forum.ww1aircraftmodels.com
WW1 Aircraft Modeling => Under Construction => Topic started by: IanB on October 17, 2019, 05:25:53 AM
-
This will be my next project, once I have finished the Heinkel 111 and Fairey Battle. Here is a quick look at what it might involve......
This is the kit...
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/48910078676_3651632e0e_z.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/48909548678_27b6835806_z.jpg)
It's very basic and there will be a lot of corrections and alterations required, not the least of which will be the replacement of the tail surfaces and possibly the trailing edges of the wings as well. The plastic is VERY soft and not good to work with so replacement may be the better option over correction. The gates are huge and will need very careful removal, and the wings are too thick, so as stated above, I may need to remove the rear edges at the minimum, maybe even scratch the entire wings. The white metal parts are very good so that will be a big help.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/48910078901_f24086b459_z.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/48910078846_ceb9fb884c_z.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/48910286217_195a6e4f70_z.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/48916820158_d8f9cb9137_z.jpg)
Thanks for looking in!
Ian
-
I made one of these a long time ago - before I started scratch building, and as you write the plastic is very soft and the tail and trailing edges of the wings are much too thick. I also had problems with the undercarriage legs and the engine fit was not good. Today I would scratch build one as it would be easier....!
However in your hands I can see an excellent model on the horizon so I will be looking forward to seeing how you turn it into a little winner. An excellent subject BTW.
Stephen.
-
It looks as though you are taking on yet another challenging build! I am sure you will Master this one and come up with results as beautiful as ever!
RAGIII
-
I have same kit in my stash....
Bought many years ago with the idea to realize the Taube of Ten. Giulio Gavotti in Lybia 1911, the first airplane that made bombing of "enemies" from the sky.
We italians have this sad record....
Anyway, I agree with you about the weak points of the kit, so I will follow your build try to "stole" some tricks...
Roberto
-
Right on Ian , following along ....
Terri
-
Evening all!
Since today I put paint on the other 2 kits I'm working on, I decided to do a little more on this one.
I had already done some work on the tail and wings, which for some reason I didn't post so I'll update that too.
For the tail, the kit parts are very thick. The vertical parts were thinned easily enough by sanding and I'm happy with those.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49757725562_972f7cb639_z.jpg)
But the horizontal stabilizer is beyond saving. Even if it wasn't, the way the kit is designed gives a very awkward joint towards the front, with the foremost part being cast as part of the fuselage. I decided to make another part from plastic sheet stock. The fuselage moulding was removed and a new part (ok, 4, but only the last one was any good) was made.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49757725507_f3c9916604_z.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49757390881_7684dae707_z.jpg)
There's also a kink towards the front of the kit part, but I don't see that on pics or plans of the Etrich version, so I won't include it.
The wing trailing edges have been drastically thinned and sanded to shape. I'll add the scallops once I've marked out the ribs. Today I looked again at the wings and realised that the kit parts are designed to butt against the fuselage, with a nice curve at the joining edge.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49757201606_4fae3cc51c_z.jpg)
Very nicely done, but incorrect, as shown in photos in the Datafile which clearly show a lack of shadows where the gap between wing and fuselage exists. So the ends were sanded flat, which then showed that one was shorter than the other! It also revealed that the rib extension on the front to support the landing gear is too far outboard so that will have to be removed and replaced too.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49756675618_301bc3af72_z.jpg)
Here's the extension fitted to the root end, it will be sanded to shape and correct length once dry.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49756675548_c94784c6af_z.jpg)
There are also, unfortunately, some adjustments needed on the fuselage. Most noticeably between the cockpits. The panel there, over the fuel tank, is not flat on top but slopes downwards from both cockpits to give a shallow V in the middle. The kit also has the front of the rear cockpit too low, and the back lower corner as a sharp angle, which it isn't on the aircraft I'm modelling. Cutting the front off the rear cockpit, bending it, (the plastic is very soft on this kit), and regluing it has resolved most of the forward issues, it will be tidied up finally once it's all together. The rear edge will be looked at later.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49757201691_9d188d4db2_z.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49757201651_338bb7d8f9_z.jpg)[
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49757536452_a4b07d7812_z.jpg)[
Finally for today, I found a white metal prop in the spares box and cleaned that up. For some reason this kit doesn't have one, although it has a lot of other white metal parts!
A big improvement!
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49757201726_3eb391f342_z.jpg)
One last question. Does anyone have a photo of the induction (right) side of a Benz BzII 6 cylinder engine? There is a good cutaway of the left (exhaust) side on the web but I haven't found any detail of the other side, or any details of how it was mounted with the cooling tank etc fitted.
Thanks for looking in, and stay safe!
Ian
-
Good to see that you have started this one Ian. I found the plastic to be very soft and some parts did not fit at all well. The engine is basic and also a poor fit in my experience. However as I have already written you are going all the way to turn this into a decent model. Good to see another early type being modelled too - better than most post 1916 types!
PS the rigging is fun - especially that outboard of the wing pylons!!
Stephen.
-
Great to see progress on this build Ian! What you have done so far is top rate modelling at it's best!
RAGIII
-
Great suggestion for building this kit.
I will continue to be a "thief" of your work!
Roberto
-
Hope to see more of this, Sir!
I have had one of these on the shelf for years, and never could quite figure out what to do with it.
You are blazing quite a trail here.
-
I hadn't realised it had been nearly a year since I looked at this! Having said that, I am not getting back into it properly just yet, but since I have no work at the moment and I'm waiting for supplies to continue with the Mercedes SSKL build, I decided to look again at the engine. There were a number of options open to me, including modifying the kit supplied part, but none were really up to it. I even started to scratchbuild one using 2mm plastic rod. That at least gave me an accurate piece to use for measurements.
Since in the past year I have acquired a 3d printer, and I have more vac kits in the stash which will need a Benz Bz.II, I decided to use the opportunity to learn a little more about 3d design.
Progress has been slow! I spent almost the entire day yesterday trying to figure out how to cut a 45 degree angle on half the cylinder for the inlet and exhaust!
Finally this morning I found a way to do it and then progress was made!
I now have the cylinder done. I'll either print that 6 times, or copy it and print the engine in one piece. Not sure yet on how I'll do that.
Anyway, here is the result of the last 2 days banging my head on the desk.....
