Louis Posted January 15, 2019 Share Posted January 15, 2019 100 years ago, October 14, 1919, Etienne Poulet and his mechanic Jean Benoist left Paris to try to reach Melbourne in Australia. A raid of more than 20,000 km aboard a modified Caudron G4. The G4 dubbed "La mouche" (the fly) ready for departure. [url=https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b9032996r.r=Benoist et Poulet?rk=21459;2]https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b9032996r.r=Benoist et Poulet?rk=21459;2[/url] Etienne Poulet (left) and Jean Benoist, "The young Benoist carrying the road maps" It was Kajetan Schulz who was interested in this raid and offered me with Xan to join me in this project. I thank them for it. Kajetan Schulz is a Polish craftsman who designs decal projects for Copper State Models (Ni.17 for example) as well as for the private maquetists. It produces all resin parts for CSM The resin parts of the conversion kit will have enough space to decorate the interior of the cabin, new propellers, water bottles and decals. His site: https://meliusmanu.pl There are not so many companies interested in our story, I think Kajetan deserves support in this brave initiative. Some images of the aircraft are well known but many hours of research were needed to decipher the inscriptions that cover the cockpit, engine nacelles, tanks and drifts. All information comes from the press of the 20s, photos found on the internet and the museum Caudron (City Street). The plane belonged to Etienne Poulet. It has been refurbished (doc. Air life illustrated p 683) by the company Caudron. It has been modified to be able to fly for 12 hours without refueling at a maximum speed of 105km / h. http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k6553380s/f41.item.r=Poulet.zoom]http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k6553380s/f41.item.r=Poulet.zoom Two additional tanks were installed between the wings (500 liters of petrol instead of 150 liters of petrol and 35 liters of oil in the standard version). Both tanks were offered by Caudron (Le Matin 13/12/19). It is planned to make castor oil in the course of the trip ... Despite Etienne Poulet's requests, no help has been given by France. The project is therefore carried out at its own expense (60,000 francs at the time) with the support of industrialist Paul Plouvier and journalist Jean Lhermit. The supplies will be supplied in part by Great Britain in its colonies, Mesopotamia, India, Siam (Thailand). With reluctance Etienne Poulet agrees to cover his plane with advertisements for the engine manufacturer Gnome and Rhone as well as for the brand varnish that covers the canvas of the aircraft.The two tanks also carry inscriptions as well as the upper wing. Etienne Poulet and Jean Benoist bring in more fuel spare parts, two propellers fixed under the plane, a wheel in the cockpit (photo), a rifle (photo), a pistol, a can of 5 liters of water and food for a week. The card dispenser (in the hands of the mechanic at the bottom right), the barrel of the rifle protruding from the cockpit and spare wheel. Advertisements on the engine nacelle Thirty meters of cards in rolls are stored behind the driver. The station of TSF is abandoned in favor of pigeons travelers much less heavy. Jean Benoist is thus seated between two crates during all the flight (the uncompromising 02/02/20). They carry in all 750 kg of material. On engine nacelles advertising for Gnome and Rhône engines as well as the varnish used to coat the canvas This photo was taken in the Caudron Museum of the city of Rue (very small but very nice and that costs only 2 €). You can also access the Caudron archives by making an appointment. https://musee-caudron-test2.jimdo.com/]https://musee-caudron-test2.jimdo.com Happy New Year!!! Cordially 10 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Masters Posted January 15, 2019 Share Posted January 15, 2019 This looks like a fabulous build. I'm sticking around if that's alright. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martian Posted January 15, 2019 Share Posted January 15, 2019 You have our Martian interest. Martian 👽 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted January 21, 2019 Share Posted January 21, 2019 Got a seat already Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marklo Posted January 21, 2019 Share Posted January 21, 2019 I'm hooked on anything stick and string and quirky (I bought an eduards dfw t.28 at the weekend) so definitely in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonners Posted January 21, 2019 Share Posted January 21, 2019 This should be very interesting indeed. I was intrigued and impressed by the Smithsonian’s G4 in the Udvar-Hazy centre when I was last there a few years ago - it’s a spectacular machine. Jon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louis Posted February 1, 2019 Author Share Posted February 1, 2019 Hello, While waiting for the conversion kit to be delivered by the postman I started the engines. They are very beautiful and only require a little sanding along the molding joint. Note the valves springs and tumblers arms. It will be necessary to add in the back the threads of the candles and in the front the rods of tumblers. The engine was painted in black, Alclad metal and drybrushed with steel color oil paint. We must still give a patina to the whole The exhaust pipes are drilled and the edges of the hoods a little refined. Regards. 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louis Posted February 1, 2019 Author Share Posted February 1, 2019 (edited) Still no package in the mailbox. I continue my engines. They were covered with matte varnish and then patinated with a motor-grease and medium-gray colored juice. The collectors are painted in Alclad copper, much too pink for my taste. So I covered them with several layers of brown ink diluted with water until the desired color. In the photo only one has been treated with ink. They are covered with gloss varnish. A small plate is glued to the top of each cylinder to stick on the rod of the rockers. It remains to fix the threads of the candles. I thought for a moment to replace them with these: https://www.smallstuffmodels.com/p/products.html#!