Hobbycraft's 1/72 DHC Caribou - a tale of detailing and correction by Scott Hemsley

Many reviews on the kit, have appeared in print: as in modeling magazines via staff contributor's; in national IPMS publications, such as IPMS/Canada's Random Thoughts; on-line, in the form of webpage review-style, articles or even just as posts on rec.models.scale. Most, if not all, have dealt with the kit, from an out-of-the-box standpoint, while helpful in the kits' overall construction, overlooks, IMHO, those 'extras' which I feel would not only enhance the basic kit, but correct basic errors. However, I didn't set out to construct the ultimate Caribou , but rather make the changes I felt were needed and have fun, in the process. Having said that, I can unconditionally say, that goal was met!

The kit I began with, was Hobbycraft's `RCAF/UN' DHC Caribou (kit #HC1344) & for me, the kit was a pleasant surprise, considering their previous `original' 1/72 releases. Based on the Mk.1 Eyeball, various `true' profile photos (as opposed to angled shots) and photocopies of DHC `shop drawings' - at least one set in 1/72, I concluded the overall outline was quite accurate. As for the dimensions (multiple publications can't even agree, although the differences are usually an inch or two), fall within the most commonly cited & acceptable, measurements. Note, AFAIK, both of Hobbycraft's Caribou; (HC1343) `Vietnam' Caribou & (HC1344) `RCAF/UN' Caribou are identical, except for decal options.

I feel the kit, in general, presents one with the same amount of challenge of, say, an Airfix kit of the mid-late sixties. Quite buildable OOTB, but one that could use some `extras' in an attempt to bring it up to something approaching `to-days' standards. Therefore, it is not my intention to review the basic kit, but rather attempt to provide an account of `adding those extras'.

References: I must admit, when I got the kit, I didn't have a whole bunch of references, other than the odd 'ex-DND' photo (`rescued' from destruction as it was declared `obsolete or on-line `sources), as well as those that appeared in the few publications I had - but nothing taken with a modeller in mind. Once I began poking around, I found what can be termed, 'a wealth of information' - some of which is on-line. So in no particular order of favoritism, I present my gathered references:

• Jane's Pocketbook of Military Transport and Training Aircraft (John Taylor, 1974), Library of Congress catalog card number 73-15288

• Canadian Aircraft since 1909 (K.M.Molson/H.A.Taylor) ISBN 0-920002-11-0

• C-7 Caribou in action (Squadron/Signal Publications)

• Scale Aircraft Modeling; vol.19, no. 12 (February 1998)

• Air Enthusiast; March/April 1998, no. 74

• IPMS/Canada `Random Thoughts'; vol.19, no.2

• Flight Manual, C-7A (T.O. 1C-7A-1) .... a photocopy of the first chapter.

• (Capt.) Peter A. Bird's homepage, `Petester's USAF...' (can't say enough about his page and his photos) .... former DHC Caribou (C-7) pilot with the 535th TAS, stationed at Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam

• A few (5 to be exact) personal B&W detail shots of a C-7 as it appeared at a past London (as in Ontario, Canada) International Airshow, plus an obsolete Dept of Defense photo of my subject aircraft

Preliminary Notes: Just a few words before going any further. I will be mentioning 'thinned putty' in my notes. For those unfamiliar with this, it's just that.. tube putty, thinned with some medium. For putty, I prefer using a Auto Body 'Glazing & Spot Putty', made under the brand of Motomaster, marketed in Canada by the Canadian Tire chain. As far as thinning goes, Testor's Liquid glue, is what I use. As for the application of the putty, I use a simple flat toothpick. Other items I used are: M.V. Products model RR lenses (LS600 size), Evergreen brand strip styrene, both .015x.060" (.4x1.5mm) & .010x.030" (.25x.75mm) plus various thicknesses of sheet plastic. I also used a piece of Model Technologies screening, I had lying around. Seat belts were provided by a 'surplus' Airwaves sheet - specifically for the F-101B (I used the True Details resin seats on the '101, but that's a different story...). While, not technically correct, they adequately convey the right impression. Not alot of expensive aftermarket, here.

