PeterB Posted December 19, 2020 Share Posted December 19, 2020 (edited) Presumably the Davis gun was a single shot affair, and I guess you had to unscrew the rear barrel to reload - not very practical. At least the COW gun had an ammo feed on top a bit like a Bofors 40mm AA gun, into which you could feed clips of shells. Looking at your pic, I imagine the plane would have to attack a Zep from above or maybe below and to the side, so that the rear end of the gun was not pointing back at any part of the plane when you fired! Any idea what the flying boat in the pic is - presumably a Felixtowe or maybe one of the Curtiss "Large America's? Pete Edited December 19, 2020 by PeterB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marklo Posted December 19, 2020 Author Share Posted December 19, 2020 There’s very little references material out there. Both ends were open with the gun firing a counter weight of shot when used. I’d guess single use as it doesn’t look like it can be opened easily. There are plenty of good photos even a cross section on Wikipedia, so I should at least be able to come up with a convincing looking model. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marklo Posted December 20, 2020 Author Share Posted December 20, 2020 Undercarriage on, needs cladding. Wheels are from the spares box and a bit small for the PB31 also I only have two and need four. I’ll use my mini lathe ( when I get it for Christmas) to make a set of four larger wheels. As you can also see the windscreen and nose are filled ready for (hopefully) the last round of sanding. I’d say we’re at least 80% done at this stage. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marklo Posted December 23, 2020 Author Share Posted December 23, 2020 Fuel and oil tanks added. A bit more cleanup and strut work. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marklo Posted December 26, 2020 Author Share Posted December 26, 2020 Side glazing fitted and new back part made. In the photos a number of panels seem to be missing, not sure if they slide out or aren’t fitted. In my case I’m going to leave out the three quarter panels as it’ll make fitting the rear section easier. I’ve also milliputed up the rear of the canopy as it’s a little short and the profile is a bit blunt. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marklo Posted December 28, 2020 Author Share Posted December 28, 2020 (edited) The first bucket seat and some (very) rough blanks for the wheels along with my template wheel, three layers of 1mm sheet copied with a sharpie, cut with a scissors and CA’d together. I’ll drill them and use my mini lathe to turn four (hopefully) identical wheels. I have done this before with a dremel, it should be easier with the lathe. Edited December 29, 2020 by Marklo 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col. Posted December 28, 2020 Share Posted December 28, 2020 Your mini-lathe will make quick work of those wheel blanks Not jealous of that. Nope. Not at all... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andwil Posted December 28, 2020 Share Posted December 28, 2020 Can’t help wondering why you vomit with scissors? AW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marklo Posted December 29, 2020 Author Share Posted December 29, 2020 23 hours ago, Andwil said: Can’t help wondering why you vomit with scissors? It’s a family tradition instead of running. No it’s another damn you autocorrect moment. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marklo Posted January 1, 2021 Author Share Posted January 1, 2021 Seats get a first coat of paint. Started on using the mini lathe to turn some wheels; still very much a work in progress. Haven’t abandoned the build but I’m focusing on the kittens and my FW for a bit; while tipping away at the PB31s interior. Once that’s done I’ll close up the cockpit and add the upper inner wing sections, then it’s just the outer wing sections and the engines to do. I’m aiming for an early to mid February finish. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col. Posted January 2, 2021 Share Posted January 2, 2021 That's a good plan fella. You're making great progress on all your projects and this one is quite an undertaking but a true labour of love. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marklo Posted January 2, 2021 Author Share Posted January 2, 2021 5 minutes ago, Col. said: this one is quite an undertaking but a true labour of love. Yes it’s sort of in the ‘only a mother could love’ category (as with my favourite ugly the Blackburn Blackburn, which I may get around to this year) but I am enjoying the build. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marklo Posted January 6, 2021 Author Share Posted January 6, 2021 (edited) That’s the interior almost done just needs a stick and some pedals and possibly a ladder and maybe some struts. I don’t think all that much will be visible once the cupola and wings go on. Must do those side windows. I’m being extra careful with the glazing which still has the protective film in the inside and foil mask on the outside. Edited January 6, 2021 by Marklo 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marklo Posted January 10, 2021 Author Share Posted January 10, 2021 (edited) After an hour or so of fiddling with the lathe four reasonably similar wheels. Edited January 10, 2021 by Marklo 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marklo Posted January 11, 2021 Author Share Posted January 11, 2021 Wheels painted, plus a few others. I’ll probably add conical centres later on but will do for now. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col. Posted January 11, 2021 Share Posted January 11, 2021 More good progress going on there 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marklo Posted January 11, 2021 Author Share Posted January 11, 2021 (edited) Once the kittens are done I think I’ll get back to the PB31 in earnest. The next big time task is closing up the cockpit and I think m subconsciously avoiding that as it’s one of those make or break operations Edited January 11, 2021 by Marklo 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marklo Posted January 14, 2021 Author Share Posted January 14, 2021 Cut the blanks for the outer wing sections 2, 4 and 2 off for lower, middle and top sections each is a different length and chord width. Next up to sand and roll these before skinning with 20yjou sheet. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marklo Posted January 14, 2021 Author Share Posted January 14, 2021 (edited) As the wing sections are pretty long I decided to make up a bending jig so as to get a uniform profile on the wings. The theory is simple; clamp the blank between the bar and the flat bit, then bend the blank around the bar. Will attempt some bends once I’ve finished sanding the blanks. Might do some trial runs first ( although that’s so not me ) Edited January 14, 2021 by Marklo 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marklo Posted January 15, 2021 Author Share Posted January 15, 2021 Upper and lower wing sections sanded and bent. Ruled 20 thou skins for the same. Only four more sets to do than I css as n assemble them. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col. Posted January 15, 2021 Share Posted January 15, 2021 More good progress on your projects 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marklo Posted January 17, 2021 Author Share Posted January 17, 2021 That’s the wing panels skinned and roughly trimmed. Need to neaten them up. Next job is to make an IP and control column so I can close up the cockpit. I also need to skin the struts, rig the main assembly and we’re ready to start assembling the outer wings. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marklo Posted January 19, 2021 Author Share Posted January 19, 2021 After much fiddling a steering wheel and an ip are ready for the Nighthawk. I only realised yesterday that I have two nighthawks on the bench at the moment. 1/144 so can’t really compare but I’d love to get a 1/48 th kit to display side by side. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col. Posted January 19, 2021 Share Posted January 19, 2021 More impressive scratch-building and situating this one next to an F-117 will certainly illustrate how far aircraft design and technology came in less than a century. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marklo Posted January 19, 2021 Author Share Posted January 19, 2021 4 minutes ago, Col. said: situating this one next to an F-117 will certainly illustrate how far aircraft design and technology came in less than a century. Yes I think a 1/48 F117 is definitely on the cards. Actually, if you think about it the PB31 was 1917 while the F117 first flew in 1981 so only 64 years, wow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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