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Catalina PBY-5A - Airfix 1/72


CedB

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29 minutes ago, CedB said:

I think they'll be OK.

Looking at your pictures, it looks like the opening in the real canopy extends to the very top of the bubble, about 30 degrees more than the Airfix opening. It also looks like the sergeant and the Browning guy have their windows open all the way to the top and the guy in the inside shot has the window about 3/4 open. So you have options of opening it more to make it fully open or painting the framing like it is 3/4 open, as Bill has suggested. In both cases you could reasonably ditch the dodgy swivelling piece altogether.

 

But it sounds like you have a plan so I will STFU and avoid over-excited chatter on the thread!

 

Regards,

Adrian

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Late to the party as usual, been distracted with stuff, not least a 1:72 Halifax. I'm getting quite a few kits built now and truth be told I don't want lockdown to end (for me personally) any time soon. Modeller's dream in many respects. 😉

 

Anyway, I like the Vickers K guns and your result is better than aftermarket, but here's a link to some half reasonable ones from Sergeants Mess for anyone not so inclined. https://www.sgtsmess.co.uk/shop/modifications/gm3-six-vickers-k-guns-plus-mounts/?v=79cba1185463

 

As for the windows, I use Glue and Glaze https://deluxematerials.co.uk/products/glue-n-glaze. It's really good stuff and dries very clear indeed. I've started using it on smaller flat windows in bombers that I can't be bothered to mask. The trick is to glaze before painting, let it go off and clear, paint as normal right over the windows. Then take a craft knife and remove the glazing. Touch up the frames if necessary and re-glaze the windows. It works a treat, no masking and the result is most acceptable. 

 

Loving the build so far, but wondering why you didn't do the Academy kit (or did I miss that in the earlier pages?). You're certainly making a brilliant job of a desperately dated moulding.. 😁👍

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I just wanted to say from that from the far distant land of Vegemite,kangaroos and REAL fish 'n chips how much I'm really enjoying your modelling adventures. Really your thoughts, insights and problem-solving techniques truly demonstrate how what this hobby is all about.-love,frustration,innovation and sharing. I've been STRUGGLING  (tearing my hair out!)with the old Airfix 1/24th Stuka since January. Due to the "lockdown" I've been persevering with this BIG SCALE challenge. Reading your posts,together with all the other comments, my sanity has been maintained as I struggle on to attain Scale Modelling Nirvana (i.e. the completed kit!!!!😉😉😉). Cheers from a rather chilly late Autumn Melbourne .

Paul (aka Bertie Lissie 🧐)

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12 hours ago, AdrianMF said:

It was the loctite superglue with the fancy top from B&Q.

Ah, that's the one I use most of the time… except I've changed to the little tubes as the big ones always dry up on me, or 'go off'. :) 

12 hours ago, AdrianMF said:

Looking at your pictures, it looks like the opening in the real canopy extends to the very top of the bubble, about 30 degrees more than the Airfix opening. It also looks like the sergeant and the Browning guy have their windows open all the way to the top and the guy in the inside shot has the window about 3/4 open. So you have options of opening it more to make it fully open or painting the framing like it is 3/4 open, as Bill has suggested. In both cases you could reasonably ditch the dodgy swivelling piece altogether.

 

But it sounds like you have a plan so I will STFU and avoid over-excited chatter on the thread!

 

Regards,

Adrian

Thanks Adrian - great idea, I hadn't twigged Bill's 'frames half open' idea but that, and ditching the opening bit, will certainly make it better and resolve the hinge problem that's stopping the bubble fitting snugly. Looks like this without the opening bit:

 

49890022017_d8f919ce6d_z.jpg

Untitled by Ced Bufton, on Flickr

 

… so, with some thought, I ought to be able to get the 'cruising with the windows half open' look.

