CANicoll Posted March 19, 2023 Author Share Posted March 19, 2023 6 hours ago, GazzaS said: That looks awesome, Chris. The masking came off great and all the interior view will really add to the kit. Appreciate it Gary. Always a wonder of what will be seen, and honestly, I could not remember if I really had masked the windshield properly so that was a relief when that came off. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CANicoll Posted March 19, 2023 Author Share Posted March 19, 2023 2 hours ago, DocRob said: Wow, the big Cat is shaping up nicely, Chris. Removing the masks is always a moment of truth, as you look at the plane for the first time in a near ready state. I really like the buy look of the cat, with the pilots and the open blisters. The markings, hmm, it's always good to have a storyline in mind for your model and work it out through building and painting. I'd go with faded for the stars and bars, but would lighten them even more on the top of the wings to create a believable frame. 'Errors' half corrected are the worst to my eye. Cheers Rob I hear you Rob, Weathering the all-back cat is a bit of a challenge, but we'll see what works. Thanks! Chris 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocRob Posted March 19, 2023 Share Posted March 19, 2023 I might try some light grey panel liner for contrast. Another technique, I sometimes use on dark objects, Is using a tiny bit of Uschi van der Rosten Iron pigments on a finger and rub slightly over the surface. If done very light, it's a bit of highlighting and let the finish look more painted metal like. It's easy to overdo this, but it can help with a dark monochrome plane. Have I mentioned salt spray? You could simulate that and if there are bad spots on the canopy, possibly hide them. Cheers Rob 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bomber_County Posted March 19, 2023 Share Posted March 19, 2023 Chris, looking amazing, congratulations, the insignia’s being sprayed certainly makes a difference…. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterpools Posted March 19, 2023 Share Posted March 19, 2023 Chris It's always the unexpected that throws a big monkey wrench into the mix. Just glad you took your time and worked through what seemed like a toolchest of them. . 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlrwestSiR Posted March 19, 2023 Share Posted March 19, 2023 Mig makes a panel wash they label for RAF bombers which had back undersides. It's a dark brownish grey. That would probably work well on the PBY. 6 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterpools Posted March 20, 2023 Share Posted March 20, 2023 Chris Sounds good, give it a shot and see how it goes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CANicoll Posted March 24, 2023 Author Share Posted March 24, 2023 She flies!! Been so busy this week with a lot of things, including getting some personal stuff worked out but things are definitely getting better. SO finally took the opportunity to get some bench time. Which means - let's get the wing on! LOTS of dry fitting and making sure the wing struts fit well before applying any cement. Didn't matter... The 1/72 Cat I built a while ago had the same problem: the struts just don't fit well. Spoiler alert - they all seem too long. After lots of dry fitting and seeing that they aligned well and fit into the holes on the underside of the wing just fine, hit the struts with the CA. Big mistake. Flipped the fuselage over to sit on the wing and inserting the tab of the rear strut into the hole in the wing, resulted in this fitment: Actually, this was #3. The two struts on the other side have already launched themselves across the desk. Sigh. The fix is simple, cut off the tab on the strut that goes into the hole. But frustrating that this measurement is so far off on the struts. They are so visible they have to be straight. The good news is, the mating surface for the wing to the fuselage pylon is HUGE and as long as it is properly flattened (it has a bit of a crown which needs to be cut-down) this is where the strength of the wing join will be. Once the aircraft is on its head (so to speak) it is easier to attach the remaining struts. Joined the wing with some slow-drying CA to make sure I could keep the wing level while I did the strut work. Here they are: At this point after verifying the wing was level with the elevators, I flowed extra thin Tamiya cement into the pylon/wing join and let it set for a good 7-10 minutes. LOTS of touch-up of the paint is needed as I ham-fisted the fuselage strut joins. Another view: And now on its fuselage bottom. The good news is that the wing join seems very strong. I wouldn't say the weight of the wing offsets the weight of the resin tail, but it helps. More resin in the nose (if that is possible) or the wing somewhere would help. But it is still a bit tail heavy. Picking it up from the stand requires a careful grip! Here the wing looks a bit tilted, but that is me being a bit tilted taking the picture. I have to say, I love this view!: What a cool view of a cool aircraft! And the view to show relative position to the elevators: Putting it down to dry for a day or so, and while that happens - get to work on those antennas. They are fairly intricate with LOTS of sprue attachments. Pictures to come next. That's it for now. I'm very far behind on commenting on the other builds. Sorry folks!!! Hope to catch up this weekend. 9 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlrwestSiR Posted March 24, 2023 Share Posted March 24, 2023 Great progress Chris. Can't believe how long the struts are. Odd how they could get it that off but your fix seemed to have worked. 4 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CANicoll Posted March 24, 2023 Author Share Posted March 24, 2023 Carl, it is only a few mm, but enough to bend the strut. In hindsight, I should have set the wing, and then cut the tabs off of the struts and put them into place and been done with it. Originally I used the struts to set the wing level so that was the first mistake. All is well that ends well! 