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51132086550_55800432fe.jpg)
I'm not sure if the springs will print or not - the entire thing excluding the springs is only 5.5mm tall However, if they do, I have some spare rockers from a Small Stuff engine that should work!!
Thanks for looking in!
Ian
-
I decided I wasn't happy with that, so I've modified the head. It's still not quite right as I can't figure out how to get an even chamfer all the way around from head to cylinder, but at this scale I think it will do.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51131937029_7c2f79ff76.jpg)
Ian
-
Very good effort!!! - Sadly, I'm sure the valve springs will not print in 1/72 scale. To print the 6 cylinders, simply duplicate or copy/paste the one you have and arrange them over a rectangular piece, align them and you are done. You could add before printing the part the induction and exhaust pipes, as well as the carb and magnetos.
-
Well , looks like you will get lots of enjoyment on this project .
Alexis
-
That's the plan Beto. I'm not decided yet on whether to print the cylinders, induction pipes, and crankcase together or separately, but they will all be printed. The exhausts will be brass tube.
Ian
-
You have much more patience and skill than me Ian with this 3D printing. I wish you luck because the possibilities that it offers are immense and certainly much easier than trying to make one from scratch.
Stephen.
-
Very interesting new ways are available in our hobby now!
Looks promising, good luck!
Cheers,
Frank
-
I admire you guys that are on the cutting edge of Modeling!
RAGIII
-
I just purchased an Anycubic Photon resin printer. Yet to fire it up in anger though.
Cheers,
Hugh
-
Thanks for the feedback folks! It's a little daunting at first but I'm surprised at how quickly I've picked up the basics (with reference to lots of videos of course!).
Have fun with the printer Hugh! That's the easy part though!
When I said I was happy with that last version, it was of course only temporary! Lying in bed last night I suddenly realised that I hadn't added any supports for the rocker arms. That led to closer examination of photos this morning. Another thing that had not occurred to me yesterday was that I had added the upper cylinder coolant channel across the whole width, whereas of course it is only an inlet one side and an outlet on the other. The valves sit in between and I couldn't put those in the right place unless I redesigned that too. So I decided to chop its head off!
I redesigned the top end and did the chamfer before cutting away bits. That worked much better. The angle on the face where inlet and exhaust fit is better too.
Here's how it looks now.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51133850639_71906eac09.jpg)
Much better!
And on top of that it has really helped me find my way around Fusion a lot better. This redesign took far less time than the original did. Now I have to try to figure out how to do the crankcase. All I've used so far is drawing circles and rectangles, extruding them then amending the 3d shapes I'm left with. The crankcase will involve plotting my own points in 3 dimensions.
I may be some time.....
Ian
-
Think about the crankcase like a model ship's hull: Make a series of ribs and skin them, and model only one half of the part, then mirror it and add any asymmetrical features if present on the original. Hope this helps.
-
Thanks Beto!
I think I've figured it out now, see below!
Right then, having spent numerous hours playing around in sculpt mode in Fusion I think I now have a grasp of the basics. To start with it was extremely frustrating as it seemed that even though I was doing it (I thought) exactly as in the videos, I kept getting error messages. I kept watching the videos and reading Fusions own training notes and every once in a while there was a "eureka" moment! After a few of those it became easier and I can now find my way around fairly quickly. Having said that it still sometimes comes back to bite me sometimes as I can't find a way to do something simple because of the way I constructed things earlier! There is usually an alternative to get the same result though (or delete it and redo that part correctly!) so I'm getting on reasonably now. All in all it's becoming fun now instead of frustrating so I must be moving in the right direction!
Here's the result of the last few days' "playing around". It took me a while to work out how I wanted to do it and I decided to start with the known quantities - I only have a side view sketch. So I overlaid the cylinders I'd already done (and then had to resize them!) and made up the cylinder mating face. That was copied that for the crankcase joint, and expanded as necessary. Adding a cone at the front helped with the sizes since I could match that exactly to the profile view.
Today I have been refining the shape of the crankcase join, adding the notches for the mounts and resizing it a few times as I noticed a couple of errors. I have to keep reminding myself not to get too obsessive with measurements, I'm only talking about 0.1mm or less for some of the adjustments, but I want it to "look right" once done so I think it's worth the effort.
Anyway, a couple of pics from this morning and this evening.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51144116206_57d6d152fd.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51144330883_dfc99d26f2.jpg)
The nose cone was also done today but I didn't take a pic before I added it.
Thanks for looking in, and since it's my birthday today I'm going for a beer or two. (Not that I wouldn't anyway, but it's an even better excuse than usual!)
Ian
-
HAPPY BIRTHDAY IAN
Enjoy your beer and rise a glass for us ;)
Alexis
-
Wow, you're a brave man, Pegasus kits aren't easy builds. Not impossible, just not easy. You're doing some amazing work IMHO.
WD
-
Happy birthday Ian. And you have something to celebrate with those images and the nose cone. Excellent work being done here - and much more than I could ever do.
(Do you know of the cartoon of the man with a large hammer standing over his computer? Well it was drawn from a photograph - I was the man!!)
Stephen.
-
Happy birthday Ian!
-
Hi all.
I have just finished another small project - the RPM Model T Ford Ambulance in 1:72 (of course!), where I 3d printed wheels, suspension, rear body panels, and steering wheel. Pics will be posted tomorrow in RFI.
Now that is done and dusted it's time to resurrect this one. I took it out of the box today and gave it a good looking at. I have decided that tomorrow I will start on getting the fuselage profile correct.
Thanks for looking in!
Ian
-
I gave the fuselage another good hard looking at and didn't get far. My problem is that plans for the Etrich version are scarce and those I have don't seem to match. The fuselage is quite a bit deeper than the plans, but overall it looks right when comparing to photos. I have adjusted the slope between the two cockpits a little and will leave it at that for now. My focus then changed to the wings. A lot more sanding was carried out to get the edges to suitable thickness and adjust the airfoil section to my liking, then it was working out where all the holes should go.
