forum.ww1aircraftmodels.com
WW1 Aircraft Modeling => Under Construction => Topic started by: Monty on December 28, 2021, 02:56:47 AM
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I am fully aware I have a poor record of finishing kits, but I'm pretty good at starting them. This one screamed at me from the box, then jumped out and had a tantrum until I started it. Blame Rick. He talked about the "Spad weeks" and his build was quite beautiful. I didn't enter the Roden competition as my LHS was busy sending me this one, and will have to send another. It felt really bad not to join in the competition fun, so here we go!
This is the colour scheme I'd like to do:
(https://i.ibb.co/vHTXP59/IMG-3228-2.jpg)
The kit started itself... I prefer to get subassemblies together before painting, and also get the difficult bits out the way if possible, so the interior was put together, it went quite well, just some minor trimming and adjustment needed. The prop really needed some putty, quite a bit of that and sanding... Started fixing the undercarriage spreader bar, will have to get some measurements from plans to get that right... I will skin it with 5 thou plasticard... I will stick with the kit instruments and details, I don't have any other...
(https://i.ibb.co/Hg057HG/IMG-3226-2.jpg)
The engine is started. I see no point in adding the piping or carburetor details between the cylinders, or the cylinder heads as they won't be seen unless you remove some panels, but I don't want to ruin those beautiful Spad lines... The detail on the rear of the engine May just be visible, so it's worth adding... I did remove the "Photo panel" on the fuselage side as Rick suggested, not shown here. And then it was on to paint, sand yellow as it is a base for the wood tones, I'll do those first then block in the fabric and metal ... kind of hoping it works out...
(https://i.ibb.co/m0CTR9k/IMG-3230-2.jpg)
The prop looks better than expected. Sorry about the photos, it's a grey day here and I'm shooting indoors with poor artificial light. Regards and enjoy your modelling!
Marc
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Marc,
I picked up a couple of these too. Rick's build has been tempting me to give one a try, now you as well. But I'm going to stay focused for the time being. It looks like you're getting a good start. Keep going!
Stuart
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Another SPAD Weeker here, although mine's likely to be a month or three!
A great start. You have one advantage on me: you have CDL paint! ;D
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Nice start!!
Steve
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Starting kits is my expertise too... ;D and this start looks really good. Baracca's plane is a great classic and a loved one here in Italy.
Ciao
Giuseppe
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Off to a good start. I hope to see this completed. I would like to see this livery.
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Excellent Start Marc! It is Great to see another SPAD XIII being built and the Italian scheme should look terrific! You are correct about the piping on the engine. The late model will be a bit different as so many left off the side panels and used screening. I am looking forward to the next update.
RAGIII
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If you don't start them, you can't finish them... :D
Looks good and if you just take it one step at the time it'll be finished before you know it!
/Fredrik
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Thank You all for checking in! Yes, Fredrik, I'm building this one in my head already, I really want to get it done! Hi Rick! You are right about that extra engine detail, wonder if Roden will add the mesh sometimes seen on those side panels? But I am checking your build out carefully, there are so many small improvements that can be done... Ken, your build is the definitive build of this kit so far, simply lots of wonderful work and extra detail... but I must admit my build won't come close, but I appreciate your build for the wonderful details and help. Giuseppe, thank you for the encouragement too, I hope to do this aircraft justice! Are you aware of any other photos of it apart from this one?
(https://i.ibb.co/3dK78tL/FBaracca-with-Spad-XIII.jpg)
It is a lovely photo and confirms many details, I don't think there are roundels on the upper wing, for instance. The five colour camo is well shown... Thank you Steve for following along! Stuart, I am sure your build will progress even faster! Zac, I am following your build too, some good stuff there!
Today I managed to add some wood tones and grain effect using oils:
(https://i.ibb.co/bz1LmFN/IMG-3231.jpg)
There's a lot of wood in the cockpit... the slight overpainting around the stringers doesn't matter as I shall block in using fabric colours... Here is my mix for doing this:
(https://i.ibb.co/nrB4whh/IMG-3233.jpg)
Note just a tiny amount of Liquin helps oils flow better and they dry real hard in 48 hours too... The white spirit is the best thinner for sure... The props on Spad's are very dark with a brown varnish on them, I'll try to emulate this in the next step...
Regards and enjoy your modelling!
