Wez Posted October 3, 2020 Share Posted October 3, 2020 Good progress so far Heather Kay, all I've done is drill and gouge holes in my Fennec so you actually gluing components together is very good progress in my book. I like what you did with the pitot tube. Looking forward to the next instalment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather Kay Posted October 4, 2020 Author Share Posted October 4, 2020 I did a little more following yesterday's post. Then I haven’t touched it at all today - yet! The instructions would have you fit the top of the fuselage first, then the belly. I decided the belly would be better first, while there was still some access to it from above. It is designed to sit on little tabs moulded in the fuselage sides. Aside from cleaning up runner gates and a little flash, it was a good fit. Being fairly floppy parts until glued together, the fuselage sides and belly part had adopted slightly wavy shapes in the box. That was fairly easy to sort out, though I must remember to be aware of the fact when putting the wings together. Finger pressure at first, running a little MEK solvent into the joins, which sets sufficiently quickly to hold things in place, and followed up by strategic clamps to close a couple of tiny gaps. A small amount of PPP will deal with the little gaps under the tail. A little more work will be needed around the front, though. The trailing edges where they fair into the fuselage will need a bit of work, too. I might be tempted to leave that work until the wings have been fitted. Now, that's going to be fun, because there are no positive location points involved apart from a ledge and where the upper wing half meets the fuselage. I’m going to have to very careful to get the wing assemblies glued on square and level with the fuselage. Like the belly, the cabin roof fitted very neatly. Where the fuselage sides aren’t fixed to bulkheads they remain fairly flexible, so a gentle pressure with fingers to hold the parts in register while MEK was carefully run along the joint was needed. I started at the tail, and worked forward one side at a time. This is a big model! It’s going to look pretty impressive when done. It’s definitely one of the biggest models I’ve built for my collection so far - and there are some pretty much planes waiting their turn in the stash 14 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TonyW Posted October 4, 2020 Share Posted October 4, 2020 Nice to see this one coming along. I quite like wing joints without slots. Call me weird if you like! I also break with tradition when I can by fixing the top wing half in place before adding the bottom one. I find this gives the best possible finish to the top wing joint, which is the one that counts when the model is on display. The downside of this method is that remedial work is them transfered to the undersides. Yin and Yang. Tony. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather Kay Posted October 4, 2020 Author Share Posted October 4, 2020 3 hours ago, TonyW said: I also break with tradition when I can by fixing the top wing half in place before adding the bottom one. That’s an interesting idea. I did give it some thought on this build. The problem, though, is the mouldings are very thin, and more often than not need a tweak to straighten them out a bit from life on the shelf. I followed the kit directions, as you’ll see. While the wing halves were setting, I pondered the best way to ensure they were glued to the fuselage so they were symmetrical. Iron Annie has a quite pronounced dihedral, and according to most drawings the wing tips are very close to the same level as the horizontal stabilisers when viewed from the front. It made a lot of sense, therefore, to fit the stabs first. That way, I’d have a chance of being able to align things visually. Well, there we are then. I have to say the plastic used with this moulding reacts incredibly well with MEK solvent. It hardens enough to hold parts in only a few seconds, and achieves pretty solid joints in a matter of minutes. Using the Mk1 Eyeball, Human, and the aid of some abrasives, the wing roots were fettled to try and get the best joint possible. It nearly worked. The port wing has a slight gap on the top joint. Starboard gave me a perfect joint. Unsurprisingly, underneath it was the other way round. Still, not bad for a kit engineered before CAD/CAM technology. Trailing and leading roots will need some attention. I shall leave that to harden before I think about strategies for filler. I suspect PPP will be best for the gaps, as it can be swiped out of the corrugations with a damp cotton bud. The other gaps will probably fill nicely with Squadron putty. Engines next. 15 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toryu Posted October 4, 2020 Share Posted October 4, 2020 You're making fantastic progress - this big bopper is nearly ready, and I haven't even started my little lightfoot... