Jump to content

RWD-9 Spanish Civil War - from RWD-6, scratch


JWM

Recommended Posts

Hi,

RWD-6 and RWD-9 are coupled very ofted, however besides general idea thay did not too many common parts. 

RWD-6 was designed fo a competitions "Challenge" in 1932 which she won piloted by Franciszek Żwirko.  More about this machine cane be read here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RWD_6 

For next "Challange", in 1934, RWD prepared a new, bigger design RWD-9. Again this machine won contest piloted by Jerzy Bajan, moreover she took also second place piloted by Stanisław Płończyński. More can be read here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RWD_9

Whereas RWD-6 was only in phase of prototype the RWD-9 was produced in small series (2 prototype and 8 produced). One of them was sold to Spain and took part in early phase of SCW until was crashed in Autumn 1936.  

 

There is very good monography of RWD-6 and RWD-9 by Andrzej Glass  issued in Poland. There are nice scale drawings and colour profiles as well as many BW photos in this book. 

56d48e069e512.jpeg

Despite great sucess of RWD-9 there is no model o it on market. In 1/72 there is a model of RWD-6 (currently still produced but the moulds are already very worn).

The RWD-9 was then developed into RWD-13, which has three kits in 1/72 (injected short run by Aster, vacu by Broplan and resin by Ardpol).  Despite some general similarity between RWD 6 and RWD-9 it seems to be better to do conversion from RWD-13 rather then from RWD-6. However of those three only Ardpol is easy available, two others are more difficult to get. 

I decided to do conversion using two kits of RWD-6 a base. One kit was complete the second was mainly only the fuselage. Wings I have used for scratch conversion of Nimrod from Fury... (If somone is intersting it is here: )

36496981801_eb9572dd86_b.jpg&key=d078a92

 

Going back to RWD-9. I started with fuselage. I cut two fuselages and made a 4-person cabine,

45261609412_195d589f6d_b.jpg

31436162098_6c816de61b_b.jpg

 

I glued windows and secured them with Tamiya tape

45261611052_2fe765c39d_b.jpg

 

Of course inside was done as well

30370817337_5535520e5e_b.jpg

 

The wings of RWD-9 are about 5 mm each longer in scale (and heve different flaps chord) with genaral the same chord. I glued them (tops and bottoms) shifted by this 5 mm and

the gaps filled with Tamiya resin putty (since normal putty has too large contraction or shrinking  while drying) 

Here they are on the drawings of RWD-6

43494851890_16b93889c7_b.jpg

31436163418_b807d9e0a7_b.jpg

And here on drawings of RWD-9

45309971421_3c5dfdeabf_b.jpg

 

Since all pannels and control surfaces are different I had to sand out all structure

 

 

Going back to RWD-9 in Spain. The bottom profile (based on photo showes her in pre-war colours

14111915106._SY1500_.jpg

 

There are some profiles ahowing as she could look during SCW:

75_1.jpg

75_1_b1.jpg

 

However the rudder of RWD-9 survived, it looks like that

 

09-ster1.jpg

on a a bit other side take: 

maxresdefault.jpg

It is clear that bottom of rudder stayed red, so very likely bottom of whole fuselage also retained original red colour!

Likely the machine was not re-painted also on wings from bottom side, and I think this will be how I will finish it.

The prop also survived (and is black)

To be continued

Jerzy-Wojtek

 

 

Edited by JWM
  • Like 7
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi

The canopy I glued from small parts, each window as separate one piece

44457219535_6a5be27f49_b.jpg

 

The left and right  windows from windscreen were rounded, not flat like others were. I cut it from plastic wine "glass"

43554950640_4d0cf3d4bb_b.jpg

 

The top window is taken from RWD 6, all otheres are cut from plastic element of Gillette box of shave blades :) .

 

The tailplane is a bit too narrow, so I glued extension in control surface and added some putty on ot...

.44647186334_a0fc827d0a_b.jpg

 

45371485611_872d8d9710_b.jpg

 

The nine cylider engine Walter Bora had 110 cm diameter in original, so it about 15 mm  in scale. I had to enlarge Towdend ring

43554952720_9c8a36c8dd_b.jpg

 

The engine itself will be a resin copy of engine from Praga E39 by RS.

 

I started to scribe surfaces of wings

44457215475_22f990c3e5_b.jpg

31495686648_1c9deb2b0a_b.jpg

 

To be cont.

Regards

J-W

 

 

  • Like 8
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Many thanks Gents for warm words at begining :)

The 9 cylinder engine Walter Bora will be represented by weaker Walter Gema from RS Praga e39. I am copying it in resin, to have for both machines, It has correct diameter of 15 mm 44499830955_aa4e5cb102_b.jpg

 

The tailplane after sanding

44499831905_824a917c3d_b.jpg

 

and canopy (sanded with 600, 2000 and polished with cotton cloth)

44499833105_ae765be974_b.jpg

 

Some sunk spots on rear part of top window I have filled with trancparent resin glue,

 

To be cont

Regards

Jerzy-Wojtek

  • Like 4
Link to comment
Share on other sites

RWD-9 had 3 different engines. What I am doing, the Spanish one, had different engine than that one which won Challenge. Especially these had reductor moving axies of prop up, whereas in Spanish one the axis of prop was in central place of engine due to planetary reductor.

