Re: 1/72 Sidewinder variations

Nov 23, 2005 4 Replies
R



>
>Last night I was scrounging thru the junkbox looking for some
>Sidewinders. Do you know how hard it is to find matching ones??? Geez!
>I must have found a dozen different variations. Anyone know just how
>many different ones are out there? Any idea which is most accurate?

I recently looked at the AIM-9J/N/P and AIM-9L/M versions in 1/72. What many manufacturers overlook is the difference in size of the rear wings, those of the L/M being larger. Hasegawa for example overlooked it in its Aircraft Weapons set #3. The front fins are often quite misshappen, except in the most modern models. The one I liked best was the AIM-9L included in the Revell-Germany F-16 kit, but I didn't measure it.


Rob



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C

It seems like the one feature of Sidewinder missiles that kit manufacturers never "get right" is the "rollerons" located on the aft tips of the rear fins. Rollerons are ingenious devices that are a combination of a pinwheel and a gyroscope. The rollerons are spun up by the air flowing over their "blades" and are embedded in a small aileron-like moveable panel. The spinning rollerons act as little gyroscopes that remain stable as the missile wants to roll in flight. The control input to the Sidewinder come from the aileron structure the rolleron is attached to which moves under the stabilizing force of the rollerons to counteract the deviation of the missile in flight.

More rolleron info and a photo at:

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More Sidewinder missile info at:
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Martin

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R

Revell did the rollerons very well in their 1/72 F-16 model - that's why I mentioned them!

Rob

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E

I have to agree. I have worked on AIM-9Ls so I feel I am quite familiar with them. The ones in the Revell F-16 kit look right to me.

However, 1/72 scale injection moulded items are *never* going to have wings and fins that are the correct scale thickness.

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R

How do you like the photo-etched fins that Airfix and Heller put in their armaments sets? In my view they are too thin and two-dimensional. I would rather use the injection moulded fins..

Rob

My models:

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AQM-34 site:
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