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather Kay Posted October 4, 2020 Author Share Posted October 4, 2020 Just now, Toryu said: You're making fantastic progress - this big bopper is nearly ready, I know. Mind you, this is only the big parts. There’s some fiddly stuff round the engines yet, and then there’s painting it. I had a look at the masking set yesterday. It has all the markings as well as glazing - but no real directions on how to apply the former… 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CedB Posted October 7, 2020 Share Posted October 7, 2020 Nice work Heather - coming together well despite the kit's obvious trials 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather Kay Posted October 7, 2020 Author Share Posted October 7, 2020 1 minute ago, CedB said: despite the kit's obvious trials To be honest, Ced, it’s been a breeze for the most part. A lovely change from the various short run kits I’ve been putting together recently. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather Kay Posted October 7, 2020 Author Share Posted October 7, 2020 Not a lot to report so far this week. After my little health issue, where Best Beloved had decided I was "off sick" and shouldn’t work on client stuff, I’ve been trying to make progress on this loco. The green livery had been airbrushed a few weeks ago, so was now nice and hard, so I started painting in the black areas. Getting there. I reckon about a week's full-time work and it’ll be completed. Consequently, Auntie has been languishing at the side of the bench. I bought in a masking set by Montex. It was designed for the Italeri Ju52, but how different could it be? Well, quite a lot as it happens. The cockpit side windows were okay, but the rest of the panels didn’t fit at all. Out with the Tamiya and a sharp No15 Swann Morton, and here we are. The masking set also included markings - all the national markings, unit codes and the snake motif along the fuselage sides. I’m still in the dark about how to work them, but I am keen to see if they do. The masks are cut in Oromask, which is a Good Thing as I understand it. Expect questions later. Anyway, I reckon I should try and get some primer on the air frame before I go any further with construction, though it might be useful to attach the control surfaces. 14 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Headroom Posted October 7, 2020 Share Posted October 7, 2020 Enjoying your progress on this👍🏻 I see you’ve tackled the port wing root joint already. I was going to suggest PVA glue being run own the gap, because if you got it wrong it would be easy to peel off. As for the canopy mask, I remember a comparative review of the Heller and Italeri kits. Apparently on one, the front windscreen is flat, whilst the other is more of a V shape. No idea which was which and even less which is right! The conclusion though was the Heller kit was the nicer of the two. Trevor Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike romeo Posted October 7, 2020 Share Posted October 7, 2020 (edited) 10 hours ago, Heather Kay said: I bought in a masking set by Montex. It was designed for the Italeri Ju52, but how different could it be? Well, quite a lot as it happens. The cockpit side windows were okay, but the rest of the panels didn’t fit at all. Out with the Tamiya and a sharp No15 Swann Morton, and here we are. I won't buy the masks then, although I may buy some Swann Morton #15s. Good progress. Rgds Martin Edited October 8, 2020 by Heather Kay Please don’t quote entire posts, just leave the pertinent bit. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greg Law Posted October 8, 2020 Share Posted October 8, 2020 Doing well Heather. I'll be interested in how you get on with the painting etc. Not an easy thing with the Ju 52. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CedB Posted October 8, 2020 Share Posted October 8, 2020 Nice work on the loco Heather. The masking looks spot on too - did you miss a bit on the sides of the canopy or is that Oramask? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather Kay Posted October 8, 2020 Author Share Posted October 8, 2020 33 minutes ago, CedB said: did you miss a bit on the sides of the canopy or is that Oramask? Those bits were where the vinyl mask actually fitted. Nothing else did, just the side windows! