More Kit Bashing and more Models in Thunderbirds
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 21 ต.ค. 2023
- This video looks at some of the more plastic models that were most commonly used in the making of many of the aircraft seen in the TV Series 'Thunderbirds'.
The visual effects team under the supervision of Special Visual Effects Director Derek Meddings, came up with new designs and models to appear in new episodes every week. Prior to making Thunderbirds was 'Stingray' which is another beloved TV series from Gerry Anderson.
UPDATE - Thanks to some viewer comments the basis for the Blue & White fighter from 'The Imposters' (8.05) is a Revell 1/64th X-15 and not an F104 Starfighter.
There are more Videos on my channel about the visual effects and model work in Thunderbirds and other Anderson series.
* Kit Bashing - Models in Thunderbirds
• Kit Bashing - Models i...
* Girder Bridge and Thunderbirds
• The Girder Bridge and ...
* Caterpillar Tracks in Thunderbirds
• Caterpillar Tracks in ...
Please visit my website (www.matteline.com) which features original artwork by me in a variety of genres including Original Designs, Classic Sci-Fi and of course Gerry Anderson. - ภาพยนตร์และแอนิเมชัน
Those model makers were true artists. They made some wonderful stuff for those shows, loved them.
This video shows the ingenuity and shear imagination of the model makers working on Thunderbirds under the outstanding guidance of the brilliant Derek Meddings which is beyond anything today. Great video. 👌👍👏
Fascinating insight into the creation of aircraft on Gerry Andersons TV shows , especially Thunderbirds 👍
Superb detective work, excellent
Superb!! Fabulous detecting and lovely graphics to show where each section of a kit was placed. Such a fun series and you have put so much work into this topic. So grateful and it's a real joy to watch. My brother and I spent so many happy hours trying to spot as many kit parts as possible in Thunderbirds. As avid model makers and enthusiasts, it was as much fun as enjoying the great story lines and filming. I was definitely born far too late!! I would have thrived as a model maker for these shows. Sad that so many of these wonderful skills and the pure craftsmanship and talent involved will never be used again. CGI and AI can be amazing.....but it often isn't and in certain cases, it's just not the same in terms of the atmosphere created. One thing we always wondered about, was how did they stop each model just melting from the heat of those rocket motors!? The plastic kit 'jet exhausts' of those fighters, must have been very carefully protected from the flame from the rockets used and would have required multiple attempts to get a shot right. How on earth the plastic kit parts didn't just melt, I would love to know!
Thanks again.😊
The "engines" were specially manufactured by a company called Schermully, who usually make rockets for firing rope lines between ships.
They are basically a cardboard tube containing powder that is electrically ignited via the tungsten wires holding the model.
The majority of heat is expelled outwards, so held horizontally doesn't cause too much heat and theoretically you could fire one in your hands.
They would burn for 2-3 seconds.
The problem was only apparent on downward facing pyros like Thunderbird 2 where the heat would rise and scorch the underside.
It could also set the cardboard casing alight, as can be seen on a couple of TB2 landings.
A number of the planes seem to have an angled exhaust. I wondered if that was some sort of generic shroud, or tube, that they built to protect the models.
on the UN 10 fighter plane the canopy looks like its from the Aurora F-4D skyray, excellent video ty!
Thanks for the feedback. You coukd be right. Looking at the Lindberg F104 Starfighter, that had the canopy moulded in 3 pieces. Omitting the 3rd rear piece would give the same sort of shape that we see on this plane.
I always wanted a helijet model
Your enthusiasm shines through with your parting words. I can still sit and watch Thunderbirds, decades on from watching for the first time. I still get the same excitement, from every explosion to the car chases.... They built legends and legacies.
Your research on these videos, and also the way you show how the parts fit together on screen, is remarkable!
Now every Tuesday at 7.55pm on Talking Pictures.
Goodness me, what a trip down memory lane. Super stuff. Thank you.
Another interesting production, thank you and well done.
Imagine being the model shop nearest to thes thunderbirds production team. They must have wondered what sort of customer wanted 1/48 jet fighter kits and 1/72 railway girder bridges in such quantities. The fun that must have been had just researching the kits to see what parts could be repurposed.
