Albatross C.V/17

[Skyhook]

Hello!

This is a first post from me on this forum for a long long time. I have been totally sidetracked to other things and some modelling too, but this time I built just kits and moreover from a wrong war (models of planes of the Pacific theatre of operations, especially japanese and US). I have been checking out the under construction thread from time to time and was very sad to see the news about Dave’s final flight, so to speak….

So for the Dave’s memory i too will fire up the ww1 subjects again and i will join this build by scratchbuilding an Albatross C.V/17 in 1/72scale. I already made the scribing for the wings and will send photos here in a day or two.

Cheers, Skyhook

[Brad Cancian]

Great to hear Skyhook, good to see you back with us again!  Looking forward to seeing more on what promises to be an exciting build

Cheers,

BC

[NigelR]

This will be very interesting to follow and well done for contributing to the group build.

[enathan]

Great! Looking forward to your build, I really like the lesser known Albatros C types.

[Dirigible-Al]

I like all Albatros aircraft so seeing any get built will be great.
Alan.

[Skyhook]

Thanks a lot, gentlemen… for the warm welcome (again)….

So here we go.
Here’s the start. Firstly I took a couple of photocopies of the drawings in the Aircraft Archive book. I will be also using the Windsock Datafile as the main source for finer details and photos.
0027A081-5E62-4AAD-9BBD-29548467542C by Amiga Hassel, on Flickr

I used a sheet of a plastic transparency (meant for old overhead projectors in a classroom) for the wing surfaces. I taped it on top of the drawings, marked the necessary lines and marks for the ailerons etc. with a thin permanent marker. Then l scribed the ribs with a ballpoint pen, using moderate pressure. A decent ruler and good concentration helps a lot. I also had a soft cardboard sheet under it all, to allow the plastic to be scribed well. As the C.V is fully camouflaged, I do not have to worry about translucence of the wings and any markings or pen lines in the inside of the surfaces do not cause any real problems.

D86F92C1-8E37-4792-905A-8C7C1DDA8C39 by Amiga Hassel, on Flickr

2B795D21-2BF9-4077-9244-96C645E5EE90 by Amiga Hassel, on Flickr


After that I did the same for lower wings. I carefully scribed the leading edges too and folded the plastic sheet to form the whole wing.
A80BD1A1-8900-49A4-90C2-4559B691ABC7 by Amiga Hassel, on Flickr

I also did the horizontal tail surfaces the same way. The elevators and tailplane taper to almost every direction and the thickness changes a lot spanwise and chordwise. So I have to make a rather large pieces for the surfaces, so I can get them sit well on the sanded balsa cores and there has to be enough material for the cutting and sanding to correct shape.

E521F982-9431-4BC9-A3C2-444E91964820 by Amiga Hassel, on Flickr

So that’s it for a start. Next up I will make the balsa cores and do some careful contact-gluing. More after the weekend!

[NigelR]

Wow, what a clever way of scratching the wings. Looking forward to seeing this come together.

[Skyhook]

Thanks!  It was a warm Spring day here, so I did the wing work outside. Balsawood dust is very annoying stuff, so it is indeed much more nicer this way.

Firstly, i use a piece of hardwood as the sanding base. It has to have a straight edge, so you can sand the core profile  evenly. The core is cut into shape from 1,5 mm balsawood. I make the core 2-3 mm smaller than the actual wing from the trailing edge. So its just plastic to plastic there, resulting in a very sharp edge.

900E54F6-9861-4A5A-8615-3A9C29CFDF74 by Amiga Hassel, on Flickr

Now they are ready for the glueing. I used two types of sanding paper, attached to a sanding block to achieve a cromatic profile curvature.

02844418-C020-4661-9929-70FFEA3ADACD by Amiga Hassel, on Flickr

It is important to cut the leading edge open where the corner is rounded. Otherwise the plastic has no way to follow the core cleanly.
A136B1AA-3B5F-438A-8C09-3FA003B2F8BC by Amiga Hassel, on Flickr

Now the contact glue is spread evenly on the insides of the plastics and the balsa cores. Now it is the time to let it dry for 10-15 mins.

AFC7C880-AB8B-4BE4-83F1-D63223E2AFE6 by Amiga Hassel, on Flickr

I have several blocks of wood sanded to different profiles. This one is good for this wing profile

CE4BBFE7-B375-4C68-8509-42527C1F20A4 by Amiga Hassel, on Flickr

I attach the plastic wing surface open to the edge of the block with a piece of masking tape, so it won’t be moving around. It is important to put the top surface with false ribs up! It is too easy to mix the upper and lower side, done that a few times…

B1170DF8-0271-40A7-A51C-12279904A11D by Amiga Hassel, on Flickr


When the core is properly pressed against the block and has a good contact with the lower surface plastic, it is time to press the topside down and press it in place. From mid wing to the tips, gently but firmly.

02B8EEB2-8812-42DB-8DDB-D48320F68815 by Amiga Hassel, on Flickr

Here they are! When taken off from the block, press the tips into proper shape and check all the corners. The washout can also be added now to the ailerons if needed. You see that i have a plenty of surplus material around the core. It is a cleaner job this way and also easier to get the tips into right shape.

DF657F30-0014-4F7C-8AA8-82382BA69EDA by Amiga Hassel, on Flickr

Then i mark the final lines over the drawings for cutting the wings into shape.

4DD55BDA-02B3-4E16-811E-F280B9014BF1 by Amiga Hassel, on Flickr

Here they are cut, sanded and the scalloping added to the trailing edges with a good Xcto knife…

30D8D613-818C-48F9-A5CC-D3D95589B780 by Amiga Hassel, on Flickr

I added a coat of primer grey to show you the final shape and surface. I will then cut the ailerons, add hinges and the radiator etc. But that will happen a bit later…. I think i will start the fuselage next week. Btw, you also can see that the Spring has been a bit late here  this year and it is rather dry!

8FDF5423-D874-40B1-BDBD-40D6D3AD3DA7 by Amiga Hassel, on Flickr

[lone modeller]

I have just found this - an excellent project!

I have seen the balsa core method described before, but your method of using acatate for the covering is a new method for me. I am very impressed by the wings - they look very good.

An interesting project so I will be following with interest.

Stephen.

[RAGIII]

Really amazing scratchbuilding going on here! The wings look awesome!
RAGIII

[NigelR]

Superb modelling. The wings look fantastic, and thanks for sharing detailed shots of your process.

[Flamingo]

Very interesting project. Your wings are excellent!

Some years ago I researched the C.V, C.VII and C.X in some depth.
Good idea to use the Stair drawing. There may be two minor problems with the forward fuselage,
the upper profile probably was more straight and horizontal and the section at B appears to have
straight vertical sides.

[Flamingo]

Here is a photo to support the section B, it is a C.V/16 but should not differ from the later variant.
If you would like more stuff on the type check your messages.
Joachim

[Skyhook]

Here is a photo to support the section B, it is a C.V/16 but should not differ from the later variant.
If you would like more stuff on the type check your messages.
Joachim
[/quote

Thanks!  All specialist info and advice is warmly aprreciated. My main motivation for choosing the Albatross C.V as the subject was based mainly in its relative simplicity; the engine is fully enclosed, so there is a major part of the project already taken care of . I too feel that the aerodynamic shape of the nose was decided balancing between the easy construction and efficient shape. For example the fuselages of Alb. fighters D.1 to D.3 were probably much more like rounded boxes than the perfect fish shape of the D.V.

Cheers, Skyhook

[Dirigible-Al]

This is more of a tutorial than an update and a really good one at that. I will definitely try the clear plastic method next time I attempt to make wings.
Thanks, Alan.