Airfix Sunderland

[LDSModeller]

Here's a plot of the original Göttingen 436:

and of one mod of the above:

However, cross the info of the profile from several sources. I searched the profile for the Fairey Hendon and what turned up was nothing near reality.

In the Short Sunderland manual Mk I it gives the Aerofoil section as Gottingen 436, then in Parentheses it has the words "Modified"

It goes on to give the required chord/incidence/ dihedral measurments (some of them theoretical).

So before we decide that the Gottingen profile is "the" profile or the course to go I think you need to evaluate those words -Modified.

The Gottingen profile may have been used, but looking at the Sunderland wing especially at

the leading edge the profile is different.

Just my two cents worth - wait we don't use two cent pieces any more so it will have to be ten cents.

Regards

Alan

[Kwakou61]

What has been done so far;

The nose job is nearly finished and the fuselage is gradually taking shape now.

After measurements from photo's I came up with a width for the fairing behind the turret of about 15 mm. Compared to the original fairing of 17,5 mm it doesn't seem much difference, but it does influence the overall look of the fuselage. A little sanding alone will not do, so an arc was made of plastic strip that has the right inside width and which can serve as a reference shape for the final nose exterior. Also the side view curve could now be replicated.

Following this a great lot of sanding was involved..

The nose has a rather complicated shape with a lot of curves in several directions so the sanding had to be done with continuous checking for the right track to prevent mishaps. At some spots the plastic became dangerously thin. Fortunately the black paint on the inside gave a timely warning by shining through the white plastic. So I knew when to stop.

I'm satisfied with the result so far.

Also the curve behind the step has been corrected with the aid of plastic putty. The putty has gone off a little after some 10 years and became a bit clay-like. But it was no disadvantage actuallly because I could now sculpt it in place, just the way milliput works I suppose.

Next step is more sanding to finish the rest of the fuselage. Then the wings will be attended to. That will be another can of worms..

More updates later when time allows.

Greetings,

Ron

[Yankymodeler]

Looking good so far! This build is one Ill be watching with great interest. I have 2 of these in my stash, one I'd like to convert into a Sandringham.

Eric F aka The Yankymodeler

[woody37]

Great progress Ron, how are you going to fit the cockpit in as it looks all joined up ?

[Kwakou61]

Looking good so far! This build is one Ill be watching with great interest. I have 2 of these in my stash, one I'd like to convert into a Sandringham.

Eric F aka The Yankymodeler

Thanks guys!

That seems quite a challenge Eric to convert this kit to a Sandringham. I did a google search on this aircraft, since I didn't know the type. But it looks like you will have to alter the nose drastically and add windows too.

But I imagine having this model in some nice livery will be very rewarding. And something different as well.

Great progress Ron, how are you going to fit the cockpit in as it looks all joined up ?

Neil, the cockpit will be installed bit by bit. The floor first and then the parts that stand on it. The reason is that I didn't feel like making interiors as a start, and also because all the sanding dust and water would smudge the paintwork or other damage may be done. And the hole is useful for working with tools on the inside where neccesary.

So when the heavy tools are put aside the painting and fiddling can commence.

[perdu]

I love the subtle curve you've imparted round the turret after your sculpting

The whole thing is becoiming "something else"

b

[Kwakou61]

I love the subtle curve you've imparted round the turret after your sculpting

The whole thing is becoiming "something else"

b

You mean something like this?

[jimbuna]

Coming along nicely.

[woody37]

Neil, the cockpit will be installed bit by bit. The floor first and then the parts that stand on it. The reason is that I didn't feel like making interiors as a start, and also because all the sanding dust and water would smudge the paintwork or other damage may be done. And the hole is useful for working with tools on the inside where neccesary.

So when the heavy tools are put aside the painting and fiddling can commence.

Cool, I feel I may learn a lot here as there's nothing worse than doing all that work to find it spoint by bludgeoning the exterior to bits !!!

[Kwakou61]

Despite the wrestle with the clock, progress is still being made albeit a slow progress.

The vertical fin was installed and partially scribed. But that was a waste of time as it appeared that some corrections to the shape of the fin had to be made first. Consequently the scribed lines are in the wrong position and have to be redone. No problem.

Both the backward slant of the leading edge and the contour of the top had to be altered a little. To which the solution was to sand the leading edge back to what I think is the right angle and install a strip of plastic that was sanded in shape.

Also the curve under the tail was altered slightly and the ports for the fixed guns in the nose were made.

Now I have to think of a way to replace the front and rear turrets from the kit by better examples and scribe panel lines and finish off the fuselage.

The arrows indicate where changes have been made so far.

Greetings all.

[woody37]

You're taking the bull by the horns on this one

The Falcon set has all the clear bits for the sunderland. A bit fiddly to handle, but clear and a great addition to tart these old Airfix kits up. I've got a set here for when I do mine and recommend it highly

[Kwakou61]

You're taking the bull by the horns on this one

The Falcon set has all the clear bits for the sunderland. A bit fiddly to handle, but clear and a great addition to tart these old Airfix kits up. I've got a set here for when I do mine and recommend it highly

Thanks Neil.

That sounds interesting. I was vaguely planning on trying the 'crash molding' technique for the first time and see if I can make these turrets myself. But purchasing an aftermarket set and saving alot of trouble is very tempting though. Are these the old or the new style turrets? I need the new style ones.

