forum.ww1aircraftmodels.com
WW1 Aircraft Modeling => Under Construction => Scratch builds => Topic started by: DaddyO on August 24, 2025, 08:40:08 PM
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Whilst working on the small details of my main project I kept looking at the pile of other Pegasus Albatros kits on the shelf and thinking what am I going to do with those :-\
Re-reading an old Windsock magazine I came across an article about building an Albatros DIV and couldn't get it out of my mind so, just for fun, I decided to make up a kit of bits.
Mine's based on the Pegasus DIII kit and because the original Airfix DH4 wings that were used in the original article have now become collectors items on Evilbay I used parts from a KP DH9a instead (I bought a much nicer version after buying the KP one so it was just languishing there) ;)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54740142072_89dcd6949b_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rpcx7Y)DIII - DIV (https://flic.kr/p/2rpcx7Y) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
As you can see in the above view the DIV was a test machine that was never intended for production. It used a 160HP geared Mercedes that was completely enclosed in the nose so with no engine or gun details to worry about hopefully a quick little side project; it even used a three bladed propeller at one point (as well as two and four bladed ones) to try and cure vibration problems. The three bladed one appeals because I was asked at a show earlier in the year about three bladed props and it will also help with the 'similar but different' look :)
The flying surfaces were larger than standard (Hence the Dh9a wings) The tail will probably come from a scrap of Gotha wing and since the fuselage has a different layout with the cockpit moved further aft and the nose lengthened I can utilise the original kit parts with some modifications (Lopping 3mm from the tail, adding about 6mm to the nose for a start) I also think I can use a slightly modified fin though so it's not all bad news. A pair of ex Eduard seat and headrest as well as a Roden exhaust and wheels from the spares box completes the parts list (I may also add some interior using a PART etch set since the outside will be pretty plain . . .
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54740981101_9f90b323cf_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rpgQwZ)DIV Parts (https://flic.kr/p/2rpgQwZ) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
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These kit bashes are right up my street so I will follow this one with interest.
Alan.
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Nice one Paul!
I have also collected parts for an Albatros D.IV: A D.V body with D.II wings & struts and W.4 tailplane, all by Roden. Of course this doesn't cover all the changes, but it's a start.
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These kit bashes are right up my street so I will follow this one with interest.
Alan.
Thanks Alan. :)
Hopefully not too involved . . . ::)
Nice one Paul!
I have also collected parts for an Albatros D.IV: A D.V body with D.II wings & struts and W.4 tailplane, all by Roden. Of course this doesn't cover all the changes, but it's a start.
Cheers enathan :)
I've gone with a DIII body because the plan in the Windsock article I'm basing this one on shows flat sides which I tend to agree with looking at the photo's, but maybe a DV as suggested by J Herris is the way to go :-\ (My logic is that the DV body and aileron set up would have been 'new' in April 17 whereas the DIII was proven and would have been easily available for this engine test bed) Who knows for sure . . .
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I'd never heard of the D.IV until this thread. What a neat idea for a kitbash, I like it! I'm eager to see your updates as and when.
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A very intriguing project that will be a great talking point when you display this one. Looking forward to this.....
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Nice work. I've done one once, following an ancient article by IIRC Ray Rimell, possibly the Windsock article you mention, and back then the logical starting point was a Revell D.III, which isn't that much like a D.III to begin with anyway.. This actually looks like it'll make for a better result with less effort.
Paul.
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Ooooooh I dooo like these odd-ball types. Will certainly be following this one with interest.
Stephen.
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Thanks Zac, Nigel and Stephen ;D
Probably the same article as you're thinking of Paul (From summer 1988 edition) ;) I've also found that a full set of plans (including bottom and second side view appeared in the Windsock Special 'Albatros Experimentals'.
The tail from a bit of Gotha wing didn't work because by the time I'd sanded the symmetrical aerofoil the chord was too narrow. Instead I made the tailplanes from the offcuts of the wing tips that were left over and I'll sort the elevator later. Now the bench is completely covered in dust it's time to finalise part shapes and finish sand the bits. Incidentally I've found that filling any control surface gaps by gluing in a piece of stretched sprue works better than the usual filler since it is less likely to crack out at a later point.
I've removed the prop blades from the spinner in anticipation of a carved three blader (This is one occasion when a solid spinner is helpful since I can carve my own slots to suit) Usual dremel thinning of the fuselage sides means I might even be able to use some PART bits to dress it up later (No interior photos of this one of course so layout is anyone's guess, but I'm assuming it will be generally similar to the DIII/V)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54745551491_f10b98dc93_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rpFg9P)DIV Parts modified (https://flic.kr/p/2rpFg9P) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
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}Probably the same article as you're thinking of Paul (From summer 1988 edition) ;) I've also found that a full set of plans (including bottom and second side view appeared in the Windsock Special 'Albatros Experimentals'.{
I'd forgot about the Experimentals volume. Some nice stuff in there.
I also forgot to say I'm finding this build log very interesting, and it's nice to see alternative uses for the old Peggy kit. I have a handful left over from Freightdog, which were very, very cheap at the time.
Paul.
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Nice carving! I bet you are knee-deep in plastic shavings now........
