Bughunter Posted May 4, 2017 Share Posted May 4, 2017 After the fantastic feedback of this great community here, and especially for Jessica (she asked for it), here comes a model finished end of 2015. The model was created from a kit of the french company AJP Maquette http://www.ajp-maquettes.com/ of the Santos-Dumont Demoiselle in 1/48. The kit contains mostly PE, some other metal parts like propeller, piano wire and also thin, light yellow paper. The piano wire is for the stringers, but since the were made from bamboo, I simulate the knots of the bamboo with thin copper wire. The rigging was made with help of Gaspatch turnbuckles and for this model I made my first wooden propeller!But the scratch work with the most effort was the engine, which I turned from brass and aluminium on my lathe, because the PE engine was hard to build and looks different to my reference picture (comes later). So here it is: The fuel tank was turned too. The PE were soldered and painted in a wood color to avoid a golden brass shine trough the paper. So, enough words - have fun with the pictures! I hope you will like that model too Frank A size comparison: Luckily I found a fantastic picture of a original airplane in Le Bourget in wikipedia, which helps me a lot regarding details: For higher resolution please see here: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Demoiselle_de_Santos-Dumont_Musee_du_Bourget_P1010409.JPG 27 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin Ford Posted May 4, 2017 Share Posted May 4, 2017 My word that's intricate. What a fascinating and unusual build. Congratulations, Martin 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mmarchal Posted May 4, 2017 Share Posted May 4, 2017 love it. Great skills on display, thanks for sharing your fabulous work 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrzeM Posted May 4, 2017 Share Posted May 4, 2017 Fantastic!!! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darby Posted May 4, 2017 Share Posted May 4, 2017 Marvellous job old bean. Another one that beat Sir Percy Ware-Armitage. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
invidia Posted May 4, 2017 Share Posted May 4, 2017 Wow that's a stunning build. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Horatio Gruntfuttock Posted May 4, 2017 Share Posted May 4, 2017 That is just gorgeous. Your patience and skill are rewarded with a stunning little model. Well done and thanks for sharing it with us. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArmouredSprue Posted May 4, 2017 Share Posted May 4, 2017 That's really awesome! Santos Dummont was a very rich Brazilian living in Paris and one of the most important aviation pioneers. He is credit with the first documented heavier than air fly on the Champs Elisier in 1916 with 14bis. He believed the aviation should be available for everyone so he never patented his inventions and airplanes. You could copy the plans and construct your own Demoiselle in your back yard if you wanted to. He also holds the first ever pilot licence issue by the French Air club. It's an amazing story if you would like to read more. Cheers 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Newbie(kinda) Posted May 4, 2017 Share Posted May 4, 2017 I can't decide who's most insane; the men and women who flew those things or the men and women that attempt to model them. How DO you build something that's mostly air with a bit of wood, canvas and wire thrown in, seemingly, at random??!! Gorgeous. Thanks for sharing... 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spaddad Posted May 5, 2017 Share Posted May 5, 2017 Very tasty, but also mental. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tugcap Posted May 5, 2017 Share Posted May 5, 2017 A great job on that one! I would certainly be in the wacky factory trying to deal with all that rigging. Wonderful piece of work. Cheers, Tommy 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jessica Posted May 5, 2017 Share Posted May 5, 2017 That's utterly, wonderfully lovely! I've been wondering how those kits look once they're finished. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wlad Posted May 5, 2017 Share Posted May 5, 2017 Fantastic work Frank, and that engine is amazing. I love the subtle engine exhaust staining on the wings, that's attention to detail. I see AIP Maquettes has a whole line of pre-1910 aircraft, including Santos-Dumont's 14 Bis, his first airplane. @ArmouredSprue the year was actually 1906. By 1916 people were shooting each other out of the sky in airplanes, something which upset Santos-Dumont deeply. Cheers, Wlad 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArmouredSprue Posted May 5, 2017 Share Posted May 5, 2017 Thanks Wlad, you're absolutely right. My big mistake. The WWI and how the airplane was used was one of the reasons SD committed suicide later in 1932. Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wlad Posted May 5, 2017 Share Posted May 5, 2017 Your certainly know your history Paulo. Great background info for this beautiful build. Cheers, Wlad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kuro Nezumi Posted May 5, 2017 Share Posted May 5, 2017 Very cute! Great engine! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reini78 Posted May 5, 2017 Share Posted May 5, 2017 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gorby Posted May 5, 2017 Share Posted May 5, 2017 Stunning - as always. I remember this one from SCM, but it's always a pleasure to re-visit your builds. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Basuroy Posted May 5, 2017 Share Posted May 5, 2017 Excellent model , this is true modelling - completely scratch built ! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JWM Posted May 5, 2017 Share Posted May 5, 2017 Very, very nice indeed! J-W 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meatbox8 Posted May 5, 2017 Share Posted May 5, 2017 A breathtaking bit of modelling. A true masterclass. Brilliant stuff. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bughunter Posted May 5, 2017 Author Share Posted May 5, 2017 Thank you very much for your fantastic feedback! 21 hours ago, ArmouredSprue said: He believed the aviation should be available for everyone so he never patented his inventions and airplanes. You could copy the plans and construct your own Demoiselle in your back yard if you wanted to. That's true, but that is a problem for the modeler. There are many variants known from pictures, with different wing span and different engines. So you have to decide for a specific one and try to build that. I tried it as far as possible the kit allows it (e.g. I have not replaced the wings). There is a great article about the Demoiselle available in the magazine "Flight" in October 1909 (All "Flight"s are available online as PDF). 21 hours ago, Newbie(kinda) said: How DO you build something that's mostly air with a bit of wood, canvas and wire thrown in, seemingly, at random??!! Gorgeous. Try to follow the manual of the kit, but replace the parts you want to scratch at the right step 16 hours ago, Wlad said: I see AIP Maquettes has a whole line of pre-1910 aircraft, including Santos-Dumont's 14 Bis, his first airplane. Yep, but I want to build only models, which I can put in my wall mounted glass cabinet. It is huge (and has a lof of free space!) but due to constraints only a limited depth of around 24cm. So I cannot build some interesting models like Bristol Boxkite, Antoinette .... and in general WnW. But I have enough 1/48 models to build which will fit. One interesting thing with such PE models covered with paper is the care you have to take. Some flow of wet air or of different temperature can deform your model! Stay tuned for more Frank Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheonix Posted May 5, 2017 Share Posted May 5, 2017 That is another superb model Frank. I have one of these lined up to scratch build in 1/72 eventually...... I too have a space constraint imposed by my cabinets but building in a smaller scale I can still model some of the larger aircraft. Really looking forward to seeing more of your masterpieces. P 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngstROM Posted May 5, 2017 Share Posted May 5, 2017 Well, some models just make the kind of statement that you can't get around! What a truly magnificent masterpiece. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheonix Posted May 5, 2017 Share Posted May 5, 2017 On 04/05/2017 at 4:06 PM, ArmouredSprue said: That's really awesome! Santos Dummont was a very rich Brazilian living in Paris and one of the most important aviation pioneers. He is credit with the first documented heavier than air fly on the Champs Elisier in 1916 with 14bis. He believed the aviation should be available for everyone so he never patented his inventions and airplanes. You could copy the plans and construct your own Demoiselle in your back yard if you wanted to. He also holds the first ever pilot licence issue by the French Air club. It's an amazing story if you would like to read more. Cheers For those who are interested in further information on this very interesting pioneer of aviation, and for film of a replica constructed and flown in Brazil, there is an interesting film on You Tube: Wings of madness: Santos Dumont. The film also contains original footage of his dirigibles from the early 1900's, and contains much interesting material about the man and the challenges that he overcame in his quest for flight. P. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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