Airfix 72nd scale dH-88 Comet. New release, ancient molding

[geedubelyer]

Hello Col. and thanks for the kind words. What we could really do with is a new tool Comet. I'm not much into this modelling lark preffering instead to simply assemble a nice, accurate kit. All of this re-shaping and re-modelling is hard work. Hats off to those who choose to do this stuff on a regular basis

Hi Roger, thanks for the generous words, glad you like it so far.

With a day off work I had more time to dabble. I'm already fed up with filling and sanding (although there's tons more to do) so took a detour and attacked the tip of the nose.

An eye-catching feature of the Comet would be the huge landing light mounted directly in the nose yet Airfix chose not to model it back in the distant past. The nose is solid (and now mishapen given the age of the tooling) so would benefit from a swanky new light fitting.

I began by making sure that the tip of the airframe was round in section. The kit shape is more akin to a pentagram than a circle some some judicious sanding was necessary.

The size of the light was a best guess since I don't have any plans. I used a mini drill bit to ream the opening and create a dish ready for a reflector.

My method for reproducing the reflector is to use shiny metal foil.

I start by punching out a small disc.

Using the blunt end of one of my paintbrushes I used a little pressure to create the concave, dished shape....

This was then mounted in the nose.

Next up, the glazing.

This time I used the tried and trusted method of smash molding. The blunt end of another paintbrush came in handy as I warmed a strip of acetate from some food packaging over a tea-light candle befre pulling it down gently over the paintbrush handle.

A fine razor saw sperated the very tip which was then glued over the reflector.

I'm not sure how exact the size is compared to the actual bird but it does look a little better than the original kit parts.

Tomorrow, back to the joy of filling, cutting and sanding.........yaay

Cheers.

Edited October 17, 2014 by geedubelyer

[Col.]

Impressive work on the nose light. A small but significant improvement.

Must admit I've resisted the temptation to buy the same kit in the hope Airfix release a new tooling packed full of accuracy and detail for the very reasons you state. Such a beautiful aircraft and one I could quite easily justify building multiple incarnations of if a good new kit were to appear.

[Fritag]

Impressive work on the nose light. A small but significant improvement......

........Such a beautiful aircraft.....

Agree with Col on both those points.

I recently re-read Arthur Clouston's memoir 'Dangerous Skies' which includes accounts of his flights in G-ACSS in the 1937 Istres to Damascus race, later that year from Croydon to Cape Town and back and in 1938 to New Zealand and back. Epic flying feats - all with just dead reckoning navigation. Awesome.

Really iconic aircraft. Inspiring stuff Geedubelyer. Really doing it justice.

[Sir T]

Fantastic work thus far!

A newly tooled kit would indeed wonderful!

[Fea]

Ayup All...

I can't see any reason why this subject should be re-tooled, TBH. But the mould should be melted down and thrown into the deepest Abyss in the sea for my money ! Get rid of it Airfix, LOL. Great work BTW.

Edited October 18, 2014 by Fea

[Hamden]

Nice work on the landing light, it will make all he difference to the completed model

Roger

[geedubelyer]

Such a beautiful aircraft and one I could quite easily justify building multiple incarnations of if a good new kit were to appear.

A newly tooled kit would indeed wonderful!

Never a truer word gents. A Comet in 1/32nd scale is another one of my dream kits. I know there was one out a few years ago but they are hard to find and insanely expensive now. I wonder where one might find accurate scale drawings.....

I recently re-read Arthur Clouston's memoir 'Dangerous Skies' which includes accounts of his flights in G-ACSS in the 1937 Istres to Damascus race, later that year from Croydon to Cape Town and back and in 1938 to New Zealand and back. Epic flying feats - all with just dead reckoning navigation. Awesome.

Sounds spectacular Steve. Just imagine being at that pioneering edge of aviation back then. Amazing courage.

The more I see of this aeroplane and hear tales of the pilots the more I fall in love with her. I know beauty is in the eye of the beholder but this design must rank as one of the most graceful and dynamic ever. Memo to me.......make sure you get to see her in the air next year!

