forum.ww1aircraftmodels.com
WW1 Aircraft Modeling => Under Construction => Scratch builds => Topic started by: Borsos on February 13, 2016, 03:25:43 AM
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Hello, it's me again,
I'd like to show you some pics from my first ever scratchbuild. I love the Nieuport 12 very much but there are no kits in 1/48 around (I think Karaya published a box-art someday. Does anybody know what happened to that kit? Was it ever released?) and so I had to go on my own. I found out, that Matell (yes, the Barbie-doll guys...) had sold a home-vacuform kit for children some 50 or so years ago. Every child should be able to form his or her own toys with it. Well, then vacuforming couldn't be that difficult I thought... I built a wooden box and the masters out of balsa wood and gave it a try:
(http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/p640/borsos/IMG_1625_zpsb9j6m8nt.jpg) (http://s1159.photobucket.com/user/borsos/media/IMG_1625_zpsb9j6m8nt.jpg.html)
I was quite happy that it worked and that I could go with my first tries... because I ruined the masters by removing the plastic (balsa wood can easily be sanded – but it's much easier crushed...)
I fabricated the wings by sandwiching some plastic sheets and taping it around a poster tube until the glue had cured. After quite much sanding and imitating the wing ribs with thin stripes of plastic it looked like an aeroplane to me
(http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/p640/borsos/IMG_1745_zpstohoy1yg.jpg) (http://s1159.photobucket.com/user/borsos/media/IMG_1745_zpstohoy1yg.jpg.html)
(http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/p640/borsos/IMG_1748_zpsbilk7jrd.jpg) (http://s1159.photobucket.com/user/borsos/media/IMG_1748_zpsbilk7jrd.jpg.html)
For the interior I stole some parts from an Eduard Nieuport 16 kit
(http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/p640/borsos/IMG_9649_zpsmtveql9c.jpg) (http://s1159.photobucket.com/user/borsos/media/IMG_9649_zpsmtveql9c.jpg.html)
I used a CSM engine and carved a prop out of laminated wood
(http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/p640/borsos/IMG_9654_zpsdpqxxcnh.jpg) (http://s1159.photobucket.com/user/borsos/media/IMG_9654_zpsdpqxxcnh.jpg.html)
I finished the plane as a Nieuport 12 from N15 at the Verdun front in 1916. I found two fascinating pics of "Sole Mio" on the great homepage of Denis Albin (http://albindenis.free.fr/Site_escadrille/page_centaine.htm) There are thousands of pictures from all French escadrilles of WWI. I can't phraise this site enough!
(http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/p640/borsos/IMG_1813_zpspgrihswo.jpg) (http://s1159.photobucket.com/user/borsos/media/IMG_1813_zpspgrihswo.jpg.html)
(http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/p640/borsos/IMG_1812_zpsrkfz9pmk.jpg) (http://s1159.photobucket.com/user/borsos/media/IMG_1812_zpsrkfz9pmk.jpg.html)
(http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/p640/borsos/IMG_1811_zpsebmun8a5.jpg) (http://s1159.photobucket.com/user/borsos/media/IMG_1811_zpsebmun8a5.jpg.html)
I used the cowling and the wheels from the aforesaid Nieuport 16 to finish the plane. And I wanted a crew next to it. Because there are not very much French pilots around I sculpted two out of magic sculpt using resin heads from Phil Young (an Eduard figure on the left)
(http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/p640/borsos/IMG_1817_zpsbnjnfhfv.jpg) (http://s1159.photobucket.com/user/borsos/media/IMG_1817_zpsbnjnfhfv.jpg.html)
(http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/p640/borsos/IMG_2065_zpsaxrlylsv.jpg) (http://s1159.photobucket.com/user/borsos/media/IMG_2065_zpsaxrlylsv.jpg.html)
There are many things I'd like to do better for the next time, but I'm happy to have a Nieuport 12 in my collection now...
I hope you like it
Borsos
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That is Brilliant work! You certainly are a talented modeler and sculptor! Thanks for sharing your process on this beauty!!
RAGIII
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That is a beautiful scratch build Borsos! ;D Excellent vac-forming and wing construction,and great finish. I like your figures too!
Thanks for that website link. Very helpful.
Best Regards,
Bob
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An excellent job for your first scratch build, the aircraft looks excellent and the figures are very well done.
Des.
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Beautifully done, and those figures are incredible! Thanks for the link too.
Ian
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That looks very good. Most encouraging for one who is in the process of building his first serious attempt at scratchbuilding.
I'm interested in this vacuum forming malarkey. Is there any chance you could show, or explain, exactly how it's done, please?
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Thank you very much! I'm happy, that you like it! :)
Squiffy, no problem, just give me one or two days, I'll take some pictures and show the process. It's actually quite simple. The most important thing is a powerfull vacuum cleaner.
Borsos
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Very impressive work, total respect!!!
Xan
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For a first scratch build that is truly excellent. Beautifully finished and presented, especially the figures which could easily have been bought from a commercial supplier. Many congratulations.
Stephen.
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Thank you guys!
As promised, I'll show how I vacuformed the fuselage parts.
