1/72nd RAF Armstrong Whitworth Argosy C.1. Mach2 kit. Finished

[ed-209]

Sorry what I type and what the machine thinks I type are totally different some times

[Mr T]

I haven't forgotten this GB, just trying to clear the decks a bit. Anyway, the CF18 is finished, and my Jaguar is getting to the stage where there is only so much I can do to it in  a modelling session. This means the big and possibly bad Mach2 Argosy now gets a look in. I have started cleaning up, which is a fairly mammoth job, and actually stuck some plastic together. The tailplane and one wing to be precise. The Tailplane is in two halves with a very thick trailing edge. It took a while to sand down. The wing was much better. Although not easy to see, the surface detail is pretty good. I am going to try and sort the props out next, there are sixteen blades with a lot of mould misalignment and a missing half of one of the spinners.

[ed-209]

Your build spurs me on with mine 

I had a look at my wings and leading edge tips and found another reason it went back in the box I have glued the wrong halfs together giving me a thick one and a thin one and all fore bits are different lengths also is there any chance of a picture of your leading edge where they go because on mine that bit of the wing doesnt line up at all well  

Any way keep up the good work

[Mr T]

I have added the separate wing leading edges on the wings. There is something weird over the shape which changes the appearance of the wing tip. I am glad I have some coarse sanding pads. I have stuck some other parts together and hopefully might get some parts with paint on soon. 

[Mr T]

The leading edge pieces are just the wrong shape to give right contour for the wing and need sanding done anyway. When I next put some photos up I will show what I mean withe the leading edges. 

Edited April 11, 2022 by Mr T

[ed-209]

My tips are in the freezer to try and separate them but I think cutting the end of my finger off is the most likely outcome

[ivand]

On 3/6/2022 at 6:07 PM, Mr T said:

Anyone knows of any RR Dart sized four bladed props?

The Frog Dart Herald?

[Mr T]

1 minute ago, ivand said:

The Frog Dart Herald?

Complete with set of hens teeth*

I've made up one set of props and actually not bad, certainly no worse than any set taken off the Frog moulds in the last 20 years.

*In an unobtainium box

[Mr T]

Some more work done on the Argosy. Slow pace of modelling for the last few days as Mrs T and Joe off and Ellie (daughter) came up for Joe's birthday and Easter, and so doing some family stuff etc.

Anyway, wings are together. The first photo shows the wing tips and the fact that the separate leading edge pieces are not the right shape and need sanding down quite a bit to get the leading edge right. The lower wing tip is the finished shape

The wing looks a little odd as I lined up the trailing edge to a straight line. The upper wing had some work on it before the photo, the chord at the tip was much greater.

Wierdly enough, the fit of wing and tail boom is not bad and should help in aligning the wing and tail etc. later on.

The fuselage halves are not so good. flash is present and the fit is not brilliant, especially on the underside. I foresee the use of tape and cable ties in the non to distant future

[ArgosyFan]

Hi I've just signed up to this site to have a look at this topic. The completed kit in the garden looks good, thank you for displaying it. 

At RAF Benson in 1970 /71 the Argosy C1 was the first aircraft I worked after my RAF apprenticeship at the tender age of 17. The squadrons were 114 & 115  The Argosy was also at RAF Muharraq (Bahrain) my first overseas detachment. Its always been a favourite for me. 

 

[CliffB]

It's looking good  @Mr T. 

Very wise to be checking that everything's straight and true as you go along 

[Mr T]

The Jaguar out of the way and so now clear decks with the Argosy. I have been doing bits and pieces with it for a while, but it has not had my full attention. The last couple of days have seen the cockpit interior sorted, and the fuselage is ready for the joining. I had built up the wing, tail and booms so that the parts could be held together with tape while I worked out how much weight it would need in the nose. A lot, it turns out. Once the fuselage halves are joined, l plan on doing any filling of the airframe components, so the assembled whole will not need so much handling once it is all together. That at least is the plan.

The instruments and fuse panel are paper cutouts I made from photos I found online. they were varnished and stuck on plasticard

[Mr T]

Fuselage is together. It was a bit of a struggle as the halves were slightly warped in more than one direction. I had to detach one of the rear fuselage halves to get the whole thing to line up properly (well, sort of) Some fettling was required and even now the joints are not exactly smooth. I used a mix of CA and Tamiya fast setting extra thin plastic cement to get parts into some kind of alignment. Once everything was together and under pressure from elastic bands, the joints were flooded with 'ordinary' liquid cement and some bigger gaps filled with shims of plastic card. I have left the whole thing for a day or so to let the seams firm  up. My fortune for the near future tells me a lot of Miliput will pass my way.