So on with the build and the horizontal tails next. Here's a look at them on the sprue. Once again, soft demarcation lines for the moving parts and the wrong angle to the cut at the tip. (Red line original kit shape, blue line proposed shape)

Now then, with Halloween fast approaching, here's something to give you nightmares....(those who hide behind cushions on the sofa during Dr.Who might wish to stop reading here........ )

Ok, I'm exaggerating a little but still, check out this mis-alignment.

A relatively easy fix but one to watch out for if you build this model. Also, the tailplanes fitted where they touched originally so some sanding and re-shaping of the joint was necessary. Even then I was left with some gaps.

To help fill the gaps I decided to attempt to get closer to the shape of the original around this whole area. I pencilled on a line where a covering panel exists on the full sized bird.

Used a thin strip of tape to outline the shape then slathered green stuff all over.

I smoother this down with a wet sculpting tool removing most of the excess as I went. Lastly I removed the tape to leave a fine, raised line of putty in the (rough) shape of the panels.

It should be interesting to see how it looks when primed.

Now here's a thing and something I'd value your input on dear readers. Whilst flying the model around the room I held it up against one of the reference photos and thought I saw something fascinating.

The proportions of the horizontal tail to the fin and rudder looked off. It was more a side view shot that got me thinking about it but the image above shows a rear three-quarter view. When I aligned the model up on the screen so that the fuselage matched the image, the rudder fitted beautifully but the horizontal tails were too wide in chord and a smidge to long in span. It's difficult to show it in a photo but bares further investigation. I don't have any drawings to compare it too so I'm relying on photos.

Anyone care to share their thoughts on the matter?

Nice work on the landing light, it will make all he difference to the completed model

Roger

Thanks Roger, glad you like it. As I was studying various images of the real deal I had a closer look at the landing light yesterday. Originally I'd thought that it was a large concave reflector but in fact, the light has a flat lens that has a diffuser portion at the bottom.

I punched out a small disc of clear acetate and scratched some lines on it with the back of a scalpel.

I pushed a length of clear stretched sprue into the centre of the metal dish and glued the clear disc over the top.

It adds a little more visual interest to a very prominent feature.

Also, I revisited the shape of the lens cover. I think the Mk1 version was too flat when compared to the full sized one.

Mk2 is sharper.

Trouble is, I think I over egged it. Probably too sharp now! Watch out for Mk3 soon.

Edited October 19, 2014 by geedubelyer

[geedubelyer]

Hello folks,

As we edge ever closer to Halloween I've discovered even more horrors lurking in the shadows . (Those of you with a milder disposition may wish to change channel. )

The culprit,........the engine fairings. {~dah-dah-daaah~ }

Yep, these blighters are frightening. Truly scary. Now I know some of you are used to this kind of kit and actually enjoy bashing them into shape but for someone who has been used to Tamiya and new tool Airfix, these are a bit of a shocker. See below for an explanation.

The molds are really showing their age on these parts, moreso even than the fuselage.

In addition to the mishapen cowlings and air intakes, the fit to the wings is pretty poor too.

What this does highlight, of course, is the skill of some of the blokes who have already built this beauty. Check out the Ready for Inspection forum to see what I mean. Kudos dudes.

So, where to begin?

Well, you only eat an elephant one bite at a time so just do what's in front of you. First up, those prominent gills on the sides of the cowlings. Airfix have molded these as raised detail but in truth they are open vents.

I sanded the raised detail away until only a shadow was left. I used that faint outline as a guide and chain drilled tiny holes in four parallel (=roughly parallel) lines then joined the dots.

Hollowing out the area behind the gills gives them a better appearance from the front.

In fact, I elongated the openings a little as the molded ones seemed a tad small when compared to refs. I've also begun to sand the shoulder of the cowling so that the shape of the gills better replicates the originals. The image below descibes what I mean.

I can see those openings in the front of the cowlings will take some work. I'm guessing that this boxing was closer in shape to the original Comet whereas the modern version has revised intakes in this area. I'll have to spend a little time working out how to create this area.

Also, the opening for the undercarriage differs too. References seem to show a more ovoid shape rather than rectangular so the trusty file will come in handy once more. Additionally, this new Comet has an extended lower cowling over the exhaust pipe so that will need building up with putty.

