Knights of the Sky II- The End

Daywalker wrote:

SC- Of course we missed you!  You are forgiven as your work on that Macchi is absolutely breathtaking.

Aw Shucks Frank! You know how to make a guy feel like part of the team.

                                                                                           Soulcrusher

Justin- Excellent work!  You're doing a fine job on that lil' Fokker.

ludwig- Yours are coming along rather smartly as well!  Great looking progress pics.

SC- Of course we missed you!  You are forgiven as your work on that Macchi is absolutely breathtaking.

MrDrummy wrote:

Here's where I am with the Fokker at the moment.  Again, bad photography, but it's what I've got for now.

 MrDrummy,Looking very cool, I like the black PS, sinister and menacing looking. Looking very good.

 Soulcrusher, all the Knights of the Skies are missed, even when frolicking in another GB!

 Ludwig, A very nice set of Dr1's. The Red looks flawless and the Camo is great.

 -Mo

Justin that all black Fokker looks mean I love it. I never new they had painted up any of those in an all black scheme until I joined this GB and saw you guys postings pics. Really cool stuff. I shall return soon as I am finishing up on my last entry for the Regia Aeronautica GB soon and plan on jumping back into my Fokker. You guys missed me right?

                                                                                      Soulcrusher

a little update.....there getting there...

i've been busy,so i've not done that much.

Really looking good Justin. The black scheme is definately different. It will be good to see the finished product.

...Guy

Thanks, Stephen.  I'm looking forward to getting that Roden kit started for sure.  I got kit no. 424, so I guess that I won't have to worry about extending those struts!

Here's where I am with the Fokker at the moment.  Again, bad photography, but it's what I've got for now.

Just to show that I'm gettin' some work done!  Much more work to come, but getting closer!

MrDrummy wrote:

"Progress is being made on the Fokker.  Got the top wing struts in place, and now just have to figure out how to make the photo-etched struts fit on and actually offer any sort of support...  I'll send some pictures over tonight... Just picked up Roden's offering of the Fokker D. VII from the local hobby shop.  How's this kit?  Anyone built it up before?  Is it a dog? A gem?  The WWI bug has definitely bitten again. "

The DML DR.I  PE struts need to have all holes in the plastic opened up especially for the cabane frint legs (there are none).  The Roden 1/48 Fok. D.VII is indeed a good kit.  The lower wing edges that butt against the fuselege, sanded back.  (But so does the Eduard kit).  On the 415 kit the front legs of the N struts are a fraction too short but adding an extention is easy.

Progress is being made on the Fokker.  Got the top wing struts in place, and now just have to figure out how to make the photo-etched struts fit on and actually offer any sort of support...  I'll send some pictures over tonight...

Just picked up Roden's offering of the Fokker D. VII from the local hobby shop.  How's this kit?  Anyone built it up before?  Is it a dog? A gem?  The WWI bug has definitely bitten again.

Marc and all,

Excellent work.  Very impressive.

excellent work mr wing nut...

some really really nice stuff going on here.

Here's where I'm at at the moment.  Everything is painted, and ready for assembly.  I'm just getting a little worried about that top wing and the photo-etched bits.  After I'm done worrying about that, I'll begin to worry about the wheels/struts etc on the bottom of the a/c.  Whew.  This thing is going to give me gray hair... (that'll be the excuse, anyway.)

Still have some work to do on the leather around the cockpit, and the guns.  Really looking forward to getting this one on the shelf!

Sorry for the poor quality photos.

Marc you totally nail that Camel! You build that thing in lightning speed time also. I love the simple way you held the subject in place while installing the upper wing. I'm definetly stealing that trick from you when I get ready to install the upper wing on my Fokker. Well done!

                                                                                              Soulcrusher

Marc-

All I can say is...

OMG!  That is seriously some of the finest work I have seen from your bench.  One of the nicest Camels I have seen as well.   I certainly hope to see more of your winged-thingies over in Aircraft, even if your target stash outnumbers the aircraft!

(Oh, yeah... I saw that post!)

NP Mobious, glad to oblige.

Marc, that is a stunner. 1st class build. These things are addictive arnt they? Really look forward to seeing whats next up your sleeve. Glad your sticking around. Great pics too.