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Thank you chaps
Tempted by some of the later experimental types in the book as well Paul ;)
LOL Nigel, that's exactly what I am. ;D Time to clean up the workroom (again)
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Cool subject Paul !
I do a fare bit of filling seems and gaps with plastic rod or bits of sheet , Sands better , smooths better , and easier to plend in that seem . Looking forward to your next up date .
Alexis
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Thanks Alexis, good to hear that someone else uses the same technique ;)
Anyway sanded down the wings now and separated the ailerons with the torque rod added form a piece of brass wire. Smidge of filler needed where the two pieces join (brass wire pins ensure a nice strong joint. Next up will be scoring the wing ribs with a scalpel blade as on my other builds
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54754512496_1501d4f8fb_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rqtbWU)DIV wing (https://flic.kr/p/2rqtbWU) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
Just for fun here's the Dieter Collins DI wing with scored ribs, the standard Pegasus DIII wing and the new DIV one showing the increased chord and different shape (Slight scallops in the trailing edge will be added after the ribs are done) :)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54753662572_ed63b4754d_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rqoQi3)Albatros wings (https://flic.kr/p/2rqoQi3) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
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The wing is looking good, and that's an interesting comparison between the wings.
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The wing is looking good, and that's an interesting comparison between the wings.
Cheers Nigel I perhaps could have added the W4 wing for completeness, but didn't think about it ::)
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The wings look good to me. Scoring the ribs is an idea I have not come across before: like panel lines on later aircraft I always have doubts about whether to represent them in this sclae.
Stephen.
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The wings look good to me. Scoring the ribs is an idea I have not come across before: like panel lines on later aircraft I always have doubts about whether to represent them in this sclae.
Stephen.
I know exactly what you mean Stephen; difficult to get the balance right between what people expect to see and what would actually be visible :)
For my recent builds I've just scored a couple of parallel lines close to each other with two very light strokes, using a brand new scalpel blade, which is just enough to get a slight ridge. You sometimes need a very light sand if the plastic is soft or if your scores aren't exactly in the same place, but I usually find rubbing a thumb over the surface works well enough. The best way is probably using masking a paint to get a slight bump, but difficult to get the gaps thin enough and exactly the same size so I 've settled on this as a reasonable compromise. (You can see the effect in this recent FK8 build which was also a Pegasus kit)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54316205411_e60e2fbb7e_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2qKJKwc)FK8 on base rear (https://flic.kr/p/2qKJKwc) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
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IIRC, scoring rib tapes was the usual method from earlier days - thinking Ray Rimell in Airfix Magazine and Scale Models, when I have the feeling most models were 1/72nd (in the UK at least) and it sufficed. FWIW I use two scalpel blades held together by CA to produce uniformly parallel lines. A bit of overkill in 1/72nd but I'm happy with it in 1/48th.
Paul.
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Thanks Paul :)
With the varnish disaster going on with my other Albatros it was time to switch my attention to this one whilst I sort out what to do :P
Annoyingly the radiator for the DIV is narrower than any etch part I have so down to a bit of creative thinking. After several different attempts that were okay but not quite right I came up with this (Thanks to William Adair for the suggestion suitably adapted for my skills) A scrap of 5 thou card was taped onto a blank plastic credit card and then lines were scored on it using a couple of scratches of a pin and the step gauge of a vernier caliper (about 4-5 thou apart)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54762570598_2a6db49832_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rrbukG)DIV Radiator scoring (https://flic.kr/p/2rrbukG) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
Once a suitable length had been made up it was cut to size and glued to a second over size piece of 5 thou and when dry the flange was carefully cut out around it. Photo shows the test bit made using this method on the left with some thin paint and the finished piece on the right
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54762565169_b6b637c519_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rrbsJ6)DIV Radiator (https://flic.kr/p/2rrbsJ6) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
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Nice work, that looks pretty good to me.
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That looks first class - certainly more than acceptable in the One True Scale.
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Thank you gents ;D
Having thinned the cockpit walls till they were starting to transparent it was time to add a few structural details and tabs to help join the two halves together
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54782453606_b7681a5bb6_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rsWoSb)DIV fuselage (https://flic.kr/p/2rsWoSb) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
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Very nice, good to see this progressing.
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Having completed two of the many ongoing projects I thought I'd dip back into this one for a bit of fun :)
I knew that there would be a lot of dust produced making the new nose contours using my usual 'carve from a lump of plastic' technique so rather than fully detail the cockpit at this stage I painted the wooden fuselage sides using acrylic then oils to get the general appearance and then joined the fuselage halves together. The joint isn't great and needed a fair bit of filler and sanding :P (Shape of things to come)
Once I had a basic fuselage it was onto creating the new nose. A Roden radiator/nose cone was glued and then the back was completely filled with Miliput giving a nice solid location as well as allowing the propshaft somewhere to go. Two layers of 1mm plastic card added to the back of this and one more added to the front of the fuselage lengthened it correctly.Adding some plastic sheet and filler to the fuselage gave me a solid base to work with and allowed me to force the rather narrow nose a bit wider. I also glued two tabs of plastic card to the front of the cockpit area and moulded a piece of plastic card using boiling water and a curved former so that the 'dashboard' area was hollow
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54890056015_8c28de208d_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rCrTj8)Albie DIV top decking (https://flic.kr/p/2rCrTj8) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
Next some thicker sheet (2mm) was glued in a couple of layers onto the platform of plastic. In order to curve this I scored the top laterally and then bent by hand to get a nice fit. The nosecone was roughly shaped whilst this was drying ready to tack on later.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54890007059_01e793dcdf_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rCrCL4)Albie DIV nose (https://flic.kr/p/2rCrCL4) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
A couple of evenings work saw everything roughly sanded to shape ( ineeded to add a bit more card to the top and sides to get the fuselage wide enough to match the contours of the new nosecone) Once everything had been sanded down a bit a slot for the exhaust was cut out by drilling a hole at each end and then whittling with a scalpel. I've carved a lump of plastic card roughly to fill the space left in the bottom of the fuselage, but this isn't glued in place until I've detailed the cockpit. Next up more filling and sanding . . . .
