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                        "Size Matters" - Large aircraft build '06-Whenever

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                        171 replies
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                        123456
                        Lucien Harpress
                        • Member since
                          June 2003
                        • From: A Computer in Adrian, (SE) Michigan.
                        Posted by Lucien Harpress on Monday, July 10, 2006 10:13 AM
                        My H-4 build inches forward.  After running out of balsa on my other elevator, I put that aside and started to solve some other problems.  I think I've solved the problem of reliably installing the electric motors into each engine nacelle, allowing me to motorize this bird (something I've wanted to do since day one).  In addition, I realize that I'm going to need to build a dedicated vacuform box to make a couple canopies.  My last major problem is finding a good wing spar.  With a four foot wingspan, I need something rather beefy.

                        Anyway, there's my small update.  Work continues...
                        That which does not kill you makes you stranger...
                        -The Joker
                        Report Abuse
                        Anonymous
                        • Member since
                          November 2005
                        Posted by Anonymous on Monday, July 10, 2006 10:37 AM
                        i have some progress on the repairs, but the damage is too much. i had to search for some extra def MGs, and finished replacing the 20 mm upper turret cannon for a 7,7 MG provided by the kit.
                        Report Abuse
                        gedenke
                        • Member since
                          November 2005
                        • From: Southern Oregon, USA
                        Posted by gedenke on Monday, July 10, 2006 4:33 PM

                        Well I'm glad to hear that many of you are making some good progress lately, because I am not. Sad [:(] I haven't even touched my B-24 for a couple of weeks now. I've been a bit busy with that whole "life gets in the way" thing.

                        As I'm sure most of you are aware of, we are offically underway on the GB, so, even though it's about 10 days late (see "life" reference above), the green flags are out and we're off and running. Everyone that's in have fun and enjoy the build, I'll be looking forward to all of your great offerings. And those of you who haven't joined (or want to), no worries, you can join any time up until JULY 1st 2007.

                        Happy Building!!! Thumbs Up [tup] (or for some of you, happy "repairing", if there is such a thing)

                         

                        -Geoff There is an art . . . to flying. The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. — Douglas Adams, 'The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy'.
                        Report Abuse
                        tho9900
                        • Member since
                          July 2004
                        • From: SETX. USA
                        Posted by tho9900 on Monday, July 10, 2006 7:02 PM

                        Geoff - understood, I am just now getting out of my funk... It was a long stretch with no modeling for me....

                        My stuff from greatmodels gets here tomorrow so I will break it out and study it.  I got the "collectors edition" Eduard PE set for the B-26J (whatever the colloectors thing means... it is not quite as big as the "Big Ed" Eduard set but it's 2 large sheets... should keep me busy for a bit!  I got the True Details wheels and the Eduard Masks... after masking a 1/72 He-111 I live by these things now!!!  Laugh [(-D]

                         

                        ---Tom--- O' brave new world, That has such people in it!
                        Report Abuse
                        tho9900
                        • Member since
                          July 2004
                        • From: SETX. USA
                        Posted by tho9900 on Monday, July 10, 2006 7:05 PM

                        Josh, LL, Mike, Martin - good news on your progress, and to you Martin I hope you get it straightened out with the damage!

                        Hopefully I will be adding my own progress to the list soon!

                        ---Tom--- O' brave new world, That has such people in it!
                        Report Abuse
                        gedenke
                        • Member since
                          November 2005
                        • From: Southern Oregon, USA
                        Posted by gedenke on Monday, July 10, 2006 10:43 PM

                         Living Legend wrote:
                        Well I think Ive just about got it ready for primining.  As long as I dont bust open any more seams.  This has been a difficult build for me.  I must say that I have improved at rescibing panel lines, but I still have much to learn...

                        LL, you might find this link to Swanny's website useful. I personnally skip the part about scraping with the curved blade and go straight to sanding after I scribe, but overall his process works like a charm, especially the dymo tape.