These are the things I used:
(http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/p640/borsos/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zpssbyahkmk.jpeg) (http://s1159.photobucket.com/user/borsos/media/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zpssbyahkmk.jpeg.html)
Two wooden frames on the left, some claps and a wooden box. The frames should fit the upper part of the box quite closely. to increase tightness I added some foam rubber to the upper edge of the box
(http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/p640/borsos/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zps5zp8tks1.jpeg) (http://s1159.photobucket.com/user/borsos/media/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zps5zp8tks1.jpeg.html)
It is important, that the box is airtight, so I wasn't mean using carpenter glue...
I used thinner wood for the top where i drilled several holes. I drilled another hole into the side. This hole had the diameter of my vacuum cleaner's hose
(http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/p640/borsos/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zpsghhav6t0.jpeg) (http://s1159.photobucket.com/user/borsos/media/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zpsghhav6t0.jpeg.html)
to create the master moulds, I glued together two about 1.8 cm thick balsa wood boards. It is important to paint the inner sides red with a permanent marker before gluing them. And don't take too much glue in this case because you'll have to separate them again.
Then I cut sideviews and upperviews of my airplane fuselage in the propper scale out of paper, added them as stencils to the doubled boards and cut or sanded respectively everything away what didn't belong to the fuselage. Remember sanding a little more because of the thickness of the plastic material. The masters need to be a little smaller than the actual scaled down fuselage. The marked red line where both boards meet is the centerline for the fuselage halves. If the fuselage is sanded, you can separate the two halves again. Put them onto the holed top of your vacuforming box. Don't forget to put them on some thin placeholders, some thick cardboard or so. They shouldn't lie straight on the surface, just a little bit raised. I reinforced them there with double sided tape.
Take your vacuum cleaner and stick the hose tight into the sidehole of the box. I used some tape to seal it up. switch your vacuum cleaner on (it's important that it reaches its operating efficiency)
Then take your plastic sheet (I used 0.75 mm stuff), place it between your wooden frames and fasten it with the claps. Put the thing into your oven or use a heat gun to melt the plastic (like I did). In every case you should put the frame onto some thick wooden blocks. The plastic is hot enough, when the surface gets shiny and it starts to sag. Take it quickly out of the oven or switch off your heat gun (don't burn your fingers as I did...) and put the frames with the plastic sheet in between immediately over your box. The vacuum cleaner will do the rest:
(http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/p640/borsos/IMG_1625_zpsb9j6m8nt.jpg) (http://s1159.photobucket.com/user/borsos/media/IMG_1625_zpsb9j6m8nt.jpg.html)
If it looks like this, leave some time to get it cold and then treat it like a custom bought vacukit.
Te crucial point in the whole affair is to pass the right moment to remove the plastic from the heat (if it gets dark or starts to bubble it is too late. If you remove it too early, it won't lie down over the moulds.
Try it and have fun!
Best wishes
Borsos
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Thank you for posting that. I may have a try one day but I'll need to buy a bigger vaccum cleaner first!
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I wish you good luck! If I can be of any help, just ask!
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very nice, i like the nieuport 12 too, i hope to convert my special hobby nie 10 to a 12
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Albatros1234, this was my first intention too, when I started the project. But comparing the Ni 10 parts to the drawings of the Ni 12 in the datafile I thought it would be easier to built it from scratch. I at least intent to convert Special Hobbies Nieuport 10 single seater into a twoseater one day.
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Truly stunning Nieuport 12, Borsos! I was also very disappointed that Karaya never released their long promised 12 and, like Scott, decided that one day I would convert a Special Hobby 10. Now, seeing yours, I'm encouraged to give your method a try.
Cheers,
Bud
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Excellent job Borsos! I just wish you didn't destroy the fuselage master as I would have purchased a copy of your fuselage so i could add one to my Nieuport collection. As far as I know the Karaya Nieuport 12 was never released, and they are not currently producing any of the other Nieuports they had about ten years ago. I bought one of their Nieuport 24s and it is an excellent kit, much better than the Hi Tech kit which you are supposed to use Eduard Nieuport 17 wings and add the forward plywood sheathing with sheet styrene, not a very easy way to get an accurate wing.
Keep up the great work, love to see rare Nieuports in 1/48 scale.
How about a Nieuport 14? would be a great scratchbuilding project and probably never to be kitted, but photos are on the French site that you referenced before.
Dave C
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Thank you very much, Dave and Bud!!
The destroying of the masters was not done intentionally, but was my fault when I - excitedly - removed them from my first vacuformed fuselage parts. But as much as I love Nieuports in general and Nieuport 12s in particular I can actually imagine to make another one where I'll try to avoid the mistakes I made on this one. I'm just not sure about the scale. My main problem was and still is the interior because the WDF is not really precise here (and shows mostly Nieuport 10 interior). So my intpretation was to a good part "educated (more or less educated :)) guess. I don't have any clue how the backseat looked like for instance
... If someone should have some information about the Nie 12 interior, he would make me really really happy.
The upper wing war totally scratchbuild, because I thought converting a Nie 17 wing would be the same amount of work like scratching it entirely.
A Nieuport 14 would be a good idea, I like the look of this machine too. But I think i'd do another Ni 12 first...
Best wishes
Borsos
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Great work, Borsos! Your Vacuform box worked like a charm. Your
Nieuport looks terrific. Excellent job, my friend!
Cheers,
Ernie :)
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Boy that really turned out beautifully! Thank you so much for sharing it and for taking the time to show us your vacuform setup and methodology. Very helpful!
Chris