forum.ww1aircraftmodels.com
WW1 Aircraft Modeling => Under Construction => Topic started by: DaddyO on April 24, 2026, 01:11:49 AM
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Afternoon all after completing the Be12b my eyes were drawn to something with just a little rigging :) I managed to find a nice subject, but I wanted to make a start on a contribution to this group build so needed something with more than a single seat.
I've got a wide range of Choroszy and Ardpol two seaters, but most are German and whilst being fine subjects of excellent aircraft I am trying to get over my reluctance of building 'green machines' ;D
Looking around for a 'simple' subject I eventually decided on one of A.Sopwiths's finest since I have a few versions sitting on the shelf. Initially drawn to one of the decorative French subjects in natural linen rather than another PC10 machine; however this boxing has the undeniably attractive aircraft flown by Raymond Collishaw (as well as a spiffing French example which may appear at a later date using one of the Toko offerings saved for a rainy day)
Anyway first the obligatory box image
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55225636466_15afc8b54a_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2s96PFY)DSC_2074 (https://flic.kr/p/2s96PFY) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
This is a rather nice kit with some bits of resin and a small etched fret containing both Scarf ring, French equivalent and some interior bits and bobs although most will be hidden away if you build the version without the clear wing panels.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55226043655_5c77f8ae87_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2s98UJt)DSC_2075 (https://flic.kr/p/2s98UJt) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
Initial impressions are quite favourable. There's a bit of flash in odd places and a few obvious points that will need to be addressed such as the lack of scoop under the nose behind the engine and tail incidence gubbins. I'll probably also do my usual trick of sanding down the wings and reinstating the ribs with a scalpel; not that these are too bad, but the wings could be thinner and then I'll also need to decide what I'm doing about the clear inspection panels on them . . .
I'll chuck away most of the smaller parts and make up some nice new struts from brass. Being effectively just a large single bay bipe the rigging should be a nice quick job compared to the last one.
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Good choice Paul! I admit I'm partial to aircraft in PC10 :)
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Good choice Paul! I admit I'm partial to aircraft in PC10 :)
:) Thinking of what you said when I picked the scheme for this one
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Nice choice for the build and nice to see a classic Flashback kit ! Tagging along .....
Alexis
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:) Thinking of what you said when I picked the scheme for this one
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- I'm flattered Paul :)
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Nice choice! This is a good base for a superb build. Looking forward to this one.
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Thank you chaps and chappess' :)
Mainly this week has been sanding, but the result of all that is a set of wings that are nice and thin. I removed the ribs in the 'clear centre section because there was some awkward flash to remove and this let me get the apertures nice and square; I can add the ribs and rigging therin later on. My usual scored lines represent the rib tapes on the upper surfaces and masked/sprayed tapes on the lower ones will sort those out. All the moving surfaces have been separated and small brass (0.3mm) pins added for later joining. The strut mounting holes seemed rather large so they were drilled out slightly and filled with white Miliput. (I'm not convinced that the lower ones would have given the correct strut angle using measurements from each wing tip so I'll tack the fuselage together just to confirm the new ones will line up before drilling them and the rigging holes) The keen eyed may also spot that new brass control horns have been added to everything.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55228316904_bab991cafe_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2s9kyuq)Strutter wings (https://flic.kr/p/2s9kyuq) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
Next up more sanding and cutting to sort out the fuselage halves :P
Paul
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First job was the missing vent under the nose. Fuselages tacked together with superglue and the nose was hacked about with a razor saw :)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55228479360_474a999617_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2s9moMo)Strutter nose (https://flic.kr/p/2s9moMo) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
Next the cowl itself. This had a single vent depression marked on one edge which wasn't correct as far as I can tell for the aircraft I'm working on (although there seemed to be as many variations on the cowl venting as there were aircraft!) Anyway I settled on two narrow at the front and three large ones to the rear. Before cutting the vents I attacked the inside with a dremel on the lower half to make it thinner then some careful work with drills and files created some vents which I was happy with. (The kits depression/vent was rotated to the 'top' and filled so I was working on a clean area)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55231015846_5ded5a33d9_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2s9zoMU)Strutter cowl (https://flic.kr/p/2s9zoMU) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
The kits resin engine looked a bit malnourished under the new cowl failing to fill the space so I cobbled together a new one using a Roden main part with some exhausts from an Eduard kit suitably modified to fit :)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55231264619_c58e151ec6_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2s9AEK6)Strutter engine (https://flic.kr/p/2s9AEK6) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
Right back to the fuselage. Firstly the side walls were thinned till they were a bit translucent by a mix of scraping and sanding. At the rear I lopped off a section for the tail incidence mechanism which I'll deal with later. I also cut a section from the top and bottom so I can add a couple of pieces of plastic card to support this. Obviously it was all getting a bit wibbly so a lump of Miliput was squished into give it some support.
I added a couple of bits of 10 thou card to the vent cut outs made earlier which now protrude correctly into the pilots footwell (not that they're ever going to be seen once the fuselage is closed up) ::)
Test fitting the gunners section showed that it was standing a tad proud so a couple of shims were added to open up the top of the fuselage which hopefully will mean less sanding later. Whilst doing this I couldn't help but notice the cockpit shape was not quite right and also slightly too far forward so more plastic card mods and sanding were called for. Rather than use the kits resin cockpit (which now floated about in the capacious fuselage I bodged together a new cockpit floor and some plastic strip detail for the side walls (I'll save the resin bits for one of the single seater versions which have a solid top wing)
I'll let everything dry today and hopefully get some time to press on this week, but now I'm off to fix a leaking radiator valve :P
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55231171978_292823fffe_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2s9AccQ)Strutter fuselage (https://flic.kr/p/2s9AccQ) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
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Moving a long really well so far , nice job on the engine should look good once a lick of paint is added .
Alexis
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Note that there were only a few French Sops in CDL, the rest were either aluminum doped or in French five-color.
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Moving a long really well so far , nice job on the engine should look good once a lick of paint is added .
Alexis
Cheers Alexis :)
Note that there were only a few French Sops in CDL, the rest were either aluminum doped or in French five-color.
Thanks for the heads up. :D
I'll pay attention when I come to making a French one (I did spot that Mike had made the 32nd version in silver of the French scheme that's the alternative in this boxing) ;) Personally I like the 5 colour camouflage, but although I've done a couple of models in it I don't think I've nailed the balance between the colours quite right yet. There's an interesting article in one of the Windsock mags that I've recently re-read which gives some nice suggestions about mixing the colours using 'normal' artists acrylics with silver or light grey added to get a true scale look (The light grey is for the enamels used on metal panels and silver for the dope colours)
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Great start on this project. It will certainly be worth following your build.