Tools for the day.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52351577447_d18aa027e4_c.jpg)
I've drawn on the 2 spars, and drilled holes for the support beam underneath, along with the holes for rigging that beam, both fore and aft. That needed 3 holes right on the leading edge and 3 on the rear spar. All those wires will go through the wing as they are on both upper and lower surfaces so can be done as one line for each. Those holes therefore go through the wing. The ones for the braces will be blind holes. I will leave the holes for the wing warping until after I've finished marking out the ribs and scalloping the trailing edge. Ribs for the warping section will be added, probably with thin plastic rod. In reality they were bamboo inserts stuck into the rear of the ribs. The fabric was single layer on those sections but there was no lip as seen on a Caudron for instance, so once the ribs are on, the step between the main wing and the warping section will be faired in.
Thanks for looking in, sorry there's only one pic! (Only one wing done so far too, I need to rest my eyes!)
Ian
-
Progress is progress Ian, and this is a bit of a dog of a kit. However when you have finished with it, it will be a gem.
Stephen.
-
Thanks Stephen, I am enjoying it (so far) though!
The last two days have been spent patiently poring over photos and drawings, trying to work out what goes where. I did manage to come up with a basic plan of the rigging from the king post and lower brace (not sure what its specific name is). This is what I've come up with:
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52357844424_196e908269_c.jpg)
That will help me plan the rigging a bit better as a lot of wires can be used both above and below the wings as one piece running through. I always try to minimize the number of separate pieces of rigging and will use one hole for multiple pieces when able.
The other tasks have been correcting the cockpits and working on the wings. The cockpits, as you may recall were not accurate for the aircraft I am modelling.
This is what we get in the kit - I have already made a start of raising the front edge of the rear cockpit here.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52356617742_1f2d223ae9_c.jpg)
The front cockpit is too shallow and the rear needed to be more curved, and higher at the front. I started on the rear by cutting and bending the plastic to raise it slightly, then used Mr Dissolved Putty, dabbed on with a toothpick, to build up the rear edge.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52357951105_19f86d5aae_c.jpg)
After it had dried properly it was carefully filed down with a half round jewelers file. It needed two or three applications to get the right shape but eventually it got there. This stuff is really usufel for this type of work. I will also use it to re establish the cockpit edge padding which was too heavy anyway, but had to be removed.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52357844799_aa670edf15_c.jpg)
This shows the final shape of the rear
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52357529196_30f7f025eb_c.jpg)
and this one is after I had deepened the front cockpit. I also reduced the padding here too.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52356579122_3ee036e2ac_c.jpg)
Some thought then had to be given to wing mounting. I decided to cut two slots into the inner edge of the wing and insert small lengths of .75 x 1mm rod to represent the spars. The slots would give extra strength to the joint as I don't think 2 butt joints (one to the wing and one to the fuselage) would work.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52357951500_c7de39d615_c.jpg)
For the fuselage end, I carefully marked out where the spars were attached, (they were bolted on, and did not run through - at least the rear one was, as it is right in the middle of the pilot's cockpit). The King Post and mounting point for the "bridge" under the wings were both lined up with the front spar, so those were also marked out. Holes were drilled to mount the king post, and immediately below those I drilled for the spar holes. I started with .3mm, then .5mm and finally .75mm, carefully making sure between each enlargement that the holes were still lined up. Those holes were carefully enlarged with a no.11 blade to a rectangle of .75 x 1mm so the spars could pass through. Once the front ones were done, a spot of black marker on the end of the rear spar left a handy mark to show where I needed to drill the second hole.
Pegasus kindly added a moulded in shape on the fuselage where the wing was intended to be mounted - not useful for its intended purpose as the wing doesn't but against it, but useful for getting the angle of the wing and helping align the rear spar holes! You can see the marked out holes on the pic above.
This is the front marked up - you can see the filled dimple where the kit King Post was to be mounted - too far back!
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52356578757_8d8bd84f8a_c.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52357529456_f6112f940e_c.jpg)
I think that works! I will trim the spars to length later, I will be able to hide the joint in the rear cockpit as there will be a brace added from the cockpit side where the spar mounts down to the seat mounting.
Not too much to show physically for two days work although it was interspersed with visits to get PCR tests done. Yesterday's was negative, if today's is too, I can return to work on tomorrow, although I'm booked off. That will be very helpful as I'm due to fly to the US next Tuesday for training and haven't had a chance to get anything prepared yet!
As I say, not much physical advancement, but a huge step forward in the basic prep and planning and the most critical part - the wing mounting - is done.
Thanks for looking in!
Ian
-
This is fantastic Ian! I’ve been looking to build my kit for years but hadn’t really invested time into figuring out how to correct the inaccuracies. I appreciate you doing it ahead of me! Really wanting to see how all your efforts on the engine work out. I’m following with great interest.
-
Bravo Ian, she's shaping up very nicely!
-
Cool Ian , tagging a long ....but ...but ...it's not paper !
Alexis
-
Thanks for the feedback folks.
Alexis, why would it be paper? I would never even think of building a paper model. Even though there are some pretty good looking ones around it's just not my area of interest.
I'm off to the US for a week on Weds so there will not be much progress here for a while I'm afraid.
Ian
-
Ian,
You are a brave man. I get mine out of the box, look at it, put it back on the shelf. I say to myself, 'the vacuform one would be easier'. I get it out, look at it, then put it back on the shelf. I will definitely be following along your build.
Stuart
-
It is great to see you posting on this one again Ian! Your mods and improvements are Outstanding!
RAGIII
-
Thanks Stuart!
Rick, it's good to be back!
I've been a little slower with my builds due to a change in work duty times over the past 4 years and an excursion into some other subject matter, but WWI aviation is still my primary subject.
Well, a little more than a week, sorry about that! My trip to the US went well, although it was hectic. I caught up with some friends on Cape Cod, visited my house, and picked up some jackets and boots that for some reason had not been sent out with the rest of my belongings.
I am now officially an FAA examiner for the King Air 350.
There has been (slow) progress but not much to photograph and post.
I had a day off today and got back to this. I have to admit the mojo has been a little low of late, but today was spent testing my eyesight.
The wings and tail needed to be marked out for the ribs, and the trailing edges scalloped. That was today's job.
Left one done, right one shown as a comparison.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52429831494_c49dda87f4_c.jpg)
Both wings are now done and just need to be marked up for the ribs.
The tail was fairly straightforward. First the scalloping...