There are stories of them going to the local Woolworths, but they must have soon exhausted that. I think I read in an interview (possibly with Brian Johnson) where they mentioned cardboaed boxes full of girder bridge kits being shipped directly to Stirling Road.
I have contacted Airfix to see what can be dug up, but so far, zero feedback from them.
@@Matteline I feel sorry for normal kit builders who found the local shop near the studio was cleared out of kits regularly. I went to Hobbies in London some time ago and got a load of plastruct for a model, talking to an old salesman he said they sold a lot of stuff to the studio.
It's also interesting to see how kit decals were used. On the TX-204, you will see the tail fin decal for a USAF Thunderbird F-84F, upside down. Also upside down US insignia.
Yup - decals would be a whole video (or two) in itself!
Brings back memories. Some Modern aircraft look the same now days with a few different parts. Great stuff. 🙂👍
A most amazing video!
You truly impress me all the way around.
Thank You.
Kitbash heaven.
Thanks Matt. Great video.
Another fascinating video. Thank you!
Excellent fun - I have no idea how you manage to keep spotting these kits. Great to have Thunderbirds back on UK TV - it will always be fantastic.
A mis-spent youth... and present :)
Your dedication is wonderful. Thanks for a superb insight into the Thunderbirds world.
You have a great eye for details. I don't know why, but I always assumed the models used in these shows were much, much bigger.
Thanks for watching and commenting. Apparently they had limited space for the VFX work - and the puppet work too come to that. As everything seen in the shot had to be shot at the same time it all had to be built to the same scale and this determined the size. The lighting and photography made these detailed models look really big. A lot of visual effects models are pretty big - the Millennium Falcon was approx 6 feet long - but in the Star Wars movies things would be shot separately and could be much bigger.
Some of them are big - I hadn't realised just how big the TB2 models are until I was told the girders under its launch ramp were from the Airfix girder bridge kit.
amazing stuff,thank you for your hard work.
Thank you for this!
Wonderful vid. Thank you.
Excellent video - so many ideas that confirm what I did when younger were not so bad.
Awesome work! Thanks so much!
Some fantastic research there.
I imagine a lot of those kits have long since disappeared, so working it out must have been doubly difficult.
I 3D modelled the main TB machines along with some oddball stuff like the Elevator car, fire engines and ambulance, so I appreciate the complexity and the skill of the modellers.
A lot of it is educated guesswork as I don't have all of these kits to test fit. Some mistakes have been pointed out... the blue and white fighters started life as an X15.
I love your work!!!
Awesome video! Thanks for sharing 👍
Excellent video!
Very interesting!
Another fabulous video - thank you so much for all your efforts!
Thank you for watching :)
Tour de force. Such a lot of hard work, research and time went into this. One aircraft in question is the RTL-2 Rocket Transporters from The Cham Cham. Obviously there has to a bit of Handley Page Victor in there surely.
At that time I think the only Victor model was the 1/96 Frog one.
Ia m sure the RTL2 was all scratch built. Possibly something Iin the engine pods was from a kit, But I am 99.9% sure it was one of the scratch built models..probably done by Space Models.
Being 70 I am of the Airfix generation so I enjoy this kind of thing, I enjoyed models as a kid and these days I make up sets to give away to less well off families. Scifi is very poorly served these days and sadly 'pocket money' models are not in vogue these days (too much high mark-up 'merchandising' dross and 'chain stores' that seek to minimise staff time) so making your own sci-fi craft is somewhat uphill. I have a few old Heller Cadet Frelon helicopters (1:96 I think) that make a very handy 'heli-jet for 1:72nd scale but those are long out of production. The old Airfix SR 71 jet-rocket plane made a good basis for a futuristic 'fighter' if you replaced the wing tip missiles with 'blasters'. Hopefully one of the smaller 3d-printing outfits will see the opening and make some generic sci fi craft available at reasonable cost and I of course will further kit-bash those!
You should look into 3D printing. Most of it is out there, and you can build to whatever scale you wish, printer permitting.
It's also not that expensive either, and certainly cheaper than the price of kits these days.
