Roden Se5a (one or two)

[Torbjorn]

One or two, because I just remembered I’ve got both boxings of Roden’s RAF Se5a: the Viper and Hisso. If I can find the latter I will add it.

 

This is the box art of the version with Wolseley Viper engine. The only visible difference between that and the Hispano Suiza will be the radiator and propeller - they rotated in different directions.

 

I also found a PE fret from Parts of Poland, but i’ll hardly use all 70+ little pieces.

 

 

First things first is no surprise - I will need need new decals, at least roundels:

 

 

 

Roden decal issue cleared, here comes the good parts:

 

 

 

As usual for Roden we are treated with nice details and several options, e.g. different deckings and both standard and reinforced undercarriage.

 

I’m curious to see what the other box contains. Which particular machines I will built depends on what decals I can find or mask.

[Torbjorn]

Found the other box:

 

 

I’m tempted to do McCudden’s plane on the cover- without the captured LVG spinner as it makes me think of Rudolph, which strangely annoys me.

 

Anyhow, here’s the differeng sprues, C for Hispano-Suiza and D for Viper:

 

Radiator, cowling, propellors and visible parts of thr engine are the differences - and an LVG spinner.

 

Since I can’t decide which airframes to build and don’t want to paont myself into a corner, I’ve started with something common to all:

 

 

 

There are 6 inspection hatches for control wire pulleys, which are represented by decals. I don’t like that solution and considered either covering them all with PC10/CDL or trying to make something out of it. I went with the latter and I’m doing a trial on the least visible ones. You can see the hatch as a dark triangle under the upper wing on the box art just above. The artist even painted the pulley inside!

Edited October 11 by Torbjorn

[Torbjorn]

Going a bit slow as I’m finishing up another build, but have conpleted the 4 underwing inspection peek holes.

Painted the insides dark to represent the inside of the PC10-painted upper cover. Added pulleys (styrene) and control wire (stretched sprue) and covered with acetate sheet. Finished by adding linen-painted decal strip along the edges:

 

 

Will definitely try the same with the more visible panels on the tailplane and lower wing, but be more careful as the acetate is much more clear and transparent than I expected. And I think I’ll do it last, *after* painting the wings to avoid annoying masking (though the holes will be cut before painting).

Edited October 18 by Torbjorn

[Torbjorn]

Progressing slowly. The cockpit is a bit tricky in the way it is assembled - I find I want to add bits in different order, but it’s not possible due to the model being split in three with two sides and an upper decking.

 

The Part PE contains a full cage, but I cut it in 4 and removed the parts that won’t be seen. For the non-PE model I used hair to represent the ibternal bracing instead. Used the kit seats, but modified them a bit.

 

 

The cockpit floor should be plywood as I’ve understood it, but I have troubles painting fresh plywood. I somehow managed with the non-PE but forgot how I did it

 

The kit instrument panel cannot compete with the PE:

 

 

And that’s before I even finished painting the PE part and adding the levers and other weee detail.

[Milan Mynar]

The PE parts look excellent.

[Torbjorn]

Tried the decals by stealing some serials for another built - one disintegrated, the second came loose by its own while I was cutting the paper and had to be glued on with varnish.

 

I’m therefore looking for alternatives. I have Print Scale’s balloon buster sheet, which contains E4071, apparently built by Vickers. I guess it had a Viper engine, but still haven’t found a photo or confirmation. If so I’ll have a go at one of McCudden’s Hispano-Suiza machines for the second model.

 

[Torbjorn]

2 hours ago, Milan Mynar said:

The PE parts look excellent.

I wish they had a light version too, with only the most useful pieces. I’d definitely have ordered a second (and third) fret.

[Torbjorn]

No progress but I’ve at least chosen airframes, with the following pecularities:

 

Hispano-Suiza:

McCudden’s B4891, 54 squadron.

-Wooden landing gear

-Shortened exhaust pipes

-no headrest

-experimental narrow chord elevators

-four-bladed prop (but which one? there are two on the sprues)

-no white in the underwing roundels

-vertical radiator shutters

-white pennant on rudder?

 

Viper:

E4071 or D6586 of No 84 squadron, piloted by Sidney Highwood and others resp Anthony Beauchamp-Proctor

-Wooden landing gear

-Um, standard everything?

 

Edited November 12 by Torbjorn

[Torbjorn]

A bit more progress.

 

There is a large vent/opening on the underside. Visible empty insides bothers me, so I added a tank (oil/fuel?) that can be seen, plus the firewalls that come with the kit:

 

 

 

 

Then turned to the radiators. The upper one in the photo below is for the Viper. The PE fret has replacement grills/shutters for this one.

There were several different versions for the Hispano, fortunately the one I’m building had the early kind with vertical shutters that is included in the kit. It appears it did have shutters in the middle  section as well, which I added: here I’ve started to modify it.

 

 

 

 

Modifications included opening the holes, adding brass lining on the inside of the Hisso radiator, and some extra details, including ”wooden” PE frames on the inside:

 

 

 

Then I discovered I’ve made a booboo. The kits come with three versions of the fuselage top piece with different cockpit openings. Of course I managed to use the wrong piece on BOTH models and firmly attach them to instrument panels and fuselage. 

 

After many silent naughty words I sliced off the piece from the Viper, and the. got ofg instrument panel, but the Hisso is attached with generous amounts of CA and too delicate to remove without permaneny damage. Plan B is to change airframe to McCudden’s B4853, which had a modified cockpit consisting of built-up bulging sides making it appear like a little tower-like structure. I carved away around the cockpit and used plastic sheet to create this structure, and milliput for the leather.

 

Below is the new finished McCudden cockpit (bar a bit of filling and sanding), with the correct standard cockpit for the Viper resing inboard on the wing , and the now removed piece I had used next to it.

 

 

 

Edited November 24 by Torbjorn

[JOCKNEY]

Wonderful work on this pair 

 

Cheers Pat