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52429549601_f9f453e011_c.jpg)
then the marking of the ribs etc
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52429842529_1d36c10191_c.jpg)
I now need to mark up the wing ribs and spars. I think it would be best to add the tail and wing spar extensions that carry the rigging before I paint them as I will have to cut a slot in the surfaces to insert the rods and it could be difficult to match the paintwork after that is done. The next job is therefore going to be cutting slots in the wings and tail, attaching plastic rod, and blending it all in before any painting is considered.
I also need to start thinking about the fuselage framework.
Thanks for looking in!
Ian
-
Good to see you back Ian and making good progress with this one. The original kit was pretty crude but good enough for you to work your magic on.
Stephen.
-
Hey Ian, hadn't seen this one before. Lotta work, but you're going to triumph I'm sure.
I remember talking to Chris Gannon about the soft buttery plastic he used for his Pegasus and Blue Max kits. He was very proud of it as he felt it easy to carve and work with. Wonder what happened to him, he was still a young guy when he sold up.
Great work so far.
Sandy
-
Great work so far, amazing stuff IMHO.
WD
-
Lovely work Ian, I'm enjoying watching this come together.
I am now officially an FAA examiner for the King Air 350.
Congratulations!!
-
Many thanks for the feedback, Zac, WD, Sandy, and Stephen - much appreciated!
For the spar extensions that hold the rigging lines plastic strip would obviously be too flexible, but at the other extreme I think brass would be too strong making it hard to shape properly. I would also need to drill for rigging lines very close to where the spar extensions would be inserted into the wing. With that in mind I opted for aluminium rod. I squashed it flat (using pliers with smooth jaws) in two dimensions: vertically to slot into the wing, and horizontally for the spar extensions themselves which were slightly flattened to be more aerodynamic. Quite why, with all the rest of the bits that stuck out into the airflow I'm not sure, but they were, so that is what I've done!
After flattening them out they were filed to shape and CAd into the wings. The other advantage of aluminium is that although they don't bend easily, they can be adjusted to get them straight in all dimensions.
The end result of this afternoon's eye straining is this (progressively, from raw attachment, to finished and shaped):
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52439140852_78fae6d824_c.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52439642546_ed3229b2dd_c.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52439130867_3ab3b94dae_c.jpg)
Wings done, horizontal tail surfaces next. I'll leave the vertical ones until it's all together.
Thanks for looking in!
Ian
-
Excellent problem solving, Ian!
-
Today was a day off, two more to come...
I was not really happy with the plastic card tail and the lack of detail on it so I decided to throw something together in Fusion just to see what I could come up with. After all, it couldn't be any worse!
After a couple of hours playing around with it I got something I was happy with as a test so I printed it.
A few hours later, I found this waiting for me...
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52444361888_6ea51b8d19_c.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52444123514_4362c27a62_c.jpg)
The warping surfaces at the rear are only .2mm thick, the forward part is 0.6mm with the ribs at 0.7mm to give a very slight raised surface on the front part, but noticeable raised ribs to the rear.
I will have a closer look in the morning, but I think this is a keeper!
Thanks for looking in!
Ian
-
Your 3d print looks great. My brother and I have been experimenting with Fusion over the past couple months for a 1/72 scale plane we're collaborating on. Quite a learning curve with that program. He's gotten fairly adept at it but it's beyond complicated for me.
-
Stick with it PJ! Once you get the basics it all starts coming together quite quickly. YouTube is your friend here!
Good evening everyone!
Here's what I have now after a few tweaks and a reprint.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52446200279_084ed4d378_c.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52445932176_d6b40b8b3c_c.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52446369500_e8958c91b5_c.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52446202129_f43f2c1330_c.jpg)
I have to say, I'm very pleased with that!
I left it on the print plate to dry after washing, then cured it straight away and so far there is no sign of any warping.
I'll take another look tomorrow morning but I think this is as good as I can get it.
Thanks for looking in!
Ian
-
Another few hours tinkering with lines this morning and I then printed the cylinders.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52447992545_d060fdc3fb_c.jpg)
It's only 13mm long so I'm happy with that, although I'll probably shrink the spark plug a bit as it looks far too big! I spent far too long worrying about tidying up details that are not even visible with the magnifier!
Now I need to add the crankcase. I'll probably only do the upper part as it is needed to mount the inlet manifolds and push rods, but the underneath will be hidden so I can live without it!
Thanks for looking in,
Ian
-
Looks excellent from where I’m looking. What kind of detail would you say you can resolve? Can you make out the individual turns on the springs on the valves for example? Not that I would be able to see it with an unarmed eye anyway…
I bought a 3D printer a while ago but haven’t worked up the courage to overcome the initial threshold yet. :-[
-
No, the springs can't be seen even with a magnifier. That's not an issue. You can add the detail in the drawing if you want (as I did) but it simply won't show.
Ian
-
Lovely job Ian!
I decided to throw something together in Fusion
As you do! I really need to learn CAD as I have a few friends with 3D printers and that skill would help my builds immensely.
-
That looks amazing. It is very inspiring to see your work and the added detail. The Taube is very high on my most wanted list. I just need to figure out how to do the spoked wheels. :)
-
Etrich Tauben had covers on the wheels, so you don't need to!
Ian
-
I'm starting to wind down here as I'm heading home on Thursday for my Dad's 90th, followed the week after by Telford! Models are packed and ready to go, so instead of starting major work I'm tidying up on some of the small stuff.
To that end I have reprinted the cylinders as separate items in an effort to get a little more detail and gaps between them. That seems to have worked, so just to get a better idea of how they look I squirted some paint at them today.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52462160081_acb47a0339_c.jpg)
I think that will work nicely! I may yet print them again with a small peg on the bottom to help mounting alignment. We'll see.
I have also started to prepare for a future project - an Avro Rota!
I have the RS Models kit and the Amstrong-Siddeley Genet Major engine is not bad but it's extremely visible and I wanted to see if I could find better.
I could! A website by the name of Hip Pocket Aeronautics has downloadable 3d print files for it so I downloaded the files. They are full size so had to be scaled but they have printed up nicely! It is split into crankcase, front cover, cylinder, distributor, breather, inlet pipes, rocker covers, and pushrod covers. A lot of parts to print!
Here is the crankcase with the front cover, breather, and distributor fitted
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52461643097_a9d2a3bce1_c.jpg)
and with paint
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52462694493_ce858b0e2c_c.jpg)
cylinder
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52462159041_0314065f4b_c.jpg)
That should look far better!