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KevinM Posted March 24, 2023 Share Posted March 24, 2023 That's a big girl Chris looking at the mat I say 21" WS and looking really Nice 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocRob Posted March 24, 2023 Share Posted March 24, 2023 Are you sure the wings are not bent down by gravity Chris and the length of the struts is correct. These huge wings may sag a bit and you don't need to be a triogonometric genius, to figure out, how much 1mm of sag means to the struts. I know, it's a bit late for the idea, but your solution seemed to have worked well. Cheers Rob 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterpools Posted March 24, 2023 Share Posted March 24, 2023 Chris The Big Cat is looking so good and so glad you were able to work out a solution the overly long struts. Yup, love that head on take view photo - it's so classic of a Cat leaving the water. I often wonder how the QC department could let such an obvious fit problem slide by unless there was little, or no QC, with time and cost not allowing for corrections. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CANicoll Posted March 25, 2023 Author Share Posted March 25, 2023 After reading everyone's comments I'm beginning to wonder if I sanded down the pylon just a bit too much to get it level and flat. Even if I lowered it a mm or two, that would change the angle and hence the length of the strut. Hmmm.. Same problem on the 1/72 Cat build I did. So I think we may have found the culprit: ME!! I did sand down the top of the pylon as it had: 1. a huge seam and 2. was kind of 'peaked' in the middle. The wing had the opposite kind of peak, but that also let the wing rock on the pylon, hence my sanding the pylon down so it would be flat. If I had another kit, I would see if the struts would level out the wing on their own. My main concern with the contact patch on the pylon to the wing was that it needed to be sufficient to keep that huge wing in place as I didn't think the (thin) struts were sturdy enough to do the job. I was counting on the pylon to really be the main attachment point, and the struts less structural - if that makes any sense. The power of the people! Thanks for everyone's comments, I do appreciate it! Chris 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterpools Posted March 25, 2023 Share Posted March 25, 2023 Chris I'm always the culprit for most of everything that has gone wrong or is amiss on a build. All that counts is the struts now look perfect and straight. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottsGT Posted March 26, 2023 Share Posted March 26, 2023 Chris, that really looking great. I see builds like this and it reminds me why I bought my kit years ago. 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GazzaS Posted March 27, 2023 Share Posted March 27, 2023 Chris, Great job attaching the wing. Looks like an airplane now! 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CANicoll Posted April 2, 2023 Author Share Posted April 2, 2023 Finally got back to the bench. Just too much going on but nice to get some build time. Handling this thing is an exercise in patience. It is tail heavy, and the wingspan is very long so turning it requires patience and watching out to see what is going to get hit. Engines and the fuel tank vents are dry fitted at the moment. SO MUCH DUST!! The waist figures are in place, looking out for down pilots. Painted the antennas so mounting them and installing the exhaust pipes is next. Then some weathering, finally! 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GazzaS Posted April 2, 2023 Share Posted April 2, 2023 Looks so awesome, Chris! 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterpools Posted April 2, 2023 Share Posted April 2, 2023 Chris WOW!, the Big Cat is coming together and looking simply stellar - sure bet you can see the finish line quickly approaching. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CANicoll Posted April 8, 2023 Author Share Posted April 8, 2023 Took advantage of the need to be fairly sedentary to attach the main antenna under the wings, and spray some exhaust stains. Here was the model for exhaust stains: Extended the exhaust stains onto the tail planes per the photograph. Added the rust-painted exhaust stacks, which are far too bright, so have subsequently toned them down with some brown chalk (after this picture) Fingers crossed, have not YET knocked off the underwing antenna, so far... One more to attach, a small underwing antenna, which I have knocked off twice so far, before even getting it completely attached. Ugh. Getting there! Chris 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnB Posted April 8, 2023 Share Posted April 8, 2023 Looking good Chris! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterpools Posted April 8, 2023 Share Posted April 8, 2023 Chris Nice progress and the exhaust staining is looking good. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocRob Posted April 8, 2023 Share Posted April 8, 2023 Fantastic progress, Chris. Your build turns out more and more master class. Every step will bring you closer to the finish now, which means, Cheers Rob 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CANicoll Posted April 8, 2023 Author Share Posted April 8, 2023 15 hours ago, JohnB said: Looking good Chris! 3 hours ago, Peterpools said: Chris Nice progress and the exhaust staining is looking good. 2 hours ago, DocRob said: Fantastic progress, Chris. Your build turns out more and more master class. Every step will bring you closer to the finish now, which means, Cheers Rob Thank guys! This week's medical issues have taken a lot out of me, so for now, going to put a cap on the build. Still have some good weathering to do, but that will have to come later. I appreciate the support! Learned a lot doing this build, but I also know there are places I should have done better. Arrgh. But it was a fun build and this was a terrific GB! Ok, stay tuned for pics. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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