History

Beginning in 1960, the RCAF acquired the first of a fleet of CC-130 Hercules tactical transports which have served continuously ever since. The highest time Hercules in the world (up to its retirement date) was an RCAF CC-130-E (130313) which had in excess of 50 000 flight hours at the time of its retirement. Starting in the late 1980s, the fleet was camouflaged and the era of shiny Herks was over for good.

First impressions

In 1/72, this decal comes printed on three sheets. The printing is very crisp and in register. The sheet covers all variants of the Hercules' marking schemes while in RCAF/CF service in the high-visibility natural metal and white scheme. This decal will allow the modeller to do only one of the options offered. Supplemental lightning bolts and stencils at a minimum will be required if more than one model is to be done.

Sheet 1

This sheet contains contains two styles of roundel, flags, titles, UN plackards and stencils.

Sheet 2

This sheet contains the lightning flashes, propeller tip stripes, serial numbers and escape hatch markings

Sheet 3

The last sheet offers the black stripes which outline the walkways which covered much of the upper wings and fuselage.

final thoughts

The instruction sheet mentions that the decals may be harmed by strong setting solutions. I did a test using portions of set #48007and my poor old knocked-about Revell 1/72 Voodoo which shows that used carefully, Solvaset did not damage the decal, and that used without any setting solution at all, the decal still conforms to the moulded detail.

All Canuck Models decal sheets and accessories are available for purchase directly from the manufacturer at the Canuck Model Products website.

The real thing:
Herculese 320 in the earliest RCAF scheme shortly after delivery.

Hercules 327 in the interim “Canadian Armed Forces” scheme which lasted from 1968 until 1973.

Hercules 316 in the last high-vis scheme before being camouflaged.

Please remember, when contacting retailers or manufacturers, to mention that you saw their products highlighted here - on AEROSCALE.