January 2011 - Ping

[lastvautour]

I look forward to the drawings and the completed model.

Lou

[Balsabasher]

With the pesky damage behind me now I have commenced building again for 2011,this is my current status-

Vickers ES.1 Bullet,started construction of the fuselage.

Fiat CR.30-Template stage.

BE2C-Template stage.

P-40 Warhawk's-Two models now assembled,one with hollowed cockpit,the other ID type.

Miles M52 Supersonic jet project-1=144th scale miniature started yesterday.

Heinkel 162 Salamander-Planned in 1=144th scale.

Tawney Owl-A small number of bespoke solid kits planned for sale to help raise funds for this site.

Thats it for a few days,Barry.

[Will]

Barry,

Your P-40 seems to be going a lot quicker than mine did last year!  Are the tail feathers ply (it looks like it in the photos)?  I used 1/16 balsa on mine and it was a bit soft for the thinner parts, especially the forward part of the rudder.  Next time I thought I'd laminate 2x 1/32 balsa as i wasn't sure if the varying grain directions in ply would end up odd when faired down to aerofoil shapes...

Will

[Balsabasher]

Will I mostly use quality resin bonded thin ply for thin tail areas,once sanded down to aerofoil and a few coats of primer it looks good,once more it is strong,my father used to use red fibre a material now difficult to obtain in thin sheets.
You can successfully use laminated balsa and do not be afraid to cross laminate with grain direction,it makes for strong surfaces and once again finishes off nicely with a bit of care.
You can also use a combination of balsa/ply which sands down really nicely,the secret is to experiment and see which methods suit yourself.
Next job is to make up the wing fillets from DAS modelling clay,once profiled by hand with wet fingers this is allowed to dry out then carefully lifted away and re-glued with cyno adhesive,you can also sand it to shape as well.
Happy whilttling,Barry.