Catching Pictures in the Air

[The Spadgent]

See. I tolds ya.  wonderful canopy rubbage old chum, she's looking mighty fine. Thanks for the link to the bay too.

cheap enough to take a punt. 

 

Johnny

[CedB]

Great work on the door and seats Tony and I hope you sort out the windows... I think I'd just go for ClearFix replacements at the end, but I'm just lazy.

Now the main congratulations for the wiper removal; great job, great result, lovely shiny clear screen. Micro-mesh is great stuff and you've obviously mastered it. Lovely.

[canberra kid]

Some really fantastic work going on here Tony, keep it up it's n inspiration! 

John

[TheBaron]

23 hours ago, Martian Hale said:

That canopy has come up a treat!

 

23 hours ago, keefr22 said:

Can't fault that Tony! 

Cheers lads. I'm glad that's done now, though out of the frying pan into the fire as you'll see below....

23 hours ago, rob85 said:

This is some fine and tiny work Tony! That canopy has come out a treat, and the cockpit looks like it will be more of the same. Nice work

 

I'm a fan of your cubist 'pete' Tony, a fine hat your abstract self is wearing as well

My thanks Don Roberto! I regret that that hat is by now an absolutely filthy item that but one I wouldn't part with for the world. It can be screwed up in the boot for long trips and unfolds like new straight after, soaked, baked (and even frozen when I left it out to dry one winter night and there was a heavy frost). One of T. Snook's finest:

http://snooksthehatters.co.uk/

20 hours ago, Nigel Heath said:

Good move on removing those moulded wipers, I hate the things. Are you planning to make PE replacements like I recently did for my Sycamore build?

Hi Nigel. Yes. I hopped over last night to have a look at your thread and that PE approach looks just the job for later on. I'm also going to thieve borrow that handy 'blobby knob' technique for the seat adjustment levers, and you'll note also a familiar masking technique below. What is is the say about imitation being? 

19 hours ago, 71chally said:

Very nice Tony, btw I only joined in with the wiper removal chorus to show that even a ham fisted clutz like myself can kind of get away with this sort work, just glad it didn't backfire!

Have you removed the molded framework as well, or is it the lighting?

Thanks James. Yes, around the wiper area I ditched the not-very-prominent frame-moulding, but the sides are still there. Given the prominence of the window framing, as you can see in one of these excellent shots you put up a link for:

...I'm anticipating using the metal foil technique I've employed for canopy framing on the last couple of builds emphasize these details asseen in the photo above - especially with those prominent rivets, I might get a chance to try out me new rivetting tool!

19 hours ago, 71chally said:

Just while it's on my mind (I dare say you already know!), Italeri depict the nose gear doors as too long in the open position. 

They should be halved, with just the rear halves open while parked, the fwd halves open on gear travel.

We'll be in flight on this one, so all seat backs and folding trays will be in their full upright position.....

16 hours ago, perdu said:

Wiperless is definitely a 'look' that suits Boxy, very nicely done

 

Exxxxcelent!

Thanks Bill. Toying with the idea of a teenager with a Squeegee clinging onto the front for dear life...
 

7 hours ago, The Spadgent said:

See. I tolds ya.  

Yep. You were dead on! 

7 hours ago, CedB said:

Great work on the door and seats Tony and I hope you sort out the windows... I think I'd just go for ClearFix replacements at the end, but I'm just lazy.

Now the main congratulations for the wiper removal; great job, great result, lovely shiny clear screen. Micro-mesh is great stuff and you've obviously mastered it. Lovely.

Hiya Ced. Those seats aren't at all bad so I didn't want to pretzel any of the detail. Thanks also for the support on the MM  - looking at your Sea Fury canopy really helped! I haven't tried ClearFix, so something else to investigate!

3 hours ago, canberra kid said:

Some really fantastic work going on here Tony, keep it up it's n inspiration! 

Coming from the Canberrameister, that is high praise indeed - thanks John!

 

 

Having pushed ahead on the cockpit greenhouse yesterday, I figured I needed to bite the bullet and get it masked inside and out. It'll have to be masked inside anyway because of the control console in the roof of the cockpit, but I also want to try adding some of the ridged framework detail that you can see inside there as well. It may be too fine to pull off successfully at this scale but I'll give it a shot just to see.