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54890056020_7d8b2f4465_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rCrTjd)Albie DIV roughed nose (https://flic.kr/p/2rCrTjd) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
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Good to see this one back on the bench. That's some impressive conversion work there......
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Good to see this one back on the bench. That's some impressive conversion work there......
Thanks Nigel (Feels a bit like I'm carving from solid these days) ;)
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Several rounds of sanding followed by primer followed by more sanding and I've got a set of main parts ready to be detailed :)
I used car body filler primer on the fuselage to take care of those annoying little marks that appear between putty and plastic hence the yellow finish.
A standard DIII tailplane is shown for comparison; it's an Albatros Jim, but not as we know it . . .
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54894373529_092b220a9f_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rCQ1L2)DIV Parts (https://flic.kr/p/2rCQ1L2) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
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(Raises one eyebrow, scratches pointy ear)................. fascinating.
Paul.
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This is going to be good... I always thought the D.IV was a very nice looking aircraft. Too bad the real one did nothing well (guess it was really just a test bed to try a geared engine?).
You've made a great start and obviously put a lot of ingenuity and work into this project so far... looking forward to seeing how it all turns out.
Scott
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(Raises one eyebrow, scratches pointy ear)................. fascinating.
Paul.
LOL you got it Paul ;D
This is going to be good... I always thought the D.IV was a very nice looking aircraft. Too bad the real one did nothing well (guess it was really just a test bed to try a geared engine?).
You've made a great start and obviously put a lot of ingenuity and work into this project so far... looking forward to seeing how it all turns out.
Scott
Thanks Scott. :D
Took a bit of a back burner whilst I was sorting some other stuff out, but nice to see it shaping up again and it should look different when finished with a three bladed prop.
Not sure whether to go with lilac and green (my original thought) or brown and green for the wings; could have been either I think.
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That is an interesting way to modify the nose - lots of sanding and carving of plastic but the result is good. Not so different from shaping a wood former and moulding a new part from plastic sheet.
A very interesting project which I am following with interest.
Stephen.
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That's looking great so far Paul. To me it almost looks like kit parts!
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That is an interesting way to modify the nose - lots of sanding and carving of plastic but the result is good. Not so different from shaping a wood former and moulding a new part from plastic sheet.
A very interesting project which I am following with interest.
Stephen.
Thanks Stephen. :)
I'm used to carving (blue foam or balsa wood) for flying models so it's the method that I'm most familiar with. If I was making more that one I'd have a go at moulding the part, but for a one off it seemed the simplest way of doing it (Although cutting the various holes in a moulded part would be far easier)
That's looking great so far Paul. To me it almost looks like kit parts!
Thanks Zac. :)
Looking forward to adding this one to the display shelf now
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Needed to make a few details to dress up the interior so it was time to break out the plastic card and get stretching sprue :)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54898861405_d8ba90f6de_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rDe1Rc)DIV instruments A (https://flic.kr/p/2rDe1Rc) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
A lick of paint and some putty for a seat cushion (still to be painted) and here are a few details that will never been seen again . . . ::)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54898557271_e514bcbc30_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rDcsrv)DIV instruments (https://flic.kr/p/2rDcsrv) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
Apologies for the poor photo's, but you'll get the general idea
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A shame that they will never be seen again... I often wonder why we do that!
Stephen.
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Goodness gracious, those are soooo small! Don't sneeze whatever you do......
Lovely work as always. Even more impressive in this tiny scale.
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A shame that they will never be seen again... I often wonder why we do that!
Stephen.
LOL - it does seem to be a bit of a theme doesn't it. ;D
(I suppose with a torch and reading glasses you'll at least get an idea of these . . . .)
Goodness gracious, those are soooo small! Don't sneeze whatever you do......
Lovely work as always. Even more impressive in this tiny scale.
Cheers Nigel ;D
As it happens the compass pinged off somewhere this morning never to be found again so I'll need to knock up another one of those ::)
Apart from the seat and dashboard most are now safely tucked away in a small plastic bag with the rudder pedals and control column now waiting to be fitted later. Seatbelts have been made using painted paper with buckles cut from some etched PART seatbelts which I find these much easier to conform than brass, even when it's been annealed.
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Plenty of progress on this one with the major components starting to come together. A suitable jig was knocked up in my usual way with foamboard and photocopies of the plans and the lower wings and tail attached (It actually took 3 attempts to get the lower wings looking correct, but brass pins meant this was more frustrating rather than arduous) ::)
A few details added including a radiator bottom for under the wing which I'd completely forgotten to make earlier. I debated about scribing panel lines on the fuselage, but the finish looks so smooth I've decided to just mask and paint each wood panel to get the same effect.
