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CONTINUATION OF MY 1:20 SCALE SCRATCH BUILT B17G (RADIO ROOM)


Fozzy

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Thom216 ,Iain and Bill....

 

Thank you so much for your kind words:).......it always gives me the push to get going on the next stage of the build!....After I have finished this section I will take a rest from this project and have a go at something else before coming back and starting on the last section...the tail!

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Fozzy,

I just did a catch up of the thread. And I'd thought the radio room was amazing.

The ball turret is astounding! 

8 hours ago, Fozzy said:

and have a go at something else

What? A 1/35 scale Eiffel tower from toothpicks?

Enjoy your rest. We can wait...... ⏲️

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  • 4 weeks later...

Hi there

 

A few weeks have passed and I am a tiny bit forward with this build than I was in the last post!...and I want to tell you where I am at with this!

For a long long time now I have been fretting over how I will display this B17G when it is all done!....I felt I just had to  make a decision before I continued on what was to be done.

Originally it was going to be so simple as I was only planning to build the nose section and just put it on some sort of stand!....but of course with a little encouragement from some of my fellow modellers on this forum!!... I decided to continue with the rest of the fuselage....I mean... I really enjoyed building the nose section...lets do the rest of it!

So I then separately built the bomb bay and the the radio room (as some of you who are following this are aware) and started to build stands for them to sit on. I put the nose section/bomb bay and the radio room next to each other and it just didn't look right!....not only that , it was almost impossible to try and build a stand for the radio room section because of the ball turret hanging below!....the stand would have got in the way of the turret!

There was only one solution to the whole mess and that was to permanently attach all sections together making one complete fuselage ...as it would be on the real thing......that's when the real problems started!😭

Now ...because I built each section separately and now have decided to join them all together I realized that the length of the fuselage will be too long by at least 1.5cm...maybe 2 cm...this is because I built each section from one bulk head to the next (for example bomb bay was built from Bulk head no's 6-8 ....and then the radio room was built from bulk heads nos 8-10.....each bulk head is about 5 mm ....so when you put the bomb bay section to the radio room you have gained 5mm!)....and so on adding to the length of the damn thing!!.....I hope you understand my ramblings!!!

I had to lose those millimeters!...and so you can imagine what I had to do!.........

 

attaching_the_radio_room_to_the_bomb_bay

 

By shortening each section by 5mm it of course put some of the detail out of scale!.....aaaaagggghhhh!...utter nightmare!....not only that ....getting the sections to line up perfectly was very difficult to say the least.

 

I have to say I spoke to my wife and said that the whole project after 6 odd years was going to have to be stopped!....she told me not to be so stupid!.....again!.....and get it sorted!

 

.....and so I persevered and after hours of re constructing ...scrapping a lot of the detail already done....de scaling this and that.... I finally joined the bomb bay with the radio room. The photos you will see show you that I have a load of tidying up to do but this will be no problem for me later on...I hope!

 

Here we go...................

 

attaching_the_radio_room_to_the_bomb_bay

 

attaching_the_radio_room_to_the_bomb_bay

 

attaching_the_radio_room_to_the_bomb_bay

 

attaching_the_radio_room_to_the_bomb_bay

 

Now I can get on with the wing root detail ........here is as far as I have got so far!......

 

attaching_the_radio_room_to_the_bomb_bay

 

attaching_the_radio_room_to_the_bomb_bay

 

attaching_the_radio_room_to_the_bomb_bay

 

Yesterday I made these two plates that will eventually be attached to the wing root...

 

attaching_the_radio_room_to_the_bomb_bay

 

Just to let you know that I have also re constructed the nose section to make sure that it will fit onto the forward bulk head of the bomb bay......and if I thought the R. room and B.bay was a difficult task...then this was just................don't want to think about it!!

 

The joys of scratch building!

 

See you on the next post

 

Fozzy

 

 

 

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You seriously need mental health support there Fozzy.

I mean shortening each section because the whole thing will be 2 cm longer.

You could of called the "F" version ( the F is for Fozzy).

 

Great work sir.

 

Simon.

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Well your wife is obviously a keeper! I'm really pleased she's encouraged you to continue Fozzy and the 'amendments' are, as usual, amazing modelling.

Thanks again for sharing it with us :) 

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Thanks guys!

2 hours ago, 224 Peter said:

Lost for words... please don't give up! 

Gone too far now  Peter!...I really can't  give up!! 

 

 

 

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Agreed, your wife has the right idea- as well as the smarts in the family! Don't give up now. As for the encouragement, you're welcome!😁

 

Rebuilding is, of course, your prerogative, as this is your baby. I'm just along for the happy ride and the box of popcorn! And of course, a little encouragement that seems crazy-fun!

 

At the end of it all, all I can say is that some museum is going to love this plane as much as we do!

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hello there guys!

 

I have managed to move on from the shock of re adjusting the sections to fit one and other and onto the wing fillets!....a bit fiddly but got there in the end!

This is how I achieved it..................

 

The first job was to cut to shape a piece of yogurt pot plastic (to save using expensive plastic card)....and glue it on the bottom of the fuselage to make up the bottom section of the fillet and then to place a few ribs on the plate to secure it....

 

wing_fillets(1a).jpg

 

All the wiring and pipes etc were then placed in position.......the cover plate I previously made on the last post is in the foreground of the photo......

 

wing_fillets_(1).jpg

 

The same was then done on the starboard side.......

 

wing_fillets_(2).jpg

 

wing_fillets_(3).jpg

 

The front plate which was cut from plastic card... was then glued into place after first painting all the detail previously scratched....here are a few photos.......

