Subject: Re: Apollo 13 Diorama 1st of 3 emails
From: "Submissions for ARC" <[email-masked]>
To: "mick jack" <[email-masked]>
Date: Sat, 8 Jun 2013 12:08:35 -0700

Hi,
I just wanted to let you know your article went on ARC today.  Thanks again for sending it in.

Steve Bamford
ARC Air - Aircraft Resource Center
http://www.arcair.com

Live like there is no tomorrow;
Love like you've never been hurt.
Work like you don't need the money.
Dance like nobody's watching.
Sing like nobody's listening.
Live like it's Heaven on Earth.

  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: mick jack 
  To: steve Bamford 
  Sent: Saturday, May 11, 2013 5:13 AM
  Subject: Apollo 13 Diorama 1st of 3 emails
  Hey Steve from ARC & Frank from ModelArt, I have here all the info & pics for my Apollo 13 build.
   
  20 pics in total, if they did not work or bad quality let me know.
   
  Steve could you make the Image 66,01 the No1 pic, & 66,03 the No2 pic on the site Thanks, the other pics you
  may put as appropriot to what you think. I trust your skills.
   
  Frank if you have any Questions from anything I left out, feel free to email me anytime.
   
  Thanks again guys
   
  Mick Jack

                                                      1/48 Hasagawa Sea King 

                                     OLD 66 With Scratch built Apollo 13 diorama.

                                                  " A SUCCESSFUL FAILURE "

                                                              by Michael Jack
                                                               --------------------

        Steve Bamford will insert full sized version of photo 01.jpg here 

  The Helicopter
  To build my diorama I first purchased the 1/48 scale SH-3D Sea King from Hasagawa with the "OLD 66" markings,  which are rare finds these days. If you cant find one, you can purchase any 1/48 SH-3D Sea King as there is after market decals from Apollo decals (AD4801) or Steel Beach decals. I used a mix of the Apollo decals & the box decals for my build, to get as accurate as possible to 66 at that time period. I  added a cover over the Apollo 13 capsule decal on the stbd nose under the pilots window, as it was revealed after landing on the carrier. The frogman on the cargo door represents the UDT-11 Swimmers, I had to paint by hand as neither decal sheet that I had provided it.(steel beach do)

  As this was my 3rd Sea king build, it went together quick & without any problems. I had to scratch build from evergreen plastic the sonar instrument control panel in the cabin, the seats that run along the port aft side, the yagi antenna on the sponson supports used for apollo communications, the film camera's & cables at the cargo door, & the cockpit side windows. The rear tail rotor blades are brass from Prop Blur. 

  The Navy's most famous Sea King, being instrumental in the recovery of Apollo's 8-10-11-12 & 13. "OLD 66" with bu Nu 152711, is also know as 401. During July & November 1969, US Navy helicopters changed from 2 digit modexes to 3 digit, but because of public relation & familiarization of this helo, 401 was painted over with 66 prior to Apollo 12 & Apollo 13 recoveries, also to note prior to 13 the rotor head, tail & wheel sponson colours went from blue to red, & had an unusual trim line painted on her, as the port side was higher then the stbd. For Apollo's 8-11-12 her trim line was equal mirror image both sides, with the large 66 changing to a smaller size on Apollo's 12 & 13.

  As the Black knights helo 66 was new & far from retirement in the HS-4 squadron fleet of anti submarine hunters, she remained in service instead of becoming a museum piece. Unfortunately in 1975 she was lost in a night training exercise off San Diago while deploying her sonar. The crew survived, but the Pilot Leo Rolek suffered a ruptured spleen and died of his injuries three weeks later. 

  There are several replicas of this chopper in museums & one in particular from the movie Apollo 13 is on the USS Hornet museum & another on USS Midway museum.
        Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 03.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 03.jpg Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 04.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 04.jpg Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 05.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 05.jpg Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 06.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 06.jpg

                                                           The Command Module:
  I could not justify buying the new 1/48 dragon CSM, just to use the CM lower half, as it does not give the option of the top shroud off anyhow. Using blue print plans I made the CM from 1 piece of styrene cut into a semi circle, then cutting out windows & vents first, I warped it into a cone shape & tack glued both ends with a small strip of plastic from the inside & capped off each end with plastic card.

  The inner parachute stowage included around 100 scratch built pieces with the float bags being propellant cylinders from a 1/24 Gemini capsule. Painting the pentagon & hexagon pattern was no easy feat. The CM was then scribed with detailed panel lines & painted with burns from reentry, I then marked out on a copy of my 1/48 CM blue print all the foil left on the capsule. Then reveresd it, placed it on the back of some gold bare metal foil, cut it out & applied to the capsule. A few strokes of silver on areas completed the reentry weathering.

  As the CM is in water the heat shield was not seen or required, I just added a small amount of model putty under the front of the CM to represent this, as the hatch was pulled clear of the water by the straps at the rear. The floatation collar & Raft were made from plastic tube cut into segments & glued together, putty was used to fill gaps.

        Steve Bamford will insert full sized version of photo 02.jpg here 
  The Figures:

  The kit I used for the 66 crew, Apollo 13 astronauts, UDT-11 divers was the US pilot/ground  crew set B from Hasagawa (4805). They were chopped up switched around, melted, fixed with putty. Some faces were cut off & swapped, helmets modified to SPH-3 style of the time. Dive tanks made fom plastic tube, mask & tank straps, lifejackets, made from putty. There are 12 in total as there is a NASA official sitting in the cabin. The yellow Billy Pugh net was also made up of 88 evergreen plastic pieces, with brass rod used for winch cable. The dive camera is also evergreen plastic.

  By Michael Jack 

        Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 07.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 07.jpg Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 08.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 08.jpg Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 09.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 09.jpg Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 10.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 10.jp 

                                                                      The Base:

  I used wood to construct the base at 43cm x 37cm with depth of 4.5cm. I routed a 3mm recess around the top to put the perspex in. I got that from a hardware store as it had a rippled pattern on it like water. I mixed & poured epoxy on the perspex covering it completely about 2mm thick, then using a large brush made small circles from the centre & away from we're the CM & raft were to be positioned & worked outward to the edge with lager circles until epoxy started to harden. 

  More clear epoxy was painted on to raft, collar & CM for helo wash. The inside of the box was painted with dark sea blue & swirls of white to give depth to the scene. Underneath the Perspex I glued the divers legs with fins on, the sea anchor, the parachute made from paper crumpled up with nylon thread to represent the lines. Once water scene was dry I smeared on aqua blue with a rag, Just enough so you can still see through. Then made up more epoxy & drizzled it on in large circles stopping & starting all the way around on each & also around CM, raft, & divers. Once dry smeared on white to the raised areas to represent sea chop & foam. Then mixed up more epoxy this time with a few drops of green in & painted on around CM to represent dye in the water to mark location.

  The Helo stand was made from aluminum bar bent into a curve & screwed to the base, a small opening was made in the helo under the cabin floor. Thanks & enjoy my Diorama of Apollo 13's successful failed voyage From the Earth to the Moon.

        Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 11.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 11.jpg Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 12.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 12.jpg Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 13.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 13.jpg Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 14.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 14.jpg

             
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        Photos and text © by                Michael Jack