...Guy

 Wing_nut, Beautiful job. Superb weathering. I really like the close up shot of the cowling. Very nice job on the rigging too. Excellent build and photos.

 Luftwoller, The turnbuckles look great on the Flying Steak Knife, I mean the Macchi M5. Very nice shot illustrating the added detail and quality that Bob's Buckles adds. Top marks on the Flying Boat. Thanks for posting the detail shots.

I am callingh this one done.  This build went infinately better than the 1st one back in KOTS I.  A couple of rigging mistake on my part that mucked up a cople of the struts right at the wing but not that noticable. I know it's there so it pisses me off a bit.  But I sure am likingthe WWI stuff so you will probaly see more of me in the A/C forum inthe future.

Stephen and Guy,

Fantastic work gentlemen!   I continue to be amazed each time that I check in with this group not only with the work that is taking place, but with the tremendous amount of information being shared.

Thank you Stephen, PM flying your way. I was toying with doing a beaching dolly. In a Black and white pic of a similar plane it just looked like a table with 2 wheels. The wheels would be the only problem. Like Marc said it would be great in a mini dio.

...Guy

wing_nut wrote:

Finally got the upper wing installed.  usingthe metal wire pins for the struts was a HUGE help.  Not only in getting it all togther very fast but it is really strong.  And this time I did not break off any off the struts while working unlike the dozen or so the last time.  Thnaks again for that tip Steve.

Excellent Marc!  Glad it helped.

Guy,  beautiful build I would really like to see you do a build review on this.  I could help you publish it.  The one real failing of the kit is the lack of a beaching dolly.

MrDrummy wrote:

Ha!  I was thinking the same thing about that Guy's float plane!  It looks just like the spatula that I use on my grill!  Ha Guy, that thing really does look nice!  Great job on that.  Do you have any closeup shots of the Bob's Buckles?  I'd love to be able to see what they look like a little better. Marc- That Camel looks great!!  How much longer do you think?

Your wish is my command, and i totally agree about Marcs camel.

...Guy

Ha!  I was thinking the same thing about that Guy's float plane!  It looks just like the spatula that I use on my grill!  Ha

Guy, that thing really does look nice!  Great job on that.  Do you have any closeup shots of the Bob's Buckles?  I'd love to be able to see what they look like a little better.

Marc- That Camel looks great!!  How much longer do you think?

Guy- that is some fantastic work!  Like this one a lot, though everytime I look at the pics I see the top of the fuselage (hull?) and think of the handle of a hunting knife.  Must be the dots that look sorta like rivets holding the handle on.   Well done!

Justin and Marc- Excellent progress fellas!  You'll be finished in no time.

Stephen- That is some excellent info, and I have filed it away for my own Dr.I build.

Looking good Mr. D.

Guy--WOW that is sweet. Needs to be floating though

Finally got the upper wing installed.  usingthe metal wire pins for the struts was a HUGE help.  Not only in getting it all togther very fast but it is really strong.  And this time I did not break off any off the struts while working unlike the dozen or so the last time.  Thnaks again for that tip Steve.

Thx Mobious, Bobs buckles are great. All I did (Wether its right or not i dont know) was drill a small hole where the rigging has to go, then i tie one end of my rigging material (Smoke coloured invisible thread) to the loop on the buckle and superglue that end in the hole, after shortening the length slightly, by cutting with my scalpel. I tried 2 ways of sorting the other end. One was glueing the buckle in the hole 1st and then tyin off in place and the second was tying the thread to the buckle and then glueing in place. Both worked but i prefered tying to the buckle first and then gluing. The trick is to try to keep the slack to a minimum as you have to remove this slack by using heat. I used a cheapo soldering iron which worked well and the invisible thread will shrink tons. Which was lucky. LOL.

Id like to know how Bob does it. Probably far more efficient than my way.

...Guy

 Stephen, I really like the look of the battle tested Camel. Very nice weathering. That's another great build. The paint chipping on the cowling is cool.

 Guy, Excellent job. I really like the look of the rigging. the wood finish is great. Bob's Buckles look top shelf, they really add to the realistic look of the rigging. Are they easy to install?