 

I started by appropriating @Nigel Heaths elegant 'Turin Shroud' method of making the inner and outer masks in parallel:

Why is that such a satisfying scrap of paper? A soft 2B pencil required as the moulding isn't all that prominent on the canopy in places, plus my ministrations yesterday have reduced it even further in places.

 

You can't quite see it from this angle but Italeri have moulded the side-framing with a pronounced forward rake, one which I feel is a tad more acute than can be seen in the photo above for instance.  That said, it only really became apparent when I began cutting out the masks and decided  -for better or worse- it was not intrusive enough to warrant a complete strip-down of the transparency. Just something to note.

 

From the relatively few photos in this update, you'll not be surprised to learn that this process was very time-consuming: these bits were a right bloomin' showah to get right, especially the parts that curve in two dimensions, as the underneath is not the same as the outer mask due to the thickness of the transparency moulding. After 3 hours then, I ended up with this:

Midway through the session I found myself humming the theme tune to Tomorrow's World in an increasingly OCD spiral.

You do realize that there are a series of concertina-like curtains that need to go inside that glazing as well?

I don't think I'm capable of any more now after that. Mrs. B is making pizza and I must seek a Cuba Libre.

Tony

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Nigel Heath]

Nice to see you using some of my little techniques. Looking forward to the seat adjustment levers.

[rob85]

That's some fine masking there Tony, as a man who masks his own canopies (sounds like a euphemism) I and say that would a scared the bejesus out of me, it takes far too much focus! Much more that my flighty mind could yeild that's for sure!

 

cheers for the heads up on the hats (see what I did there? Clever aren't I) I have my one good hat which is an olive (ish) green wool fedora I was never a hat man until I met it but now it sits on my head most the winter... my little boy was jealous so we bought him a matching hat. Maybe I should invest in a summer one? Hmmm

 

Rob

[TheBaron]

1 hour ago, Nigel Heath said:

Nice to see you using some of my little techniques. Looking forward to the seat adjustment levers.

 Expect this to be the most adjustable Boxcar yet.

15 minutes ago, rob85 said:

That's some fine masking there Tony, as a man who masks his own canopies (sounds like a euphemism) I and say that would a scared the bejesus out of me, it takes far too much focus! Much more that my flighty mind could yeild that's for sure!

 

cheers for the heads up on the hats (see what I did there? Clever aren't I) I have my one good hat which is an olive (ish) green wool fedora I was never a hat man until I met it but now it sits on my head most the winter... my little boy was jealous so we bought him a matching hat. Maybe I should invest in a summer one? Hmmm

Thanks for that Rob. As one prone to sunstroke a summer hat is obligatory for me, though Mrs.B was delighted a couple of summers back when I l drove off with my Panama on the roof of car, never to be seen again. She always considered it made me look an elderly solicitor from Midsomer Murders....

 

From whence I know not, I found a second wind just now so rather than get my snout in a beaker of joy-juice straight away, I took the balsa ('buck' I think James called it above?) out to the shed for some bump& grind on an upturned belt sander. Never having worked balsa ever in the past I had to consiously restrain myself from immediately grinding it into dust at the high speed setting, but after about 10 minutes, managed to get the main shape roughed out, prior to hand-sanding the profiles down more exactly:

You can see for yourself I've still to rake the pronounced 'hump' out of the upper curve, whilst the lower one sill needs to be brought in by a mill. or so at least.

The sides seem about right now, but I'm anticipating some major patience to get the diminishing curve of the corners equal on each side top and bottom. I definitely won't risk that finer-tolerance stuff now tonight. I knows me limits.

 

I do need to finish with a question to the more experienced 'plungers' amongst you, if you don't mind? Given that the plastic will be plunged over that buck later, do I make it slightly smaller than kit-size size to compensate for the thickness of the plastic, or the same size as the kit due to plastic shrinking when cooling? I've no idea...

 

[perdu]

Slightly thinner to allow for the thickness, as you expected

 

😃

 

It is getting the nice shape you need too

 

A coat of Alan W Hall's favourite dope and talc mix to actually get a finish to shape off with your sandpaper too

[hendie]

2 hours ago, TheBaron said:

 

23 hours ago, Nigel Heath said:

Good move on removing those moulded wipers, I hate the things. Are you planning to make PE replacements like I recently did for my Sycamore build?

Hi Nigel. Yes. I hopped over last night to have a look at your thread and that PE approach looks just the job for later on. I'm also going to thieve borrow that handy 'blobby knob' technique for the seat adjustment levers, and you'll note also a familiar masking technique below. What is is the say about imitation being? 