All the strut and rigging holes are now drilled (0.4 and 0.2mm drills respectively)
Little bit of filling needed to dress off the tailplane joints and then I'll add some other details before priming. Incidentally rather than scribe the metal nose panels I masked and sprayed a few coats of primer just to build up a lip to suggest these are separate.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54925019578_8631046661_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rFx5Lb)DSC_1879 (https://flic.kr/p/2rFx5Lb) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
I've cut and laminated some wood for the prop before I realised that with a three bladed prop the grain direction will be incorrect on at least one of the blades (Not a problem with two bladers) I'll now make the prop blades individually and peg into a solid spinner which is a fun job I'm putting off for the moment . . . .
Finally just because I could here's what it'll look like with the top wing in place :)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54925071329_01fdd2628d_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rFxm9r)DSC_1881 (https://flic.kr/p/2rFxm9r) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
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Now that is looking quite special. This will be a very unique build when it's done. I really like your approach to the problem solving, and as for scratchbuilding a 3 bladed prop, that is very impressive, no wonder you are putting it off..... ;)
Question - I struggle to use bits below .4mm without them continually snapping. What method and drill do you use with .2mm bits?
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Now that is looking quite special. This will be a very unique build when it's done. I really like your approach to the problem solving, and as for scratchbuilding a 3 bladed prop, that is very impressive, no wonder you are putting it off..... ;)
Question - I struggle to use bits below .4mm without them continually snapping. What method and drill do you use with .2mm bits?
Cheers Nigel. Should look different when done (I'll need to build a DIII or DV to go alongside)
Fret not about the drill bits I break them all the time ::)
FWIW I buy them by the boxload (A box of 10 costs about ?5-6 on Evibay; just search for microdrill) and I usually use up 3 or 4 on a simple rigging job like this one.
I use them between my fingers rather than in a dremel and after a few twists clean off the threads by wiping on the back of a finger. Took an hour or so to drill everything on this one and I'm completely cross-eyed when I've finished. ;)
Some plastics are horrible to drill, but the cheap kits I normally use have nice soft plastic that drills easily enough (I broke about 10 bits doing the double rigging lines on the Eduard Spad)
I prefer to drill after priming, but before painting because getting the broken drill out can make a right mess. If any holes fill in after painting I poke a piece of brass wire through the hole to open it out again
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This is looking really good, did you ever decide on mauve or brown for the camo scheme?
I like your idea of representing the metal cowl pieces with multiple layers of paint... too many times I've gone to scribe panel lines and ended up with a trench that doesn't scale out well for the size of the kit. I'll be paying attention to how that technique turns out on the finished model.
Looking forward to the next installment.
Take care
Scott...
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Thanks Scott ;D
I've used the 'primer panel' method before (I always end up making a pigs ear when I try scribing, although I'm getting better)
I'm going brown for the camo scheme since it was ordered in November '16 and the change in colour requirements didn't come in till the following April. I imagine red/brown paint stocks would have been used up first so say May onwards for a lilac/green scheme. Seems unlikely that it would have taken 6 months to put it together and paint given the rapidity of new designs generally so I'm going with the green /red brown on this one
Paul
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That is a sophisticated jig! The model is shaping up really well and as Nigel has written, it will probably be unique, which makes it even more impressive. I too am looking forward to seeing this one completed.
Stephen.
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;D Cheers Stephen.
I make them up for everything since they use offcuts of the same foamboard I make the boxes from and I can tweak them easily with shims of plastic to get everything square; jigs were a bit of game-changer for me making small multi winged aircraft and I always recommend using something (I've tried lego and meccano, but keep coming back to these)
Anyway another crude jig needed to get the position of the prop blades on the spinner ;)
Spent most of yesterday (in between ferrying my daughter about and watching the rugby) making up three individual blades. In retrospect it would have been much easier to make a pair of 'normal' two bladed props and cut them apart when carved, but we live and learn. No idea of shape or even if a spinner was used, but decided it would look better with a spinner and they needed to be slightly smaller overall diameter than an equivalent two blader because of the increased blade area. Pins hold them at 120 degrees apart, but I need to work out how to carve the 'slots' the blades fit into on the solid spinner now so put it aside to have a ponder about that . . .
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54927340768_1bfa21dc0e_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rFJYLG)DIV propeller (https://flic.kr/p/2rFJYLG) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
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Spent quite a lot of time last week making up brass struts for this one. Brass wire filed to section and then soldered together for the inners and just brass wire (1mm diameter) filed to shape for the wing struts.
That said I'm not happy with the cabane struts so will remake these ::) My very basic soldering materials shown here
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54959473149_51fc7d8d43_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rJzEBg)DSC_1885 (https://flic.kr/p/2rJzEBg) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
I file/sand a 12" length of brass wire and then having drawn up the correct lengths/angles on the plan each piece is cut and shaped over the drawing and then the ends are tinned (dip in flux and then add a thin layer of solder) Once done they are then taped to the worksurface ready for joining. Cocktail stick adds some more flux to the joint and then heat is applied to melt the solder already on the parts. Using a heat sink between joints prevents the previous ones becoming unsoldered; this is nothing complicated for me, I just hold a pair of tweezers against the brass between the joints. Once everything has cooled excess solder is filed away and the whole thing cleaned with isoproponal before spraying in etch primer.
