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Airfix Vulcan question and 1:48 Vulcan query


cathasatail

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Good evening everyone,

I have two rather troublesome questions which have been plaguing me for a few weeks now, the first is regarding the Airfix Vulcan.

I have finally plucked up the courage (and money!) to have a crack at an Airfix vulcan with the White Ensign Models (WEM) photo-etch kits, consisting of a bomb-bay, cockpit and airbrakes/exterior details. The question is, how should I present it so the cockpit detail can be viewed-should I have only the canopy as a removable item? Should I have a removable panel on the side? Should I just cut a cut-away hole in the side and leave it open? (Lighting is a possibility for all options).

The second issue is that as some of you may know, I'm working on a 1:48 Vulcan made from card (card, not corrugated cardboard) which I intend to include almost every single piece of ribbing and interior details (fuel tanks, major linkages through the wings, fully detailled cockpit, etc). I am sure you can understand that I would rather open the details up so they can be viewed and like the previous issue, the question is how?

The choices I've got consist of having half of the Vulcan (the left side for example) being "stripped" of the skin-exposing the detailling. The other choice is to have some panels removable or have them on hinges (could be useful for the engine servicing bay where the fairings hinge open, or the ECM fairing at the back which also hinges open). The third option would be to cover the entire aircraft in a skin but have these pieces of skin removable for viewing.

If you have any suggestions, I would greatly appreciate your feedback!

*While I don't think it is particularly ethical to advertise an external site on the forums I do feel that for the time being the progress photos are much easier to post on the blog. Don't feel obliged to click on it though! :) (see signature)

Thanks,

Sam

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Cockpit removed would look good, especially as a diorama having a major overhaul.

As for 1:48 in card. No other help other than a big pat on the back and a huge amount of anticipation in seeing the finished project!

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Not sure if I can offer an opinion on the 1/72nd option, for the 1/48th scale option I would suggest the option of half the airframe stripped to show all the interior detail: I think I've seen a very spectacular scratch build of a 1/72nd scale Concorde built in the same way.

Following with interest regardless......

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  • 2 weeks later...

What about the 1/48th version in a deep maintenance scene with all the panels open cockpit hood removed and some skins removed, as for the 1/72 removable hood maybe small LED's .

What ever you do I'm sure it will be good.

All the best

Guy

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What about the 1/48th version in a deep maintenance scene with all the panels open cockpit hood removed and some skins removed, as for the 1/72 removable hood maybe small LED's .

What ever you do I'm sure it will be good.

All the best

Guy

Thanks for the help!

I've found some images of '558 with her canopy removed and an ejection seat being removed, So this seems like a really viable option.

Regarding the 1:72 one, I picked up a Victor at Cosford because they ran out of Vulcans :P so that will have to wait for a while. I should have access to a CAD/CAM software soon and so I'll mess around with that to see how the Vulcan "maps out" with various panels removed.

Thanks,

Sam

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The RAF Museum have a good historical branch for photos and maybe VTTS could supply photos of XH558 in maintenance .

Looking forward to this.

Giuy

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The RAF Museum have a good historical branch for photos and maybe VTTS could supply photos of XH558 in maintenance .

Looking forward to this.

Giuy

Yeah i've got the "Vulcan Story" book by TIm Laming, plus a few people on the forums who know a huge amount about Vulcans. I also have Cosford and the Midland Air Museum as real-life reference material. And finally I have been to the Coventry archives to research the Blue Steel missile and the RAF Museum (Hendon) supplied some Blue Steel "loading" plans to me.

Thanks,

Sam

p.s: Progress is currently focused on a Revell Victor so don't expect too much from this project for a week or two :P

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Very little on the top surface opens up. The canopy fairing removes to access the seats and dinghy pack. The brake chute door opens and the Red Steer T/w Radar removes. Under the rear end the ECM access doors hinge down to show the Red Shrimp, Blue Diver and others those names I have forgotten.

Under the wings there are a myriad of access panels the largest being the engine doors. Behind the port u/c the Green Satin Ae di-electric panel hinges down and on the port side the same for the Rover. Then there is the RAT which I seem to recall was on the port side. The whole NBS scanner radome comes down and there are access doors in the main wheel bays.

Quite a task.

