LVA Fokker D.VII from Wingnut Wings

[pepperman42]

Very nice work. Its really shaping up and a great "different" scheme.

Steve

[PrzemoL]

Fine modelling all around. You will surely enjoy the parts from Taurus - they add a lot to Mercedes engines.

[IvotB]

There hasn't been much progress during the weekend. I spent almost the entire saterday evening searching for my copper wires in several sizes, but I haven't found any of them. I have looked everywhere, but they seem to have vanished. I needed those for some lines in the engine compartment.

Today I found them in an instant. It came to me that I had taken my copper wires with me on holiday for building in the box of a kit (which I didn't touch during holiday by the way). Located the kit, opened the box and there they were

Ivo

[lcarroll]

There hasn't been much progress during the weekend. I spent almost the entire saterday evening searching for my copper wires in several sizes, but I haven't found any of them. I have looked everywhere, but they seem to have vanished. I needed those for some lines in the engine compartment.

Today I found them in an instant. It came to me that I had taken my copper wires with me on holiday for building in the box of a kit (which I didn't touch during holiday by the way). Located the kit, opened the box and there they were

Ivo

    Don't feel badly, Ivo, I spent half of yesterday searching for the Instructions booklet for my F2b, finally recalled that I'd been searching through my WNW "Leftovers" box for a scratch build bit and I found the book there. In my case this sort of chaos is brought on by a severe attack of "Oldtimers Desease"! Nice progress on the Fokker, it's going to be a unique and beautiful model when finished.
Cheers,
Lance

[GAJouette]

  LOL Ivo and Lance,glad to know I'm not the only who's been known to hide his own Easter Egg on occasion.
Highest Regards,
Gregory Jouette

[pepperman42]

Lance I suffer OD all the time, along with BOBS (Blind Old B***er Syndrome) How many times have I come home with a p/e, resin, book, kit - you name it - and there it is already on the shelf. I used to forget birthdays and anniversaries and get "Oh sure you'd remember one of your model airplane things though wouldnt you?" I now consider myself fair minded........

Steve

[IvotB]

Worst moments are when I can't find a specific item on my workbench. Mostly my glasses. Then finally I ask my wife to help me out and it is just in front of me. Thanks for sharing your experiences. Makes one feel a little bit less stupid

Progress on the D.VII is slow. The cables from the stick to the MG's got disconnected while the entire cockpit was already inside the fuselage and it was a nice fiddly job to get them connected again. They are now and I don't expect them to move again. I started yesterday with the Taurus parts and already lost one rocker. And there are only two spares on the casting block. What also puzzles me is how to attach the rockers to the camshaft assembly. There are 0,4mm resin pins supplied, that can run through the rockers after drilling the holes (which I already did), but there are just small dents in the camshaft boxes. I understand that there cannot be any holes there, as it would be impossible to cast in resin, but you can't drill a hole in there either, because you just can't drill a hole at a right angle. So I drilled them from the side. I'll see what kind of effect it will give. Probably I'll use the last holes just as a locating help without pushing the 0,4mm resin pins in very far.

I'll show you my results when I'm done.

Ivo

[kornbeef]

Ivo,

I havent got my hands on one of these new Taurus Assemblies yet, what you say sounds odd if I may say. From what I saw on the release pictures I assumed those lengths of 0.4  resin rod were forto show the rocker box mounting to cylinder bolts not the pins through the assemblies themselves. I think the rocker arms fix like the rest of Tauruses releases (I do have the DIII set) just to the front face of the box itself. On the real Engines I believe these to be pins rather like a gudgeon pin in an engine, a hollow tube.

Anyway I hope this helps your train of thought as they say

I look forwards to the next installment from your hangar of excellence.

Keith

[IvotB]

Keith,

Sometime I just have to read the instructions better. The pins are not for fixing the rockers to the rocker boxes. They should be attached as you said. There are little knobs on the rocker box and because you drill a small hole through the rockers, they will fit on those small knobs. The pins have an entirely different purpose. They support the rocker boxes on the cam shaft onto the cylinder heads.

