Bandsaw Steve Posted September 22, 2019 Author Share Posted September 22, 2019 1 minute ago, limeypilot said: Now it's really starting to look like a 504. At the stage now where any mistakes are going to show. Note the slight correction to your text! 😜 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brandy Posted September 22, 2019 Share Posted September 22, 2019 I had to go back and double check just in case auto correct had done that! Ian 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted September 22, 2019 Author Share Posted September 22, 2019 2 hours ago, limeypilot said: I had to go back and double check just in case auto correct had done that! Ian Bloody computers over-riding pilots eh! 😡 It’s 737 800 Max all over again! ☹️ 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheonix Posted September 22, 2019 Share Posted September 22, 2019 All those extra details add a great deal to the finished model. Funny how they suddenly appear just when you think that the painting stage has arrived! Looking really good and the paint will certainly enhance what is already an excellent model. P 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Courageous Posted September 23, 2019 Share Posted September 23, 2019 Excellent work Steve, looking fab. Stuart 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hendie Posted October 9, 2019 Share Posted October 9, 2019 just thought I'd drop by to clean up some of the cobwebs n dust n stuff ('specially since no work seems to be getting done here!) 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted October 10, 2019 Author Share Posted October 10, 2019 How many years did you say you have you been building that Pullman Hendie?🙄 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hendie Posted October 10, 2019 Share Posted October 10, 2019 13 hours ago, Bandsaw Steve said: How many years did you say you have you been building that Pullman Hendie?🙄 longer than it took to build the real thing dammit! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted October 10, 2019 Author Share Posted October 10, 2019 My Demanding Public Fame is difficult thing sometimes. I enjoy the adulation of being 'Bandsaw Steve' and revel in the sure knowledge that my name and work will live on in much the same way that Shakespeare's, Leonardo's or Elvis's has. However, I must admit I sometimes find my fan's demands trying... 😟 Take @hendie for example, who just today was posting pictures of a kitten 'cleaning up' since to his mind 'no work seems to be getting done here', or take post #378 by @Matt_ (on this very thread) where he stated 'I'm interested to see how you lace up the belly'. This, in effect committed me to a campaign of detailed stitching work on my Avro - whether I wanted it or not! I suspect Michelangelo felt similar pressure with a Pope breathing down his neck as he painted the Sistine chapel. Yes these are the calls from my public, from my fan base; a fickle and demanding group of uncounted numbers (perhaps as many as zero!) who seem to demand ever more from the very quick of my creative core... 😰 Here's how I first thought I might do the stitching. I went and bought a set of pinking shears. ' Pinking shears - as you can see - cut a zig-zag pattern. This is intended to stop fabric from fraying after being cut, however I thought it might be useful for cutting a fine zig-zag of masking tape that could then be stuck onto the airframe to simulate stitching. This was a bit like communism. A good theory, but unworkable in reality. As you can see, both the zig and the zag were far too large and I knew that there was no way that Matt would let me off with this. I considered numerous alternatives - including ripping the family toaster apart to retrieve the zig-zaggy little elements within, but due to some sort of difficult-to-understand thought process, my beloved objected to this excellent plan. I was considering giving up and not adding any lacing but Matt's words kept ringing in my ears... 'I'm interested to see how you lace the belly... I'm interested to see how you lace the belly... I'm interested to see how you lace the belly...' What to do? What to do? Then, while scrabbling around in around my assorted model-building gear box looking for inspiration, I found this thing - a riveting tool - and I had a riveting idea! Run the tool along the edge of a bit of very thin plastic sheeting... Turn the sheeting over and then you will see, instead of the perfect little line of dents the tool makes on the top of the sheet, a perfect line of little bumps on the bottom. Please note that if you have bumps on your bottom I would prefer if you don't write in to tell us. Anyhow, after cutting off a very thin - let's say 2.5mm - strip off the edge of the plastic sheet I had a bumpy strip of plastic that could glued onto the aircraft to represent a line of stitching. In this view you can see the 3D effect, which although not exactly accurate does sort-of convey the impression. Sort of. It looks quite severe at this point but I think once the airframe is painted it will look OK. And that's about it for now. Hopefully my public's appetite for scratch-building action is sated and I will have a chance to have a short break from the maddening crowds of fans that don't seem to follow me wherever I go. Bandsaw Steve 13 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hendie Posted October 10, 2019 Share Posted October 10, 2019 took me a little while to get through the cobwebs but I got there in the end. You really should pay more attention to your housekeeping Steve. Nice little update there. You could always cut back the rivet-thread with a gentle micromesh if so desired. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Head in the clouds. Posted October 10, 2019 Share Posted October 10, 2019 Bloody marvellous Steve, marvellous I tell thee.