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Stillnautical, a foxy lady the Sea Vixen in the fitting out shop


perdu

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With the Gannet tucked away tidy, 'til Telford when she appears on the club table I thought I'd play with my gift from Mars

 

Out of the box but with sprinkles and juice no doubt

P1010363.jpg

 

But that has already gone away hasn't it

 

First sprinkles, the beginnings of a wing fold that is a little more informative than the kit's setup

 

If you are unaware, this is the venerable Frog/Rovex Sea Vixen FAW2 which I have seen referred to as 'interesting but flawed'

 

Not a worry to me, I know too little about Vixens to quibble so I won't

 

Frog/Eastern Express, for 'tis from them, only give a small window for the coal hole and no seat to put in because there is no way that would be visible...

 

So I will put one in

 

And a bit of interior for both sides

 

And maybe knock out a jetpipe and intake tract too, already started modifying the intake holes

 

I will have more pictures, maybe even one of the box and pretty, little transfer sheet

 

Colourful, you'll see. 🎨

 

I took pictures of the ongoing works but they have to stay in my little silver Olympus. 'til I get on the PC later 📷

 

Anyway this is a start whilst I decide how to get painting time for the Buccaneers...

 

Laters guys

💻

 

 

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Basic cabin

P1010572.jpg

 

'ere guv, 'ave a chair mate.

 

Summat to work with?

Right hand switch panel

P1010573.jpg

 

Make the coal hole a hole

P1010574.jpg

 

Need something to look at driver?

P1010575.jpg

For the dashing Naval Aviator/pilot

 

P1010577.jpg

Beginnings of an office

 

And the hole develops, still very much work in  progress

 

P1010578.jpg

 

Im thinking of using Inkscaped photos of the panels to fit on the flat surfaces as decalcomanies

And I have some decent pictures of model interiors to copy(ish) for the Observer's workspace

 

More later, time to plan for the intake ducts now...

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Very punny Tony, :)  Roger no silence please

Tell me, shout at  me if you see me polluting the thread with unmitigated rubbish (It's OK I dont mind mitigated stuff...) ;)

 

To bring us up to where the plastic is, mostly, here is some of the wing fold stuff I have prepared earlier, like

P1010579.jpg

The polytriangled pieces are the retraction type thingies for inside the main section, the thin rods are part of the locking action gear

No dont ask me, somewhere out here is somebody who knows what I am trying to guess, I will wait for the news from there to see if I have guessed it right

P1010580.jpg

 

The outer panels just have shallow recesses with stiffening and locking doohdahs on them, here they have been recessed, shallowly

 

Some more tidying is due in here now I have finally made the start on the build

 

Now I suppose I ought to follow convention somewhat, how about a picture of the box

P1010581.jpg

 

I was a very happy camper to have this pop into the letter box from a great man, (being... person...alien...well you know what I mean)

 

Interplanetary co-operation at its finest, cheers Martian

 

Inside?

 

Well this is the admittedly messed about with, kit

P1010582.jpg

 

I dont usually but will in this case, remove stand outy panel lines

How are you supposed to get the transfers to sit down over those huge fences around the access panels?  :( 

 

I mentioned the wing fold within the kit

 

Better than nothing - but...

P1010583.jpg

 

No ceegar, Froglets but as I say at least we got something and two sets of outer wings to play with so if something goes awry...

 

This colourful thingy seems to include marks for the legendary Simon's Circuss

 

I think

 

:(

 

P1010584.jpg

But I am really not certain, the instructions are

Interesting

P1010585.jpg

 

Two sheets of A4 stapled together...

P1010586.jpg

 

I probably should read them

 

Maybe later, there's intake ducts to form

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Bill just been having a clear out and have come across an article that was in Scale Aviation Modeller International some time ago by  Mike Chaplin detailing and correcting the Frog spawn Sea Vixen. If you would like the article let me know and it's yours.

 

 Roger

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Ah yes Roger strictly as part of my research programme I would love a copy of it, can you scan it and email it to me?

 

I will however make no promises to apply me to a full reconstruct, I have already decided NOT to open the wheel wells and remake them 

 

Most other things will be slightly refined, if not ignored  ;)

 

I have a FG1 waiting to be built and stencilled...

 

(I do have a Pavla nose to fit on this if I decide to bother)

 

:)

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Not sure it will scan clearly (print is very small and slightly fuzzy) but can put it in the post to you if you want it.

I will most likely bin it if you don't want it sent

 

   Roger 

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3 hours ago, perdu said:

With the Gannet tucked away tidy, 'til Telford when she appears on the club table I thought I'd play with my gift from Mars

 

Excellent choice for next build Bill! Will follow this one most certainly.

 

Have you got this publication - excellent reference photos. I love the back cover especially. I always think that Sea Vixens on approach to a carrier look like they are going straight into the round out! Something about the way they hang in the air just before touch down.

 

20180828_14041420180828_140436

 

 

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Oooh look, a Buccaneer!

 

 

No Terry I do not have much detail stuff for the Sea Vixen but as this is DEFINITELY not intended to become a deep and intensive build most of what I find on the web can be used

 

Like you I think the aircraft always looks as if it wants to land a bit later, "It's fun flying round the ship like this."

