AIRCRAFT - "Prototypes and Paper Projects" Group Build - Still Open.

djmodels1999,

That sounds like a great idea painting your Floh in ''what if'' colors, it is a very interesting looking airplane as it was and adding some color to it would make it very original!

If I can get one of those Academy Me 163 kits I would be very interested in joining ''Mad Komet Day'', although I am the probably slowest model builder in the USA it would still be fun to see how far I could get on one of those Komets before time ran out.

More in-progress pics of the Do 335 and Fw 190,



I never got around to adding the radar antenna on the Do 335, I got sidetracked by working on the Panzer Blitz racks for the 190, also started some weathering on the 190. These pictures I took today are a good way to judge how much more weathering will be needed for this model, it is very easy to go too far on weathering and I prefer to take my time and try and avoid that mistake.

Matrixone

Well done, Karl! The DFS looks stunning! Are you going to build another one for the Mad Komet Day..??! ;-)

I've used blue-tak for camouflage with some pretty good results on my AFVs, but never yet on aircraft.

The Floh is getting ready to be painted. I'm a bit uncertain about doing it the usual way (remember I've built the Floh twice already and there was ever only one aircraft flown), so I might substitute the all grey finish for a 'what if' scheme, from around 1916, on the Western Front!

Out.

Karl- After all that trouble, the DFS looks pretty nice! How did you do the concrete for the base? If it's reletivley simple, I may have to look in to eventually making something for the Zwilling...

That bluetack idea is a good one- wasn't there an article not too long ago about using Silly Putty in the same way? The results are superb.

For me, the interior of the wing is finished. Now it entails finding a sutable thin plastic to cover it with (instead of sanding the final finish on it. There aren't enough hours in the day...), and doing some comparitivly light sanding to get it into the correct final shape. I did another mockup last night, this time with the center wing section, spar, and upper tailplanes dry-fitted. I should be able to upload the pic soon.

I was thinking about what you said about splitting it up to paint, and how I couldn't really do it, having it the way it goes together. But then I figured out I could paint the whole wing (plus landing gear and motors) and fuselages seperate, then join them together later. I could connect the wires, then glue them down. Same principle, different parts. That's far in the future, however. For now, I'm concentrating on the wing.

Hey Karl, that little plane of yours turned out really great! I don't see a ckrack anywhere either. I'd heard about using that Bluetack stuff for masking, but never seen a before/after sequence. Looks pretty darn simple to me and the results are great! Any ideas where one might acquire such material in Holland? Oh, and can you recycle the stuff to use on another kit or is it ruined by the paint?

Lucien, good to hear you're making progress on the wing. Sounds real fiddly!

A little update on my posting/hosting situation here. Looks like things are looking up because a friend of mine will give me his old film scanner so I can scan my negs/slides. After the move (rescheduled to the 25th) I'll change my internet provider account, and should be able to get a website up. Combine these things and voilà: I'll be able to post soon-ish. Fingers crossed.

Matrixone, thanks for your comments.

That DFS may be tiny, but it seemed to take forever!!!

Hopefully the Ta will be finished in the next month, as I want to play around with some post shading techniques, as well as some bare metal around the exhaust.

Glad to hear that the 335 is coming on, I look forward to seeing both the 335 and the 190 in due course.

Karl

Karl,

Great job on your DFS!
Its an often overlooked aircraft that was very important to the Me 163 development years later.

Your Ta 183 is really moving along! You will have that model done well before I finish my Fw 190.

My Do 335 has the landing gear on now, tomorrow the flame dampers, radar antenna, props, and some weathering will be added to it. Maybe by mid week this model will be done, I am away from home 12 hours on weekdays which does not leave much time for doing any modeling but I want to get this one finished so I can deal with that Fw.

I did repair that broken Amtech Ta 183 wing, it should be fine now. I am really looking forward to building this kit.

Matrixone

I know I said tomorrow, but I have pictures NOW!!!!!

The DFS is officially finished, as hopefully you can see from the pictures below.









I didn't manage to hide that crack in the canopy, but it is only really noticeable from directly above.

I've also make some progress on the Ta183, applying the RLM 74/75 to both the wings and the stabilizers.