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Great start on this project. It will certainly be worth following your build.
Thanks Prze.
Not been able to get near it for the last couple of days with work and other stuff getting in the way - now getting itchy fingers . . . :)
Paul
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Lovely work all round. The slots in the cowl are beautifully done and the extra detailing looks fantastic.
You might like to reach out to Dave Hooper if you have any questions about CDL vs silver dope on the French ones. I know he did a lot of research in this when he was doing the Strutter decals for Aviattic.
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Lovely work all round. The slots in the cowl are beautifully done and the extra detailing looks fantastic.
You might like to reach out to Dave Hooper if you have any questions about CDL vs silver dope on the French ones. I know he did a lot of research in this when he was doing the Strutter decals for Aviattic.
Cheers NIgel. :)
I'll have a chat with Dave before I get around to the second one, but got a few other projects to sort out first and hopefully I'm pretty safe with the PC10 version ;)
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That?s looking fantastic Paul. Nice work on the cowling and fuselage vent. Thanks for pointing out how small the resin engine is compared to the Roden one. That?s a nice substitute.
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Not seen this subject represented for a long time, which is a shame as it was an important type in its time.
You are adding your usual super-fine details so I will be following with interest, not least because I am looking for good ideas!!
Stephen.
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When/if you do a second one, note that Aero Rarities (https://aerorarities.com/products/survival-pack-sopwith-1-1-2-strutter) is coming out with a 3D printed cockpit (and other parts) for primarily the Flashback kit, although I will see how it works with the Toko/Eastern Express kit when it becomes available.
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That?s looking fantastic Paul. Nice work on the cowling and fuselage vent. Thanks for pointing out how small the resin engine is compared to the Roden one. That?s a nice substitute.
Cheers Tim (Shame it's a bit of tiddler, but without all the hollowing out it would probably be okay) :)
Not seen this subject represented for a long time, which is a shame as it was an important type in its time.
You are adding your usual super-fine details so I will be following with interest, not least because I am looking for good ideas!!
Stephen.
Hi Stephen. Yep it's not seen as often in this scale nowadays which is a shame; the Flashback kit is pretty good and doesn't have that textured flying surface which the Toko/Eastern Express ones do. There are some cracking schemes for Strutters and I've got a set of the Blue Rider(?) decals which show quite a few French decorated examples. Although it's a nice size the rigging isn't too extensive so hopefully will build up pretty quickly without too many snapped drill bits ;)
When/if you do a second one, note that Aero Rarities (https://aerorarities.com/products/survival-pack-sopwith-1-1-2-strutter) is coming out with a 3D printed cockpit (and other parts) for primarily the Flashback kit, although I will see how it works with the Toko/Eastern Express kit when it becomes available.
Good spot matey I completely forgot about Aero Rarities although making one up from scratch isn't too arduous in this scale. I'll bear it mind when I have a go at the next one :D
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Excellent work Paul! As always, I'm amazed at your level of detailing in this scale.
There should be no problem fitting the Aero Rarities pack to the Toko/EE kits mbittner/Paul, quote:
"Based on the popular Toko/Eastern Express kits in 1/72 scale, it also complements other manufacturers' kits and after-market photo-etch accessories'.
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Excellent work Paul! As always, I'm amazed at your level of detailing in this scale.
There should be no problem fitting the Aero Rarities pack to the Toko/EE kits mbittner/Paul, quote:
"Based on the popular Toko/Eastern Express kits in 1/72 scale, it also complements other manufacturers' kits and after-market photo-etch accessories'.
Cheers enathan :D
Been busy this week so progress has been slow, but I have been popping in for the odd half hour here and there. Slapped some paint on the engine and set that aside for later. Bit of paint on the fuselage and sorted out a dashboard from some plastic scraps, but to be honest I'm not a fan of interior bits so here's something different -
A big feature of Sopwiths (and others) are the little viewing windows for control cables which I've never been happy just painting on even though in this scale it looks okay. Most of the time this week has been experimenting with different ways of making this tiny detail ::) After several attempts with making a thin plastic floor adding a pully from a scrap of sprue and then using a clear filler to bring it up the wing surface. Sadly all attempts seem to end with a slight meniscus in the clear filler so I decided on a different approach. Cut the slot out, fill with clear Perspex, paint the detail on the bottom then add the 'linen' paint over this and sand the top to profile before painting as normal. Slight drawback is that the Perspex is a bit harder than plastic so sanding is tricky.
Here's the result with some paint on top to get an idea of how it might look (Yes I know it's an Albatros wing, but my Camel paint mule wing was covered in multiple layers of paint) -
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55244573069_a023d3babd_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2saLST8)Wing transparency 2 (https://flic.kr/p/2saLST8) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55244573079_28f0c6a6a3_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2saLSTi)Wing transparency (https://flic.kr/p/2saLSTi) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
Looks okay to me, but can I be bothered to add them to the wings . . . :-\
In other news I spent some time this morning making up suitable struts (The undercarriage are just roughed out at this stage and the wing struts are overlong ready to be trimmed down) I decided after studying the close up photos in the datafile to make inverted 'V's for the centres and add the extra strut later which are laying alongside
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55243431132_a9d35be84a_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2saF2qy)Strutter struts (https://flic.kr/p/2saF2qy) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
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Lovely struts
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Lovely struts
Precisely!
After inspecting those panels: same comment! ;D
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Now that is attention to detail in this scale! I think those inspection panels look great, only you can decide if it's worth adding them though...... (personally I think you should ;)).
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Thank you chaps :)
Been fiddling about with the interior (most of which will be unseen or at best blurry, but I can't just leave the cockpits completely alone) I'll hopefully get them finished later and will take a couple of pics before they disappear. I will add the inspection panels although it would have been easier to sand them in with the wing before adding rib detail I think I can manage them at this stage without too many problems. (Memo to self to do them earlier in the process next time) ;)
I always find this stage of the model the time when I'm most likely to set it aside for something else since it seems to absorb time without any apparent visible progress being made - Is this just me? Do others have stages that they drag their heels over or struggle with?
Paul
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Meticulously detailed Paul. Great idea with the inspection panels. I?ve often thought about replicating them similarly but never found the inspiration. I may have to try this out for myself though.
Thanks,
Tim
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Brilliant work Paul! The small inspection windows are an exceptional addition.
I wouldn't be surprised if some control cables would be visible through them ;) ;D
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Brilliant work Paul! The small inspection windows are an exceptional addition.
