Canadian Rescue Frog ++ Finished ++

[CliffB]

Morning all.

I've been blown away by the amazing variety of subjects in this GB and inspired by these, I now feel the need to join in!

 

I'll be basing my build on this Eastern Express re-pop of FROG's 1/96 Lancaster.

 

 

 

 

I'll be finishing it as this RCAF SAR aircraft, making a few physical changes and using some odd decals from my spares box.  Do not expect great accuracy!

I particularly like the fact that much of the canopy has been painted (or covered) over .

 

This photo comes from https://www.warplane.com/aircraft/collection/details.aspx?aircraftId=4 

 

The kit originally dates from 1959 and as such is pretty basic - for example there is absolutely no interior detail.  However, I am expecting the parts to fit well and you have to admire the recessed panel lines that were well ahead of their time.  Less welcome are the decal placement markings, although thankfully these are limited to just the upper surfaces of the wings (I'm not sure why?).

 

The first job therefore is to fill these.

 

 

I won't be making rapid progress with this build, but now I've started I'll have to finish it 

 

Cheers

[Rabbit Leader]

Watching on.. those Canuck Lancs do look quite good don’t they? 
Cheers and all the best.. Dave 

[Pete in Lincs]

That brings back memories. Around fifty years ago we went on holiday to Margate. I found a model shop.

They had a model Lancaster at what seemed like a bargain price so I bought it. It took me a while to figure out why it wasn't the same size as my Airfix Lancaster!

Back then, as far as I knew, there was only one scale for model aircraft, 1/72nd.

Still, I built it, and it joined the others hanging from my bedroom ceiling. It was just further away. 

Good luck with the build, The Canadian scheme looks good.

[CliffB]

19 hours ago, Rabbit Leader said:

Watching on.. those Canuck Lancs do look quite good don’t they? 
Cheers and all the best.. Dave 

Thanks Dave.  Hasegawa do a kit with a similar scheme.  I've just downloaded the painting instructions which should help me (particularly with the extent of the grey undersides).

 

9 hours ago, Pete in Lincs said:

They had a model Lancaster at what seemed like a bargain price so I bought it. It took me a while to figure out why it wasn't the same size as my Airfix Lancaster!

Back then, as far as I knew, there was only one scale for model aircraft, 1/72nd.

 

Thanks Pete, you've reminded me of a similar experience at a similar time.

To celebrate the 747 entering service, Kellogg's did an offer whereby they'd send you a 'plastic kit' in exchange for a few box tops.  I was convinced I was going to get an Airfix kit - but no, it turned out to be a couple of clip-together pieces that would happily fit inside a Kinder egg.  I was gutted (and obviously scarred for life!).

 

Cheers

 

 

[Pete in Lincs]

18 minutes ago, CliffB said:

Kellogg's did an offer whereby they'd send you a 'plastic kit' in exchange for a few box tops

They did that with Frosties too. Even back then I could see that the Me109 and Spitfire I received were dreadful. Early Starfix?

I think each one was for six boxtops? I didn't have enough so I remember that once I sent five and one box bottom. It worked!

There was a range of small airliners in the Cornflakes, and I had a Wessex from somewhere, I wish I could remember where.

Free gifts in cereal now would be labelled as choking hazards!

[CliffB]

1 hour ago, Pete in Lincs said:

Even back then I could see that the Me109 and Spitfire I received were dreadful. Early Starfix?

 

Funnily enough ……..

I'm currently working my way through a set of Eldon 'Match Kits', which were made somewhere in Japan in the mid-1960s.  They are 1/100 scale and really rough.

I've previously described them as "not being out of place as a freebie in a cereal box".  Maybe I was right!

 

I've got two left to build, which by chance are the Me109 and the Spitfire.  Do they look familiar? 

 

 

 

Cheers

[Pete in Lincs]

Not those two. The ones I got were at least near to 1/72nd. I remember lots of shipyard rivets and the 109 fuselage was rather too rounded.

But, they were free, so I built them and enjoyed doing so. I think.

[Hockeyboy76]

Nice one Cliff. Watching with Interest. 

[Adrian Hills]

Cliff, PM me your address as I may have some Canadian decals you can have. Anything to help out a fellow 1/96 Frog builder 😊

[Adrian Hills]

Unlike you Cliff I will be preserving the wing roundel markings and decalling over them for my Avro 684 in order to preserve the ‘heritage’ of the kit. With the Manchester it is not a problem as I chopped those bits of wing off 😁

[CliffB]

8 hours ago, Adrian Hills said:

Cliff, PM me your address as I may have some Canadian decals you can have. Anything to help out a fellow 1/96 Frog builder 😊

Thanks Adrian, that's a very kind offer.  I'll certainly drop you a PM.

Here's what I've got at the moment.

 

 

The 'Rescue' set is from a 1/100 Tamiya Vertol, and I think the others came from a Matchbox Twin Otter.  In theory they should provide me with the roundels that I need (there are none under the wing on my aircraft), but the Matchbox ones in particular are not great.  I think you can see that they're out of register.  Miraculously the 'RESCUE' decals are a good size, but I still need to sort out the cheat lines/flashes and some larger RCAF text (I can print my own if necessary).  

 

8 hours ago, Adrian Hills said:

With the Manchester it is not a problem as I chopped those bits of wing off 😁

A very elegant solution!

 

Cheers

 

[CliffB]

I've just been tinkering with this at the moment and it's a mix of good and bad news (as always!).

 

The fuselage parts are good.  A couple of dozen small sink marks needed filling, but absolutely no warping.  I'm just hoping that it isn't mandatory to have some warpage in this GB .

