Propeller and Stand Diorama Help

[wafu_vasco]

Hello All,

        I'm planning a diorama in 1/72 based around a Seafire in flight. I'd ideally like to be able to clip and unclip the Seafire from a display stand on a shelf, and into the diorama itself. With that in mind, I was after some advice from the community regarding the following:

 

- Has anybody got any recommendations for a good way to depict a propeller in motion for dioramas? I don't really want to see the propeller blades all static, so any ideas for modelling a propeller disc in motion would be wonderful

- Has anybody got any recommendations for how to attach a model to a diorama base so that it appears to be in flight, but can be attached and unattached easily?

 

     Any help would be gratefully received,

           Many thanks!

[Jure Miljevic]

Hello, wafu_vasco

Installing electric servo-motor into your model is one way to deal with this issue. I saw such He 177 bombing run diorama on one or our local competitions and it looked very realistic. Also, check this very convincing ˝motorised˝ Bf 109 E-4 model kit here in RFI section:

Otherwise, one can cut a circle of proper diameter from transparent polystyrene and airbrushed it with thinned-down paints or draw and print decals himself or herself. Not as convincing as servo-motor, but still works quite well. Cheers

Jure

[BIG X]

...Not quite as fantastic as a motorised prop...

 

 

 

...but it works for me as a newbie - just chop off the props and fill in the nosecone

 

Simples - Steve

[James B]

Hi,  

 

I have used prob blurs for this from propblur.com (although in 1/48 scale, they do sell 1/72 as well)  http://www.propblur.com/store/p46/1%2F72nd_On-Hub_PropBlur_Choices.html

 

Looks like I didn't finish the WIP posts... ooops. It does show the prob blur though, and painted it looks really great.

 

 

 

 

[Greenshirt]

I've done both the prop blur route as well as the no blades route. I get quite a few folks talking about the prop blur, but nobody says a thing about no blades. 

[FinnAndersen]

The easy way is just to leave off propeller blades. Go and have a look at a general aviation airfield at small planes starting up and taxiing, you just can't see any prop blur, it's something only visible in photos.

[wafu_vasco]

Thanks very much for all of those options, that's really been helpful. I've ruled out the motor as whilst it looks great and is very impressive, a diorama to me is supposed to be more photo-like and so it seems a little odd that the propeller is moving but nothing else is. The prop blur looks great but to ship over from the States would actually cost more than the entire model. I think I'll try no prop and some clear plastic sheet cut to size and see which works best. Does anybody have any ideas for the mounting stand?

 

Thanks again!

[Bonhoff]

3mm dia clear acrylic rod from ebay - Drill a hole in the underside of your subect. Simples.

[noelh]

As FinnAnderson says in reality turning propellers are all but invisible, its only in photos that you can see anything and that depends on the shutter speed. This invisibility is what makes them very dangerous. I very nearly walked into one once. I still get shivers thinking about it. So the no blades option is perfectly viable. 

 

I think Frog included a spinning propeller option in one of their kits. Typhoon or Tempest. I don't recall which.

[theplasticsurgeon]

this thread shows how I've done what you're looking for.

The stand is coat hanger wire.  To make it removable, I'd consider inserting a plastic tube into the model.

[LotusArenco]

The small motors I shove in are really just a gimmick to use whilst taking photos.

 

This is one of the better ideas I’ve come across for the clear disc method.

http://fillnsand.blogspot.co.uk/2011/06/prop-blur-discs.html

 

I’m not too keen on the etched brass ‘prop blur’ thingies, as they look a bit too much like farming implements stuck on the nose.

 

Clear acrylic rod is your best bet for mounting, as it’ll obviously show less than the copper/brass tubes that I use. A thick piece of scrap plastic, or a block scrap resin overpour, epoxied into the fuselage and drilled out to create a socket for the rod should provide a secure attachment point.

Don’t just drill at 90°, make it a slight angle to give it a bit of life.

 

Mart

[73north]

if you want my advice , get an old , dirt cheap Matchbox 1970's  1/72 Model Kit , and use their display stand , as its moveable and you can alter the position , if you wish later ?