Gloster Gamecock 1 fighter

[Balsabasher]

http://smm.solidmodelmemories.net/Gallery/albums/userpics/10005/GLOSTER_GAMECOCK_RS.JPG




In July 1924, Gloucestershire Aircraft began work on an improved Grebe single-seat fighter to Specification 37/23 and intended to be powered by the 398hp Bristol Jupiter IV nine-cylinder radial engine. Of wooden construction with fabric skinning and retaining the then-standard armament of two synchronised 7.7mm Vickers guns, and to receive the appellation of Gamecock, the prototype was delivered to Martlesham Heath on 20 February 1925. In the following September, an initial order was placed on behalf of the RAF for 30 Gamecock Is powered by the 425hp Jupiter VI. In the event, a further 60 Gamecock Is were built for the RAF (1925-27), one of these (unofficially known as the Gamecock III) at one time flying with a lengthened fuselage, new and enlarged fm-and-rudder assembly and narrow-chord ailerons. A developed version, the Gamecock II, with a steel-tube upper wing centre section, narrow-chord ailerons and a larger rudder, appeared in 1928. This was adopted by Finland, two pattern aircraft and a manufacturing licence being acquired. Fifteen Gamecock IIs were built for the Finnish air arm 1929-30 by the State Aircraft Factory (Valtion Lentokonenetehdas), these having the lengthened fuselage tested earlier in the UK by the so-called Gamecock III and being powered initially by the 420hp Gnome-Rhone Jupiter (IV) 9Ab or 9Ak and later by the 480hp Jupiter (IV) 9Ag. The last Gamecock Is were withdrawn from first-line RAF service mid-1931, Gamecock IIs remaining first-line Finnish equipment until 1935.

As a model subject the Gamecock presents some interesting challenges,if you look at the design then you will see that there are very few straight lines,the upperwing goes off at a tangent at the tip,the upper wing looking from the front tapers at the centre section,the engine merges into the front of the fuselage and the engine is far from straightforward to reproduce,but all of these are challenges that will be met as construction progreses,they all add to th character and charm of this 1920's fighter.


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[buccfan]

Another interesting build Barry, you're knocking them out at a fair rate now.Regards Paul J.

[Balsabasher]

Well yesterday was a glorious day here Paul,the chips were flying outside my workshop as work proceeded on the Gamecock,today it is throwing it down with rain here in the UK  so this will delay working on it,I like to keep the dust as much as possible outside !
Barry

[buccfan]

It's throwing it down here in East Yorkshire as well, but my new bandsaw just arrived so that brightened things up a little. Regards Paul J.

[lastvautour]

Nice going Barry. We can always rely on you to keep things moving on the site.

Lou

[Balsabasher]

Thats the spirit Lou,ongoing projects even if they take a bit more time than planned are all worthwhile.
To Paul I hope that you enjoy your new bandsaw,they certainly make light work of tough wood cutting jobs,what model have you got ?

Barry.

[buccfan]

I bought a Charnwood W715 10" table top model. It seems to be a solid piece of kit, the table piece itself is very heavy, I hope to set it up tomorrow.Regards Paul J.

[Balsabasher]

The weather was awful again today precluding opening the roller door and working outside with power tools,so I decided to work on the fuselage sides and glue them together,before this particular operation the parts needed careful alignment and pre-drilling for dowels that locate the three portions with accuracy,from past experience there is nothing more flustrating than applying adhesive,clamping up with the consequential slide and slipping of wood making alignment difficult and more so holding in place while the adhesive sets overnight,so the dowels are important especially on such a deep fuselage.
Another tip for glueing portions of timber together is this,take two pieces of very coarse glasspaper the rougher the better,apply the adhesive and while it is still wet allow some of the glass debris from the glasspaper to drop onto the glue as they are frictioned together,now clamp up the wood pressing the granules of glass between and into the wood,once pressed together there will be no slipping and sliding as those small sharp edges of glass grip like a crocodiles jaws !