My favourite blutack masking method........



.....and after removal of the masking......



All in all a good days work, by my standards.

Karl

Ghettochild- Good to hear from you again! The photo of the natter looks like it's coming along pretty good. How big is that bird, anyway? Good luck with the base! (Something to do while the glue dries on the plane...)

Personally I've never built a Dragon kit, so I honestly can't tell you I've been in that situation. I hope everything shapes out right in the end.

Edzachary- I can relate to an absense of interior in a Testor's kit, though. Their Dauntless is the same way. I ended up having to scratchbuild the interior, and belive me, it wasn't pretty. What I recommend- search for it on squadron.com. Of the online stores I've seen, it has the largest selection. And even if you don't use online stores, it could give you the idea what to look for at your LHS.

KJ200- Always good to hear progress. You have my bests hopes you can fix that crack! (It even sounds ugly typing it. Ouch.)

The first part of the center wing section for the Ju 290Z is about 90% finished. A few more ribs need to be added, then sanding can begin. Once that's done (and I drill a hole for the wires) I can cover it with some thinner plastic to get the final shape. Once said, the (hopefully) hardest part of the project, with maybe the exception of the wiring, will be finished. Maybe in a couple weeks I'll be able to get some paint, so I can continue on the Me 328.

QUOTE: Originally posted by ghettochild jon-it is dragons ba349a natter matrix- there are some pretty big gaps in the tail and main body as well as on the tail stableizers. also the nose cone didnt line up well but that might have been my fault. i havent even started the base yet.

Sounds laike a Dragon kit.

Designed to seduce you in the LHS when you sneak a peak, just not designed to fit together as well!!!!

The DFS is almost complete. I just need to add another coat of future on the canopy, to try and hide that crack that I managed to put in it! Hopefully I'll post some pictures of the finished article tomorrow.

The Ta 183 is coming along nicely, I've just sprayed the wheel bays, and am about to start masking up the topside for some RLM75 on the wings, stabilizers and fuselage spine. Again, I'm hoping to post some pictures tomorrow.

Karl

jon-it is dragons ba349a natter

matrix- there are some pretty big gaps in the tail and main body as well as on the tail stableizers. also the nose cone didnt line up well but that might have been my fault. i havent even started the base yet.

ghettochild,

Good job on your Natter so far, those instructions I see in your pic looks like those from a Dragon kit, and if it is, have there been any fit problems with this Natter kit?

I am building a ProModeler Fw 190 D-11 kit that was based on Dragon molds and was very impressed by how well the parts looked on the sprues but unfortunately some of the parts fit together poorly. Now the model is not too far away from being finished and after a bit of a struggle to construct, is looking very much like the way I had hoped it would.

Matrixone

looking good Josh. i remember reading it in an earlier post, but what plan is that? i cant think of it at the moment, and im too lazy to go back and look for it. lat.er
Jon

here is the progress on my build it been real slow.

dudes, i got kits! well, two of them at least. i got hte Testor's F4U-1 for the XF4U-1 conversion, and the Academy P-51B for the NA-73X conversion. not much done just yet. and ive got an OU game tomorrow. i should have some pictures up soon. maybe sunday. anyone know where i can get some AM details for a 1/72 Corsair? the Testor's kit "interior" is a pilot's head and shoulders (no, i dont mean his shampoo) that glue onto the the inside of the fuselage halves. thanks. later.
Jon

... or I'll get it out tonight. The changes were reletivly simple and quick, and this is the result-

[image]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v296/LHprs/goblin4.bmp[/image]

Until furthur notice, this is the badge for this GB. There you go!

Filibert- Stuff's slow on this end, too. When everything is said and done nowadays, I only have about an hour to build each day, sometimes less. Good luck with the move! About the painting, I'll see what I can do. Very unfortunatly the way the spar, wings, and motors go together, the only way I can get a strong bond between the spar and the wing is to glue them together before the wings are closed up. I'm not happy about it, but like I said, I'll see what I can do.

