Author Topic: Supermarine S.5 - 1927 Schneider Trophy winner in 1/144  (Read 3835 times)

Offline William Adair

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Supermarine S.5 - 1927 Schneider Trophy winner in 1/144
« on: April 27, 2021, 07:18:53 PM »
Hello all. Here's my latest project, the Supermarine S.5.  It's hard to believe this is a 1927 design that is contemporary to things like the Gloster Gamecock or Blackburn Blackburn. 



This one began as I was getting to the end of my Pfalz D.III double build and the Australian summer was proving too hot for delicate rigging.  It started out as a bit of 1.5mm styrene sheet with the side profile scored into it.  This got a piece of styrene added either side to pack it out and the whole lot got sanded to shape.



The floats got a start as well. I used two bits of 3mm styrene sheet to make up the basic block. One side of the high impact styrene sheet has a hard, clear surface. I face these inwards when I laminate the pieces so it gives me a visible centre line and I don't accidentally sand things out of true. The plan view was shaped first.



Once the top view was satisfactory the side view was marked out and the lower profile cut to shape and filed to the right contours. The step is made by masking off the rear section with three layers of Scotch tape (810D is best) and painting on several layers of Mr Surfacer to build up some thickness. A couple of days to dry and bit of a sand, then take the tape off...




Once the underside is done it is safe to start shaping the top. I find if I start trying to shape things in the round from every angle at once it goes out of control very quickly. Doing the shape one profile at a time seems to be much less difficult.  The floats got a final shaping and were scribed and sanded smooth.  Extra details like the mooring points and circular inspection panels were added too.  With the fuselage, I tried to keep the components separate for as long as possible.  The windscreen was mocked up in solid styrene as a guide.  I'll use it as a pattern for doing a clear one later.



Putting things together for a trial run...



Once things were looking pretty reasonable I was able to put the pieces together and blend it all in with minute quantities of well-thinned putty and primer.  Still looks a bit rough but bear with me.  I swear I'm going somewhere with this  ;)




 

Offline kensar

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Re: Supermarine S.5 - 1927 Schneider Trophy winner in 1/144
« Reply #1 on: April 27, 2021, 10:14:24 PM »
Well, that's shaping up quickly.

Offline Alexis

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Re: Supermarine S.5 - 1927 Schneider Trophy winner in 1/144
« Reply #2 on: April 29, 2021, 01:13:07 AM »
Looking forward on this build unfolding , off to an excellent start  :)


Alexis
Hurra ! , Ich Leben Noch
Body and life is a vessel we use to travel the planet . Femininity is the gift , The miracle comes from what we do with it .

Bughunter

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Re: Supermarine S.5 - 1927 Schneider Trophy winner in 1/144
« Reply #3 on: April 29, 2021, 01:46:41 AM »
You did a great scratch work on this beauty here!

Recently a series of Schneider Trophy racers appear on the market in 1/48 produced by AMP, like Supermarine S.5, Piaggio-Pegna PC.7 and Macchi Castoldi M.C.72. But I have decided to stay with my biplanes for the time being, since my stash is already big enough ::)
Anyway, the racing aircrafts of this time are elegant aircrafts!

Cheers,
Frank

Offline DaveB

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Re: Supermarine S.5 - 1927 Schneider Trophy winner in 1/144
« Reply #4 on: April 29, 2021, 04:28:10 AM »
Amazing quality of scratch building work on display here!

Regards

Dave
As we say in fencing, what's the point!

Offline William Adair

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Re: Supermarine S.5 - 1927 Schneider Trophy winner in 1/144
« Reply #5 on: April 29, 2021, 10:39:23 PM »
Thanks for the kind words and encouragement.  Hopefully it will all come together.  I learned a lot from the two Pfalz builds and it has made this one a lot easier.   

The airframe itself has a lot going on, so I’ve been adding as much as I can.  The 16x exhaust ports were perhaps the trickiest and needed a lot of care to get looking nice and neat.



The corrugated radiator panels were a real challenge too.  These were depicted with hair-thin strips of tape. Very difficult to see when laying them down, but they stand out very prominently under a coat of primer. 



