A Gutless challenge - Fisher’s mighty F7-U3 M. Working hard before trying to make both ends meet ...

[HubertB]

Not a lot of apparent progress to report, but some I feel pretty smug about...

A bit of background. Fisher seem to have completely forgotten one aspect of the Cutlass, that is the device that holds the arrestor hook in place (or if it was included, it is not in the parts I have, nor apparently in the instrcutions, but then some small details have been overlooked in the said instructions).

This is what it looks like IRL. The photos are lifted from an IPMS NL walkaround, but beware that the F7U-3M displayed seems to have been cannibalised, or vandalised, over the years, and not every component is still present on this airframe.

 

And this is my rendition of it, adding a few pieces that seem to make some mechanical sense, but are apparently not on the walkaround pics. The whole is less than 1 cm long, if you wonder ... I quite like my springs, made from 0.2 mm tungsten wire coiled around a 0.5 mm brass rod 

 

A few hours' work, not perfect, especially the alignment which is slightly off, but "good enough for govenment work" as the saying goes.

In the meantime, I have started repairing the rear of one wing tip, which has been damaged in all the handling the Cutlass has endured so far.

And the fins are now glued in place. Next should be mating the front and rear of the bird.

TTFN

Hubert.

[Martinnfb]

Labour of love 👍

[GusMac]

Looks great Hubert. Certainly a helluva lot better than most government contractors here could manage. 😁

[Peterpools]

Hubert

Brilliant - awesome work on the missing arresting hook details.

 

 

[ScottsGT]

I’d be in a straight jacket by now if I tried sinking this much detail into my build.  Hell, I’m almost there as it is. 

[CANicoll]

Nice work and on the research as well...  Can't imagine there are that many surviving Cutlass's out there for reference...

[HubertB]

1 hour ago, CANicoll said:

Nice work and on the research as well...  Can't imagine there are that many surviving Cutlass's out there for reference...

There are seven surviving airframes, most of which have been used as gate-keepers and have rotten consequently. 
The pics I posted are from a F7U-3 displayed at the NASM in Pensacola, and features many bogus features and / or missing components. It’s (wrongly) tagged as a F7U-3 M.

I have used other pics for some detailing, like the landing gear bay, of BuAer 129554 (a F7u-3), which was supposed to be restored to flight condition. It has changed hands many times, and is now in Phoenix, AZ. I don’t know if it will ever be finished to flightworthy condition, bur whereas the hydraulic system could be updated to modern standards, and thus alleviate one of the main issues that plagued the Cutlass, the question of the engines would remain, and of the fragile front landing gear strut … It’s still the most reliable source for detailing the kit

Hubert

[CANicoll]

Have you tried a web search on "7U Cutlass blueprints"?  I saw a lot of drawings, but not sure if any of those would be helpful to you?

[HubertB]

20 hours ago, CANicoll said:

Have you tried a web search on "7U Cutlass blueprints"?  I saw a lot of drawings, but not sure if any of those would be helpful to you?

Well, thanks for the tip, Chris. I am usually wary of drawings, as they can sometimes induce some mistakes, and most of these are no exception.

But it yielded some pics of the plane I intend to model, which I had not found hitherto, and will prove invaluable 👍 !

Hubert

[BlrwestSiR]

Very nice work on the tail hook mechanisms there Hubert. 

For small springs, I've found that a number of Japanese companies make them in various diameters and colours. Wave and T2M both come to mind. I think GSI does some as well. I'll grab some pics when I'm at my bench. 

[BlrwestSiR]

Hubert, I finally found my stash of springs. 

As you can see, they come in lots of diameters and black or silver. They're very flexible and I use a set of nippers to cut them to the desired length. 

[HubertB]

Whilst I was 3D-printing some parts for the Potez 25 TOE in the "Sandbox" GB, I also added on the plate some acccessories for the Cutlass, namely a tow bar, two wheel chocks and a boarding ladder.

I will probably revisit the design  of the tow bar, that looks a bit skinny now that it is printed.

 

The Cutlass is on the back burner whilst I focus on the Potez.

I had a tough time smoothing out the wing slats, as Fisher's design is less than optimal in the area, IMHO.

Now that I have revived my 3D-designing and printing skills, I may have a go at redesigning the slats and their struts as an integral part. I had to cut off the struts from the kit in order to smooth the slats recesses on the wings, and, although I have already done some new struts using plastic strips, I am not keen on smoothing the inside of the slats and am not 100 % sure I can obtain a solid link between the plastic struts, the wings and the slats …

Hubert

[Peterpools]

Hubert, amazing work as I only wish printing was in my future but being realistic, it isn't.

Looking forward to the Cutlass making its return to the bench after the GB.