Building a HAS

[bar side]

3 minutes ago, sean said:

Go large, or go home!! would be your new motto I reckon.

Briĺliant so far, and plenty of room for a C-5...👍

Sean

Cheers Sean - always fancied a C-130......

[bar side]

3 minutes ago, RMP2 said:

Thats all looking like its spiralling nicely out of control.

 

Rocket pods.... minefield. The Hunter pods are fictitious, I can tell you that much. What did the SHAR come with? Are they two or three row jobbies? Should be three row for Navy aircraft, 36 round things.
I dont think anyone has produced proper Matra pods for RAF or Navy outside of the resin realms, even there Im not sure theyre quite right.

It's no fun if it's in control or realistically achievable.  Save that for the annual review objectives at work :-)

 

The hunter pods are two row & look ok.  The Harrier is an RAF GR3 but with three row pods x 4.  The phantom needs 4 or 6 to look right but these pods probably aren't right.  Knew you would be the font of all knowledge on rocket pods RMP!

[RMP2]

Hunter pods are two row but should be 18 or 19 round, not the twelve or so that they have.
Sounds like the Harrier kit has the correct pods for a SHAR or a GR3 flying off a carrier ala the Falklands - somehow the two row pods upset carrier electrics apparently. Crazy stuff.
Having said that... I have a right stash of the Hunter pods for an RAF Phantom. Thing is though, regards number of pods, if you look carefully there are photos out there of RAF Phantoms with just a single pod fitted, so you can do as you please really. And balls to the Hunter ones being a bit off - have you seen the price of the "correct" resin versions...?! Chuck em on as you like, they look brilliant!!

 

ps - if you dont have a use for the Harrier supplied rocket pods..........

Edited October 16, 2016 by RMP2

[bar side]

23 hours ago, RMP2 said:

- have you seen the price of the "correct" resin versions...?! Chuck em on as you like, they look brilliant!!

 

 

Its tempting to try out resin casting & knock out a few copies of the hunter ones!  Never tried it & I am sure people who do it on here make things look easier than it is.

[RMP2]

I hear you, but not with the Hunter pods, theyre a mile out.

I think the modded KH Jag pods are rather closer from memory, amazing really if thats the case....

Also - proper war-y pods should be 19 round and have the streamlining frangible covers over each opening and thats a bugger to paint up.

[bar side]

Been doing some bits to the houchin & as a diorama accessory I think it will do fine.  Quick pic of it

 

Edited July 19, 2017 by bar side

[Mancunian airman]

On 10/13/2016 at 9:07 PM, bar side said:

That build is giving me ideas.  Thats dangerous.  I have this kind of idea to extend the HAS diorama.   I fancy a single story building that would be found on an airfield.  I struck upon this image while searching the web.  It is at Wattisham, but I fear not near either HAS complex.  I wondered about putting in a taxi way linking up the HAS & with this going off from it:

 

 

Add some blast pens beside the HAS (loads around Wattisham) and a fictitious hard standing and it might look like this:

 

 

The black block is the building, blast pens next to the HAS.  Each bit would be stand alone.  Trouble is if it all came together I think the back garden is the only space big enough to set it up.  Did even think of building a second dummy (permanently closed) HAS.  However I also think this is a hopeless pipe dream!

 

Mind you open to ideas from anyone out there for complimentary buildings

 

That there square buildings is/was reportedly the Tanker vehicle garages usually located behind the brick  hangar(s) located on permananant RAF stations but I have seen it used as a store . . .  might just give you some ideas . . . . dont think it would look out of place as you have it on the plan

[bar side]

2 hours ago, Mancunian airman said:

 

That there square buildings is/was reportedly the Tanker vehicle garages usually located behind the brick  hangar(s) located on permananant RAF stations but I have seen it used as a store . . .  might just give you some ideas . . . . dont think it would look out of place as you have it on the plan

 

That's just what I hoped - thinking of maybe two bays open, Landrover in one & a plan I have around a tanker in the other 

[bar side]

Just checking my up to the minute reference book:

 

 

Tornado wasn't even in service yet.  And the Falklands was 4 years away.  Does that mean we are 2 years form the centenary?

 

Now on to my tanker plan.  This arrived today.  Its a Corgi 1:50 so a little on the small side.

 

 

My plan is to turn it on to one of these:

 

 

So something to keep in the vehicle garage as well.  Can't put it too near the 1/43 landy - need to keep that nearer the camera and the tanker further away for some false perspective!

 

 

 

Edited July 19, 2017 by bar side

[bar side]

On 10/16/2016 at 10:15 PM, Kirk said:

Now stop faffing with more taxiway and build a Harrier!

 

Teaser for Kirk

 

 

It has escaped from the box - now wondering how far to go. The Airfix wheel wells are non-existent.  So build my own?  Even though no one will ever see them?  I'll ponder that one for a bit.

 

But this tanker idea is taking on a life of its own.  The garage is moving on

 

 

Just been looking at Rich O's Apollo Crawler & need to build in some lighting.  Plus I grew up around garages as my dad was a diesel fitter on civil Bedfords.  He later drove TKs & KMs & used to take me out in them.  Doubt insurance & health & safety would allow these days. So the garage will need a certain something about it.

Edited July 19, 2017 by bar side

[xffw45343tg]

Got to love a GR.3. Glad to hear you want to give it some lighting - what a challenge! Micro-LED in the nose strut eh? Wiring into the outriggers? Flashing strobes? This is going to be impressive.

 

(What? Only lighting the buildings??)

[RichO]

You give it to 'im Kirk!  I agree, light the whole thing!

[Okdoky]

Looking forward to seeing how you go about converting the TK ! Loving the diversions you keep taking that keeps the blog interesting !

