Heather's Workbench - Faithful Annie, 1/72nd Avro Anson

[AliGauld]

A bit late to the show here but that 37 took me right back to changing tokens outside the box in Dingwall and the unmistakable roar as one would fly through the Waverley Sub platforms on clear signals.

Thanks for that.

 

As usual there is some wonderful modelling going on as well. 

 

 

Cheers,

Alistair

[Dave Slowbuild]

Easy to forget sometimes that we do this for fun.  At this point I always walk away, sleep on it, then pick up whatever kit excites me most next time I’m at the bench

 

Dave

[Heather Kay]

43 minutes ago, Dave Slowbuild said:

Easy to forget sometimes that we do this for fun.

Exactly. When the planets align, I’ll be back getting Annie straightened out.

[Heather Kay]

Right, now where were we? 
 

Annie had been lurking in her box on the Shelf of Doom, making dark mutterings in my general direction. Time to see if I could actually build this kit.

 

One of my problems was I was over-complicating everything. From the box, the model would be quite adequate, but I had decided to try and shoehorn the Flightpath detail set into it when it’s clearly designed for a different kit. I got all bogged down trying to reconcile things in my head. Throw into the mix doubts about the resin moulded framework, and I just couldn’t see the wood for the trees.

 

 

I sat down with the box of bits and pieces, and decided to just make a start with something. Other things would probably make sense in due course. I began with gluing the PE belts to the seats. The delicious Flightpath PE instrument panel I had previously made up isn’t quite the right shape to fit the Special Hobby moulded piece, but I decided I wasn’t going to worry about it. Some black paint will hide the joins. The resin part from the kit was added for good measure.

 

 

Then, as I’d hoped, one thing sort of led to another. The cabin floor got painted interior green, the seats were detail painted, and the port side panel was attached. The side panel frames had been poorly moulded, and I had been playing with the notion of reconstructing them in brass rod. I think this was one reason why I got fed up with the build. I decided to go with what Special Hobby moulded, chopping out broken sections to be replaced with styrene or metal rod later. I then decided to assess the rest of the internals, and felt the navigator and wireless stations from the kit can be happily replaced with the better parts from Flightpath. The control column can also be the FP parts. With luck, that will make up the interior parts to some kind of completion. I’ve already earmarked other Flightpath details to enhance the exterior.

 

So, day job shenanigans notwithstanding, Annie is back on track.

[Dave Slowbuild]

Great news!  The build is back on! 
 

Monday morning won’t feel so bad now…much to look forward to!
 

Dave

 

[Heather Kay]

I’m having a "me" day today. What with everything kicking off in the real world, I need to take time to keep myself centred. Unfortunately, the England v S Africa third test finished this morning, so I’m now reliant on my record collection to drown out the insanity.

 

 

Flightpath bits. Some wireless things, which need detail painting, and which I’ve stuck on some black styrene sheet because they are open at the back. The control column, needs paint. And the navigator's tools. I think the sheet they’re on is meant to represent a map, because this ensemble is glued to the desk…

 

…which you see here, replete with infinitesimal dividers. Brass or nickel-plated, do you think?The wireless position desk also came from the Flightpath etch, and fits rather well. You can see why I’ve decided to fill in the backs of the radios now! Disappointed there’s no headset for the W/Op to wear.

 

I am actually quite pleased at how this stage is progressing. I hope it continues.

[Heather Kay]

Getting there.

 

 

 

There's a resin bank of instruments supposed to sit across the width of the navigator's table, at about head height with the pilot. Of course, my upgrades have meant it no longer fits in the correct location - assuming it would have if I’d built it as Special Hobby intended. Anyway, it’s attached to the central upright, with the left end floating in free space. It will have to do, I’m afraid. It’s currently unpainted. Locations of all the seating is also vague, so I’ve guesstimated from the instruction sheet drawings.
 

 

Here is the In-Plane Entertainment system Marconi T1154 transmitter (bottom) and T1155 receiver (top). These closeups are cruel, but it will be quite adequate through the kit transparencies.

 

Time to ponder on the starboard side panels, and perhaps I can think of making some proper progress on the rest of the build soon.

[Brandy]

Ah, here you are! I was wondering where you'd got to!

 

Nice progress though, she's definitely starting to look like an Annie, inside at least. Those Flightpath bits look pretty good!

 

Ian

[Heather Kay]

3 minutes ago, Brandy said:

Ah, here you are! I was wondering where you'd got to!

I have been lurking for a bit, Ian. Day job modelling, not fun modelling, so nothing really to share.

