Thanks Bob.
The next step was to attach the upper wing and I was looking forward to this. On the E.V there are, of course, just four attachment points which are relatively close together. Compare that with the twelve securing the upper wing on a Brisfit! So careful alignment was going to be crucial, if for different reasons.
Reassuringly, the complex of front struts provided by Eduard form a sturdy platform once glued to the fuselage; the rear struts are just that bit more vulnerable. With all the struts drying in place on the fuselage I made a small template to ensure the accuracy of their relative position. Once they were dry, the wing was placed, upper surface face down, on the work mat; with the fit nice and snug the struts were glued in place. Back on its undercarriage, I checked the front elevation and plan view and things were neatly in line and as they should be. I took the following photo and went to bed.
IMG_4750 by
nigeljjackson, on Flickr
The next morning, everything was nice and secure; the model could be lifted by the wing. But, if you are a lover of movie soundtracks, think
Jaws – more specifically the sinister music that builds up just before the shark strikes another victim. Something was not quite right ....
In my elation the previous night, I had forgotten to check out the side profile. To my horror, I now found that the wing sat at completely the wrong angle, dipping down at the leading edge and almost on stilts at the rear. The Datafile confirmed my worst fears. The following sketches try to give a sense of things, albeit it an exaggerated way. The shark had struck.
IMG_4863 by
nigeljjackson, on Flickr
The next few days were characterised by deep gloom, as I tried to work out what had gone wrong and how it might be corrected. Perhaps I had drilled the front location holes too deeply? But why was the back so high when the rear struts seemed properly located on the lower fuselage sides?
In the search for a solution, it was clear that forward and rear struts would have to be adjusted and I was most reluctant to cut the rear struts from the fuselage sides: the fear of collateral damage to the lozenge work was too great. So, plucking up the courage and using a brand new blade I sliced completely through the four joints as close to the wing surface as possible and took it off.
The challenge now was to lengthen the front struts slightly with plastic card shaped to section and reduce the height of those at the rear, as well as adding new locating pins and drilling fresh holes in the wings. This in itself brought further trials and tribulations but the animals were safely out of the house and Ena had wisely sought refuge in Limoges. Stiff drinks were the order of the day and cameras banned.
It was with some nervousness that I then set about re-attaching the wing to the fuselage because I felt that I might not another chance. To help me I used a piece of card cut to the required gap between the wing and the fuselage, forward and rear. Amazingly, it worked and that came as a tremendous relief.
I still can’t quite puzzle out what went wrong but feel it must have been my fault somehow. The message is clear. This is a lovely model to build, but be sure to check out that the rear struts don’t push the wing trailing edge too high. Here we have the box art, the marking scheme in the instructions, sprues and decals. Note the disparity between the box art and the scheme colours. As you’ll have realised, the lozenge decals were replaced. Carelessly I forgot to take a photo of the main part of the decal sheet.
IMG_4860 by
nigeljjackson, on Flickr
IMG_3445 by
nigeljjackson, on Flickr
IMG_3442 by
nigeljjackson, on Flickr
IMG_3443 by
nigeljjackson, on Flickr
IMG_3444 by
nigeljjackson, on Flickr
And here we have the razor in all its glory.
IMG_4774 by
nigeljjackson, on Flickr
Many more pictures are in the
Show us Your Fokker E.V thread and I should add that since they were all taken I have run some very heavily diluted black oil paint down the gap between fin and rudder as well as replacing an aileron control line.
Thank you for reading. Now there’s a cannibalised Sopwith Camel on its way...
Best wishes
Nigel
