Crossing a DIII with a DH9a

[DaddyO]

Spent quite a lot of time last week making up brass struts for this one. Brass wire filed to section and then soldered together for the inners and just brass wire (1mm diameter) filed to shape for the wing struts.
That said I'm not happy with the cabane struts so will remake these My very basic soldering materials shown here

DSC_1885 by Paul S, on Flickr

I file/sand a 12" length of brass wire and then having drawn up the correct lengths/angles on the plan each piece is cut and shaped over the drawing and then the ends are tinned (dip in flux and then add a thin layer of solder) Once done they are then taped to the worksurface ready for joining. Cocktail stick adds some more flux to the joint and then heat is applied to melt the solder already on the parts. Using a heat sink between joints prevents the previous ones becoming unsoldered; this is nothing complicated for me, I just hold a pair of tweezers against the brass between the joints. Once everything has cooled excess solder is filed away and the whole thing cleaned with isoproponal before spraying in etch primer.

[NigelR]

Lovely work, if a lot of effort in my book!

.....this is nothing complicated for me.....

It would be like open heart surgery for me!

[lone modeller]

Those struts look fine to me. I do not bother to tin the ends of joints when I solder - just make sure that there is lots of flux. I also use wet tissue paper for heat sinks - tweezers might get a bit hot!

Stephen.

[DaddyO]

Lovely work, if a lot of effort in my book!

.....this is nothing complicated for me.....

It would be like open heart surgery for me!

  You know it makes sense though Nigel . . .

Those struts look fine to me. I do not bother to tin the ends of joints when I solder - just make sure that there is lots of flux. I also use wet tissue paper for heat sinks - tweezers might get a bit hot!

Stephen.

Sadly I oversanded one just after this pic was taken (I popped a joint, superglued it back in place then noticed it wasn't quite lined up and was a bit enthusiastic with the file)

I'll try the wet tissue method next time Stephen (It does help having asbestos fingers)

[PrzemoL]

I feel ashamed to come across this build only now. You are doing a great modelling job with every step. I will watch with great interest from now on.

[DaddyO]

I feel ashamed to come across this build only now. You are doing a great modelling job with every step. I will watch with great interest from now on.

No problem Prze. I often find a thread I've missed and think how have I missed this one Nice to have you onboard now

After a weekend workshop away painting a figure it's taken a few days to get started back with wingy things, but a couple of evenings work saw a new set of struts sorted. Because the two outer struts are different lengths and at slightly different angles I tried a different approach this time which seemed to work better (The diagonal was cut to fit AFTER the other parts were at the correct angle and soldered together)

DIV struts in situ by Paul S, on Flickr



Here's the full set cleaned off with isopropanol ready for a coat of etch primer and then it'll be on to painting at last 

DIV struts new by Paul S, on Flickr

[Flute]

Hmmmmmmmmmmmm. Shiny ones!

Paul.

[lone modeller]

Good lord that jig is complicated!!! I could never cope with anything as sophisticated as that!!

Stephen.

[ScottJ]

Your brass work looks excellent Paul!... Being able to create your own struts certainly opens up a whole new world of possibilities.
Looking forward to seeing this one come together.

Take care
Scott...

[DaddyO]

Hmmmmmmmmmmmm. Shiny ones!

Paul.

LOL Paul - not for long

Good lord that jig is complicated!!! I could never cope with anything as sophisticated as that!!

Stephen.

Looks worse than it is from this angle Stephen. Plan and side views stuck onto foam board and cut out with a couple of supports because I used thin board which is easier to cut accurately, but wobbles about a bit. Pins are just to hold a couple of bands to stop the top wing floating about. 

Your brass work looks excellent Paul!... Being able to create your own struts certainly opens up a whole new world of possibilities.
Looking forward to seeing this one come together.

Take care
Scott...

Thanks Scott.
Happy with this second set (the first ended up in the bin) I certainly prefer brass to the usual plastic items for struts because I'm a bit heavy handed when painting, assembling and rigging.
Plenty of unusual subjects just waiting to be built . . . .

[NigelR]

Excellent work. I do enjoy the precise way you approach your builds.

[DaddyO]

Excellent work. I do enjoy the precise way you approach your builds.

Thanks Nigel
(Of course that is in direct contrast to the bombsite that is my workbench generally) 

Anyway added some paint to this one yesterday (At last I hear the cry)
The underside rib-tapes came out barely visible, but I'll leave them as they are. The few original photos show the colour areas quite clearly apart from the lower right wing which makes a nice change. I've assumed the darker portions are the camouflage are green as suggested in the original build article and I'm aiming for the colours used in Ronny Barr's profile because I like the colour balance. Once they're varnished I'll tweak them a bit, using oil paints, which will also bring out a few of the details.
I'll add some pale beige acrylic to the fuselage this afternoon and then it's out with the oils again for the wood effects and separate panels which is one of my favourite bits 

Painted DIV by Paul S, on Flickr

[NigelR]

Subtle is always better than zebra stripes in my book....... She is looking very fetching already, finished before Xmas....?

[lone modeller]

Very good start to the painting - I agree that the shades look good on the upper wing.

Stephen.

[DaddyO]

Subtle is always better than zebra stripes in my book.......

  Indeed Nigel
Fingers crossed for a Christmas finish although painting the wooden panels always takes a while because of the drying time. Did a few yesterday and popped it on the radiator overnight so hopefully that will keep things ticking along.

Very good start to the painting - I agree that the shades look good on the upper wing

Stephen.

Thanks Stephen.
Mostly airbrushed, but after the last disaster I've gone back to my usual process of paint thinned with distilled water and a couple of drops of flow improver added to each cupful.