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Lovely work, if a lot of effort in my book!
.....this is nothing complicated for me.....
It would be like open heart surgery for me!
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Those struts look fine to me. I do not bother to tin the ends of joints when I solder - just make sure that there is lots of flux. I also use wet tissue paper for heat sinks - tweezers might get a bit hot!
Stephen.
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Lovely work, if a lot of effort in my book!
.....this is nothing complicated for me.....
It would be like open heart surgery for me!
;D You know it makes sense though Nigel . . .
Those struts look fine to me. I do not bother to tin the ends of joints when I solder - just make sure that there is lots of flux. I also use wet tissue paper for heat sinks - tweezers might get a bit hot!
Stephen.
Sadly I oversanded one just after this pic was taken (I popped a joint, superglued it back in place then noticed it wasn't quite lined up and was a bit enthusiastic with the file) :P
I'll try the wet tissue method next time Stephen (It does help having asbestos fingers) ;)
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I feel ashamed to come across this build only now. You are doing a great modelling job with every step. I will watch with great interest from now on.
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I feel ashamed to come across this build only now. You are doing a great modelling job with every step. I will watch with great interest from now on.
No problem Prze. I often find a thread I've missed and think how have I missed this one ??? Nice to have you onboard now
After a weekend workshop away painting a figure it's taken a few days to get started back with wingy things, but a couple of evenings work saw a new set of struts sorted. Because the two outer struts are different lengths and at slightly different angles I tried a different approach this time which seemed to work better (The diagonal was cut to fit AFTER the other parts were at the correct angle and soldered together)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54967075853_774d2076b4_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rKfCCn)DIV struts in situ (https://flic.kr/p/2rKfCCn) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
Here's the full set cleaned off with isopropanol ready for a coat of etch primer and then it'll be on to painting at last ;D
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54967152489_5d4a2cbf8c_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rKg2pF)DIV struts new (https://flic.kr/p/2rKg2pF) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
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Hmmmmmmmmmmmm. Shiny ones!
Paul.
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Good lord that jig is complicated!!! I could never cope with anything as sophisticated as that!!
Stephen.
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Your brass work looks excellent Paul!... Being able to create your own struts certainly opens up a whole new world of possibilities.
Looking forward to seeing this one come together.
Take care
Scott...
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Hmmmmmmmmmmmm. Shiny ones!
Paul.
LOL Paul - not for long ;)
Good lord that jig is complicated!!! I could never cope with anything as sophisticated as that!!
Stephen.
Looks worse than it is from this angle Stephen. Plan and side views stuck onto foam board and cut out with a couple of supports because I used thin board which is easier to cut accurately, but wobbles about a bit. Pins are just to hold a couple of bands to stop the top wing floating about. ;D
Your brass work looks excellent Paul!... Being able to create your own struts certainly opens up a whole new world of possibilities.
Looking forward to seeing this one come together.
Take care
Scott...
Thanks Scott. :)
Happy with this second set (the first ended up in the bin) I certainly prefer brass to the usual plastic items for struts because I'm a bit heavy handed when painting, assembling and rigging. :-[
Plenty of unusual subjects just waiting to be built . . . .
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Excellent work. I do enjoy the precise way you approach your builds.
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Excellent work. I do enjoy the precise way you approach your builds.
Thanks Nigel
(Of course that is in direct contrast to the bombsite that is my workbench generally) ;)
Anyway added some paint to this one yesterday (At last I hear the cry) ::)
The underside rib-tapes came out barely visible, but I'll leave them as they are. The few original photos show the colour areas quite clearly apart from the lower right wing which makes a nice change. I've assumed the darker portions are the camouflage are green as suggested in the original build article and I'm aiming for the colours used in Ronny Barr's profile because I like the colour balance. Once they're varnished I'll tweak them a bit, using oil paints, which will also bring out a few of the details.
I'll add some pale beige acrylic to the fuselage this afternoon and then it's out with the oils again for the wood effects and separate panels which is one of my favourite bits :D
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54968824366_3abe18a487_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rKpAp9)Painted DIV (https://flic.kr/p/2rKpAp9) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
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Subtle is always better than zebra stripes in my book....... ;) She is looking very fetching already, finished before Xmas....?
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Very good start to the painting - I agree that the shades look good on the upper wing.
Stephen.
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Subtle is always better than zebra stripes in my book....... ;)
;D Indeed Nigel
Fingers crossed for a Christmas finish although painting the wooden panels always takes a while because of the drying time. Did a few yesterday and popped it on the radiator overnight so hopefully that will keep things ticking along.
Very good start to the painting - I agree that the shades look good on the upper wing
Stephen.
Thanks Stephen.
Mostly airbrushed, but after the last disaster I've gone back to my usual process of paint thinned with distilled water and a couple of drops of flow improver added to each cupful.
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Did a few yesterday and popped it on the radiator overnight so hopefully that will keep things ticking along.
Hopefully you didn't have the heating up too high....... :o
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Did a few yesterday and popped it on the radiator overnight so hopefully that will keep things ticking along.