 

10 hours ago, HP42 said:

Late to the party as usual, been distracted with stuff, not least a 1:72 Halifax. I'm getting quite a few kits built now and truth be told I don't want lockdown to end (for me personally) any time soon. Modeller's dream in many respects. 😉

 

Anyway, I like the Vickers K guns and your result is better than aftermarket, but here's a link to some half reasonable ones from Sergeants Mess for anyone not so inclined. https://www.sgtsmess.co.uk/shop/modifications/gm3-six-vickers-k-guns-plus-mounts/?v=79cba1185463

 

As for the windows, I use Glue and Glaze https://deluxematerials.co.uk/products/glue-n-glaze. It's really good stuff and dries very clear indeed. I've started using it on smaller flat windows in bombers that I can't be bothered to mask. The trick is to glaze before painting, let it go off and clear, paint as normal right over the windows. Then take a craft knife and remove the glazing. Touch up the frames if necessary and re-glaze the windows. It works a treat, no masking and the result is most acceptable. 

 

Loving the build so far, but wondering why you didn't do the Academy kit (or did I miss that in the earlier pages?). You're certainly making a brilliant job of a desperately dated moulding.. 😁👍

Hi Phil, good to see you! :) 

Thanks for the link to Sgts Mess - I hadn't heard of them before so I spent some time browsing their site; good stuff eh? Mostly for AFV guys I guess but those guns, especially the mounts, look really good. I was also tempted by the RAF pilots (of course) although the larger images don't load in Safari browser. Some of the 'scenery' pieces stirred my imagination… what diorama could I do that includes Two dead European cows

Thanks also for the windows tip, sounds interesting - I'll try to remember next time I need better windows!

Why didn't I build the Academy kit? Good question… I think I bought the kit before I discovered Scalemates so was fooled by the new box. :( 

 

1 hour ago, bertielissie said:

I just wanted to say from that from the far distant land of Vegemite,kangaroos and REAL fish 'n chips how much I'm really enjoying your modelling adventures. Really your thoughts, insights and problem-solving techniques truly demonstrate how what this hobby is all about.-love,frustration,innovation and sharing. I've been STRUGGLING  (tearing my hair out!)with the old Airfix 1/24th Stuka since January. Due to the "lockdown" I've been persevering with this BIG SCALE challenge. Reading your posts,together with all the other comments, my sanity has been maintained as I struggle on to attain Scale Modelling Nirvana (i.e. the completed kit!!!!😉😉😉). Cheers from a rather chilly late Autumn Melbourne .

Paul (aka Bertie Lissie 🧐)

Awww thanks Paul, very kind of you to say so :) 

I do like to do my WiPs 'warts and all' having learned a lot from other BMers who do the same (a lot of whom are now also friends).

I can't guarantee that reading my threads will help maintain your sanity though! :D 

 

1 minute ago, Howlindawg said:

You forgot the Pie Floater! :eat:

Thanks Martin (nice to put a name to the 'tag') - shall I ask? Anything to do with pies is tempting… oh, go on then, what's a 'Pie Floater'? :) 

 

 

I'll be doing some more work on the floats today - here they are now:

 

49889712016_8f7453abc0_z.jpg

 

I've thinned and sanded the supports on the one on the left and, once the hinge is also thinned and the closing rod added, I think will look fine (if they're long enough).

I'll do some more research on the bubble framing too - dangerously close to close up?

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1 hour ago, CedB said:

Thanks Martin (nice to put a name to the 'tag') - shall I ask? Anything to do with pies is tempting… oh, go on then, what's a 'Pie Floater'? :) 

Well, a pie floater is traditional Aussie street food.

Basically a quality pie of your choice served upside down and submerged in pea soup.

 

Absolutely delicious with a dash of Worchester sauce. :D

 

There was a place called Harry's in Darling Harbour in Sydney that did a great version.

Dammit, now I'm drooling on my keyboard! ;)

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Thanks Martin - sounds delicious! :tasty:

 

Not much more done this morning - spending all my spare time looking for photos of the blister that will help me frame it, to no avail.

 

I've been thinking about thinning the edge too - risky.

I have though, noticed the little window below the gunner - I'll try to remember to mask that.

 

I may not have much more time today - our lovely Ash (probably) tree:

 

49890012701_bcc90850dd_z.jpg

Untitled by Ced Bufton, on Flickr

 

…regularly drops small twigs and the occasional branch but, in those strong winds recently, shed a bough:

 

49889485263_c91b1c365b_z.jpg

 

Our neighbour was in his garden when it fell and gave us a call and, with the help of some kind passers by, I was able to move it away from the path but it obviously needs to be cut up.

