Academy UH-1D Huey (Vietnam) 1:35 – build review

Price: Varies mine was £19.99 from Mr Models
Reviewer: Les Venus

Want to get in the mood? Check this out

Background

OK it’s one week before the Nationals (sorry IPMS Scale Model World 2010) and there we are at my club, SLAM, dress-rehearsing our display for the show, which this year was to be largely Vietnam War themed for which I had already produced the MiG-17 (1:32nd scale Trumpeter) and ACH-47A Chinook (1:48th Italeri) both of which you may have seen in SMN. So I thought my “work here is done” until someone piped up, I’m not sure who but trust me I will hunt him down.., “we haven’t got a bloody Huey, that can’t be right surely”. A chorus goes up around the room with “good grief no it can’t does anyone have one in the stash”? Now I was always the kid in class that thought the teacher was talking to me when this sort of question came up and I can hear myself now piping up “I’ve got the 35th Academy in the loft……………” Smiles all around as the view was that I could knock it up in time for the ‘Nats’ that following Friday!!!! And, do you know what I said, yes I could and Geoff, of course taking his moment beautifully, says oh yes and don’t forget to write it up for SMN too!!! Where’s the European Human Rights Convention now eh?  So here I am and the question is… did I do it?

Off we go

OK before you wonder, I forgot to photograph the box but the Academy Kit in its various guises has been around for years so should be familiar.  What’s inside is substantial and includes a superb Eduard sourced etch set some of which is pre-coloured.  I used only box components as time was really not on my side!  The instructions are clear and mostly logical but it’s easy to make mistakes with the fit of some small parts so look twice and glue once is my suggestion…………not always my action!  Decals are excellent and have a great range of choices mostly Vietnam based.

Read on…