Marc
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Moving forward quite nicely Marc. As far as I know that is the Only Photo of Baraccas SPAD XIII. Overall I think Roden did their homework well on the markings and agree about the lack of roundels on the upper wing. ( Their is the possibility of those small roundels at the tips that Roden gives as an option) Many state that the right fuselage side should have the Griffon squadron marking. If Baracca followed the same pattern he used on his SPAD VII that would be correct. With no known photo of the right side I am not "Sure" that can be proved?
One thing I am questioning is the camo scheme. This is a Bleriot built bird and as far as I can tell from the photo is doped in the "Standard" Bleriot scheme. I do not claim to be an expert but I have not seen any SPADs with a scheme like Roden depicts. JMHO,
RAGIII
PS: My reason for stating the "Possibility" of Small upper wing roundels that don't gp over the ailerons is that there is a photo of another 91` squadron bird that shows the wing tips and the small roundels are present.
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...Giuseppe, thank you for the encouragement too, I hope to do this aircraft justice! Are you aware of any other photos of it apart from this one?
(https://i.ibb.co/3dK78tL/FBaracca-with-Spad-XIII.jpg)
Marc, i'm sorry but this is the only picture I know of this aeroplane. I will try to ask my friends if anyone knows something more about her.
Ciao
Giuseppe
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Can't aid with info Marc , but I will follow along and try to get up-date with progress . So far she s starting to shape up nicely
Alexis
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...Giuseppe, thank you for the encouragement too, I hope to do this aircraft justice! Are you aware of any other photos of it apart from this one?
(https://i.ibb.co/3dK78tL/FBaracca-with-Spad-XIII.jpg)
Hi Marc, there are really few images (a couple?) of Baracca beside his SPAD XIII, and really few photos of other S XIII from other Squadrons,but what I was able to understand (although statistically the sample of images I found in my books is not relevant) is that camouflaged S XIII did NOT have the roundels on top wing, while all (?) SPADS (S VII?) in the "original" CDL colour seem to have the national insignia on top of the upper wing...
Another discussed point on Baracca's SXIII is if it had the horse also on the starboard side of the fuselage. No photo is known of that side... The most accredited version says YES, some say (I don't know on which argument) it had the Griffon (Symbol of the 91st Squadriglia). The Restored SPAD in the Baracca Museum at Lugo di Romagna has the Griffon on that side but I don't know why thy chose that interpretation, I don't even know if that plane was the actual Baracca's one, in any case is a "CDL" version.
If we want to make life even more complicated some say the horse was painted red (???).
Well I hope I did not puzzle you more instead of clarifying the situation!
I would go for:
- No roundels on top wing
- BLACK horse on both sides
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Wow! Thank You Rick and Antonio for your detailed and amazing help on this beautiful Italian bird! Yes, I was pretty sure some help was out there! Rick, I agree completely this is a Bleriot built airframe, and without a doubt had the early Bleriot 5 colour scheme, just comparing what I can see in the one photo with early Bleriot builds proves this... What I cannot find is a diagram or sketch of the entire early pattern, but apparently it appears in an issue of Cross and Cockade, I regret a publication I never managed to collect. (To my eternal regret). If someone can direct me to a diagram online I would be very grateful... Antonio, I agree with your interpretation, Thank You for going to all the effort! It's so good to have you checking in, Alexis, I appreciate the interest! And Thank You Giuseppe for your interest in this project too. Well, I made some progress, some silver on the metal areas, still to be weathered, and yes, I better hide some of that overspray!
(https://i.ibb.co/z5FGYVZ/IMG-3240-2.jpg)
The radiator, cowling and shutters are together and really look quite nice. I used Vallejo for the silver, a first for me. I came across this table and I post it just for fun, I'm very far from choosing colours myself. There are some eminent researchers here, but I think it's almost "pick a colour, any colour"...
(https://i.ibb.co/rkjHJFX/5-colour-French-dopes.jpg)
Regards,
Marc
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The interior is shaping up quite nicely Zak! As for the Bleriot scheme I think I have a decal sheet instruction that showed all portions. Also a very good rendition of all surfaces is included in the Aviattic Luke set. ( Even though Luke flew a late model the pattern was pretty much standard. I am providing a link to my Hobby Craft build that should at least get you in the ballpark.I hope this helps and I will look for further info on the pattern.