I see you got the badge in your sig already. If you give me a few days, I could improve upon it. (i.e., cut out the empty edges, try out a few simple borders.) The way the program I'm making it on is set up, you are unable to do a lot of what I'd like to do. I'll fiddle with a few programs tonight. Hopefully I'll get the improved version out tomorrow.

Lucien, I like that sig pic you created there. One thing you could improve is the background color: it's a little low on contrast with the forum background now. Maybe just add a narrow black border?
About the painting of your giant: I think Matrix's advice is pretty sound. You can always touch up any irregularities in the mottle after you join the fuselages together. I thought of something else too: you could use a (potter's?) turntable to turn your model while painting it, so you don't damage it while handling. Just a thought.

Jon, thanks for the links. Looks pretty much like a birdcage Corsair to me, but I'm probably overlooking lots of small details. I'm no Corsair expert. The paintjob is going to look fantastic with that silver and yellow scheme: can't wait to see it done.

Over here, everything is on hold, because I've packed most of my models into boxes for the move (25th if all goes well). Let's hope the YF-23 survives so I can show you guys something when I borrow a digital camera

i think the badge looks good. its a shelf badge, it looks good from far off, but not under extreme examination and it isnt going to win any contests!

anyway, i havent gotten my new FSM yet, but i got my new Scale Auto, and it said in this months FSM is none-other-than a build-up conversion of an F4-U to the XF4U-1! you gotta love when something goes your way lie that. now if they'd put a conversion from a P-39 to the XFL-1, id be really happy. later.
Jon

Okay, another update: I did a little more work on the badge today. I reiszed it, and added words. How is it?

[image]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v296/LHprs/goblin3.bmp[/image]

Now about the work on the Ju 290Z. Work slogs along on the center wing. Twenty ribs are glued together, with only fifteen to go. With luck, I may get it done this weekend. I also began toying with switch ideas, i.e., where to put it. Hopefully, I'd like to somehow connect it to the Me 328, so I just have to move that a little to start the motors. That's an update for me.

Okay, this is the worst pic ever, but give me some credit. I just threw it together in the last five minutes, just as a rough copy to give me an idea of what a possible badge could look like. It's by no means finished, as you can tell. Knowing this, whaddaya think?

[image]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v296/LHprs/goblin.bmp[/image]

Construction of the Ju 290Z has gone slowly. Since school started I don't have as much time to build and post as I had during the summer. It's a good thing, though. I have a tendancy to rush important projects, getting sloppy results. This was I can take my time and do a good job.

Carry on...


Wow. That pic is bad. I'll do what I can do get it a little bigger.

hey yall. just letting you know im still in on the GB. same old Jon, just this time im Edzachary, not Rockabillyratrodz. same three relatively simple conversions too. later.
Jon

Lucien,

Glad to hear you got the photocopys of the Ju 290 pics, I may have forgotten one important thing, the topside colors on that Ju 290 were a base of RLM 75 with RLM 74 mottles.
The information about the cockpit and interior colors on the German mid to late war aircraft was correct, as the war went very badly for the Germans in late 1944 and 1945 paint was in short supply and many aircraft were being produced that had only the cockpits painted in RLM 66, other areas were sometimes left in bare metal including wheel wells and landing gear legs. My late war Fw 190 D I am building is a good example of such an aircraft with the bare metal wheel wells and part of the wing undersurface and fuselage extension plug unpainted.

In order to avoid breaking your wing in half during the painting process have you considered building and painting the two airplane fuselages and outer wings seperately and then join the wing together and finish painting the camouflage?
I know this sounds very strange for building a scale model but it might work in this case.
I used to build and paint some large RC aircraft and I have been successful in painting camouflage on aircraft using this method, the largest plane I painted that way had a 9 ft. wingspan.

Matrixone

QUOTE: Originally posted by Lucien Harpress As for me, I have some good news... I HAVE KITS!!!!

congrats 2 u !!!! that is good news...
& good luck w/ the spinners !!!
hope i will b able 2 post a progress report soon...

frosty

Jon- I was thinking like aircraft scematics on a desk (with pencil, compass, whatever, etc.) with the words "Prototypes and Paper Projects GB 2004" across the top. Or, maybe a split screen of scematics, and a well-known prototype. Or maybe the front half of an aircraft a scematic outline, while the back morphs into the actual aircraft. Or maybe............

