greggles.w Posted September 17, 2019 Author Share Posted September 17, 2019 Hello BMers, an update: cowl attached! (spinner just taped in place for alignment) Spent quite sometime fettling and test fitting, over-calculating how best to address issues arising ... then decided I just wanted to stick the thing on, so here goes! With this big picture perspective in mind I prioritised overall alignment of sub-assemblies, overlooking issues at the join (more on these below). Hence I temporarily taped on the spinner - thinking it most important that the front pointy bit is true on axis with that back pointy bit! .. & as it needs be in plan, so it must be in elevation too (you’ll have to take my word for it - difficult to photograph). Celebrating that for a moment ... Now, the gritty detail. First, this is not a join which just gets puttied-up & ‘disappeared’. The part join mimicked the equivalent engine-to-fuselage junction of the real thing .. visible here just in front of the air intake: But the hope was that this should be a tidy join ... Well, rotating around the clock-face of the join reveals continually variable alignment of the fuselage & cowl skins ... one or other more or less proud or recessed from it’s neighbour. 12 to 3 o’clock.. .. 3 to 6 .. .. 6 to 9 .. & 9 to 12. So this will need some concentrated attention.. Still, I’m mighty glad I just got on with it & stuck it on! 14 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheonix Posted September 17, 2019 Share Posted September 17, 2019 Sorry I missed this before - this is a most interesting build of a type which is not known to me. Those racing aircraft from that era really were marvels of design. I am very impressed by your sophisticated jigs, especially when compared to my own. I also think that you were right to take the plunge and add the nose: in my experience a great deal of time can be spent dry fitting and fiddling, only to get the same result that you have when the part is glued into place. However with your skill and patience you will undoubtedly get it to look right. Looking forward to seeing more progress on what is a super build log. P 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Courageous Posted September 17, 2019 Share Posted September 17, 2019 Looking very racey. Stuart 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DMC Posted September 18, 2019 Share Posted September 18, 2019 Yes!, coming right along. Such an interesting looking machine, easy to see why you chose it. Can’t help but wonder how it might have done if it hadn’t met with such misfortune. Dennis 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jrlx Posted September 18, 2019 Share Posted September 18, 2019 Looks awesome! I'm sure you'll sort out the misalignments between the fuselage and engine cowl. Cheers Jaime 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greggles.w Posted September 19, 2019 Author Share Posted September 19, 2019 On 9/18/2019 at 4:31 AM, pheonix said: Those racing aircraft from that era really were marvels of design. ... Looking forward to seeing more progress on what is a super build log. Thanks Phoenix, & I agree, a fascinating era of aircraft development. So innovative & future-looking, but at the same time still hand crafted like fine furniture, or coach-building. On 9/18/2019 at 7:27 AM, Courageous said: Looking very racey. Sure does, esp with that pointy dart nose on! 15 hours ago, DMC said: Yes!, coming right along. Such an interesting looking machine, easy to see why you chose it. Can’t help but wonder how it might have done if it hadn’t met with such misfortune. Agreed, one could speculate... it seems it was always destined to be second to the inline engine machines, nevertheless it was pretty special in its own right. 4 hours ago, jrlx said: Looks awesome! I'm sure you'll sort out the misalignments between the fuselage and engine cowl. Thanks Jaime, have been putting my idle mind to the task ... have an idea how to approach it, when time permits .... 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greggles.w Posted September 19, 2019 Author Share Posted September 19, 2019 OK so here’s my idle-mind idea in implementation. I’m not sure it really warrants a post, but I needed to implement this incrementally - apply a little glue, roll a little more into place, hold & wait, then repeat - so to manage my impatience I faffed around taking a one-handed photo or two while in the ‘hold & wait’ phases. I’ve laminated (thanks @pheonix) a narrow styrene strip of slightly over-required thickness around the cowl. The thought being to have a little excess to gently sand back to align with the fuselage cross-section. Pin the start with some CA ... Then progressively smear a little slow-acting CA under the next few mms, wrap, align, hold .. etc .. After that for good measure I ran a dose of styrene cement around the leading edge of the new strip, to weld it further to the cowl. I’m not sure if this concurrent use of the two glue types is committing some chemical error I may regret .. let’s see. Let that cure for a bit .. Thanks for looking in. 13 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Courageous Posted September 19, 2019 Share Posted September 19, 2019 Looks like a good idea to me and seems to be working, just take your time. Stuart 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheonix Posted September 19, 2019 Share Posted September 19, 2019 I agree with Stuart. Sometimes fiddly jobs are best tackled slowy - it saves a lot of bad language and means that