Italeri 1/48 AC-130

[john i am]

That's a big n Dave and one mean machine. Looking forward to seeing this come together. Good luck with it cheers John

[Guest]

I've just had a closer look at the guns Paul. I suspect I have 2x40mm, 2 Vulcans and 2 miniguns. I know some gunships had a 105mm but I don't think this version is one of them as I have three pairs of identical guns, and the 105mm would definitely look different to the others.

I’ve never built it, but from old Italeri catalogs, I seem to recall this kit represents a relatively early type, from before the M102 105 mm howitzer was installed but after the initial conversions that had miniguns and 20 mm cannon only. Basically, the main type used in Vietnam.

It shouldn’t be that hard to modify the kit to have an M102, though, at least if you’re not putting in the interior bits for it as well.

[Lee Drennen]

That’s a Big Bird! Dave looks like you’ve drawn a crowd on this one great work so far

[scottie3158]

Dave,
Chair pulled up will watch with interest.

[Gern]

Praise where it's due folks! I ordered a replacement set of decals direct from Italeri last week (along with a set of figures).

I sent my payment late on Wednesday night and my parcel has just arrived from Italy. That's pretty good service - which seems to be getting more and more rare nowadays. Congratulations to Italeri for their good work.

PS Now I have no excuses for not finishing the build! I'll have more pics probably tomorrow. I'm also sure I've solved the problem of fixing the guns after the main build - instead of early which would leave them vulnerable to my clumsy hands! I'll be trying my solution later today I hope.

[Jim R]

Hi Dave
Don't think I've seen a plastic kit that big before. Certainly need that tape and clamps. Glad the fit is fine. Any thoughts on displaying the beast?

Overall it looks like a Hercules to me and that's good enough.

I'll bet it will look great when complete :thumb2:
Jim

[rtfoe]

Hi Dave, got the J version in the stash and haven't see it since putting it away in 2006. I hate the whirly six blade propellers that come with it and am thinking of asking Italeri for the four blade props and nacelles of the earlier H versions. Nice to know Italeri service is good. You're gonna ask why I got that in the first place, well I got it free, part of cash prize winnings.

It is big and fat. Always wanted to do a stretched version. Will watch your build closely.

Cheers,
Richard

[Gern]

Easier than I thought.

Here's the layout of the guns



Italeri would have you install all the guns before the main deck is even fitted into the fuselage. A clumsy oaf like me would have no trouble breaking off the barrels long before the build is complete so:

Before



After



I cut off the barrels and drilled a small hole in the end and another in the breech. A small piece of wire to strengthen the join and a dab of CA will enable me to fix the barrels at the very end of the build.

Now if I can just avoid stabbing myself with the wires again .....

Italeri have supplied some rather vague pieces to represent the interior. I'm going to have a go at something better, but don't expect accurate features. All I have to go on are the pictures that Paul kindly posted. Eyes down, look in .....

[minitnkr]

Excellent solution. Guns look well detailed. Shame they didn't detail the supporting equipment. PaulE

[minitnkr]

Some inside shots. Bottom drawing shows additional details like crew stations, ammo routing/bunkers & countermeasure stowage.
Sim gunner stations.

Sim looking through to lowered rear door, not your version, or very helpful.

Gunner stations within insulated crew compartment.

Twin 40mm just outside crew compartment

Looks closer to your version, just replace rear big gatlings w/40mms

All pics are for discussion only. PaulE

[Guest]

Plenty of pictures to be found on Google by searching for [ICODE]AC-130 gunship interior[/ICODE] and going to the image results.

[Gern]

You're right Jakko thanks. I've found loads of images - and almost every one shows a different layout. I guess with something this big, they're always trying out new equipment and layouts. I think the only two things they have in common are lots and lots of dials, instruments and switches and enough cable to supply all the cable needs of a small town!

I've had a rummage through my spares box and found lots of bits that could be userful. I've had a very pleasant day today putting stuff together to detail out the interior. What I've got doesn't match any of the images I've seen, but it sure does make it look busy in there! I have an old biscuit tin full of assorted wires so I'll be adding plenty once I've got the basic shapes sorted. Pictures hopefully tomorrow.

Warning! Those who like their kits to be as accurate as possible should stop watching this thread now. I'd hate to upset you with my work of fiction spoiling the looks of a perfectly good aeroplane!

[Guest]

My brother used to spend a lot of time in the back of a Hercules (not the gunship!) and he reckoned they were always changing them around, so whatever you do was probably accurate at one point in time lol.

[Gern]

Oh well, it was fun while it lasted.

Got the basics done and fitted them into the fuselage to make sure everything fit OK. No problems with the fit, but after all that, what can you see? Naff all, that's what you can see!

What's the absolute minimum I need for a small light set up inside? Please bear in mind I know b****r all about electrics, but I was thinking of two tiny bulbs front and rear and hiding a tiny battery and switch in the flare box that fits on the rear ramp. The inside dimensions of the box are 15mm wide, 26mm long and 19mm deep. If I can get a switch and battery in there, I can make a simple mock up of a canvas cover over the box to hide them. There's no issue with the wiring as the real thing has got wires and cables everywhere so they don't need to be hidden.

This is what I've got so far:

[Guest]

You're right Jakko thanks. I've found loads of images - and almost every one shows a different layout. I guess with something this big, they're always trying out new equipment and layouts.

It probably also doesn’t help us modellers that there ar a good number of variants and most of those seem to have subvariants again, so you’re going to have to put in a lot of effort sorting them out if your intention is to build a specific one. Or you can just make something that gives the right appearance.

after all that, what can you see? Naff all, that's what you can see!

I see a Humvee bumper

What's the absolute minimum I need for a small light set up inside?

A battery, an LED, and probably a resistor to make sure the LED doesn’t burn through prematurely. You may also want to add in a switch so you can turn the whole thing on and off. If you want, I can supply more of the theory needed to work out what you need in terms of resistors etc.

I was thinking of two tiny bulbs front and rear and hiding a tiny battery and switch in the flare box that fits on the rear ramp. The inside dimensions of the box are 15mm wide, 26mm long and 19mm deep. If I can get a switch and battery in there

A small watch battery will fit fine in there¹ with room to spare for a small switch, I would think.

I wouldn’t go for normal, old-fashioned light bulbs, though. LEDs need far less power, making them last much longer on a small battery, they don’t get as hot (this could be important in a plastic model) and pretty much will never burn through.

¹ Bonus tip: Numerical designations of these batteries tell you their size. The first pair of digits is the diameter in millimetres, the second pair is the thickness in tenths of a millimetre. For example, the very common 2032 battery is 20 mm in diameter and 3.2 mm thick, a 1620 is 16 mm across and 2.0 mm thick, and so on. You won’t even need to find one and measure it to work out if it will fit in a given space on a model.