RAGIII
https://forum.ww1aircraftmodels.com/index.php?topic=10981.285
PS: The first three photos are the Bleriot built version 8)
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It's looking fantastic Monty, and thank you for the colour swatch image. Now to match the top one (I like how it looks) to Tamiya acrylic bottles...
The interior is shaping up quite nicely Zak!
As much as I'd like to take credit for this beautiful work this is Monty's build! ;D
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It's looking fantastic Monty, and thank you for the colour swatch image. Now to match the top one (I like how it looks) to Tamiya acrylic bottles...
The interior is shaping up quite nicely Zak!
As much as I'd like to take credit for this beautiful work this is Monty's build! ;D
Yep, My Mistake for sure. Sorry Marc!
RAGIII
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Hi Rick! And Thank You for the photos of your build, so nice to have all the views, and yes, looks like the early scheme in the photos I have! (Don't worry about the name thing, I've done it myself - so easy in a thread with multiple responses!) Zac, if you're using Tamiya paints simply go to the WNW web site (still working OK) and look up the Salmson build - in the instructions section there are all the mixes - including how to add a bit of silver to the necessary colours! Then go to the "completed models" section to see how they look - if I remember correctly at least one modeller indicated he used the mixes... looks good to me! I'll probably do the same as I love Tamiya paints... Well, some more progress on the Spad, detail painting in the cockpit, touched up the fabric effect, still needs some washes and highlights... The seatbelts from the Eduard steel French set, looks OK to me for this build. Apparently only lap belts were used til quite late in the war... I've had a few fun days off, went to see my brand-new Granddaughter today too, but tomorrow is back to the grindstone, so progress will slow up...
(https://i.ibb.co/B3WL6tx/IMG-3243-2.jpg)
Regards,
Marc
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Hello, Marc -
Great start on your Spad - interior looking good
Regards
Dave
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She's shaping up nicely Marc! Keep up the good work.
Zac, if you're using Tamiya paints simply go to the WNW web site (still working OK) and look up the Salmson build - in the instructions section there are all the mixes - including how to add a bit of silver to the necessary colours! Then go to the "completed models" section to see how they look - if I remember correctly at least one modeller indicated he used the mixes... looks good to me! I'll probably do the same as I love Tamiya paints...
Rick also pointed me to WNW, thank goodness the site and all its treasures are still up! I've saved the Salmson instructions pdf and will probably print the relevant pages for my SPAD.
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Nice job on the wood effect Marc ! ;)
Alexis
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Very nice wood inside! Great to see you tackle this lovely kit, Marc. And I keep my fingers crossed for you to complete it ;)
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Looking great Marc! I look forward to the next update!
RAGIII
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Thank You everyone for checking in - it really helps me keep going! Thank You Dave for your comment. Zac, I don't think you will go far wrong with that! Alexis, thank you for your vote of confidence - your wood effects are stunning! Przemo, I am continually amazed at your ability to tackle really complex subjects - and push through to the end of the build. Not my personality type, I admit to a poor attention and boredom span! Rick, I will do my best.... To my surprise I managed to get off work a bit early and did some small steps - here I added washes and touch ups to the fuselage sides - I wanted the fabric effect to vary a little and indeed it did! The two fuselage halves are visually identical but vary somewhat in the photo!
(https://i.ibb.co/MN0rJXR/IMG-3249.jpg)
And then after some dry fitting of the fuselage halves and the top (with the cockpit assembly in place) I realized the fuselage top was pushed up far too much by the ammo boxes - I would never get it all to mate up. The fuselage top is a really thick moulding, with prominent ejection pins, and really won't seat properly without some work. I removed the EP and thinned a lot in the region of the tip of the blade and scaped and filed a lot in that area... but not enough. Then I whacked the top of the ammo boxes off (seen on the right of the photo - grey plastic shows! It all fits a lot better after this reduction surgery... Next heart-stopping major operation soon!
(https://i.ibb.co/VjTjDwt/IMG-3246.jpg)
Regards,
Marc
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Thanks for the heads-up Marc, I think I'm about ready to put together the engine mount-cockpit "pod" so I will take care with my dryfitting.
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Looking really good! Lovely colours on both wood and fabric parts!
/Fredrik
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Continuing to be a very good build Marc! I am glad you have overcome the fit issue. It is funny how we all can run into things that others may not. but it is great to be forewarned!