Also, the simplicity of the kit actually helps the conversion to a 10MP - there are no side windows to fill and there's no dorsal turret aperture either (hopefully just sanding required to remove the fairing).

 

 

The wings are progressing nicely too.  The decal placement markings have been filled and I've started to scribe in panel lines where the roundels went.  Fingers crossed that it will look OK under a natural metal finish (the RCAF roundels are much smaller than the kit's RAF ones).

 

 

It's not all good with the wings though, as one has a nasty case of droop.

 

 

I'm also going to have to spend some time on the engine nacelles, not least because I need to get back to exposed exhausts.  I'm not sure how I'm going to do that yet.

 

 

Overall though, it looks like it should be a fun project .

 

Cheers

 

 

[Rabbit Leader]

Looks like a tonne of work ahead, however that just makes this whole head scratching project all the more enjoyable to nut out. With your recent good form Cliff, I’m sure you’ll come out well on top when it’s finished. 
Cheers.. Dave 

[CliffB]

7 hours ago, Rabbit Leader said:

Looks like a tonne of work ahead, however that just makes this whole head scratching project all the more enjoyable to nut out. With your recent good form Cliff, I’m sure you’ll come out well on top when it’s finished. 
Cheers.. Dave 

Thanks Dave, although to be honest I've got it easy compared to many in this Group Build 

 

Cheers

[Adrian Hills]

Cliff,

If you haven’t found out already you will need to fill holes by the mid upper turret when you remove fairing. Back filling it with something solid will help

A

[CliffB]

On 4/11/2020 at 9:29 PM, Adrian Hills said:

Cliff,

If you haven’t found out already you will need to fill holes by the mid upper turret when you remove fairing. Back filling it with something solid will help

A

Thanks for the tip Adrian -  I duly backed the turret position with epoxy putty, prior to sanding . 

I also reinforced the thin web of plastic that blanks off the stand slot  (using superglue gel), is it didn't look as though it would stand up to much seam sanding.

 

In common with many of my recent builds, my interior 'detailing' simply comprises painting everything matt black and then stuffing in a piece of black sponge to stop see-through!

I've recently bought an Airfix Starter Set (MGB, as it happens), so I thought I'd try using its little pot of matt black acrylic.  I have to say that once thinned, it sprayed beautifully .  

 

 

Since then, I've done a bit of assembly including getting the droopy wing straightened out. 

It may not be obvious from the photo, but I think that the tail plane is actually set too low in the fuselage (the kit's fault, not mine).  This is something that I'll live with though.

 

 

The black hole that is the cockpit looks pretty scary at the moment, but I'm confident will be OK once the canopy is on and painted up.  The last FROG bomber that I built was this Hampden, which is equally vacuous -  but you'd never know (unless you look ).  To help me further, much of the glazing on my Canadian MR10 is painted over.

 

 

I'll be letting the Lanc sit for a week or two now, as I've a Nordic Beagle that needs to be finished....

 

See you later.

 

 

[Adrian Hills]

Cliff,

What I have done with a previous Frog Lanc was pull mould over the canopy. It worked quite well and looks a bit cleaner. Your call as I believe the back half is painted over on the Rescue jobbie. It also means you don’t need to bother filling in the back of the roof of the cockpit as you can’t see it ! 😊

[CliffB]

8 hours ago, Adrian Hills said:

What I have done with a previous Frog Lanc was pull mould over the canopy. 

Good morning Adrian.  That's a good idea, but unfortunately I've never had much success with pull-moulding (other than with very small parts).  So yes, I'll be relying on lots of paint as camouflage!

The clear parts are not a great feature of the kit, are they?  Quite apart from all the bits needing a good polish and dip, the shape of the front of the cockpit canopy is very poor (which will also very visible on the finished model).

The front is curved, rather than being pointed.  I'm thinking about trying to re-shape it with a file.  At least the clear plastic is nice and thick .

 

 

It sounds like you are a serial FROG Lancaster builder.  Is there a reason for your slightly unusual choice of kit (apologies if I've missed this previously)?

 

Cheers

[Adrian Hills]

Hi Cliff,

re profiling a thick canopy works well. I once rounded a very square rear turret. Apart from various emery papers I have found toothpaste and metal polish good substances for improving finish of clear parts.

 

Regarding my interest in I/96 - one of my preversions is odd scales, especially on early ‘Box scale’ kits, preferably with markings engraved in plastic! 😊

 

[CliffB]

45 minutes ago, Adrian Hills said:

Regarding my interest in I/96 - one of my preversions is odd scales, especially on early ‘Box scale’ kits, preferably with markings engraved in plastic! 😊

 

Yes, I totally get that (although I personally try to stick within 1/95 - 1/105).

 

Cheers

[vppelt68]

I take my hat off (or I´d take if I used one) and bow as a respect for your endeavour! Definitely not a typical shake the box- kit . V-P

[CliffB]

I've been giving a bit of thought to how the change from shrouded to exposed exhausts.  Filing off the shrouds will be easy enough, but how to re-instate exposed exhaust stubs?

 

Here's my latest attempt - sawteeth cut into a piece of microstrip.  I think it might look OK.  It's just 10mm O/A length and when painted black...…..

One down, seven to go!

 

 

Cheers

Cliff

[Rabbit Leader]

I like those home brew exhausts Cliff. That will work quite nicely. 
Cheers.. Dave

[vppelt68]

Looks good 👍. V-P

[Hockeyboy76]

Nice work Cliff and some great solutions to your kits problems. Keep going, it’s looking good.