HubertB

The R-1820 design went through a number of iterations. On the -F, the ignition ring was definitely behind the pushrods’ tubes. On the early -G as well. Then, it changed, but I am still struggling to find on which version this happened. Ditto for the cylinders’ finning. As time progressed, and metallurgy and production techniques improved, as well as the octane level of fuels increased their energy density, the number of fins grew significantly to dissipate the extra-heat. I think I remember reading somewhere that the cooling area was multiplied by 5 (at least) over the life-time of the 1820. On the color pic above, the cylinder is definitely a late design. It looks like a B-17 engine at first glance. Definitely not the right one for a Buffalo !

I agree with you about the qualities of the bird, Ernie, at least the -1 version before it got overloaded with a wing area that was not very big to start with (on the other hand, with hindsight of 80 years of various conflicts, any aircraft designer should now KNOW that the original spec will be overpassed by combat demands, and weight will increase. Reminds me of the debate between European countries at the time of the Rafale/Lightning specs' writing. Dassault wanted the bare aiframe 1 ton lower than their British / German counterparts : they ended up going separate ways). The only thing that always looked a potential area for trouble in my layman's eyes was the undercarriage design. I always felt it looked way to flimsy to be slammed regularly on the planks of an aircraft carrier. But then again, with hindsight, one can become the smartest a@#&&.e in the word Hubert

I’d go for option 3 as well, Ernie. As a side comment, I doubt whether the 1:1 Buffalos ever had the time to accumulate as much dust as your kit Hubert

Safe bet for 2021, that these are your last purchases, then . Hubert

And another iconic car ... although I still prefer the GT-40 and even the 908. And then it was replaced by the 512, which, although red, was always in the shadow of the 917. Looking forward to your build, Mark Hubert

With Rob and Kai there. With this lighting, it looks different, and the fin seems now overdone, but then again, it may be the lighting and background. Hubert

Great detailing work on the burner and the seat, Alberto. Hubert

And, btw, I like your shadowing work, Gaz Hubert

Why would you want to replace a flimsy part by a flimsier one made of crapium ? Maybe doing like the original 1:1, i.e. strengthening the gear by using tensioned monofilament, is a better solution ? Just my Hubert

I could venture that WnW would have sold more Spad XIII and Caudron G-3 than Gotha G1 and UWD, and maybe would still be around... But then, that’s just me looking for trouble Well done CSM ! Hubert

There’s a 3D design for the CF-100, that can be printed in 1/32 scale. Just ask Ernie and Mike (Seiran) about it. It’s A LOT of progress compared to the previous 50 years ... Hubert, also waiting for a CF-100

Well, now that the engine question is behind us, I came back to the issue of reproducing the ignition system of the Mercury engine. In truth, I had been procrastinating around this one for a few weeks, trying to understand where the ignition cables were originating from. Finding clear pics of the engine from the rear was a more difficult task than initially thought. I finally found a maintenance manual of the previous generation engine, i.e. the Jupiter, and in the same time acquired the conviction the ignition systems were similar from the Jupiter to the Mercury. So, the Mercury had two spark plugs per cylinder, located laterally on each side of the cylinder head. And the ignition wires were routed to the base of the intake manifold ring. The cables from the magnetos also connected to the intake manifold casing, so I guess that, unlike their American counterparts, the Bristol engines enclosed the ignition distribution wire into the manifold casing, rather than have it as a separate part. For detailing the engine, we just have to know that the wires were touted from the manifold casing to the cylinder head. First task was to drill 18 0.4 mm holes in the intake manifold part. No pic to show, as the holes are small, on a black-painted part. 4 bits later (a reminder that these small bits break like glass when subjected to side loads, and therefore mostly unsuitable for hand-drilling, where you can seldom avoid parasitic lateral movements. Only in this case, it was not possible to do anything else than hand-drill the holes ), task accomplished ! Next, came the ignition wires. They are made of : - a spark plug, - a bent metal tubing containing the wire in real scale - a braided cable going to the intake manifold casing. To reproduce them in scale, I started by cutting 0.5 mm Albion tubes, 4.5 mm in length. These will make the bent tube. I will also need 10 mm long braided cable from AnyZ, metal wire, and 1.5 mm pieces of 0.9 mm tube to reproduce the plugs. I introduced in them a small wire, approximately 25 mm in length, and slightly less than 0.3 mm in dia, coming from an old electric motor, which will provide me a life-time supply of this wire. Next comes the bending of the tube. For this I used a special set of pliers made for bending wires: With the wire inside, the small tube is not crushed : The AnyZ braided wires of 0.5 mm diameter are actually hollow. You can thread the copper wire though them : The braided cable is then soaked in position with thin CA glue : Next the « spark plugs » are added at the other end. Whilst in theory a 0.7 tube will slide above the 0.5 one, in practice, with these small parts, 0.9 will save your nerves, and give you some leeway to adjust the angle. I have not documented the addition of a small band of adhesive alu foil (cut from DYI tubing tape) around the top of the braided cable. The wires are then painted : white spark plugs, and the braided cables are soaked in Tamiya brown accent line to break the yellow. That’s all for now. Next step will be to glue the wires to the intake manifold. Hubert

