator horn balances

-Add the headrest

-Correct the wrong position of the insertion of the float struts into the fuselage bottom

-Substitute the ridiculous resin butt-joined booms for metal inserted ones

-Correct the mistakes on the rigging

-Revise position of "V" struts at the end of the floats, moving them back as per photos

-Add boom fairings that continue on top and bottom of the elevator

I am sure there were others, but that should be entertainment enough.

A seemingly nice kit, certainly nicely molded and with good detail, completely let down by its many very visible inaccuracies. And not just minutia: blatant mistakes made absolutely obvious just by looking at photos of the original plane.

The list is too long, but you may like to have a look at my many encounters during the build with frustrating errors, and to add insult to injury an engineering that left a lot to be desired, and not particularly accurate decals:

https://wingsofintent.blogspot.com/2019/12/well-i-just-got-this-one-from-santa-and.html

Still, propelled by the sheer beauty of the type, some modifications were made, parts replaced with better ones, engineering revised, and many details corrected to obtain a model that if still not totally accurate, at least resembles much closely the original.

This is a missed opportunity: such fantastic plane, and a kit that came too short, not sure why, as the general quality of the parts (accuracy and engineering apart) is good.

The modifications to obtain a more credible model are too involving, and I wouldn't have done it if I knew from the start the challenges, but I started blinded by the good reputation of the manufacturer (whose other kits reputedly are accurate and nice to build). So I went on, feeling bad about trashing a kit of such beautiful plane that besides cost a pretty penny.

So here are the results of much huffing and puffing, and having to continually look at references in order no to fall into accuracy traps.

A paradigm of Italian design that produced a very stylized racer, and, if nothing else, a wonderful "oggetto d'arte".