345 DH89 Dragon Rapide

[Heather Kay]

Out of all my Heller and non-Heller boxes, this is the only proper oldie. My guess is it dates the late 1970s. I’m adding a thread as a parking space, in case I find the time to get started on this classic plane.

 

 

 

It's even got the instructions in yer ackchewl French, though there is a separate sheet with English and German for those not gifted in la belle Français.

 

 

There are those who shy away from biplanes. It’s something to do with all the knitting string rigging. I found these, which may, or may not, make life a bit simpler.

 

This will be finished in one of the optional markings provided, that of an impressed civilian plane in RAF navigation training guise. Oh boy! Another one with yellow underneath. Such larks!

[Rabbit Leader]

Got the same kit in the same box Heather and perhaps that rigging set might just be the missing link I need to get over my rigging phobia. This is a great, classic Heller kit and I’m sure you’ll do it mighty proud. 
Cheers and best of luck.. Dave 

[TonyW]

Trainer Yellow on a Dragon Rapide, what's not to like? A beautiful aeroplane, especially in RAF markings.

[Wez]

I've got a couple of boxings of this kit, this one which I think is from the period 1978-1980 (so 1979 is a good compromise), and I have the Tasman boxing.

 

It is a lovely kit, I am tempted to do another one of Heller's biplanes, even if it does mean incorporating a cat's cradle into my model!

 

Welcome and good luck.

[TonyOD]

The DR is my long term labour of love build right now... if you happen to come across someone who has that Kuivalainen photo etch set in stock please let me know 😉

 

Look forward to seeing how this one shapes up!

[fightersweep]

Onboard for this one Heather. A lovely aircraft and a lovely kit. I've got the later Airfix boxing somewhere, but I must pick up the black box version again. I built one years ago in a spurious air taxi scheme. Still, I was only 14 at the time. The rigging set looks interesting and contains both of my modelling Kryptonites, namely rigging and photo etch. I'll have to hide behind the sofa when that comes out!

[Dave Swindell]

4 hours ago, Heather Kay said:

My guess is it dates the late 1970s.

1979, you don't get more late 70's than that!

[JOCKNEY]

Wonderful choice Heather, a plane which captures the Art Deco period beautifully. 

 

The rigging set looks the business, i think lots of us will be on the look out for both kit and rigging set when you have finished this one.

 

Best of luck

 

cheers Pat 

[Heather Kay]

Studying the instructions yesterday, they cover how to rig the model. While not including the materials, it tells you how long a bit of thread needs to be, and how to assemble things to keep it taught.

 

I don’t ever recall Airfix giving such instructions for their biplane kits or similar vintage. 
 

Oooh, while I’m here, if anyone has any info on the internal cabin setup in a Rapide used for navigation training that would be very handy. Ta. 

[JOCKNEY]

9 hours ago, Heather Kay said:

Oooh, while I’m here, if anyone has any info on the internal cabin setup in a Rapide used for navigation training that would be very handy. Ta. 

Hi Heather

Chris aka @dogsbodyseems to be able to fnd some amazing pictures on aircraft subjects, like my Amiot.

Good luck

 

[dogsbody]

1 hour ago, JOCKNEY said:

Hi Heather

Chris aka @dogsbodyseems to be able to fnd some amazing pictures on aircraft subjects, like my Amiot.

Good luck

 

 

You're S.O.L. regarding interior photos from me, especially navigation trainer ones.

 

 

 

Chris

[Heather Kay]

4 minutes ago, dogsbody said:

 

You're S.O.L. regarding interior photos from me, especially navigation trainer ones.

Ah well, can’t be helped. I’ll have a bit of a rummage, and if nothing turns up I’ll make an educated guess. 

[Heather Kay]

With my first build out of the way, the mighty Ju52, thoughts turn to the next one. Well, this one, obviously.

 

 

I must be good and not touch any plastic for as long as I can manage, because I really must get on with some day job work. However, I’m hoping to deploy this lovely wing alignment jig affair from @Andy G EBMA Hobby & Craft. Building a biplane means I’ll need as much assistance as I can get to ensure the wings align in all axes, because there’s nothing worse than a wonky wing. 

[Heather Kay]

Finding my mood is matching the English weather today (wet and windy), I thought it might be fun to do a bit of interwebs digging.

 

The kit contains markings for a UK civilian Rapide, G-AKNY, flying with Air Couriers; French School of Radio Navigation, HG720; and the RAF No 6 School of Air Observers/Navigation, G-ADBW.

 

I intend to build the last, so I tapped the registration into my preferred search engine.

 

I learn the aircraft was delivered to Jersey Airways in 1935. They had quite the fleet, and apparently flew a route from the island, using a beach as landing strip, to London Heston. BW apparently had a mishap when it overshot the landing ground, but nobody was injured, the plane was repaired and returned to service. Oddly, no photographs of BW exist, and it was never assigned a name, whereas all the other planes in the fleet have at least one photo and were all christened. 
 

War comes along, and before the Channel Islands get occupied by the Germans, most of the Jersey Airways fleet is flown to the UK mainland. Eventually, BW is impressed into RAF service on 15 July 1940, and given the registration serial Z7265. It doesn’t appear to have been painted with that number, and like many impressed civilian-registered planes kept its G registration on display. On 30 August 1940, BW again suffered a mishap, crashing at Staverton in Northamptonshire. It was obviously not seriously damaged, as it appears to have been returned to service and soldiered on until struck off charge in November 1941. Of course, it may have been quite badly damaged in the crash and been used as an instructional airframe - the lot of many older aircraft in wartime - but the internet was not clear on this. I may dig up more info in due course.

 

Anyway, I thought that was interesting. I don’t plan on starting any work on the model until the weekend, but you never know round here. Temptation and all that!

[LorenSharp]

Can't wait to see how the Rapide turns out Heather. Don't dawdle too much, remember idle hands are the devils playground.

[PeterB]

On 9/27/2020 at 8:49 AM, Heather Kay said:

Studying the instructions yesterday, they cover how to rig the model. While not including the materials, it tells you how long a bit of thread needs to be, and how to assemble things to keep it taught.

 

I don’t ever recall Airfix giving such instructions for their biplane kits or similar vintage. 
 

Oooh, while I’m here, if anyone has any info on the internal cabin setup in a Rapide used for navigation training that would be very handy. Ta. 

Hi Heather,

 

The only Airfix kit I recall doing anything like that was their O/400 which had the rigging holes provided and a diagram. No lengths but with the split wing construction you could just run the thread through. The only slightly tricky bit was the ones at the outer end of the upper wings which had to be glued on to the kingpost. Of course it was only basic rigging for the wings - nothing like the whole lot, but just enough for a youngster to give the impression of rigging. They also give you a rigging diagram on their BE2c but no lengths and no holes, but that of course is much later..

 

Pete

Edited October 30, 2020 by PeterB

[Heather Kay]

Well, I had planned on making inroads into this lovely little kit this weekend. I got sidetracked, though.

 

 

 

While I wait for a much, much larger display cabinet to appear, I decided to move some of the collection into storage. Much like full-size museums, I hope to rotate bits of the collection in and out to ring the changes. This box is one of a pair, which now contains Fighter Command 1940, while the other contains the Lysander, Rota and all the trainers. I have much larger boxes ready to accept most of the Luftwaffe and Bomber Command, and with capacity for the really big aircraft still in the stash waiting their turn at the bench.

 

Of course, the problem now is where to store the storage boxes! Top of the wardrobe seems favourite at the moment. I’m loathe to put them into the loft, despite it being lined out and insulated. Anyway, where was I?

 

Ah, yes, a Dragon Rapide.

 

 

I am going to hairy stick this model. In fact, I’m going to hairy stick a lot of the basic colours before I even begin gluing it together. I’ve seen others do major painting before construction, or before major assemblies are joined together, and I’m going to give it a try. So, a brushed coat of Humbrol 29 acrylic all over everything as a base coat, then I’m going to try painting about forty-seven coats of Hu24 yellow on the lower wings and fuselage.

 

Further research so far hasn’t really turned up anything regarding interiors. Logically, as G-ADBW was an impressed civvie aircraft, to my thinking at least, few major internal changes would have been done. The instructions have you build this version without the DF loops, though what evidence supports that I don’t know. For navigation training, I guess a small desk may have been fitted near the cockpit so the trainee could yell directions to the hapless pilot. Otherwise, most of the training could be accomplished with the standard seating arrangement. I’ll think on whether to make any additions or changes to the cabin, bearing in mind it probably won’t actually be visible in the end anyway.

[Heather Kay]

 

Three coats, and I’m losing the will to live. I’m already entertaining the possibility of breaking out the airbrush to speed things up. 

[AdrianMF]

3 hours ago, Heather Kay said:

then I’m going to try painting about forty-seven coats of Hu24 yellow on the lower wings and fuselage

 

Sorry, I know I shouldn’t...

 

Regards,

Adrian

[Jinxman]

...not wishing to pile on the pain, but you may need more than one pot.

 

Sorry, @AdrianMF started it. 😏

[Heather Kay]

 

Eight coats, I think. I’m not counting any more. I’ll stop when it looks right, or I’m sectioned.

 

As I patiently spread translucent layers of yellow pigment around a micron in thickness I tend to think. The more I think, the more I have come to believe the paint scheme isn’t right. For a plane that entered RAF service in 1940, the official scheme should see the yellow stop halfway up the fuselage sides, and the fin and possibly rudder should be camouflaged. There really ought to be fin flashes, too, but there aren’t any on the transfer sheet. 
 

Of course, I have no evidence that this particular aircraft wasn’t already camouflaged, as many civilian airline planes were, and simply received the national markings when impressed. Equally, the civvie scheme, I think, had aluminium dope on the undersides, and the camo all the way down the sides. I don’t know where Heller found their inspiration, but I think some more digging around and general research will be well worth time spent.

[AdrianMF]

I thought I should make amends for my shocking lack of sympathy for painting yellow, so I had a quick browse through my books. I found this from Aircraft of the Fighting Powers vol II:

 
 

If you can’t read it let me know and I can take a better pic. You really don’t need the plans for this one! I also had a look elsewhere, including the Putnam DH history, but this was all I found.

 

Regards,

Adrian

[Heather Kay]

Coo! Thanks Adrian. That’s clear and sharp enough, ta.

[JeroenS]

Good effort so far Heather... brush painting yellow, what a way to spend your day 😉 

[janneman36]

I would get a stroke brushpainting this stuff..nevertheless it looks  very tidy👍👍

 

cheers, Jan