Tutorial Intermediate - Douglas DC-3/C-47 - WWII ID Model

[lastvautour]

Take care to properly mark the slot for the horizontal tail plane. Mark it on both sides. This a good reason to have a square block at this point so you can measure distances and copy the image from one side to the next when you cannot use the templates.

Lou

[lastvautour]

Next secure the block in a vice or hold on to it carefully and cut the slot. I used a coping saw and then a hacksaw to widen the slot. Care must be taken with the coping saw as it will want to wander so work slow.
Once the slot id close to the size required, use a small file or sandpaper to finish off. The stab should be snug but not overly stiff in the slot. This will avoid cracking the aft fuselage. We perform this task now when the wood is thick and less likely to crack.

Lou

[lastvautour]

You may use a hobby knife or a chisel to cutout the outline of the rear fuselage as seen from the side. Work slowly taking a bit of wood at a time.

Lou

[lastvautour]

The front of the fuselage is a bit harder as we want to preserve the step window shape. I remove the majority of the wood with my chisel and then move to the hobby knife.

Lou

[lastvautour]

Once shaped to the side view profile, mark the center line on the fuselage. To draw the nose outline to have to hold the template horizontal and eye down the side to get the proper outline. I use a mechanical pencil with a long lead and then work on the lines freehand. The tail is fairly easy as it is possible of placing the template directly on the wood.

Lou

[lastvautour]

Using my favorite tool, the fuselage top profile is shaped to the drawn image. Once the majority of the wood is removed, the fuselage is sanded using the bench sandpaper sheet. As basswood is quite soft, a coarse piece of sandpaper will cut the materiel rather quickly so be careful when sanding with low grit paper.

Lou

[lastvautour]

As a confirmation of the correct outline, you may cutout the top view and use the outer outline to place against the model. This "female" template should be tight against the fuselage otherwise we have removed too much materiel.

Lou

[lastvautour]

I had to laminate the wing block to get the proper cord depth. These glue joints must be left to dry at least overnight. I use white carpenter glue but have tried many others in the past. If doing so in future, always line up the grain of the wood to be parallel to each other.

Lou

[lastvautour]

The trailing edge was sanded smooth and straight before adding the outline of the wing. Once things were dry I cut close to the outline and sanded the rest on my bench sandpaper.

Lou

[lastvautour]

As basswood is rather soft and so easy to sand especially when it is as thin as this, care must be taken not to remove too much wood. So, a few swipes and check, swipe and check will avoid heartaches. Note the direction of the sanding operation is represented by the arrows.


Lou

[lastvautour]

Trimming the tips can be done using a shape knife as we are cutting at a steep angle. Always cut so that if the knife slips, the split will occur going away from the part. Again I cut close to the line and then finish with the sanding block.

Lou

[lastvautour]

Time for a progress report. The stab is merely placed in the slot and the vertical fin is held by a straight pin from the bottom up. Up to this point everything is in block form.

Lou

PS the main wing edges have yet to be sanded.

[High Plains]

Tonight I chiseled a little too much from the fuselage block. I tried to fix it by laminating a thin piece of basswood to the block, but may have instead created a big,  gloopy mess. Will know more in the morning

[High Plains]

In the light of day, the fuselage block looks OK. I struggled with the chisel last night. I wasn't able to get the wing as smooth as I wanted and I still have a significant amount of sanding to do. The fuselage block was easier once I put it into my vice, but I chiseled a tad too much. Will post pictures when I have a chance.

Lou, I have a piece of basswood that is 1/16 inch thick. I'm going to use it for the fin and stabilizer unless you feel that for practice and learning purposes I should thin out the pieces I had already cut out.

Jeremy

[Mark Braunlich]

Jeremy
Adding slabs of wood to fix errors is entirely acceptable and common, at least on my models.  Check out the early photos in my thread on the P-80A I restored a couple of years ago.

http://smm.solidmodelmemories.net/SMF/index.php?topic=700.0

Carry on!
Mark