Italeri’s OH-13S (#857) is a neat little kit. Italeri produced the OH-13 in 1/48 as an army machine (kit reviewed today) and as a USCG helicopter with float (I have built this kit a while back, and it looked very nice. Italeri’s kit number for the USCG version was #859).
I have not yet personally built the Army variant (#857) but a review is available on Modelingmadness.com.
The only aftermarket (other than decals) available for this kit is a set from Eduard (#48309), which has been out of production for quite some time, and is hardly available. Decals are provided for 3 helicopters: US, British, and Italian army machines.
Italeri’s kits themselves (#857 and #859) have been out of production for quite some time. Though not quite as rare as a 1/50 Heller Puma or 1/48 Revell H-34, these kits are becoming scarcer. I can only recommend anyone to get either one if lucky enough to run across one of them. The Bell 47, a.k.a. OH-13 is a historically significant helicopter, and when properly built (even without aftermarkets), these models look very nice.
Kit Summary:
- Italeri #857
- Scale: 1/48
- Availability: Poor
- Status: Out Of Production
- Estimated Street Price: $20.00 +