RAGIII
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I had to do some shaving in this area also. Do you have a gap between the top and sides at the front of the cowling?
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Super job on the fuselage sides Marc , I'm sure you will get the decking to fit ;)
Alexis
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Thank You everyone for checking in! It's been a busy week and not much time for this project - but a little progress has taken place! Zac, yes, some careful fitting needed, I haven't shown how I tackled the engine yet, but that needs some care... Thank You Fredrik for the vote of confidence! It helps! I seem to have picked up some problems of my own, Rick, but I think they are sorted! May have been my own fault... Ken, I'm not sure what fit area you are referring too, so I went ahead with a big dry fit and tape as you can see, and it seems OK... Thank You Alexis, yes I got the decking to fit!
(https://i.ibb.co/5WQZGn9/IMG-3250.jpg)
Well, here is my dry fit plus tape, what you can't see are the under belly fuel tank and forward lower engine cowling but they fit very well too... I spent some time on this as I didn't want to hit a problem later...
(https://i.ibb.co/CskhDpV/IMG-3149.jpg)
I didn't post this earlier as it is a bad blurry photo, but it shows how I made a new prop shaft, thicker and stronger and longer that the kit one, and actually then glued it in place, it still fits through the cowling with a fairly tight fit, there is a reason for this...
I also thought I'd add these two earlier photos before I put the wings together, as with many kits there was some warp on the wings, just check the shadows near the leading edges...
(https://i.ibb.co/bQMk93w/IMG-3062.jpg)
I used simple finger pressure, bending and some warm water to straighten them out:
(https://i.ibb.co/nBSV3bS/IMG-3063.jpg)
Seemed to work just fine! The grey pot just tilts the wing forward, and the wings seem to stay straight!
Enjoy your modelling!
Regards, Marc
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Oops, where is my comment?
Sorry Marc, not the first time I forgot to press "Post" after "Preview"! I wanted to comment your lovely wooden interior, looks really nice!
Your build is another invitation to start an own SPAD build one day.
Cheers,
Frank
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Lovely work Marc! I'm lucky in that I think my kit is warp-free, but I'll check that later today just in case.
Zac, yes, some careful fitting needed, I haven't shown how I tackled the engine yet, but that needs some care...
That's where I'm bucking the trend: for better or worse, I'm assembling mine without the engine and will make a stand to display it alongside instead. We'll see if this is a stroke of genius or digging my own grave! ;D
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Lovely work Marc! I'm lucky in that I think my kit is warp-free, but I'll check that later today just in case.
Zac, yes, some careful fitting needed, I haven't shown how I tackled the engine yet, but that needs some care...
That's where I'm bucking the trend: for better or worse, I'm assembling mine without the engine and will make a stand to display it alongside instead. We'll see if this is a stroke of genius or digging my own grave! ;D
Nice work on fixing the slightly warped wings! Assembling without the engine shouldn't present a majoe issue as the exhaust pipes are held in place by the holes in the fuselage.
RAGIII
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Assembling without the engine shouldn't present a majoe issue as the exhaust pipes are held in place by the holes in the fuselage.
RAGIII
That's what I was hoping, otherwise I'd have trimmed the manifolds and just put sheet styrene over the inside of the openings. Thanks for the heads-up, Rick!
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Good to make some progress on this one! Yes, Zac, the engine really just holds the prop shaft in place, but see my earlier post and you can see a slightly bigger diameter prop shaft - it works - and works better with the prop. And yes, make a plan for the exhausts, I would even suggest a false piece of plasticard to represent the cylinder blocks! But it may just work with the exhaust apertures in the cowling sides... Hi Frank, I frequently press post before preview... big mess... But Thank You for checking in!
Here is the next bit of progress...
(https://i.ibb.co/Jv0CtMT/IMG-3252.jpg)
The inner surface of the upper cowling got some metallic colour, hope it's just about right, and carefully fixed the poor surface of the lower connector of the lower wing... Don't bother... it's not visible at all, wasted time... then started on the instruments... here we use smoke and mirrors.. and just use some paint and clear varnish... There are generic WW1 instruments available as decals in 1/32, but they are too big for these instruments... French ones I can't find... we may get resin or 3D print instruments with decals in the future... I'm not holding my breath... so this will have to do...