I expect to use a similar technique to that which I employed around the horizontal tails when it comes to mating the engine fairings to the wings. If I have any green stuff left after that I'll probably use it to re-shape the very aft end of the fairing a smidge.

You know what they say, "the best laid plans of mice and men...." Let's see how much of this bold plan comes to fruition.

Cheers for now.

Edited October 24, 2014 by geedubelyer

[Hamden]

I'm really enjoying watching you beat this into submission.

You will end up with a remarkable example of this model!

Roger

[Caerbannog]

A very great build of an extreemly nice airplane. I had this kit once but sold it on - you could as well say I chickend out. (only to buy the Heritage Aviation 1:48 resin kit and now hope for a GB next year in which the Comet fits so it gets finally build).

Rene

[Tomoshenko]

Well you certainly have a labour of love on the bench there. A new tool of this kit is long overdue. That said you're working wonders. Like the little detail stuff like the light and vents.

[Bordfunker]

Your attention to detail is outstanding and I really like your solution to the landing light.

Looking forward to seeing how this turns out.

Karl

[geedubelyer]

Hi guys, thanks for all of the kind words, as always, very much appreciated.

I'm really enjoying watching you beat this into submission.

Roger

Ha ha, I don't know who's beating who Roger. Every time I pick the model up and check a reference I find something new to contemplate and cogitate on

A very great build of an extreemly nice airplane. I had this kit once but sold it on - you could as well say I chickend out. (only to buy the Heritage Aviation 1:48 resin kit and now hope for a GB next year in which the Comet fits so it gets finally build).

Rene

Hi Rene, I imagine the 1/48th kit will be nice. Good luck with the GB. Any idea as to which racer you will model?

Given it's size, this aeroplane would be an ideal candidate for 1/32nd scale (or even 1/24th scale....are you listening Airfix? )

Well you certainly have a labour of love on the bench there. A new tool of this kit is long overdue.

Hi Tomoshenko, many thanks for the generous comments. If I'd have realised what was involved before I started I probably would n't have opened the box but I'm commited now (or should be perhaps?) so I'd better try to see it through. If Airfix ever release a new tool I'll probably build another.

Your attention to detail is outstanding and I really like your solution to the landing light.

Looking forward to seeing how this turns out.

Karl

Hi Karl, thanks for stopping by and adding your support, much appreciated. I'd love to be happy to build out of the box but many times I find myself tinkering. The thing is, if the kit does n't look like the full sized bird then I'm not keen on having it in the cabinet.

Whether this one ends up looking like the full sized item remains to be seen.

Those horrible gaping holes in the front of the engine nacelles took some thinking about. In the end there was nothing else for it but to dive in.

Adopting a strategy of a bit at a time I started by enlarging the uppermost hole.

I filled these using discs punched out of plastic extrusion (Evergreen strip).

I filed an oval recess into the leading edge of the right hand side of the engine cover cowling in readiness for re-shaping using green stuff. A vertical centre spar was filed to shape and inserted.

Next, I cut out a rectangular section of the left hand sidewall on the leading edge of the lower hole. I then boxed this in using plastic sheet.

It's a bit rough at the moment but once the glue has set I'll smooth this out a bit. Here's a comparison with the original kit part. (Is it my imagination or is the nacelle on the right of the image laughing at me...?)

I also took the time to re-shape the right hand side a tad.

Again, comparison with the existing shape shows a subtle but noticable change.

It feels as though I've made some progress at least. There is still plenty to do around the engine nacelles before I get to the undercarriage.

Talking of the undercarriage, the kit wheels and tyres look a bit odd. Does anyone have any ideas for possible replacements please?

Until next time,....

Cheers.

Edited October 27, 2014 by geedubelyer

[Caerbannog]

(...)

Hi Rene, I imagine the 1/48th kit will be nice. Good luck with the GB. Any idea as to which racer you will model?

Given it's size, this aeroplane would be an ideal candidate for 1/32nd scale (or even 1/24th scale....are you listening Airfix? )

(...)

It will be Grosvenor House - I just hope that one of the GBs (non injected; racers; britains best) will make it...

Again: Great work!

Rene

[woody37]

You're showing this kit who's boss, brilliant scratch work

[geedubelyer]

It will be Grosvenor House - I just hope that one of the GBs (non injected; racers; britains best) will make it...