I wouldn't be surprised if some control cables would be visible through them ;) ;D
Cheers matey ;D
One thing that the test showed is that I will need to outline the wheel so it shows up a bit better (I did contemplate the cables, but this is supposed to be a 'quick' build) ::) ;)
Paul
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As promised here are a couple of quick pics taken before the fuselage was closed up
First an instrument panel cobbled together from 10 thou card and stretched sprue. Didn't waste too much time getting the details exactly right on this one since it's unlikely to be seen once in place
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55248741021_c9fda47d9a_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2sb9eSn)Stutter instrument panel (https://flic.kr/p/2sb9eSn) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
Cockpit all ready to be closed up. Front seat is an old photo etched back with a scrap of plastic for the seat bottom. Lewis boxes were built up from 5 thou card around three spare Roden drums (I'll add the gunners rear seat later along with anything else I've missed; although I did spot that bent bracing wire and straightened that out) ;)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55249146425_a4f813c923_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2sbbjo6)Stutter interior (https://flic.kr/p/2sbbjo6) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
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Super interior detailing: what a pity it will be hardly visible! I will not be adding so much detail to my build because it will not be visible and I am eager to get on with things that will be visible!!
In reply to your comment about wishing to move on to another subject/getting stuck at a particular stage of the build: I seem to suffer from that problem frequently. I thought that it was an issue with scratch building - one has to make a large number of parts and there is little to show for them in the form of a model, so perseverance is essential, but sometimes difficult. I am suffering a little from that problem at the moment - I have to add some details to the interior of my current project and I am not to excited at the prospect. I could easily start another! However once I am over "the hump" and I can see real progress, my mojo tends to return and I regain my original urge to continue with and finish the model.
Stephen.
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I'm sorry I've not said anything but this is a treat to follow. I love the extra work you're doing. Speaking of...
Didn't waste too much time getting the details exactly right on this one since it's unlikely to be seen once in place
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55248741021_c9fda47d9a_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2sb9eSn)Stutter instrument panel (https://flic.kr/p/2sb9eSn) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
How much time did you waste? It looks terrific!!
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That interior looks great and the instrument panel is lovely. But you are right, it won't be seen once the top wing is on...... :(
I always find this stage of the model the time when I'm most likely to set it aside for something else since it seems to absorb time without any apparent visible progress being made - Is this just me? Do others have stages that they drag their heels over or struggle with?
Absolutely, I always find this with WWI aircraft. Things start quickly with engine, interior and sub assemblies but then you get to painting, decalling, varnishing and detailing all the individual bits and bobs which seems to take forever. I often get a bit fed up at that stage. I had that with the Nie 11 build - a quick and easy kit to build but I forgot about those stupid edging strips which took me days to mask and get right! But then everything seems to come together quickly at the end and all the frustrations are forgotten. Until the next one of course!
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Super interior detailing: what a pity it will be hardly visible! I will not be adding so much detail to my build because it will not be visible and I am eager to get on with things that will be visible!!
In reply to your comment about wishing to move on to another subject/getting stuck at a particular stage of the build: I seem to suffer from that problem frequently. I thought that it was an issue with scratch building - one has to make a large number of parts and there is little to show for them in the form of a model, so perseverance is essential, but sometimes difficult. I am suffering a little from that problem at the moment - I have to add some details to the interior of my current project and I am not to excited at the prospect. I could easily start another! However once I am over "the hump" and I can see real progress, my mojo tends to return and I regain my original urge to continue with and finish the model.
Stephen.
Cheers Stephen
I know exactly what you mean about interior stuff. It's one of the bits I like the least, but then I get drawn in to just adding this and then that and how can I make this and suddenly it's become a project in itself ::)
Good to hear that you also go through those stages of wilting enthusiasm; even worse for scratch building which I'm leaning more and more towards. I'm trying to be more disciplined this year and just do a little bit to keep it moving each day rather than reach for a new project when enthusiasm wanes (I've got several part started projects laying on the shelf which may or may not see the light of day at some point)
I'm sorry I've not said anything but this is a treat to follow. I love the extra work you're doing. Speaking of...
Didn't waste too much time getting the details exactly right on this one since it's unlikely to be seen once in place
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55248741021_c9fda47d9a_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2sb9eSn)Stutter instrument panel (https://flic.kr/p/2sb9eSn) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
How much time did you waste? It looks terrific!!
LOL ;D Glad you're enjoying it Zac.
Probably about an hour or so spent on the dash into total over a couple of days. Hardest part is getting the shape to fit correctly. I used a scrap of 10 thou card and sanded the top curve to fit one half keeping the bottom over long then used this as a template (flipped over for the second side) Touch of refinement and then trimmed for correct depth. Stretch some sprue and slice off sections for the dials, scraps of 5 thou and a thin piece of brass wire take care of the details. A final sand and quick spray of primer.
Paint the wood (Vallejo red leather acrylic mixed with some golden brown and a touch of glaze medium to slow the drying time; old brush dragged through the final coat gives a sort of grain effect) Then the dials - Painted black first as an undercoat then painted with brass using some old Model Colour brass mixed with some golden brown to make it a bit less transparent and kill the glittery shine. Black centre onto this and then fine brush to add the white details (again mixed with a bit of glaze medium which makes the white thinner and less stark as well as stops it drying out on the tip of the brush) There's usually a bit of back and forth between the black and white till I'm happy :P I use a hairdryer between colours when painting the details so doesn't take too long and I find as I get older it takes a while for my eyes to adjust to painting details so once I start painting these bits I like to work on them to completion.
Obviously using close up glasses for these details; I've switched from an Optivisor to a pair of close up reading glasses which I find more comfortable. The ones I have currently are +6 bought from somewhere online and weren't too expensive although I do look like Joe90 when wearing them 8)
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That interior looks great and the instrument panel is lovely. But you are right, it won't be seen once the top wing is on...... :(
I always find this stage of the model the time when I'm most likely to set it aside for something else since it seems to absorb time without any apparent visible progress being made - Is this just me? Do others have stages that they drag their heels over or struggle with?
Absolutely, I always find this with WWI aircraft. Things start quickly with engine, interior and sub assemblies but then you get to painting, decalling, varnishing and detailing all the individual bits and bobs which seems to take forever. I often get a bit fed up at that stage. I had that with the Nie 11 build - a quick and easy kit to build but I forgot about those stupid edging strips which took me days to mask and get right! But then everything seems to come together quickly at the end and all the frustrations are forgotten. Until the next one of course!