And then onto the fuselage sides rigging... Smoke and mirrors again, Stretched sprue here, but little will be visible... Note I use a fair amount of gloss in this interior, I always do... after a lot of discussion with fellow modellers we feel the interior should "twinkle" and throw some light back, otherwise it just becomes a black hole... discussion on this welcome!!
(https://i.ibb.co/z7SdXfS/IMG-3253.jpg)
Heading really close to closing up the fuselage...
Regards,
Marc
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Really Looking great Marc. As for the exhaust pipes, I left off the cylinder head covers and the holes for the pipes held them nicely 8)
RAGIII
PS: I sent both you and Zac a PM
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Same here about the exhaust pipes. I don't think they actually touch the engine on my model.
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You are making the fine progress, Marc. The interior sides look very realistic.
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Marc,
You're really moving along. It's all looking very nice.
Stuart
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Lovely work Marc, she's really coming to life!
Same here about the exhaust pipes. I don't think they actually touch the engine on my model.
As for the exhaust pipes, I left off the cylinder head covers and the holes for the pipes held them nicely 8)
Yes, Zac, the engine really just holds the prop shaft in place, but see my earlier post and you can see a slightly bigger diameter prop shaft - it works - and works better with the prop. And yes, make a plan for the exhausts, I would even suggest a false piece of plasticard to represent the cylinder blocks! But it may just work with the exhaust apertures in the cowling sides
I know this is Marc's thread and I don't wish to take away from his model, but thank you all for those words - a lot of relief here right now! I'll be doing a lot of trial fitting before committing to a solution.
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[...] Note I use a fair amount of gloss in this interior, I always do... after a lot of discussion with fellow modellers we feel the interior should "twinkle" and throw some light back, otherwise it just becomes a black hole [...]
I never thought about this but it's a great idea worth further research and development. I usually just preshade black at bottom and white under upper area of cockpit and openings!
Ciao
Giuseppe
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Thank You everyone for joining in and the cxomments - it is always appreciated! Yes Giuseppe, you have a very interesting way of lighting up a dark cockpit, I will definitely think about it and try something similar in a future build. Zac, those comments are so useful for me and save so much time, I will promptly stop worrying about where the exhausts fit! It saves lots of effort... Thanks Stuart for your comments. Hi Przemo, I do really appreciate your comments as I can never hope to emulate your super neat and detailed interiors! Ken and Rick, your prior knowledge of this kit is surely making it a much easier build for me! Thank You! Well, now I get the fuselage together; firstly the fuselage halves are cemented together and allowed to dry thoroughly; Next, the lower wing is attached as it has quite a positive fit and is indeed the cockpit floor too:
(https://i.ibb.co/qk9rCGG/IMG-3258.jpg)
Next the fuselage was flipped over when that stage was dry and the wooden seat and bulkhead assembly fitted in and glued. The fuselage sides are flexible at this stage to this could be located correctly, I glued it with Microscale Krystal Kleer as it is strong but still slightly flexible:
(https://i.ibb.co/4PgKXtm/IMG-3259.jpg)
Note the join in the fuselage halves is reinforced with superglue on the inside, this can be seen in the rear fuselage. Then I flipped it over and added the two lower fuselage front pieces; the fuel tank and front bit with all the louvers...
(https://i.ibb.co/DY2GHJd/IMG-3260.jpg)
Then flip over again and add the wooden cocpit surround with instruments, and this is the last view of the interior. Note all the grey patches where I had to cut things down so the fuselage top would sort of fit;
(https://i.ibb.co/5cBG6Ls/IMG-3261.jpg)
And then I could add the front radiator assembly and the engine: Radiator glued on with liquid glue and lots of Kristal kleer to add the engine to the engine bearers as the fit was far from precise! Then I dry fitted the fuselage top and now I'm going to be trimming, squashing, bending clamping filling and sanding to get an acceptable result, but the joints are all visible and easier to work on...
(https://i.ibb.co/Tb5f3Nn/IMG-3262.jpg)
So that's how far I've got, more soon, I hope!
Regards,
Marc
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Great progress Marc!
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You are steadily moving forward with this one Marc. Your work looking great.
RAGIII
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Thank you Rick and Zac for your encouraging comments! Thank you Rick for the photos that seem to prove there were four point seat belts in the 13... I will take note during the next build! And just a small update, the fuselage top was glued on and this join is far from perfect and will need lots of putty and sanding! The tailplanes are only dry-fitted, but seem to fit just fine... a little step forward! Regards, Marc.
