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Monogram's F-86F With a Few Tweaks: Corsair cockpit


DMC

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After taking up the hobby again after a long hiatus, I had in mind building and finishing one kit at a time at a relaxed pace. I didn't want a room full of half built carcases laying about contributing to any  guilt feelings I might have about unfinished kits.  However, after breaking off half of the lower wing of the Camel, which is now toast, and after seeing the film Bridge of Spies, I quickly developed an interest in Lockheed's  U-2 and then the F-5F The U-2 is well along now and is waiting a coat of grey on the undersides but that won't happen for a while as I have to spray in the garage and it is much too cold and damp for that.  Same goes for F-5F.   So, either I twiddle my thumbs for a few months or start another build.  I chose starting another build: Monogram's F-86 Sabre. 

 

The F-86 and I go back a few years.  I was 12 at the height of the Korean War and the Sabre and Mig battles were often in the newspapers and magazines.  Remember Life ? I built quite a few models in those days, which I financed by cutting grass with an old push mower and collecting soft drink bottles from ditches and the side of the road.  They were worth a few cents each in refunds.  My favorites were easily Monogram's Superkits and Speedybuilts, which were mostly of wood except for bits like the cowlings, wheels and canopies, which were of plastic.  There were six in the Superkit series and I must have built each one several times.   I loved those kits, especially the F-86 and the P-51.

 

http://philsaeronauticalstuff.com/oldmodels/monogramsuperkit/monogramsuperkit.html

 

Monogram's F-86 is an F.  I wanted to back-date it to an E with dropped slats so I could use my rebuilt DIY vacuum forming rig.   I first had to modify the wing leading edges and I am grateful to TheRealMrEd for pointing me in the right direction on this ARC link.

 

http://www.arcforums.com/forums/air/index.php?/topic/219079-bump172-f-86a-conversion-from-academy-f-86e/

 

The Photo:

 

UL:  This Japanese language copy, No 39, of Famous Airplanes of the World had I nice set of plans that I enlarged to 1/48.  I'll base any modifications I make to the kit on these these plans as they well done and look pretty accurate.  Who knows?

 

UR:  After finishing the leading edge mods I began cutting out the slots for the slat guides with this razor saw.  After doing a couple the light bulb went off and I doubled up on the blade with a .020 styrene spacer and got through the remainder pretty quickly. 

 

LL:  Left wing top with the slots cut out.

 

LR.  Inner wing with a styrene strip for reinforcement.

 

SNB10221.jpg

 

Cheers, and a Merry Christmas to everyone.

 

Dennis

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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On ‎20‎/‎12‎/‎2016 at 7:43 PM, Crossofiron1971 said:

Interesting Project Sir!!!

 

Thank you, I hope to make it so.

 

I've been working on this build for a few weeks now so I can keep a little ahead with the photos and commentary.  This first photo is of the vac rig I made to do the slats for this build.  Good for other bits such as canopies and so on but really built this size for the slats.  There is a batten attached underneath for clamping it in a vice. 

 

SNB10226.jpg

 

Styrene "baking" in an old toaster oven.  Can't allow it to touch the tile or I'd have to start over.

 

SNB10224.jpg

 

About ready when it gets shiny like this.  Sag is about right but can be overdone: too much and the styrene gets too thin, too little and won't mould properly.

 

SNB10225.jpg

 

A pretty good "pull".  Just a trace of webbing which has been a problem as I learn.  I 've tried about five sets of slat pulls with three being useful.  Getting the heat, sag and shine correct is crucial.   I'm flush with slats now and only need to vac a canopy and I can get on with completing this build.

 

SNB10228.jpg

 

Cheers

 

Dennis

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Banished from the kitchen so I thought I'd take a moment and post another photo.  I've trimmed the vacuum formed slats and added the inside lining with the slots cut to match the wing leading edge.  This is working out ok so far. I could have added bought resin slats but I enjoy doing this kind of thing and the rig will be useful for other things.

