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Playing in the Sandbox Group Build Sept 1, 2024 - Jn 1, 2025

RCAF Liberator GR Mk VI


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Well, I took the tape and clamps off this afternoon.

PXL_20211123_214728602.thumb.jpg.5935d36f49c85a15e495e377535232de.jpg

There's definitely going to a bit of filler needed. 

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Especially on the underside.

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Could've been worse I guess. I'm going to let it set up a bit more and tackle the seams in a day or so. 

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Carl

Yikes, you diverted a near disaster, but the Big Lib is together and now, that's whats counts. I'm sure you considered all the various options and choices for the filler and seeing and I'm thinking a sheet plastic or goop filler which would add to the strength to the assembly and fill as well. I always worry about down the road and making new plastic for the gap seems the safest choice. Any ideas yet how you want to fill the gap?

Keep 'em comin

Peter

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7 hours ago, DocRob said:

What a pity Carl, is there no way to get rid of the stuff with shaking the fuselage and let gravity work for you? That gap is not too small, hope you can fill it and make it unseen.

Cheers Rob

The problem was I no longer have access to the Liquid Gravity as it's trapped between the fuselage and the false wall I put in the nose gear bay. I thought I had enough space but didn't take into account the ribs moulded into the fuselage interior. I hadn't noticed them until I was gluing the two halves together. 

28 minutes ago, Peterpools said:

Carl

Yikes, you diverted a near disaster, but the Big Lib is together and now, that's whats counts. I'm sure you considered all the various options and choices for the filler and seeing and I'm thinking a sheet plastic or goop filler which would add to the strength to the assembly and fill as well. I always worry about down the road and making new plastic for the gap seems the safest choice. Any ideas yet how you want to fill the gap?

Keep 'em comin

Peter

Thanks Peter. I filled the gap with strip styrene glued in place with cement. I then filled the remaining gaps with thin CA to add some further bonding strength. I hope. 

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So here's the lower fuselage gap. 

PXL_20211123_214749474.thumb.jpg.dabd07a46181897c8f82cc4c0626e18f.jpg

With some strip styrene glued in place. 

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Reinforced with CA and most of the gaps now filled and sanded to shape. 

PXL_20211124_222235166.thumb.jpg.a933f7774d87ac2028636596e79f6be5.jpg

Lots of panel lines to be restored but it went better than I thought it might. 

The topside is done too.PXL_20211123_214728602.thumb.jpg.5d49aa195d0c620c76f5ab9fb24cab76.jpg

Just a bit of filling around the nose. 

PXL_20211123_214735571.thumb.jpg.c0946536895a92934183e1e7457be4d3.jpg

 

 

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On 11/24/2021 at 6:18 PM, Martinnfb said:

Outstanding persistence Carl, if it was me, I would probably bin it , or burn it in front of the Trumpeter's head office. :)

Martin, I briefly considered binning it but decided I had to at least give it a shot at fixing it. I've already binned too many multi engine bombers for one reason or another. 

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Glad you pushed thorugh. I decided on an easy build to get back into things, I did a 1/72 Airfix B-17G. Due to my own stupidity and impatience, I caused a lot of problems for myself, and also nearly binned it. Decided to push  through and finish the damn thing, and so be it. It looks like a piece of ****, but  I will do better on the next build.  Going to hide a lot of blemishes with some weathering. 

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Carl

Glad you decided to keep going and fought off the temptation of binning the big guy. I seem to all to easily To bin projects as I just lose interest and yield to the erg to start something else. Over the years, it seems my ‘Bin’ record greatly out weighed my completed record 🤧

Keep ‘em comin

Peter

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Carl, I have remiss of following the trials of the the big bird. I reckon that’s a good save. How many times have we sat down at the bench saying I’ll just do this and then get back to the world……..to find later you didn’t read the instructions and basically b***s it up…..me many times……..the build is going to look awesome, displayed ……

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Thanks for the encouragement guys. I appreciate it and it helps keep me going. 

The engines(:lol:) are done. PXL_20211203_174101629.thumb.jpg.e427533da1487acfe86a5230008af470.jpg

The rear faces don't even have cooling vanes moulded into them. Good thing you can't see much of them. 

Next up was figuring out the turret interiors. At least the rear one anyways. 

I think one of the reasons HB split the turrets was so they could get the interior into them. Which meant I had to figure out how to get them into a one piece shell.

Here's the kit parts inside the rear turret half.

PXL_20211204_041900513.thumb.jpg.006b9ce0a7161eef82369efb162f77de.jpg

 

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And closed up. 

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A bit hard to get through the bottom opening if it's one piece. 

PXL_20211204_042040930.thumb.jpg.3ac3ec83f951ea68beb84581129a5d7b.jpg

 

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On the Cold War Studio turret, I have to figure out how to get it in and in what order. After some trail and error, here's what I came up with. 

First, reduce the diameter and length of the pin that mounts the 0.50 to the turret interior. This is trial and error but it's about half as long and a third narrower. 

PXL_20211204_041741825.thumb.jpg.b34948b6d24f69fbe3f5b336405c7bea.jpg

Then put the gun in place. I've also added the shield but it's only dry fitted. 

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Trim down the tabs on the inner walls that hold the parts together. I've found almost all the tabs in the kit are way too long and need trimming. I also had to sand back the rear edges of the interior bits. You can see where that is by the bare plastic. 

PXL_20211204_041706739.thumb.jpg.01d0ea0451c972a3e4ea3e1cb9111fb0.jpg

Don't glue the halves together. You need to slot them but glue the middle parts (Z8 & Z9) to one side. 

Insert and position one of the sides in the turret. 

PXL_20211204_042312012.thumb.jpg.00eb17c0d12f7a87fc9e63e6ffda4625.jpg

Add the opposite 0.50 in its place (same as the first one). Then juggle and slip in the second half.  Squeezing the rear bits together slightly helps it to slip in. 

PXL_20211204_042805376.thumb.jpg.4d5dcde3390ba172f1a288ea584d85ee.jpg

One rear turret. 

PXL_20211204_044855831.thumb.jpg.8372ee72492e94641481d41f1c8fd3de.jpg

Friction is the only thing holding everything in place at the moment. 

The nose turret can be inserted from below in one piece as it has a much larger opening. 

PXL_20211204_041718296.jpg

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  • 2 months later...

Ok, it's been a few months but the Lib is back on the bench. 

Well, the turrets are anyways. 

First thing I did was gather all their parts together and touch up the paintwork. 

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Then I started on doing several sub-assemblies for the turret bits. 

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I did some of the detail painting as I went along. 

PXL_20220218_042157313.thumb.jpg.98b463c6c6915d3da25457a17116811d.jpg

Here's where I am at the moment. The front turret is mostly assembled. Need to add the guns and feed belts then it's ready for insertion into the turret. The rear interior is in a similar start but as it has to go in in sections, looks less complete. 

PXL_20220218_213135824.thumb.jpg.f24fcb98371009b0d3735464e4ed0026.jpg

No pics but I also stripped the clear finish off the turret as I found it just a bit soft.

Here's to getting this beast finished. 

Carl

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