(https://i.ibb.co/YpdZ2WH/IMG-3263.jpg)
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Then the picture must hide the sins, looks pretty good on a screen from the other side of the globe :) I really like this scheme too, and can't wait to start mine, though scheme-wise I'm undecided yet. There are so many great schemes to choose from!
Jeroen
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Oh Marc, you are cruising! Huge steps forward. And I see that 13 kit has the same sins as 7 - filling and sanding inevitble... I continue to watch with interest!
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Excellent progress Marc! It looks like you got a better fit on the front cowling parts than I did. I am looking forward to the next update!
RAGIII
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Great progress, Marc. Getting the fuselage closed up is a significant milestone.
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Great progress, Marc. Getting the fuselage closed up is a significant milestone.
And one that's rapidly approaching for my own build. Excellent work Marc, you're an inspiration to this fellow SPADer!
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Marc, is the engine visible at all from outside?
Or is it only need to hold the exhaust? ;)
Good work!
Cheers,
Frank
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Thanks for the heads-up Marc, I think I'm about ready to put together the engine mount-cockpit "pod" so I will take care with my dryfitting.
Famous last words ;D
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Nice progress Marc and excellent job on getting the top decking to fit :)
Alexis
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Hi Jeroen, Thank you for the vote of confidence! Errors are there, this build will not be as good as some others... Hi Przemo, yes it has a whole lot of small fit problems to fix, but I tackle them slowly. I will definitely need; primer, sand, putty fix, primer, repeat! But the detail seems OK... so it is just like normal modelling... Thank you for checking in. Hi Rick, I think I just got lucky there with the cowling.. Thank you for your positive encouragement! It does seem the top cowling and metal upper deck parts overhang the sides a little bit on the real aircraft, so I will be happy with this... Hi Ken, thanks for the thought because closing up the fuselage has made progress... Hi Zac, I really hope I can help your build along, I'm only a little ahead of you - with my own trials and tribulations! But the positive feedback makes the blog just so worthwhile... Hi Frank, the engine is gone! I had a bad moment where I realized I forgot to paint the cylinder blocks black, but I see that with the exhausts in place any inside view will be...black! I'm going with other builders on this, too! Hi Alexis! Your encouragement is always so welcome!
Well, this first picture shows that I lost the axle spreader bar... so make a new one! 40 thou card, 7,5mm wide and 33 mm long, file to aerofoil shape... this will fit nicely between the legs, I will add rib detail and of course I now need to scratch axles and bungee springs and mounts... should be doable for these old eyes...
(https://i.ibb.co/6bwrvcC/IMG-3291.jpg)
The fuselage is coming along, some sanding, fixing and a few cracks fixed with superglue. I got the tailplane glued, just be careful to get it "square" in 3 dimensions - I needed to trim the mounting pins a bit, file and adjust... Also have the top wing together with ailerons. Once again I found that careful filing, removing moulding lines, checking everything and mating surfaces were square, sanding and check again and when it's all glued up Very little putty is required.... It's easier to assemble each side of three pieces at once, let it dry, then tackle the other side...
(https://i.ibb.co/bBzLjkd/IMG-3296.jpg)
This does feel like progress again!
Regards, Marc
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Good work here and great progress!
Regards
Dave
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Excellent progress Zac. Your SPAD is looking Terrific!
RAGIII
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She's shaping up great Marc! I see your turtledeck/fuselage fits well - I think I misassembled mine, resulting in an overhang to fix.
Excellent progress Zac. Your SPAD is looking Terrific!
RAGIII
This is Marc's, not mine! ;D ;D
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She's shaping up great Marc! I see your turtledeck/fuselage fits well - I think I misassembled mine, resulting in an overhang to fix.
Excellent progress Zac. Your SPAD is looking Terrific!
RAGIII
This is Marc's, not mine! ;D ;D
Dang, That's the second time I have done this! Sorry Marc!
RAGIII
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Coming along excellent so far Marc , after this build you will be a professional builder ! ;)
Alexis
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Thank you all for the comments! I'm far from professional, Alexis, and would probably starve if I tried to do this commercially! But Thank you for the compliment! Maybe some rich Ferrari - nut will offer me serious money for this one! Thank you Zac for the positive vibes! Hi Rick, great to have you looking in, too! Thank you for following along, Dave!