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CedB Posted October 8, 2020 Share Posted October 8, 2020 Ah, those side windows! Got it… Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevehnz Posted October 8, 2020 Share Posted October 8, 2020 That is looking very nice Heather. I'm wishing I had one of these rather than the Italeri one now. Oh well. Steve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather Kay Posted October 8, 2020 Author Share Posted October 8, 2020 13 hours ago, Max Headroom said: I see you’ve tackled the port wing root joint already. I was going to suggest PVA glue being run own the gap, because if you got it wrong it would be easy to peel off. Perfect Plastic Putty did the trick. It’s ideal for this kind of gap where sanding is all but impossible. Daub it on, then wipe it away with a damp cotton bud, job done. Regarding the masking, I was most surprised that the cabin windows appear to be much deeper, of the order of a millimetre and more, on the Italeri kit. Equally, the cockpit glazing was smaller than the Heller transparency. The landing light mask was spot on, though! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabbit Leader Posted October 8, 2020 Share Posted October 8, 2020 2 minutes ago, stevehnz said: That is looking very nice Heather. I'm wishing I had one of these rather than the Italeri one now. Oh well. Steve. I’ve been thinking the same Steve. a French Toucan seems to have peaked my interest. Not sure what the difference is though. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wez Posted October 8, 2020 Share Posted October 8, 2020 I've been taking notes as you go along, so far nothing scares the horses which is good news as I really like the look of this kit in the box. 1 hour ago, Rabbit Leader said: I’ve been thinking the same Steve. a French Toucan seems to have peaked my interest. Not sure what the difference is though. I'll be making mine as a Toucan, I've got the Berna Decals already. There was some mention of Toucan's having C-47 wheels, without looking at the kit I don't know what they're like, I'd also have to do some research as to when the French started using C-47 wheels on their Toucans, I suspect not straight away but as a later modification as the aircraft aged. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdrianMF Posted October 8, 2020 Share Posted October 8, 2020 Nice going! The wing joint looked a bit scary pre-assembly but it looks good now. Regards, Adrian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RidgeRunner Posted October 9, 2020 Share Posted October 9, 2020 On 10/7/2020 at 8:46 PM, Heather Kay said: I’ve been trying to make progress on this loco. The green livery had been airbrushed a few weeks ago, so was now nice and hard, so I started painting in the black areas. Getting there. I reckon about a week's full-time work and it’ll be completed. Nice, Heather. My brother builds and runs steam locos and has done for nearly 45 years. He has a few that he has either built or refurbished, plus a steam tractor that is used for pub trips! Nice work on the Junkers too Martin 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather Kay Posted October 10, 2020 Author Share Posted October 10, 2020 Resting among the smaller loco parts as they acquire paint, we find Auntie Ju showing off her control surfaces. I’ve fitted things with some deflection, so the flaps are dropped a little, the ailerons allow a shallow bank to starboard, and the elevators are just dropped a bit. It looks like the flight crew kicked the control column as they rushed to get out and to the nearest bar. 11 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TonyOD Posted October 10, 2020 Share Posted October 10, 2020 This is looking fantastic, I’m following with interest so I’m as prepared as I can be for when I eventually tackle mine. On 10/8/2020 at 6:10 AM, Greg Law said: Doing well Heather. I'll be interested in how you get on with the painting etc. Not an easy thing with the Ju 52. This had never occurred to me. The scheme I want to do is splinter camo which with all those straight edges would normally be quite straightforward... but with all that corrugated plastic how on Earth does on get the masking tape to bed down and avoid bleed? 🤔 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather Kay Posted October 10, 2020 Author Share Posted October 10, 2020 14 minutes ago, TonyOD said: how on Earth does on get the masking tape to bed down and avoid bleed? 🤔 Indeed. The corrugations are very small, though, so light applications of paint at low pressure - in the ColourCoats fashion - ought not bleed too much. We shall see. As indeed we shall see if I can ever work out how the markings mask set works. I’m still in the dark about which order things are supposed to work there. I’m afraid I might chicken out and end up using the transfers instead! 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alt-92 Posted October 10, 2020 Share Posted October 10, 2020 2 hours ago, TonyOD said: but with all that corrugated plastic how on Earth does on get the masking tape to bed down and avoid bleed? 🤔 A sharpened toothpick/cocktail stick and carefully pressing the tape into the corrugations one by one. Tedious, but works fine. 2 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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