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1/48 DH-2 - What Have I Let Myself In For? +++ Completed ++++


Bonhoff

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Hi all, my (First, there may be more) effort for this GB is Eduard's "Weekend Edition" DH-2 in 1/48th scale. 

 

Apparently not for beginners, before starting this my sum total of experience with biplanes is one Matchbox Walrus, a Frog Gladiator and a Revell Fokker DVII. The Walrus remains on the shelf of doom as all the single struts scared me....

 

Still, there are a couple of Airfix's recent biplane efforts in the stash for another day but I'm looking forward to the challenge of this one. 

 

If not the rigging....

 

32864813992_4da25fe5b2_c.jpg

 

32978535406_ab9b4e6557_c.jpg

 

 

Edited by Bonhoff
Completed
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Hi Bonhoff,

 

Great choice! I am going to do one of these as well, but the Profipack version for the extra added torture:nuts:

 

perhaps we can nudge each other along?

 

Christian. exiled to africa

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Great kit, best of luck with the build! I pulled my copy out of the stash but I think I'll hold off on building it until after I've practised rigging on something simpler...several possibilities for that which might fit with From Russia With Love or Matchbox II...

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Spent a bit of time on it over the last couple of lunchtimes at work and this is where we are....

 

32211887324_6d86e8cfb1_c.jpg

 

Couple of quick coats of Humbrol acrylic primer thinned with Vallejo thinners followed by Vallejo Dark Sand for the linen, Humbrol 110 for the wood and Vallejo London Grey for the metal bits, all with a hairystick then followed by a citadel brown wash. It'll do.

 

The instruments are individual decals and they're tiny, fortunately they come with spares. 

 

Enjoying this. Although I've found a rigging guide online and it looks quite intimidating so the enjoyment may stop at some point.

 

Quick addendum to original post: Remembered that I've built some more biplanes - Airfix Albatross, Walfisch and Sopwith Camel. When I was seven.

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Hi Bonoff,

 

Looking good!

 

You are doing better than me; I have just washed the plastic and started working out where to drill to place the eyelets for the rigging, (:rage::suicide:). 

I have been looking at photographs of the cockpit and am now in a quandary as how to paint it as there seems to be some that are in a light tonal finish, (grey), bare wood and differing points between. This is not helped by the WNW instructions that say either grey or wood:hmmm:.  

 

On-On!

 

Christian, exiled to africa

 

 

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With regards to the cockpit I just followed Eduard's instructions and then reconciled their colour call out with what I had in my travelling toolbox.

 

This fits in with my thinking of it was 100 years ago, no colour film then and no-one else in the family will question the colour scheme chez Bonhoff.

 

Good job you mentioned drilling for the rigging - I was just going to add the wires to where the struts meet the wings and ignore the lack of turnbuckles in the Weekend version.

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Minor annoyance averted!!

 

32785882020_ae33cd6b60_c.jpg

 

You see the rod directly in front of the control column?

 

Eduard supplied a beautifully delicate part for this which I think would be connecting the column to the elevator horns on the real thing.

 

So delicate that it was all mishapen and in fact snapped in two when I removed it from the sprue. Fishing around for something to go in its place I found a pin, this then pinged off when I tried to cut it to length. Fishing  once more I realised that the propelling pencil had a lead that would do the job.

 

 The lap strap is made from foil from the top of a big can of coffee from the office kitchen.

 

33168392875_1ffb244c74_c.jpg

 

View of the instrument panel. The cockpit is all buttoned up now and has been attached to the lower wing - Looking at the overall construction I think that this will turn out to be a model made up of various sub-assemblies - Engine next.

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Still enjoying it.

 

Have now primed the nacelle / lower wing and used a very fine brush along with a rather unsteady hand to give definition to the ribs, no way I was going to mask all that up. Hopefully a couple of thinned coats of my chosen Linen colour will still show the ribs afterwards.

 

32342936094_49a3a0ff38_c.jpg

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Looks good. I will be interested to see how your linen ribbing turns out. I masked up a Bleriot earlier this year for the same thing and couldn't really tell I'd done it when I took the masking off at the end!

 

Regards,

Adrian

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Looking good so far. I shall attempt one of these in 1/32nd scale some time, in 1/48th all that rigging would give me nightmares.

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 3/11/2017 at 6:29 PM, AdrianMF said:

I will be interested to see how your linen ribbing turns out. 

 

As it happens it's rubbish - I put most of the blame down to me deciding that I'd paint it at my desk with lots of thin layers of paint. Just can't get the paint to lay down consistently. Changed brushes, thinner for water and vice versa, Vallejo or Humbrol, Looks bl00dy awful now. Can't really see the ribs but even after 6/7/8 coats of paint I can still see the primer. Arrghh!

 

Then I took a couple of photos to illustrate a modification to the plastic which I hope will help others - I thought the forward cabane struts (If that's not the correct term please let me know - The ones from the fuselage to the upper wing centre section) would end up splayed out as they were catching the raised plastic lip outlined in red.

 

33416957112_6039a44987_c.jpg

 

So I simply trimmed the lip off and now the struts can go vertical.....

 

33533054766_fe1f0322b4_c.jpg

 

However - Upon inspection of the full size photos taken with the macro function on my tablet, the paint finish looks like the surface of the moon! Not just the linen but the Vallejo London Grey too. :poop:

 

Tempted to take it home and see if I can't strip the paint back and use the airbrush instead :rant: 

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Before doing anything too drastic try a light rub with micromesh, that may tone down the effect to an acceptable level.

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 21/03/2017 at 6:42 PM, AndrewE said:

Before doing anything too drastic try a light rub with micromesh, that may tone down the effect to an acceptable level.

Followed AndrewE's advice and purchased some micromesh. Although it had a slight effect on the grey (rubbed down and varnished now) it just seemed to make matters worse on the linen.

 

Ho hum. Back home it was then where I elected to respray the linen using Tamiya Deck Tan.

 

Result!

 

33723137956_2f00f3a783_c.jpg

 

The highlights still showed through which isn't immediately apparent so hopefully can now get on with it again.

 

Until next time,

 

IanJ

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Sorry!  Although it looks nicely weathered now in the photos. :whistle:

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1 hour ago, AndrewE said:

Sorry!  Although it looks nicely weathered now in the photos. :whistle:

 

Hardly your fault :P 

 

I did the sanding bit all by myself and managed to rub the paint off the ribs on part of the lower wing, that's when I took the decision to spray a patchy covering over it all.

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  • 1 month later...

Sort of but am approximately 1390 miles from the Iancave so unable to do much involving pictures on this tablet. 

 

Will post when back in UK.

 

IanJ

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