Morning Nigel, you're right of course but I just couldn't help myself . . . . . . ::)
Interesting to hear that you find that as well. I suppose we have different stages which we get snagged at (The Nieuport looks terrific by the way. The edging really lifts the colour scheme so well worth the effort of all that masking). As you say all forgotten until the next one
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Thank you chaps :)
Been fiddling about with the interior (most of which will be unseen or at best blurry, but I can't just leave the cockpits completely alone) I'll hopefully get them finished later and will take a couple of pics before they disappear. I will add the inspection panels although it would have been easier to sand them in with the wing before adding rib detail I think I can manage them at this stage without too many problems. (Memo to self to do them earlier in the process next time) ;)
I always find this stage of the model the time when I'm most likely to set it aside for something else since it seems to absorb time without any apparent visible progress being made - Is this just me? Do others have stages that they drag their heels over or struggle with?
Paul
Answering your question, I also do have the stages of modeling which linger mercilessly... Cleaning the parts from flash, traces of mould halves joint, correcting fitting issues are among them.
But I also have another stage which scares me off. I always have difficulties with starting to airbrush the main parts. I postpone it till the last possible moment, inventing other things which can be done beforehand.
And then, doing the wash and its cleaning... Generally weathering... It is not my piece of cake.
Yet, I never have a feeling to throw the kit into a trash bin. There was only one model in my life which I did not complete. I will not tell its name, I am too ashamed of it :)
And BTW - great job on the cockpit. Too late now, but there is a PE fret from Part dedicated to Toko Strutter - it might have been useful...
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In other news I spent some time this morning making up suitable struts (The undercarriage are just roughed out at this stage and the wing struts are overlong ready to be trimmed down) I decided after studying the close up photos in the datafile to make inverted 'V's for the centres and add the extra strut later which are laying alongside
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55243431132_a9d35be84a_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2saF2qy)Strutter struts (https://flic.kr/p/2saF2qy) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
I have been following your Strutter build and must say that it is progressing nicely.
Of late I have also been fussing over making struts and similar bits in 1/72 scale. My usual go to for such things is to use thin wall brass tubing that I have "squashed" with a smaller diameter bit of rod inside.
I find it works well in larger scales but I just can't get it quite right in the smaller scales - either not "squashed" enough or too much.
Your use of sanded or filed brass wire, as you describe, is interesting. I have perused your description in this topic and in others that I have managed to find on this technique but I am left with a few questions.
Brass wire? Wire or rod, very similar but wire tends to be softer than rod. What is your preference of material.
What size wire or rod do you start with? Any tips on the sanding or filing bit? Do you work just by eye or do you use a jig or guide of some sort?
Soldering. Usual 60/40 lead/tin or lead free or silver bearing ( i.e. StayBrite ) or low temperature tin/bismuth or ?
As always, I find myself descending into a rabbit hole of over engineering something that should be simple.
cheers, Graham
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In other news I spent some time this morning making up suitable struts (The undercarriage are just roughed out at this stage and the wing struts are overlong ready to be trimmed down) I decided after studying the close up photos in the datafile to make inverted 'V's for the centres and add the extra strut later which are laying alongside
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55243431132_a9d35be84a_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2saF2qy)Strutter struts (https://flic.kr/p/2saF2qy) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
I have been following your Strutter build and must say that it is progressing nicely.
Of late I have also been fussing over making struts and similar bits in 1/72 scale. My usual go to for such things is to use thin wall brass tubing that I have "squashed" with a smaller diameter bit of rod inside.
I find it works well in larger scales but I just can't get it quite right in the smaller scales - either not "squashed" enough or too much.
Your use of sanded or filed brass wire, as you describe, is interesting. I have perused your description in this topic and in others that I have managed to find on this technique but I am left with a few questions.
Brass wire? Wire or rod, very similar but wire tends to be softer than rod. What is your preference of material.
What size wire or rod do you start with? Any tips on the sanding or filing bit? Do you work just by eye or do you use a jig or guide of some sort?
Soldering. Usual 60/40 lead/tin or lead free or silver bearing ( i.e. StayBrite ) or low temperature tin/bismuth or ?
As always, I find myself descending into a rabbit hole of over engineering something that should be simple.
cheers, Graham
Hi Graham nice to have you following along.
To answer your questions I found exactly the same as you when squashing tube so have used the slightly laborious method shown to me by Austin Stack a few years ago (Austin was an outstanding modeller who is sadly no longer with us, but it was looking at his 72nd models that really inspired me to have a go)
I use brass wire that I buy at shows made by Albion Alloys; usually comes in packets of 5 about 300 mm long. For the Strutter and most others I use 2mm for the main struts and either 1 or 1.5mm for the others depending on my mood.
Holding the piece flat on the workbench I use a needle file to put a flat on one side and then turn this side to the bench and sand a flat on the opposite side. I tend to make a bridge with my index finger and thumb and file between them while pressing down working on about 3" at a time and gradually work along the length. Once one side is done I flip it over and repeat on the other side.
I usually have to turn it over a few times gradually getting nearer to the thickness I'm after rather than try and do it it in just a couple of stages. No jigs for this I just use a mk1 eyeball which is okay given they'll need some work later. Once I'm happy with the rough thickness I use 320 or 400 wet/dry paper used dry to sand cutting marks out. This is the trickiest part and where you are liable to put a kink in it. :P
If this happens I've found that you can normally flip the wire over and pressing/sanding with a file will take most of the kink out.
I've just miked a piece and it is about 0.52mm when finished to this stage
This is the really boring part and Austin used to make up a batch of wires at the start of the year which would last him throughout the years modelling (Me, I prefer to just do a length when needed) ::)
Hopefully you'll still have feeling in the tips of your fingers when you've done a couple of lengths. Austin used to use double sided tape on the bench once he'd put the initial flat sides on the wire, but I always ended up putting a proper bend in the stuff when removing it so just use finger pressure (or clamp it using my thumb under the bench with fingers above)
Anyway to make the struts I then clip off a slightly long piece of 'strut wire' and file one side to a sharp edge and add some rounding to the other side giving an rough aerofoil shape to the wire. Polish again with sandpaper and then shape the ends if needed. (If you look at the wing struts on this one the are tapered towards the ends, but some don't) With wider struts I'll then use a file to shape one end into a peg shape, but narrower ones usually just end up being pointed. The second end is shaped when I've checked and double checked the model usually on it's jig ;)
Phew that took a while to describe, but hopefully that makes sense (I can take some pictures if it's not clear)
I use bog standard solder (60/40 stuff I presume, but the label has worn off) The cheap stuff that comes coiled in a plastic tube is fine.
