Sopwith Bat Boat, 1913 - Mortimer-Singer contest winner - Modified Joystick vac, 1/72nd

[fjaweijfopi4j48]

 

Continuing with the modeling saga of less-known types, that nonetheless made significant contributions to aviation history and development, not to mention aesthetics, here is the Sopwith Bat Boat of 1913, credited as the first successful amphibian built in the UK.

This is another pioneer (Like the recently-posted Lee-Richards annular wing) that should make BMs proud, being a local achievement.

Thomas Sopwith came from the boating field, and used in the Bat Boat a type of construction technique called consuta: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consuta

The Bat Boat design went through several incarnations. The model here represents the plane as it won the Mortimer-Singer amphibian competition of 1913, with retractable landing gear.

Photos show that the plane in this configuration had an inline engine, the fore plane removed, twin rudders under the horizontal tail, and canvas fairing on the space between lower plane and fuselage.

Photos show other versions with what looks like a rotary engine, different radiators, different tails and other changes.

Beware that some plans out there mix features of them all, and are in general suspicious, therefore always rely on photos and compare them with the plans.

There are, as far as I know, two 1/72 kits of this plane, the Joystick vacuum-formed I am using and a Luedemann resin kit, that to my eyes looks just a wee-bit chunky and an itsy-bitsy heavy-handed.

 I got this kit thanks to the good offices of fellow modeler L. Santos, who saw it in shop and called me to see if I wanted it (you already know the answer), thanks, L.!

For those unfamiliar with this brand, you get the usual vac sheets, but also white metal parts and airfoiled struts material, both facilitating building greatly. In this case rods to build the frames that support the tail were also included.

The kit came to me started. The vac sheets have been primed, the wings separated (but not cleaned or thinned), and the fuselage sides where already cut and given some reinforcement tabs typical of what we vac builders use. I do not particularly appreciate started kits, but what little it was done to this kit was ok, so I set to continue the build.

The kit allows for different versions to be built. The metal parts consist of engine, fuel tank (so-so), prop (very poor) and wheels (inaccurate, solid ones). The vac floats are better replaced with a plastic rod and cones or similar, since they are not particularly good.

 

The kit as I got it:

 

 

 

 

 

 

[fjaweijfopi4j48]

The previous owner cut the wings off, then looked at them, said "hum.." and went for a Martini.
And never came back:

 

Better now:

 

Tail elements are excised, the plastic has a good thickness and is forgiving, and not brittle, which is great:

 

 

[fjaweijfopi4j48]

This is here as a guide, not to use:

 

The fuselage as I got it:

 

Now carving the opening:

 

Ready:

[fjaweijfopi4j48]

The white metal is too soft, the casting poor,  and all parts have some degree of mold mismatch:

 

 After cleaning, still not good:

 

To the right, one form my spares bin that I modified (Aeroclub):

[fjaweijfopi4j48]

Fuel tank, not good (mismatch), wheels: inaccurate (solid and generic, the real thing had fatter tires and spokes):

 

 The engine may make it to the model:

 

 

New wheels being made:

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Now a replacement fuel tank:

 

 

And another, clear, so you can see the fuel sloshing about:

 

 

[fjaweijfopi4j48]

The tail after separation:

 

Some sanding and float halves glued together:

 

 Have to remove those pips that are part of the molding process in most vacs:

 

Better now:

 

Control surfaces separation lines engraved on the other side:

[fjaweijfopi4j48]

A third fuel tank, better proportioned and sized:

 

The rod provided is ok (for the tail riggers) but the strut material is useless for wings, being dismally flimsy:

 

 The wing floats are being replaced by sections of alu tube, into which I think I will push some Milliput and approximately pre-form the cones, later to be refined, once the material has set:

[roginoz]

Oh great, I'll be following this !!

In erudite company already.........

Rog

 

[fjaweijfopi4j48]

Now, if you are a newcomer to the vac universe (well, the field is quite smaller than the universe, to be frank. One could say "vac galaxy", may be... but actually "vac world" would be more accurate. You know what, let's go for "small field") you may be asking yourself:

"-What the builder does in this cases of just one surface wings?".

There are several answers to that legitimate question:

1) Ignore it. Only modeling perverts and modeling voyeurs try to look underneath a model

2) Use another, very thin sheet where you have previously engraved the ribs -ribs underneath tend to be very faint, unlike upper-side ribs, which are more showy, so to speak. Like if they were coming from the financial district or something, the little basterds.

But his method usually results in undesirable thickness.

3) Engrave the ribs with a tool on the surface...

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you (trumpets blow, drum roll....)

The Double Engraver ™ !!!

A tool useful for the gentleman as well as for the lady, for the children and the elder (who shan't, under any circumstance, use it), for the office, home, garage, basement, bunker, boat, motor-home, camping, space travel, time travel, to defend yourself against @Martian Hales, the tax man, and a thousand more uses!

Only today, at the incredible price of... NOTHING!

You can build one yourself!

Just put two (yes, TWO) blades on your Olfa cutter, perfectly aligned, and you will be making not just one, but TWO, perfectly parallel engraved lines AT THE SAME TIME!
Need more space between them? put a..... SPACER! yes, another revolutionary invention!

