Be12b conversion

[DaddyO]

Thank you Kamil, Graham and Alexis 

The double edged razor blade is an excellent tool that I also use for trimming Aviattic decals, but I'll look into those cutting tweezers Graham. 

In the old days I used to buy a packet of 5 or 10 of the blades and snap them in half; more recently I discovered you can buy boxes of them already in halves (presumably they fit some kind of modern razor?) Much easier to use and safer than snapping them yourself. They are much sharper than a scalpel blade and you can easily slice transparent slivers of end grain balsa wood without crushing it. Only drawback is picking the damn things up when you put them flat on the bench 

Right off to cook dinner and hopefully I'll get a few minutes to add some varnish to the wings later tonight so they are ready for decals tomorrow
Paul

[Flamingo]

Nice to read and see your progress, entertaining and educating. Love the tail skid!
Regards Joachim

[ColonelKrypton]

In the old days I used to buy a packet of 5 or 10 of the blades and snap them in half; more recently I discovered you can buy boxes of them already in halves (presumably they fit some kind of modern razor?) Much easier to use and safer than snapping them yourself. They are much sharper than a scalpel blade and you can easily slice transparent slivers of end grain balsa wood without crushing it. Only drawback is picking the damn things up when you put them flat on the bench 

You have brought back some good old memories of model making. I am no stranger to double edge razor blades and safety razors. I used same for many years when I shaved daily. Other fancier twin and triple blade injector and disposable razor became more fashionable and the safety edge razors almost disappeared. I haven't shaved for 40 years and now only get a good trimming when I get a hair cut.

In addition to their tradional use I used them for making balsa strippers and other balsa cutting model making chores supplementing the ubiquitous Exacto and scalpel. Snapped in half and even snapped into smaller and others into more sharply pointed tips.  All had their uses and I am now tempted to get a few to have on hand and see if I still find them useful. I hadn't thought of those in vary long time. The last time I looked, the local drug store ( chemist if you prefer ) didn't have any.

Out of curiosity I had a look at Amazon. It is amazing the variety of these blades now available. Seems there is a bit of a renaissance for shaving kit these days. Straight razors are in vogue as are the associated shaving soap dish and brush. Those already snapped in half double edge blades are for the new fangled straight razors which use these rather than relying on the user to strop their traditional style blades.

cheers, Graham

[DaddyO]

Nice to read and see your progress, entertaining and educating. Love the tail skid!
Regards Joachim

Cheers Joachim
Tailskid now has some paint and side braces added 

You have brought back some good old memories of model making. I am no stranger to double edge razor blades and safety razors. I used same for many years when I shaved daily. Other fancier twin and triple blade injector and disposable razor became more fashionable and the safety edge razors almost disappeared. I haven't shaved for 40 years and now only get a good trimming when I get a hair cut.

In addition to their tradional use I used them for making balsa strippers and other balsa cutting model making chores supplementing the ubiquitous Exacto and scalpel. Snapped in half and even snapped into smaller and others into more sharply pointed tips.  All had their uses and I am now tempted to get a few to have on hand and see if I still find them useful. I hadn't thought of those in vary long time. The last time I looked, the local drug store ( chemist if you prefer ) didn't have any.

Out of curiosity I had a look at Amazon. It is amazing the variety of these blades now available. Seems there is a bit of a renaissance for shaving kit these days. Straight razors are in vogue as are the associated shaving soap dish and brush. Those already snapped in half double edge blades are for the new fangled straight razors which use these rather than relying on the user to strop their traditional style blades.

cheers, Graham

Thanks Graham.
Sounds like you also were a balsa basher at some point (I was introduced to the double edged blade by John O'D himself when discussing indoor models at an early contest I attended) Very useful tool for a whole lot of stuff. I got my recent stock from Amazon too, as it happens, together with a box of single edged blades which sit on my workshop shelf alongside scalpels 

Pressing on with the build trying to get it ready for the weekend show so I'll do a catch up series of photos later in the week. Decals now added and settling down, but lots of little jobs still to do once the wings are varnished and weathered - upper wing gun mounting and hinge mechanism, control wires, windscreen, undercarriage to finish etc. and, of course, propeller to add (This has been modified from the Airfix kit one by removing two blades, flipping over and re-shaping)

Paul

[NigelR]

Lovely work on that tailskid Paul. And I agree, stretched sprue CA applicators are the future - I cottoned on to them a while back. But I've also learned you can get "halved" razor blades, off to buy some of those and also some cutting tweezers. Enjoying this thread and learning a lot!

