Bandsaw Steve Posted April 1, 2018 Share Posted April 1, 2018 Happy Birthday Royal Air Force Today is the 100th Anniversary of the formation of the Royal Air Force. If you did not know that already you are probably on the wrong website. Some time ago I decided that I wanted to mark this occasion by starting a new project on this date and have of late spent much time thinking about what the subject should be. Naturally enough, Spitfires, Hurricanes, Lancasters and myriad of famous post-war types all came to mind, but these are well-covered subjects and so I dwelled on the matter a bit deeper... What about something that was in service on the day the RAF formed? What about something that had served in both the RFC and the RNAS prior to the formation of the RAF? What about something that was crucially important both to the newly formed air force and essentially all of the commonwealth air arms that were to follow? What about the Avro 504! To me, the Avro 504, more than any other single type, captures the spirit and the essence of the nascent Royal Air Force. This type had seen service as a fighter, a bomber and reconnaissance aircraft prior to being 'relegated' to the training duties at which it excelled. By 1918 this was the most numerous aircraft in the RAF (and probably in the world) with more than 7000 being built during World War One alone. In the new air force almost all aircrew had been trained on this type and I should think most of the ground crew as well. It was the foundation of the skills and professionalism that have been the hallmark of the service ever since. So, foolishly, I'm going to have a crack at building one in 1/32 scale. Here are the plans I will be using...provided most efficiently by Len Whalley at 'aeroplans.co.uk’ (Great service thanks Len). As you can see this is a screen-shot of my electronic copy because my friendly computer draftsman at work is on extended Easter holidays. He'll be back soon! In the meantime I'm going to use these plans as a starting point, they are fine for the general layout and dimensions. And here we go... Start with a good straight, clean bit of wood. In this case I'm using Jarrah - just like I did in my Mig 15 build here... www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/235012524-mig-15-scratchbuild I'm using Jarrah mostly because it's the strongest wood I can get hold of. Having studied the plans I can see that there are going to be some challenges with maintaining the structural integrity of this model, especially once the extensive cockpit has been hollowed out - hence structural strength is going to be a major consideration. It's a beautiful bit of wood this - straight close grain almost flawless. The oval below marks the only knot in the entire plank, it's tiny and is fortunately positioned so it can be easily excluded from the fuselage cut-out. Here I'm marking off the first cut for the fuselage. I'm cutting it much longer than it needs to be for reasons you will see later on. And here it is - the first cut - made on 01 April 2018! Hooray... Two lengths have been cut for the fuselage so that I can work to the natural centre-line thus formed... The wings are being cut from some thin slices of sapelli. Another high-quality hard-wood. I've chosen this because I do not want the wings to sag and think that sapelli will be rigid enough to hold it's shape over time. And here's the rough cut-out of the tailplanes. I think that the tail is going to be the only easy part of the build. And so -after 20 minutes of work I have the very, very rough outline of a biplane... No - this is not an April Fools joke, this really is the start of my model! I don't know how long this is going to take but given the slow pace of my previous (still uncompleted) project that you can see here: www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/235021633-hmasm-ae2-scratchbuild I would say this will take at least a year and possibly much longer. I've never built a biplane before. Wish me luck... Best Regards, Bandsaw Steve (ex-Reconcilor) 32 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray S Posted April 1, 2018 Share Posted April 1, 2018 Good Luck, as requested! This is a great subject, and as you said it is probably one of the most important types the RAF ever had. I will keep an eye on this one! Ray 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Headroom Posted April 1, 2018 Share Posted April 1, 2018 This looks good - very good! I’ll tag along if I may? I won’t be able to give any practical advice on the 504, but I’ll be cheering from the audience! Trevor 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kev The Modeller Posted April 1, 2018 Share Posted April 1, 2018 I'm looking forward to this one 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hendie Posted April 1, 2018 Share Posted April 1, 2018 luck wished your way though I doubt you'll need to cash it in 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigbadbadge Posted April 1, 2018 Share Posted April 1, 2018 This will be very interesting. Good luck with your build of this wonderful machine and a scratchbuild too. We are very blessed with some cracking builds on BM. All the best Chris 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kagemusha Posted April 1, 2018 Share Posted April 1, 2018 Good luck, great project. Dare I say, WNW's will release a kit as soon as yours is finished, so thanks in advance for that. 1 1 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brandy Posted April 1, 2018 Share Posted April 1, 2018 This should be very interesting! I'm not a woodworker, despite having grown up in what used to be the woodworking (or at least furniture making) capital of England, High Wycombe, but I'm always ready to learn new tricks, and any scratchbuilt model is worth watching! Best of luck, although I doubt you'll be needing it! Ian 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdrianMF Posted April 1, 2018 Share Posted April 1, 2018 Looking forward to this. Personally, I would be tempted to build up the box fuselage and just do a solid bit where it goes curvy at the front... I guess I've been using too much plastic! Regards, Adrian 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brianthemodeller Posted April 2, 2018 Share Posted April 2, 2018 Having watched your last two builds I can’t wait to see how this turns out... I’ll pull up a chair at the back and dribble quietly if that’s OK? 