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KP 1/72nd De Havilland D.H.88 Comet racer


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Seeing that the landing gear main assembly can be slid-in from above the engine gondola, I decided to join its halves, but before I added a generic cylinder behind the air scoop, and drilled a small circular intake prominently seen in photos too. I find it sad that KP did not provide for this front cylinder to avoid the see-through effect so conspicuous in lesser kit. Easily fixed, though.

I am also sad to report that once you joined the halves they do not correctly match the shape molded under the wing where they go. We'll see if a spread bar later on helps with that issue:

IMG_1319+%25281280x960%2529.jpg

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Regarding the SBS kits, the Comet racer I have seems to be rather undersized against published dimensions for the 88 - something I put down to some rather substantial resin shrinkage.

 

It still made for a very nice model- just not 1/72.

 

How does the KP offering compare?

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2 minutes ago, gunzo said:

Regarding the SBS kits, the Comet racer I have seems to be rather undersized against published dimensions for the 88 - something I put down to some rather substantial resin shrinkage.

 

It still made for a very nice model- just not 1/72.

 

How does the KP offering compare?

Well, I could say the same of almost every single kit I have built, they differ somewhat from published dimensions and plans (that differ in turn from each other a lot too).

Regarding how it compares to the KP model, I have been just doing that since the beginning above, and will continue to do it as I build it. Comparisons are tricky, because they depend on a number of factors, some of which may be subjective (modelers that may prefer resin or injected kits, modelers that prefer long run kits or don't mind the extra work of short run kits, etc.)

Coming back to "dimensions": personally speaking, I rather have a wonderful kit that is missing a millimeter, than a bad one that is "dimensionally accurate". Many decades ago we lined up a number of models, not really known, and NOBODY of the present modelers at that meeting could tell what was "accurate". Many aspects make a model or a kit desirable, I am definitely not a rivet counter, nor I go around with a ruler obsessing about millimeters. But I completely understand that we modelers (and people) come in all flavors, and we all can be part of this hobby in our own particular way.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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When I say undersized, by recollection (I no longer have thge model) it was someting in excess of 1/4 inch in the major dimensions and managed to put me off having things cast in resin to this day- probably quite undeservedly.

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I think your recollection may be a bit off (you said in excess of 1/4 inch, that is more than 6.35mm)

I just pulled both models, SBS's and Arfix's for comparison.

Both are spot on in length, the Airfix model is about 1.5 mm short in span, the SBS model is about 2.5mm short in span, which if it isn't a happy occurrence, it's still a far cry from more than 6.35 mm.

Building a model implies some sanding and other operations that may influence the measures, but not to a great degree, so these measures are perhaps an average.

Still, shall we make the case that the Airfix kit is "more accurate" (or dimensionally accurate, to be precise)?. Does that make the Airfix model a better model? lo dudo mucho! (I pretty much doubt it!).

In any case, as I always say when this kind of exchanges happen: I rather be building, and that's precisely what I will keep doing now.

45662637284_0f673a11da_b.jpg

1 hour ago, gunzo said:

When I say undersized, by recollection (I no longer have thge model) it was someting in excess of 1/4 inch in the major dimensions and managed to put me off having things cast in resin to this day- probably quite undeservedly

See above.

Edited by Moa
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You have prompted me to check my file notes (I was drawing up for a potential 1/48 scratch build which was the only reason I bothered measuring the kit) and the span was short by 4.5mm, the length by 5mm.

I think I probably had an extreme case of  shrinkage (ie overcooked resin) but was lucky in that the same percentage of reduction applied to all major parts- ie they still fitted together. Given your measurements, I doubt my bits would have fitted your bits without a lot of work.

 

 

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22 minutes ago, TallBlondJohn said:

will I ever look at my little Arfix G-ACSR the same way again? 

Oh, no worries there, I have built as said a few Airfixes DH88s, and have two more bought months ago to keep playing with them, besides a third SBS in the box and a second KP.

One can't have enough DH88s, of any ilk.

 

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1 hour ago, Moa said:

Oh, no worries there, I have built as said a few Airfixes DH88s, and have two more bought months ago to keep playing with them, besides a third SBS in the box and a second KP.

One can't have enough DH88s, of any ilk.

 

Just out of interest, how many real DH88s were built?  I have always understood it to have been a “short run” aircraft, as it were.