@@TryptychUK I will be doing but at the moment I am re-writing a website detailing all the techniques I know of for making things on the cheap. The target audience is a single parent with no money, no experience and just a pair of kitchen scissors and a sharp knife as tools. The three things I get asked for are WW2, Knights and Knaves (sometimes with a fantasy element) and Sci-Fi, and Sci-Fi is the hardest to cater for. I currently have an assortment of eight completed ‘sets’ and have another four or five still to finish, hope to get them distributed before Xmas (most go to carers as they are on such dreadful pay). Normally I do two or three a year (I am a pensioner) but a 3D printer would be a real asset (once I learn to use the software).
I need to get into 3d printing. But a number of the 3d models I have seen for sale are not terribly inaccurate...
The blue planes appear to be X-15 fuselages with starfighter canopies & saab draken fins!
Darn I missed that.. I think you are right.
Very interesting! I would have loved the job of kit-bashing models of exciting machines.
One small correction. The "drop tank" under the B-58 didn't just contain fuel: it also held the nuclear weapon! There was a plan to put passengers in it instead; this never came off.
Thanks. I'd seen it referred to as a missile pod or weapons pos.. I figured 'drop tank' would at least be clear what was being talked about. ...Well, that's my somewhat weak defense.
There were three different fuel/weapon pods for the B-58, of different sizes. We normally see the largest type. The smallest was just a fuel tank.
Great video! A fascinating look at the designs. You certainly did a lot of research, must have taken a time to do all that. Love that Helijet, surprising what went into that. Keep up the good work, looking forward to the future video on the ground vehicles. Thank you.
There are a number of people out there who have researched this. At some I'd love to be able to pull all of this together into a definitive work. The model kits, toys and household bits and bobss. And the fully original stuff and what was built at Space Models.
The B-58 is one of my favorite Cold War aircraft, and I was very disappointed that there was no good 1/72 scale kit of this plane available back in the day. The bigger Lindbergh kit was 1/64th, which as WAY too big to fit my collection since becoming a "scale purist" around age 13. I never considered the Aurora kit, assuming it to be another oddball "box scale." But if I had known it was a VERY close 1/75th scale, I could have lived with that, and had one in my collection long before the Testors/Italieri kit came out in 1984 - about 11 years after swearing my fealty to 1/72nd scale.
Thanks for doing all the research, and sharing this with us!
(As a sidebar, I don't know if you've herd, but Airfix just reissued their SRN1 Hovercraft kit! I already have mine on order with my local hobby shop!)
Yes. I heard about the SRN1 reissue. In fact I posted a very short video in honour of the occasion:)
I just realized I saw that video; in fact, I have YOU to thank for giving me the head's-up. I'm just waiting for the hobby shop to call me to let me know it was in! Please forgive my "Senior Moment."
Still kicking myself about that Aurora B-58, though. When I joined the local IPMS around age 15 and asked about it, the older members just said, "box scale," and left it at that. This was 1975, so I couldn't just Google Scalemates to find out. My best hope would have been to stumble on an article in a Scale Model Magazine that gave the scale in passing. Still, I've got the Italeri kit now, so no harm, no foul . . . .
Thanks for another great video!
At 8.05 in the video the blue Navy fighters fuselages are actually X15 kits rather than starfighters. May be Aurora kits as they were out at the time and were 1/48 too. Revell's kit at that time was a smaller scale (1/64) so may be too small going by the launch rail (girder bridge parts again!) .
I also believe the majority of the 1/48 Starfighter kits used are Lindberg rather than Hawk kits as the Lindberg kits have a very distinctive more rectangular canopy that can certainly be seen in the Zombite and Air Sea Rescue aircaft.
Hustler parts appear all over the Anderson series. In 'The Cham Cham' the red jet by the side of the RTL2 hanger looks like a small Revell 1/72 Saab Draken with either Revell (1/91) or Monogram (1/121) B58 engines placed at the mid section of each wing. The model shop has also added two Draken tail fins rather than the usual one to make it look more futuristic.
In 'The Imposters' a fast moving helijet is seen during the search scene. This looks to be made from two Revell 1/48 Sikorsky H-19 helicopters bodies glued back to back with Huster engines and Starfighter tail planes.
The B58 Huster kit is also used in Fireball XL5 as an alien ship in 'Invasion Earth' and as the SL6 airliner in 'Space City Special'.
Of course in Stingray X-20's submarine is a Revell 1/40 X5 with Aurora 1/76 B58 Hustler engine pods.