Nice rendering of an original subject ! Hubert

Beautiful and amazingly fast work, as usual Hubert

Do remember that after a certain sea disaster in April 1912, the number of lifeboats was significantly increased on all liners, including Britannic and Olympic ... I got the Titanic kit, but sincerely hope it encourages Trumpeter to release the true greyhound of four-stackers, i.e. MS Mauretania. As for THE most beautiful liner of all times, aka the Normandie, one can dream, can’t one ? Hubert

The fuel tanks on the Whirlwind were in the wings, between the two spars, outboard of the nacelles. They were delineated by the extra thickness we are discussing. You can see them on the pic above, left of the nacelle. The oil tanks were located forward of the front spar in the same area, btw. Hubert

Hi Mike, This feature is difficult to see on period pictures, especially as there are not so many from the rear where you can see the upper wing surface. To cut a long story short, the tanks' skins were standing proud of the wing surface, as were the reinforcing ribs, as this was a distinctive feature of the Whirlwind, BUT they certainly weren't standing as proud of the surface as the kit has them represented. They must be sanded down to a proper thickness, which means restoring the surface details and riveting later, and the ribs which will have to go in the process and be redone later The kit provides instrument panels for the early and late production aircrafts, as well as bombs for a "Whirlibomber" which not doubt will be released later in a separate boxing. Another comment : if I read the documentation I have accurately, the oblique cylinders behind the seat were oxygen tanks (step 6 of the assembly), that were replaced by more conventional horizontal bottles in the later versions and from 1943. I may be wrong, and am happy to be corrected on this one, by more experts than me , Hubert PS: to mitigate my comments above about the thickness of the tanks’ skins, one picture of the Whirlwind « Comrades in arms » which can be seen following this link : https://www.destinationsjourney.com/historical-military-photographs/westland-whirlwind/ has them standing clearly proud of the wing surface. I guess paint and weathering can do a lot to enhance or tone down the relief effect, as in the real pics. PS2 : I deserve a for my comment on the « oxygen tanks ». These are in fact port and starboard flares tubes ! On the other hand, on early aircrafts, the oxygen tank, which was a « standard » oxygen bottle shape, was placed inclined vertically behind the seat, and was moved further aft, to an horizontal position on the port side, on later versions.

Agreed. They would deserve a bigger radius. Hubert

Ah ! If it is to find an excuse for Bev, I am happy to shoulder the blame ... especially as there a few thousand kilometers between her and me Hubert

Not only are you weak, Harv, but on top of it, you try to shift the blame of your weakness on an innocent soul ... tsss.... tssss .... tssss .... Hubert, unashamedly assuming his pernicious corruption influence

I used to have one, but sold it to a modeller in New-Zealand, who is more likely to build it than me, especially as the most lively livery I could find was for a « Gendarmerie » plane. Still like it, though, and sometimes have a tinge of regrets of selling the kit... I could have built it to celebrate my 250th birthday Hubert

Great work, Frank. Probably a camera-induced parallax error, and also linked to the « test-fitting » method, but the windscreen frames appear slanted to the right (viewed from the front) compared to the vertical reference of the fin, on your fifth pic from the top. Hubert

Proper Planes props are just amazing. And I like the combo with Rexx exhausts, which are so difficult to find when they are one of the greatest improvement AM to bring to a kit. This said - but then it is true with a lot of AM - making your own wooden prop is not as daunting as it seems. Getting a Proper Plane one just saves time and ensures an easy - and perfect - result. Hubert

There was a (unique) civilian version (G-AGOI), Phil, otherwise I’d have passed . The other goodies are a Braille scale Lockheed Vega, for reference purposes, just in case someone has an idea of scratchbuilding a 1/32 version , some weathering powders, and books on the Avia B-534, the Trident, and an old issue of Air Magazine on the Brewster Buffalo... Got the Whirlwind for less than 60 €, direct from Special Hobby, with the « club » reduction. I need to take the time for a box-opening review. But on the other hand, the lock-down in Portugal is finished and the weather is good for golfing . Hubert

Just got this today, plus some other goodies Hubert