 

AW

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11 minutes ago, Andwil said:

Just out of interest, how many real DH88s were built?  I have always understood it to have been a “short run” aircraft, as it were.

 

AW

I believe that just five, but there were many incarnations of some of them, with different registrations and color schemes along their lives.

 

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So, where were we...

A general view. The coaming and inst. panel are painted and glued together, waiting to be put in place after the fuselage seams are dealt with. As you can see those seams needed some amount of putty, whatever the case may be, because of my mistake modeling manners or the kit demanded so.

The peduncle at the attachment point of the blades to the sprue is sanded thin to be later inserted in previously drilled locating holes in the spinners. As I mentioned, all my four spinners had small sink holes, and since I plan to model the variant with the ones that have the "circumcision", those will be not easy to fix or hide. We'll see.

You can also spot a lens I made that I want to include in the nose.

IMG_1406+%25281280x960%2529.jpg

Edited by Moa
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All flying surfaces in place.
The fit is not perfect (the seat of the wings on the Karmans are slightly larger than the wing roots themselves, and a hair that way also for the stabs), but all these can be smoothed, and it is usually part of these short run endeavors. Hey, put those skills at work.

IMG_1408+%25281280x960%2529.jpg

Edited by Moa
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1 hour ago, Courageous said:

 

Your bench is too tidy...

 

 

Hi Stuart 

i can't build on an untidy bench.

Every hour or so i have to clean an rearrange tools, parts, glues, etc.

As we were told in the Shaolin Modeling Temple: Order outside, order inside. Order inside, order outside.

There is no inside or outside.

Edited by Moa
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Application of a dab of putty to erase the flaps seam at their midspan produced by the parts break-up.
The landing gear continues to be detailed according to references. Is this throwing good money after bad (meaning detailing things whilst the general demeanor of the kit does not reach that level)? well the kit is not a jewel of precision, but some details may enhance a bit the general looks:

IMG_1410+%25281280x960%2529.jpg

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On ‎19‎/‎12‎/‎2018 at 22:51, TallBlondJohn said:

For one awful moment I thought Moa was going to scratch build a DH88. In a week. As it is I will I ever look at my little Arfix G-ACSR the same way again?

I wouldn't put it past him to try it!

2 hours ago, Courageous said:

Your bench is too tidy...

 

Stuart

Stuart, that is not Moa's real bench. It is clearly a stunt bench employed specially for these pictures. You Earthlings, so naïve sometimes!

 

The Wise Martian 👽 

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Moa,

 

Is your G-ACSP one of the SBS kits? That is a real black beauty! Very scale glossy finish, too; it's very hard to do an overall gloss black model that doesn't look like a plastic toy, if that makes any sense.

Mike

 

Edited by 72modeler
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Over here we don't need to build a model. We have the real thing...

OW_2018_09_02_095_zpsbmm2tdyt.jpg

 

OW_2018_09_02_039_zpsgs7efgkl.jpg

 

Keep up the lovely work. I think that the Miles Hawk Speed Six might make a good subject for you, if you haven't done one already

John

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The not so brilliant fit of the engine gondolas decided me to deal first with the seams and surface of the main body, including priming, and then -once all that area is fine- to proceed with the gondolas, one at a time. As you can see, whatever this is caused by my building or the parts, the seams need some fixing:

IMG_1442+%25281280x960%2529.jpg

 

IMG_1443+%25281280x960%2529.jpg

 

 

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I don't think its you Moa, what I see in the picture looks pretty much par for the course for many limited run kits. It looks like you are well on the way to sorting things out anyway.

 

Encouraging of Mars 👽

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On 12/23/2018 at 3:51 AM, John R said:

I think that the Miles Hawk Speed Six might make a good subject for you, if you haven't done one already

John

Hi John

No, I haven't. Nice little plane!

There is actually a 1/72 kit of it, by Steelwork:

https://shop.strato.de/epages/61299018.sf/de_DE/?ViewObjectPath=%2FShops%2F61299018%2FProducts%2FSK7219

With S&H, it leans toward the stiff side for my modeling pocket, plus the site is in German with no English option that I can see.

Another kit, a possibly convertable one from SBS/Plastic Passion:

https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=1582746828412372&id=117380071615729

 

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