The Stingray Arrowhead fighter is made from two Aurora 1/48 Freedom Fighters. The model is also seen a few times in Thunderbirds with an Aurora B58 weapons pod attached underneath the fuselage (Duchess Assignment and as a toy in Chip's bedroom in Security Hazard)
In 'Sea of Oil' the alien sub is just a Revell F102 Delta Dagger with upside down wings and part of a rocket model added to the rear as an engine.
Look forward to your next video. All the best!
Thanks for the feedback on the X15. Of course! Yes there are many more kits that were used in the shows.
This is not meant to be a comprehensive list of every kit that was used.
It sounds like you have done a lot of research. Maybe you could share some of it in a video or online?
@@Matteline Happy to share what I've found. I'll drop you an email.
The small tail stabilisers on the Heli-Jet look like helicopter stub wings, possibly an AH-1 Cobra. The vertical tail had the shape of an F4 Phantom tail, but I bow to your research and greater insights.
I must admit I thought I had watched every Thunderbirds episode at the time, but I don't remember the half of these cool aircraft. Must have too busy doing my school homework😉😇
Thanks so much for doing all this.
Yeh I know... i swear i have seen them.iyt somehwee.... . But I can't find any appropriate kits available at that tim -1964/5
Unlikely to be from a Cobra as Thunderbirds was filmed in 1963, a few years before the Cobra.
Filmed between 1964 and 1966. The parts do look like some kind of helicopter stub wing. @@AtheistOrphan
@@neilhughes9310 - Not wishing to spilt hairs but according to my ‘Making of Thunderbirds’ book, pre-production, including model-making occurred throughout 1963 with filming starting in very late 1963. The first roll-out of the AH-1 was in September 1965, hence my comment that the use of that particular aircraft was highly unlikely.
No hairs split, no offence taken, but can you offer a suggestion as to what the part is?@@AtheistOrphan
Well done sir! The research and the visuals overlaying the outlines of the models used are a fantastic way to understand what was done to create each model. If you should ever do another and can reach all the way back to the "Fireball XL-5" series I'd love to know what went into the vertical landing "SL06" transport. Looks like most of a B-58 with a canard plus the engines and weapons pod repositioned.
Thanks. Yes, these videos are a lot of work! Thanks for watching and commenting.
Have recently started watching the series again. Was expecting it to be dated and cheesy and not like I remembered. However, was surprised at how good the stories were and you get used to the puppets and special effects. Impressive for the time.
This video though was fascinating and thanks for doing it. Really like the graphics and explanations. 👍
It doesn't talk down to the audience at all. And there's always something different every week.
Fascinating video I thought most of the models were scratch built using a few parts from kits but you have shown many were cobbled together from kits. I knew they bought tons of kits like the girder bridge and lots of lego was used. I will have to watch the other video you have made.
There are some really cool-looking and coherent results.Good designs made by people with a good eye. The term, 'cobbled together' does not reaaly do them justice :)
@@Matteline Oh I did not mean in a hap hazard way the design time and effort that went into them is amazing they look fantastic. Some were only painted and detailed on one side but still a lot of effort went into them. Another problem they had was after building one of these craft there was a need to show a more distant shot and then they had to find parts in a smaller scale to build another model which also shows the amount of effort put in for what was often just a single shot in one episode.
Another excellent video, complaetely fascinating detective work. If I may point out theat there were two F-104 kits that where available in 1/48 scale at the time. The Hawk F-104 represents production aircaft, but the Lindberg kit is of the XF-104 which is quite a noticably different airframe. Both of these kits can be identified in various Effects models and the XF-104s decals crop up as they are the "Buzz Code" Fg-786.
Great info. Thanks. Yeh I have not seen all of the kits in person so much of this is educated guesswork. Thanks for watching.
I think kit bashing is a skill some can do, some find it hard. Thanks for sharing this. I did make a Red Arrow once myself for a sci-fi Thunderbirds model railway (vid on my channel if interested) and knew about the Hustler engines but elected to use some missiles I had and drop tanks. Cut the ends off and that worked pretty well. Red Arrow 3 crashed again by the way lol.
I saw the video. It looks like you had a lot of fun making it!