Hopefully you didn't have the heating up too high....... :o
Well it's not melted yet . . . ;)
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Couple of progress shots to mull over -
Because I decided not to engrave the separate wood panels I needed to come up with a way of painting them individually. The way I did this was to mask off the edge of each panel and brush a layer of acrylic against the edge of the tape which left a nice sharp ridge :)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54979676048_824519da69_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rLnde7)Albatros DIV panels (https://flic.kr/p/2rLnde7) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
It was then on with the trusty old oil paints for the woodgrain. Once everything is thoroughly dry I'll add a varnish coat with a touch of colour in it to tie everything together
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54979742999_38b3d5437c_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rLny8r)Albatros DIV woodgraining (https://flic.kr/p/2rLny8r) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
Popped that back on the radiator for a few more days to avoid any damage. In the meantime I wanted to work out a way of adding the individual blades to the spinner so they didn't look 'stuck on'. I used the pegasus prop as a starting point; removed the blades and reshaped slightly then a bit of time with a new scalpel blade and my best magnifier gave me some cut outs that allowed the blades to appear to fit the spinner (I later painted the area below the blade in a darkish grey to help it disappear into shadow)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54979793020_c5b1c4c113_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rLnNZS)Albatros DIV spinner (https://flic.kr/p/2rLnNZS) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
A lick of paint on the spinner and some superglue on the blades brass pins and we have an unusual three blader from WW1 ;D
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54979495651_9658c43f49_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rLmhAP)Albtros DIV propeller (https://flic.kr/p/2rLmhAP) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
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Paul, I remember you mentioning that you were not going to scribe panel lines but rather mask them and paint. The results look excellent! If I remember correctly, Albatros cut their ply panels at an angle so the joint lines were very faint? The way you handled this looks perfect, the panels are distinct but flush, no trenches for panel lines. For your base are you still using the ochre/white acrylic mix? Hope you're happy with the results, I think they look great.
Additionally, the propeller turned out excellent also. Strange for the period to see a three bladed propeller. You've gone above and beyond for the scratch elements on this aircraft, hope the rest of the build for you is very straight forward.
Looking forward to the next installment.
Scott
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Excellent scratchbuilidng skills as always, the prop looks fantastic. I really like your approach to the wood panel lines. I might try this on my Aviattic Fokker EV wing, because the panels on that overlapped slightly, so engraving panel lines is incorrect.
The wood grain looks very effective as well, this is a lovely build.
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Paul, I remember you mentioning that you were not going to scribe panel lines but rather mask them and paint. The results look excellent! If I remember correctly, Albatros cut their ply panels at an angle so the joint lines were very faint? The way you handled this looks perfect, the panels are distinct but flush, no trenches for panel lines. For your base are you still using the ochre/white acrylic mix? Hope you're happy with the results, I think they look great.
Additionally, the propeller turned out excellent also. Strange for the period to see a three bladed propeller. You've gone above and beyond for the scratch elements on this aircraft, hope the rest of the build for you is very straight forward.
Looking forward to the next installment.
Scott
;D Thank you Scott
Glad you like the effect as well. I'm pleased with the masking and painting method since I'm not a great fan of trenches for flush panels.
A bit of serendipity actually - I originally decided on this method because I didn't think I'd be able to scribe the main longitudinal lines neatly on both sides (having had a go on a scrap fuselage) Incidentally if you do want to scribe any lines I found 'dyno' tape is ideal; sticks firmly enough, is easy to remove and re-use and is thick enough to give a nice edge to scribe against.
But back to this one - Yes I'm using a mix of off white and a golden brown acrylic in varying proportions for the panel undercoats.
I thought, at first, it would take a couple of coats of paint to provide a thick enough line, but found that is too much (hence one of the panel lines is a bit prominent) A single coat of acrylic brushed up against the masking tape does the job perfectly.
Pleased with the three blader which was one of the main reasons for the project in the first place (At one of the shows earlier in the year I was asked about propellers and if there were any with three blades; I couldn't think of any, but came across a reference to them reading about the d.IV (I'm sure there would have been others as well)
Managed to break one of the cabanes, but it should glue back together okay with a spot of superglue when fitting. Hopefully get some time today to make up the undercarriage and tail skid.
Paul
ps - Whilst I hade the woodgrain thing going on I decided to refurbish an earlier build of d.V that needed repair so I disassembled the main components removed the old fuselage decals and repainted the wood panels damaged in the process. Think I've foud a scheme that will suit it and shouldn't be too troublesome . . . .
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Excellent scratchbuilidng skills as always, the prop looks fantastic. I really like your approach to the wood panel lines. I might try this on my Aviattic Fokker EV wing, because the panels on that overlapped slightly, so engraving panel lines is incorrect.
The wood rain looks very effective as well, this is a lovely build.
Cheers Nigel. Glad you're enjoying it so far ;D
The paint method works nicely to give a crisp panel line and should be ideal for the d.VIII/E.V wing. On the wood I found a single coat of acrylic brushed up to the Tamiya tape did the trick and the cowl is a two or three coats sprayed from a rattle can of Tamiya primer. If I was doing it again I'd just polish the ridge very slightly after removing the tape to soften it slightly.
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Really coming along and the panel lines are a really neat trick. The three bladed propeller looks very cool as well.