Those bits will now go in a little box and live with the kit until I get around to it!
Thanks for looking in,
Ian
-
Wow! Your efforts with the printed details really have paid off. That engine looks fantastic.
-
Wow, 3d printing looks very much like the future of model making judging by your results. I didn't think making the cylinders in such detail was possible but you've definitely cracked it!
Richie
-
The newer printers are apparently capable of far better definition than my old Elegoo Mars too!
I wouldn't say it's the future, any more than resin models were, but the ability for "mere mortals" such as myself to make their own parts relatively easily is certainly going to open up the after market parts area.
Ian
-
3 D printing is way above My Paygrade. I must say I am very impressed!
RAGIII
-
Sorry for the lack of updates recently but I had hand surgery for Dupuytren's disease 3 weeks ago and am just about to start physio. Hopefully be back on this soon!
Ian
-
My Best wishes for a Speedy recovery from the surgery Ian!
RAGIII
-
Look after yourself Ian! I hope physio goes well and you keep us posted on your progress.
-
Best wishes for the physio and hopefully a complete recovery.
Stephen.
-
Really beautiful work, and my prayers for your speedy recovery.
Warren
PS: I suffer from a pretty bad case of trigger finger, so you have my sympathies.
-
Sorry for the lack of updates recently but I had hand surgery for Dupuytren's disease 3 weeks ago and am just about to start physio.
Yikes! I've inherited that. Doc says I was the youngest person she'd seen with it. One day I will have to treat it too.
-
Hello Ian
You shouldn't apologize for lack of progress. Health and body are far more important than bits of plastic on your workbench. Just get well soon mate.
Alan.
-
Hi all!
I have managed to recover some of the lost mojo and have been printing out cylinders for the engine. They've turned out very nicely, but I can't seem to get the tiny gap between them to stay clear of resin.
I tried printing them individually but they're too fiddly like that. I have been using 0.03mm lift height and 6 second exposure, so I tried 5 seconds. That got the gap, but other details failed so I went back to what I had.
This is what I will go with.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52626526243_392b04b068_c.jpg)
I had to print at 105% to make them fit so I guess the drawing I have is slightly off. No matter, I'll do everything else to match the drawing and print at 105% for them too. The extras now are the crankcase, and the inlet pipes. I thought about butchering a resin Argus engine for the crankcase but I'll see what I can do with Fusion. Should be an interesting experiment doing that and "pipes" for the induction.....
Thanks for looking in!
Ian
-
Those cylinders look super Ian. I am not an afficianado of printing so I take what you have written at face value! Whatever they are still a massive improvement on the kit offering!
Stephen.
-
That’s a great result, and inspirational too. I wouldn’t have noticed the ”webbed” cylinders unless you mentioned it. With some dark matt paint and inlet pipes in place they’ll be invisible.
-
So glad you have experience mojo recovery. I very much hope you have hand recovery going on too Ian.
The 3d printed cylinders look very good, nothing looks amiss with them to me.
Richie
-
Awesome to say the least!
RAGIII
-
Many thanks for the comments Stephen, Torbiorn, Richie, and Rick - much appreciated!
Having 2 days off this weekend enabled me to get some more bench (actually computer desk) time in yesterday. I had been putting off doing the induction piping because I'd not worked with the pipe function before, and honestly, I'm not convinced that I chose the best method. I'll explain in a minute!
After first watching the required youtube video I sat down and started on the design. I'm ok with adding planes to use as a base reference so that was the first job. To ensure that the pipe work was at the required distance from the cylinders I added a plane, then drew my spline on it. The outer pipes were built starting with a straight centre piece, then one of the cylinder manifolds was added. The ends were moved to the required positions to add the bends and that was about it! Simples!
Only it wasn't, because I had to tweak the spline quite a bit to adjust the curvature, ensure it was straight where it needed to be straight, and that the general look of it all was right. Once I had one done it was simply mirrored - another plane added for that excercise. The longer pipe was done as a copy of one of the shorter ones, lengthened, and moved to the correct position. Re orienting it took a while because I couldn't figure out how to add an axis to rotate it around, but I finally figured it out and it was simple from then on. Again, once complete it was mirrored to the other side. The final centre piece was a very simple spline with a bend either end and a cylinder added for the upright.
So what did I get for my entire afternoon's graft?
Here's one of the larger pieces
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52644595610_6acd9311e9_c.jpg)
and all 3 together
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52644596290_12445af524_c.jpg)
I printed 4 of each so I had plenty of spares and used 2 different print orientations to see if that made any difference. I'm pretty pleased with how they've come out!
As for my comment above on pipe not being the best method to use, I say that because the ends of the pipe are not at the correct angles. It won't notice in this scale but in future I think I'll add a cylinder first to get the square ends to the cylinder head end, then add a pipe to that, or maybe even two cylinders with a radius added at the joint.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52644413369_7d49aac290_c.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52644157981_f13f29ca0d_c.jpg)
They are just resting in place in those pics and will need a little tweaking but nothing major. Or I may not bother as they are so small anyway!
On a final note, when I printed the cylinders previously I again used 2 different orientations. I hadn't noticed before and thought the vertical ones ere good, but when I looked closer at the slanted ones I realised that the valve rocker assemblies had not printed fully on the vertical ones, but with the extra supports I had added to the slanted ones, they printed fine. I had forgotten that I had eve designed those in!
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52643693182_5ee4c85be1_c.jpg)
I'm starting to lean towards using a resin crankcase from an Argus engine instead of designing one. It's close enough, won't be seen, and I really want to get on with actually building this!
Thanks for looking in!
Ian
-
Highly interesting project. Tauben are really beautiful planes, build one many years ago.
Your engine cylinders remind me of a picture in Jane's of the Basse and Selve.
Joachim
-
Exquisite work, Ian!
-
Super work Ian, but I do think that making the pipes from rod (the old fashioned way...) would have been quicker and easier!
Stephen.
-
Ian,
Brilliant work on this subject. I appreciate your full disclosure on all the trials and tribulations of 3-D printing design. I’m beginning to realize why these aftermarket parts are so expensive!
-
Your engine cylinders remind me of a picture in Jane's of the Basse and Selve.
They remind me of the Sand People from Tatooine.