Yes and I suppose that's the main thing. @@Matteline
Another fantastic video, I wonder if the Airfix Drakken is still available?,I wouldn't mind having a go at building a small diorama, based on the Red Arrow launch-bay, when I can find the time, anyway, thanks for sharing, take care, all the best from Scotland, Stephen.
I think the size relationship betwen the 48th scale Saab Drakwen and the 75th scale Hustler means the Hustler is approx 129% longer. So we need a Hustler kit that is aporximately 129% longer than a 72nd scale Airfix Saab Draken at 8.3 inches.
The 91st scale Hustler is approx 150% longer and the 121st Hustler is approx 115% longer.So neither one is correct. Abd this is just doing it with maths. There will be variances in the sizes and shapes of the different kits so you'd have to do some trial and error to find the combo that would look best. But if it were me, I'd probably start with a 72nd Saab and a 121st B58 Hustelr and might be pretty solid footing. Although not 100% accurate. But maybe by cheating the position of the engines and the pylons you could get the right feel and a pretty good interpretation of the plane.
The rear projection on the heavy helijet look like they either come from a Piasecki twin rotor helicopter kit or perhaps a Bristol Belvedere...
Or even trimmed ?down wings from an angel intercepter
Or Possibly Avro 671 Rota autogyro?
The Angel Interceptor would not exist for another 2 years... so... no, efinitely not.
I don't see anything on the kit thar looks like it.
The Belvedeere looks like a possibility although which kit? I think there was only the Airfix kit in 1965. And the kit of the era had a sort of vertical fin on the end of the rear 'wings' ... butbi might be wrong as I know there were Belvedere's with 'wings' that are more similar to the Helihjt. I swear I have seen this kit part somewhere. In my youth..
I'm 90% certain the small cranked down stub wings on the Heli-Jet are from the Airfix of Bristol Belvedere.
I don't have the kit, but have looked at pictures of it and the instruction sheet whichi found online. And I can't see anything that looks right. But I will happily be proved wrong. My money is on the horizontal tail spar from the Revell Fairey Rotodyne.
To me the crank down wing for the heli-jet look an awful like the cranked down leg sponsons on a CH-54. The timing might be an issue though as according to scalemates, Revell-UK released that in 1968 so it might be too late. The sponson is fairly thick, but conceivably they could have only used half the part to make it more winglike
@@zubiez.524 nope, deffo from the Belvedere - I checked it. Thunderbirds was produced between 1964 & 65, so it couldn't have been using the parts you mentioned.
99% sure it's from the Revell Fairey Rotodyne kit.
@@zubiez.524 It is much thinner. like awing rather than a strut. I am now 99% sure it is \ a rear tailplane part from the Revell Fairey Rotodyne kit
That was great, nice detective work. One thing -- he aircraft is, was and is always the Bf 109. Thank you
Yes. Sorry about that. That is one of my brother's pet peeves too.
@@Matteline All forgiven. Great video though. Oh and did you ever talk of the other fighters WASP had? These were Northrop F-5's with the wings and stabilizers swapped so it gave them a delta look.
@@SaturnCanuck Yes. I have been trying to focus on the source models vs the vehicles seen n the show(s) and highlighting most identifiable and most commonly used.
Another great video - thanks! Id like to build a number of the plane subjects but the problem is that the B-58 donor kits were all made in scale sizes no longer used / available today! Although wings can be fabricated, we need an enterprising Anderfan to be able to 3d model the engines and then offer prints in the appropriate scales......?
A number of the kits can be found on ebay and the like. And re-issues of old 'classic' kits seems to be an ongoing thing. Atlantis have been releasing some old Aurora kits with the same box art. Nostalgia is relentless.
@@Matteline you're right but these are usually at a premium and if you're only going to use a few parts........!
Hey Matt, i saw the Navy fighter painted blue and white kinda flat one is from an X-15
Yeh.. doh - I see that now. Thanks
Blue and white fighters in The Imposters look like they could be X-15 fuselages
Thanks. Yes I couple.of people.have suggested this and I think they are right. The Revell 1/64th
GREAT VIDEO SIR,THE BAD GUYS FIGHTERS WITH THE RINGS ON THE END COULD BE FROM AIRFIX HOVERCRAFT KITS. TAKE CARE AND HAVE A GREAT WEEK.