I had planned to go out with a circular saw once the wind died down but then had a 'day dream' about what would happen if I slipped on the mud with an electric saw in my hand :yikes:

I've ordered a Bow Saw and it should arrive today so I'll be sawing for a while…

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Ced (any excuse to buy a tool B strikes again

 

I think a literary gent name of Rincewind described floaters in a tour de force in Sir Terry P's seminal work The Last Continent.

 

Envious hmm?

Hmm? Yep !

 

I suspect you could have the rotating bit fitted and rotated, memories of building the Cat that way when I was a lad

 

Anyway carry on skipper.

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1 hour ago, CedB said:

I've ordered a Bow Saw

 

Good grief, that looks like it'll be hard work - you should have got a chain saw on a pole - 6 feet (at least) away from danger....!! I find one invaluable for giving our horrible conifers their annual 'trim'! 

 

Lovely tree that Ced!

 

Keith

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3 hours ago, CedB said:

probably

Obviously! Nice tree. Oh, I see the grin on your face. "Yeah tools , more tools; yes new tools!"

The Catalina looks good so far. was away for a week, so I have to read a bit.

Cheers

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22 hours ago, perdu said:

Ced (any excuse to buy a tool B strikes again

 

I think a literary gent name of Rincewind described floaters in a tour de force in Sir Terry P's seminal work The Last Continent.

 

Envious hmm?

Hmm? Yep !

 

I suspect you could have the rotating bit fitted and rotated, memories of building the Cat that way when I was a lad

 

Anyway carry on skipper.

Thanks Bill :) I'll have a look at the bubbles later.

20 hours ago, keefr22 said:

 

Good grief, that looks like it'll be hard work - you should have got a chain saw on a pole - 6 feet (at least) away from danger....!! I find one invaluable for giving our horrible conifers their annual 'trim'! 

 

Lovely tree that Ced!

 

Keith

Thanks Keith. Hard work? I remember that… :D 

18 hours ago, bbudde said:

Obviously! Nice tree. Oh, I see the grin on your face. "Yeah tools , more tools; yes new tools!"

The Catalina looks good so far. was away for a week, so I have to read a bit.

Cheers

Thanks Ben :D 

18 hours ago, Corsairfoxfouruncle said:

Dropping of twigs or not its a grand tree and very poetic framed as it is in the photo. 

Thanks Dennis :)  The tree is gorgeous and a great reminder of nature's grandure… until I have to pick up the sheddings!

 

 

The Spear & Jackson Razorsharp 24" Bowsaw was a great purchase and really lives up to its name. £16.50 was much cheaper than trying to find a tree surgeon and I had the bough chopped in minutes and we now have a bug house outside the back gate:

 

49893823292_e35e397c3c.jpg49893822852_6cc794efa7.jpg

 

Molly seems to like it.

I must admit I was puffing a bit after all that and, for the first time in ages, got a good night's sleep. Mrs B woke me up at 10am to make sure I was still alive - 10 hours, result!

Of course it elicited the comment that I got a good sleep because "I'd had exercise". My view is that my body had to repair the damage…

 

Late night as I finished watching 'Spooks' - 10 series done now, I'll have to find another box set to binge on. 'Tales from the Loop' might be it, seems like my type of things.

 

More Cat later…

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32 minutes ago, CedB said:

My view is that my body had to repair the damage…

And we strongly support that view, even in court if need be :D  :D  

 

Ciao

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11 minutes ago, keefr22 said:

 

For a suitable payment, of course.. !!

Actually Keith, I think that this kind of support is of mutual interest, we may all find ourselves in the same conditions - united we are stronger ... :rofl:  :rofl: 

 

Ciao

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5 hours ago, giemme said:

And we strongly support that view, even in court if need be :D  :D  

 

Ciao

Thanks Giorgio :rofl2:

3 hours ago, keefr22 said:

 

For a suitable payment, of course.. !!

3 hours ago, giemme said:

Actually Keith, I think that this kind of support is of mutual interest, we may all find ourselves in the same conditions - united we are stronger ... :rofl:  :rofl: 

 

Ciao

1 hour ago, perdu said:

I agree with him

Together we are stronger! Oh no, wait, someone's already used that :D 

 

 

Just finished my Science Group Zoom (Chlorine this month) so not much done today.