John

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Very little on the top surface opens up. The canopy fairing removes to access the seats and dinghy pack. The brake chute door opens and the Red Steer T/w Radar removes. Under the rear end the ECM access doors hinge down to show the Red Shrimp, Blue Diver and others those names I have forgotten.

Under the wings there are a myriad of access panels the largest being the engine doors. Behind the port u/c the Green Satin Ae di-electric panel hinges down and on the port side the same for the Rover. Then there is the RAT which I seem to recall was on the port side. The whole NBS scanner radome comes down and there are access doors in the main wheel bays.

Quite a task.

John

Morning John,

While I am trying to do the majority of this build "by the book", I thought that the use of cutaway areas on the top surface of one wing would allow people to see the internal wing structure/fuel tanks, etc.

I have a diagram of the areas under the wing where the panels can be removed and so I might do that for the underlying structure instead/in addition to the top surface of one wing. My definite aims would be to get a cutaway of the cockpit and some kind of mirror under the bomb bay if it is mounted on a base.

Anyway, as mentioned previously, I'll.soon get access to a cad/cam program so I can mess around a bit and I shall report back.

Kind regards,

Sam

P.s. I also would like to do the RAT, perhaps including the hinge mechanism.

Edited by cathasatail
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Seems like you have it under control.

If you open up the access doors on the underside may be place the finished masterpiece on a mirror base.

Happy modelling Sam

Guy

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Seems like you have it under control.

If you open up the access doors on the underside may be place the finished masterpiece on a mirror base.

Happy modelling Sam

Guy

Thanks Guy!

I've been thinking a little bit more about it, doing a few sketches during my free study periods at sixth form ( :D ) and based on the predicted weight, hanging it from the ceiling would require about ten or so different attachment points, combined with the fact that it couldn't be moved easily (if required).

Furthermore, I am becoming more and more skeptical (due to the above reason) of the finished aircraft being able to support itself on its landing gear. The only alternative apart from the options of increasing the strength of the "to be built soon TM" landing gear, would be to mount the aircraft's main fuselage (cockpit/bomb bay/engines/tail on a series of supporting structures (poles/bars, etc) with a mirror underneath. The wings could then be made detachable (please don't ask how I'm going to achieve that while keeping the wing structure the same as the real-life vulcans) so they could be slotted onto/into the fuselage section and removed for moving about.

Now let me throw in what the Americans like to call a "curve ball" (or the more well-known phrase for us Brits of "a piece of rather unsatisfactory bowling" :P )- which is I simply do not have enough space to display the Vulcan in my room on a stand: so do I... A. continue with the stand in the knowledge that I'll have to find somewhere to put it. B. hang it from the ceiling. or C. find someone else who will have it (perhaps a museum, although I doubt my workmanship -lack of- will be anywhere near worthy of being in a museum).

So yes, more questions for me to ponder as construction continues, I'll try and get the rear crew area to a point where I can start making the ribbing structures for the cockpit (which will most likely happen on the weekend).

Kind regards,

Sam

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Why not go crazy with the Airfix Vulcan and have it as one being Scrapped brutally by a JCB with scratchbuild engines and all the internals exposed that way you could really show off the internal details otherwise you just can't see anything in there unless you drop the entrance hatch and have a mirror but even peering into a real one you can't see much as they are painted black inside.

It would also save you lots of filling and sanding :)

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Why not go crazy with the Airfix Vulcan and have it as one being Scrapped brutally by a JCB with scratchbuild engines and all the internals exposed that way you could really show off the internal details

:yikes: I don't know about you, Sam, but I don't think I could bring myself to do that - looking at it would make me sad - but it's a very interesting idea and it could be really effective. :)

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Why not go crazy with the Airfix Vulcan and have it as one being Scrapped brutally by a JCB with scratchbuild engines and all the internals exposed that way you could really show off the internal details otherwise you just can't see anything in there unless you drop the entrance hatch and have a mirror but even peering into a real one you can't see much as they are painted black inside.

It would also save you lots of filling and sanding :)

:yikes: I don't know about you, Sam, but I don't think I could bring myself to do that - looking at it would make me sad - but it's a very interesting idea and it could be really effective. :)

I'm afraid, Rob, that Mr CurrantBunbury is right-I really couldn't do that at all :frantic::hypnotised::violin: . I would like it to have a grand appearance and I would also like it to be free of a dioram base if possible-purely for ease of movement and aesthetics.

Sam

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