Like I said, we'll see. Maybe I can photoshop something. I'm not worried about it too much, because in my mind, the models come first. Badges and stuff are fine, but without models, a Group Build is nothing. That's one reason this has been so late in coming! (That, and this, being my first GB, I'm still learning the specifics myself!)

On the other hand, members of the GB should help determine what they want. Suggestions are welcome, and encouraged!

Oh, yeah. That Young Guns badge is pretty funny.

thanks for the welcome guys. and Lucien. dont worry about picking me out for the badge in my sig. i think that is the funniest badge ive seen on the forum. and i love the show so its like killing two birds with one stone. also, i know you said not to worry about the badge, but i got an idea. what if it was a CAD-style drawing of the words "Prototypes and Paper Projects GB 2004" or something like that? or maybe just one of a really odd looking-plane. just a thought. later.
Jon

Jon- Welcome to this crazy Group Build! I've never seen the Corsair prototype either, so this could be interesting. I've been meaning to change the first post to tell anyone who wants to join they can just jump right in. All I can say is- have fun! That's why I started this!

Matrixone- Good to see you made a good pic out of a bad situation! Anyway, thanks for the color info. It helps a lot. Also, I got your photocopies in the mail today. Thanks even more for those! They cleared up a lot of questions I might of had on the color sceme, especially the in flight shot. The article was a nice bonus, too. Explosives in the wing, eh? Who would have thought?

Work on the wing for me continues, albeit very slowly. I'm about halfway there lengthwise, which is just over a centemeter. I also drilled the hole for the main spar I need to put in (a dowel I found in the basement; except perhaps for a metal rod, it's the strongest thing I could find that would fit. It'll have to do.) to prevent warpage on the thin plastic, and to keep the fuselages together. It's much better than nothing, but I will still handle the finished product with care. (Painting kind of scares me. All that turning and flipping... *shudder*) A second hole will need to be drilled later to accomodate the eventual wiring for the motors.

Also, I've started to give some thought to an idea that's a little late, (OK, very late!) but not exactly essential. I've noticed most other GBs have some sort of badge that all members have in their signatures. Perfect example: (sorry to pick on you) rockabillyratrodz, aka Jon, with the Young Guns GB badge. You guys don't need to worry about it, but I'll look into possibly coming up with one. Like I said, not essential, but still a good idea.

QUOTE: Originally posted by Filibert Kraxner Hi Jon, welcome aboard! I don't know what the Corsair prototype looked like, and I'm looking forward to finding out . Have fun!

here are a few links im using for reference on the XF4U-1. notice that it looks very similar to the production Corsair.

http://aeroweb.brooklyn.cuny.edu/specs/vought/xf4u-1.htm

http://www.vought.com/heritage/products/html/xf4u-1.html

and im thinking of also doing the XFL-1. which was the prototype for the naval version of the P-39 Airacobra. it has a standard landing gear setup with a tailwheel and arrestor hook. also, the main wheels are movved forward to accomodate for a tailwheels instead of a nosewheel. from what i can see, it has a more pointed prop spinner without the 37mm cannon, a shorter tail rudder, and no guns in the nose. since tese are both pretty simple conversions, i might even build the NA-73X, prototype for the P-51 Mustang. well, better get abuildin'. later.
Jon

Hi Jon, welcome aboard! I don't know what the Corsair prototype looked like, and I'm looking forward to finding out . Have fun!

Jon, the more the merrier. Welcome to the GB.

Matrixone, from what I have read Italeri's Ju88/188 and Dornier 217J/K are as accurate as it gets, the only down side being the raised panel lines as you mention. The rescribing is just another skill to learn, although I've had to do a fair bit on the belly of the Ta183 as the body halves did not quite match up!!

Karl

Jon,

As far as I know your XF4U-1 quilifys for this GB, I don't know that much about the Corsair to say for certain.

My late war Fw 190D that I am building as part of this group build MIGHT be a prototype but I can't be sure about it 100% and it has been allowed in the GB.

Anyway, welcome to this GB and start building your Corsair and post some pics of it if possible.

Matrixone