Hi,
well here it is. A lovely autumn day here has kept me away from the workbench and computer. I have mounted it temporarily in some shots on a Taurus trestle (unpainted) to get a feel of the diorama setting.
The WNW Roland was a thoroughly good kit and in the hands of a real expert more could be done with it than I have (the basics). There were no real problems with the build and construction although I am wary of some of the decals - upper wing crosses and the port-side fin decal.
Points to watch:
if doing the diagonal laminates on inner surface choose thinner paper than bog-standard printer paper
if doing the tubes for the rear rudder cabling attach them to the sides after installing the observer's seat
if using part E12 increase the angle of the handle as it might foul the wing root tabs otherwise (or leave off completely)
don't forget the oil tank A20 before closing left and right frames!
if doing a breather pipe on the radiator header tank drill out a hole for this before attaching to the engine (even if not adding the tubes at this point)
watch out for possible problems with upper wing cross panels and decal 19 (or 16?) on left side of fin.
watch out that any decal sitting over the port footstep (15, 22, 58 or 68) settles properly into it.
if using the flare holders (D19) paint the inner top strip (wood?) - I forgot one side but they can be seen through the windows.
So - a 'white and blue' Roland consistent with many photos (in my opinion) and my German namesake Karl Vogel.
Altogether a wonderful kit and a big step up from the 1960's Airfix! THOROUGHLY RECOMMENDED!.
I'm really tempted to do another - the Hippel 3645/16 Beobachter Schule Koln version in the CIIa kit looks the business - not a cheesy sharkmouth. A great diorama of a similar aircraft on last page of the Datafile too.
Many thanks to all! Let's see yours now!
Cheers,
GrahamB