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1 minute ago, Lord Riot said:

I have this kit in my stash, so will be interested to see how it goes. Or decide to sell mine if yours looks like it needs too much work!

I still think this is a model that looks enough like a Sea Vixen to be worth building even if you dont tear it apart first

This one will have fun bits I want to put in it but will definitely NOT be getting the Gannet treatment

Simple will do for me

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Work has begun to replace the wing fold 'spaces' in  the inner joint area

I  cut away the old location inner walls, tidied up the spaces and cut better recesses for the wall inners to fit deeper into the cavity

 

thus

P1010588.jpg

In macro it looks MUCKRO  but it will be easy to tidy it up later when it is all set in place, promise

P1010589.jpg

 

This is how I left them a few weeks ago when I was testing theories, port side shown

P1010590.jpg

 

I wanted a bit more space in the holes so I did them both the same amount

 

And this is where I hope to be heading

P1010592.jpg

 

I do not know who owns the copyright to that picture but hey, I owe you a huge dept of gratitude

It is one of my staple images for the fold getting built

 

Thanks

 

Well this is it  for today, more tomorrow maybe and on Thursday I hope to get Stylnrez on a Bucc or two, I have a paint opportunity looming then

 

 

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You can't beat a Sea Vixen, truly a mighty beast rather than vulpine. I built one of these about 10 years ago and it doesn't look half bad. I do recall using a fair amount of filler and elbow grease in the form of sanding on it though. Your build will be, and it's showing already, much better and in higher fidelity than mine. But I enjoyed building one of these icons from my childhood. Enjoy the build and I will sit back here quietly and learn for my next attempt on the three more I have in the stash. 

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Wait, I'm in too! :Tasty: 

 

Excellent detailing already, and..

1 hour ago, perdu said:

This one will have fun bits I want to put in it but will definitely NOT be getting the Gannet treatment

Simple will do for me

... yes, of course. Simple. 

 

:rofl:

 

Looking forward to your plastic magic, Bill

 

Ciao

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Lovely aircraft and there's something ultimately very rewarding about taking an old and very basic kit like this and turning it into something that can challenge todays much more detailed kits.

 

 

 

keep it coming Bill

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I stood and marvelled at this beast at Yeovilton last year, only to find out later that the strange lump on the side was the observers hole (see, I learnt something from @Ex-FAAWAFU). And they didn't have the nice big window that this one was fitted with.

I did toy with buying a kit, but and the Eastern Express one did catch my eye. But at the time I decided to get something else with my pocket money. I will watch with interest and see if I might skip one or two copies of the Beano and save up for one.

Edited by Bigdave22014
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If memory serves me right Bill some time ago I stumbled across an article by a Martian gentleman of our acquaintance in Scale Aircraft Modeller, replete with his own hand-drawn artwork of the interior.

 

 

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I was hoping not to spend too much time inside this beauty, there is a stack of stuff I could get into but time and inclination are against me

 

I have one more Navyation subject in mind which will be almost OOB, but I have the kit and the extra bits from Ali up north to allow me to get a Toom into my finished model collection, then I can get back to Lightnings and Wokkas and breathe slowly again

 

This naval stuff requires too many lessons on the way  :(  (I know narthings)

 

I knew the Martian geezer had an affinity for water, no doubt acquired by leaving his own particularly waterlessless home world and discovering Poole Tony, fortunately the state of tune I intend imposing on this little delight will save me from going in too deep

 

Or...

 

I can report that the plastic from which E E have made this little sweetie is very good for a chap with a Swann-Morton to modify

 

Phew

 

On looking at the intakes I did decide that the intakes had to have a little work, simply because they are so prominent, so I was considering making casts to mould new innards to replace the blanked kit bits

 

I thought to use Plasticene© to make an imprint of the trunking that runs back to a fuselage former to meet the Avon's intake faces

 

Then I had a (rare) thought, why not try to make a set of intake ducts from Green Stuff Putty?

 

Now this stuff is something of which I really do know narthings

 

Is it water proof, does it take paint, will it ever dry out?

 

All of these questions are open to debate and I throw the discussion to the floor for discussion...

 

 

...

 

 

.........

 

 

...............

 

Oh well I will soon find out

P1010599.jpg

 

I marked out the duct in HB pencil and rolled my own bit of Green Putty

 

And rolled it

 

And again

 

and began making the ducting in the one half of the fuselage

P1010601.jpg

 

(Hmm, cusp of over exposure there methinks)

Some of the putty went into filling the kit hollows and cavities

P1010601.jpg

 

If anyone hasn't seen the putty ungreened, here it is

 

P1010602.jpg

 

Just roll the strip between your hands and a clean desktop  (dont ask...)

 

Once I had a duct I needed to fit the engine bearer bulkhead, this one was made from a bit of plasticard

 

P1010603.jpg

 

I will make a pair of Avon front fan pieces to glue on there later

 

I marked the shapes with this little toy, wow that makes this job easier

 

P1010605.jpg

 

Really glad I bought that after years trying to transcribe internal curves with a piece of unrolled out solder 

 

:(

 

And I think this can bring the evenings messing about to a convivial end

 

Thanks for your comments

 

P1010607.jpg

 

ciao

 

 

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