Knights of the Sky WWI GB The End

Daywalker wrote:

". . .Oh, I have a question about applying lozenge decals.  DO you guys paint a light coat of white or gray under them to give them something to hold on to instead of bare plastic?"

Frank; Usually a coat of a gloss is good but with lozenge and the Micro Sol and Set system has always worked well for me.

Mike; Thank you  sir for your kind words. It does seem to be getting a bit of attention. I would like to do one with a little more varnished wood exposed in the cockpit.  When stocks ran low due to the blockade there had to be war time shortages.   We have images that reveal cockpit / interior formers were possibly varnished wood and the interior walls were the silbergraü in some cases.

Daywalker wrote:

"I managed to get quite a bit done on the DVIII this weekend. . .

Nicely Done!

Daywalker wrote:

"Thanks again Stephen.  I am planning on doing mine up in a nearly factory fresh scheme, so I may leave the wing as she sits.  I like the cupped look, but have no idea how to replicate it.  As for who just got to skin a wing, could it have been... you? . . ."

The answer is yes.  I helped finish the wing to our full scale flying replica Fokker E/V. We purchased the fuselage back in 2001 if memory serves.  The wing was scratch built from plans by our fabrication team headed up by Mike Desanti.  After curing, skinning and finishing the wing it was decided to apply & dope fabric over the whole wing for longevity. As a replica at high altitude it will have a large horse power Continnental engine.   The wing has been painted an overall green and looks ok, though not entirely accurate.  The fuselage is yellow with black diamonds from nose to tail.  The horizontal tail unit is yellow with a single black stripe on each elevator running fore to aft. 

We know that  Hauptmann Sachsenberg commanding Marine Feld Jasta I and the Marine Jagdgruuppe  flew a Fokker D.VII in this scheme.  And there is a photo of his Fokker E.V showing the diamonds on the forward fuselage in a hangar.  The image is dark and it is surrounded by people.  Curiously yellow tends to show up dark on orthocromatic film used during this time period son the diamonds are difficult to see if you dont have a good first generation image.

Thanks Stephen. 

A full scale flying E.V?  DO you have any WIP photos of the build?  I would love to see those!

Hmmm... Actually the guidelines of this GB don't say that it has to be a plastic model. Or resin... Just asking because I just purchased on ebay a "kit" of a Sopwith Camel .... from LEGO! Does that qualify? After all, it's some kind if plastic, isn't it?

Can't wait to build it - has been a REALLY long time that I played with lego.

SirDrake 

SirDrake-

You're correct!  The guidelines don't specifically mention those criteria.  So, I have added a "LEGO Sopwith Camel" to your list.  Now, you HAVE to post pics of it when you build it.

StephenLawson wrote:

Mike; Thank you  sir for your kind words. It does seem to be getting a bit of attention. I would like to do one with a little more varnished wood exposed in the cockpit.  When stocks ran low due to the blockade there had to be war time shortages.   We have images that reveal cockpit / interior formers were possibly varnished wood and the interior walls were the silbergraü in some cases.

Stephen, it was a very enjoyable read, and one I will refer to frequently when my build commences, so it is I sir, who must thank you.

...and I am glad you addressed the issue of the cockpit colors, specifically the formers and the interior walls. During my search for data on the Pfalz, this seemed to be where I found the most contradictory information. It was quite confusing, but you have done much to clear it up for me.

Daywalker wrote:

You're correct!  The guidelines don't specifically mention those criteria.  So, I have added a "LEGO Sopwith Camel" to your list.  Now, you HAVE to post pics of it when you build it.

Very well then... I'm curious to see about the kit quality. Hope the fit will be ok, or maybe I have to use a lot of putty? And what about weathering? 

Alas, the build will have to wait a bit as I'm leaving the country for a few weeks (actually visiting the USA...). But the fun of a lego session is certainly something to look forward to after may return.  

SD 

SD-

Hmmm... probably gonna need a lot of putty on that one, and weathering it could prove interesting! You're heading to the US?  Whereabouts?

sirdrake wrote:

"Hmmm... Actually the guidelines of this GB don't say that it has to be a plastic model. Or resin... Just asking because I just purchased on ebay a "kit" of a Sopwith Camel .... from LEGO! Does that qualify? After all, it's some kind if plastic, isn't it?  Can't wait to build it - has been a REALLY long time that I played with lego. SirDrake

ROFLMFBO

Daywalker wrote:

Thanks Stephen.   A full scale flying E.V?  DO you have any WIP photos of the build?  I would love to see those!

Yes I do!  While I am putting them onto a CD (150 high rez images) I might be able to post some images for general viewing.  I may even have to send out some to people who have expressed interest.

Stephen,

I for one would LOVE to see those photos!  The E/V and DVIII have always been my favorite WWI birds. 

Daywalker wrote:

SD- Hmmm... probably gonna need a lot of putty on that one, and weathering it could prove interesting! You're heading to the US?  Whereabouts?

Visiting good ol' Durham, North Carolina, where I lived and worked for four years. It's nice to be back from time to time.  

SD 

I posted this over in decals, but thought I might mention it here too.  Mike (ruddratt) was so kind as to send me some of the AWESOME Eagle Strike 4-color lozenge decal sets for my DVIII.  I decided to build a factory fresh aircraft as I couldn't find any other schemes I liked, but I don't think I have enough of the 4-color upper lozenge (ES 48011) to finish the job.  Does anyone have any they could spare?  Just tought I'd ask.

