crazypoet

Quick update, with pictures to follow later. I've not had near as much bench time as I'd like, but progress is actually happening. I have more of the hull planked, and the hot well and condenser are both nearly done. I ended up doing a bunch of extra work on both, to make them a bit more period and purpose appropriate. Once through these, it's back to the home PE and finishing the engine. Pics to follow!

Here's the one picture I've found so far: It's from the photo collection of the pilot of the AC I'm building, so there's a good chance that it's "my" bird in the photo

As I'm continuing my research for this, I came across a reference for "Honeycomb" racks for the 23# parafrag bomb, that allowed B-25s to carry up to 72 parafrags hanging vertically. It was a field mod for B-25s in the Southwest Pacific, based on a design first used in A-20s in 1943. It was a common loading for airfield attacks, but it's not described at any level of detail in any of the standard technical manuals from the era. I've only found a single photo of this load type - badly lit, just showing the noses of the bombs from an oblique angle looking up at the bay from the left/front of the AC - I'll copy and link it here when I have a chance later today. Has anyone seen any other info on these?

Urk. Well then. I guess it's the lathe, evergreen and brass then! I love a challenge... :/

It's still going to be a while before I start my B-25 strafer - which is a good thing, as I'm still digging up info and finding AM parts. It is in that spirit that I come before you all on blended knee and ask: "Does *anyone* make 1/32 scale Parafrag clusters for this beast???" I'm speaking specifically of these guys: If push comes to shove I'll find a way to scratch them (the Dremel-lathe comes to mind), but I'd much rather not... I'm going to need 6 clusters to finish this the way I'd like - bay open and loading in-progress. Have any of you seen or heard of these little beasties being available?

Odd - I was just asking myself that exact question! Can anyone (ahem) shed any light on the subject?

ooops - posted in wrong topic!

Gorgeous!

I loved watching this build in progress, and seeing it done is truly satisfying. Masterful work!

Thank you! Spiling planks is an interesting part of this build - it's the only way to develop and create the complex 3-D curve for each plank (bend and twist). It's a bit tedious, but the results are well worth it. It's also a bit of a meditation - you can't rush the process. The same skill will serve me well in future projects, both in wood and plastic, so it's worth the investment in time. On the home PE, I'll post the process as I step through it. The Micro-Mark kit provides all the essentials, with ferric chloride as the etchant. The things I have to provide are a good dark workspace (the photo-resist film is UV-sensitive), a few lighting fixtures and the artwork itself. Doing the artwork is my current challenge, as I have to transfer my thoughts from pencil drawings on graph paper into CAD images that I'll print onto transfer film. If I had a steadier hand, I could potentially draw directly on the film - but there is zero room for error with that approach! The parts I'm creating have to have a specific geometry to enable the whole linkage to function without either wobbling or binding. It will likely take at least two or three tries to get it right. I'll keep you all posted! :-)

No new pics on this, but I'm making some good progress on both the hull planking and the remaining parts of the steam plant. I've reached the point where I have to stain and finish the inside face of each plank before attaching it to the hull, as the inside is both quite visible and quite impossible to finish after the fact. What this means in practice is that each plank will take about two hours of active work spread over 2-3 days to measure, steam/bend/shape, finish and attach. And there are about 50 of them to go... I'm working them in matched pairs port/starboard, and working on the steam plant while the planks dry after steaming and shaping. I'm also learning more about CAD, as I need to custom-etch some engine parts to get the exact shapes I need. Always something new to learn with this project!

that wicker seat looks scratch-built?

Just...wow

I have a question on this - how do you deal with fumes/VOCs from airbrushing in this space? I ask because Mrs Poet has asthma, triggered by these among others. So when I need to paint, I have to move everything outside. I am interested in any solutions that y'all have to deal with those sorts of things

This is quite a challenge! I'm following with interest

So why am I not in the least surprised by this?

I LOVE THIS!!! Great way to say hello - welcome aboard!

I love watching you work, particularly as you do wholesale changes from the original kit limits. You're an inspiration!

While I'm working on the remaining engine hardware, I'm starting the rest of the Steam Plant - hot well and condenser. There were components that allowed for water/steam to be recycled through the system. Both of these were made of iron in the original. I've done the initial shaping and sealing of the wood kit components, in prep for the first coat of Alclad primer/filler. They both will have a variety of pipes, fittings and braces installed before they're done.

Welcome! I look forward to watching your progress on this. I've wondered about those kits - this is the first time I'll have seen one built

I just watched the new Star Wars yesterday - now I'm itching to do the "new" x-wing that Poe flies. This build is an inspiration - keep it up!

I love this build!!! Thanks for walking us through the whole process

Well. Ok. I did it. I finally had enough and pulled the trigger on a micro-mark home photo-etch kit. I realized that what I am going to need in terms of fittings for this and other kits will require better control in shape and fit than I can get with a Dremel and needle file - not to mention those times when I'll need multiples of a given part. I'll let y'all know when it arrives, along with how well it actually works... Meantime, I'm still designing the parts I'll need to properly finish this engine :-)

Thanks! This is going to be a long project. I'd hoped to have it done over the winter, but I suspect it will be well into Spring instead. At least it's not going to be boring... :-) I got the pumps and cam housing done today, so I can start the serious design work on the Stephenson link fittings. Cam Pump one Pump two These needed to be installed to give me an idea about what I need to work around for the next straps. Much head-scratching to follow...! ;-)

So... Starting the front of the engine. The first challenge is the feed pumps, which sit on either side of the crankshaft and which were driven by cams and rods connecting the pumps to the shaft. The pumps are white metal castings, which originally had too-bendable and out-of-scale posts on the end which one was supposed to simply rest against the crankshaft. Two issues came up with this - first, it just looked wrong. The cams and drive rods would have needed some protection from the elements, and so would have had some sort of enclosure and guides. Second, and more to a point of practicality from a building perspective, the lack of a cam housing would leave the Stepehson valve linkage unsupported insofar as spacing along the crank is concerned. So. My approach, after much head-scratching, was to cut the posts off the castings, and drill them to accept a short length of 1/16" brass tubing. The tube will serve to guide and connect a length of 1/32" brass rod to the pumps. At the crankshaft end of things, I scratch-built a cam housing to both anchor the connecting rods and provide support to the Stephenson eccentrics later. I used a bit of scrap wood, scale resin rivets and two more bits of 1/16" brass tube for this. To add a touch of interest, I also added a brad hex bolt to the bottom to represent a drain plug. Here are the pieces as they exist today. The pain is Tamiya NATO black, with a bit of colloidal graphite and Vallejo rust wash to tone things down. The caps on the pumps are Alclad titanium gold with a thin wash of Vallejo light rust. The next step is to connect things up, and use this as the starting point for the forward/reverse lever which was used to shift the Stephenson linkage. I need to design and fabricate that all from scratch, as there was no provision for it in the kit at all.