in desperate need of a flir turret

[Black Knight]

i have everything i need to start my asw vulcan i've been planning but i don't have a 1/72 flir turret 

can anyone help me out?

[pyro-manic]

Well, for my Hunter GA.14, I used a bit from an old Italeri Tiger gunship I had kicking around, but my other option was a scratchbuild using the head from a pin. You could also use a small bead of some sort - just mount it on the fuselage, and build up a "barbette" for it with some putty. You can just paint on the lens/window with a bit of black paint. If you look at the TRAM system on the A-6 Intruder, it's not much more than a hemispherical dome under the nose - quite an easy shape to make.

I've done something similar for my Tigershark F.3 - I used a round bit of plastic (from a sprue) and faired it in with milliput to make a prototype PIRATE sensor. Looks pretty good.

Hunter: http://www.whatifmodelers.com/index.php/topic,20300.0.html

Tigershark: http://www.whatifmodelers.com/index.php/topic,21021.0.html

Hope that's of some help. I can get some close-up pictures of what I've done if you need them.

[Hobbes]

Yep, a bit of clear sprue with the end sanded to a dome makes a nice optical sensor.

[Weaver]

Staples sell a packet of pins with spherical heads for some paltry sum: that gives you the ball AND a nice, solid axle for it.  They're probably a bit big for a 1/72nd fighter system, but they're about right for a big surveillance sensor such as you might find on an MPA.....

[Thorvic]

There's one in the Airfix Nimrod which is only used on later MR2 birds. Do one with the bomb bay doors closed and you get all the ASW weapons to fit on the Vulcan