 

SNB10229.jpg

 

Cheers and thanks for looking,

 

Dennis

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For the slat guides I thought I'd see if I could work out something that looked a little more like the originals than just a peg or dowel.  I made up and shaped this hollow sandwich affair and sliced off the guides with this razor saw.  I staggered  the blades so I could use the outside blade as a spacer when cutting them off.  To true them up I made up this rack and made a few passes over them with the  green block .  The blocks came with a magazine, SAM  I think, and are pretty good.  Can't remember the vendor or manufacturer.

 

SNB10231.jpg

 

SNB10233.jpg

 

Cheers and thanks for looking

 

Dennis

 

(Thanks Troy and Growler!)

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Blast Panels:

Moving on from the slats for a bit, modifying the blast panels and ports was next in line.  The panels on the monogram kit are a bit undersize and the ports are more teardrop shaped than they should be (I've looked at a dozen or more photos.).  In addition, the topmost port is the same size as the lower ones and should be  smaller in length and narrower.  So, nothing for it but to plunge/squash mould a new set and see if any corrections I attempt are worth the time and effort.

 

TL: Monogram kit on the left, Academy on the right.  Academy kit looks pretty good and I am reluctant to start chopping it up.   The panels are slightly handed.  I might have got away with just a curved piece for both sides but went ahead and made a mould for left and right anyway.  It was much easier to work on the ports before removing the panel from the moulding.

 

(Photobucket dragging its heels as usual so I'm going to post this now and edit in a few more comments and photos asap)

 

Great photo of Buzz Aldrin in his F-86.  note staggered ports and smaller top port.

 

https://www.bing.com/images/search?q=buzz+aldrin+f-86+korea&view=detailv2&&id=7914A636B30AC5EBEAA294715EDE2E36BF1E623C&selectedIndex=0&ccid=CZWDUZaS&simid=608022535519928768&thid=OIP.M099583519692a38c7aea4cedcdbdaf19o0&ajaxhist=0

 

SNB10212.jpg

 

SNB10213.jpg

 

SNB10230.jpg

 

Well, that was a complicated way of doing things but switching back and forth between BM and Photobucket was a bit of a trial, plus the Wi-Fi dropped out a couple of times.  One more photo to add.

 

Dennis

 

 

 

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21 hours ago, ForestFan said:

Excellent modelling! Look forward to seeing it progress

 

Thank you,... .Fan, progressing nicely so far.

 

Cheers,

 

Dennis

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Trail fitting with a couple of the guides in and all the guides in one slat.  Not sure about cementing the guides in the slat or the wing first.  Slat first is probably the way to go as it'll leave a little more scope for adjustment.

 

SNB10238.jpg

 

Cheers,

 

Dennis

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Speedbrakes:

 

The speed brake panels(doors?) on the kit open outwards like "barn doors" rather than droop downwards.  Same with the Academy kit oddly enough.  To attempt a remedy, I opened up the slots and cemented inserts at a near as damn-it angle and used a couple of coffee stirrer pieces to line them up.  I also cut out the back panel with the pipes and other bits as I couldn't see myself making a good job of painting it.  I'll replace it with an insert with wire piping and styrene details.  The door itself is concave and needed a bit of work to resemble the original more accurately.  The first attempt looked ok but, after finding a better photo, I realized that I hadn't got it quite right.  OCD kicked in about now and after a couple more attempts I ended up with a version I could be happy with: bottom right.  Also happy with the angle of the droop.  Posting this now but I'll be editing in a link to another photo.

 

Great photo showing the angle of droop.

 

http://www.airplane-pictures.net/photo/241572/g-sabr-golden-apple-operations-north-american-f-86-sabre/

 

SNB10236_1.jpg

 

Cheers,

 

Dennis

 

 

 

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

I've remodelled the wings leading edges a bit. I wasn't happy with the setback of the kit edges and a couple of the slots were off so I vacuum formed new ones.  Also added a little width to the wingspan which was short a few scale inches.   Double checked everything this time before assembly.  Also started in on the scribing..  After struggling with the U2 scribing, which was assembled, I tried doing the top half of the right wing.  Much easier and, using a rack for holding the wings and one for the fuselage, I'll scribe everything before assembly.