Cheers
Matt
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Really coming along and the panel lines are a really neat trick. The three bladed propeller looks very cool as well.
Cheers
Matt
Thanks Matt
Gradually getting there :)
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Got to agree with all of the above: the panels and prop are first class.
Stephen.
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Cheers Stephen
Progress has been slower than I'd like, but I do like to allow things to dry for 24 hours between stages. So to add decals there's a lot of down time between varnish coats etc. Anyway nearly ready for assembly now (I'll add the final cockpit details once it's on its own wheels) Cockpit padding just added using duro putty hence the bright green colour at the moment ::)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55003004434_b4742b7a41_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rNqLWE)Albatros DIV assembly (https://flic.kr/p/2rNqLWE) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
Rather than sit idle when waiting for paint to dry I thought it would be nice to have a standard Albie for comparison. Looking at the squashed Eduard DV from the great glass shelf disaster earlier this year I initially thought it was rather beyond saving (every strut broken or bent and paintwork damaged were the main problems) With a fresh look I realised that I could break it up and rebuild it a bit like Steve Austin ;)
Once dissembled I thought I may as well give it a different scheme so sanded off the old decals and repainted the wings top and bottom. To add a bit of difference between the two aircraft I removed the original headrest which meant repainting most of the fuselage in oils again. Still need to add a rudder cross (I've just removed the one I put on because it didn't adhere properly) :P
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55001856867_1f8611dce8_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rNjTP2)Albatros DV Aloys Heldmann Jasta 10 (https://flic.kr/p/2rNjTP2) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
The new scheme is from a Ronny Barr profile of Aloys Heldmann from Jasta 10 for those that didn't recognise it (I was originally going to paint a version with a headrest and longitudinal stripes, but they proved somewhat taxing to mask off in this scale so I decided on this one instead)
The eagle eyed will spot a missing spandau and most of the front cockpit (bulkhead, ammo boxes, dashboards etc) was floating about loose inside so that was removed pending a decision on what to do about it; I may just cop out and add a roped on canvas cockpit cover . . . . ???
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Whatever you choose to do I am sure that it will look fine. Anyway a cockpit cover will be different from the majority of models and with a suitable background could still look very good.
Stephen.
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This is looking good all round, another resurrection on the go as well. You seem to have got your festivals mixed up a bit....... ;) ;D
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Whatever you choose to do I am sure that it will look fine. Anyway a cockpit cover will be different from the majority of models and with a suitable background could still look very good.
Stephen.
Thanks Stephen. I'm undecided at this point so we'll see how the rest of it progresses :)
This is looking good all round, another resurrection on the go as well. You seem to have got your festivals mixed up a bit....... ;) ;D
Cheers Nigel LOLs ;D
Can't be waiting around for months till the right time;gt models queing up waiting to be built (Got an old Ardpol DH9 as a Christmas prezzy so perhaps a few more allied aircraft are in order to balance the display a bit) ::)
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Okay moment of truth time - fitting the upper wing :P
Could have gone better . . . .
For a change I decided to add all the lines to the upper wing and finish cleaning up and painting all the ensuing holes (I use fishing line drilled all the way through the wing panels to rig) Seemed like a good idea at the time even though there's a bit of a cats cradle of lines taped out of the way when it comes to wing fitting.
When I glued in the cabanes, including the broken one, everything looked okayish even if I managed to not get one of the struts quite deep enough into the predrilled hole. Adding the interplane struts revealed an issue showing that a couple of the holes drilled for them were slightly off despite very careful measuring and the wing was slightly askew (We are talking tiny fractions here probably not noticeable to the casual view, but enough that I could see when placed over a plan) The broken cabane just wouldn't join up properly again and looked a bit of a mess.
I was faced with a quandary - break it apart again or ignore it :-\
No guesses at which path I chose. ;)
I managed to extract the cabane without too much damage and when this was done I could see that most of other problems could be solved by removing and redrilling one of the interplane strut holes and making this strut a tad longer (or dilling the new hole deeper) This would mean also moving the carefully installed wires to that strut, but hey ho. Time to sand up some more brass wire.
(Pieces of the damaged interplane are painted grey below and a few salvaged pieces meant there wouldn't be too many other bits needed)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55019296460_e2a4738c57_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rPSgZE)broken struts (https://flic.kr/p/2rPSgZE) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
Since I couldn't face the whole soldering up bit again an executive decision was taken to make this interplane up in pieces and glue in situ thus ensuring everything remained nice and square.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55019296455_77ba5e55c8_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rPSgZz)DIV Cabane (https://flic.kr/p/2rPSgZz) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
If you look closely below you can see the filled hole which shows how small the difference between a nice and square front strut and one that looks like it lived in a brewery.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55019296440_729c8b97e8_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rPSgZj)Interplane DIV (https://flic.kr/p/2rPSgZj) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
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Best laid plans eh? But the corrections are looking great and as you mentioned, in the end you'll probably be the only one who knows how all the components went together... also you'll probably be glad you took the time and effort to do it over so that you were pleased with the outcome. It's going to look great when completed... and what's wrong with living in a brewery???
Scott
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Well worth doing, I think that difference would be noticeable. And it looks like the cabane is going OK.....Fingers crossed for the final stages!