                        http://www.swannysmodels.com/Scribing.html

                        -Geoff There is an art . . . to flying. The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. — Douglas Adams, 'The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy'.
                        Report Abuse
                        Anonymous
                        • Member since
                          November 2005
                        Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, July 11, 2006 5:11 AM

                        Swanny's site is awesome.

                        Report Abuse
                        Anonymous
                        • Member since
                          November 2005
                        Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, July 11, 2006 9:51 AM
                        thanks for the support, friends. i have some extra progress. some other parts cant be repaired well, like the wing turret's machineguns.
                        Report Abuse
                        Anonymous
                        • Member since
                          November 2005
                        Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, July 22, 2006 11:22 PM

                        Hey gang!

                         

                        Is it too late for me to join? I'm a bit of an amateur when it comes to planes...but I just started the 1/144 Revell Antonov AN124 kit....

                        Report Abuse
                        gedenke
                        • Member since
                          November 2005
                        • From: Southern Oregon, USA
                        Posted by gedenke on Sunday, July 23, 2006 3:27 PM
                        Not too late Johnny, welcome aboard! You may want to keep an eye on bwr1's (Bruce) build, as he's building an AN-225. We'll be looking forward to your progress.
                        -Geoff There is an art . . . to flying. The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. — Douglas Adams, 'The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy'.
                        Report Abuse
                        rudy_102
                        • Member since
                          December 2005
                        • From: Ontario, Canada
                        Posted by rudy_102 on Monday, July 24, 2006 3:45 AM
                        Would the 1/72 scale Italeri Zwilling be enough? It's got one heck of a wingspan......
                        Report Abuse
                        gedenke
                        • Member since
                          November 2005
                        • From: Southern Oregon, USA
                        Posted by gedenke on Monday, July 24, 2006 4:10 AM

                        Rudy, if you're wanting to join with a 1/72 Zwilling, I'd say "heck yeah", and welcome aboard! Having never heard of that aircraft, I got curious and did a quick image search, and man, that is one crazy looking aircraft! I can only imagine the cracks that must've formed in that middle wing spar.

                        Keep us posted on your progress, Rudy.

                        -Geoff There is an art . . . to flying. The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. — Douglas Adams, 'The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy'.
                        Report Abuse
                        PanzerWulff
                        • Member since
                          November 2004
                        • From: Salisbury Massachucetts USA
                        Posted by PanzerWulff on Monday, July 24, 2006 3:14 PM
                        HEH Gedenke ever seen the Behemoth glider that thing was designed to tow the messerschmitt Me321 Gigant they also had a variant with 6 engines the Me323 but it was rather "Underpowered" Shock [:O] for it's size
                        ACE??? you were NEVER an ace AN ace HOLE maybe! (Lister to Rimmer on BBC's RED DWARF) Chris"Hey GRAVITY still works"Gray
                        Report Abuse
                        gedenke
                        • Member since
                          November 2005
                        • From: Southern Oregon, USA
                        Posted by gedenke on Monday, July 24, 2006 10:27 PM
                        No, kidding! Those crazy Germans always building thier ugly aircraft!
                        -Geoff There is an art . . . to flying. The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. — Douglas Adams, 'The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy'.
                        Report Abuse
                        rudy_102
                        • Member since
                          December 2005
                        • From: Ontario, Canada
                        Posted by rudy_102 on Tuesday, July 25, 2006 3:44 AM
                        I'ld say the An-12 and C-130 were based on captured German research on the Me323.Everything points to it: all three have a high wing, lotsa wheels, nose and tail doors and 4+ engines. I'ldve gotten the Gigant if only I found the Italeri one. It would look great with the Zwilling.
                        Report Abuse
                        Lucien Harpress
                        • Member since
                          June 2003
                        • From: A Computer in Adrian, (SE) Michigan.
                        Posted by Lucien Harpress on Thursday, July 27, 2006 9:25 PM
                        Many transport aircraft were based on those characteristics- they make sense.