Cheers,

Ron

[Sten Ekedahl]

I supose you already know this but in case you don't, there's a lot of useful information and references for the Sunderland here: http://www.seawings.co.uk/

[Forlornhope]

This is looking really good, can't wait to see the fiinished product and the Falcon set turret is the same version as whats in the kit.

[cooldudehenry]

Always liked the 'fat' look of the Sunderland, looking forward to how this will turn out. Great work so far!

Thanks, Henry

[jimbuna]

Great work.

[Scooby]

Always been a softie for the Sunderland, probably because my dad flew in them during WWll

I will enjoy seeing this become a graceful aircraft

Welcome

I have a soft spot for them too, my grandmother built them during the war. She use to tell me the story about all the wee-little bits that went into building those great big planes.

I saw one this year in Florida and placed my hands on it, at the time I was touching it I wondered if my grandmother helped build the same plane.

[Kwakou61]

Thanks for the kind comments and info guys.

At last some more modelling has been done and two new tricks learned in the process.

The first new trick is the use of a so called 'height gauge' for scribing the horizontal panel lines on the fuselage. This tool is normally used for scribing marking lines on metal work pieces. But it is a great tool for making panel lines too! It works fantastic.

It has to be used with care though, otherwise the panel lines will look like trench lines and that's not what we want. But I think it is quicker and more secure than the dymo tape method. Highly recommended. Most of the horizontal lines have been made so far. The rest will follow soon.

The other new trick is the usage of Milliput. Great stuff! I made a mould for both the front and the rear turret in order to try crash moulding clear parts for the turrets. The material works like a charm with all kinds of tools and in my case most importantly, it is also heat resistant.

Unfortunately two attempts to make the clear parts failed. The clear sheet refused to wrap around the mould well enough so I have to think of a better way to give it another go. I could get away with painting the mould white to resemble the font turret on the first photo. But I do need a clear tail turret so I'm not giving up yet. The mould for he front turret has to be repaired first as some damage was inflicted during the crash moulding attempts as can be seen on the picture. Of course in an event of succes the result will be showed here.

Hopefully soon more..

[perdu]

Kwakou61 I don't know if this will be welcome, hope so. I don't like to think I'm interfering after all.

When I "pull mould" (my term for the process you have tried out) I like to get the mould master quite high if I intend to get a close in "fit", so I add a length of dowelling to the mould and hold the acetate close in as I pull past the mould which makes it conform closely to the workpiece

The picture probably helps you see what I mean. The Frog kit Typhoon canopy has had a bulge added to it for the internal mirror fitted to many early car-door type Typhoons. When the moulds are still warm your fingernail can help make the new moulding conform nicely if you run around the bulgey bit with one. I find my thumbnail is quite heatproof when used for this purpose.

I hope this picture isn't too big too

[perdu]

And bytheway ( I meant to put this above) she is looking very good now, I love the inset clear pieces. They are working perfectly as is the horizontal scribing, your tool takes me back to my toolroom days

[bigbadbadge]

Crikey, Lots of work, looking good, will watch with interest. Keep up the good work

All the best

Chris

[woody37]

Wow, you're taming the beast here. it's coming along very nicely. Great tip for scribing

[Kwakou61]

Bill, please do interfere, as it is of great help to me!

While reading your desription of how you made your Typhoon canopy I was/am wondering what on earth am I doing wrong?

I am using a pole too to have enough clearance to pull down (see picture)

Yet I don't get that fine result you are getting.

But after a closer look at your picture and seeing how your clear sheet behaves, I'm now getting the feeling that I may be wanting something impossible. The turret I'm trying to make has a wider top than bottom and I probably should not expect the sheet to contract back to the mould once passing the top of the mould. In that case I take it the turret must be made in two halves. I'm not looking forward to that to be honest..

The tail turret doesn't have this problem so when the opportunity occurs this will be the next try.

Thanks Chris.

It is a lot of work indeed. My biggest problem is time at the moment but I hope things will improve soon. I better had picked up something less ambitious, oh well..

The height gauge for scribing tool I'm very enthusiastic about Neil. I'm definately planning to use it for future projects too. The main thing is to make some provision for the part to be scribed secured firmly. But I think it is worth the extra work to make some kind of a stable stand that can be easily cleaned up in a later building stage.

What must be stated also is that the tool is rather expensive. I use it for many things and am glad to have purchased one once. It is also a very useful measuring instrument. With some luck a good one can be purchased second hand for a reasonable price.

Greetings!

Ron

[airhead]

If your attempt had worked like you wanted it to. Your master pattern would have been trapped in the canopy.

Although you probably need to make slots for the guns which will maybe give it enough flex to free the master again.

Nooby did something similar with his Defiant turret which we all know turned out great.

Excellent effort so far!

[Kwakou61]

If your attempt had worked like you wanted it to. Your master pattern would have been trapped in the canopy.

Although you probably need to make slots for the guns which will maybe give it enough flex to free the master again.

Nooby did something similar with his Defiant turret which we all know turned out great.

Excellent effort so far!

You are right Hans. The master would have been trapped. But the plan was to cut a vertical incision in the back of the canopy. Then the clear part should be peeled off easily I think. Since the rear part of the canopy is both invisible and opaque it could be glued back together without causing problems.

Cheers,

ron