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Kreiger Vampyre


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Lets have a mini update and Damn the expense! It's been a busy week and the Dremel clone has been busy too.

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If you compare this underside picture with earlier ones, You'll see that the lift fan panels have been replaced. I have a cunning plan.

I think the lift fans (If that's what they were) existed to supplement the rockets. So, no rockets, no need for fans?

A bit of lateral thinking led to this stage. How to help it get off the ground? What kreiger kit already exists along those lines?

 

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How about an anti gravity unit? As fitted to your everyday Falke. It's half a ping pong ball really, as used on the original models.

So the idea is that this would supplement the rear mounted rocket motor on take off, as there isn't a huge amount of lift from this wing setup. 

That should save a bit of fuel which would help it to get to altitude. And it can also be used to soften the landing,

The forward fuselage is temporarily fitted here. The transparency was a 1/48th Mosquito canopy. It'll be used as a fairing here. (It was damaged anyway).

I haven't finished under here BTW. Not by a long chalk.

 

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Calm down, I'll explain. The fuselage size limits the amount of fuel that can be carried. You don't want an interceptor that has to do dead stick landings.

The Luftwaffe found that out the hard way. So, aside from drop tanks, where else to put fuel? How about tip tanks? 

And, while we're at it, some way of controlling the way this thing flies. Why not tailplanes and rudders?

Here we have a melange (I like that word) of droptanks and P-38 booms/tail fins. Filler has been added today and will dry overnight.

The tailplanes will be a mix of P-38 outer stubs on the inner position and Me262 tailplanes on the outer position. It looks better than it sounds!

Said melange mounts on the wings courtesy of metal rods and will be blended in.

So we would have Yaw (Rudders) and lateral control (Elevators). Roll would be via differential movement of the Elevators. 

See those metal rods that slot into the rocket bell? They replaced the plastic ones. They look better and are stronger.

They were bits of an umbrella in a former life. A great source of handy bits. Her indoors will have a shock when it rains next though :wink:

 

Lots of other stuff is going on. Most of it secret at the moment. Mockups have been done, and it all seems to work, so standby for the next update!

Thanks for looking in and keep the comments coming, it's good to know what you're thinking about my escapades in La La Land.

Cheers, Pete

 

 

 

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On 19/11/2020 at 19:53, Pete in Lincs said:

Filler has been added today and will dry overnight.

You don't do a nixer reading the weather on the Home Service do you Pete? I distinctly heard this being read in clipped tones.... :hmmm:So many half-familiar shapes and parts creep into your work that I'm sometimes of the opinion that this is all some kind of an elaborate Rorschach test that you're using to study us.

On 19/11/2020 at 19:53, Pete in Lincs said:

They were bits of an umbrella in a former life. A great source of handy bits. Her indoors will have a shock when it rains next though

Distressed to see that Mrs. In Lincs has now been deprived of the means to protect herself from the elements: this hobby can be such a cruel mistress.

 

Crack on with the melange sir - it's getting exciting! 🤩

 

 

 

 

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9 hours ago, TheBaron said:

You don't do a nixer reading the weather on the Home Service do you Pete? I distinctly heard this being read in clipped tones.... :hmmm:So many half-familiar shapes and parts creep into your work that I'm sometimes of the opinion that this is all some kind of an elaborate Rorschach test that you're using to study us.

And Westerly winds in Ireland. Half the fun with kreiger builds is playing spot the Greeblie. It's amazing what gets used.

Thanks, Pete

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9 hours ago, SafetyDad said:

Really enjoying the build (and your persuasive reasoning).

Thanks, Padraic.

As you probably know, the original kreiger models were designed and put together by an artist.  Kow Yokoyama. 

Consequently they may look good, but I wonder, would they actually work as machines?

Having spent many years working on Aircraft, It seems that I need to make them look as if they would.

So this one has been chopped about (with more coming soon) to come closer to that goal.

I'll be attacking it with the Dremel (again) very soon, so watch this space. Cheers, Pete

 

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While the Dremel clone cools down I have time to show you some more pictures. Are you sitting comfortably?

 

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This is (almost) what the stabilizers will look like. The one on the left is upside down! That's ex P-38 and will be on the inside of the tail.

The bit on the right is ex 1/32nd Messerscmitt Me 262. It will provide the elevator.

