Helicopter Canopies

Why change the cabin transparency

Glazing is the largest optical surface on a helicopter model. An injection-moulded clear part tends to have thick walls that distort, and a seam line down the middle. A vacuum-formed canopy is drawn from thin clear film: it does not distort, it looks in scale, and on machines with bulged transparencies such as the Hind or the Cobra it brings out a shape the plastic part only suggests. Thin film has a practical advantage too — it flexes as you seat it, so it can be pressed home without the cracks a brittle moulded part so often produces. The cockpit beneath it then deserves finishing with further helicopter model accessories.

Choosing and working a canopy

Which kit it fits

A canopy follows the fuselage of one particular kit, so the intended moulding is named in the title. Many items contain two pulls, which gives you a spare attempt. On older subjects, check whether you are holding a reissued tooling — the fuselage shape may have changed slightly.

Open or closed

For machines with sliding or hinged doors, pick by how you intend to present the model: the open version shows the interior, the closed one keeps the fuselage line clean. An open cabin does need a detailed interior behind it, or it simply advertises an empty space.

Cutting out and gluing

Cut with a small margin, bring the edge down by sanding and dry-fit before anything else. Use a glue that does not fog clear parts — white PVA or a dedicated canopy adhesive; cyano can haze the film. Polish the canopy with a soft cloth before fitting and the clarity improves again.

What goes with them

• 1:72 helicopter canopies — the widest choice of types
• Canopy masks — for spraying the frames cleanly
• Glues — kind to clear parts
• Modelling tools — for cutting film accurately

A thin transparency shows its worth most on small 1:72 helicopter kits, where a tenth of a millimetre of wall decides the whole impression.