Seahawk Posted October 6, 2020 Share Posted October 6, 2020 4 hours ago, Ray S said: Hello @Moa, can you please give a little more information about this item please and help me out? I have quite a few vacforms in my stash and it looks like some thing like this would aid me more than somewhat. Just a brief guide would be really appreciated if you can. Ray, I bought this last year on a recommendation from someone on this site: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Proops-Wood-Cabinet-Carbon-Steel-Kidney-Scraper-180mm-4-5-Woodworking-W3340-/292218002405 Only £4.95 delivered. When it arrived I was underwhelmed at getting just a simple metal shape for my money but it's proved invaluable. Haven't tried any vacforms recently but it's been brilliant for say, thinning the trailing edges of the new Revell 1/72 Hawk. Much quicker than filing: job done in 10 minutes. Only problem is it leaves you and the floor covered in shavings. Tools come and tools go: some are just passing must-have accessories but I can see this one staying up there with the Flexifile and Berna-grips for usefulness. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted October 6, 2020 Author Share Posted October 6, 2020 And interesting difference in the plastic between the RarePlane Seversky (that I am building in parallel) and Vega , is that the Vega, a later RarePlane kit, has a more rigid, harder and shinier plastic, whilst the Seversky has an opaque, soft, and more flexible one. I Must say I prefer these later kits' plastic. None of them has become brittle with time, fortunately. 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted October 6, 2020 Author Share Posted October 6, 2020 The first parts are glued, wing and stab halves: 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Space Ranger Posted October 7, 2020 Share Posted October 7, 2020 9 hours ago, Moa said: Hi Ray Of course, to the extent of my knowledge. These are tools employed in carpentry called scrapers, but adapt well to our uses. They are inexpensive and usually come in sets with different shapes (straight edges, curved, concave, convex, etc.). You may get smallish ones, as our kit parts are small. They have one or two sharp edges (not thin edges as in blade, but sharply cut angles), and you can run them along the vac edge that needs thinning, carefully and gradually, scraping the plastic, and then finish with normal sanding. They require, like anything else, practice. May be you can find online carpentry videos where their use is demonstrated. I believe Moa's scraper is one of these made by Rockler Woodworking: https://www.rockler.com/cabinet-scraper-set There are also some handy scrapers specifically for modelers made in Japan by ALEC and available in the US here: https://www.hobbyzone.biz/tool.shtml 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terry1954 Posted October 7, 2020 Share Posted October 7, 2020 Great subject Moa, and another masterpiece in the making. Terry 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted October 7, 2020 Author Share Posted October 7, 2020 12 minutes ago, Terry1954 said: Great subject Moa, and another masterpiece in the making. Terry Thanks Terry! I admire your faith 😄 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted October 7, 2020 Author Share Posted October 7, 2020 As mentioned before the ailerons in this particular plane did not have mass balances, thus they are deleted: 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted October 7, 2020 Author Share Posted October 7, 2020 This Vega did not have the same nav lights that would later be seen in the series machines. This is the tail light: This is how I made the earth-inductor compass windmill, using two punched discs and tabs: It goes on a small airfoiled section, not on a rod. The excess on the tabs is later cut off: 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted October 8, 2020 Author Share Posted October 8, 2020 A note on the changes of this plane: -It's interesting that, whilst wearing the first registration (2788), it did not have navigation lights. -The landing gear legs do not have a sleeve fairing where they attach the fuselage. -The windshield is somewhat curved and of a different design while on this early reg. -There is a (possibly retractable) step on the nose to facilitate ingress/egress from the cockpit. A bit later in time: (still with the same first registration) -The two prongs of the Pitot probe that until then were located above their boom are reversed and now hang down below that level. -The landing gear legs have now a sleeve fairing. -The long distance fuel tanks are in place, as well as the earth-inductor compass. -What seems to be a fuel dump is installed on the right fuselage side, at floor level, under the third window counting from the front. The plane never had (in its first or later reg as it took off to Hawaii) the teardrop bump fairings seen in later models where the landing gear leg reinforcement struts connect to the fuselage keel. The small fairings where the LG legs attach to the fuselage were also absent, and we just see a metal fitting. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bengalensis Posted October 8, 2020 Share Posted October 8, 2020 Lovely detail work! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdrianMF Posted October 8, 2020 Share Posted October 8, 2020 On 04/10/2020 at 01:37, Moa said: 1) Eliminate as much as you can 2) Do not eliminate more than you need I find (1) easy, but always struggle a bit with (2)! Super work by the Moa Massif. Do you happen to know what sort of plastic the clear parts are made from? Regards, Adrian 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted October 8, 2020 Author Share Posted October 8, 2020 9 hours ago, AdrianMF said: I find (1) easy, but always struggle a bit with (2)! Super work by the Moa Massif. Do you happen to know what sort of plastic the clear parts are made from? Regards, Adrian Thanks Adrian. I hated organic chemistry at school, I have no idea, but it smells at old plastic, it's a very peculiar odor. It has yellowed slightly, and it's not very easy to sand (but it does sand). As stated somewhere above by a fellow BMer, it glues with acetone, and will not respond to normal cements. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted October 8, 2020 Author Share Posted October 8, 2020 As stated before, the door had to be moved one "space" forward. The former position had to be filled protecting the last window with a mask: The bumpy bits at the keel, as explained not pertinent to this version, were removed after taking the photos. 11 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdrianMF Posted October 8, 2020 Share Posted October 8, 2020 Must be hard to see what you’re doing! I’m guessing the plastic is some form of PVC. Clear polystyrene or ABS is very brittle, acrylic and polycarbonate is rigid and I don’t know if PETG was around back then. Regards, Adrian 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted October 8, 2020 Author Share Posted October 8, 2020 1 hour ago, AdrianMF said: Must be hard to see what you’re doing! Using clear plastic is the most impractical (pronounce "stupid") thing. You can't see diddle. It's too thick, it feels a bit "gummy". Not to mention that I will have to add the interior bits from different plastics that do not react the same to some glues. My guess is epoxy and/or cyano for the bulkheads/floor/inst. pan./etc. Talk about providing one solution that creates two more problems. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Space Ranger Posted October 9, 2020 Share Posted October 9, 2020 4 hours ago, AdrianMF said: I’m guessing the plastic is some form of PVC. Clear polystyrene or ABS is very brittle, acrylic and polycarbonate is rigid and I don’t know if PETG was around back then. It's acetate plastic. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted October 9, 2020 Author Share Posted October 9, 2020 8 minutes ago, Space Ranger said: It's acetate plastic. See, finally you knew something that wasn't stated in the instructions 😄 Thanks Mike for providing the info. At least is not celluloid. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Space Ranger Posted October 9, 2020 Share Posted October 9, 2020 29 minutes ago, Moa said: See, finally you knew something that wasn't stated in the instructions 😄 Well, I came from a disadvantaged background: 14 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted October 9, 2020 Author Share Posted October 9, 2020 29 minutes ago, Space Ranger said: Well, I came from a disadvantaged background: Well, we did not have chants at the Shaolin Modeling Monastery. But lots and lots of sanding were involved. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Space Ranger Posted October 9, 2020 Share Posted October 9, 2020 3 minutes ago, Moa said: Well, we did not have chants at the Shaolin Modeling Monastery. But lots and lots of sanding were involved. That must have taken the place of self-flagellation. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted October 10, 2020 Author Share Posted October 10, 2020 The windows are masked inside and out in preparation for adding the interior and painting. Some parts are glued and some are tried. Found a door that is just right: The long distance fuel tanks are ready to be painted: 12 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted October 11, 2020 Author Share Posted October 11, 2020 Parts from this model and the Seversky racer also in progress are given their base coats: 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Courageous Posted October 11, 2020 Share Posted October 11, 2020 22 hours ago, Moa said: Found a door that is just right How do you 'just find a door'...? Stuart 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted October 11, 2020 Author Share Posted October 11, 2020 16 minutes ago, Courageous said: How do you 'just find a door'...? Stuart You go to Lothlorien and ask (kindly) Lady Galadriel. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjaweijfopi4j48 Posted October 11, 2020 Author Share Posted October 11, 2020 26 minutes ago, Courageous said: How do you 'just find a door'...? Stuart More seriously: you go and look under your workbench, on the carpet somewhere there. It may entail some Carpet Monster bartering. 1 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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