I see that this thread had nearly fallen to page 3 of the Group Build forum, so it must be time to show some work! You wouldn't know it from the lack of updates (and the limited content of this one), but after a short post-Eindecker break, I have been making some progress on the D.VII F.
I started with the woodwork (not counting the prop), so that the oil paints I used for graining had time to dry. Most of the parts are still on the sprues, so the pictures would be a bit boring to share at this point. For the light colored wood, I used Tamiya Desert Yellow for my base, and Burnt Umber and Raw Sienna for the grain. The darker wood pieces are mostly Raw Umber over Tamiya Flat Earth. I will give them all a "varnish" coat of clear yellow & orange.
Since then, I have been focused on the BMW IIIa engine:
As you can see, I am using the Taurus valves & lifters, and so spent an evening removing the kit's molded arms from the rocker boxes. The intake manifold is a mix of Tamiya Flat & Nato Black over Citadel Hashut Copper (it was handy) using a bit of salt for chipping as has been described by The Baron in many of his build threads. Once dried, I treated the manifold pipe to a good scrubbing of MIG Pigments: Black Smoke and Russian Earth. The aluminum on this piece (and the crank case) was done with Mr. Metal Color Aluminum and a bit of Iron to vary the finish. I'm leaning towards a more uniform aluminum, and may re-spray the case.
The resin bits got a coat of that same Mr. Metal Color Iron, and the springs got highlights of AK's Dark Steel pigment, which gives them a nice metallic look that is not really visible in the poor quality phone picture. The spark plugs are still unfinished. The cylinders (with their coils removed) and water pipe were painted with a different batch of Tamiya Flat & Nato Black (mixed to taste). The gaskets (?) are XF-9, Hull Red. (My engine knowledge is clearly limited... I'd be interested in learning more if there is a resource someone would recommend on the workings of these beasts.) Everything needs washes, weathering, some detail painting, etc.
The piece with the magnetos appears to be missing the bottom most bit which seems to have been lost in transit. (My kit also arrived with a broken "N" strut, which Wingnuts helpfully replaced for me... must have been a rough flight over.) Looking at reference photos, I have attempted to recreate the structure using some styrene rod and various diameters of slide-fit aluminum tubing (on the right):
I have also taken a stab at a little drain that seems to go on the little U-shaped platform seen on the rear lower portion of the crank case above. I am unsure if I will use it, as I think it is a bit over scale, and won't be seen anyway. I also decided to replace the kit part for the tubes that hold the ignition leads using that same aluminum tubing:
I stuck a piece of 15 lb mono through the tubes, and bent them against a small nail I drove into a wooden base. The mono prevented the tubes from totally collapsing, but remained relatively easy to pull back out once bent. I drilled the holes by hand, using an old airbrush needle (aka a bodkin to a fly-tyer) to work a divot into the aluminum at the appropriate spots. I was then able to carefully work a .35 mm bit through the surface. The tubes have been glued using CA. I still need to cut the 2nd tube to size and form the mounting brackets. I have not decided what I am going to use for the ignition leads (this is my first non-rotary engine), but feel like I have more options now that there is an actual pipe opening (rather than drilled out plastic piece) to fit 6 lines into. I also need to figure out how I want to connect the leads to those tiny (i.e. fragile) spark plugs; I am currently thinking about trying an unskilled version of Bo's crushed, cut and drilled tubing, but we will see.
The prop is waiting with a coat of Desert Yellow. I don't feel like I have a reliable technique for painting / drawing the laminations, so it may be lonely for a bit.
I think that's all I've got right now. Hopefully more soon as this is now front and center in my mind and on my bench.
Thanks for checking in,
Chris