I've got an ancient tin of Bakers Flux that I dip the neds of the brass wire in to tin them (coat with a thin layer of solder). Soldering two pieces together I just masking tape them onto a old oak base at the correct angle (If I'm being fussy I'll draw it out before hand) My soldering iron is laughable and about 40 years old I think it's about 15 -20 watts so nothing complicated. I do make sure there's plenty of solder on the joint and clean up with a file afterwards.
Hopefully that will keep you out of any rabbit holes when you could be building ;D
Paul
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Busy, busy, busy :D
Perspex observation panels let into the wings now. They just need a final polish with toothpaste to make them a bit clearer. You'll also notice the new wing ribs in the 'clear' centre section from 10 thou card
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55259255009_ba12ff66a9_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2sc58j2)Strutter top wing (https://flic.kr/p/2sc58j2) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
Fuselage is now all buttoned up. Joints weren't great between the bits which may be my incompetence or the kit. A bit of filler needed and rather than try and fill the lower fuselage joint I sanded it flat and skinned with 5 thou card needing just a touch of filler to get a nice crisp corner. Tacking the cowl in place meant a bit more sanding to get a good fit later so the panels were replaced with card and the intake pipe added going right across rather than two short stubs of brass tube. A bit of fettling out and a brass detail gives a nice footstep. :)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55259427430_70fdb3480b_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2sc61yN)Strutter nose (https://flic.kr/p/2sc61yN) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
Detail of the tail adjustment mechanism from 0.4mm brass wire and a bit of brass tube fitted into scraps of 10 thou card after filling and sanding down - should look okay under a coat of paint. Nice detail about this kit is the upsweep on the fuselage top towards the tail which is an area that's sometimes missed
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55259254989_15b8ea5e32_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2sc58iF)Strutter tail detail (https://flic.kr/p/2sc58iF) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
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In other news I found an issue of Cross and Cockade which has lots of colour profiles of Stutters including a couple of 6407 both in the kit (and usually seen) version and an interesting earlier incarnation.
The early version shows the expected PC10 wings with a 'linen' fuselage that has the forward part up the the lower wing trailing edge and the decking aft of the rear cockpit painted in 'olive' in an attempt to make it less conspicuous. (The fin is still has the expected linen background and the Sopwith data painted in black). It also shows the earlier marking of a white circle with a red centre on a red square that was superseded by the red/blue marking seen on the full PC10 version. Apparently these markings were changed at the same time as full camouflage was done. I've seen similar schemes on DH4's as supplied by the factory which were quickly dulled in the field by painting the linen fuselages in PC10.
Anyway the earlier version might make a bit more of an interesting scheme - Any thoughts? :-\
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To answer your questions I found exactly the same as you when squashing tube so have used the slightly laborious method shown to me by Austin Stack a few years ago (Austin was an outstanding modeller who is sadly no longer with us, but it was looking at his 72nd models that really inspired me to have a go)
Hopefully that will keep you out of any rabbit holes when you could be building ;D
Paul
Thank you Paul. Your description of your process is quite good and not very much different than what I imagined.
I am going to have a play. I have gathered some brass bits and have a couple of ideas on how to better hold the brass rod while happily filing away on it. Holding small bits is always a challenge
cheers, Graham
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This is probably no surprise to you Paul but I think the full PC10 camo will fit this workhorse better :)
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To answer your questions I found exactly the same as you when squashing tube so have used the slightly laborious method shown to me by Austin Stack a few years ago (Austin was an outstanding modeller who is sadly no longer with us, but it was looking at his 72nd models that really inspired me to have a go)
Hopefully that will keep you out of any rabbit holes when you could be building ;D
Paul
Thank you Paul. Your description of your process is quite good and not very much different than what I imagined.
I am going to have a play. I have gathered some brass bits and have a couple of ideas on how to better hold the brass rod while happily filing away on it. Holding small bits is always a challenge
cheers, Graham
No worries Graham. It sounds like a PITA but it doesn't take too long and apart from the scale appearance makes the model much stronger (The only two models I couldn't repair when the shelf on collapsed some were the two that had plastic struts. The brass struts on all the others were straightened successfully)
This is probably no surprise to you Paul but I think the full PC10 camo will fit this workhorse better :)
;D Thought you might say that enathon ;) (and I suspect you may be right)
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That's beautiful work Paul, especially on the tail mechanism.
Earlier version for me - let's see some nice shading and weathering effects on the CDL fuselage..... ;)
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Looking extremely promising! I especially like that rib effect on the wings, you are very precise builder. And the Strutter is one of my faves, so looking forward to see this as ready.
Cheers, Skyhook
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Paul,
Would you be able to share a picture of the color profile of the earlier version? I think that might be the one I?d choose.
All your efforts are really starting to make this build something special!
All the best,
Tim
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Thank you chaps :D
Yesterday's task was priming everything which is a bit dull, but revealed a couple of small areas that needed some more work (As it usually does) Sorted them out so next up is getting the last couple of details on the fuselage and then we're onto sticking some bits together
No problem Tim - I'll take a photo of the profiles and post it later.
One small thing I did notice looking closely at the photograph of the PC10 version in back of the Datafile is the fin covering appears quite patchy and isn't a solid colour which is something I'll incorporate if I choose the later option
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Here you go Tim and everyone else :)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55262722888_df14120bdb_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2scnUc3)Stutter profiles (https://flic.kr/p/2scnUc3) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
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Early early early!! ;)
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Early early early!! ;)
LOL Nigel ;D Okay you've convinced me (I think) Just need to have a think about making the white circle markings . . .
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And my vote goes to the late version. Probably because I have built one from Toko kit some time ago. ;)
(https://i.ibb.co/FqkTCNMX/strut-02-1.jpg)
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I would go for the early version. I have seen a few of the late ones done and I even have one myself but I am yet to see one finished in the early scheme.
Alan.
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Thanks Paul. I definitely vote for the early version as I?ve never seen it before.
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Early version for sure .....
Alexis
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Cheers Prze, Alan, Tim and Alexis early version it is.
Love your late version Prze which sets the bar pretty high 8)
As mentioned I've never seen the early version done so hopefully will make a nice change and the bit of CDL should break it up a bit. Not sure if the tailplane top surface should be CDL or PC10 and whether it has the red/white markings on it so will need to do a bit more digging . . .
Paul
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Cheers Prze, Alan, Tim and Alexis early version it is.
Love your late version Prze which sets the bar pretty high 8)
As mentioned I've never seen the early version done so hopefully will make a nice change and the bit of CDL should break it up a bit. Not sure if the tailplane top surface should be CDL or PC10 and whether it has the red/white markings on it so will need to do a bit more digging . . .