Here’s a shot of the completed fuselage with a wash of artists oils to help me check the contours and panel lines. So far so good..!  ;)


Offline lone modeller

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Re: Supermarine S.5 - 1927 Schneider Trophy winner in 1/144
« Reply #6 on: April 30, 2021, 03:58:17 AM »
Another of your master classes in working with the Braille Scale. The quality of your work is exceptional - without that giant pot it would be very difficult to guess the actual size of this model. Inspiring indeed - and an excellent choice of subject - even if it lacks a wing!

Stephen.

Offline RAGIII

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Re: Supermarine S.5 - 1927 Schneider Trophy winner in 1/144
« Reply #7 on: May 02, 2021, 12:36:18 AM »
Another absolutely incredible and stunning build! Looking Beautiful!!
RAGIII
"A man has to know his limitations": Harry Callahan

"Don't slop it on" Lynda Geisler

Offline William Adair

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Re: Supermarine S.5 - 1927 Schneider Trophy winner in 1/144
« Reply #8 on: May 02, 2021, 12:11:10 PM »
Thanks so much.  In truth I don't think I could have even attempted this a year ago.  The little Pfalz project was educational to say the least.   :)

I've been working on the wings and the jig to do the struts for the floats.  The wings were looking too much like they were fabric covered so I had another try.  The 1/48 scale kits show prominent battens on the surface, which I copied thinking they must know something I don't.  However it appears this is incorrect and the upper wing at least was really quite smooth as there were surface radiators there.  The new raised detail shown below will need to get sanded back until only a ghost of it remains.


Offline Alexis

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Re: Supermarine S.5 - 1927 Schneider Trophy winner in 1/144
« Reply #9 on: May 02, 2021, 10:30:03 PM »
 :)


Alexis
Hurra ! , Ich Leben Noch
Body and life is a vessel we use to travel the planet . Femininity is the gift , The miracle comes from what we do with it .

Offline RAGIII

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Re: Supermarine S.5 - 1927 Schneider Trophy winner in 1/144
« Reply #10 on: May 03, 2021, 04:34:40 AM »
The Jig alone is beyond My scratch building skills  ;D Looing great!
RAGIII
"A man has to know his limitations": Harry Callahan

"Don't slop it on" Lynda Geisler

Offline lone modeller

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Re: Supermarine S.5 - 1927 Schneider Trophy winner in 1/144
« Reply #11 on: May 04, 2021, 04:52:48 AM »
One of the problems with scratch building lesser known types is that getting the details right can be a problem. However at least you can sand your ribs away - although it is a frustrating waste of time having to do so! It still looks very good though.

Stephen.

Offline dr 1 ace

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Re: Supermarine S.5 - 1927 Schneider Trophy winner in 1/144
« Reply #12 on: May 04, 2021, 05:40:46 AM »
Wonderous work !!

Ed
Life is short, enjoy it, nobody gets out alive.

Offline William Adair

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Re: Supermarine S.5 - 1927 Schneider Trophy winner in 1/144
« Reply #13 on: May 26, 2021, 09:04:51 PM »
Thanks for having a look :)  It's still coming along but edging closer to completion.  Or closer to a proper coat of paint anyway.

The struts were quite a trial and I spent a couple of weeks fussing about with them.  The initial masters are made from silver and have a streamlined boot that is shaped from a blob of superglue at each end.  I didn't trust the strength of a glued metal joint however, so these later got cast in resin.



One complication that I almost missed is the offset of the fuselage, which sits to one side of the centre line between the floats.  Presumably to help counteract torque. This meant all the struts needed to be different sizes..  :-\



Fortunately the jig helped, but if I was to do this again I would make those wing supports out of clear.  I could barely see what I was doing.
Handy tip for those who need to repeatedly test fit a fiddly part: dip one or both ends in ordinary tap water so the capillary action holds the piece temporarily in place.



Over the past week the wings were fitted and flushed in.  I sanded the lines back until they were only just visible (much better now) and made some location holes for the struts.



Then gave it a squirt of Mr Surfacer 1500 primer:





Used the jig to align the struts and shave the boots down to a nice profile...



Pretty happy with the way the angle of the struts and the offset floats worked out




Then a thin coat of primer and another test fit in the jig.  I swear, its looking sooooo pirate right now!   ;D







 

Offline kensar

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Re: Supermarine S.5 - 1927 Schneider Trophy winner in 1/144
« Reply #14 on: May 26, 2021, 09:47:54 PM »
Extraordinary work, Willliam.  This is a very cool project.