Scale models



1/350 scale    1/144 scale    1/72 scale    1/48 scale    1/32 scale    DC-130 comments   


1/350 scale

On the Britmodeller forum, Mike 'Bootneck' is building a giant 1/350 scale diorama of a part of Bien Hoa airbase 1966 - 1970. The diorama includes the 100SRW compound. There's a (D)C-130 parked there, but Firebee models have not been added yet.

It took me a bit of searching to recognise the Firebee compound in the present-day Bien Hoa, but it's here: Google Maps 10°58'18.27"N 106°49'16.62"E. The easiest reference point are the four concrete-walled fuel cells, that were between the 100SRW ramp and the big ramp to the west. In the stand-alone version of Google Earth you can view several period photos.



1/144 scale

Corgi issued a 1/144 scale die-cast DC-130 with four Firebee drones in 2004. It is painted as a US Navy DC-130, BuNo 158228 of VC-3 at North Island NAS. It is also rumored that Minicraft's line of 1/144 Hercules kits, that started in 2007, will include a DC-130 one day.



1/72 scale

An overview of the available models in 1/72 scale:



The Italeri Firebee is the best starting point for any version of the Model 124/147/234/255/259. The Airmodel and CzechMaster kits have wing span and sweep problems; the Black Dog has all kinds of problems; the Plusmodel Firebee would be my second choice after the Italeri model. My own conversion of an Italeri 1/72 BQM-34A into an AQM-34L is shown on this page. The photos below shows some of the test models that I built so far from the resin castings and Alps decals.







The required modifications are highly dependent on the version. Some remarks:


Some Firebee underwing stores can be found in other 1/72 kits:



1/48 scale


Some Firebee underwing stores can be found in other 1/48 kits:



1/32 scale


One Firebee underwing store can be found in another 1/32 kit:



DC-130 model comments

Some comments on the Italeri (Testors) 1/72 Hercules model:



Regarding the 1/48 scale version of this kit, the same comments apply. However, only a few aftermarket sets are available:



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