Again: Great work!

Rene

Good choice Rene. Where there's a will, there's a way. I'm sure you'll find a home for your Comet. Enjoy the build when you get around to it.

You're showing this kit who's boss, brilliant scratch work

Thanks woody. It's probably tied on points at the moment. Just need a swig of water, a splash with a sponge and a smear of vaseline then I'm good to go for the next round.

Here's a look at why I'm so exhausted.

In the last instalment we had begun to make sense of those frayed holes at the front of the cowling. Since then I've managed to close them up and create the new intakes. These intakes repicate the arrangement on the newly restored Comet rather than the original. Not quite as elegant but a necessity I'm guessing.

I've also re-shaped the wheel well openings (1). This involved rounding each end as well as the sides.

#2 in the above photo shows a length of plasticard added to the kit cowling. This fits against the modified wing leading edge where I've removed the original stubs and sanded in some vents. (Pictures of them at a later date.)

#3 is a plasticard keel that I've introduced to aid further re-shaping of the rear of the nacelle. This photo by Mark Mills in the BM walkaround shows how the nacelle extends beyond the wing trailing edge.

http://www.britmodeller.com/walkarounds/aircraft/dh88/88%2006.jpg

You might also make out a small intake on the left hand side of the lower nacelle between the new, square inlet and the gills. At present this is still solid but I might open it up when the glue is dry.

In the above image we can see the state of play so far. Please ignore the blu-tac foot. It's intended to stop the thing resting on the fresh putty.

So #1 is where the nacelle has been beefed up. #2 is an extended fairing. I'm not sure whether the original Comets had this but the new version does and the kit does not.

#3 is some additional material around the edge of the curved inlet mouth. The modern nacelle's profile is more vertical at this point than the old style so I have been forced to make it fuller.

This is now setting so I'll be able to sand it to the final shape soon.

I also tried a small experiment following Selwyn's advice from a thread in the Interwar forum. I asked for ideas on how to replicate ribbing in the smaller scales. Amongst all of the terrific suggestions Selwyn proposed using thin plasticard and scribing on the reverse. This imparts a raised line on the oposite face which does indeed give a nice, subtle rib effect. More practice is needed but I may have found a way to give some texture to the control surfaces on this model.

Onwards and upwards.

Edited October 27, 2014 by geedubelyer

[Fritag]

Gosh. Those pre-Geedubelyer engine nacelles are horrors

Whereas the post-Geedubelyer engine nacelles are beauties

Have you tried decaling the canopy yet? I've had some issue with paint chipping off when trying to cut painted decal sheet into then strips so I'm going to have a try by cutting the decal into strips before painting. And if that doesn't work. I'm reverting to masking and painting........

[geedubelyer]

Hi Steve, thanks for the kind words, very much appreciated. Interesting to hear of your experiments on the decal canopy framing.

I have n't got that far yet unfortunately. The mods I've made to the fuselage to (hopefully) improve it's shape have made the opening larger. I'm going to have to make a new canopy.

What paint are you using? I generally use acrylics and they can be fragile so I'm eager to learn of a solution to the chipping if you stumble across anything. Good luck and thanks for being the trail-blazer. I don't fancy masking the glass house on this wee beastie.

The wings are on!

I spent ages sanding this afternoon. The wings are very thick on this old kit but the full sized bird has beautifully thin and graceful mainplanes. There were HUGE gaps at the wing roots. Terrifying honestly so I used CA instead of plastic cement. I've ended up with a very slight dihedral. Not sure if that's accurate or not.

I've also begun work on attaching the nacelles. If you remember, I mentioned a couple of vents on top of the wings at the rear of the engine cowling. This is why I modified the kit parts in such a manner.

These vents are represented by twin black bars on the decal sheet.

There are one or two small holes in the cowlings, fasteners for the removable panels and a drain on the outside right rear of each nacelle. These were all added before I glued the nacelles in place.

With opening up the gills and new intakes there is alot of blank space within each engine bay. I added some rudimentary detail inside to avoid daylight showing in unwanted places.

I'll have to attempt to scribe in the flaps although that will be a challenge on all of that filler.

Here's an overview and a look at the shape of the modified nacelles.