🏅 When lightning strikes it sure strikes, I think that will look superb when painted and shadowed with a filter or wash. Remind me not to set you a challenge in the future 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheonix Posted October 10, 2019 Share Posted October 10, 2019 All good ideas are simple but usually are arrived at by a crab-wise action.... Very good representation - as Matt has stated, a marvellous idea. P 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted October 19, 2019 Author Share Posted October 19, 2019 The Avro gets a bit horny. Before the days of 'fly-by-wire' people used to control their aircraft using wires. 🤔 In early aircraft, such as the Avro 504, these wires - more correctly called control lines - would often operate on the control surface externally by means of pulling on a lever attached to the articulated surface. These levers would stick out a bit and so were termed 'control horns'. In this update our little Avro 504 is going to get outfitted with a full set of such horns - some on it's ailerons, elevators and rudder. 📯 The horns in this instance are to be cut from a sheet of aluminium lithoplate. I've mentioned it elsewhere - during the Carpathia build I think - that this lithoplate stuff is exceptionally useful. it's got just the right combination of strength, cutability and workability for all kinds of applications. So far the only drawback I've found is that you cannot solder it, but that doesn't matter because two-part epoxy works beautifully with it. The process is just a repeat of my basic 'modus-operandi'. Start by sticking on a paper pattern... and then cut it out with tin snips or scissors. Drill some holes in the correct spot for some control lines to pass though. Drill a fine guide hole into the airframe at the required location. Use a jeweller's saw to cut a slot into which the horn will sit. Fit the control horn into the slot and hold it permanently in place with some two-part araldite. Repeat the process on the rudder... and on the elevators. Here they go in place and looking OK. There is, of course, two more control horns on the aircraft, but they are on the top wing and are not shown in this photo. There you go... One horny Avro 504. We are now very, very close to the last prime and the first spray of final paint colour - perhaps that's what's getting it all excited. Bandsaw Steve 16 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DMC Posted October 19, 2019 Share Posted October 19, 2019 Neatly done, Steve. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheonix Posted October 19, 2019 Share Posted October 19, 2019 Relatively quick and easy and certainly very neat. Looking very good - awaiting the paint with interest. P 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted October 23, 2019 Author Share Posted October 23, 2019 Brass Tacks Not quite painting time yet folks. There's still a handful of details to add before charging up the airbrush and making a complete mess of the project. By some coincidence, or perhaps just because we are starting to deal with some really quite small details, all of the jobs in this post use some very fine brass pins. I picked up a bag of a couple of hundred of these on a whim a couple of years ago while trolling around a jewellery and beading supplies store. I had no real idea what I intended to use them for at the time but I thought I looked like they could be useful and I have used them on many occasions ever since. First we have to add the frames that the windshields will be attached to. The process is pretty self-explanatory, work out where the frame needs to go and mark off and cut out the bits of wood for the housing - if that's the correct term - that the windshield will rest on. Sand the little bits to the correct contour so that they will sit snuggly onto the top deck of the fuselage. Glue them into place with a bit of PVA and then drill three holes. Stick a brass pin - cut very short - through the middle hole to act as a tack to help hold the thing in place. Stick some other brass pins on either side of each housing. These now form the metal uprights onto which the glass windscreens will be attached when the time comes. Now add some sway braces to the fuel tank. Currently it's stuck on the top centre of the upper wing with just two thin vertical tubes and it looks a bit unrealistic and isn't that firmly attached. Drill four holes at consistent angles as shown through the underside of the wing and up into the fuel tank. Insert some brass pins as shown and hold them in place with two-part araldite. Trim off the massive surplus lengths of each brass pin and sand the stubs down smooth. From above we can now see four little sway braces holding the fuel tank in place. It's much more secure than before and looks much more convincing. Oh yes - and there needs to be a hook added as well. I suspect this was used for suspending the aircraft during maintenance and perhaps for checking the C.O.G. So there we go, getting right down to brass tacks now - well pins really- each one costing no more than a couple of cents and very useful in its own way. What I have not shown you in this post is how I added some - not very convincing - aircrew footholds onto the port side of the aircraft, just to the rear of the instructor's cockpit. I say not very convincing because I noticed them too late - they should have been drilled out and dealt with months ago - and so they have been added as surface detail only. I would put a picture in for your perusal but I don't seem to any photos that show them yet. Maybe next time, or maybe not. Depends how ashamed I am of this slipshod work. Next time I'm going to be drilling lots and lots of holes, and then it's the final primer and start painting. 