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Sopwith Pup - +++ FINISHED +++


Ray S

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On 7/19/2021 at 5:22 AM, AdrianMF said:

You seem to be specialising in big scary decals! Nice.

 

Regards,

Adrian

 

Adrian, these are LITTLE scary decals! I do have a bit of a thing about colourful schemes at the moment, I will concede!

 

On 7/21/2021 at 11:44 AM, PlaStix said:

Hi Ray. Very impressive work with those decals!! It really does look wonderfully colourful! :thumbsup:

Kind regards,

Stix

 

Stix, my good lady still says it is not colourful enough!

 

These last few days have not been conducive to modeeling at Chez Ray, it has been far too hot and humid, but I have soldiered on like a brave modeller should. Yesterday I sprayed the cowling, wheels, rudder, and tailplanes with White Primer and Appliance White (for the latter two), and this time I had no issues with the Appliance White going 'tacky' as it dried and was touch dry in about twenty minutes or less.

 

DSCN7607

 

I did not thin out the openings in the cowling, but I did remove the extended 'pins' on the outside of the wheels. Having let all that lot set overnight, today I added some more Harlequin diamonds, this time to the tailplanes and rudder. Blue Rider printed the tailplane transfers as single-piece jobs, Airfix moulded the tailplane with a block to fit a slot for alignment. I have already trimmed the block slightly so the tail surfaces will fit a little (1/16th" further forward) and wanted to keep the block, knowing how skilled I am at getting things out of kilter. So I cut the underside transfer in half, then trimmed a little off the centre section (which will sit on the fuselage anyway), and got it to fit that way, rather than trying to cut out a slot for the tab.

 

DSCN7608

 

I also trimmed off a lot of the carrier film from around the edges before fitting the markings. In short order, the underside of that and the rudder/tailplane was done on the one side -

 

DSCN7609

 

I was again amazed at how well these transfers bedded down. If you look closely, you can see evidence of an ejection pin mark I had not seen, and if it were magnified even more, all that lovely warp and weft that had been moulded in for the fabric effect which I had not completely got rid of!

 

The next thing I did was to start painting the wheels for this. Blue Rider said the wheel hubs were Red, and Wingnut Wings with all their schemes showed a coloured hub outboard, but Clear Doped Linen inboard. I decided this would be CDL inboard too, and used Revell's Darker Beige for two coats, then a single coat of their Lighter Beige for the top coat.

 

DSCN7610

 

That is it for now, it should start getting cooler tomorrow so I can get some more done, if we do not have to board an Ark!

 

Ray

 

PS - I had to do a repair job on the transfers where they reach the lower half of the fuselage - despite having varnished over them they started to lift along the edge. It is just about where I pick it up to do work on it!

 

Edited by Ray S
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The weather has cooled down now, so it was much more comfortable at the bench today. The first thing I did today was get the engine painted, and it scrubs up fairly well too

 

DSCN7613

 

The wheels have had their first coat of red on the outside of the hubs:

 

DSCN7614

 

 And finally, the tailplanes have been fitted:

 

DSCN7615

 

It is at times like this that I am very happy that I post these updates fairly soon after doing the work, because, as you can see, something was a bit askew! It all looked fine with the Mk1 eyeball but the big magnification on the screen showed what! Thankfully, the glue had not set, so a bit of a twist later I had:

 

DSCN7616

 

I am happier with that. I have also drilled more rigging holes, and added one more transfer to the vertical tail surface (on the other side this time), one more to go.

 

I am nearing the dreaded stage where fitting the cabane/interplane struts is done.

 

Thanks for looking,

 

Ray

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@Alex Gordon, thanks for that! The way the markings are behaving is excellent, I just wish they were less see-through!

 

I had to do some repair work along the edges of the wings and tail surfaces where I had not aligned the transfers properly, and Revell 52 for the Blue, Humbrol 60 for the Red produced a fairly good match. Before:

 

DSCN7618

 

After:

 

DSCN7619

 

That went better than I was expecting! Since that was done, I have drilled out the strut location holes and cleared them of paint and transfer film. I have a plan for the struts, and will show what I do in another post, whether it works or not. The wheel tyres have had a couple of coats of Humbrol 127 US Ghost Grey, as a representation of the light grey the tyres were back then.