 

 

If you really want a challenge, and based on what you've done so far... apparently you do.... are you going to get some silicone and mold a set of rubber blades to attach to your PE wipers ?

 

just askin' that's all

[Martian]

1 hour ago, hendie said:

 

 

If you really want a challenge, and based on what you've done so far... apparently you do.... are you going to get some silicone and mold a set of rubber blades to attach to your PE wipers ?

 

just askin' that's all

You are a bad man Hendie!

 

Martian

[TheBaron]

2 hours ago, perdu said:

Slightly thinner to allow for the thickness, as you expected

My thanks for that Bill.

 

I don't have any dope but I believe that talc mixed with Klear can perform as an acceptable substitute, so I might give that a lash.

 

1 hour ago, hendie said:

 

 

If you really want a challenge, and based on what you've done so far... apparently you do.... are you going to get some silicone and mold a set of rubber blades to attach to your PE wipers ?

  Currently tapping a rubber tree in preparation hendie!

43 minutes ago, Martian Hale said:

You are a bad man Hendie!

I heard you say that in Spencer Tracy's voice!

[TonyTiger66]

Well Herr von Baron, I finally caught up. You'll have noticed my mouse like scampering up the thread over the last couple of days, by my crumb like trail of well deserved 'likes' .

 

Just marvelllous. The soldering is coming along a treat; I really like the crew seats. 💺  .

 

The bin bag wrinkle and shrink looks good, I too am interested to see what happens to it when colour is involved.

 

I'm glad you had to saw the roof away, and that you then detailed it. The kit roof just doesn't cut the mustard with the 'concept solution' they have.

 

You're a braver man than I with the windscreen wiper removal; how you've managed to end up with no trace at all is beyond me, great stuff  .

 

Now the old balsa. Lovely stuff. Made many a flying balsa thing in my childhood (and my 30's too). There's something incredibly relaxing about whittling and fettling and sanding balsa to the profile of cowlings, turtledecks etc, as I hope you're now finding.

 

I'm really looking forward to seeing you take the plunge. 

 

Happy Sunday Mr. B, thanks for a great read over the last couple of nights .

 

TonyT

[hendie]

1 hour ago, Martian Hale said:

You are a bad man Hendie!

 

just hate to see a potential scratching detail go unnoticed  

 

[71chally]

Great Raymond Baxter moments, really do admire the man. 

I was brought up in the era of him narrating the Farnborough shows on TV, and nobody could make "and here now running in from the left is the Dassault Breguet BR1150 Atlantique Generation Deux of the French Aeronavale" sound so silky smooth, rich and exciting!

[bigbadbadge]

Wow some great work Tony, roof details look fab and the canopy has come up a treat.  Keep up the good work.

 

All the best

Chris

[keefr22]

1 hour ago, 71chally said:

Great Raymond Baxter moments, really do admire the man. 

I was brought up in the era of him narrating the Farnborough shows on TV, and nobody could make "and here now running in from the left is the Dassault Breguet BR1150 Atlantique Generation Deux of the French Aeronavale" sound so silky smooth, rich and exciting!

 

Ah that brings back memories, used to love his commentaries! And just imagine the BBC televising Farnborough now...

 

K

[perdu]

Spencer T huh? You know what? I think you may have just generated a new persona, wasn't the already excellent one OK?

 

THIS BALSA THING

 

The dope and talc mix is not supposed to make it shiny, the intention is to harden the surface which THEN makes it a surface you can polish smooth and lose any ripples

 

Maybe wear a face mask and use many tubes of Tommy Walsh stuporgoo for the same task

 

I use it a lot on my 'peg-wood' canopy moulds to get a polishable surface

[TheBaron]

15 hours ago, TonyTiger66 said:

Happy Sunday Mr. B, thanks for a great read over the last couple of nights

My thanks for your kind comments Mr. Tiger.  I can't take any credit for the quality of the windscreen results  - after the 'leap of faith' involved in the initial surgery, MicroMesh used correctly seems a foolproof and forgiving procedure.

15 hours ago, TonyTiger66 said:

There's something incredibly relaxing about whittling and fettling and sanding balsa to the profile of cowlings, turtledecks etc, as I hope you're now finding.

I'm finding it unaccountably frightening, but then again, I was asked to leave woodwork O-level after 'that' incident with the lathe. They shouldn't let boys near it if they didn't want them to experiment with ballistics...