[xffw45343tg]

9 hours ago, RichO said:

You give it to 'im Kirk!  I agree, light the whole thing!

One has to think after seeing your incredible crawler that anything is possible.

 

As a matter of interest, would you have any tips for trying to light something this small Rich? The Harrier has a main and standby landing light attached to the nose wheel strut and though there are a number of hydraulic lines to the area, I reckon it might be fairly tricky to disguise the wires to an LED - even if you could find a way to make it look anything like the bowl shaped real thing. Wing tip lights might be a little easier and I seem to recall that Warren(?) of Tyridium Models(?) did some fancy Arduino-based kits for achieving realistic strobe patterns/timing. Having said that, even if you could bury the electrojiggerypokery in the fuselage, how to supply power in something as inherently flexible as this marvelous diorama? Use the Houchin connector point?

 

I do hope Mr Side runs with this... :-)

 

Kirk

PS/ Actually, the Arduino code for all the flashy stuff is quite straightforward and the processors are as cheap as chips. Shout if you want help when you get to this point.

[Evalman]

I had a walk around the St Mawgan HAS Site and photographed this, which I believe is a hardened Bowser garage.  I will be measuring it in the next couple of weeks if you'd like the details. 

 

I also measured and am in the process of drawing plans for this Operations building.

 

Have you seen this range of vehicles? May be useful.

http://www.asam.co.uk/nmanref.html

Edited October 23, 2016 by Evalman

[bar side]

17 hours ago, Kirk said:

Got to love a GR.3. Glad to hear you want to give it some lighting - what a challenge! Micro-LED in the nose strut eh? Wiring into the outriggers? Flashing strobes? This is going to be impressive.

 

(What? Only lighting the buildings??)

 

You are a bad man Kirk!  But then.......

[bar side]

12 hours ago, Okdoky said:

Looking forward to seeing how you go about converting the TK !

 

My main worry at the moment is that the only reference pics I can get are from another model, which is never ideal.  I suspect there were lots of 'local solutions' & variations anyway.

[bar side]

1 hour ago, Evalman said:

I had a walk around the St Mawgan HAS Site and photographed this, which I believe is a hardened Bowser garage.  I will be measuring it in the next couple of weeks if you'd like the details. 

 

 

I also measured and am in the process of drawing plans for this Operations building.

 

 

Have you seen this range of vehicles? May be useful.

http://www.asam.co.uk/nmanref.html

 

Yes please - although the Wattisham HAS set up had the fuel tank built in to the side annex.  But that structure would still look good.  Like the Ops building a lot too.

 

The asam range looks great & if I had £50 a time I would go that route in a flash.  No criticism of them, they certainly look worth it.  But my budget for this was always building it on the cheap!

[bar side]

Bit of tinkering about today.  Tried making up a card template to see how the tanker would look - its not long enough but gives a rough idea of the main modification.  Think I will make it from plasticard rather than card and may make one side open with hoses on view.

 

 

I put some lights inside the garage just to see how it would look.  Needs a coat of whitewash inside and brick paper on the outside.   I have oo-gauge brick paper (1/76), so don't know whether to use it as is or try to photo enlarge or print scaled to 1/48.  Or to paint the outside as a concrete structure

 

[RichO]

  I get my lighting and all the special effect lighting at "Ngineering.com" .  The pico lights are so small (half a mm or smaller) I can't see them with out magnifying them, and they run on simple battery power.  Check out the specialty lighting.  Have fun!

[xffw45343tg]

Have to say I love the notion of Harriers being powered by chocolate milk.

[bar side]

2 hours ago, Kirk said:

Have to say I love the notion of Harriers being powered by chocolate milk.

 

Sadly the tanker is rather nicely painted.  Will be a shame painting it green.

 

Spending my evening here googling external harrier lights now - what have I started.  Will come to nothing if I can't find some cheap small LEDs.  Love some of the stock on  Ngineering.com Rich, and I am sure I can track some down in the UK for model railways

[bar side]

I am sure some time back someone said the HAS could do with a new background photo and an RAF houchin.  Well I was thinking the same so new background mounted up today (same photo just reprinted - not great joins though & they do stand out, but at least it smooths now) and I am calling the scratch built houchin done for now.  Bit of sunshine today so got things outside.

 

 

 

Now the Harrier.  Got some poundland led string lights today.  Somewhere under the blob of perspex on the end is a pretty small led.  I cut the casing off and got down so a small ish bulb & stuck it on the front of the Harrier undercarriage for scale

 

 

I am wondering if it can be filed flat enough to fit in to the wing tips, but putting a bulb or two inside under the anti collision lights could work - may not strobe but could be interesting.  Mind you I might have a bike led light that flashes to power the strobe effect.

[bar side]

Bit more playing with the leds today.  They are pretty small inside their plastic case, so I took the dremel to the case and cut it down.  Think it will fit in to the wings for port & starboard lights.  The one on the wheel will be a little chunky, but not a lot bigger than the real thing.  And the tail id lights will just be holes drilled through with the light inside.  The top & bottom anti collision lights could be linked up to flash if I run them on a separate line.  All via the GPU socket.  Plausible?

 

 

And turned on

 

 

This aint gonna make things easier!

 

 

[Okdoky]

Oh oh ! They got you fiddling with that magical stuff of electricity now and lighting up jet or two ! Nice !

 

Have you checked out whether there is a ready made set from rail way suppliers that do fire engines and the like ! If you could splash out once for a pre programmed light set you might find the port starboard and dorsal etc lights avaliable almost plug and play !

 

I would probably blow a fuse after blowing a few bulbs being ham fisted !

 

Also would there be potential to hide a join line in you backdrop behind a lighting tower or some other convenient linear structure placed over ?

 

Looking good !