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Building the Big Cat - Sinking claws in to the SEPECAT Jaguar


AjD

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In to the slow grind of preparing the wing surfaces now, which began with cutting the voids in to which the flaps will fit. When deployed there is a noticeable gap between the slotted section and the upper wing surface, with the flaps suspended on the runners:

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(Photo Luc Colin)

So, I've started chipping away at a few areas...

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A: The weird design of the Airfix wing sees the outboard section of the wing's underside already attached to the top piece with the rest supplied separately. This causes a unique problem if trying to remove the appropriate part of the outboard control surface to fit the extended flaps, but after some steady sawing and sanding I'm about there.

B: The panel above the flap is the thickness of one sheet of metal, as can be seen in the above image, so all of the trailing edges needed to be thinned considerably.

C: I've started creating the housing in to which the flap retracts.

D: The side walls to that area are also helping to support the wing and give it some depth and shape along the chord. Without this it will flex a bit more once top and bottom are mated. Lots more detail work to come in this area, such as adding the runners along which the flaps travel.

E: The underside needed a larger section removed, as seen here:

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(Photo J.F.Sofilkanič)

F: I've run the internal strips forward too. Partly to add strength to the wing roots but also because I suspect there's going to be small gaps between the fuselage and underside of the wing so I want to have a firm edge against which to insert a plastic shim if needs be when the time comes.

G: Finally, the filler's begun to be applied with a view to re-scribing the panel lines in the correct place. The underside is significantly more accurate than up top but still room for improvement.

Oh, and I've buckled and dug a second kit out. Looks like this is now on the radar too...if I have the guts to take it to conclusion!

http://cdn-www.airliners.net/aviation-photos/photos/1/8/9/1233981.jpg

Edited by Shar2
Links only to airliners.net photos. Please read the rules.
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Nice work with the flap structure preparation

Don't forget that skinny fillet fills the underwing section by the fuselage

I'm beginning to wish I'd built mine in big scale like yours

So much more you can get in

I am enjoying this

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Yep, I'm on top of that one Perdu - thanks very much though. Please keep pointing things out if you notice them, just in case! I've got photos of the fillet so will post when I get to that bit.

Thanks also Fritag. Here's hoping it keeps ticking along this time!

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Well that was a quick reply with useful info...I was expecting it to take longer than that! Looks like there's a perfect solution there - albeit with a hefty price tag! Still, a solution, so thank you.

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Slow but steady progress, working to re-scribe the second wing section for XX119. Some clean up still required on the one for XX835 but it's serving as a good reference and the templates made for that task are easy to reuse so this one's happening slightly faster.

Here's hoping I can keep some momentum up as work ramps up again...!

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Edited by AjD
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Just the kick I needed.

Hows the fuselage looking? The one I have here is terribly warped.

Any noticeable differences between the Airfix and Revell mouldings?

Also - will they both be 2 Sqn as per the Tonka?

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No worries. They will both be 6 Sqn on the day in 2007 when they flew from Coningsby to Cosford on their last flight.

I've not seen the inside of a Revell box but it is of course the same kit and people tell me that the moulds have stood the test of time so it's very similar. I remember building this one back in what must have been about 2006 and despite the detail showing its age it was a very good shape overall. I love the look of the KH kit detail but I'm not convinced about the shape of the nose amongst a few other things.

My Airfix fuselages aren't what I would call warped, just better described as a product of their era. In other words, there's work to be done as the sides come together! I've actually taken a bigger risk and removed the underside entirely as the panel lines are very faint in that area and the join terrible so I plan to reconstruct that out of plasticard to fit the resin wheel bays that I've bought. If I don't muck that up then it'll require less filler!

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A few updates from the past days...

I've started work on the Paragon engines to improve the look as before, basically bringing the kit for XX119/AI up to the point I have XX835/EX.

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I'm using the Eduard PE set which is not quite as comprehensive as an external set can be but then it is for the more detailed Kittyhawk kit so that may be the reason. Still, it works well for this beastie as well so...

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It is also Eduard, so as nice as ever.

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So this is the second set of Paragon resin engines improved (I hope, but I'll let you judge!). First I cut through the jet pipe 6mm behind the exhaust ring then made another cut directly behind the exhaust, this allows me to discard a 6mm long part of the jet pipe, leaving the can and aft face of the moulded turbine blades to be used. Both of these required their internal diameter thinned as the jet pipe is obviously too small in diameter once cut open. The below photo shows them at various points between being as thick as they were when cut open and having gradually been thinned.

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Then a 6mm-long section of plastic tube was cut. The tube being 12.8mm in external diameter with an internal diameter of 11.2mm. In to this I needed to insert the Eduard jet pipe internal detail. After separation from the sprue I trimmed it slightly as it's marginally too long to fit inside the tube, then rolled it around a pencil on my leg (a cracking little tip from someone on BM the other day!).