 

wing_fillets_(4).jpg

 

wing_fillets_(5).jpg

 

wing_fillets_(6).jpg

 

wing_fillets_(7).jpg

 

The next task was the hardest part and that was to cut another piece of yogurt pot plastic to the shape of the top part of the fillet and glue it in position....here is the finished construction......

 

wing_fillets_(8).jpg

 

wing_fillets_(9).jpg

 

wing_fillets_(9a).jpg

 

wing_fillets_(9b).jpg

 

wing_fillets_(9c).jpg

 

wing_fillets_(9d).jpg

 

So all I had to do now was to paint the face plate and I attached some aluminum tape to the top of the fillet to see what it looked like.

 

Here then are the wing fillets around the Radio room section complete.........

 

wing_fillets_(9e).jpg

 

wing_fillets_(9f).jpg

 

wing_fillets_(9g).jpg

 

wing_fillets_(9h).jpg

 

wing_fillets_(9i).jpg

 

wing_fillets_(9j).jpg

 

So I am now going to do the hopefully last part of this Radio room section and that is to place the Aluminum tape over the fuselage....

 

So until then.....thanks guys for taking a look!

 

Cheers

 

Fozzy

 

 

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Really looking a product of  the Boeing design guys now Fozzy, tremendous stuff

 

My favourite bits?

 

The sitting up begging for a walkies doggy that really holds the wings on, down Shep!

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44 minutes ago, perdu said:

Really looking a product of  the Boeing design guys now Fozzy, tremendous stuff

 

My favourite bits?

 

The sitting up begging for a walkies doggy that really holds the wings on, down Shep!

Cheers Bill....yes I thought that about the attachment posts as well!😁

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That looks fantastic. You'd never know it hadn't been planned that way in the first place.

Kudos to the missus for giving you a verbal kick up the rear!

 

Ian

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hi there guys!

 

All done!........well not actually the whole B17 but I have finished the Radio room section and all 3 sections have now been attached. Getting the nose/cockpit section to line up with the bomb bay was a real nightmare but managed it in the end!

 

....and it's BIG!!......well it would be at 1:20 scale!.....in fact so far it is just over 2 feet and 2 inches long (66cm).....and of course I haven't started on the rear section yet!

 

When all 3 sections were secured together I had to touch up the joints the best I could because originally this project was going to be built in separate sections but realized ...too late to be honest....that it would look so much better if it was one complete fuselage. This in turn caused me no end of problems lining everything up and trying to lose at least 1.7 cm in the length. In fact in the end it will be about 5mm too long but I can live with that!

When I start with the rear section I will build it as just one section right back to the rear gunner position this will just give me the one join onto the radio room!

I managed to modify the display stands I originally built for each section and have made 2 stands which can take the weight of the model so far!

 

I am going to have a rest from this build now and come back to start on the rear section in a few months time.

 

So here are photographs of just over half the fuselage of "Fuddy Duddy" .........unfortunately taking photos of her being so big half of my house and garden get in on the act!....really difficult!!!!....WARNING! PHOTO HEAVY!

 

Nose-Bomb-bay-and-Radio-room-sections-jo

 

Nose-Bomb-bay-and-Radio-room-sections-jo

 

Nose-Bomb-bay-and-Radio-room-sections-jo

 

Nose-Bomb-bay-and-Radio-room-sections-jo

 

Nose-Bomb-bay-and-Radio-room-sections-jo

 

Nose-Bomb-bay-and-Radio-room-sections-jo

 

Nose-Bomb-bay-and-Radio-room-sections-jo

 

Nose-Bomb-bay-and-Radio-room-sections-jo

 

Nose-Bomb-bay-and-Radio-room-sections-jo

 

Nose-Bomb-bay-and-Radio-room-sections-jo

 

Nose-Bomb-bay-and-Radio-room-sections-jo

 

Nose-Bomb-bay-and-Radio-room-sections-jo

 

Nose-Bomb-bay-and-Radio-room-sections-jo

 

Nose-Bomb-bay-and-Radio-room-sections-jo

 

Nose-Bomb-bay-and-Radio-room-sections-jo

 

Nose-Bomb-bay-and-Radio-room-sections-jo

 

Nose-Bomb-bay-and-Radio-room-sections-jo

 

I have temporally attached the bomb bay doors on to see the effect....these will be attached permanently when the whole B17 is finished!....here are a few shots......

 

Nose-Bomb-bay-and-Radio-room-sections-jo

 

Nose-Bomb-bay-and-Radio-room-sections-jo

 

Nose-Bomb-bay-and-Radio-room-sections-jo

 

So there you have it guys!

 

As I said I need a break from this now but of course not a break from Scratch building!.....I want to maybe have a go at scratch building a jet....something I haven't done before but would like to have a crack and see if I can do it!....I really like the late 40s/50s jet era and have been looking at the the Lockheed P.80 Shooting Star....I have always liked the look of that aircraft....so maybe I will give it a go!

 

Last thing before I depart......can one of you guys tell me how you change the title of the Thread....eg...I want to continue this thread when I build the last section without having to start a new thread if you know what I mean....I have seen it done on other threads but can't work it out!

 

Cheers for looking in and I will be back to finish this beast off...and in the mean time I will post a few pics of the Shooting Star (If I actually do it!!) on another thread

 

All the best guys

 

Fozzy

 

 

 

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Thank you all for your comments!😀.....and thanks for the heads up on the title change Simon!😉

Edited by Fozzy
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Incredible! 

I'm just starting with this scratch-building lark, but I haven't the patience to ever consider attempting something this spectacular. Well done!

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Hmmm, that's bigger than I imaged but is truly worthy of all the praise already sent and I look forward to the Waist and Tail positions being completed.

 

No rush, in your own time, at your convenience :D

 

Looking forward to the next project :worthy:

Edited by Tony C
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