I did a lot of drilling tonight: first I clipped of the WNW valve springs, then I drilled 0,8mm holes for the Taurus valve springs, I drilled 1,9mm holes, for the intake manifold nuts and holes for the priming valves. I mounted the new valves springs and the intake manifold nuts, but perhaps it would have been wiser first to install the rocker boxes with the cam shaft before putting the new valves springs in. It just fits, but I am afraid the rockers won't fit the way I want it. Somehow putting the valve springs in the middle results in a not perfect fit. I'll show some pictures tomorrow and perhaps I then have already solved these items.

regards,
Ivo

[miamiangler]

Make sure the valve springs are at a slight angle or the rocker arms wont fit right .

[IvotB]

Yes, I realised that, so I have put them at a slight angle, but slight should perhaps be enlarged a little bit more

Ivo

[IvotB]

Found the following items on the sprue, without a clue what to do with them:



Should I hide this one somewhere in the cockpit, or is it a personal weapon for the pilot if he had to land behind enemy lines?



These are also a puzzle for me. I have seen them before and I thought I saw Epeeman's Fokker having these outside the portside of the cockpit.

Now on with the D.VII



The tail fitted together, but not in their final position. Just for fun and finally wanting to see something of the finished plane.



The landing gear fitted together. The two parts for the axle housing have been glued together, but the rest is still not attached. It just fits perfectly and then you can almost dry fit the entire model together.



One last view before closing her behind too.

And then on with the engine:



I made some stubs on the front end as explained earlier (if you are no as brutal as I am with the kit parts this is unnecessary ) of the motor supports and could fit the chin cowling and the radiator in front.



The Taurus Models Rocker boxes and Camshaft between the valve springs



And then I clipped the WNW valves from the D.IIIa engine and started drilling the holes for the Taurus models valves. I clamped the motor in the milling machine, for good alignment of the valves.



One row is done



The cylinder intakes are drilled stepwise up to 1,85mm for accepting the Taurus models Intake Manifold Nuts



Now just file them down a little bit in order to get a goot fit between the engine, the manifold nuts and the intake assembly coming from the carburator.



Manifold nuts in place



And here you see the valves in place and the intake assembly is completed too. I have to decide on which color I am going to give all these parts. I am thinking of mixing Humbrol 27004 with27003 or even 27001. I found the results on the MG's not bad, so perhaps I am trying to reproduce that mix.



Here the rocker boxes lie between the valves. Now I think there is not enough room between them for the rocker arms, but i am going to try. If not, the valves are coming out again. I must be careful, because I don't have any spares left. New ones can be ordered of course, but that would slow me down further..

regards,
Ivo

[pepperman42]

Nice work on the motor. The Taurus parts look great. The mystery parts are a flare pistol and flares in rack by the looks of them. Im not sure if your machine carried them.

Steve

[uncletony]

Nice work on the motor. The Taurus parts look great. The mystery parts are a flare pistol and flares in rack by the looks of them. Im not sure if your machine carried them.

Steve

Yup, and a rear view mirror and an anemometer. They are part of the generic German equipment found on the Merc. D.III sprue. Also there is usually a teddy bear hidden in there somewhere...

[Epeeman]

Ivo,

Regarding the parts you are not sure about -

Parts 44/45 (WNW give you a choice on what type of flare rack you want) are flare cartridge racks which can be installed outside on the fuselage.   The weapon you refer to is also the associated flare pistol.   I've seen some photos where the flare pistol was mounted outside on fuselage but I guess they also carried one inside the cockpit somewhere.

Basically, the engine sprue is pretty standard for WNW kits where the Mercedes engine is installed.   Therefore, some of the other parts are used (for example) on the Albatros DV.  I can see the optional engine generator thingy, rear view mirrors, etc.  Basically, lots of left over parts for your spares box!

On the version I'm building, there is a photo of the original aircraft where WNW highlight what is likely a flare cartridge rack (and the kit part number to use) installed - I therefore added this to my model.

Your DVII is looking superb by the way.

Regards

Dave