1/72 Italeri SH-60B Seahawk

Gallery Article by Jason Wolfe

Hello, my name is Jason Wolfe and I'm new to the ARC. I have been building scale models since I was ten years old, and I enjoy them now more than ever. I particularly enjoy building U.S. Navy aircraft and helicopters. I recently finished a 1/72 SH-60B Seahawk helicopter (Italeri). Here are a few photos and notes:

All of the pieces from the kit fit together well. To eliminate seam lines, I like to run thin strips of masking tape parallel to the seam on both sides (to protect areas adjacent to the seam), and lightly sand the seam with 400-grit, 600-grit, and finally 1200-grit sandpaper. This virtually eliminates the seam and leaves a polished finish.

I applied a light coat of Testor's white primer before the paint. I like the white primer because I can see the final colors better during airbrushing. (Try applying Dark Ghost Gray over a coat of GREY primer! You can't tell which is the new paint!) I airbrushed most of the Seahawk with Light Ghost Gray.

Click on images below to see larger images

Detailing is my favorite part of the build. I painted the tires with a grey-black paint rather than straight flat black- it gives a more realistic appearance in my opinion. I painted the rotor assemblies with Steel and applied a black wash to highlight the shadows and details. I also applied the wash to small vents, gears, and wheel hubs. I filled in small indentations and holes with a fine-point black marker.  The Seahawk carries a Mk-60 torpedo and magnetic anomaly detector (MAD) on the starboard side. I free-handed the red and yellow colors on the MAD because it was so tiny.

I used a graphite pencil with a very sharp point for the panel lines. Finally, I applied pastel chalks with a Q-tip over the panel lines to further highlight them. (Most art stores carry a grey-tone pastel kit for around $6.00, which is great for modelers!) I was really pleased with the chalk weathering and final finish.