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Then all this needed to come together with the etched burner ring too...

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Hopefully you'll think it improves them.

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The parts were then primed ready for paint.

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Then back to the wings.

I got the last of the scribing finished and removed the flap sections from the lower wings which will be scribed later once attached to the top...

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Then as before, the wing tips are weird on this Airfix kit. The upper section is moulded as one piece but the lower section is in two, the first 3/4 being a separate part and the last 1/4 being physically moulded on to the upper part. Very odd (perhaps something to do with strength in days gone by) and it causes some tricky issues for me. Mainly because part of the outboard flap needs to be removed...very carefully with a razor saw and scalpel! The Jaguar did not have ailerons, instead relying on wing spoilers to deploy to dump lift from one wing and roll the aircraft, with the tailplane assisting through differential movement at low speed.

Once the flap was dealt with, it was time to add the small raised areas on the spoilers and elsewhere above the wing. Forgive my little cheat sheet - happy to post that if anyone would find it useful.

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So I think that's me there on these bits...finally!

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Edited by AjD
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Next up the flaps...using the excellent Paragon set.

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It's a shame Paragon is no longer around. Neil's work was always neat, accurate and of the highest quality. He always turned out the stuff that was of interest to me as well. Still, everyone deserves a rest and I hope you're enjoying it Neil! Thanks for the parts. You have to be careful on this build to cut different depths out of the wing above and below.

The resin flaps and slats were fully washed and dried. Many people on BM will be familiar with working with resin but for anyone who isn't, this is done to ensure that the invisible release agent on the surface of the part is removed. This is there because when the liquid resin was poured in to the mould, the latter would have been pre-coated with release agent to ensure that, when dry, the now solid part can be removed without sticking. The problem is, for the modeller this prevents paint/primer adhering to the surface and only last weekend I spoke to a friend not used to working with resin who had had exactly this problem on his first outing. So, I've soaked them in warm water along with a squirt of Fairy Liquid for about 15 mins. Then given them a good scrub with a paint brush whilst they're still immersed to make sure it's all removed from the nooks and crannies.

You know it was worth doing when the water starts to turn mucky and opaque! Some of that's due to dust created when the parts were cut from the blocks and then cleaned up (lightly sanded) but let's face it, you don't want that either. Always best to wear some form of mask to avoid breathing in resin dust when doing that of course. Finally, the parts were all rinsed with clean water, as soapy residue won't help the primer grip either, and left to dry. The first thing I always notice is the surface appearing more matt than before, meaning something has clearly changed...probably a result of evicting that release agent!

The Jaguar had two pairs of flaps with a single leading edge slat on each wing. The wing itself does not incorporate a 'dog tooth' kink in the leading edge, as seen in this shot of XZ103/EF...
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As can be seen, this is present because of the slat protruding from the front of an otherwise straight wing edge, which creates that aerodynamic feature. The double-slotted flaps are, on the Paragon parts, moulded as a single piece. The gaps between them would barely be visible in this scale but I wanted to allude to them being there in a more obvious way so ran a scriber along the join a couple of times. This had the effect of presenting the illusion that there are two pieces and this will have the bonus of creating a small channel in to which a wash can run and settle towards the end of the build, again creating the illusion of shadow.

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What I wanted to achieve on this build though was the detail of the mechanisms because a lot of it is exposed below the wing as can be seen in this photo of mine of GR.1 XX958/BK...

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Having built the flap housings in the wing on both kits, I started with the inboard ones as these are the most significant units. Simply glueing top wing surface to bottom would seal the gap in to which they retract so I've thinned the trailing edges and inserted spacers in the same way as I did for the first Jag. That will keep the wings apart towards the rear.
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Then I decided to take a risk. There's nothing worse than committing to hacking up some beautifully made rein parts which are no longer on the market when you're not 100% sure your method will work! So, very gingerly I cut away some small notches from the inboard ends...
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I then went and tracked down some 'I-shaped' Evergreen plastic to use for the tracks along which the flaps slide when motored by the actuators (which will also have to be scratch-built later). Once the position of the rails was known, the other details in the bay could be built. The rails bend downwards slightly behind the wing, which is what allows the flaps to drop when extended. That was achieved by simply warming and bending the plastic once I'd cut them to shape to fit.
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With the resin flaps mounted on these I'll be able to leave a tiny gap between them and the wing. Again, more realistic than just glueing the flaps to the trailing edge. There will however, be less points of contact so it will be weaker, meaning care must be taken to build a strong set of rails. That's the reason I've extended them inside the wing and built guidance channels in to which I can insert them later once painted. That saves me knocking them off during the rest of the build and means I can weather them independently of the model.
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So, enough of my ramblings. Sorry...just nice to be back to a bit of modelling after 3 years!
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Edited by AjD
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