😱 Bandsaw Steve 11 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather Kay Posted October 23, 2019 Share Posted October 23, 2019 Like those pins. I need to source some, I think. I like how this is coming together. 👍 I wonder if the "hook" is actually an overflow pipe when the tank is being filled. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted October 23, 2019 Author Share Posted October 23, 2019 1 minute ago, Heather Kay said: I wonder if the "hook" is actually an overflow pipe when the tank is being filled. Hmmmm seems possible...let’s ask @limeypilot he seems to know about these things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brandy Posted October 23, 2019 Share Posted October 23, 2019 As far as I know the "hook" is a vent to allow air in and out. Without it you'd get a vacuum as fuel was used, leading to fuel starvation. It's curved to stop rain etc getting in. The Ilya Muromets tanks also have them. Hope that helps! Ian 5 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted October 23, 2019 Author Share Posted October 23, 2019 Ahhh! That sounds right - a breather tube. Seems like Heather’s idea was much closer than mine. 👍 Thanks Limey! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Courageous Posted October 23, 2019 Share Posted October 23, 2019 The little details are making all the difference Steve. 1 hour ago, Bandsaw Steve said: I picked up a bag of a couple of hundred of these on a whim a couple of years ago while trolling around a jewellery and beading supplies store. Maybe you got them as a fall-back position if building models didn't work out.... Stuart 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted October 23, 2019 Author Share Posted October 23, 2019 1 hour ago, Courageous said: Maybe you got them as a fall-back position if building models didn't work out.... ‘If’ ??? Don’t you mean when? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted October 27, 2019 Author Share Posted October 27, 2019 Getting close now! I am getting close to two critical parts of this build; painting it and sticking the top wing on. Neither are likely to be easy and both, I believe, will test my skills rather severely. The whole 'biplane' thing is fairly new to me (I've done one or two kitsets but that's about it) so I'm not entirely comfortable with how to attach the top wing and do all of those struts and so forth. So I've been doing a bit of testing regarding how to go about this. The most successful test is shown below. Here some magnetic Formica (a thin metal sheet with Formica bonded on either side) has been chosen as the material to make the struts from and a sheet of plywood simulates one of the wings - it doesn't really matter which one. A couple of slots have been cut into the plywood and the struts glued into place. Note the outrageous 'leaning forward' raking angle on each strut, that's kept me awake at night. This approach seems to work OK, although the Formica is very hard to sand to shape where it sticks above the top wing and below the bottom wing, so in the final case I might replace it with some thin strips of hardwood so that I can ensure smooth final surfaces. So with the basic method of attachment decided on, I can get cracking. First mark up the locations of each strut position as carefully as possible. Drill a hole at the marked point. In fact drill a pair of holes at the attachment point (top and bottom wing) of each strut. Now - using a very fine jeweller's saw - complete the slot between each pair of holes - make the slot the correct thickness to ensure a tight friction fit. Glue will be needed for these struts but I want to use the smallest amount possible. While we are here and have the Dremel handy we might as well drill some very fine holes at the strategic locations where the rigging will be anchored. And whack some holes in where these 'bonging hoops' must go. 'Bonging hoops' because they stop the wing tips bonging the ground. And now - except for the fact that some masking must go back over those central struts - we are ready to prime. The main reason I put this photo in is because in the foreground you can see a hardwood strut dry fitted into it's intended final position. About 30 minutes after this photo the final prime was completed and touch dry. Here's what it looks like after the primer with all of the completed parts dry-fitted together for a preview. There's still priming needed on the undercarriage and so-forth, but the main airframe is now ready for paint! The stitching looks a lot better now that it's blended into the background. Here's what she looks like from ahead. and behind, and here's the overview complete with the top wing standing by - ready for paint. So that's what I've been up to this week. Drilling lot's of holes and spraying some primer. Expect some procrastination before a proper painting update. I'm not very brave with an airbrush. 😨 Best Regards, Bandsaw Steve. 17 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marklo Posted October 27, 2019 Share Posted October 27, 2019 (edited) Remarkable work Steve. I tend to use brass rod covered in 10 thou plastic card for my struts. I’ll then usually do the interplane struts first, align the whole thing ( using the cardboard box method, must post a photo) then size and fit the cabane struts. WRT rigging I normally use homemade eyelets which I have learned ( the hard way) are better attached before the upper wing is attached. ( this is why my Bristol bulldog has been nearly finished for months now, sigh) Edited October 27, 2019 by Marklo 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted October 27, 2019 Author Share Posted October 27, 2019 Homemade eyelets. A length of twisted wire forming a loop at one end I presume? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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