Mike (ruddrat) - glad to see you are familiar with those turnbuckle products, and hope you or anyone else, can shed some light on which types to use on an Albatros.  I see there is one specifically aimed for that aircraft, but has one end like a ball joint ??   I'm assuming there would be two types required, one for regular bracing and another for the control surfaces.   So what would you suggest I order?

regards,

Jack

OK, time to get started. I will be constructing Heller's 1/72 scale Roland C.II. This was a German two-seater  reconnaissance plane built by Luft-Fahrzeug-Gesellschaft (LFG) and introduced in 1916. Here is the box art:

And a view of the kit contents. As you can see there is a lot of flash, mold plugs, mold pins, sink holes etc. etc. Should be a lot of fun to build!

This will be built mostly out of the box with the exception of the MG's. I picked up Eduard PE and Mini-World PE to replace the Spandau & Parabellum MG's respectively:

For starters I'm cleaning up the parts and trying to come up with some sort of methodology as far as painting, glueing and rigging goes. There's a lot of ideas here in this forum and out on the web and I'm sorting through them and seeing what I like and what makes sense.

It looks like a few others have gotten off to very good starts. I'll keep you posted with mine! 

I didn't really get a chance to get to the bench until yesterday evening, but I made some progress.

Here's the wings glued up on my piece of glass and set with a steel straightedge.

These are butt joints and the wings are so thin that I couldn't add pins. Also they have about 10 sprue gates around the perimeter of each part to get the casting to be that delicate, and removal and sanding took quite a while working slowly so as not to ruin the shapes.

Here are the blocks. I've added sump access covers to the bottoms, and later there will be an oil pipe coming out of the center of each.

I also got the brass painting done on the radiator tanks and the cam shaft covers. I'll post those up tonight.

YES! Awesome stuff from all of you!

Great to see TZombie coming online, and GM, super progress. Did I miss it, or did you decide what you were going to do for brass paint? Phil, good work on your engine and in the WIP (everyone, make sure to keep your eyes on that build, too).

Bish and Freem, good to have you guys in the pack now.

A quick update: I painted the interior frame this weekend and applied the decals to the bulkhead behind the seat along with maximal fuel gauge and the altimeter. Onward!

Great job, everyone!

TZ & GM: Great stuff there guys!

One step forward and three back tonight. While cleaning up the seams on the fuselage I manage to dislodge the fuel tank, seat and joystick.  Not much gluing surface for those things and I guess I sqeezed too hard while sanding.  I glued some thin strip stock to replace the framework but after studying some more photos I think the best way to replicate what can be seen under the skin is to prime in white and line the framework in grey to get a shadow effect,  Doesn't seem to be a lot of sag in the fuse cover and especially not as noticeable in 72 scale. Decided while the fuse is open to run control lines from the rudder pedals and stick.

Freem

On another note I was sitting at my desk yesterday contemplating my Albatros build, and it came to me that I have almost no documentation/books/video on WW1 aircraft then I remembered an old movie I watched as a kid the "blue Max"  with George Peppard, so I went to the library and the actually had a copy on dvd,  so as soon as I find time I'm going to watch it as I build, which is usually what I do any way.  I do have fly boys in my dvd collections at home, so I'll be watching that one too.

John

I finished up the radiators last night, and I think they came out well. In addition to replacing the grilles with PE, I added the filler spouts, caps and cap locks.

I used a 4/1 mixture of Testors Gold and Silver enamel to paint the brass. It just takes enough of that gilded look out, and lightens it up a little.

Really enjoying all the updates fellas! Keep 'em comin'!

Jack - I took another look at those turnbuckles, and if it were me building that kit, I'd be going with the Albatros buckles for your bracing wires and the -C types for your control lines. Can't wait to try these little buggers - they look amazing!

TZ - that's a sweet looking kit, and all that PE is really going to beef it up nicely. Can't wait to see more pics!

freem - that is a major bummer man. I hope that the repair work goes well so you can move on with the build.

John - I love those movies, but it's been ages since I've seen "The Blue Max" and quite a while since I've seen "Flyboys", but man, what a way to create the right atmosphere for these builds. I'm gonna have to snag 'em both before I'm finished.

Tim - definitely looking forward to more Fokker pics!

GM - great progress!  ...and man, the detail on those radiators looks insane! That is gonna be one sweet build!

Not much to report on the E.III, but I did finally receive my Iwata Eclipse - 6 days from the states to the great white north, that's gotta be some sort of record. Can't wait to hook it up and try it out! Got most of the cockpit parts cleaned up, rigged where needed, and ready for paint. Should be making some major headway thursday night.

GM: I like it, they look good to me!

I currently have a dilemma,  my Eduard  albatros D III has no control horns for the elevator, being the semi perfectionist  this bugs me, and since my Eduard D. V albatros does have them it bugs me even more. Any ideas on  the best way to replicate these?  they are about 1/16th of an inch wide and about 3/16 tall.  

John

John, not sure which of the D. III kits you have but I think if you get close to what's in the pic below you'll be fine.  1st off... 1/16 by 3/13 scale up to 3" thick and 9" tall.  While I don't know exactly what size they are... they sure as heck ain't that So I would make them just a bit smaller. 

From the profile below you can see the top and bottom together make a more or less triangular shape.  I would cut a triangle out of sheet plastic... metal would be better.  Some brass fret from a PE set is great for this kind of thing.  Once you have the triangle, file each side a tiny bit so it s a little concave.  Make a little slot in the leading edge of the elevator and glue the triangle in the slot.  Drill your holes for the rigging before gluing in place.  You can likely make these in less time it took me to type and spell check this

Marc,

 thanks for the help.   those dimensions I gave were just a guess, cuz I'm at work and the model is 60 miles away.   I better get my tweezers and magnifying hood on.