/1-48-Le-Rhone-9C-80-hp-Engine/p/50458532/category=13154092 Has anyone ever used them? They look "nice". Regards Edited February 3, 2019 by Louis 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louis Posted February 1, 2019 Author Share Posted February 1, 2019 (edited) A bit of history while waiting for the resin parts ... Born in 1890, in Lommes, in the North of France, Etienne Poulet obtains his military certificate (n ° 257) in 1912, at 22 years old. In 1919 Etienne Poulet is already a known pilot who is not his first feat. He is one of the first pilots to fly upside down. He won the record of nonstop flight time held by German Ingoldi on April 16, 1914 (more than 16h 29min 30s).https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k6585086p/f3.image.r=Poulet%20Etienne%20Record%201914?rk=128756;0 He can then participate in major aviation meetings alongside Roland Garros, Himelman and Chanpteloup just before the start of hostilities. 5-12 avril 1914 Planeyse Meeting: http://www.pionnair-ge.com/spip1/videos/Planeyse-meet-1910-1914-JCC-Diaporama-182.swf http://www.pionnair-ge.com/spip1/ Instructor at the 1st squadron Caudron de Douai, he amuses himself to scare the swimmers on a beach of Berck. One of them, lying on a handcart, does not react to his dive full throttle. Poulet finally gets tired and returns. Three days later, his heroic intervention is recorded in the press: "The coolness of an aviator who did not hesitate to go down to the sands to warn the inhabitants saved the life of a paralytic who He was bogged down with his car without anyone thinking of helping him. " He was incorporated at the beginning of the war into a reconnaissance squadron and then became a test pilot at Caudron for whom he tried 5400 aircraft of 12 kinds. We find again its trace in the local press in 1916.https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k6458896/f1.item.r=poulet.zoom On September 12 he landed on Luc's beach where his family was on vacation. He comes to greet his father, or maybe his wife and his mother-in-law ... He comes back a second time on the 24th. p. 18 Municipal Bulletin of Luc sur Mer. Supplement Summer 2018http://www.luc-sur-mer.fr/publication_patrimoines_lutins.html Regards Edited February 8, 2019 by Louis 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louis Posted February 24, 2019 Author Share Posted February 24, 2019 (edited) It's confirmed, ... I'm weak. I bought two "Smallstuffmodels" engines for my plane. They are like on the pictures of their site. There are three tiny pieces per cylinder to stick (Spark plug, rockers, and rocker arm support): There is no trace of molding, so nothing to trim. All the parts are put in place without difficulties, it is just necessary to remove them from their support. You do not even need a blade for the smaller ones. I decided to fine-tune the trailing edge of the upper wing by scratching the intrados on the scalpel blade. Edited February 27, 2019 by Louis 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louis Posted February 24, 2019 Author Share Posted February 24, 2019 (edited) Alclad Alu without undercoat + diluted black ink + diluted brown ink and matte varnish I will finish the patina once all the cylinders in place. Finally I painted everything in Alu Prince Auguste. I get the same result and I find it easier to apply. It is less clear in real life. Payne gray oil patina and motor grease (Abteilung). ... and I lost only a tiny piece while painting! Edited February 24, 2019 by Louis 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louis Posted February 24, 2019 Author Share Posted February 24, 2019 (edited) October 1919 'Étienne Poulet and Jean Benoist try their plane in front of Gaumont and Pathé's camera: The aircraft is not yet equipped with replacement propellers, engine nacelle advertisements or the name Chicken on the upper wing. Pathé Gaumont Edited February 25, 2019 by Louis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louis Posted February 27, 2019 Author Share Posted February 27, 2019 (edited) Thank you! The intake manifold is painted in copper alclad. Two types of tubules are available. Those on the left are covered with a little brown ink so that they are less pink ... All parts are glued. The rocker rods attach themselves to the top of the cylinders by "clipping" them into a tiny U-shaped piece (like the real engine). It must still stick but the accuracy is formidable. Everything is small but everything is very well designed and everything is easily fixed without sanding or adjustment. To try absolutely Regards Edited February 27, 2019 by Louis 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louis Posted April 14, 2019 Author Share Posted April 14, 2019 (edited) The biggest air trip: Paris-Melbourne: The Mirror 19 October 19 https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k6566258t/f6.item.zoom The idea of the Paris Australia raid goes to Jules Vedrine, Etienne Poulet's "comrade", who asked him to accompany him. At the accidental death of Jules Vedrine (April 1919) he took over the project on his own and prepared the itinerary. He will take with him the mechanic Jean Benoist who accompanies him for several years and who was already present in 1914 during his record flight of 16h30min. The raid is undertaken to benefit the widows of Jules Vedrine and his five children. La vie aérienne illustrée. 