SD- Very cool!  South Carolina is a beautiful state, enjoy it while you're there!

Couple of questions for you guys on the Fokker DVIII:

Does anyone have a good match for the green on the main wing, cowl, and top metal deck? 

WOuld the bungee shock absorbers be visible next to the wheel, or would they be hidden under the axle wing?

Not sure if I have enough upper lozenge to do a factory fresh machine, does anyone have any wild color schemes?

Thanks in advance!

LEGO Camel - a look into the box...

Got my Camel kit today. Y'all know about Roden and Revell Camel kits, thought you might want to learn about how the Lego Camel differes from those kits... First impression: impressive! The kit has 577 parts (depending a bit on what you count as 'part'). So how many parts do your kits have...?

No PE parts, though - maybe there'll be a Lego Camel Profipack in the future? And all parts are already painted in their final colors. That'll save a lot of time during construction.

But I was surprised to see that none of the parts were attached to their sprues any more!

Actually there were no sprues at all! Well, that happens when you buy a used kit.. At least all parts are crisply molded. No flash whatsoever. However, many parts have quite distinctive ejector pin marks:

On the above part, for example, I counted 72 of them . Wow, this will require a lot of work to sand them down! I'm really hope they'll do better in future releases. And the parts are not numbered. It will be difficult to find out what goes where. But the instruction book (yes, book) has 52 pages, and is very detailed. Many parts have some sort of a rather 'unspecific' or 'generic' appearance.In my opinion, they lack detail:

Others seem to be recycled from other kits. Look at  what they sell for spoked wheels:

Maybe thats where the word 'steering wheel' comes from?. Or the cylinders for the rotary engine:

Did someone say bullhorn?
 
The build will start mid March. I'll keep you posted!

SirDrake

sirdrake, that has got to be the most clever and funniest post I've ever read here!! I'm still LMAO!! Thanks!!!  I can't wait to see this built up! Did they short-change you on the decals, because I didn't see any? Lot's of surface detail, though!

...and I got outbid on the Roden Pfalz, but eBay has plenty, so I'll be trying again soon. So for now, Frank, if you could add the Eduard 1/48 Albatros D.V to my entry list.

ruddratt wrote:

sirdrake, that has got to be the most clever and funniest post I've ever read here!! I'm still LMAO!! Thanks!!!  I can't wait to see this built up! Did they short-change you on the decals, because I didn't see any? Lot's of surface detail, though!

ROTFLMFAO!!!

ruddratt wrote:

...and I got outbid on the Roden Pfalz, but eBay has plenty, so I'll be trying again soon. So for now, Frank, if you could add the Eduard 1/48 Albatros D.V to my entry list.

Mike- I updated your list, can't wait to see her!  An Albatros would be next on my "to get" list.

Daywalker wrote:

Couple of questions for you guys on the Fokker DVIII: Does anyone have a good match for the green on the main wing, cowl, and top metal deck?  WOuld the bungee shock absorbers be visible next to the wheel, or would they be hidden under the axle wing? Not sure if I have enough upper lozenge to do a factory fresh machine, does anyone have any wild color schemes? Thanks in advance!

1. Testors Model master dark green (flat of course)

2. In the axle wing.  You would have to remove  the wheel to see the access to the bungees on the originals.

3.

Daywalker wrote:

Thanks Stephen!  I am hoping to paint the wing in the next couple of days, it'll be nice to actually do some airbrushing!   Is that the scheme your full-scale Fokker will wear?  Holy cow that's wild!

Yes it is.  But they too, painted the wing a solid green instead of the camouflaged version. I could tell you stories about replicas and paint scheme applications that would make your hair stand on end.  Try  a SSW D.IV in "all" purple and yellow.

StephenLawson wrote:

Daywalker wrote: Thanks Stephen!  I am hoping to paint the wing in the next couple of days, it'll be nice to actually do some airbrushing!   Is that the scheme your full-scale Fokker will wear?  Holy cow that's wild!   Yes it is.  But they too, painted the wing a solid green instead of the camouflaged version. I could tell you stories about replicas and paint scheme applications that would make your hair stand on end.  Try  a SSW D.IV in "all" purple and yellow.

I was recently sent this to review.  Its geared to the average modeler and is very well done.  Very cool stuff.  The author discusses items he made to detail an old Lindberg Biplane.  If you have a kit that you wish you had a better cockpit for, or a better engine to use - this may be your ticket.

Mold Making & resin casting

I have come to that point where I can (sort of) gracefully say I have reached a "draw" with my Eduard Siemens-Schuckert D.IIIa.  Not all of the PE parts are there, though I still can locate most of them.  I lost one of the interplane struts when the entire kit box got catapulted across the room, Contrail strut stock was used to make new ones for both sides.  The upper lozenge is my third go, Stephen was kind enough to tell me I had abused the pooch buy putting on a 4 color scheme on my second go, the first died whern the kit decals broke up.  I hope they are OK now.  Look OK to me, but I am sure that is NOT an expert opinion.  SOB  (Darn! I had so hoped I wouldn't start whining again!)

It is not perfect, but it is the best darn SSD. IIIa I've built so far. OOOOrahhhh!

Thanks to everyone, especially Stephen Lawson, for the help.