Thanks for watching and commenting. I wondered about that too, but I believe the hovercraft rings are too small.
Just checked the kit and I don't think they are from the SR N-1. I did think that initially though which made me look.
ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE,I USING BABY WIPES LIDS TOPPERS TO MAKE A ASSAULT BOAT. TAKE CARE@@Matteline
The tail on Fireflash looks to me very much like a slightly altered Victor tail.
Yes. Similar in look to the Victor (what an awesome looking plane that is by the way - but definitely scratch built on the Fireflash.
The planes in 'The Imposters' (8:07) are US Navy and JSDFN coming under the World Navy Banner,
JSFDN?
@@Matteline Japanese Self Défense Force. After 1945 There can't be a Japanese Armed Forces that can ATTACK.
@@GraemeBell9864 Ahh. Thanks :)
They missed a trick back in the day, they could have made their bashing recipes public in exchange from a consideration of Revell et alia. Or maybe that would have spoiled the magic
0Drakens used may have been the Revell 1/72 kit or possibly the ADAMS (lindberg 1/48 scale one which also featured a large underfuselage spring loaded
rocket launcher
They are definitely not 1/72nd. Although as a kid I purchased the Airfix 1/72nd kit and my dad painted it red! I think the Lindberg 'rocket firing kit' is the same kit/molds as the Adams kit. But I am not 100% sure.
@@Mattelinedo you know of any kit bashing that was done for Captain Scarlett?
@@jaws666 I have not had a good look at 'Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons'. I did mention a couple of appearances of the 'Tiger Joe Tank' toy in the 'caterpillar tracks' video.
@@Matteline awesome..
@@jaws666 The Red Arrow is definitly the Lindberg 1/48 Saab Draken (Jet Dragon). You can tell this as when it explodes you can see the unpainted white plastic interior!
As for Captain Scarlet kitbashes in 'Flight to Atlantica' at Maxwell airbase the jets parked on the right are based on F-102 'Delta Dart' kits which were also featured in Thunderbirds Are Go. They added the Hustler weapons pod on the top of the tailfin, and the weapons pod fins are used as the nosecone, with F105 Thunderchief wings and a rocket bell attached to the exhaust.The landing gear appears to be made from bomb parts from a plastic kit.
In various airport scenes there are 1/25th scale kit based cars in the foreground and various model aircraft in the background, you can spot the Monogram or Revell SST.
The J-19 fighter in the episode 'Renegade Rocket' is a converted Mirage III kit ! Wikipedia says it's Airfix but that kit would be too small to film and look realistic.Could be Heller's or Fujimi's 1/50th scale kit which matches the era.
I'm not 100% sure of the kit parts used for this one but but In 'Model Spy' the helicopter looks like the main body came from a Hawk 'Husky' helicopter kit. The tail is the forward fuselage of an F-4 'Phantom' kit which has been turned upside down combined with F-4 stabilizer fins. The pontoons are weapons pods from a B-58 'Hustler' kit. This same model is used for the medevac helicopter in 'Place of the Angels'.
Happy kit spotting !
B52’s had 4 pods of 2 jet engines each. 8 engine total.
yes. I said two pods of two engines each on each wing.
I guess if all the things that look like engines on the TX204 are indeed engines there are 10 in total - 6 under the wings, 2 on the wingtips and 2 on the tail. I could imagine the tail and wing tip engines are for lower speeds.
"Have"? I watched a video about them being re-engined by Rolls-Royce America
As mentioned in the video: “Two clusters of two engines under EACH wing”
Revealing, but for me it's painful seeing beautiful planes bastardised and turned into Frankenstein creations. As a child I didn't mind at all 😅
Thanks for watching and for the feedback. I'd never looked at quite that way. I guess I dont really see the craft they made for the show as taking away from the real aircraft. As you say some really beautiful planes there.
Very good Sir, though if you ever do yet another kit bashing vid, could it focus on some of my favorite guest vehicles like the Seascape Drilling rig and crablogger?
Some of the videos mention the Seascape and the Crablogger, but not comprehensively. That said, I am researching the Crablogger.
Mil 24 helicopter
Not unless the production team could time-travel! The Mil-24 didn’t exist until a decade after this series was produced.