I made the resin copy of engine, and started to work on rotable prop assembly.

30529765867_411c4243e0_b.jpg

 

43652830010_7dd3e7d42d_b.jpg

I scaled down to 1/72 large plans publisged by Wiesław Schier in his well known to all older Polish modellers book

719202083_2_644x461_miniaturowe-lotnictw

 

Here is current state of fuselage with u/c and tail, in background drawings from the above cited book

45418505282_78cc650e52_b.jpg

 

Regards

J-W

 

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

The delicate and rised ribs on flaps and ailerons I tried to do as rised borfers of masked by tape surfaces.

I masekd them

30730666557_3c37479174_b.jpg

Painted with diluter white, and removerd tapes

 

44757062415_dc007a9043_b.jpg

 

should be enough rised I hope

Regards

J-W

 

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi,

The bottom of wings - I added fairings of flaps and ailerons mechanisms:

43879821140_ea07914ed9_b.jpg

 

I realized that fin was too short, so I removed it and make it taller by about 1.5 mm

 

43879822250_4c05c90780_b.jpg

 

I glued wings with fuselage

31825264498_7ac9929201_b.jpg

 

31825263518_3947f2b950_b.jpg

 

And struts supporting wings:

43879823220_4222604bd6_b.jpg

 

As you see I painted very diluted first layer....

 

To be cont.

Regrads

J-W

 

  • Like 5
Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

4 minutes ago, TheBaron said:

More of your fantastic inventiveness Jerzy: this has come together most handsomely! :clap:

Tony, many thanks!  I do hope it will turn out not bad. I did some more work today so I will soon post current state .

 

I have still doubta on true look of this machine during SCW.  As I mentioned already I have different oponion about the camo as presented on some colour profiles . The photo from SCW period does not exists. The hypothetical profiles showes green mottles on ochra with light blue undersurfaces but since on the rudder some areas still are in original alu dope/purple red livery (area with with inscription "RWD" and red bottom of rudder) I think that she was comouflaged hastitly just by spraying mottles on pre war livery.

09-ster1.jpg&key=74e821631f97d0bf627b807

maxresdefault.jpg&key=60758f834517f087f8

I am not sure if the mottles were only green and ochra is just a thin green layer appearence or they are two colours mottles.

 

The Miles  Speed Six here (former G-ACTE) was wearing such mottle camo from which British registation was still noticable

1166805-24595-55-pristine.jpg

 

 

Any opinion or support on that?

Regards

J-W

 

 

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi

First layers of basic colours

30762425777_30513db30d_b.jpg

In the background photo of Spanish RWD-9 before SCW.

 

30762421607_30e563c433_b.jpg

 

45652304172_d2c79d0172_b.jpg

 

Here some elements of exhaust pipe can be seen (no painted yet).

 

Cheers

J-W

 

  • Like 4
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Jerzy....

Two RWD9s where actually purchased by the Aviación Militar back in 1935. Original polish reg were SP-DRA and SP-DRB, one of them being the later EM-W46 you can see in that pic. That very plane was lost in an accident later in october, 10th, 1936, at Limoux, France. I don't think she even sported any camouflage.....who knows the other plane, no record, pic or tale exists about it....

EM-W46 was painted in a very colourful scheme of aluminium enamel over red, and an undersized republican tricoloured flag in the rudder.

According to J. Miranda drawings, it showed republican cocardes at some point, wich doesn't make sense at all for it didn't last long enough before suffering the accident.

11206140.jpg

 

11206187.jpg

 

11206235.jpg

 

 

And according to some sources, the second example could have had sported this camouflage during her wartime service...

11206257.jpg

Edited by Artie
  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Artie,

Many thanks for your input. I was wondering of anything more is known in Spain about this RWD-9 which was there fairly before the outbreak of war. If you look at the existing rudder of RWD-9 in Spain

09-ster1.jpg&key=74e821631f97d0bf627b807

You see that some camo IS APPLIED at least in form of green spatches.  I think, that above photo suggests that machine was hastitly painted like NiD 52

75_3.jpg

The silver (alu dope) is a bit yellowed as result of cellon aging perhaps. I do not think at the moment that actually mottles are also in ochra colour - only dark green over original red/alu...

Best regards

J-W

 

 

Edited by JWM
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'd suggest a light "mist" of green blotches over the aluminium paint, as you say. Nothing can be assured for sure, so it's up to you to decide wich colour scheme depict. One thing is for sure, and that's just my personal opinion: the red/aluminium scheme is quite colourful and attractive, so I'd keep the camouflage scheme for another plane, there're plenty of them to paint blotches on, but just this one to depict such a beautiful deco. Painting those combined colours letters is a challeng in itself.....go for it...!!!

Cheers....

Edited by Artie
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 11/4/2018 at 3:39 PM, Artie said:

According to J. Miranda drawings, it showed republican cocardes at some point, wich doesn't make sense at all for it didn't last long enough before suffering the accident.

Artie, at the short movie on YT 

at 2:39 the photo print is shown on which the roundel under the wing is clearly seen! 

Regards

J-W

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

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 account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...