Paul
OK, Paul, you have my support for the early version, too. And I am sure yours will be fantastic,.
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Hi Paul,
sad to hear about Austin Stack, we met several times at Southern Expo and Nationals last century. The conversations with him and his outstanding models were always a highlight of the events. Still have a number of paper prints of his models.
Interesting description of your strut method. But filing a 2mm wire down to 0.5mm and holding it with two fingers would not be accepted by my laziness. My idea would be to hold one end in a pin vice and put the other end against one or better two nails or wooden stops secured to a working board.
My preference is Strutz, still have a good supply. Another way is to use copper wire and hammer it flat, if done carefully only a minimum of filing is necessary. Found this method in a 1957 book about solid wood modeling by W. O. Doylend. The strut is much harder than the wire.
Every alternative to PC 10 all over is welcome!
Regards Joachim
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Interesting description of your strut method. But filing a 2mm wire down to 0.5mm and holding it with two fingers would not be accepted by my laziness. My idea would be to hold one end in a pin vice and put the other end against one or better two nails or wooden stops secured to a working board.
Another way is to use copper wire and hammer it flat, if done carefully only a minimum of filing is necessary. Found this method in a 1957 book about solid wood modeling by W. O. Doylend. The strut is much harder than the wire.
Regards Joachim
My thinkin as well Joachim. In fact that is what basically what I am playing around with at the moment. I have a bench pin attached to my workbench, much like a jeweller uses. I have filed a shallow triangular groove into the pin and hold my piece of brass in a pin vise but I am liking the idea of using a couple of pins for stops.
As to the copper wire, of course after hammering flat the copper will be work hardened and approaching the hardness of brass.
Of course lightly hammering your filed brass, on both sides with a nylon faced hammer, will work harden that too.
cheers, Graham
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Hi Joachim. :)
Yes Austin was indeed a superb modeller. In fact it was only when he turned up at a show with a collection of 1/700 vessels that I realised he also built ships :o
All the ones I was able to study were from the 1880 - 1920 period and as you might expect the level of detail was staggering. The rigging on them was done using different thicknesses of stretched sprue. In typical Austin style he didn't just heat a piece and stretch it between he hands in time honoured fashion, but found that by melting the end and tacking it to the kitchen table he could walk across the room stretching much thinner lengths than usual. These were graded according to thickness and then used appropriately on the ships.
Thanks for the detailed information and pictures showing another way of making metal struts. I'll admit I did try experimenting with hammering brass wire and tube early on, but without much success. Looking at your set up I can see a couple of reasons my attempts weren't very encouraging; I used a standard tack hammer with a rounded face and didn't use a flat block to work on. Looks like I need to do some more experimenting when I get the chance.
Morning Graham. :)
Good to hear that you're also playing about with a similar method. I'd also forgotten about the work hardening effects of hammering which makes copper a viable alternative especially in smaller scales
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No real progress this week so far, but I did have a little attempt at adding some detail to the primed fuselages yesterday evening
I wanted to break up the rather plain expanse aft of the gunners cockpit so endeavoured to add a very subtle 'former' effect. Thin tape placed in the positions of the formers acted as a guide for masking off the spaces in between. The guide tapes were then removed and a coat of primer from a Tamiya rattle can added. Once the masking was removed I used a worn piece of wet and dry to sand any sharp edges and sanded most away leaving a very faint raised former line. I might have overdone the rubbing down since it's now barely visible, but we'll see later when I add some paint over the top. :-\
I think the technique works though so is worth perusing . . .
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55271662125_7f97950492_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2sdaHvP)Stutter ribs (https://flic.kr/p/2sdaHvP) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
On the other side a similar thing was done with added 'stitching' from some old Archer rivet decals :)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55271662230_e926aa695e_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2sdaHxC)Strutter stitching[/url [url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/] (https://flic.kr/p/2sdaHxC), on Flickr
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I loke the stitching, very effective. I'm experimenting with watercolour pencils to create subtle rib effects under linen and it seems to work quite well. You could always use something like that to enhance the structure......
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I loke the stitching, very effective. I'm experimenting with watercolour pencils to create subtle rib effects under linen and it seems to work quite well. You could always use something like that to enhance the structure......
I'll take a practice at that one Nigel. I did buy some permanent brown fine line markers to get a similar effect which seem to work well (although I 'd completely forgotten about them until your post) :)
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On the other side a similar thing was done with added 'stitching' from some old Archer rivet decals :)
That is an interesting idea. That "stitching" does look the part in your photo. I have some of those Archer rivet decals somewhere. I will have to dig them out and have a try.
Failing that I might have a try at using a laser printer and decal paper.
if you print in black on a glossy surface the dots or lines can stand proud of the surface a bit but you have to play around with the printer settings. My old laser printer finally wore out and I just recently replaced with a new small office Brother laser printer. I will need to mess about with printer settings to see what I can produce. So far I managed to make a few decals of other types so I am starting to zero in on my settings.
cheers, Graham
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The stitching looks terrific! I also like your idea for the fabric.
RAGIII
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On the other side a similar thing was done with added 'stitching' from some old Archer rivet decals :)
That is an interesting idea. That "stitching" does look the part in your photo. I have some of those Archer rivet decals somewhere. I will have to dig them out and have a try.
Failing that I might have a try at using a laser printer and decal paper.
if you print in black on a glossy surface the dots or lines can stand proud of the surface a bit but you have to play around with the printer settings. My old laser printer finally wore out and I just recently replaced with a new small office Brother laser printer. I will need to mess about with printer settings to see what I can produce. So far I managed to make a few decals of other types so I am starting to zero in on my settings.
cheers, Graham
Thanks Graham.
The ones I used were from a mixed sizes sheet of 'offset rivets' which look pretty good unless you blow up the photo; to the naked eye they're fine :) Interesting idea about messing with the printed settings on a laser printer to get a similar thing. I'm pretty sure the railways modelling guys have something similar available commercially, but they use 'O' gauge, 'HO guage' etc rather than give a size of rivets and spacing which makes it a bit pot luck unless you buy loads of them . . .
Probably need to mess about with home printed decals at some point given my prediliction for unusual types ::)
The stitching looks terrific! I also like your idea for the fabric.
RAGIII
Cheers RAGIII.
The 'primer' ribs worked well and probably are very scale (given I overdid the sanding back) They are just a bit too subtle however unless you hold the model just right and catch the light on them so needed a bit more emphasis.