[Mike N]

Pleased to see this moving along, love the design of the Argosy.

[Adam Poultney]

On 10/05/2022 at 16:01, Mr T said:

 

I thought got a second there that you'd started a second one!

[ed-209]

Moving on nicely any idear how much whate you used because I'm nearly at the same point as you

 

[Mr T]

To be honest, I just put sheet lead in until it balanced and didn't weight it. I used some salvaged lead sheet from some roofing and guttering work we had done some years ago. I do know it seemed a lot. I have the wings on now and used a fair bit of Miliput on the fuselage seam. Looking at it, I think the fuselage might  have a bit of a warp on it. It is not particularly noticeable at a casual look, and so I am going to pretend it doesn't exist. The tail booms might turn out to be 'fun', although a trial fit didn't turn out to be too bad. 

[bentwaters81tfw]

I didn't weigh mine, finished for MK show. No pics as no hosting site at present.

Unless this works.

https://www.facebook.com/190037197796389/photos/pb.190037197796389.-2207520000../2593944284072323/?type=3&theater

[Mr T]

More progress made over the last week. The wings and tail boom  have been added and the second of what are going to be several rounds of filling and sanding completed. The seam under the fuselage is difficult as the fuselage halves curve towards the join, thus leaving a slight furrow. Once the next lot of sanding has been finished, the engine nacelles will be added. These have been assembled and cleaned up, but I did not want to add them when doing the heavy-duty sanding of the fair amount of Miliput that went on the airframe.

 

 

 

Whilst wanting for filler etc. to dry, I have cleaned up the propellers (each one is four separate blades and a two piece spinner). The fit could have been better. The undercarriage has also had work done. The main legs lacked anti-torque links, which have been added from plastic card. The other strut was basically unusable due to mould misalignment, and a new one has been built. The nose wheels are from an Armory wheel set for the Argosy, but the main wheels from the set have not been used as they appear too small for RAF Argosies. The pack says for early aircraft. The main wheels have come from an Airfix Valiant, which in turn has the Armory set as a replacement.

Looking at the kit in its present state, well it is Big, and it is British

[arfa1983]

Wow that is looking good! 

[Mike N]

Coming together very nicely!

[ed-209]

That is looking good did you put stifners in between floor and ceiling 

It's something I'm considering or does it form up stiff when you put glue on ?

[Mr T]

No l didn't, but I am beginning to wish I had as last night there was an ominous crack, and on inspection part of the upper fuselage seam had split. On my kit the plastic was fairly thick on the fuselage halves, but I know it can vary. It seemed stiff enough oat the time. 

You also might want to be aware of a couple of other issues I have found. 

The canopy is not a brilliant fit. Width wise it was  sort of OK, but the curve of the canopy top does not match the fuselage. Again this may be down to me or variation in the moulding proceeds as the canopy is reasonably thin. 

Check the tailbooms for warping as it is not always obvious. One of my has a slight warp at the fin. 

I think with a kit like this there has to be a degree of compromise. I could spend forever sorting out each little kink, and probably have the skills to do it, but I am not immortal (far from it, I suspect) and there is a pile of kits to be built. I model for me and my well being. 

[ed-209]

Your seem looks way better than what I can get on mine 

I'm considering taking the clam shell off so I can root about in side  

I also model for my self and sanity and am quite happy if it looks good from 3 feet  and 1 eye 

Keep going it will look good in the end 

 

[Mr T]

Photos flatter, there were still some rough spots. Since the photos, engines have been added and I have made an idiot mistake.  Nearly half of the little vanes behind the cockpit were put on vertically rather than horizontally before I stopped and looked them and thought 'bother, these are wrong'. Sorted now, but a bit of a delay. Paint on props and undercarriage. 

I put the fronts and back of the fuselage halves together, before I put the halves together. It all looked OK and test fitting seemed alright. On gluing the halves, they didn't go together very well and one of the rear fuselage pieces snapped off while I was trying to align it. I think the process of sticking it together had taken some of give out of the fuselage joint. I did some fettling and it all went back together with few problems. 

Given the reputation of Mach2 kits, if it looks alright at three feet with one eye, it is a win,  although I have seen some excellent work on their kits. As with any kit, I think a lot depends on how much effort you consider is worthwhile for the kit. At the end of the day, I hope to end up with an Argosy that is at least halfway prsentable.