[Head in the clouds.]

Glad to see Annie back on stage Heather, where she belongs. Like you I am building an Avro Anson and using a Flightpath set in 1/72 and just like yours it ended up being a hanger queen and I hardly touched it for months. Now though I have been nibbling at it and woe and behold, it is moving on slowly but surely.

Keep up the good work.

[Heather Kay]

Still "me day" here. I will get back to paying work sometime.

 

The cabin internals are more or less complete, with the floor and port side assembly glued to the fuselage half and the right side casting glued in place. I figured, before committing to attaching the two fuselage halves permanently, it might be a good idea to check the fit of the main transparencies, and whether I really need to repair the missing frame parts. Well, the clear parts are a good firm fit, and will need some very careful manipulation to sit on the fuselage cleanly. The glazing is incredibly thin and clear, so full marks to the mouldmaker for that, and it’ll mean all the fiddly detailing I’ve just done will pretty much be seen on close inspection.

 

A ropey photo, but serves its purpose. You might just see the missing frame section at the back of the glazing. I’ll deal with that when I fit the top cross-braces and button the fuselage up. The slight step between cockpit and greenhouse is because the former glazing piece is not seated properly.

 

I’m not at all enamoured by that massive gap where the fuselage halves don’t meet at all. I’ll let the brain cell think about that. I’m also not sure about the slot abaft of the turret location. Presumably that’s meant for the Lewis gun to snuggle down into, but there’s no corresponding slot in the bulkhead. Some photo study will be required before I join things together, I think.

 

I think there’s an Anson in there somewhere, anyway. 

[Samuraiwarrior]

Hi Heather, 

I have come to this build quite late, but what you're doing looks great to me. 

That fuselage gap is quite a challenge, but I am sure that you will be able to sort it out. 

Watching in admiration. Great stuff in the IPMS magazine by the way, love your dedicated approach. 

Thanks for sharing. 

Kevin 

[Heather Kay]

4 minutes ago, Samuraiwarrior said:

Watching in admiration. Great stuff in the IPMS magazine by the way, love your dedicated approach. 

Many thanks, Kevin! I’m running out of complete sets to write about now! Bomber and Coastal Commands are missing almost completely at the moment. Plenty of gaps to fill, and keep me busy for ages!

 

I think the fuselage gap will be solved by some styrene packing material. The challenge, really, will be getting the mend to still match the glazing profile. More thinking required, then. 

[heloman1]

Looking good Heather, slow progress is better than no progress...

 

Colin

 

PS. Great article in the latest issue in the latest IPMS UK mag.

[Heather Kay]

Thanks Colin!

[Heather Kay]

I had intended on getting some quality time with Annie over the weekend, but events conspired against me. Definitely not feeling in the mood for brass wrangling gazillions of model railway coaches today, and really needing a distraction from *waves arms vaguely at everything* all the other stuff going on right now, today seemed a good day for Anson activities.

 

I had originally intended on replacing the ropey resin cabin framework with something better, but this build had already become unnecessarily protracted and I elected to make the best of what SH provided. Behind the glazing, little is really visible, so careful tidying and a lick of paint should do. It might have been possible to completely ignore the cage top section, though certain parts are visible through the skylights on top of the cabin. It also has the benefit of pushing the side frames into the right sort of shape, so it had to fit. You can see how it looks, posed here. It gets better, honestly.
 

I found the replacement hifi gear was much taller than the kit was supposed to have, and it interfered with the central bar. The bar was chopped out. It is invisible with the roof on, so I didn’t feel bad about it. With the framework somewhat aligned and glued in place, I could consider joining the fuselage halves. At last!

 

Overall, alignment wasn’t bad. I began at the nose, carefully aligning for the best seam and running some liquid cement along. A peg was applied, followed by further careful alignment at the tail end. I worked along slowly and carefully, with clamps and pegs as I went. 
 

Experimental fitting had shown the turret fairing helped close the dodgy gap nicely. There’s some internal stuff for the turret occupant to perch in while wielding his weapon, but I reasoned it would be fairly hard to see with the glazed cupola in place and left it out. The gun support parts can all be fitted much later in the build. The turret fairing was glued in place.
 

 

 

I carefully worked around the fairing with liquid cement, clamping as I went. The dodgy join is still not quite right, but it does really need the main greenhouse transparency in place to align it. I accepted there will be some filling and sanding around the fairing anyway, but still tried to get it as good as I could.
 

