Maggie May - Frog 153P Miles Magister MkI

[Heather Kay]

Well, here we are again. Another classic group build! 

 

I took part in the recent Trainers GB, but only managed a single, solitary Airspeed Oxford for my pains. Well, blow me down if I don’t just happen to have a couple more RAF trainers from the Frog stable - or should that be pond? It would be churlish not to take part here. Expect lots of yellow paint!

 

 

My first entry in this GB will be this very tidy original kit, priced at a nice round pocket money two shillings, kindly donated by Mike @Ventora3300. I’m intrigued by the strap line there, claiming "over" 31 parts. What an odd way to put it!

 

 

It's all there, in the glorious yellow styrene. The box and instructions are a little yellowed, and the transfers perhaps a bit beyond salvation, but this looks like an enjoyable Saturday afternoon build, finished in time to watch Doctor Who after tea.   I remember building one of these kits I got in a job lot of old kits back in the last century. I still have it somewhere, in a box because it’s in pieces. I was going to restore it one day. Perhaps I may sneak it in this thread, just for fun!

 

While my 1940 collection has a more recent, state-of-the-art Maggie from RS Models, I don’t think it matters if I add another one. Who doesn’t like a Magister, after all? I may use the influence of the newer kit to add some enhancements to the old girl.

[Mjwomack]

Are sunglasses included?! Very vivid, I think they should be a warning that this thread may cause sunburn😎😂🙄

[Rabbit Leader]

So good to have you onboard Heather. 

You certainly 'wowwed' all of us during the Airfx GB and even I was 'almost' tempted to purchase some Railway models after seeing your exquisite builds. 

Looking forward to seeing your Maggie on here. 

 

Cheers and best of luck.. Dave  

[TonyW]

The Magister is a lovely little kit, I'm looking forward to seeing you work your magic here.

 

The 'over 31 parts' bit is probably a sly dig at the wooden solid kits that were nearly gone when this one was first issued.

Solids came with a few lumps of wood you shaped yourself and not much in the way of detailing stuff. A prop or two that sometimes resembled the original, some generic transfers and a vac formed canopy if you were lucky. I sound like I don't like the things but that's not the case. I like them a lot, even the really poor ones! I have a few as a nod to where it all started.

 

  FROG also released a Penguin version prior to this one. Spats for the undercarriage were the main difference between the two. I have one needing restoration, I'll dig it out and see if I can make it fit the joining rules for this GB. 

[PeterB]

Hi Heather,

 

I built this many years ago, and was intrigued by the fact that Frog provided decs for what must be an impressed civilian one or so I presume - but then they always did like unusual subjects.

 

Good luck with the build.

 

Pete

[Heather Kay]

2 minutes ago, PeterB said:

and was intrigued by the fact that Frog provided decs for what must be an impressed civilian one or so I presume - but then they always did like unusual subjects.

Indeed. The model is intended to represent an impressed civilian Magister - I discovered that yesterday when I turned up photos on the IWM web site showing the exact aircraft in RAF training guise. You learn something new every day!

Edited May 26, 2019 by Heather Kay

[TonyW]

I've got a restoration project Penguin kit here. It's a bit banana shaped, as many of these kits are cursed with. More to the point, it also has faired undercarriage legs. Mine is missing one, and I'll be casting a replacement. probably this week. Do you want me to run a few off for you?

 

 

 

[Heather Kay]

1 minute ago, TonyW said:

Do you want me to run a few off for you?

That’s very kind of you, but not for me. This build will be bare-legged, while the spatted version is already in the cabinet.

 

Lovely to see the old Penguin box and kit. I think I said it during the Airfix Classic last year, I enjoy the history side of the hobby, learning where things came from and how they progressed. One of our local aviation museums has a selection of period Frog Penguin models that were donated to them for display. The plastic used, I believe, was cellulose based, and over time it did go bendy. I’ve got some early Triang model railway bits here, and they’re definitely banana-shaped for much the same reason.

 

 

[JOCKNEY]

2 hours ago, TonyW said:

I've got a restoration project Penguin kit here. It's a bit banana shaped, as many of these kits are cursed with. More to the point, it also has faired undercarriage legs. Mine is missing one, and I'll be casting a replacement. probably this week. Do you want me to run a few off for you?

 

 

 

Tony

Please start a separate thread for your Magister, it will be great to see some of the earliest Frog kits being restored in this GB.

cheers Pat

[JOCKNEY]

Another great choice Heather

As you say, you will be a dab hand at yellow paint after this !

cheers Pat

[TonyW]

1 hour ago, JOCKNEY said:

Tony

Please start a separate thread for your Magister, it will be great to see some of the earliest Frog kits being restored in this GB.

cheers Pat

The Penguin Magister won't be making an appearance here Pat. Although it's a tiny little thing, it needs a ton of work to get it looking half decent. It's badly warped and there's a fair bit missing. With these very old restorations it's sometimes better to hold on and see what turns up in the future, rather than charge in, all guns blazing. I do have a Penguin kit or two that might fit the bill but I'll crack out the three builds I've listed before I get in over my head!

 

Sorry about the thread hijack Heather, over to you again....

 

Tony.

[JOCKNEY]

Heather ! 

[Heather Kay]

Hijack away folks! I’m not going to get started on anything until well after next weekend as it is.  

