Westland's Lynx family has expanded over the years, and HobbyBoss has followed suit with a 1/72 scale kit of the Royal Navy's Super Lynx. The kit includes several parts to build other versions, so study the instructions.
There is plenty of detail, including petite surface features. I'm not convinced that the rear cabin detail is correct for a naval version, since it seems more appropriate for a troop transport. Check your references. Decals are included for two airframes, both nearly identical, and there is a full set of stencils for the helicopter and its weapons load. Speaking of weapons, you have a choice of two types of ASW torpedoes, although the anti-ship Sea Skuas shown on the box art are not included.
The interior builds quickly. I left out the seats in the rear cabin, assuming they are for a land-based, troop-carrying Lynx. You can't see them anyway.
The instrument consoles have molded-on detail, although a smooth set is included as well. Strangely, there are no decals included for the smooth panels. As with most small-scale helicopter kits, the cyclic control stick is missing.
I was pleased with the fit and ease of assembly of the interior. Before adding the nose, I added some weight to ensure my Lynx crouched correctly. The only putty needed on the kit was used to fill seams on the "flat" below the EO sensor. Since most of the Lynx is gray, I mounted as many parts prior to painting as I could, including the landing gear, weapons racks, and antennas. Keep in mind that the landing gear is fully castoring and extends in flight - make sure you mount your Lynx's feet level and compressed unless you plan on a heavy-seas or in-flight diorama. One set of parts I decided to leave off until after painting was the curious clear intake screens (parts K4 and 5). I know why HobbyBoss molded them clear with a crosshatch pattern, but I'm not sure the effect is convincing. I painted mine clear smoke to try and simulate the presence of screens. As stated, no additional putty was needed.
After fitting and masking the windscreen, I researched paint schemes. HobbyBoss suggests an equivalent of dark ghost gray, but this seemed the wrong shade to me. So, after consulting numerous photos, I selected the obvious color for a Royal Navy Lynx - Testors Italian blue gray. OK - maybe not obvious, but I question the HobbyBoss callout. You be the judge.
The decals went down great with a little coaxing from a decal solvent. Even the tail-rotor stripes behaved and folded nicely around the blades. I was pleasantly surprised by how easily and accurately the simulated green flotation bags conformed to the molded-on detail. After I applied weathering and attached the finished torpedoes and rotors, my Lynx was ready to prowl.
I spent 15½ hours on the Lynx, much of it painting, finishing, and decaling. I think HobbyBoss has done a great job capturing this animal with an easily assembled, well-detailed kit.
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