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Head in the clouds. Posted April 2, 2018 Share Posted April 2, 2018 Can I sit in the observer's seat please ( see what I did there) this looks like it could be a gold mine of information and what a wonderful way to start the build, 100 years to the day. Steve, I am thinking of doing my first ever complete scratch build( only thinking mind) and I am sourcing research material for the build, if I can get enough, and I am well on my way, I will probably give it a shot, but one item I am struggling to get is a decent set of plans, I even tried aeroplan site you mentioned and it said it was up for sale, am I missing something? And by the way... good luck. Gary 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted April 2, 2018 Author Share Posted April 2, 2018 Hello, ‘Head in the clouds’ recent note has prompted me to check the website details that I wrote in the opening post. The correct website name for Len Whalley’s excellent plan service is ‘aeroplans.co.uk’ which is slightly different to what I originally wrote. I have edited the initial post accordingly. Sorry for any confusion caused. Hope you find what you are after Gary. Best Regards Steve 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray S Posted April 2, 2018 Share Posted April 2, 2018 Hello Steve, thanks for correcting the web address! It looks like they have a great selection of subjects there! Cheers, Ray 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martian Posted April 2, 2018 Share Posted April 2, 2018 This looks interesting! I have to say that I am somewhat surprised that the Guys at Wingnut haven't had a bash at this type. Martian 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted April 2, 2018 Author Share Posted April 2, 2018 Ray Yep, Len has a great international collection of aviation plans but is particularly strong on British subjects - Avro and DeHavilland especially! 👍 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted April 2, 2018 Author Share Posted April 2, 2018 Hi Martian, Agreed, it seems a strange omission especially since there is at least one fully restored and airworthy example in New Zealand. I’m guessing they’ll get to it one day. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mitch K Posted April 2, 2018 Share Posted April 2, 2018 Wiki (I know! I know!) says the wood is "so hard that conventional wood-working tools are near useless on it" so I'm looking forward to this! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ted Posted April 2, 2018 Share Posted April 2, 2018 That is some olde time model building, I guess that's how models were built 100 years ago. Really looking forward to seeing your progress. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted April 2, 2018 Author Share Posted April 2, 2018 Hi Mitch, Well, jarrah certainly is very hard but I can’t say I’ve had that many problems with it! When I tell folks around here that my Mig15 fuselage is made from jarrah they are generally flabbergasted - it’s about as far from the balsa that they are expecting as could be imagined. But it’s actually O.K. to work with. Most Western Australian hand-crafted furniture is made from jarrah and the carved detail in some of that work is magnificent. It’s slow to sand to shape, but that’s a good thing because you are better off removing too little than too much. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted April 2, 2018 Author Share Posted April 2, 2018 Hi Ted - am watching your Nieuport with great interest. The two projects should make an interesting side-by-side comparison! Hope you build faster than me - that way I can learn your tricks! 😀 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted April 4, 2018 Author Share Posted April 4, 2018 On 02/04/2018 at 22:02, Mitch K said: Wiki (I know! I know!) says the wood is "so hard that conventional wood-working tools are near useless on it" so I'm looking forward to this! Hi Mitch, Have just checked that wickipedia entry on Jarrah and note that is says something like ‘when fresh it’s quite workable but when seasoned it’s so hard that conventional woodworking tools are next to useless’. If by ‘seasoned’ they mean left outside and bleached in the sun for years until it turns grey and dry, then I think they are right - jarrah is just about as hard as steel when it’s like that - hence it makes excellent railway sleepers and wharf piles and so forth. The stuff I’m using is still red / brown and fresh and beautiful. Very hard for sure, but nonetheless highly workable. It’s actually quite pleasant to work with. 👍 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
albergman Posted April 4, 2018 Share Posted April 4, 2018 Great to see you carrying on in the scratchbuild mode Steve. Sure hope you get back to AE2 soon and "git 'er done" as they say. I know how much fun it is to embark on something new and that excitement drags me away sometimes for years at a time!! My Maserati 250F got abandoned 6 months ago and I've since started and finished another all-wood Ferrari 375MM and gone on to yet another project. I can hear the Maser whimpering on the shelf nearby and guilt is drawing me back ... slowly. All the best with the new project. Frank 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted April 4, 2018 Author Share Posted April 4, 2018 Thanks Frank, A good cautionary note that one - but don’t worry, right now it’s the Avro that’s languishing while AE2 is looking good for the April 27 deadline. I have many faults as a modeller but I generally finish the projects that I start. Generally... 😀 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bar side Posted April 4, 2018 Share Posted April 4, 2018 Scratch building a biplane. Looking forward to seeing this one. On a totally unrelated train of thought an advert just popped up on my social media feed https://microaces.myshopify.com/ There is a video of putting them together on their home page. And they fly! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tomoshenko Posted April 4, 2018 Share Posted April 4, 2018 Most impressive and I can only echo what the other posters have said. This reminds me of a cherished book I have which my father gave me a long time ago in a galaxy far far away. It's titled Aircraft in Miniature by W.O. Doylend with a foreword by Squadron Leader Neville Duke and dates from 1957. It's a wonderful book with illustrations, about how to build models out of wood from scratch (it recommends American whitewood). Some of the models scale replicas are truly amazing. It's what really got me into modelling, although if I could build any new tool model with bags of aftermarket anywhere near as good as those in the book I would die a very happy man. Anyway here is one for the road, found on page 65: 8 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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