[DaddyO]

Cheers Nigel, glad you're also having fun with this one

It's now on it's undercarriage - hooray. As promised here's the tailskid with bracing struts added using 0.4mm brass wire (I initially tried bending these as a pair in a 'V' shape, but found it was easier to make them up individually) Bit of touching up to do, but pretty strong and looks the part

Be12b tailskid , on Flickr

And at the front. Fairing shaped from 3 bits of plastic card around a brass wire axle and bungees from stripped electrical flex which can be wound around and holds in place without glue. The two bracing cables can be seen floating loose and so can the fairing over the rear spar. The decals, incidentally came from and recent AIMS 'RFC Roundels' sheet and can be heartily recommended - they just behaved exactly the way you would expect decals to and settled down nicely with microsol and set 

Be12b undercarriage , on Flickr

Sadly in a bit of an arrrrrgh moment I managed to pull out the inner rear pair of flying wires where they join the fuselage during the process of doing these bits 
(remember what I said about Sharpie coloured fishing line not sticking as well as it could . . .) Anyway I put the model down and left it overnight whilst I had a think.

Picking it up this morning I couldn't see a way of getting them back into the original holes and under tension but I realised that I could just about drill some new inner mounting points through the gap in the wing root and some careful measuring from the top of the wing meant I was able to drill though from the top and get a new pair of holes for the wing mounting points. Cutting the old wires free means I now can replace them, hopefully without twanging any others . . .

Having put the model down I decided to concentrate on someone to fly this thing. An almost suitable Austo-Hungarian pilot from Peddinhause was slightly modified with a long 'RFC' style flying coat made using Miliput/Duro putty mix with belts from tape glued on with PVA. Lacking gloves a pair of large gauntlets were sculpted using some spare putty (which actually took longer to make than the long coat) I'll place these on the lower wing later as if he's just preparing for an evening sortie.

Be12b pilot , on Flickr

[Flamingo]

Yes! A pleasure to look at.

[Skyhook]

This looks wonderfully sharp and impressive build. Fantastic 

cheers, Skyhook

[KiwiZac]

I've thoroughly enjoyed reading along with this WIP. What a beauty you have coming together! I like the gauntlet idea too - a nice little bit of extra life!

[NigelR]

That tailskid is a work of art and I love the figure and the gloves. Nice work!

[DaddyO]

Thank you all gents, appreciate your kind words 

Got up early to fix the broken flying wires, touch up the paint, add some wheels and pipework from the underwing tank (That task would have been much easier before I put in the rigging) 
I was then able to work some oil paint weathering onto the wing surfaces not previously done and she's currently sitting waiting for that to dry so sadly won't make the show on Saturday, but will be ready for the next one Nigel 

Various cables, guns and the usual paraphernalia that seem to clutter the exterior surfaces of all RFC mounts still to be done. Once they're added I'll post some piccies

Paul

[lone modeller]

I have been away recently so have just had a very enjoyable read of your progress. I am wholly blown away by that tailskid - in the One True Scale too!

Your rigging technique is interesting and there are ideas that I will e tempted to try out on a future project. This model is coming together very well indeed - it will be very impressive when completed.

Stephen.

[NigelR]

I was then able to work some oil paint weathering onto the wing surfaces not previously done and she's currently sitting waiting for that to dry so sadly won't make the show on Saturday, but will be ready for the next one Nigel 

Don't worry, we have plenty of displays to choose from! I was hoping to get my "quick build" Italian Nieuport !! finished but masking those damn edging tapes is taking forever, anything but quick!!

[DaddyO]

I have been away recently so have just had a very enjoyable read of your progress. I am wholly blown away by that tailskid - in the One True Scale too!

Your rigging technique is interesting and there are ideas that I will e tempted to try out on a future project. This model is coming together very well indeed - it will be very impressive when completed.

Stephen.

Thanks Stephen, nearly finished now

Nice to catch up with you and the rest of the gang at the weekend Nigel; stand looked the business and my little 'Be' wasn't missed amongst all the lovely Nieuport28's 

Anyway managed a bit more progress making tiny things. The last couple of days I've been working on how to make the gun mechanism. I bought a pair of Lewis' and cobbled together a mount that will give the right sort of vibe when painted up. Today's exercise was adding the tiny pully, handle and bracketry for the lowering mechanism. The pully is stretched sprue with a hole drilled in it to allow a piece of wire to be threaded and attached to the front strut. Adding the wire from the handle through this to the gun support weaving in and out of an already rigged model nearly drove me batty so I've come away to rest my eyes for a bit 

Be12b Gun mech. , on Flickr

[Alexis]

Yup , I can see myself breaking many may rigging lines trying to get those details in place , she is looking pretty darn good !


Alexis