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Best laid plans eh? But the corrections are looking great and as you mentioned, in the end you'll probably be the only one who knows how all the components went together... also you'll probably be glad you took the time and effort to do it over so that you were pleased with the outcome. It's going to look great when completed... and what's wrong with living in a brewery???
Scott
;D Best laid plans indeed Scott
Always a good idea to replace anything not up to scratch, because as you say it'll just bug you once the model is built.
Well worth doing, I think that difference would be noticeable. And it looks like the cabane is going OK.....Fingers crossed for the final stages!
Cheers Nigel :D
Pressing on with a dodgy part is rarely a good idea, so better to change it at this stage. Rigging later today and then on to the home straight . . .
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Attaching rigging wires to a wing prior to putting the wing in place can lead to stress.... but in my experience is the best way forward. Bad luck with the mis-aligned strut and the ones which would not fit properly. I always hesitate when deciding whether to prefabricate or build in place and I usually go for the latter because no matter how careful we are, something will not line up properly, or there will be a measurement error.
Good for you for taking the trouble to correct the errors too - you will now be able to look at the model and not think about them!
Stephen.
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Attaching rigging wires to a wing prior to putting the wing in place can lead to stress.... but in my experience is the best way forward. Bad luck with the mis-aligned strut and the ones which would not fit properly. I always hesitate when deciding whether to prefabricate or build in place and I usually go for the latter because no matter how careful we are, something will not line up properly, or there will be a measurement error.
Good for you for taking the trouble to correct the errors too - you will now be able to look at the model and not think about them!
Stephen.
Cheers Stephen.
Absolutely right about getting the thing so you're happy to look at it without getting bugged :)
I'm also reaching the same conclusion about prefabricated struts with multiple joins (usually the cabanes) Making the replacement was a doddle. Brass main parts held everything nice and square and then sanded plastic superglued in for the others. Pretty easy to do, looks good and is much easier than trying to solder 5 tiny pieces together at the correct angles - result ;D
The rigging hasn't been exactly plain sailing since I managed to miss adding a couple of lines and snapped another when using a bit too much heat to tighten it both of which led to needing to drill more holes ::)
Paul
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In between building an understairs cupboard and work tasks I've managed to progress this one a bit more :)
Rigging is all now done and it's ready to add the last few details to the cockpit and engine areas. I did tweak the camouflage edges using a sponge in a pair of tweezers to give a more blurred edge which may be a bit too coarse, but looks fine at 'normal' viewing distance. I've also touched up all the inevitable splashes and bits of paint damaged during the whole strut replacement thing. Turnbuckles are just a couple of layers of paint on the fishing line wires.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55036179687_81896b9acc_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rRmNMM)DIV rigged (https://flic.kr/p/2rRmNMM) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
Next up is undercarriage which'll utilise a pair of Roden Albie wheels with the hubs drilled out (No valve covers seen in photos of the prototype, but a bit of filler takes care of that) Brass legs are over long at this stage ready for the ends to be shaped.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55037260568_28af7408f3_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rRsm6E)DIV undercarriage (https://flic.kr/p/2rRsm6E) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
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That's looking very good, more nice work on the undercarriage parts. Nice work on the camo, that's one of the joys of 1/72, you can create those effects without having to break out the airbrush.
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You have now got it to the point where you can run round the room with it making engine and machine gun noises.
Alan.
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Good recovery from earlier setbacks. I hope that the u/c does not cause problems now...!
PS can I join you while you rush about the room making flying and machine gun noises? I will 'fly' a Sopwith Camel!
Stephen.
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Thank you kindly gents.
Not much work done today, I've either been sorting out tax or rushing about the workroom making vroooming noises which I can heartily recommend as an activity ;D
Paul
ps
Feel free to join in with the Camel Stephen ;)
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Just getting got up on your build here to see how it is moving along . Making nice progress so far . I think your camo turned out really well even with the feathering of the edges with a sponge , it looks really good .
Alexis
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Cheers Alexis
As promised undercarriage was next. Tailskid fitted with duro putty for the bungee cords
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55049791200_4e499e436d_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rSyz23)DIV Tailskid (https://flic.kr/p/2rSyz23) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
Main undercarriage proved a little difficult (no surprises there then) ::) Using the plan length for the legs it looke da little 'on stilts' compared to the photo's so I removed it and gradually cropped it until it looked correct; eventually taking nearly a millimetre from the front and about 1 1/2 from the back. Once glued in place a brass axle was added with thread bungee cords this time keeping everything nice and secure. The spreader bar shown here is stretched sprue, but I noticed a bow appeared overnight so that was replaced with a bit of brass wire later
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55049635583_9dff162ea6_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2rSxLKZ)DIV undercarriage (https://flic.kr/p/2rSxLKZ) by Paul S (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
Final piece to make up was the sloping aerodynamic windshield. After a couple of unsuccessful attempts I sanded a fromer into the end of a wooden peg and using a hairdryer stretch formed a scrap of packaging plastic over this. Made up three and used the best one when trimmed.
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Getting near to finishing this - it will be a superb unique model. Looking forward to seeing it in the gallery.
Stephen.
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This gets better and better. I must say the wood effect looks abolutely spot on on these close ups? it is going to be a great model
Cheers, Skyhook