Before I knew where I was, this had happened. Usually I like to mask transparencies before they’re fixed in place. This time, the masking will have to happen with everything glued firmly. The sides of the fuselage above the wing roots flex alarmingly, and needed some careful adjustment to give as smooth a joint with the greenhouse as possible. Sanding will not be possible, in my opinion. You can see the dodgy join behind the greenhouse. That will be dealt with by filler, and a slight gap at the side rear of the greenhouse will be close with PVA. I am letting the cement harden before I review the situation further.

[Max Headroom]

Glad this is back on the production floor. You have waaay more patience than me. If it had been me, a hammer would have been involved by now.

 

Trevor

[Samuraiwarrior]

Hi Heather, 

Taking shape nicely with your careful and methodical approach. I think you will progress well now you have got the fuselage together. 

Upwards and onwards. 

Kevin 

[Martian]

Liking this a lot Heather. The way things are going it has the potential to be one of your best builds; and that is up against some pretty stiff competition. Like your articles in the IPMS magazine BTW.

 

Encouraging of Mars 👽

 

[Navy Bird]

6 minutes ago, Martian said:

The way things are going it has the potential to be one of your best builds

 

It certainly is shaping up to be a good 'un. I'm really liking what I'm seeing! And from the Special Hobby kit to boot - which, to be kind, is not their best work.   

 

Cheers,

Bill

[Heather Kay]

3 hours ago, Max Headroom said:

Glad this is back on the production floor. You have waaay more patience than me. If it had been me, a hammer would have been involved by now.

I’m my own worst enemy. I resolve to finish one build at a time - more or less. That means I try not to be tempted by another kit until I’ve nearly finished a build. It acts as some sort of incentive. Although it’s come close once or twice, I’ve yet to give up on a build entirely.

 

2 hours ago, Samuraiwarrior said:

Upwards and onwards. 

Famous last words, I’m afraid. Sideways, perhaps, but not upwards at present. More shortly.

 

50 minutes ago, Martian said:

Liking this a lot Heather. The way things are going it has the potential to be one of your best builds;

You are too kind. There’s plenty of time yet for Captain Cockup and his Merry Crew to make an appearance!

 

41 minutes ago, Navy Bird said:

It certainly is shaping up to be a good 'un. I'm really liking what I'm seeing!

Coming from you, Bill, that’s a very kind compliment. I aspire to your levels of finesse. I doubt I’ll ever quite get there, but the fun is in the attempt.

 

An update…

A plan had been formulated. With some filling and sanding to do, the idea was to apply the glazing masks so the shiny bits had some kind of protection from the abrasives. All was going well, until the fuselage slipped from my grasp … and hit the laminate flooring below my bench.

 

A sickening second or two pass. Has anything broken? Did the fragile glazing survive? This might be a disaster!

 

 

The glazing survived, and was still firmly fixed in place. However, there was an ominous rattle from inside. I could see the radio desk and radio had come away from their moorings. There was no way that could be fixed without removing the glazing. Bother.

 

Happily, the clear bits were carefully prised off without damage. I retrieved the loose parts, and managed to glue them back in without too much faff. Once the glue has set, I’ll see if there’s any paint repair required. Meanwhile, I’ve completed the masking in that horrid vinyl stuff Montex uses. It’s worked before on other builds, and there aren’t too many curves for it to settle over.

 

Phew! If I can get the greenhouse back on and glued, I think I’ll call time for this session.

 

[AdrianMF]

It’s looking good! Parking your guilt at not using every bit of aftermarket is a great thing - Special Hobby kits are hard enough already!

 

Regards,

Adrian

 

[edit] glad the dive wasn’t terminal!

[woody37]

This is looking great Heather.  I'm generally like you in that I have preferred to do one build at a time but recently, I've found myself doing a bit, putting it away and carrying on with another and I've enjoyed it as it breaks things up a little. This is building my appetite for the new 1/48 one

 

[Brandy]

It's funny how things will either go nicely, or horribly. Nothing in the middle. This one really is putting up a fight but we all know who will win!

 

Ian

[heloman1]

9 hours ago, woody37 said:

This is looking great Heather.  I'm generally like you in that I have preferred to do one build at a time but recently, I've found myself doing a bit, putting it away and carrying on with another and I've enjoyed it as it breaks things up a little. This is building my appetite for the new 1/48 one

 

So, what makes you so special then Neil, one build a t a time! How are you going to build a Shelf of Doom that way? It's multiple builds or nothing. Ha!

Seriously if that's possible, I'm looking forward to your next 48th build.

Apologies for the  hi jack Heather.

 

Colin