 

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I thought the ex F-16 legs (left here) looked a bit spindly so I spent some hours making a new cowling and cutting down TSR2 legs.

I like how they look more chunky, but the track is now too narrow. So I'll probably stick with the F-16 items.

I would have liked to have made undercarriage bays too, but there isn't room on this thing.

 

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I've also been messing about with intakes. The grey bit is to take care of boundary layer air. Then there's a plastic card Tornado type intake.

On the side of that we have a cut down item from the spares box with a 20mm Cannon. 

(The tube fits onto the pilots thumb. My thumb middle joint is 20mm, (I measured it) so I'll call this gun 20mm).

 

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And then, after pondering for days on how best to do it, I cut off the lower 'wing' sections.

If you go back up one picture you'll see the huge triangular gap in the 'wing'. As an ex aircraft techie, it bothered me.

There'd be no lift in it at all. What to do? Make slimmer wings. 

 

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So the bottom half got sides fitted, and they got beefed up a bit with supports. 

 

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And this rear shot shows what I was aiming for. A bit more like a wing as we know it.

 

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The front view. Though the intake took on a lean in this shot. I've since glued the wing halves together so it doesn't have to fly with clamps.

 

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Here, clamps are holding 10mm strips of 1mm plastic card in place. These were recessed areas where some sort of fuel/gas tanks lived.

You saw the intakes above. Well, they would obviously lead to engines which will now exhaust in this area, the recesses were in the way.

So the dremel clone got fired up again and cutting ensued. This rear area will see lots of changes to the inboard wing roots.

I've stopped for today to allow all that glue and plastic card to meld into one overnight. 

Any questions or affidavits will be handled by my Lawyers, Cashback, Swindle, and Loophole. :laugh:

Thanks for looking, Pete

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)Kreig me but that's becoming a highly elaborate - if not downright baroque - structure Pete! 👏 I've kept forgetting to ask up until now but do you sketch out your ideas in advance or is this all virtuoso composition with the pieces in hand, so-to-speak?

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7 hours ago, TheBaron said:

)Kreig me but that's becoming a highly elaborate - if not downright baroque - structure Pete! 👏 I've kept forgetting to ask up until now but do you sketch out your ideas in advance or is this all virtuoso composition with the pieces in hand, so-to-speak?

Ya know, I've been wondering that myself.

My approach would probably be to sketch it out and then try in vain to find the bits I've sketched and then just give up because I can't find exactly what I need.

 

Obviously he must think differently to mere humons.

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Good question and thanks for asking. The answer is, not usually. 

I have in the past drawn out a Gundam hovertruck on cardboard to see how it scaled out. It may yet get built.

But in the case of this build, I knew what I started with, and I knew that I wanted the end product to be something like the Fledermaus.

So then I have to use what I have to get as close as I can, with a few design twists to improve it if possible.

All those rocket motors and the odd 'split' wing leading edge had to go. Stylish but impractical. This thing will need lift from the wing.

Mostly it gets built in my head as I try to get to sleep, or as it's actually being built. All those years working on Aircraft must be good for something.

Yesterday for instance, I found some weapons I'd forgotten I had. So they will be fitted nearer the end. The 20mm guns have now gone.

Mostly I just enjoy myself, and I like the freedom of not having to follow instructions regarding the final form or colour.

Ain't I a rebel! :laugh:

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18 hours ago, TheBaron said:

)Kreig me but that's becoming a highly elaborate - if not downright baroque - structure Pete! 👏 I've kept forgetting to ask up until now but do you sketch out your ideas in advance or is this all virtuoso composition with the pieces in hand, so-to-speak?

I too had wondered this, so thanks for posing this question

 

SD

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Ha! you thought I'd forgotten to do an update didn't you? Well, in my defence (m'lud) I was working on Monday.

A seven hour day with visits to Leicester (Mill Hill & Everards), Derby (Smithfield Alehouse) and Nottingham (Castle Rock).

It was nice to get out and shift some beer!

Now, onto the update....

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Here it is, all mocked up on the Hi tech support wot I built. The main fuselage and intakes are all glued together at last.

I think the tailplanes turned out to be pretty groovy. And, of course, check out the now reconstructed thin wing leading edge.

 

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Starboard intake. They still needs fairing in with filler, top, bottom and outboard, but they're getting there.