I have mostly cleaned up the other struts and both have now had a drop of sprue gloop dropped on the hinge:

 

49893984058_ba21546bbb_z.jpg

Untitled by Ced Bufton, on Flickr

 

I'm hoping that the plastic will merge overnight so that I can remove most of the hinge ready for the closing mechanism.

Looks like the one on the right could do with a bit more thinning.

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4 minutes ago, CedB said:

Looks like the one on the right could do with a bit more thinning.

Bow saw?

I succumbed to the Pixnor tweezers today. However I have had them shipped to my Dad's house as the postage was free. To have them sent here was 42 quid!

I'll pick them up next time I'm home.

 

Ian

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That's a good effort with your bow saw Ced, I use one for pruning & cutting what I've pruned up, Sandvik (now Bahco) loppers for anything up to 1-1,1/4", bowsaw does duty up to 3-4":, over that, its my trusty wee Stihl chainsaw. A bit antisocial in town but if I'm organised & quick its all over before too long. Looking at your pile, I'd have used the Stihl for a fair bit of that. Do you burn that or is it destined to be bug habitat? 

Fascinating progress on the Cat. :)

Steve.

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19 hours ago, limeypilot said:

Bow saw?

I succumbed to the Pixnor tweezers today. However I have had them shipped to my Dad's house as the postage was free. To have them sent here was 42 quid!

I'll pick them up next time I'm home.

 

Ian

Yep, one of these. Really easy to use and actually lived up to its name!

Good news on the tweezers - I think you'll love 'em :) 

 

1 hour ago, stevehnz said:

That's a good effort with your bow saw Ced, I use one for pruning & cutting what I've pruned up, Sandvik (now Bahco) loppers for anything up to 1-1,1/4", bowsaw does duty up to 3-4":, over that, its my trusty wee Stihl chainsaw. A bit antisocial in town but if I'm organised & quick its all over before too long. Looking at your pile, I'd have used the Stihl for a fair bit of that. Do you burn that or is it destined to be bug habitat? 

Fascinating progress on the Cat. :)

Steve.

Sounds professional Steve :) This is probably the only use I'll have for such tools, sadly - I almost talked myself into a chainsaw, but couldn't justify it!

 

 

Backgammon again this morning (got thrashed!) but I did make some progress.

Dimples filled with PPP:

 

49896775373_fa63ddf47e_z.jpg

Untitled by Ced Bufton, on Flickr

 

Despite the perdu 'water in the top' preservation methods it's started to dry. I think the plastic tubes do this if you get air in them. Pleased I've got a metal-tube in 'the stores'.

Both internals fitted and filled:

 

49897605472_4b5ea6c172_z.jpg

 

The sprue gloop has dried but what's this?

 

49897298411_27f9f7a432_z.jpg

 

The right hand ones are too short! Changing them over doesn't help… what went wrong?

Same size:

 

49897301831_f351f591ee_z.jpg

 

Floats same angle:

 

49897305476_7e4a3935a9_z.jpg

 

Internals more or less the same depth:

 

49896788728_66f9fb29d5_z.jpg

 

The idea of sprue gloop to meld the supports worked but, if I chop out the hinge as planned, they're 'bandy:

 

49897312881_4e8c80d0b8_z.jpg

 

So the question is, how do I scratch this:

 

49897369896_35d2efd1b4_c.jpg

 

Looking closely at the join, the lower part is an inverted 'V' and the thinner (?) top bits are bolted either side of the lever for the closers.

Out with the plastic again I think…

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I agree with that, but notice that the lower V appears to be square section, whereas the upper halves are circular.

 

Just thought I'd throw that in to keep you on your toes!

 

Ian

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5 minutes ago, CedB said:

Sounds professional Steve :) This is probably the only use I'll have for such tools, sadly - I almost talked myself into a chainsaw, but couldn't justify it!

Not professional at all but it's good to have the right gear, accumulated over many years. Perhaps I'm just a frustrated lumberjack, I always wanted to be a lumberjack. ;) :D

Steve.

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I think I will be junking the Airfix struts and starting with Albion Alloys' product.

 

Martian 👽

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