........ so make with the building, already? ... oh, all right ....

Wings: Start with gluing the halves together, then.....

A word about the Engines & Nacelles: Parts C5 could stand some swipes of the round file. They look alot better when they're thinned to a more acceptable `scale' appearance.

Replace the kit engines. The Caribou had a double bank P&W R-2000 - total of 14 cylinders, not the 18 as in the kit. It's totally up to you, if the replacement is necessary, but IMHO, if modeling a late Caribou, like a C-7 (spinnerless), replacement would be worth it, particularly if you're the type of modeler who likes to detail their radial engines with a super paint job. Aftermarket resin is available from Engines & Things (#72011), or raid the parts box for something suitable. I ended up using some spare Italeri B-25 engines with the gearbox of the Caribou engine, removed from the kit part & grafted onto the B-25 engines. May not be technically correct, but it looks right & serves my purpose.

Referring to the 'Petester's detail photos ( ) of the area in question, items to notice (add) are the screen for the engine oil cooler (Jane's has a great `inflight', showing the smaller screens on a Caribou Mk.1A nacelles) & the Carburetor air inlet duct (open in the first of the above mentioned photos, closed in the second) - this later item is just a rectangular depression in the kit moldings; the inspection light (outboard on both cowls) using model RR lenses; & in the case of the Mk.1A's/CV-2, five airflow strakes on the large flat area behind the augmentor tubes. Notice the vertical seam formed by the cowling & the nacelle, proper. The kit join can be made well enough that when hit with primer, it just appears as another finely scribed panel line. No putty, just liquid glue. Also note, the upper profile of the cowling/nacelle - not as 'peaked' as in the kit. so use a file for this, but ensure you don't go through the plastic or change the angle of the slope on the cowlings!

Fuselage: The fuselage, per say, doesn't require much. With reference to the line drawings in publications like 'C-7 Caribou in action', or the afore mentioned issue of Random Thoughts, a few panel lines will have to be filled, while more should be added (Figure 1). Not only, IMO, does their presence improve the overall kit appearance, but with regard to the side para doors, it actually corrects these features. The doors are much too tall. By correcting some panel lines & adding others, the correct size/shape of the doors will become evident. I also replaced the molded door hinges with something more representative. Much later in the construction - the addition of the various scoops /outlets as seen on the fuselage, principally in the area of the forward fuselage & the two exhausts, on the upper fuselage.

1. Either perform the required surgery to achieve a full span upper wing (I did it with a 1/72 Italeri C-130E, so I know it can be done), or just insert wing spars. Even with the full-span surgery, I strongly suggest the use of wing spars. My preference is the brass `square tubing', although in the case of the Caribou, bending it my prove a bit of a problem.
2. employ the use of additional tabs (use a reasonable thickness of sheet plastic, remembering these are for strength) in an interlocking pattern, along the fuselage seam and
3. fabricate a cargo floor and roof to add rigidity to the fuselage. The assembled result is quite the rugged & rigid fuselage.

Cockpit & Canopy: This area could almost classify as it's own division, but instead, consider it a part of the fuselage mods.

1. First up is the canopy ... incorrect framing! When viewed in photos that show the top framing, the Caribou had an asymmetrical appearance, due to the presence of a hatch, in the aft section of the canopy, on the port side. The kit has incorrectly provided a frame on the starboard side, giving the aft canopy panels a symmetrical look. This will have to be removed, first by scrapping, then sanding with some fine grades of 'wet & dry', followed by your favorite polishing technique. Mine was picking a program on the History Channel & polishing the canopy in circular motions, on my denim jeans - no polishing compound, just the jeans! My preference was to remove the frames on both sides & reconstructing the hatch frame (with more visually correct proportions) via the styrene strip (the wider of my two choices), using Humbrol's Clear-Fix to secure the frame, without damaging the transparency. Any excess glue can be completely removed with the ever-useful, flat toothpick.