 

SNB10242.jpg

 

I felt I might be able to improve on the kit canopy so have been experimenting with vacuum forming over clay moulds.  Haven't quite got it right as the first mould, TL, wasn't the right shape.  The second mould was much better but I had a little problem with webbing.  I think I've got the webbing problem sorted now so I'll be having another try pretty soon.

 

SNB10243.jpg

 

Both fuselage shapes look pretty good when placed over the enlarged plans that I'm using.  Top is the Monogram, bottom the Academy.

 

SNB10239.jpg

 

The Monogram wing follows the plan outline well enough, if a little short in span.  I like that the flaps can be dropped.

 

SNB10240.jpg

 

The Academy wing seems a little off in sweep.  I thought it was the Monogram wing that had a sweep problem.

 

SNB10241.jpg

 

I've another Monogram F-86 and I think I'd like to try the "H" conversion when through with this one.  Going a little Sabre crazy.

 

Cheers,

 

Dennis

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Wheel wells:

 

Okay, finished scribing the wings.  Pleased with the results although I need to repair one or two errant panel lines.  I'm leaving the sanding dust in the grooves until time to paint.

 

Next up were the wheel wells.  Hemmed and hawed over it for a few days while working on the scribing.  Finally decide to go ahead with it as I know I'd regret not doing it later.  Just need to add a few bits of piping after painting.   Which, I assume, should be in a chromate of some shade.  Advice? 

 

SNB10244.jpg

 

SNB10245.jpg

 

Working now on the "all flying" stabilizers and rudder.  Just want a little bit of offset to add some interest.

 

Thanks for your interest.

 

Dennis

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3 hours ago, Bell209 said:

Like what you've done so far.

 

Way hay! "....in From the Cold" and back on page one (well, temporarily anyway).

 

Thanks for that, Rob.

 

Cheers,

 

Dennis

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On 5/1/2017 at 6:28 AM, DMC said:

Speedbrakes:

To attempt a remedy, I opened up the slots and cemented inserts at a near as damn-it angle and used a couple of coffee stirrer pieces to line them up.  

 

SNB10236_1.jpg

 

Hi there, Dennis!

Clever fix on 'em speedbrake angle; if only ya could elaborate on it a tad more 'cause I seem to have only caught a hint of it. Just tryin' to figure out whut the inserts ya mention look like - perhaps a side view of the aft fuselage area where the speedbrakes are would explain it better to me?

Still remember the mods ya did to yer Dragon Lady kit.

Cheers,

 

Unc2 

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23 hours ago, Uncle Uncool said:

 

Hi there, Dennis!

Clever fix on 'em speedbrake angle; if only ya could elaborate on it a tad more 'cause I seem to have only caught a hint of it. Just tryin' to figure out whut the inserts ya mention look like - perhaps a side view of the aft fuselage area where the speedbrakes are would explain it better to me?

Still remember the mods ya did to yer Dragon Lady kit.

Cheers,

 

Unc2 

 

22 hours ago, stringbag said:

Late to this particular party as usual but really impressed with the work you've done up to now Dennis

Those slats should look great when painted up.

Looking forward to your next update now.

 

Chris.

 

Hi Uncle, trust you are well.

 

Top right in this photo, which I thought I had included, should give you an idea of how it was done.  I just cut out the kit slots from the inside, angled the opening with a scalpel and file and cemented the styrene inserts in the slots.  The coffee stirrer pieces are just to keep the alignment true.  Only photo I have in the "bucket" right now but I can take another and post it if you want.

 

The U-2 is on hold until the weather improves enough for painting.

 

SNB10234_1.jpg

 

Another photo, Uncle

 

SNB10249.jpg

 

Thanks, Chris.  Not sure about the finish of the slats.  From all the photos I've looked at am pretty sure they were just left natural metal. 