After the initial coats of linen I decided to try Nigel's suggestion of using a coloured pencil to suggest the ribs which I think worked really well. I probably should have used a light rather than dark colour for the fuselage sides, but I'm happy with the effect and will use it again. Everything is masked up now for the next coat, but I'll take a picture of the sides once that's been done ;)
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Few bits of progress this week :)
Made up a cockpit surround with duro putty and drilled all the strut/rigging holes. Mounted the lower wing and started spraying - yippee
Underwing rbs done in the usual way (for me) spray a lightened colour, mask each rib with 0.4mm tape, spray again with slightly darker top coat. Looks a bit too contrasty here, but looks okay in reality. The 'linen' colour came out a bit brown, but there you go we can sort that out with some oil tweaks in the final stages ::)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55285835352_2009fa1b30_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2seqmHN)Strutter wing ribs (https://flic.kr/p/2seqmHN) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
Here are the fuselage 'ribs' done over a base coat of white primer with a 'burnt umber' coloured pencil (I also tried indelible fine line markers in black and brown which gave a very uniform effect, but not as realistic IMO) Hopefully you can just about see the effect. I didn't want it too obvious, but just a hint at the underlying structure to break up the flat areas
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55285835587_452807b608_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2seqmMR)Stutter ribbing (https://flic.kr/p/2seqmMR) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
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That looks perfect to Me Paul! Love the rib tapes and the Burnt Umber Pencil worked as planned! Something I might try in the future!
RAGIII
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That looks great to me! The rib tape effect looks spot on.
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Thank you gents. :)
Nigel's suggestion of the coloured pencil for the fuselage ribs was spot on. (Can't find a thumbs up emoji but I'll buy him a cake at the show next week as a thank you)
Mainly today there will be masking and getting the rest of the model painted. I was going to try something I read about for the cowl turning, but think I will go with just spraying aluminium for this one since it's been hanging about a bit
Paul
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Catching up on your progress Paul: I do not have either the skill or patience to get the rib and stitching effects on my models, but I respect greatly modellers like you who experiment and persevere with different techniques.
I do like the idea of hammering copper wire for struts though - must give that one some serious thought and experimentation.
Stephen.
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I reallly like how this build is turning out so far ...
Alexis
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Catching up on your progress Paul: I do not have either the skill or patience to get the rib and stitching effects on my models, but I respect greatly modellers like you who experiment and persevere with different techniques.
I do like the idea of hammering copper wire for struts though - must give that one some serious thought and experimentation.
Stephen.
Thanks Stephen :)
It's true I sometimes enjoy working out the 'best' way to do something rather than the actual model building. Even looking at my painted figures I can only spot 3 or 4 which were straight paint jobs; everything else had some degree of modification or conversion incorporated ::)
Give the metal struts a try. The hammered copper looks like it works really well (using the right tools) and it does allow you to explore really thin struts without fear of collapse.
I reallly like how this build is turning out so far ...
Alexis
Hiya Alexis :)
Getting there slowly. Just varnished everything so should be ready for some piccies later today (Actually given the current temperature here probably in about 10 minutes! Got up early so I could get some modelling in before it gets too hot; currently not yet 9.00am and the temperature is already up around 23 degrees which is a pleasant summers day in this neck of the woods - still sitting around in garden reading stuff is quite a nice way to spend a day) ;D
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Excellent linen effects Paul. This will really come to life with the markings and PC-10 color.
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Excellent linen effects Paul. This will really come to life with the markings and PC-10 color.
Cheers Tim :)
And as if by magic here it is with some colour and a varnish coat. Wood effect is in oil and the rest painted with acrylics. I did vary the colour slightly between the factory bits and the squadron applied 'camouflage areas' which seems to have disappeared with the varnish layer, but I'll re-instate that later.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55295328646_4d53b03b6c_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2sfg1Kh)Strutter paint (https://flic.kr/p/2sfg1Kh) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
And in case you didn't spot them here's a close up of one of the pully wheel viewing panels in the wing (complete with annoying tiny hair courtesy of one of the animals) ::)
Again I varied the colour surround slightly for effect since I think the reinforcing surround was aluminium rather than linen
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55295328571_6e220efafd.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2sfg1HZ)Strutter pully (https://flic.kr/p/2sfg1HZ) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
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That really looks Fantastic Paul! The wood grain is perfect for the scale. Lovely work on the PC and pully panel!
RAGIII
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That's an absolute gem Paul! The woodgrain is very effective and the pulley in that scale is superb. Pity about that cat hair.....
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Cheers guys ;D
(Cat hair now removed you'll be pleased to know Nigel) ;)
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Looking really good.
Alan.
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Super painting - I do like your shade of PC 10. I am in the process of applying same shade to my AD 1 Navy Plane and am using acrylia OD from Revell - will see how it goes when I have enough coats on it.
Stephen.
PS bless the cat - sadly I lost my two many years ago which is probably just as well as one of them would have taken to sitting on whatever I am making if he were still around!
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Cheers Alan and Stephen :D
The PC10 is based on the AK Stephen, but I thought it looked too green so added dark earth till it looked brown in certain light and then a tough of white/grey to lighten and dull it a bit. It looks quite green in the pictures, but I think that's the varnish coats and hopefully it'll go back when the later coats are added
Paul
ps - The two cats are my daughter 'Blue mitten ragdolls' and they shed hair as soon as you look at them ::) Both are banned from the workroom, but that doesn't stop the hairs. On one occasion they managed to get in and once on the desk had a lovely game scattering pieces of model all over the place . . . .
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Right that's the fuselage decalled up at last :P
(I'll spare you the various attempts at making the red/white rings, but I ended up using a cut down RNAS marking with a separate red centre spot. I managed to mess up the one on the other side which led to a bit of a clean up and re-paint) The numbers were applied individually from various sheets which is as painstaking as it sounds, but at least it's done now. Looking at the blown up image of this side I need to add a tiny spot of red to the corners to sharpen them up . . .
Next up struttery
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55308215420_f019a00fda_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2sgp4x3)Strutter decals (https://flic.kr/p/2sgp4x3) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
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Nice work on those tinny little numbers ...
Alexis
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More delightful work, worth the effort.
Those ragdoll cats sound delightful but definitely not wanted anywhere near a modelling room!
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It was looking good before. The markings have made it even better!
RAGIII
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I've been following your little build and really been impressed so far, Paul. Great progress on a tiny model!
Cheers,
Gary
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Thank you all. ;D
Spotted yesterday that the tailplane doesn't have the usual PC10 upper surface on the profile and looking a little closer it appears that when the squadron was supplied with their Strutters only the wing upper surfaces were given the PC10 coats, the rest being plain linen coloured. No wonder they added some 'local' dark green to the fuselage areas, but strange that none was added to the tail surfaces at that stage. It does make for an interesting model though. ;)
Of course our eponymous hero had already painted the tail surfaces in PC10 so they've been stripped and repainted with a dark brown pencil line under the lower surface coats to represent the see through structure.