                        • High Wing- Putting the main wing spar on the top of the fuselage leaves more room for cargo.  A low- or mid-spar would get in the way.
                        • Many Fuselage Mounted Wheels- Many wheels make for a smoother ride and spread the footprint of the aircraft out more, which allows greater rough-field performance and is easier on runways.  They're fuselage mounted becuase (with a high wing) wing-mounted landing gear would have overly long weak(er) struts, and take up more room in the wing.
                        • Nose and Tail Doors- Allows for straight-through loading and greater flexibility.
                        • Four + Engines- What can I say?  Cargo loads are heavy!  Big Smile [:D]
                        Aircraft like the Me 323 and the H-4 "Spruce Goose" (among others) really ushered in this now "classic" form of transport aircraft.  Look at all the "copycats"- C-130, C-141, An 225, An 12, etc, etc, etc.

                        I've done a bit more work on my H-4.  Here's the pics.

                        http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v296/LHprs/tailwood.jpg
                        http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v296/LHprs/spar.jpg
                        http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v296/LHprs/spardetail.jpg
                        http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v296/LHprs/nacellecompare.jpg
                        http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v296/LHprs/motorrunning.jpg
                        That which does not kill you makes you stranger...
                        -The Joker
                        Report Abuse
                        rudy_102
                        • Member since
                          December 2005
                        • From: Ontario, Canada
                        Posted by rudy_102 on Friday, July 28, 2006 11:52 AM
                        Lucien, are you trying to get that to be RC? It stand out among these stand-outs....
                        Report Abuse
                        Lucien Harpress
                        • Member since
                          June 2003
                        • From: A Computer in Adrian, (SE) Michigan.
                        Posted by Lucien Harpress on Friday, July 28, 2006 1:51 PM
                         rudy_102 wrote:
                        Lucien, are you trying to get that to be RC? It stand out among these stand-outs....


                        Naw.  After this much work (and not to mention money), I'd just crash it.  Laugh [(-D]  The spinning props are for looks only.  I had a few motors lyin' around and thought "Hey, why not?"  Thank you for the comment, though.  Wink [;)]Thumbs Up [tup]

                        That which does not kill you makes you stranger...
                        -The Joker
                        Report Abuse
                        rudy_102
                        • Member since
                          December 2005
                        • From: Ontario, Canada
                        Posted by rudy_102 on Friday, July 28, 2006 3:53 PM
                        Lol the old "gravity works depending on the value of the plane in question" theory, right?
                        Report Abuse
                        gedenke
                        • Member since
                          November 2005
                        • From: Southern Oregon, USA
                        Posted by gedenke on Saturday, July 29, 2006 6:11 PM
                        Mike, looks like you're H-4 is coming along great. I see you finally found something strong enough for your wing spar!
                        -Geoff There is an art . . . to flying. The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. — Douglas Adams, 'The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy'.
                        Report Abuse
                        rudy_102
                        • Member since
                          December 2005
                        • From: Ontario, Canada
                        Posted by rudy_102 on Sunday, July 30, 2006 6:49 PM
                        Well, I've started on the Zwilling, with the outer wings attached and the interior painted Pale green, and one cockpit started. Still waiting on a digital camera.
                        Report Abuse
                        gedenke
                        • Member since
                          November 2005
                        • From: Southern Oregon, USA
                        Posted by gedenke on Wednesday, August 2, 2006 6:23 AM

                        Hey, guys check this beast out! I saw this today and thought about the "ugly aircraft" conversation from the other day. It's some kind of "Russian Amphibious Assault Ground Effect Thingamajig". Whatever it is, it's hideous!