 

DSCN7621

 

Again the photographs helped me see areas which needed some slight re-touching, and that has been done. Wingnut Wings, in their guide, suggested Humbrol 66, which is an Olive Drab, which did not seem right to me. Airfix supplied a single, straight, bar for the undercarriage spreader bar, but it is not quite right. It really consisted of three parts, the middle one bent under the weight of the aircraft when on the ground. I did wonder whether to do anything about that or not, but have produced two middle bars now, one from plastic rod, one from brass rod:

 

DSCN7622

 

They are pretty much the same thickness as the Airfix part, so they may be over-scale. I will work on the other two, straight, bars another day.

 

I have actually done some gluing today too, the engine is fitted:

 

DSCN7623

 

The raised lip on the firewall area needed a lot of sanding to get the two-part cowling to fit, and that is where I did some more gluing - as I pressed the assembled cowling onto the fuselage, the cowling came apart! I said, in my most quiet voice 'Oops!' and then had a fun ten to twenty minutes sanding, filing and motor-tool grinding the cowling lip and the firewall ledge to get it to fit, and, despite the motor tool slipping a few times, retained the paint finish. Phew!

 

Here is the Pup with the cowling dry-fitted:

 

DSCN7624

 

The breather tubes are in now too, 0.8mm external, 0.4mm internal diameter brass tube. They just fit, and were quite difficult to get in, and almost impossible to glue! Every time I applied some glue, then tried to pick up the tube with my tweezers, the part would ping out to the carpet monster. Anyway, I eventually push-fitted them (sometimes too well and needed to shake them back out!) and then added some thin CA from the outside. I have accidentally push one in since but refitted a replacement.

 

That is it for now, hopefully I will be able to deal with the struts tomorrow. Thanks for looking,

 

Ray

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Looking good. (Dons pedant hat)  There are actually two separate axles, technically I suppose a split axle, not one bent piece. The central ends are hinged so the axle can move up and down in response to bumps as a sort of shock absorber (I suppose), the ends towards the wheel being pulled back by the securing bungee cords, and prevented from going too far upwards by the tee shaped metal item nestling between the fork of the undercarriage vee.  No matter, because in 1/72nd scale it looks similar to what you've done anyway. The only difference is the wooden spreader which the split axle sits in. A quick way to do this is to cut or file a groove most of the way through a piece of plastic strut, then glue the axle into the centre. What I do (because I've built a lot of Sopwiths with this arrangement) is make the spreader and glue it between the legs, then glue two bits of metal rod in for the axles. Filing a taper towards the hinge end reduces the depth of groove needed. Some types have the axle secured between two metal spreader bars instead. (Removes hat, runs for the hills).

 

Paul.

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15 hours ago, Paul Thompson said:

(Removes hat, runs for the hills).

 

Paul, come back! I am always happy for your suggestions, they help me out no end, even if I may go about them in a slightly different way.

 

My plan was to glue this in between the undercarriage legs and then add a couple of bars fore and aft - is that basically what you suggested but different terminology? 

 

Cheers, Ray

 

PS, I do intend to add the T brace and remove the bar Airfix moulded.

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16 minutes ago, Ray S said:

 

 

 

My plan was to glue this in between the undercarriage legs and then add a couple of bars fore and aft - is that basically what you suggested but different terminology? 

 

Cheers, Ray

 

PS, I do intend to add the T brace and remove the bar Airfix moulded.

That would look okay, but not strictly accurate. If this link works you should see a clear photo of the wooden spreader bar and axle geometry.   http://www.wwi-models.org/app/album/Acn.php?base=%2FPhotos%2FBri%2FSopPup&hdr=Sopwith+Pup&picInx=30

 

Paul, always struggling with my own language............................