1919/10/23.https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k64797751/f14.image.r=Benoist%20Rangoon The plane he will use will be a Caudron G-4 bought by him and modified for the occasion. It "takes off quickly, lands slowly and has all the security guarantees." The plane is slow and not very powerful but E. Poulet knows it very well. -Characteristics of G4 Poulet and Benoist, described in L’année aéronautique 1921. Pages following the steps, mileage etc. https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k6553380s He gets no support from the French army or "administration". On the other hand, "Poulet received from the English government the insurance that all the aerodromes of Mesopotamia, India and Siam would grant him all their assistance and provide him with all the necessary fuel. He gets the help of the industrialist Paul Plouvier, and Jean Lhermit (journalist) both friends of Vedrine. Mr. Plouvier will be the guardian of the five orphaned children ( Le Figaro, No. 32, February 1, 1924, p.1). L'Hermit giving the latest advice to Poulet [press photography] / Agence Meurisse From the 14th of July to the end of September, he prepared himself for the raid by making, in stages of 500 to 800 kilometers, a total course of 20,000 kilometers. In the l' Ouest Eclair of July 28, 1919 No. 7259, his arrival at St Malo is announced on the 01 and 02 August. He will give baptisms of the air for the benefit of the widow and children of Jules Vedrine.https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k6458896/f1.item%20.r%20=%20poulet.zoom Photos extracted from the archives of "« Aéroplanes »". After analyzing the exhumed plates from their archives (now deposited in the Departmental Archives), the plates, as indicated on the box, come from St Malo / Paramé.Bulletin No. 42 Airplanes. http://lesaeroplanes.free.fr/index.htm Edited April 14, 2019 by Louis 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louis Posted April 14, 2019 Author Share Posted April 14, 2019 (edited) Hello! I started to paint the interior of the cabin. The ejection pellets are to be removed conscientiously because they are very visible. I partially removed the support of the radio right side. Étienne Poulet had abandoned TSF too heavy in favor of pigeons. [ The frames will be clearer. The plane carried, among other things, crates, a rifle (visible in the photo), pigeons, 5litres of water, some food and a spare wheel: I thought the wheel was stowed as in the picture. So I remove the support of the passenger seat thinking that by remaking finer plastic it could return without exceeding the cockpit. Alas ... she still exceeds that much. I should have measured better before cutting. The wheel must be stored in the cockpit but elsewhere ... So I redid the support by modifying it a bit so that it looks a little more like the one visible at the Smithsonian. https://live.staticflickr.com/7904/46679595265_0234a80f92_b.jpg In the two ramps on each side of the passenger seat there are pilot control rods passing. Difficult to delete them. The passenger chair in photoetched. Hard enough to get in shape and stick properly. The pilot's chair, redone by modifying the original with greenstuff and plastic. Regards. Edited April 14, 2019 by Louis 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louis Posted May 11, 2019 Author Share Posted May 11, 2019 Hello, As I am stuck, I think about a diorama. I will definitely want to put J. Benoist's little boy there. Maybe the three characters (and maybe the photographer who already exists at 1/48): Or simpler, like the father who shows the flags to his son on the plane. I started a figurine, just the head. It's not alike but I will not get to better I think. I have him aged a lot ... Regards 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louis Posted May 14, 2019 Author Share Posted May 14, 2019 Hello. It's going slowly. Regards 4 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted May 14, 2019 Share Posted May 14, 2019 Wow, great sculpting! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louis Posted May 21, 2019 Author Share Posted May 21, 2019 Thank you! With the wool sweater that stings. Still the right arm to knit: Regards 5 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdrianMF Posted May 21, 2019 Share Posted May 21, 2019 Gorgeous work! The figure(s) will add a lot to the plane. Regards, Adrian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clive_t Posted May 21, 2019 Share Posted May 21, 2019 Excellent sculpting, did you use an armature to build the figure's body? Also what material are you using please? I'd love to see more details of how you're making the figures. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louis Posted May 22, 2019 Author Share Posted May 22, 2019 (edited) Thank you!!! It is modeled in Super Sculpey which becomes hard at 130 ° in 15 min. Same principle as the paste "Fimo" (for children) that we find easily. It's just a little more "rigid". http://www.oupsmodel.com/772-mastics-resine [/ url] I use a metal frame for the body and a cilicone brush (No. 0 ...). I use an old airbrush needle for some details. I can not find any site that would give any advice for modeling on this small scale. I use this one which is in French but there are pictures and it is quite easy to understand. http://maquette-garden.forumactif.com/t22199-la-sculpture-de-figurine-ou-comment-j-y-arrive I do not do certain steps (example sculpey pose layer by layer on the skeleton). Regards. Edited May 22, 2019 by Louis 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louis Posted May 23, 2019 Author Share Posted May 23, 2019 The head of the son: Regards. 5 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matti64 Posted May 23, 2019 Share Posted May 23, 2019 Wow, everything about this build is amazing and an inspiration. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted May 24, 2019 Share Posted May 24, 2019 Fantastic sculpting! People, especially with recognisable faces, surely must be the hardest subject of all to scratchbuild - surely! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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