(https://i.imgur.com/ISECBXFt.jpg)
-
That's bloody hilarious PJ.
Alan.
-
Thanks again for all the feedback folks!
Sand people, love it!
It's turning into a very slow build, mainly because I still don't seem to have the mojo back fully yet.
Having said that I have made another small step forward today. I went with the resin crankcase idea so hacked the cylinders off a spare Argus engine. No real loss as the cylinders are not well cast. and I now know I can do better!
I also removed the kit engine mounting lugs from the fuselage ad added new ones from plastic card. This ensures that I can get a good fit height wise - also the crankcase mountings are somewhat offset for some reason, so I had to add the mounts equally offset!
Here's a dummy set up of the engine so I could test fit it.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52656383505_59672b8d64_c.jpg)
I won't be doing anything on this for the next couple of weeks as my brother is visiting.
We have a little treat planned for next weekend as I have booked us 2 nights In Qasr al Sarab.
Something I've been meaning to do since I got here - a must do!
Have a great week folks, thanks for looking in!
Ian
-
Brilliant use of Magic! ;D
RAGIII
-
Hi all.
Back from our little sojourn, we had an absolute blast and I enjoyed having my brother here for a week - his 3rd visit in the nearly 5 years I've been here. Qasr al Sarab (it translates as Palace of the Mirage)
is a fantastic place to unwind, if a tab expensive. However it is unique in being in the desert - the last 12 km is a road which leads only to the resort, here's a little video to show the terrain.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/31337/52688868143_1835e6466d_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2ogWdR6)20230203_124544 (https://flic.kr/p/2ogWdR6) by Ian B63 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/11262788@N02/), on Flickr
and here's the entrance
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52688647724_d372067b59_c.jpg)
sunset from our room
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52688801295_c61eea2d67_c.jpg)
Saturday was a busy day, starting with a massage! Archery in the afternoon - both my brother and I competed as kids and both won our local club's under 12 competition. This was our first time since then, it's amazing how quickly it all comes back.
Lastly an evening camel ride up the dunes. Not the most comfortable mode of transport I've ever experienced - especially when the camel stands up which it does rear end first. If you're not ready, it'll throw you off forwards!
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52687853907_e7f5748dfb_c.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52687854702_0945e657bd_c.jpg)
Then chilling out by the pool with a few drinks. All in all a great couple of nights.
Anyway, I digress.
I got back on the Taube yesterday and basically didn't achieve anything!
Here is why I've been having issues
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52688839568_daa3e2510a_c.jpg)
I'm not sure if you can see from the pic but the underside of the fuselage is not flat. It slopes upwards towards the join, which of course it shouldn't! It also means that it's extremely difficult to hold everything in position accurately for test fitting. I finally did what I should have done in the first place and added plastic strip tabs as locators. I have also cut the front of the nose off as it's too short. I'll deal with that later.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52688348086_4fc58c734e_c.jpg)
With those added I could see that the engine was too low, so I removed and raised the strips I'd added to mount it on. In the process of trying to test fit the engine I managed to knock off some of the Mr Liquid Putty I'd added to alter the cockpit shape, so that has also been replaced.
That is all now drying.
Here is the engine as it now stands. The cylinders are a sacrificial print to get the fitting right. I will remove them and add a new set once all the adjusting is done so I don't break off all the valve rockers. I've also removed the carbs and will add new ones from plastic rod once the final cylinders are in place.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52688771315_72ecb23b03_c.jpg)
That's about it for now, almost time for a beer or two!
Thanks for looking in,
Ian
-
Some great 'feel good' shots the Brandy! You'll get all the necessary fettling done in due course. Enjoy the beers!
Richie
-
The engine looks fine and is a huge improvement on the bit supplied in the kit....! The fuselage fit is not the only issue with that kit, but as usual you will knock it into shape.
Stephen.
-
Hi all.
Back from our little sojourn, we had an absolute blast and I enjoyed having my brother here for a week - his 3rd visit in the nearly 5 years I've been here. Qasr al Sarab (it translates as Palace of the Mirage)
is a fantastic place to unwind, if a tab expensive. However it is unique in being in the desert - the last 12 km is a road which leads only to the resort, here's a little video to show the terrain.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/31337/52688868143_1835e6466d_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2ogWdR6)20230203_124544 (https://flic.kr/p/2ogWdR6) by Ian B63 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/11262788@N02/), on Flickr
and here's the entrance
img]https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52688647724_d372067b59_c.jpg[/img]
sunset from our room
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52688801295_c61eea2d67_c.jpg)
Saturday was a busy day, starting with a massage! Archery in the afternoon - both my brother and I competed as kids and both won our local club's under 12 competition. This was our first time since then, it's amazing how quickly it all comes back.
Lastly an evening camel ride up the dunes. Not the most comfortable mode of transport I've ever experienced - especially when the camel stands up which it does rear end first. If you're not ready, it'll throw you off forwards!
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52687853907_e7f5748dfb_c.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52687854702_0945e657bd_c.jpg)
Then chilling out by the pool with a few drinks. All in all a great couple of nights.
Anyway, I digress.
I got back on the Taube yesterday and basically didn't achieve anything!
Here is why I've been having issues
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52688839568_daa3e2510a_c.jpg)
I'm not sure if you can see from the pic but the underside of the fuselage is not flat. It slopes upwards towards the join, which of course it shouldn't! It also means that it's extremely difficult to hold everything in position accurately for test fitting. I finally did what I should have done in the first place and added plastic strip tabs as locators. I have also cut the front of the nose off as it's too short. I'll deal with that later.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52688348086_4fc58c734e_c.jpg)
With those added I could see that the engine was too low, so I removed and raised the strips I'd added to mount it on. In the process of trying to test fit the engine I managed to knock off some of the Mr Liquid Putty I'd added to alter the cockpit shape, so that has also been replaced.
That is all now drying.
Here is the engine as it now stands. The cylinders are a sacrificial print to get the fitting right. I will remove them and add a new set once all the adjusting is done so I don't break off all the valve rockers. I've also removed the carbs and will add new ones from plastic rod once the final cylinders are in place.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52688771315_72ecb23b03_c.jpg)
That's about it for now, almost time for a beer or two!
Thanks for looking in,
Ian
What an amazing place to holiday! Looks like a scene from the last remake of Beau Gest.