Edited by Paul Thompson
Spelling is a thing, it would seem.
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4 hours ago, Paul Thompson said:

That would look okay, but not strictly accurate. If this link works you should see a clear photo of the wooden spreader bar and axle geometry.   http://www.wwi-models.org/app/album/Acn.php?base=%2FPhotos%2FBri%2FSopPup&hdr=Sopwith+Pup&picInx=30

 

Paul, always struggling with my own language............................

 

Ah, brilliant! I see what you mean now, thanks immensely for that!

 

Ray

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Hi Ray. This project of yours is obviously taking a lot of work but it still looks to be progressing well and is looking very impressive! :thumbsup:

Kind regards,

Stix

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Thanks Stix! It is great fun, and I really appreciate the help I have been given concerning this too - you do not get that as a solitary modeller, and this Forum is great for that. I also find that Group Builds really help me to expand my skills.

 

I have quite a big update today, most of it is about my technique for rigging, so I hope you do not mind, and again I apologise if I am teaching anyone to suck eggs!

 

First though, having read one review of a Pup build and where they also used this Blue Rider transfer sheet, I found that the cowling had a superfluous part - namely the triangular part:

 

DSCN7625

 

The article in question is here if you would like a look: http://www.internetmodeler.com/2005/april/aviation/Pup.php

 

I used a scriber to remove it, and now I have a bit more access to the inside so I may well try and thin down the openings a little. With the instructions from the Wingnut Wings version I have, I found the windscreen for the Trainer version was quite easy to replicate, so I added one:

 

DSCN7626

 

Sorry it is out of focus! It is also probably a bit thick, but I did not think thinner sheet would stand correctly. Anyway, now I got to starting to think about the rigging. This is the material I use:

 

DSCN7628

 

I got this from Jamie at Sovereign Hobbies, but sadly he does not import it any more. This next stuff is also my rigging friend:

 

DSCN7627

 

It is old loudspeaker cable. Once upon a time I used it to actually do the rigging, but I found it was difficult to get rid of the copper colour. Then I found some different cable (from a Panasonic surround sound system) which was a silvery colour, but it was more fragile and I was unable to pull it taut to straighten the stuff (rolling it under a steel rule discoloured it), which is easily done with this copper wire. Anyhow, I have found another use for it...

 

DSCN7630

 

CA'ing the copper wire to the rigging thread helps with putting the thread through the pre-drilled rigging holes in biplane wings! I tend to cut the copper wire over-long, then roll it under a steel rule to straighten it, then dip the end of the wire in CA, then attach it to the end of the pre-cut thread, and finally re-inforce the glue with another dab of CA which I add with a bit of fishing line held in self-closing tweezers. Once set, I then trim the copper wire to a slightly shorter length. In this instance, I needed six wires for the area on the Pup just above the fuselage for the cabane strut rigging as they will be the least accessible.

 

I then popped a hint of CA into the rigging location holes with that fishing line, and attached the wires holding each wire in place for about 10 seconds for the CA to bite:

 

DSCN7631

 

Having the rigging lines over-long will also help when it comes to threading them through the wings later.

 

Now, the struts. I mentioned the other day that I had a cunning plan. this is it -

 

DSCN7633

 

Despite having filled the slots in the underside of the top wing, I kept the bars on the strut parts intact. I felt (right or wrong, I will find out in a day or two!) that having the bar would assist their alignment, and the intention is to trim off the bar when the CA I used to attach them has cured fully. I hope it will work.

 

Top wing is just placed on the bars:

 

DSCN7634

 

DSCN7635

 

Don't look too closely at it Pup's tummy, will you?

 

Well that is it for today, it has been another good day with this model.Thanks for looking and for the views, comments and likes.

