1:35 Bell UH-1Y Venom - Canopy and Insignia Masks Set (for Academy 12138 Kit)

The Huey That Kept Only the Name

The UH-1Y Venom looks like a continuation of the legendary family from Vietnam, but it has surprisingly little in common with it. It came out of the program to modernize the helicopters of the Marine Corps, it shares most of its components with the AH-1Z Viper attack helicopter and it carries a four-blade composite rotor instead of the two-blade teetering rotor by which its predecessor could be recognized from its sound. It entered service in 2008 and replaced the twin-engine UH-1N.

Two things in one set

The masks for this machine solve two problems at once. First the glazing: the cabin of the helicopter has large curved windows separated by narrow frames, which are miserable to outline with a brush and which masking tape will not form around a double curve at all. Second the national insignia and lettering, which can be sprayed instead of applied as a decal - the edge of a sprayed marking then lies in the same plane as the surrounding paint and there is no glossy border of carrier film shining anywhere.

What to watch out for

Spray the frames of the glazing in the interior color before you move on to the outer finish; on curved windows the frame is visible from inside. The insignia masks call for a perfectly smooth surface, or the paint will creep underneath. And because a masked marking is sprayed only after the base color of the machine, plan the order of the work in advance, including when you will lay down gloss varnish under any additional decals.

A helicopter in 1:35 scale is no small model, at that: the rotor disc alone is more than forty centimeters across and the thin blade spars will bend at every careless grip. Lay the masking work out so that the model lies on a surface and does not have to be held in your hand, and carry the finished piece by the fuselage only.