The Czech company’s original 1/72 Sikorsky Mojave helicopter is available again after a 14-year production gap, as CHRIS CLIFFORD explains.
Far from being a winner in the beauty stakes, the CH-37 Mojave was nonetheless a ground-breaking helicopter and is an interesting modelling subject. Rotorcraft enthusiasts may have already been aware that Special Hobby first released its Mojave as a CH-37A in 2007, in the old black packaging. It reappeared two years later with new parts in a CH-37C ‘Deuce USMC’ boxing. The Deuce nickname stemmed from the type’s original US Marine Corps designation HR2S-1… the marines being keen card players. It's the CH-37C (SH72172) that’s been re-released now.
The Mojave heavy-lift transport helicopter is fascinating, not least for its power, which came courtesy of two Pratt & Whitney R2800 Double Wasp radial engines, housed in large pads high on each side of the fuselage (these also accommodated the folding main undercarriage legs). Special Hobby seems to have captured the shape and features well, but as this tooling originates from 16 years ago, it exhibits all the traits of limited-run kits of that time. Slightly rough surfaces in places, along with heavy mould seams and the absence of locating p…