 

Ray

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     I have a reel of armature wire just thin enough to look okay in 1/72nd. Being at least 30 years old it has oxidised to a steel grey colour which looks fine to me. I used to pull it to straighten it, in lengths of around 2 feet, before measuring with dividers and attaching as you would if using heat stretched sprue. But I found out a couple of years ago (by actually taking the time to process something I'd read decades ago), that it straightens just as easily if rolled under a steel rule. The downside is that it kinks slightly more easily than if you'd pulled it straight (because stopping just as you feel resistance at it's elastic limit toughens it a wee tad). I also use elastic thread, it depends on the subject, but if going to the bother of drilling all the way through the location points then I prefer non-elastic fishing line or mending thread. Mending (invisible) thread is nice because being clear it forces me to colour it, which a permanant silver felt-tip will do nicely. Handy for things like Pups and Camels where there are no turnbuckles ideally you want a clean entry of the wire to the wing, the actual attachment lugs being more or less invisible in 1/72nd.

 

Paul.

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Hello all! It was a 'trying'day today.

 

Did my cunning plan work? Well, sort of. The struts were in position and very well aligned. I then trimmed off the 'bar' that Airfix had moulded and one of the struts fell out. That was a good start. I re-attached it, and reinforced the other struts with a little more CA, then attached the top wing. I used CA gel for this on the two front struts, it takes a little longer to set. I gave it a couple of minutes, then picked the model up to glue the rear struts and the wing and attached struts fell off. Being a modeller, I carried on regardless, reattached everything and this time I managed to get the struts and wing together, and they stayed that way. All in all, I think I reattached all four struts, so in hindsight I would say that the plan did not work. Next time, I will chose a scheme which can be painted and fit the struts and clean up the bar and slot. 'Ne comb de plume pas', as Del Boy says.

 

I then fitted the cabane struts on the starboard side, this time I trimmed the struts off the bar and added them one by one. Next, I sorted out the rigging in that area, using the copper wire that I had CA'd to the thread to help push the thread through the pre-drilled holes, and taped them to the upper wing surface to keep the thread out of the way:

 

DSCN7636

 

The other two cabane struts went in okay, and I just needed to re-CA one of the rear interplane struts (a common issue - I had to do that four or five times). I was able to then get most of the rest of the rigging done, all except the four wires along the front of the wings. The cross-wires between the interplane struts tested my patience more than somewhat, I had a 70-minute session at the bench where I managed to fit a fat zero wires, everything I did went wrong. I stopped, made a cuppa tea and then went back, and they were fitted withing fifteen minutes, no problem.

 

DSCN7637

 

The cowling is on now too, it eventually went on pretty well. I have filled all but four of the rigging holes now with Perfect Plastic Putty, and will sort that out later.

 

Tomorrow I will see if I can replicate the undercarriage the way Paul has shown in his link previously.

 

That is it for now, thanks for looking,

 

Ray

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  • Ray S changed the title to Sopwith Pup - Now officially a biplane

I gave this a miss yesterday as things more important cropped up, but today was a good day. The first thing I looked at correcting was the undercarriage. This is how it was moulded:

 

DSCN7639

 

In all my previous builds of the Pup, I left these as they are. This time though, I had all my reference material, and it was mentioned that the braces were wrong. I cut those bars off each leg and replaced them with a T-shaped assembly, which I made out of .5mm rod:

 

DSCN7641

 

The axle was next. Having looked at @Paul Thompson's link and description earlier, I came up with something which hopefully is a little better than the single rod which Airfix supplied. As Paul suggested, I got some aerofoil strut and sawed a slot on one surface. I then got some more .5mm rod and cut two very small slivers off and glued them to the ends of the strut. These acted as a rest for the split axle, which I made from more of the rod. I cut two sections, chamfered one end of each and stuck them in place:

 

DSCN7640

 

That looks okay to my untrained eye.

 

The other thing I did was get the rest of the rigging between the wings done, and today I managed to get the final bits of the diamond transfers settled down on the top of the top wing, and the bottom of the lower wing. If I have learnt one thing with this build, it is that it would be a better idea to drill blind holes and try and fit the rigging into them, despite the access issues compared to having open holes. The repair work is not the best, even though I used a new razor blade to trim the thread, a little section still stayed and I could not get rid of it. (Or build EE Lightnings instead!)

 

DSCN7638

 

I still need to trim the transfers down properly, and then re-touch the paintwork where there is white showing through. Although these transfers are quite translucent, they are excellent when they do settle down, and show everything as regards surface details - I must be really careful with the prep!