I'll be the first to admit that this isn't symmetrically perfect. It's out by a mil' or so here and there.

The intakes aren't quite identical for a start. Then again, The kit wings (L &R) are out by 1mm in span!

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At the back end, that fresh grey Humbrol filler is where the jet exhausts will sit.

 

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Another shot of the exhaust mounting plate. Plus, you may have noticed the rocket pod? Ex 1/24th Harrier. 

I wanted something to go in the back end hole. A Panzer wheel stepped forward. Guess what, it was a snap fit!

 

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Here's a decent view of the weapons (I think the missile is ex 1/32nd F-16) and I've done a trial fit of the belly panels.

 

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I wanted a different nose on the missile and found this. Not sure what it was, but it's metal and rusty! Typical kreiger stuff.

Other stuff has been done but mostly it's hidden inside or I forgot to take a picture. Next time, eh?

For now, that's where I'm at. It's getting colder in the Manshed, good job I have a heater, but it's still chilly by about three PM.

Comments, questions and offers of coffee* are always welcome. Thanks for looking. Stay safe! Pete

 

*Black, no sugar. Ta

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Thanks for the likes, chaps.

Today I've been doing a couple of details, I rubbed down some filler and then mixed up a dollop of P-38 filler and slapped it onto the intakes.

So that will dry overnight, ready to be rubbed down tomorrow. The work might keep me warm out there!

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2 hours ago, Paide1946 said:

What's the plan for the paint?

Thanks for that. I'm keeping my options open at the moment. It will probably be a Mercenary machine, so it could be rather scabby.

My idea is that the Mercenaries captured a Hornisse or a Hummel and, after seeing a Fledermaus, decided to build their own.

It would then be used by them as a Falke killer.

 

 

 

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5 hours ago, Pete in Lincs said:

the Mercenaries captured a Hornisse or a Hummel and, after seeing a Fledermaus, decided to build their own.

I'm fairly certain Dick van Dyke sang that in Mary Poppins.

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Let's see if I can get a quick update in before the site slows down for the evening rush hour.

 

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On the spine, I've put fences either side of those grilles. For no other reason than I found them in the spares box & I think they look good there.

Aft of those, the shiny bits are from a metal earth kit & look a bit 'technical'. On the left of the picture, the intake top sanded down nicely.

At the end of the spine, the grey bit is ex Panzer and there's another sand coloured bit behind it.

 

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Another intake shot. I found that ordinary rough sandpaper is great for rubbing down the P-38 filler. Then just swap to finer abrasives.

 

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The RH intake came out nicely too. I've taken to calling that yellow jobbie the Minion tank. 

 

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Due to an imagined drag factor that was bothering me, I've made a total change to the landing gear. This thing has VTOL capability, so let's use it.

The actual 'ski' is original to the kit, though I've beefed it up a bit with card. The rest of the gear is cobbled up from the spares box. e.g. Biro springs etc.

And the rod to the centre here is ex umbrella. Yes, the rounded thing is half a bomb. Filled with Milliput. Held in place by pins and superglue.

 

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So that's the rear landing gear. Extra thrusters will go where the circles are penciled in. So with those & the anti grav gear, it should be okay.

Yes, the fixed wheeled gear (drag factor) was bothering me and I didn't see a way of adding U/C bays to the airframe. This is a simpler solution.

 

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This is the nose gear, as fitted to the original kit. In a former life it was an 88mm gun! I'm in the process of making a shock absorber for it.

 

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And this is how it sits on the gear. Not too shabby. I'm fairly pleased with the result and I'm glad I changed it.

So, that's yer lot for this update. Soon I'll start to fit out the cockpit, and then I have building a canopy to look forward to.

As usual, any comments or suggestions are very welcome, and many thanks for previous likes.

It's nice to know someone out there is enjoying this as much as I am.

All the best, Pete

 

 

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41 minutes ago, SafetyDad said:

(can I say that?)

You did. Been there, done that! They were fun to sort out, actually. I was planning to use the original skid supports, but one simply snapped.

There's some fragile plastic in this one, Yet most of it is fine. I'm glad it broke before I used it though. Should be stronger now.

Part of the problem may be that there are parts being used for other than their original purpose. Not up to the job, obviously. Been there.....

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