Everything now had another varnish coat and is currently drying before a spot of weathering
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This is all so impressive not even considering that it is in 1/72. Just love that wood grain.
Warren Q
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This is all so impressive not even considering that it is in 1/72. Just love that wood grain.
Warren Q
Cheers Warren :)
Slight delay in proceedings because the oil weathering started to eat into the varnish coat despite drying for a couple of days. I've had this occur before and it's usually down to scrubbing too hard or overworking the oil paint on the surface - bloody annoying.
Of course this meant there were little bits of varnish and stuff on my lovely smoothish surface so I wasn't happy; out with the turps to take off all the oil paint and varnish which then damaged the underlying PC10 (of course) :'(
Anyway I decided to just pop the model down and step away for a few days. Usually I'd work on a different model at this point, but I've been trying to stick with working on just one model at a time so had nothing else to drop onto. Opening another box would inevitably mean that this one was put on the shelf of doom.
Fast forward to yesterday and I decided the turps/oil on the surface had had plenty of time to evaporate and I tentatively brushed a couple of thin coats of the original PC10 over the surface and let it dry fully. Not wanting to go through the whole varnish/oil routine again which always adds dust and bits to the surface I decided on a nother approach - when painting figures I usually work wet in wet to get the main areas of shadows and highlights and then use thin glazes to blend and add nuances of colour; would the same approach work on an aircraft? Only one way to find out . . .
I'm pleased to say that the same techniques work just as well on a wing as they do on a frock coat and enthusiasm in all things aircraft related has been restored ;D
I do think the method has some mileage (for me at least) since it allows a for more artistic approach to painting aircraft that appeals to my creative side rather more than the prescriptive methods usually employed. (I appreciate that using an airbrush can give similar effects and probably more easily, but I only own a very basic second hand airbrush which is useful for blocking in and I feel more comfortable using hairy sticks whenever possible).
Right enough rambling I'm off to the local airfield to watch some big 'uns in a D Day celebration (although given the weather I suspect most of the time will be spent in the cafe next to the airstrip)
Paul
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Glad to hear you were able to recover the build! Also good to know your techniques worked 8) Looking forward to the results.
RAGIII
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An interesting description of your travails and success in overcoming them. The fuselage markings look the part, especially the serial which from its size must have tried your patience.
The colour scheme that you have described sounds very interesting: just shows how much variation there could be at the time.
Stephen.
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Looking forward to see the recovery. It would be a pity if this one ended elsewhere off your cabinet.
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Thanks chaps ;D
Teeny lettering was a bit of a trial Stephen :P
The lettering came from an old Pegasus sheet which are handy things to have if you are a bit of a rivet counter and can't bring yourself to use a 'similar' number for effect
As exp[ected the D-day celebrations were a bit of a wash out, but at least it wasn't raining while we were there. We did get up close and personal with a Spitfire, a Tiger Moth and a Stearman which were in one of the hangers so worth the short trip to the airfield.
Finding modelling a bit of a trial at the moment; Everything is fighting back and I'm just not getting any satisfaction from it. Not sure what the reason is, but despite having a spare day when everyone was out and nothing else pressing that needed doing I just bimbled around opening boxes and reading old magazines. Sometimes I think you just need to go with the flow and allow yourself some space. The model is currently sitting on it's jig with cabanes fitted ready for further developments . . .
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Finding modelling a bit of a trial at the moment; Everything is fighting back and I'm just not getting any satisfaction from it. Not sure what the reason is, but despite having a spare day when everyone was out and nothing else pressing that needed doing I just bimbled around opening boxes and reading old magazines. Sometimes I think you just need to go with the flow and allow yourself some space. The model is currently sitting on it's jig with cabanes fitted ready for further developments . . .
It happens. I'm struggling with my EI build at the moment - everything was fighting me and I was just spending too much time thinking about how I should do things like preshading and weathering instead of actually doing anything. But I seem to be back on track now.
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Finding modelling a bit of a trial at the moment; Everything is fighting back and I'm just not getting any satisfaction from it. Not sure what the reason is, but despite having a spare day when everyone was out and nothing else pressing that needed doing I just bimbled around opening boxes and reading old magazines. Sometimes I think you just need to go with the flow and allow yourself some space. The model is currently sitting on it's jig with cabanes fitted ready for further developments . . .
It happens. I'm struggling with my EI build at the moment - everything was fighting me and I was just spending too much time thinking about how I should do things like preshading and weathering instead of actually doing anything. But I seem to be back on track now.
Cheers Nigel :)
It sounds bad, but I'm glad it's not just me.
I know I'm a bit inclined to wild enthusiasm or bleakness depending on the phase of the moon or something. When enthusiastic every setback is merely a small challenge at other times I'm ready to burn everything . . . :o
Been doing things long enough now to know that I can blow a bit hot or cold when it comes to most things (You can imagine what kind of sportsman I was - Brilliant . . . or not quite so)
Busy at work this week, but hopefully I'll get back to this one at the weekend.
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Woke up early the last few mornings and decided to get something useful done on this one. Much fiddling and I eventually sorted a way of making the fairleads for the elevator cables behind the rear cockpit. After trying stretched and non stretched tube paired together and drilling stretched sprue :o I eventually settled on making a single tiny hole in a scrap of sprue and then giving it a final sand when in position - Still a bit overscale, but better than nothing.
Tail and fin are just pushed into place to check the holes all line up (they didn't but, do now) ;) Everything looks okay so just need to notch the extreme end for the rudder post/tail support and I get make that up and then get everything glued.
Here's the underside to give you an idea
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55325944717_c4eac29034_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2shXVQz)Strutter tail mech (https://flic.kr/p/2shXVQz) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
And here's a sneak peek of the famous Strutter monoplane :)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55327074719_6e79c3db31_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2si4HKn)Strutter mono (https://flic.kr/p/2si4HKn) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/202177392@N05/), on Flickr
Oh yes inner cabanes are now glued in place so the top wing will sit square when it's added. Cowling didn't quite line up so that was glued and sanded before masking and spraying again. (I've decided against reproducing the 'sopwith' polishing on this one; just need to get it finished)
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Drilling stretched sprue? That way madness lies.......
She is looking good though, I really like the way the wood. PC10 and CDL work together. Making progress.....
Don't worry about not doing the Sopwith turning. I promise not to go on about it at shows.......(much) ;) ;D