 

 

 

[fjaweijfopi4j48]

The seats (nothing wrong with them) are replaced by P.E. ones. A "board" floor is prepared:

 

The prop is painted:

[fjaweijfopi4j48]

Looking at photos (I told you to always look at photos) it was determined that the control was via a steering wheel located to the right -as you seat in the cockpit, and also it was found that the kit manufacturer obviated the prominent radiator surfaces located at either side of the engine, plus the additional canvas fairing (already mentioned above somewhere) that was added to the space between lower wing and fuselage.

 

[StephenCJ]

I'm thinking I have one of these in my old army trunk.  I shall have a look as I have some spare time.  Sent home from work as I have a runny nose, got a chill in a chiller last Thursday.

A very good start to this kit.

 

Stephen with a runny nose

[fjaweijfopi4j48]

27 minutes ago, StephenCJ said:

I'm thinking I have one of these in my old army trunk.  I shall have a look as I have some spare time.  Sent home from work as I have a runny nose, got a chill in a chiller last Thursday.

A very good start to this kit.

 

Stephen with a runny nose

Hey Stephen

Man, take good care of yourself, and see a doctor as soon as you can.

Hopefully it will be no trouble, but it's safer to check.

 

 

 

[StephenCJ]

I have just a cold and it has passed.  There is no cases of the dreaded coronaviris where I live (Richmond Valley, Northern New South Wales).  We are keeping to ourselves and avoiding shopping as much as possible.

Thanks Claudio for your concern, I am fine.

 

Stephen 

[StephenCJ]

Having a look at Dora Wings and have found this https://dorawings.com/in-progress/69-lokheed-vega-5b-c.html

looks like it might be a nice kit.

[fjaweijfopi4j48]

1 hour ago, StephenCJ said:

looks like it might be a nice kit.

Only if it is in 1/72 😊

I have a RarePlanes vac Vega kit has n the stash and (I think) an MPM injected one.

I have posted here at BM a Jimmy Matterns one with the "bird" scheme.

It is a nice plane with a plethora of finishes available.

[Martian]

5 hours ago, Moa said:

A tool useful for the gentleman as well as for the lady, for the children and the elder (who shan't, under any circumstance, use it), for the office, home, garage, basement, bunker, boat, motor-home, camping, space travel, time travel, to defend yourself against @Martian Hales, the tax man, and a thousand more uses!

 

Evil Earthling! I am one of the most peaceful, democratic and placid aliens one could ever hope to meet and no defence against me is necessary. There will be a rending in the gobberwarts with my blurglecruncheon for anyone who disagrees!

 

Tolerant of Mars 👽

 

PS: The Batboat is a great subject for a model as every bit of detailing can be seen, I scratch built one in 1/48 scale a number of tears ago and had a ball. One word of caution though, be aware that no two Batboats were exactly alike. I was not aware of this fact when I started my build and it led to all sort of confusion and complications further down the line as I gathered more information on the type.

[StephenCJ]

I don't have a bat boat but I have a Zepplin Staarken E4/20 and an Etrich Taube and a lot of the ones you don't like.

 

Edited March 31, 2020 by StephenCJ

[Marklo]

Nice to see a Sopwith in the works. Will watch with interest.

 

Those early Sopwiths were one offs so no surprise that the engine differs. I read somewhere that they made drew the airplane out in chalk on the factory floor and that the Pup ( or possibly the 1 1/2 strutted) was the first model that they made blueprints for.

Edited March 31, 2020 by Marklo

[Vesa Jussila]

@Moa You have managed find a project again that I haven't even heard of. Nice to follow this one.

[Whofan]

4 hours ago, Martian Hale said:

 

PS: The Batboat is a great subject for a model as every bit of detailing can be seen, I scratch built one in 1/48 scale a number of tears ago and had a ball.

Martian, 

 

Tears and having a ball don't normally go together - ah!

 

On Mars, does having a ball induce years of joy?

 

[fjaweijfopi4j48]

10 hours ago, Martian Hale said:

PS: The Batboat is a great subject for a model as every bit of detailing can be seen, I scratch built one in 1/48 scale a number of tears ago and had a ball. One word of caution though, be aware that no two Batboats were exactly alike. I was not aware of this fact when I started my build and it led to all sort of confusion and complications further down the line as I gathered more information on the type.

Dear Tolerant of Mars:

Firstly: We Want Photos of your Bat Boat, because I have the impression that you are talking about Martian animal life, and you meant Boat Bat: Mynok: https://www.starwars.com/databank/mynock

Secondly: If only fellow modelers would bother to read the posts.... they would find out that I warned about the differences between the several Bat Boats and described what was pertinent to my chosen subject at the beginning.

Other than that we welcome you, acknowledge your regal presence and beatific status, and this time we won't call the police.

 

[fjaweijfopi4j48]

8 hours ago, StephenCJ said:

I don't have a bat boat but I have a Zepplin Staarken E4/20 and an Etrich Taube and a lot of the ones you don't like.

 

Stephen, the E4/20 is... a journey. I have built and posted one here:

 

I too do have the Taube, a kit that I have taken out and put back in its storage place many a time.

Tempting!

 

Build them!

[Martian]

59 minutes ago, Moa said:

Firstly: We Want Photos of your Bat Boat, because I have the impression that you are talking about Martian animal life, and you meant Boat Bat: Mynok: https://www.starwars.com/databank/mynock

Sadly, my Batboat is in storage at a friend's house and as we are in lock down over here, it will be some time before I can access it. This is a shame as a few weeks ago I picked up a small illuminated cabinet at what you colonials call a fire sale and it is one of the models I would like to put in it.

 

Martian 👽