Cheers
Hugh
-
Your engine is a huge improvement on the piece of white metal supplied in the kit.
-
The engine looks incredible, especially since it is so small.
I am again in awe by the possibilities of 3D printing.
Willem
-
I finally got some mojo flowing on this over the weekend and got some work done on the interior.
Firewall and bulkheads were added first.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52712673393_5172e0286c_c.jpg)
Yes, I know there were no solid bulkheads between the crew positions, or even aft of the pilot's cockpit, but I need the added strength and with the seats in place it won't really be visible anyway.
That was followed up with the "instrument" panel and the cockpit framework, which was added using 0.25 x 0.75mm Evergreen strip, plus false floors. I had debated with myself for a while about how I would deal with the fuselage floor. Initially I thought about removing the bottom of the fuselage completely but then I would have problems with alignment and joining the halves together. After looking closely I realised that the fuselage floor was actually quite thin so it would be possible to add my usual false floor to hide the seam, plus the big square hole for the control column shouldn't actually be there so the thickness was not an issue either. False floors it is then: 0.25mm sheet added and the batons from 0.25 x 0.5mm strip. They will be trimmed to length later.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52712612895_b891d73f9a_c.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52712194271_4451ca13e4_c.jpg)
I also drilled the holes in the fuselage sides for the rudder cables to pass through and looked at the control column. The kit item is not too bad, but the aircraft I'm modelling had a bigger wheel. I just found my discarded DF loop from the Fairey Battle in the spares box and it looks good size wise so that may come into use later! As for the square cut out in the underside, that will be filled later, either with a card insert, or filler. The hole has been drilled in the false floor to take the control column so my reference point is already there.
Thanks for looking in!
Ian
-
Great work so far Ian.
Warren
-
Looking great Ian. Interior work has always been my favorite. Looking forward to seeing more!
-
Thanks Tim and Warren, glad you're enjoying it.
You knew I would, didn't you? As soon as I said that I would be happy with it, I knew I wouldn't be.
So today I removed the bulkhead aft of the observer's seat and replaced it with just the top part. I also replaced the instrument panel, extending it a little lower.
That meant I had to make the fuel tank which also forms the mounting point for the observer's seat. I thought about printing it, but in the end I just glued a few bits of plastic stock together and sanded them to the rough shape I needed. Most of it won't be visible, but at least it's a little more realistic. And no, it's NOT a toilet!
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52719260339_dcd5b452db_c.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52718475252_cff4c147e9_c.jpg)
[(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52718331417_0fe5a8bd24_c.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52719485203_b4a3a2c20c_c.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52719260889_1e79c61936_c.jpg)
I've also filled in the little gap in the floor with a piece of thin strip.
After that little episode, I decided it would be a good idea to make a list of parts I need to design and print. That was made more necessary after I trial fitted the seats and discovered that they are too big and won't fit, so that increased the list! How can you produce a kit with seats that are too wide for the fuselage?
I need a new nose, (stop giggling in the back), seats - including the mounting braces for the pilot's seat, gravity tank, barometer, and control wheel.
The nose is just a small extension and I will probably follow the example set by Steve (Fritag) on BritModeller, and scan the opening once the fuselage has been joined to use that as a reference for designing the new part. We'll see how that works out later....
My duties for my next day off are now set.
Thanks for looking in!
Ian
-
And no, it's NOT a toilet!
Agree to disagree ;D
-
Zac, don't throw your ciggy butts in the "toilet"!
Well, I said in my last post that my plans for today were set and I was right. Problem is my PC keeps freezing if I try to run Fusion at the same time as Spotify and I have to have music on. Looks like I'll have to get hold of some extra memory.
I have no idea about things like that.....
Anyway, the day hasn't been wasted. A few small improvements here and there including redrilling the control cable holes in the correct places and refitting some of the batons on the floor which I'd trimmed too short.
I also decided to trial fit the tail. It's VERY thin and fragile, and I managed to break off a large lump when I broke off the supports. I hadn't clipped them off properly and a couple were still attached. Oh well, it's only a test piece!
I noticed that it does have small swollen areas where the lower supports attached so I'll have to rethink there, and I'll add the outer braces to the print just to see if they will work. Some more sanding was required to the fuselage but after a while it fitted rather snugly so I'm happy with that!
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52725221245_eae336f900_c.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52725220900_2fa5192b62_c.jpg)
Having fitted the internal framing I could also test fit the wings and trim the spars to the right lengths.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52725236355_ecf250975f_c.jpg)
Not too shabby! The span should be 198.6mm and it's 200mm but without the dihedral so I'll definitely live with that! That fit also highlighted the fact that the left wing was very slightly lower so that was corrected raising the top of the mounting slot with a #11 blade and adding a piece of 0.25mm card to the bottom. It doesn't sound much but it was definitely visible. Not now!
Final fettling can be done when they are fitted, which I will do with the "bridge" underneath already mounted. I plan to do it that way to ensure that the dihedral is exact, and I'm hoping to use plastic rod with brass pins for that part, trapping the spanwise rigging wires in the joints as I build it, then threading the loose ends through the wing and tightening it off.
At least that's the plan, but changes can be made if needed!
Thanks for looking in,
Ian
-
Looks very promising Ian. Beautifully designed and printed parts.
-
It always gets me how elegant the Taube design is. Beautiful work so far Ian, and fascinating to follow. I always enjoy your updates.
Zac, don't throw your ciggy butts in the "toilet"!
;D ;D
-
Catching up Ian - you have done a lot since I last looked in. The interior details are a huge improvement, especially the
toilet observer's seat base/fuel tank. I hope that your idea of adding the under bridge and rigging works because it sounds a really good idea which will add strength to the model.
Stephen
-
Lucky for you the tail is only a test piece.
I'd be pulling my hair out!
Great overall results. This is still one of the most elegant aircraft of the period i.m.h.o.
Willem
-
Hi all,
I've made a little more progress on designing the remaining bits I need so here's what I have so far.
The gravity tank is shown in a couple of photos of the specific aircraft I'm modelling but I have no measurements so I had to do it by eye.
This is what I was aiming for:
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52742172651_1014c67ef0_c.jpg)
and this is my first attempt.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52742665363_05439cb2d1_c.jpg)
I thought I'd done pretty well, but on comparing the pics it was obvious that I'd made it too long. I have left the reference line in for the top of the fuselage, otherwise it looks way too thin as well!