2. NOW THE COCKPIT! Due to the transparent expanse of the Caribou's cockpit, the cockpit is very noticeable in the OOTB built-up kits I've seen. Looking at the C-7 manual, one can easily see the general layout of the cockpit. The backs of the seats should be at the aft vertical canopy frame. The kit seats are too far back, in any case. Figure 4 provides a view of the crew positions in the cockpit. The instrument panel should be against the forward canopy frame, not sitting well back, as per the kit. My solution was to fabricate a full aft bulkhead, from sheet plastic to be mounted in the same location as the kit part (C21), along with a short floor. The flight deck (part C20) was cut immediately after the after location `bar' & located with the seat back in the required position (well forward of the kit's intended position). The locating holes for the control yokes & the instrument panel will require filling. Don't worry about the 'forward' position of the center console. This was moveable (for/aft) to facilitate the entry of crew members onto the flight deck. Unless you are planning to populate the flight deck, the position of the console, was usually forward. Back to the layout.... a vertical wall, from the flight deck, to that floor was also fabricated from sheet styrene. The resulting depressed area is filled with various electronics as shown in the cockpit layout.

3. Finally, I shortened the nose wheel door & drilled out the single landing light. Another RR lens was inserted, for that final touch.

Finish: My chosen scheme is for #5322 of the RCAF, as it appeared while on UN duties in the Mideast, circa 1960. Attractive as the kit's suggested scheme is for #5320, it my research and the questionable inaccuracies of the kit decals, plus the lack of aftermarket replacements, that persuaded me not to model #5320. Notably, the large "UN" on the rear fuselage and the United nations titles on the nose. Research had revealed both to be in a dark blue, almost a roundel blue, not black, as the kit prints the large "UN". When it wore the large "UN" on the rear fuselage, the nose titles were of the same dark blue (comparision of the 'UN',RCAF roundel & the black a/c number, in the B&W photo on pg. 579 of the SAM, suggests the 'UN' was close to the insignia blue of the roundel & and not black as others have suggested). With not having the 'UN' nor the 'UN titles' in this dark colour, the decision was made to opt for #5322 - with all 'UN' markings in the afore mentioned traditional blue of the UN. However, photographic evidence suggests the schemes for the three aircraft were exactly standardized and that the UN scheme 'evolved'. I would suggest consulting photos of the specific "UN" Caribou you wish to model. I should also point out, that for whatever reason, #5320, was the only one of the three, NOT to have the black de-icing boots on the stabilizers (just in case anyone decides to model it).

Other Areas....... (things left for the next one?): A couple of areas I thought could have been addressed were the wing flap hinges (oversimplified & of approximate shape) and the cargo ramp. A feature of a static Caribou, opening the ramp would have meant a complete detailing of the cargo interior - something of which I lacked both references & resources. There was a review of the DHC Caribou in a issue of the French modeling magazine, Replic (I just browsed it, not noting the issue) in which the ramp was opened, so it can be done, but I personally feel that even with the amount that was done by the article's author, much more was required - such as corrections to the cockpit layout (which he chose to ignore).

Summary: I thoroughly enjoyed this project. For me, it was fun & that's the object of this hobby. While I elected to add detail to the kit, it must be remembered, that it can look reasonably good, just OOTB. The Caribou is not the most documented aircraft, so however you elect to do your kit, I hope that this effort at documenting my Caribou project, will in some way assist you, in your own project, be it OOTB, 'enhancing the kit', or some degree of additional detailing.

... finally.... I would like to offer my thanks to IPMS/Canada, for their consent in allowing me to scan portions of the featured Caribou article, in Random Thoughts, vol.19.no.2 & a special thanks to (Capt., USAF) Peter A. Bird, for all his help & insight into my research, & especially for the foresight to obtain the photos he did, while stationed in Vietnam.