any problems can be seen immediately and (hopefully) avoided. Good modelling going on here. P 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corsairfoxfouruncle Posted September 19, 2019 Share Posted September 19, 2019 (edited) On 9/19/2019 at 8:15 AM, greggles.w said: I’m not sure if this concurrent use of the two glue types is committing some chemical error I may regret .. let’s see. Ive done it quite often, the worst ive found is TET can de-bond certain other types like the older thick tube glues. Never had a bad reaction other than that. As long as there is a sufficient time for the C/A to cure, the other glue shouldn't effect it. Really enjoying the work so far. Dennis Edited October 28, 2019 by Corsairfoxfouruncle 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thom216 Posted September 20, 2019 Share Posted September 20, 2019 Great looking fix! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jrlx Posted September 21, 2019 Share Posted September 21, 2019 Great idea! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigbadbadge Posted September 21, 2019 Share Posted September 21, 2019 Oh wow this is coming on a treat and is looking fantastic. For the unpowered test flight round the kitchen, did you make the engine noise??? Great work All the best Chris 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brandy Posted September 21, 2019 Share Posted September 21, 2019 So this is where you're hiding! Just caught up and she's looking good! Ian 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greggles.w Posted September 23, 2019 Author Share Posted September 23, 2019 Thanks all, & nice of you to say hello @limeypilot! Just dropped in to check on progress of all the other intriguing builds. All have my attention! Work is ongoing in the background - slowly & cautiously as advised @pheonix & @Courageous. I’ve made my way around 4/5ths of the clock face over two nights. Taking time in part due to difficulty of access around other details. Things got into a rhythm after I fashioned a custom tool from balsa, sculpted to clear projecting cowl details, with tiny pieces of wet&dry attached .. .. this let me keep the sandpaper parallel with the fuselage long-axis, progressively pulling down the surface of that patch strip recently added, until the sanding stick shows alignment by starting to burnish the fuselage skin behind. More to be done. oh, & an answer @bigbadbadgeon an important query on my technique: On 9/21/2019 at 6:39 PM, bigbadbadge said: For the unpowered test flight round the kitchen, did you make the engine noise??? Of course! (Just not loud enough to wake the kids) 10 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheonix Posted September 23, 2019 Share Posted September 23, 2019 A neat and simple solution to a difficult problem. P Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DMC Posted September 23, 2019 Share Posted September 23, 2019 Nailed it, Gregg. Dennis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greggles.w Posted October 3, 2019 Author Share Posted October 3, 2019 (edited) Hello all, well you have all been so very productive - I have much catching up to do! I’ve been doing well to steal 40mins of a late, late evening some nights to shuffle this along ... Port side report first: Blended in relatively easily ... Starboard side required much more work: Some time back I chopped off the erroneous duplicate air intake moulded into this fuselage half, then plugged the resulting hole with putty: ... in what has since been revealed to be a fairly sloppy job: Initial test fit above shows sink hole behind join, misalignment forward of hole. First action was the additional band laminated f’ward: Same approach then applied to fuselage behind, this time requiring a double layered band to fill the sink hole & to give an aligned & neat joint when sanded back: Then some white putty: .. sanded back ... ... then some brushed on Mr White Surfacer: .. such that now I think the whole front end is ready to spray with white soon, perhaps tomorrow... Edited October 3, 2019 by greggles.w 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greggles.w Posted October 3, 2019 Author Share Posted October 3, 2019 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Courageous Posted October 3, 2019 Share Posted October 3, 2019 Progress is progress. I like the 'malteser' in the 'pit. Stuart 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greggles.w Posted October 3, 2019 Author Share Posted October 3, 2019 2 minutes ago, Courageous said: I like the 'malteser' in the 'pit. 😂 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheonix Posted October 3, 2019 Share Posted October 3, 2019 You have made a very good job of the joint considering what you started with. P 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigbadbadge Posted October 3, 2019 Share Posted October 3, 2019 Oooo yeah top work and great idea re the balsa wood tool too. This is looking great. Keep up the good work All the best Chris 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DMC Posted October 5, 2019 Share Posted October 5, 2019 Been a long haul but definitely on the home stretch. Dennis 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greggles.w Posted October 6, 2019 Author Share Posted October 6, 2019 Stilt-plane. That’s all I can muster today - a little prep for painting - after a full school-holiday day out & about with the twins. 😓😳😑💤 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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