FE Resin's 1/144th CH-46
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The Kit
 Last
month, Will reviewed Academy’s
monster scale (1/48th) CH-46 (Bullfrog). So this month I thought I
would bring the other extreme to the readership. So we’ll take a
look at the FE Resin 1/144th scale CH-46 (Tadpole?).
A few months ago, FE Resin released their
kit of the CH-46 in the “Vietnam War Series”. So what do we
get for our hard earned bucks ? In my opinion, an extremely nice little
kit of an important helicopter, especially to Uncle Sam’s Marines.
The kit consists of approximately 30 parts
in light tan colored resin. Also included is 2 vacform canopies, a sheet
of clear plastic for fuselage windows, a decal sheet featuring HMM-263,
plus an instruction sheet. These kits are not for the beginner, not due
to complexity, just due to the amount of work for clean up and assembly.
I have no doubt in the hands of a master, this would be a dynamite kit.
 The
cockpit area is very well catered for. You get the entry way bulkhead,
2 pilot seats, 2 control handles, and a beautiful instrument panel. As
stated earlier 2 canopies are included in case of a mistake being made
in assembly. The back end is molded hollow, this will allow the AMS modelers
to go nuts with super detailing. The cargo and entry doors are molded
closed, but can be opened without a great deal of effort. 2 .50 caliber
MG’s are included for mounting in these door areas. Also the modeler
will have to drill out the windows and replace them with clear plastic,
or leave them out. This was a  common
practice in Vietnam and later, so study your reference photos. The rotor
blades are thin, and scribed on the top side only, not a big deal in this
scale. The rotor heads are finely molded, but will require special attention
for clean up, so as not to lose the petite details.
The markings supplied are for HMM-263,
South Vietnam 1968. Although not that exotic, they are sufficient. It
would not take a lot for some artist type to provide us with the present
day grey markings used on these birds. In the approximately 40 years this
bird has been in the Marines, there is plenty of choices there for the
 modeler.
The instruction sheet is basically an
exploded view, with a numbered map for part identification. Perhaps not
great, but it is sufficient to get the job accomplished. I can’t
comment on the fit, etc,.yet. I have not jumped into the build as I write
this, but it will happen. Overall, I have to say this is a most welcome
addition to the scale. FE Resin products are getting better, folks, just
keep watching. Yesterday I received
the CH-34 Choctaw, and from what I’ve seen, FE has really produced
a beautiful one here. The quality is definitely improving by leaps and
bounds. ‘Till next time.
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