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With time to spare I decided to start two of Nick Limbers designs from one of those lovely old pulp 'Flying Aces' magazines,Nick was a prolific plans designer back then producing some excellent workable drawings,here I picked the Navy hooded Stearman and the Curtiss Seagull,for these little models I have used some balsa offcuts from previous projects,the enjoyable task of producing some working templates and cutting balsa while the heavens poured down outside and my industrial 1 kw lamp taking the nip from the air in the workshop was comfortable,so today was not wasted and here is a start on some fill in projects to be tackled as and when I feel like it.

http://smm.solidmodelmemories.net/Gallery/albums/userpics/10005/START_OF_TWO_NICK_LIMBERS.JPG

[Balsabasher]

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[buccfan]

Fantastic work Barry, a master at work! and a very nice day for working outside.Regards Paul J.

[Balsabasher]

Rather than disturb placing text between those pictures which should be fairly explanatory anyway,I will just add a few notes here-

Once the laminated block has cured overnight proceed to taper off the fuselage to plan view,trial check the tailplane as any adjustments are easier to do now,it cannot be overstressed the importance of pre-planning things like tailplane slots,strut and undercarriage location holes which are nearly impossible to get correct once the block is shaped and removed fom the 'block' stage,this way the model evolves and really just happens as you go along,it is also re-assuring to know that no matter what you carve away those accurate holes remain constant to the very end.

Use the useful shadow check as shown to make sure that shapes are the same either side,simply run a straight edge along the top and as you slide it note for any differences which can easily be corrected,the shadow is your best guide to how the carving is going along,use it on the wing aerofoil as well running from root to wingtip,that shadow is the best fee tool that you will ever have !

Wing joner on lower wing simply rests proud in the slot prior to final shaping,once the Gorilla glue has foamed its way into the crevices and cured overnight you can take the rasp on it the next day,that glue is the best thing since fried bread for making dihedral joints.
You can see where I have sprayed the water activator as the lower wing rests in the quickly improvised jig.

The wood on the upper wing came from a piece of mahogany furniture,I can see now why the Phillipinoes use it on those commercial desk top models,it carves remarkably well and takes a nice sand,the lower wings are from some unknown wood from a set of drawers that were thrown out,it is close grained and carves beutifully as well,I use whatever is available and accept any wood that may prove useful,I even season my own timber outside to take the stresses and strains from it.

Barry.

[Balsabasher]

Spot on Paul,I spent six wonderful hours in the fresh air doing what I enjoy most,note the brand new American draw knife in use,its a fantastic tool and makes shaping up so easy as well,the only problem is I do not have a clue how to sharpen it up when the blade fades ? perhaps one of those hand held Arkansas stones,they are not cheap but I always purchase the best that I can afford.
Barry.

[Oceaneer99]

Barry, I learned how to use the drawknife carving wooden boat masts in the evenings in Alexandria, Virginia.  But another fellow would sharpen the tools during the day, so I never saw how he gave them such a keen edge.  I have two drawknives of my own.  One is German, and I'll have to see where the other is from.  But I have found that sharpening them is frustrating.  I can put a good edge on a knife, chisel, or plane, but haven't figured out the technique for the drawknife.  I think you are correct in that the usual technique is to fix the blade and move the stone, though a quick check of on-line resources had a variety of different methods.

Garet

[Balsabasher]

Garet I am seriously thinking of investing in one of those blade sharpeners,they are water cooled wide rotating stones with a device that holds the chisel exactly at the right angle,on the left is a large leather wheel for finishing,not sure if they would accept draw knives bit there is a possibility ? I think we should talk more about tool applications and sharpening them,it seems to be a black art and I for one want to know more about the mysteries of keeping a keen working edge.
We could devise our own angle sharpener for draw knives,something along the lines of the blade kept in place with a metal top strip clamped with wing nuts,have a think about it ? there is room for experimentation here.
Barry.

[buccfan]

Yes I noticed your drawknife and the other one you used to whittle out the cockpit. I think you must have more control over how much wood you remove with a drawknife, similar to a spokeshave. I may have to try one.Regards Paul J.