Well, today is tail feathers day, and here I have the elevators attached at a droopy angle, very common on Spads! I did remember to place the control column forwards, it may show in one of the previous pictures... Then I trimmed, trimmed and trimmed the fin until it fitted properly. The fit here needs to be close (Not like Sopwiths and Fokkers) so take a little time to work on the mating surfaces, those locating pins died in the fight! That blob in front of the fin is just a moulding defect filled with putty and sanded... I hope it doesn't show. I also cracked a fuselage to top piece join... flooded it with ACC and sanded it down... "sigh"... Then I cleaned up the rudder, but will attach it later when painted ... I will do it when I do the underside green and red colours so all the paint matches...
(https://i.ibb.co/h9fKQXM/IMG-3313.jpg)
Enjoy your modelling!
Regards,
Marc
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You are right about the rudder fit Marc. I didn't go quite far enough on mine, something I will correct when I do another. All is looking good so I am looking forward to more progress.
RAGIII
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Really nice work on those feathers Marc :)
Alexis
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Hi Rick, thanks for checking in. Yes, next time I will just remove locating pins, carve out the space for the elevator connecting rod and file back the mating surfaces til they fit! Fast and furious... Just to note the vertical post of the rudder must line up vertically with the end of the fuselage and be a good fit - otherwise the rudder just won't mate up properly or be left with gaps! This took me hours of filing and scaping and fiddling, I know better for next time! But the parts themselves look good when it's all together... Hi Alexis, always good to have you checking in!
So on to some underside stuff. I decided to add the undercarriage as it's the same colour as the underside, and the tailplane struts too while I was at it! I'm glad I did it as some filing, tweaking, messy gluing and redoing was needed... I tried to clearly show the replacement spreader bar with the three rib tapes, they may be a tad accentuated but less would probably not be seen....
(https://i.ibb.co/P188p8y/IMG-3314.jpg)
(https://i.ibb.co/1qYMDZZ/IMG-3315.jpg)
That spreader bar needs to set absolutely square, it has a hole drilled in each end that lines up with the axle holes in the legs so that if I need to inset a wire for strength I can do it... I think I wasted a lot of time on it, I do have another plan...
Regards, Marc
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Braces and especially the spreader bar look great Marc!
RAGIII
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Fine progress and solving little puzzles Roden put in front of us. Modelling, is it not, Marc? ;)
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Nice work Marc, and interesting to see how you tackled the spreader bar as that's an unknown quantity for me.
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Hi Zac, Thanks for checking in! I think there are many ways of tackling the spreader bar, I did consider a stiff wire axle with card wrapped around it in an airfoil shape or even a plastic sprue axle, it could well work. I have a different idea so that I can adjust the wheel position a bit more freely... but we will get there! Yes, Przemo, I am quite happy to tackle some modelling challenges at present, I hope I can make it look OK in the end... Hi Rick, your vote of confidence definitely helps the build along!
Well, finally getting some paint on this baby... My favourite mix of Tamiya acrylics in my potion formulation... 50% flat white, 10% clear, just a drop of retarder and 40% lacquer thinner... then just the smallest drop of blue grey to match the decal white..(seen on the left of the photo..). Strange to start with some markings first, but I woke up one night with this idea going through my head...
(https://i.ibb.co/3v7BwzW/IMG-3318.jpg)
Regards,
Marc
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Looking fabulous Marc. It is great to see some color going on this one!
RAGIII
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Yeah Rick, the colour starts to bring it alive! Thank you for following... Now for the Italian ID green on the rudder and lower wing - love this colour - Tamiya Park green... now must be careful to let things dry, mask and paint again... rise and repeat... at least 5 times! So lots of fun...
(https://i.ibb.co/GQgMcML/IMG-3319.jpg)
ATB, Marc
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Nice progress, Marc. Good luck with all of the painting!
Cheers,
Gary
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Godspeed Marc, I envy you and your possession of an airbrush! I'm wondering how practical it will be for me to brush-paint my roundels...
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Lovely green Marc! I am of course, looking forward to the rest!
RAGIII
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This is a great looking build, Marc. That green does jump out at you.
