Roger Holden Posted June 9, 2018 Share Posted June 9, 2018 3 minutes ago, Moa said: the canopy seems more to want to go over the edges, as in wrapping around the fuselage, than to match edge against edge: Absolutely no surprise with those Czech kits. First thing I do is check the fit of the canopy to the fuselage and if necessary (it often is), shim the fuselage halves to increase the width to match the canopy.... Of course, you can't do that if you have already joined the fuselage halves...... (sigh ?) "In this almost 2o years the vacuum-formed canopy has yellowed:" Yep; they started out making their canopies from pvc, which is cheap garbage only suitable for throwaway items as it degrades rapidly. 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephenCJ Posted June 9, 2018 Share Posted June 9, 2018 She is coming along very nicely Moa. Very salubrious. I have quite a few vac-forms with yellow canopies. Stephen 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted June 11, 2018 Author Share Posted June 11, 2018 I am replacing the kit's solid dorsal vents with home-made ones. A hollowed styrene rod cut in angle does the trick: 8 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Azgaron Posted June 11, 2018 Share Posted June 11, 2018 Excellent work Moa! Håkan 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caerbannog Posted June 12, 2018 Share Posted June 12, 2018 Clever trick with the vent! Thanks. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted June 12, 2018 Author Share Posted June 12, 2018 The canopy hatch is cut open: The fit issues mentioned above required a solution involving a supplement of styrene stick glued inside the canopy to pack the thickness a bit and act as reinforcement: Once glued, the overlapping bit will be sanded and blended-in as well as possible: 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted June 12, 2018 Author Share Posted June 12, 2018 And just in case you find yourself in the same predicament, normal styrene glue will not work. Sigh... 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted June 12, 2018 Author Share Posted June 12, 2018 Amelia's tailwheel had a tarp or leather dust cover, absent on the kit's part, so one is fabricated: Whilst looking at photos, I noticed a tie-down in the vicinity, so one was made too: 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted June 14, 2018 Author Share Posted June 14, 2018 Canopy glued on, first application of putty on the seams and preliminary sanding: 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Courageous Posted June 14, 2018 Share Posted June 14, 2018 6 hours ago, Moa said: Canopy glued on, first application of putty on the seams and preliminary sanding: Sorry Moa, you can't get away with that. What glue did you use for fixing the canopy? Stuart Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted June 14, 2018 Author Share Posted June 14, 2018 9 hours ago, Courageous said: Sorry Moa, you can't get away with that. What glue did you use for fixing the canopy? Stuart Hi Stuart I used cyanoacrylate to glue the internal frames to the canopy (the canopy had previously a bath on acrylic floor polish). Then to glue it to the fuselage I used white glue for the front and base, and cyano for the back (the part that touches the fuselage top). Let's hope it will hold. As you can see, it went through some manipulation and knocking around during sanding of the fuselage seams and so far no problems. Later I will tackle the top seam of the canopy itself. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted June 16, 2018 Author Share Posted June 16, 2018 (edited) A first coat of primer revealed that the intended fix for the bad canopy fit didn't work really well. I decided to rip it off, which wasn't easy since it was pretty well secured. More fiddling with the plastic around it on the fuselage and the canopy itself improved things. Canopies, when they are not good, are a veritable pain in the singularity: So it was glued back, hopefully this time for good. we'll see how it goes: Edited June 16, 2018 by Moa to correct typo 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted June 17, 2018 Author Share Posted June 17, 2018 (edited) As the slow process of removing blemishes from the frame goes on, details are being made: Earhart plane had several changes of the loops, masts and antennas. For the last flight one of the lengthwise wire antennas on the belly was removed, leaving only the starboard side only, but the two Pitots at the front remained. Brass stems for those parts are made: Locations for those parts are drilled: Even the lead wire connection to the "V" antenna location is drilled close to the window: The exhaust stacks are made from brass: A dry run: Edited June 18, 2018 by Moa to correct typo 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephenCJ Posted June 18, 2018 Share Posted June 18, 2018 Very nice scratch building Moa 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdrianMF Posted June 18, 2018 Share Posted June 18, 2018 Bold move to re-seat the canopy! In the “before” photo it looks pretty fine but I’m sure you had good reason. The finish is immaculate even at this stage. Regards, Adrian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted June 18, 2018 Author Share Posted June 18, 2018 1 minute ago, AdrianMF said: Bold move to re-seat the canopy! In the “before” photo it looks pretty fine but I’m sure you had good reason. The finish is immaculate even at this stage. Regards, Adrian HI Adrian Under certain angles the light gave away a slight bump at the seam -product of it "mounting" on the fuselage- which was not truly fixable. I could have cheated making a panel color difference to partially hide that, but decided better to do it properly. It was a risk, and could have easily ruined a day -or several-, and could have sent me in on a fruitless search for another canopy, or burden me with the task of making a male mold for a vac copy, things I am only glad to have avoided, more due to sheer luck than to dexterity. The finish is not bad, but it's not immaculate, and it will be a metal finish, which shows as we know all the little buggers, but I like to model with a sense of balance. Good enough is good enough. We go on. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigbadbadge Posted June 18, 2018 Share Posted June 18, 2018 Very nice indeed. Great work as usual Moa. Can't wait to see this in paint. Keep up the good work. All the best Chris 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Azgaron Posted June 18, 2018 Share Posted June 18, 2018 Looks very nice with the brass! Håkan 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
72modeler Posted June 18, 2018 Share Posted June 18, 2018 On 6/12/2018 at 10:38 AM, Caerbannog said: Clever trick with the vent! Thanks. Yes! Why didn't I think of that? It's so simple it's brilliant! Mike 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted June 18, 2018 Author Share Posted June 18, 2018 If you don't want to do the tube trick for the vents, you may carefully grind the kit's: Once they have been carved out, you may separate them from the sprue and cut them a bit shorter: The forward-facing aft vent is not roundish, but somehow squatted, so one is carved: Parts in place. The exhaust vents are displaced to the right, not in the centerline: Antenna masts and Pitots in place. Again, the last flight had the port row removed. Notice the stem in the middle to secure the wire antenna midway: Ready for the paint session: 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Courageous Posted June 18, 2018 Share Posted June 18, 2018 Nice work there Moa, coming along nicely. Stuart 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
corsaircorp Posted June 18, 2018 Share Posted June 18, 2018 Amazing work Moa, You really did great, congrats for the vents, I saw in an history magazine that the human remnants found in Kiribati in 1940 matches the late Amelia mensurations. DNA analysis are pending... Can't wait to see your kit finished, really great job ! Sincerely. Corsaircorp 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Azgaron Posted June 18, 2018 Share Posted June 18, 2018 Nice work with the vents, and nice tip! Håkan 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted June 18, 2018 Author Share Posted June 18, 2018 Gloss black base coat for the Alclad. Even as I airbrushed I noticed a few dust particles and fibers. Most likely additional touch-ups are on the way. Sigh..: 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted June 19, 2018 Author Share Posted June 19, 2018 A substitute, more accurate decal sheet arrived from Arctic Decals. Yeepee!: 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now