 

It is just the roundels to go now for the markings. The Blue Rider ones are too see-through to use with this. I had two sheets from the Airfix Pup, but they are slightly larger than the BR ones, and did not have the white outline required. Checking through my transfer tin, I found a set of Microscale WWI GB national markings which will do the job, and the white on those looks to be very dense, so I will try those tomorrow.

 

That is it, thanks for looking,

 

Ray

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Nice, and the axle assembly is looking good - you may have thought of this already but to make life easier I'd suggest drilling a hole right through where the axles meet, and a corresponding hole in the fuselage above. There's a wire goes between them and if you try to locate it after the undercarriage is all done then it's very easy to get it off vertical, which means you'll never want to look at the model head on because it will always look wrong compared to where the undercarriage cross bracing , um, crosses. Fairly easy to trim the excess poking through the bottom of the spreader because it's a slightly convex surface, and any blemish can be hidden with a blob of paint, or a wipe of perfect plastic putty if you're feeling serious.

 

With through the wing rigging I find it less stressful, and easier, to put the final coat of paint and the decals on after snipping the excess off. That way you can fill and sand as well if you have to. I've done it with the Airfix Pup, and it's robust enough if you don't go daft.

 

Paul.

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Paul, I tried drilling out some holes in the axle, but even my finest drill did not work as there was not enough room - I wonder if I used a too-small aerofoil strut? Never mind, I will sort something out.

 

This morning, after the drilling failure, it was time to try and add the undercarriage. This has never been a strong point of mine, especially with WWI types. I find I can never get them symmetrical. Anyway, I eventually managed, and also got my new axle in place even though it always wanted to go upside down!

 

DSCN7667

 

I let that set for a few hours and then re-touched the blue on the undercarriage legs, and also redid the paintwork along the wing leading edges where the transfers did not meet properly due to my mis-aligning them. Then it was time to put the plane on it's legs:

 

DSCN7669

 

That is it for now, more soon with luck. I have got to make six control horns soon.

 

Ray

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Hello all, this one is now done!

 

Yesterday I added the rudder/fin, got the whole tail area rigged with InfiniModel rigging line and it mostly went well, especially when I used fresh CA. I realised I could not count, as the other day I said I needed to cut out six control horns, then I remembered the four for the tail control surfaces, so it was 10 in the end! I painted them all blue, as that happened to be the colour diamond they sat on so that was easy (if I was correct!). I added the wheels, but one is slightly skew-whiff. The are angled as per the real thing though. Today I added the control column (I finally remembered) and just about managed to get it in, fitted the prop and that was that. Until I remembered (is there a theme here?) that I needed to add the pitot tubes to the one strut - I had cut off the plastic ones. I used some fuse wire, and it turned out to be the most awkward bit of the build! I could not pick up the minuscule slice of wire in the tweezers, and when I did, it would not let go! Static or something kept it attached to the tweezers. Anyway, I eventually persuaded them to stay in place.

 

So, here it is, the Airfix Sopwith Pup (£1.75 in 1980's but really half that as it was an Airfix 2 for 1 offer), Blue Rider sheet BR-243 (£5 in 2021,) 4 roundels from a Microscale sheet bought in the 1980's, and 1 photo-etch control column handle (minimal cost bought in 1980's too), and an excellent lot of fun for my 'Less-than-a-tenner':

 

DSCN7694

 

DSCN7683

 

DSCN7689

 

The aircraft represented is C242 from No 7 Training Squadron, Netheravon, 1918.

 

Thanks to all who looked, liked and commented, and especially those who gave me lots of help. I will pop some different images in the Gallery in a moment.

 

All the best,

 

Ray

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  • Ray S changed the title to Sopwith Pup - +++ FINISHED +++

Hi Ray! Wow!! Now that is very impressive!! And colurful!! Awesome modelling! Very well done! It makes a superb addition to the Gallery! :worthy:

Thank you very much for building it in this GB.

Kind regards,

Stix

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  • 1 year later...

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