forum.ww1aircraftmodels.com
WW1 Aircraft Modeling => Completed models => Topic started by: Bluesfan on March 25, 2013, 11:46:42 PM
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Hi I have recently made this kit of the DH9 Ambulance version, for a doctor friend as it happens.
I'm pleased with the result, now I've 'signed it off' - what you see has a nice acrylic case over the top, and I've found that that simple if pricey addition makes a model look suddenly brilliant :)
Yes, I had problems: some I should have avoided by merely being more patient with glue setting or paint drying etc. The decals weren't made of the best material - I've had better from Roden - and the roundels were particularly tricky. I suppose the main unexpected difficulty arose from the large cutout in the lower starboard wing. Overall the wings being moulded in one piece is good, but that cutout made for a lot of flexing which in the end led to some lopsidedness and floppiness on certain wires. Apart from that, and a few mishaps during a very protracted rigging process, I didn't mind the rigging. I did wonder about Geoffrey de Havilland's evident lack of interest in reducing the huge amount of wiring festooning his designs.
Oh, and I was cursing the Roden artist's skills at one point. At first I thought he(?)'d been a bit gung-ho with some of the details he'd included in the box top painting, but when I looked very closely at the Datafile photo which he'd based it on, I saw that he had accurately spotted several extra bits of cabling which don't appear on the standard plans. Hence why I fitted wires on the rear undercarriage legs as well as the front ones.
Anyway - not perfect(!), but as a middling modeller, I was pleased with this.
Cheers, Mark
PS - I've never seen a kit with so many redundant parts before. There are no less than three unused fuselage tops! The box still looks pretty packed even though I've finished.
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Another one...
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And another...
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Last one, I promise (sorry, I've not sorted out the file sizes very efficiently)
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Very nice, Mark. That Roden DH series is really quite nice and build into lovely models.
Cheers,
Bud
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Mark,
Looks good from where I am sitting! - good diorama as well.
Regards
Dave
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Great work and a fantasic base to boot - spot on Mark
michael
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Very nicely done Mark, an unusual subject but it looks very good, well done with the dio scene as well.
Des.
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Mark,
Excellent DH-9 my friend. A special tip of the hat to you building a rarely seen Roden kit.
Highest Regards,
Gregory Jouette
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Many thanks for the encouraging comments, much appreciated :)
Maybe I should have commented on this type; for those unaware of this machine, it was a one off built for a 1919 expedition to Somaliland. I believe it has the distinction of being the RAF's first purpose-built casevac plane. I must admit, what with it being a tail sitter, the prospect of being transported, suffering battlefield wounds, broken bones etc., and landing on another rough field, doesn't bear thinking about.
I like to do some sort of scene, but I'd have loved to find better figures. The pictures (two of them in the Datafile) show everyone in pith helmets and somewhat quaint shorts and shirts. With more time I'd have tried to model something. Also, it's a pity Roden didn't provide an option for an open casualty compartment, but I guess there's no good record of how it was constructed. Still, with a bit of imagination you could create something convincing. I must confess I spent some time on the interweb searching for a decent 1/48 camel...
Yes Bud, thanks, I like the Roden De Havillands too and have been inspired by your own masterful creations. I definitely want to build some more. But I reckon I'll have to raise my game considerably in rigging technique!
Mark
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looks pretty nice work to me. i have not seen one built before. the reason theres so many parts is that originally roden put out the dh-4. so when they put out the dh-9 the grabbed a few sprue from the dh-4 that had many common parts but this left you with extra parts. i imagine that this has even more because its basically a dh-9 kit with an extra sprue so you have dh-4 and dh-9 parts to spare.also that window in the wing was way to flimsy i had to drill the wing out and attach with steel rods to get a reasonable rigidity.
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Thanks; yes, it's quite a chimaera with all those parts. In fact you have to be careful, because there are interplane struts of slightly different lengths which are easily confused. I suppose that's to do with the DH4 airliner, which had unstaggered wings.
Good idea with the steel rods. Of course once the rigging's done the wing structure is happily rigid. In so far as plastic kits ever are...
Mark
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Nice job on an interesting version. Another Roden challenge!!
Steve
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Really nice work on the airframe and diorama! This is an unusual and unique aircraft seldom modeled even though Roden saw fit to offer it as an option.
RAGIII
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Hi Mark, this is really good. I've wondered what the Roden Biffs are like. The diorama is also very cool, with an excellent job on the figures.
Best,
John
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Thanks again :) Full disclosure - the two Arab ladies are by Preiser with minor changes, the furniture is from a Preiser ground crew set, and the mechanic is by Verlinden. I still kinda wish I had got my act together to create the proper tropical kit you can see in the pics of ths machine, complete with pith helmets.
Am currently working on the Model Cellar Red Baron + dog. I'm really impressed by the moulding on this figure. Hope I can do it justice. It's going with his Alb D.III (Roden)
On another footnote - never mind being impressed by the three unused fuselage tops provided in this kit. On the Roden site the sprue pics of of the new DH9 airliner reveal a total of no less than six fuselage tops. I assume only one is needed!
Mark
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Hello Mark:
This is a nice variation on that DH9. Your figures are neat as well. I agree, some folks with pith helmets etc, but it looks good just the way it is.
Best
Mark