                        -Geoff There is an art . . . to flying. The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. — Douglas Adams, 'The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy'.
                        Report Abuse
                        rudy_102
                        • Member since
                          December 2005
                        • From: Ontario, Canada
                        Posted by rudy_102 on Wednesday, August 2, 2006 11:19 AM
                        I heard of that thing!!!!!!! It's the Russian WIG (Wing In Ground) thing!!!!!!!!! I'll get back to on the name once I check my references.
                        Report Abuse
                        bwr1
                        • Member since
                          July 2003
                        • From: Redmond, WA
                        Posted by bwr1 on Wednesday, August 2, 2006 3:38 PM

                        Ekranoplan:

                        http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ekranoplan

                        There are lots of different versions.  A couple of them have/had wingspans over 40m.  I have plans for those and have toyed with scratchbuilding them but that's probably a long way off (too many real planes I want to build first).

                        Bruce

                        Report Abuse
                        Lucien Harpress
                        • Member since
                          June 2003
                        • From: A Computer in Adrian, (SE) Michigan.
                        Posted by Lucien Harpress on Wednesday, August 9, 2006 7:33 PM
                        ...and these designs are being used to help design (hopefully) the next generation of transport aircraft-

                        http://www.boeing.com/news/frontiers/archive/2002/september/i_pw.html

                        Just for comparison, I figured it out, and a 1/72 model of this aircraft would have a seven foot wingspan.  Yes, SEVEN feet.

                        Yee Haw.

                        I'm hoping they actually build and fly one.  Even though, I doubt they ever will.

                        Work on the H-4 is mostly "busy" work- small details that aren't really noticeable, but need to be done.  Oh, well.  Work continues...
                        That which does not kill you makes you stranger...
                        -The Joker
                        Report Abuse
                        rudy_102
                        • Member since
                          December 2005
                        • From: Ontario, Canada
                        Posted by rudy_102 on Wednesday, August 9, 2006 8:05 PM

                        HOLY S*** THAT'S HUGE!!!!! AND HIDEOUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! OOOOOOO!!!!!!

                        Well, that's my rant for now, and I am here to report that the Zwilling needs to be painted so that some clear parts can be added. Otherwise it's done.

                        Report Abuse
                        photoman_68
                        • Member since
                          August 2006
                        • From: Belgrade, Montana
                        Posted by photoman_68 on Monday, August 21, 2006 5:33 PM

                        Hi, I am back! Not sure what the heck happened but Finescale kicked my ID out of the forum and I can't unlock my old ID , ipms33206. Now I am photoman_68. Anybody else with this issue? I will give an update soon.

                         

                        Mark Goin' Mach 2 with his hair on fire!

                        Report Abuse
                        mr.chex
                        • Member since
                          August 2006
                        • From: In the Middle of a Corn Field
                        Posted by mr.chex on Monday, August 21, 2006 7:14 PM

                        CAN I JOIN IN I HAVE A 1/72 VICTOR TANKER? Question [?] I'VE JUST DONE LESS THAN 25% OF THE WORK.Question [?]

                         

                        GO HUSKERS!!!! Projects 1/72 VF-102 F-14B "Diamond Backs" 1/72 German Mig-29 1/72 German RF-4 1/48 What If German F-16
                        Report Abuse
                        gedenke
                        • Member since
                          November 2005
                        • From: Southern Oregon, USA
                        Posted by gedenke on Monday, August 21, 2006 8:11 PM
                        Mark, glad to hear you were able to get back in business, and sorry to hear about your hassle. I'll update the list.
                        -Geoff There is an art . . . to flying. The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. — Douglas Adams, 'The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy'.
                        Report Abuse
                        gedenke
                        • Member since
                          November 2005
                        • From: Southern Oregon, USA
                        Posted by gedenke on Monday, August 21, 2006 8:14 PM
                        mr. chex...absolutely! Welcome aboard, I hope you enjoy the GB. I'll put you on the list. Who makes your kit, by the way?
                        -Geoff There is an art . . . to flying. The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. — Douglas Adams, 'The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy'.
                        Report Abuse
                        123456
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