  I have the Albatros D. III OEFFAG 153 1/48 kit weekend edition

John

The link below is from the 153 Profipack that has the PE control horns.  Check the last page before the color schemes and you can see the basic shape of one side.

http://www.eduard.com/store/out/media/8241.pdf

Getting very near the end of the Kingtiger.  While I am waiting for the Milliput butt on one of the figures to harden I did a bit more on the prop.  Part 2 of the SBS...

Cut away as much of the excess as you can.  BTW if you don't have a Sears Handi-Cut near the bench... get one.  You'll be surprised how often you use it.  Cutting thicker plastic, soft metals, sanding twigs to name a few.

Get close to the line with a coarse sanding drum on the ol' Dremel.

Finish off with a sanding block fr better control checking against the plastic prop as you go.  If your just barely "take the line out" you should be just about right.  I left the tiniest little edge for any adjustments that might be needed later.

Next thing will be to sand the curve.  As said before, one of the reasons to do this prop is all the curve is on one side.  There is a bit of a flat area on the front so that need to be marked to see where to draw the reference line.  Using a mechanical pencil with the lead extended a bit and holding it level, mark the curve from the mark to the tip.

Marc: Very cool! Don't think I'll be trying it considering how small the prop on my fighter is but if I ever build a 1/32nd kit I might give it a whirl.

Hey TZombie is that Roland kit a repop of the old Airfix?  I have it in the stash and I could be inspired...

Quick update: The D.VII's cockpit is coming together. I jumped the gun and added the yoke to the control stick before drilling the holes for the control lines. I'm going to have to think about an alternative connecting method or a way to drill the holes without snapping the part.

Overall, I'd have to say this is a challenging build, but a ton of fun. I haven't put the decals on the wings yet. We'll see what sort of time I have tomorrow at the office.

Marc - You almost have me convinced to try this. I'll have to see which prop is supposed to go on my build and assess my potential for totally screwing it up.

Be well, everyone.

Tim

Ah yes the potential for totally screwing it up factor.  A number or notion that is not quantifiable, undetermined, and undefined yet weighs heavily in the minds of modelers sometimes causing then to run screaming into the night.  It have something to do with the relationship between the part count, number of tools on the bench and the number of fingers involved.

I just returned from running screaming in the night ...

And I've updated the first post with Shiv's new kit.

freem

It's small

Small, so you use a microscope to work on that!?! 

Good Friday to all of you World War I aeroplane fanatics! Aaron's recovered from his ear ache and is getting back into the shop. It's been a busy time here, but we are making steady progress. Here's our latest vlog.

Have a great weekend everyone, and happy modeling!

freem - man, you ain't kidding when you say small. That thing is microscopic! No way my fat fingers could attempt something that size. Looking forward to more pics!

Tim - another great vlog entry. I now find myself eagerly awaiting each new installment. The 'pit is looking real nice. These kits are such a joy to build! Looks like Aaron's making some good progress too.

....and yep, the GB is really starting to pick up steam now...excellent!!

ruddratt

 

Bish - another vote for Tamiya deck tan. Makes a great CDL color. It's all I use. You'll also like it under a coat of Future when you're simulating a wood grain finish. Nice to see you getting started on your build. I've been eagerly awaiting this one!

Mike, sorry i missed your post. That colour is looking spot on. I will bear that tip in mind. Not a lot of detail on the inside of this, but will get some pics posted before i close her up. Ashide from a bit of clean up, this should be a nice easy build, no worrying about PE or resin. My only concern is the rigging, but i have been giving it some thought and think i have a plan.

No worries Bish. I'm looking forward to your build, and I'm very curious to see how you handle the rigging on it. There are probably as many methods as there are modelers. Keep in mind though to work from the inside out - this way you don't have to work around any rigging that's already installed.

Been making steady progress on the E.III. All the 'pit components are primed and have their base colors on (except for the natural metal surfaces). Nothing photo-worthy yet, but a few more days and I'll be posting some pics.

Hey, Freem - if I can do it, you can too.  Picture is an Eduard 1/72 E.IV from a few years back.  My first WW1 kit, 'cause...well, it's easy right?  There's only one wing after all.

My F.1 build has been proceeding at a glacial pace.  The picture at the end shows bits and pieces of the F.1, a Pfalz D.III and a 1/144 C-46 (how'd that get in there?...).  Much sanding, trimming, fitting, etc.  I did manage to remove the incorrectly located inspection panel on the top wing and replace it with .005" clear styrene.  I would have included a picture, but it's..well..clear, so's ya can't sees it.  Great work, everyone...looking forward to more updates from the weekend!

Gentlemen

More info added to my WIP but below is the rigging for inside the cockpit, the two sides took me 3 hours but more info on my WIP

Phil

[Tim Edit: I added the link to Phil's WIP.]

Chuck--NICE!!. Thanks for the inspiration. Now to bear down and get 'er done!  I think the Eduard kit is better than the ICM so I'll have the challenge of bringing it up to that standard. One wing--what could go wrong with only one wing???

freem

Chuck--NICE!!. Thanks for the inspiration. Now to bear down and get 'er done!  I think the Eduard kit is better than the ICM so I'll have the challenge of bringing it up to that standard. One wing--what could go wrong with only one wing???

Exactly...that's what I was saying right before I pulled the last of the bracing wires and folded the gear up.  Good luck with the ICM kit...I think you're right, I had an easier time of it with Eduard.