15 hours ago, hendie said:

just hate to see a potential scratching detail go unnoticed

A classic BM sentiment! 

13 hours ago, 71chally said:

Great Raymond Baxter moments, really do admire the man. 

I was brought up in the era of him narrating the Farnborough shows on TV, and nobody could make "and here now running in from the left is the Dassault Breguet BR1150 Atlantique Generation Deux of the French Aeronavale" sound so silky smooth, rich and exciting!

I could not have put that better myself.

How many of our collective Sunday afternoons were enriched by those urbane tones, just conveying the right undercurrent of still-boyish excitement at some gargantuan funnel of horsepower going vertical over the Home Counties. Remember this classic Baxterian understatement from the BBC Secret War series?

 

12 hours ago, bigbadbadge said:

Wow some great work Tony, roof details look fab and the canopy has come up a treat.  Keep up the good work.

Cheers Chris - hope the decorating's going ok?

11 hours ago, keefr22 said:

And just imagine the BBC televising Farnborough now...

When was it last televised? I've no idea. It's pointless even going into a rant about such matters; I long ago stopped watching broadcast television so forfeit the right.

3 hours ago, perdu said:

Maybe wear a face mask and use many tubes of Tommy Walsh stuporgoo for the same task

Superglue face mask. Got it. 

NOOOOOoooooooo........

                                         :

                                         .

                                         .

                                         .

                                         .....makes it shiny he said. Lose any ripples he said. Does it look like I'm losing any efffing ripples!

 

[Phil Lewis]

THIS is what's kept me laughing for the last couple of months.

Some stellar modelling skills to boot

[perdu]

Little boy in seventies (eighties?) advert

 

"I'm not helping am I dad?"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

😎

[TheBaron]

5 hours ago, Phil Lewis said:

THIS is what's kept me laughing for the last couple of months.

Some stellar modelling skills to boot

Wotch Phil! Nice to hear from you mate - thanks for the kind comments sir.

5 hours ago, perdu said:

Little boy in seventies (eighties?) advert

 

"I'm not helping am I dad?"

 

I took you at your word Bill and loaded up at the pound (well, euro) shop on the way home:

Note how I ponied-up for 'Extra Super Power' brand? I'm sure I'll see a difference.

Not going to get a chance to do anything with it tonight however as I'm having to multi-task between cooking Chinese and supervising my youngest constructing a Viking shield with assorted power tools.

 

A friend at work arrived home a few months back to find a blazing cavity in the garden where his son of a similar age had ignited a forge 'for sword-making'.

 

What is it with the youth of today? In my day we had rioting and underage pregnancy to occupy us....

 

Not that their elders are setting a good example I note in today's Wailing Fail:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4551584/Fan-forced-separate-Flash-Gordon-Incredible-Hulk.html

 

 

Baron Rueful

[Fritag]

On 28/05/2017 at 2:55 PM, TheBaron said:

the inner and outer masks

 

Inner and outer masks - hats off to that man 

 

On 28/05/2017 at 2:55 PM, TheBaron said:

 

 

 

Now, it seems to that's the smile of a man who's just been low flying in a proper aeroplane........

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 29, 2017 by Fritag

[Nigel Heath]

Be warned that talc catalyses the setting of superglue so you will only have a minute or so to work with it before it sets. It does make a nice adherent filler though.

[perdu]

What?

 

That slab sided old thing behind him?

 

 

 

No no I can see what it is, and intuition works too

 

(scurries off to watch the clip now I can because not looking in on my Android tablet which refuses to allow me to open a second tab from a link)  

 

Seen the rather odd clip, hell of a guy Mr Baxter

 

Tony the goo will go off quickly with the talc in it so be prepared to do small dollops at a time

 

And really, don't breathe the sh.. fumes

 

In bulk they can do awful things

[Tomoshenko]

A word caution Tony (in as much the same vein as washing one's hands thoroughly or wearing gloves after / before chopping up chillies before inserting contact lenses or an amorous encounter) keep the superglue, cotton buds and talc separate. Something tells me getting that lot mixed could go horribly horribly wrong followed by an embarrassing trip to A & E.

 

Raymond Baxter ... top man. Even if I am still waiting to see all those Tomorrow's World inventions in the shops.

 

The build...getting madder and more wonderful by the day.

 

Oh and, couldn't resit: