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Mooney M20J - G-MUNI


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Afternoon all,

 

Like most modellers, I do love to be surrounded in tiny little cute things, so it has been wonderful becoming a dad this year. That said, the modelling has definitely suffered, and will continue to I suspect!

 

The ray of light has been 3d design, and of late I have spent many a happy 5am with Minime strapped in the sling tinkering with CAD, when I should have probably been playing Mozart or doing baby yoga. I've got quite a few of these in the pipeline, and heaven knows when I shall get round to building them. This one has been done in frantic snatched half hours (I do not like modelling with a deadline) and I'm not very happy with the finish, but happy with the proof of concept - it looks like a plane, it looks quite like a Mooney, and hopefully better builds will follow!

 

There's a huge essay to be written on this process but I will refrain from verbiage until I get the chance to do a WiP on one of these projects. I have been concentrating on designs with no known kit - as you would - and GA is fertile ground. There is an old Bandai kit of the Mooney in 1:48, but that is the original, short body version. The M20J is one of the most numerous Mooneys and I would say highly representative. It is much loved aeroplane, judging by the number of proud owners posting videos on YouTube of their undercarriage (most informative too), and sad to know that Mooney finally shut up shop last year. 

 

Anyway, here is a Mooney:

 

 2020-10-02_01-37-09 2020-10-02_01-03-29  2020-10-02_01-02-44

 

 

2020-10-02_01-03-10

 

2020-10-02_01-02-35  2020-10-02_01-02-26 2020-10-02_01-03-43

 

2020-10-02_01-04-22 MooneyCAD Mooney assembly

TTFN,

Harry

 

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Scale? Available for purchase? More kits of general aviation aircraft are needed: Cessnas, Pipers, Aero Commanders, Beechcrafts, Aeroncas, etc., etc., preferably in 1/72.

Edited by Space Ranger
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2 hours ago, Moa said:

A very interesting experiment, an unusual type, and an open road to hone that approach.

I admire your willingness to engage with digital media and 3D.

I share Moa's thoughts on this. Your initial work is wonderful and will get even better as you gain more experience. Very impressive, sir.

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9 hours ago, Space Ranger said:

Scale? Available for purchase? More kits of general aviation aircraft are needed: Cessnas, Pipers, Aero Caommanders, Beechcrafts, Aeroncas, etc., etc., preferably in 1/72.

1:72. I don't think I'm quite in a place to make a commercial product, but happy to receive requests, I'm sure I could do the odd print.

 

Good list there, particularly Aeronca which I had forgotten about! I'm open to all suggestions although I've got a good list to work through. Here are a few more designs which are digitally complete awaiting a build and some decals (another significant part of the work):

2020-10-03_08-11-13

Can you tell what they are?😉 (Seriously, it would be a good reality check for me!)

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10 hours ago, Moa said:

A very interesting experiment, an unusual type, and an open road to hone that approach.

I admire your willingness to engage with digital media and 3D.

I think I will stay in the stone age, to my detriment.

Cheers Moasaurus Xactoensis

I think your stone age tools serve you well - some of the intricate things I see you scratch building, although they could possibly be made on a 3d printer, would almost certainly break once they were removed from the supports. And we are yet to see a photoactive resin that mimics the properties of loo roll, so...

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10 hours ago, Bangseat said:

 

1:72. I don't think I'm quite in a place to make a commercial product, but happy to receive requests, I'm sure I could do the odd print.

 

Good list there, particularly Aeronca which I had forgotten about! I'm open to all suggestions although I've got a good list to work through. Here are a few more designs which are digitally complete awaiting a build and some decals (another significant part of the work):

2020-10-03_08-11-13

Can you tell what they are?😉 (Seriously, it would be a good reality check for me!)

Top left is a Bellanca Viking; bottom left resembles a Piper Cherokee, but the vertical fin doesn't look the same. The two on the right I can't identify.

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A really nice model and a pointer to the potential of 3D printing. When I rebuilt my PC a few weeks back, this was something in my mind, although I am not sure where to start. 