Now that the wings are on I can have a go at the wingroots. The full sized bird has a shaped fairing covering the join from front to rear. It's quite large and missing from the kit. Additionally, the inner trailing edge will also require work as it finishes too abruptly and should sweep back further.

However that will have to wait for a few days. I'm away until the weekend now so happy modelling and see everyone then.

Cheers.

Edited October 28, 2014 by geedubelyer

[perdu]

lovely work G-dub

Airfix will probably be coming to you to make a master if they decide to do the Racer justice in the future

I love it mate

b

[geedubelyer]

Airfix will probably be coming to you to make a master if they decide to do the Racer justice in the future

I love it mate

b

Lol. Thanks Bill. We can only hope that this thread inspires a little Comet lurve from the fine, upstanding characters at Airfix (although I'd expect that rather than coming to me they'd prefer to do it right...... )

Murphy's law dictates that just as a build finishes a new kit is released so I've got my fingers crossed. Even though I've put some time and effort into this jobbie I'd still be up for a new tool version.

If we cast our eyes up the page a bit to the last image I posted we can see the sweep of the trailing edge of the wing where it meets the fuselage. After comparison with images of the real aeroplane I deduced that it needed to be extended a smidge.

In order to fasi fascil do this I sanded the trailing edge flat.

I then introduced a crescent of plasticard to the edge and smoothed it in with green stuff.

Using a mk1 eyeball I judged that the tip of the wing fairing ends below the rear of the cockpit. (Approximately )

As I was handling the model I displaced an elevator so had to make a new one. Given that the existing control surfaces are devoid of any surface detail I could have probably got away with shaping some flat sheet. However, instead I adopted a technique that Selwyn suggested in a recent thread and scribed the rear face of some thin plasticard. I glued this to some square extrusion and then in turn, glued the trailing edges together. This created some fine raised ribs. Of course, now I'll have to make another one to match....

One benefit of the above technique is nice, sharp trailing edges. It saves thinning the kit part any more.

Buoyed by my surprising success at emulating the kit elevator I turned my attention to another feature that's been quietly bugging me in the background.

Quite a large area of the mainplane has some surface texture toward the trailing edge inboard of the ailerons. It is more pronounced when the bird is in flight but is often visible on the ground too.

http://www.britmodeller.com/walkarounds/aircraft/dh88/88%2019.jpg

I considered scribing but the detail is raised. My attempts to create the raised ribbing on the rudder were below par so this new technique appeared to offer a solution.

I decided to scratch out an area and add a panel of thin sheet suitably scribed and shaped.

This has given me a starting point of raised detail. Now I can sand it back as far as I need to so that the surface detail is just visible. Well, that's the plan at least.....

The most recent work has been fitting the engine cowlings, fairing them in and adding the wingroot fairing. Once the green stuff has set I can sand it to the final shapes.

I can see that there is plenty of work on the horizon. As we all know, this racer is a beautiful, high gloss red which is entirely likely to show up every flaw. I think I'd better stock up on some sanding materials...

Edited November 13, 2014 by geedubelyer

[hendie]

very nice work. I do enjoy seeing old kits brought up to quality standards

[geedubelyer]

Thanks hendie. I don't think I've ever done as much remedial work on a model before. I've done plenty of scratch building of detail parts but never this much airframe modification. I'll let you into a little secret. If there was a new tool kit of the Comet available I would n't be doing this.

[Tomoshenko]

Good grief reckon this will better than a new tool anyhows.

[Fritag]

Thanks hendie I'll let you into a little secret. If there was a new tool kit of the Comet available I would n't be doing this.

Ahh - but I suspect you wouldn't then be having quite so much fun - and I know we wouldn't be getting such vicarious pleasure.....

Anyways - Tomoshenko is right in what he says......wise man that.

Edited November 15, 2014 by Fritag

[Navy Bird]

I agree - it is so much more satisfying to improve an old kit to the standards we're seeing here. You just have so much more pride in yourself when it's finished, than you would with a shake and bake. Not that I disapprove of those, they have their place, restoring mojo and that kind of stuff.

Can't wait to see more, the DH-88 is such an elegant, sleek aircraft.

Cheers,

Bill