 

Cheers

 

Dennis

 

 

 

Edited by DMC
Additional photo added
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5 hours ago, Uncle Uncool said:

To attempt a remedy, I opened up the slots and cemented inserts at a near as damn-it angle and used a couple of coffee stirrer pieces to line them up.  

Don't sweat it too much. We had several Sabres as training aids at Wagga when I did my trade training. The hydraulic pressure was bled off by cycling the speed brakes and they end up where they end up (evenly) but pushing on either after that will cause the other to move in the opposite direction.

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On 1/20/2017 at 5:01 AM, DMC said:

Wheel wells:

 

Okay, finished scribing the wings.  Pleased with the results although I need to repair one or two errant panel lines.  I'm leaving the sanding dust in the grooves until time to paint.

 

Next up were the wheel wells.  Hemmed and hawed over it for a few days while working on the scribing.  Finally decide to go ahead with it as I know I'd regret not doing it later.  Just need to add a few bits of piping after painting.   Which, I assume, should be in a chromate of some shade.  Advice? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dark Interior Green for the Speedbrake wells, Speedbrakes and Wheel Wells.

 

Keep up the fine work !!

 

Cheers, Tony

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Not so sure about that, Tony - it will depend on which version you build. The USAF and RAAF were definitely silver in those locations. The Canadair-built ones may well be different.

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Managed a little more work today on the "all-flying" stabilizer.  TL: Scraping out a grove with a hand held burr.  TR: Lining the hinge cut-outs.  BL:  Just need a little scribing.

BL:  Something like this.

 

SNB10248.jpg

 

Cheers,

 

Dennis

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1 hour ago, Tony Edmundson said:

Gear doors were Aluminum, but check out these Speedbrakes and wells;

 

Photo does clear up things a bit.  I've looked at photos of wells and brakes that were red, yellow, green, etc.  All on restored Sabres of course.

 

Thanks, Tony.

 

Dennis

 

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22 hours ago, DMC said:

Hi Uncle, trust you are well.

 

Top right in this photo, which I thought I had included, should give you an idea of how it was done.  I just cut out the kit slots from the inside, angled the opening with a scalpel and file and cemented the styrene inserts in the slots.  The coffee stirrer pieces are just to keep the alignment true.  Only photo I have in the "bucket" right now but I can take another and post it if you want.

Another photo, Uncle

The U-2 is on hold until the weather improves enough for painting.

 

Hey, Dennis! :yahoo: I can see ya're doin' very well too.

Thanks a helluva lot for 'em piccies, my mate. Ya're quite an impressive modeller I always find inspiration on yer builds. Y'know I was tryin' to do as ya did with the Dragon Lady, 'n' to that I bid dearly for some Cutting Edge Interim intake set on evilBay. Guess whut? They got lost somewhere in Chicago... :crying:

'Bout 'em F-86 speedbrake mod, it's crystal clear now; thanks a lot once again, Dennis.:worthy: No need for further piccies; ya're such a kind fella, my mate.

Gonna be followin' yer build, 'n' as for the Dragon Lady, I'll be alert.

Thanks, Dennis.

Cheers,

 

Unc2

Edited by Uncle Uncool
"Crystal" is spelled with an Y!
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  • 2 weeks later...

Scribing:

Not re-scribing as there wasn't any on this kit to begin with (as many of you already know).  I used an Xacto blade with about half a mil of the tip snapped off, a stout sewing needle in a pin vice and one of those small razor saw blades.  For reference I used the Haynes Owner's Manual on the F-86 and diagrams from the Warbird Tech book on the F-86 dayfighters. There are a lot of access and inspection panels on this airplane and at first I went at it too quickly but screwed things up in a few places (easily repairable with Mr Surfacer, however) so had to slow it down a little.  There is just no quick way to do it without making a mess out of it, at least for me anyhow.  The panel lines are whitish because I just left the sanding dust in place.   I have another Monogram F-86 that I hope to get to one of these days so the panel templates will come in handy then.

 

SNB10251.jpg

 

Cheers and thanks for looking

 

Dennis

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