So I made a couple of quick alterations and I now have this:
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52742586450_f4c72e164a_c.jpg)
and the tank on its own:
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52741658337_6d0273337e_c.jpg)
I think it's still a little too pointed at the nose but I can live with that. I had some useful advice on saving myself a lot of work drawing in too many rails, so in future I will put that too good use, but it was good practice anyway as I only drew in one quarter, then copied and mirrored. Getting the hang of it now! The struts will not be printed, they are just for reference.
The other item now complete is the control wheel.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52734246055_5ffb20f0bd_c.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52734087064_dbe0a3e1c6_c.jpg)
Happy with that!
Next up will be seats, then a new nose profile.
Thanks for looking in!
Ian
-
This printing process certainly seems to make the process of parts manufacture much easier than hacking pieces of plastic with files and knives!
Good looking drawings Ian: I am sure that the new parts will be equally good.
Stephen.
-
I was thinking much the same as Stephen!
Looking forward to seeing how these parts print.
Richie
-
Looks really nice Ian. Beautiful design work.
-
My hat is off to you on the build as a whole, but especially the design work.
Warren
-
Looking good! I need to design the control wheel for my 3D project. This is good inspiration!
-
Thanks for all the positive feedback folks!
Apologies for the lack of updates here. It's not that I haven't been working on it, just that there's not been anything worth posting.
To bring you all up to date then, I've been working on my CAD design skills (or more accurately, lack thereof). Specifically, the seats. The challenge was to design seats with tufting, ie the little buttons which pull the leather inwards. I first had to learn how to get that effect, then had to work out how to backfill the empty space behind, all while working in a non-planer (curved), environment.
There's a great video on youtube showing how to work in the form environment to get the tufting, but it's done in a flat plane. After a little trial and error I managed to get the hang of the form environment and how to set up a plane and manipulate it, the hardest part was how to do it on a curved rather than flat surface.
Basically, it's all down to the initial sketches. I drew the frame for the seat with the intention of using that to extrude a square tube for the seat frame with a width of 0.4mm. Unfortunately you can't use a face from that to anchor the new face in the form environment. After a few tries and redrawing the initial sketches so that all the reference points aligned, I drew some construction lines perpendicular to the initial sketch with a length of 0.2mm (half the width of the extruded square section pipe) to give me a guide - the initial sketch would be the centre point of said pipe. Once those refs were done I drew another spline to match the existing pipe centreline and aligned at 0.2mm off it. That would give me a reference which was level with the edge of the tube and which I could use as the plane for the new form face so it was level with the inner edge of the frame.
I also needed to do the same thing to create a "cutter" to trim the new form to the correct shape once it was done since it has to be created as a rectangular shape.
Difficult to explain, but if anyone wants any help I'll try to be more explicit about the process. Basically what it boiled down to was that any failures I encountered were almost always due to bad drawings at the beginning. Either line end points not being aligned, or gaps in the faces. Most of them were not visible as we're talking errors of 0.001mm or so, but that's enough. Make sure that the constraints are set and that when lines are drawn you have the little square shown when clicking the fix points - they indicate that the point is aligned with another (just make sure it's the point you want!)
So here are the 4 stages, each approximately one day's work...
Day 1
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52824664100_87d1e2ea47_c.jpg)
Day 2
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52824267971_ecaea495ff_c.jpg)
By this point I had figured out the tufting and how to manipulate the surface but couldn't fill the back or thicken it.
Day 3
Front face now properly aligned but still unable to fill in behind
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52824665260_104454c81b_c.jpg)
Day 4
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52823694042_2c81c9775f_c.jpg)
I'll take that!
Yes, it's 4 day's work, but I now have a better understanding of how it works. The last stage, Day 4 took only about 3 hours instead of 5 or 6 so progress and knowledge!
I will now try to get a new nose profile done before I fly back to the UK on 26th for my 60th with family. When I return, I will be concentrating on a DH4 and DH9 for a DH group build on Britmodeller forum (I'll post them here too) so it will be a while before I get back to this one.
Thanks for looking in!
Ian
-
Solid scratch building work Ian...and then More HooDoo Magic underway 8) Looking Awesome!
RAGIII
-
For some reason - maybe open sections somewhere, and many, many thanks to Johnny (The Spadgent on Britmodeller) for help in error tracing, this didn't print well. It printed the seat as a solid block instead of a hollowed out sculpt. I think it was due to me doing the back as two parts and not having them properly mated which left an open mesh which was then filled in at printing. After redesigning with the seatback as a single piece and doing away with the frame it worked. I had added the frame as a cutting tool, but again I think there were gaps between the frame and the seatback. This time I added extra planes to use as cutting tools and it worked fine. I still haven't worked out how to backfill, but the thicken tool worked, leaving only a slight ridge to sand off.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52864864082_10509951c5_c.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52865853830_d0d2a08e6d_c.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52865461611_026117bd18_c.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52865884193_86fe8b0611_c.jpg)
The final parts needing printing were the coolant header tank and a new tail.
The coolant tank worked ok
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52865614924_9593bcfeb1_c.jpg)
I may still tweak that a bit and thin the pipework.
I had issues with the tail warping as it was only 0.1mm at the rear end
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52864870357_c82d74a21c_c.jpg)
so I thickened it to 0.15mm and added some braces to keep it straight while curing.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52865617969_58a7d130fc_c.jpg)
That seems to have worked well. I removed the supports before I left on vacation a week ago and will see how it looks upon my return (the braces are still on).
So that's where she sits now. I will be home mid May but my attention then will be on the dual De Havilland build for the DH group build so this will be on hold again for a while. Once I get back to it, it should be fairly quick progress as all the tricky bits have now been taken care of except the ne nose profile.
Thanks for looking in,
Ian
-
Some Call it Modeling Sorcery!
RAGIII
-
And some call it modelling magic! It certainly beats scratch building!
Stephen.
-
Ian, I’m glad you’re getting a much needed vacation. Looking forward to seeing the DH dual build as well. I am kind of disappointed to see this one put off though. Such beautiful and inspirational work you are doing with it! But the anticipation will make it all the more appreciated when you do get back to work on it. Thanks for sharing your work.
Tim