[PeterB]

On 5/26/2019 at 4:53 PM, Heather Kay said:

Lovely to see the old Penguin box and kit. I think I said it during the Airfix Classic last year, I enjoy the history side of the hobby, learning where things came from and how they progressed. One of our local aviation museums has a selection of period Frog Penguin models that were donated to them for display. The plastic used, I believe, was cellulose based, and over time it did go bendy. I’ve got some early Triang model railway bits here, and they’re definitely banana-shaped for much the same reason.

 

 

Yes I remember that problem with Triang - also that Hornby Dublo locos were sometimes prone to what I will call "metal rot" causing the wheels to become brittle and even to crumble to dust. Happy days!

 

Pete

[JOCKNEY]

Hi Heather

I just popped in to see if this one had moved from box to work bench.

However now I come to think of it I believe you are doing railway stuff at the moment, pity Frog didn't do railway kits (as far as I know) as you could have combined the two

cheers Pat

[Heather Kay]

7 hours ago, JOCKNEY said:

I just popped in to see if this one had moved from box to work bench.

 

Paying work must take priority for the next week or so, then I’ll be setting-to on the Miles pair. 

Edited June 8, 2019 by Heather Kay

[JOCKNEY]

Yes I know, I have a presentation to give on Wednesday at a conference and haven't started it yet !

[bigbadbadge]

Nice choice Heather, lovely little aircraft. I am doing a Special Hobby Magister at the moment too. Very nice kit.

Will watch with interest.

Good luck with your build

All the best

Chris

[JOCKNEY]

Hi Heather 

Have you had a chance to return to this one ?

I still find it amazing that these kits turn up 50+ years old, still complete, ready to be built as they were always intended. 

I bet it never occurred to the manufacturers that these kits would still be being made all these years later !

Cheers Pat 

[Heather Kay]

Just now, JOCKNEY said:

Have you had a chance to return to this one ?

My plan is to work on this build once the Master is ready for painting. I can get both up to painting stage and squirt colours on them together. 

[JOCKNEY]

Great idea, production line techniques, "don't you love it when a plan comes together  ! "

[Heather Kay]

Like all the best laid plans, mine has had to be changed. The Master build is on hold for a bit while I work out how to make a decent fist of the canopy. So, let's plough on with Maggie. She hasn't got many parts, and those are in pretty fine fettle, so it ought not take too long to build. 

 

 

Like its bigger brother, the Magister was a simple aircraft, mostly made of plywood. The few fine raised lines were quickly scribed and tidied up.

 

 

The cockpits are open, and there is a moulded representation of the blind flying hood aft of the rear cockpit. It's a bit flat and one-dimensional, so I began to attack it with sharp things to carve in some relief to represent the concertina-like folds. In this picture I'm working on the top half, with the original moulded version still to be done on the bottom half. The other panel lines have been scribed, but I'm not going to make the intake scoops better. I think they're fine as they are.

 

 

The kit seats are not that bad. I'm hoping to go with the kit transfers, representing G-AFBS, which was a "civilian" Magister impressed into RAF service at the outbreak of war. The seats were generally covered with a dark red leather, but the metal buckets that held the cushions and seat belts may well have been painted interior green. I also wonder whether the upholstery might have been removed in RAF service, as sitting on the standard parachute pack and a comfy cushion might have been a bit awkward. I took a sanding stick to the backs of the seats to accentuate the curved shape more, but it'll be lost in the murk once the fuselage is buttoned up. For the same reason, I'm not going to bother making instrument panels or bulkheads.

 

 

As evidence to support my decision, aside from being a lazy moo at the best of times, here's my RS Models Maggie. It has all the cockpit fittings installed. You'll just have to believe me. 

 

This model should be done by bed time! 

 

 

[Heather Kay]

As predicted, it didn't take long to assemble this little plane.

 

Over the last week, during spare moments here and there, I joined the wing, stabiliser and fuselage halves. I also decided to titivate things a bit by replicating the raised ridges where the outer wings were fitted, and scribe some extra panels after the RS Models Maggie. Of course, I didn't take any photos of this. 

 

 

I did take a photo as I fitted the stabs and wings today. Here she is, with the wings propped in the hopes they will set level. The raised ridges referred to earlier are the white strips. I've been revisiting them with the sanding sticks in an effort to thin them as far as I dare.

 

 

That's it for today. The undercarriage has been fitted, and I hope it survives further handling. With luck I might be able to add the brake lines that are pretty visible in most photos. I added an exhaust and the pair of Venturi under the fuselage, carved from styrene rod. Another thing you can't see is the simulated cylinder barrel behind the nose intake. That was just fine fuse wire wound round some styrene rod. After Adrian's Magister build, I also ran some stretched sprue to simulate the hinge lines on the engine hood.

 

I've elected not to let the prop spin, so it will be glued in place once the painting is finished. I think I'll aim to get primer on things tomorrow, and then take my time painting the model. 

 

I hope to use some of the original kit transfers for the callsign/serial and letters. The sheet had yellowed a bit over the intervening few decades, so I tried sticking it to a sunny window for a day or three. After the first day, I remembered the replacement double-glazing units in that window had that special anti-UV glass in it.  I moved it to the windows that haven't been updated yet, and it seems to have done the trick. Even the weather played ball and we had plenty of sunlight to help things along. The main national markings will come from my decal stocks. The Frog ones are quite bright and, as is traditional, printed out of register! 

 

In other news, I think I may have an idea on how to sort out the Master's dodgy canopy. 

[Jinxman]

That really looks the part, great stuff.

 

It looks to be on a different level as a kit versus the Spit I am building, and looking at the other kits in the build there are some nice kits and some toughies.

[JOCKNEY]

Struth you're not hanging about are you !

 

Great stuff