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4 minutes ago, Bangseat said:

@Space Ranger good spot on the Bellanca! Bottom left is one of many Piper-like also rans, but more common than I realised before I researched it. The tail is the most distinctive thing about it tbh..

Beech Musketeer?

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54 minutes ago, Bangseat said:

Bit more modern..

SocataCAD

 

Socata TB-10?

 

Your designs are stunning! What design background do you have and what software are you designing on?

 

I must get round to CAD modelling a Pa28, I want one in 1/32 scale as it's the aircraft I gained my PPL in :)

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10 hours ago, wellsprop said:

Socata TB-10?

 

Your designs are stunning! What design background do you have and what software are you designing on?

 

I must get round to CAD modelling a Pa28, I want one in 1/32 scale as it's the aircraft I gained my PPL in :)

Bravo! I actually modelled it on the TB-9, but I think externally the differences are negligible between TB9, 10 and 200.

 

You're very kind - I have been totally wowed by your designs over in the 3d forum. I don't have any pro engineering background at all, I can draw and that's about it. I'm using Onshape, which I have learnt over the past six months, after a bumpy and steep initial learning curve and lots of YouTube videos, I'm on a roll with it now. Definitely recommended to any interested 3d newbies, it's free. 

 

Yes please to a PA28! 

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That is very impressive. 1/72 general aviation types are massively neglected. I would love to see - 

 

a variety of PA-28s (there is a huge array of versions),

PA-22/23(Colt/Tripacer),

PA-24 Comanche,

PA-32 Seneca,

PA-23 Apache/Aztec

PA-34 Seneca

PA-39 Twin Comanche

PA-32 family

And then there are all those Beechcraft and Cessnas - not to mention the SOCATA/Morane MS880 family

 

For decades the bulk of light aircraft came from these companies. Over the last 20 years new manufacturers have come onto the scene but there are still thousands of the above in use - and many of the above types are still in production.#

 

The only 1/72 light aircraft I have in my stash is the Airfix PA-28 Cherokee Arrow and an ancient Aurora PA-23. Generally, plastic kit manufacturers only seem to want to produce injection moulded light aircraft if they have had some sort of military version - such as the J-3 Cub, the Auster family, Cessna O-1 Bird Dog, Cessna O-2 Skyservant and various Stinsons.

 

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Great work,  your model looks wonderful as do your 3D renders. I have absolutely no idea of this process etc and will stick to my methods but you are have got some cracking work on the go there.  Congratulations  BTW on the birth of your little one.

Chris

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Love it!  I have owned 2 Mooneys over the years and this looks the part.  Although I was never all that excited about soft field landings.  The gear are short and I always would worry about prop strikes but we would routinely practice them and many Mooneys flew out of soft fields all the time.  And my J model was red and white too so this is perfect.  The plane really does look right, I noticed the battery box on the left side is correct and the angle of the cowling and you even have the cowling screws right.  

Edited by Harold55
Sp
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Very nice it is too. I also empathise with you how life changes radically when you become a Dad. Modelling went out the side door when that happened. I did learn you can cook dinner one handed with a baby on your shoulder. 

But now my eldest is 13 and can pick me up off the ground. So it gets better. 

 

As for the Mooney they are sleek and fast birds. Never got to fly one even though there was one in my club. 

 

People are making suggestions so I'll throw in mine: The GA8 Airvan. It's nice and boxy and rare enough that no conventional manufacturer would touch it. I  have about 600 hours in the Airvan and I'm very fond of it. There is a resin kit which I have but it's a tad crude. You'd do a  better job.

 

 

 

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On 04/10/2020 at 13:12, Harold55 said:

 Although I was never all that excited about soft field landings.  The gear are short

They're even shorter in 1:72! Thank you, you obviously know your Mooneys so glad it passes muster.

 

@DaveWilko ah..good to see, someone needs to update Wikipedia!

 

@noelh thank you for the suggestion, I'm working up to doing a model more than 11cm long..although Decarli look to have done a decent job of the GA8. 

 

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Nice looking 201. I have about 60 hours in them. A bit claustrophbic if you're a big guy, but at 5'-7" i had no problems.

 

Very fuel efficient and built like a Sherman tank. I too am squeamish about operating them from soft fields.

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