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Thank You Gazza, Gary and Rick for checking in. Zac, an airbrush can be a two-edged sword, great effects are possible but a glorious mess as well! The learning curve is quite steep with so many things affecting the result, sometimes it feels like sorcery! I had a really good friend when I was much younger, he was a professional modeller, and I eventually bought the same equipment as him (Badger 150 in those days) and did my airbrushing in his modelling room, monkey see, monkey do and "Why has this just gone terribly wrong, Bruce??". Without that help I don't think it would have been easy at all... Bruce was a victim of a house break-in recently and sustained a gun-shot wound, he is recovering slowly. An all too frequent grim reality here... Well, back to modelling.
I sprayed the red and it went down OK. On removing the masking tape from the rudder it marked the paint as the white was just so soft. I remember the problems I had with soft paint during the Dr.1 build, the red was a pest. So the tactic now is to let all this dry out completely for a few days, so no progress, I'm afraid. A combination of the cooler humid weather here, the paint retarder I use and impatience... That will teach me.
(https://i.ibb.co/r0RC79b/IMG-3322.jpg)
The colours look pretty, anyway.
Regards, Marc
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Italian colours are a lovely combination, no doubt about it. They bring that famous pizza Margherita to hungry minds :)
Fine work, Marc, I keep my fingers crossed for your patience to wait until layers are fully dried ;) Good luck!
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Nice to see colors on it.
When I was younger (much younger), The only glue available to me for models was the styrene glue. This taught me to be patient, as I needed to wait until the glue dried before proceeding to the next step of the build. Then CA glue and 5 min epoxy came along and made me forget the lessons that styrene glue taught me. I sometimes go back to the styrene glue for certain gluing jobs and then I'm reminded of the lesson.
BTW - good job on the spreader bar.
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She is looking pretty with colour being added on , yes Tamiya park green is a really nice shade actually . Sorry to hear about your friend and hope he has a speedy recovery .
Alexis
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This keeps getting better! The red and green look Fantastic. Is the center CDL?
RAGIII
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Zac, an airbrush can be a two-edged sword, great effects are possible but a glorious mess as well! The learning curve is quite steep with so many things affecting the result, sometimes it feels like sorcery! I had a really good friend when I was much younger, he was a professional modeller, and I eventually bought the same equipment as him (Badger 150 in those days) and did my airbrushing in his modelling room, monkey see, monkey do and "Why has this just gone terribly wrong, Bruce??". Without that help I don't think it would have been easy at all...
I have a friend a couple of hours' drive away who is kind enough to do my airbrushing but I expect would be more than happy to act as mentor when the stars align and I can invest in a set-up of my own.
The colours look pretty, anyway.
I'll say!!
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Thank you Przemo! Yes, there are wonderful Italian foods - like Pizza! I am waiting patiently for the paint to cure completely... I even put it in the sun for a few minutes each day! Great to have you checking in Ken, I'm still referring to your build all the time - mine will never be as good! I'm still a bit confused about the way to paint the strut fittings and the metal spreader and control bars - black for early 13's has been documented, and blue is the flavour at the moment - in the Baracca photo they look dark. The centre section struts in many photos seem to be in the fuselage camo colours on some late examples! We may never know for sure... Thanks for your comments, Rick. Yes, I will mask off the colours (when quite dry) and paint the rest of the undersurfaces CDL or an impression thereof. (Confusing research here - light blue - grey also called out!). Zac, I can only fully recommend you go for a few airbrushing lessons with your friend! It does indeed open up new dimensions in your modelling... These days with no-name and cheaper brands it need not cost so much - and they do perform as well as the 50 year old Badger design...
Well, I spent time cleaning up the struts, big sprue attachment points and lots of flash so quite a chore... the painting in the back-gound (for research purposes only) shows an interpretation of the colours I mentioned above... I know a little strut is missing, he has been reunited with his buddies however...
(https://i.ibb.co/9wDsmtD/IMG-3342.jpg)
Regards,
Marc
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Zac, I can only fully recommend you go for a few airbrushing lessons with your friend! It does indeed open up new dimensions in your modelling... These days with no-name and cheaper brands it need not cost so much - and they do perform as well as the 50 year old Badger design...
An idea I'm sure he'd be only too keen to embrace :) I have job irons in the fire that hopefully will mean full-time work and disposable income in my future. Fingers crossed!
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Marc, Your Italian colors look wonderful!
Cheers,
Frank
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Nice work on cleaning the struts. As always I look forward to the next update.
RAGIII