PeteF Posted September 8, 2018 Author Share Posted September 8, 2018 Been getting detailitis so I've been doing bodywork and pre-painting interior sections. My metal landing gear kit arrived. I was warned by several people that the plastic gear would not support the weight of this model (particularly with added lead wire). Started prepping and primering parts. They're pretty nice. Have some light bodywork to do but not much more than with the plastic bits. A bonus is that eventually I can polish the oleo leg to a high shine. Pic 2 is one each out of the package, prepped and primered. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wingco57 Posted September 8, 2018 Share Posted September 8, 2018 SAC landinggear? Cheers Cees 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grunhertz Posted September 8, 2018 Share Posted September 8, 2018 Never seen this stuff used now I'm watching 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteF Posted September 8, 2018 Author Share Posted September 8, 2018 1 hour ago, Wingco57 said: SAC landinggear? Cheers Cees Yes, Scale Aircraft Conversions. The rear struts and mud flap from the kit are retained but the main struts and their supports will be metal. That will be the primary weiht bearing part. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wingco57 Posted September 8, 2018 Share Posted September 8, 2018 From experience the SAC sets are quite weak as well and parts get distorted before being unpacked already. Plastic part rip offs I believe. Cees 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bomber_County Posted September 8, 2018 Share Posted September 8, 2018 Just catching up Pete, looking really good. Been looking at the Vallejo metallics, they are a must have now......the merlins are great........ 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteF Posted September 8, 2018 Author Share Posted September 8, 2018 So I worked with the front of the metal main gear...it's pliable and bendable in a good way. I took a big risk by deciding to solder the two cross braces. I was so careful and 3 out of 4 were fine. 4th one I got a blob of solder that wrecked the end (upper right of right hand one in the pic). Got it sort of kludged into position but happily, the oil tank will completely obscure this section. Painting a lot of parts along the way so they can cure before I add detail and weathering. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteF Posted September 8, 2018 Author Share Posted September 8, 2018 Just as an aside, this was my old 1/5 scale Spitfire and 1/4 scale Spitfire. I did scale competitions with these and won a regional Scale Masters event with the big Spit. Wife for scale. Sold the 1/4 scale one in 1997 and it paid for my pilot’s license...not sure which was more work, that or this Mosquito! LOL. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators Clunkmeister Posted September 9, 2018 Administrators Share Posted September 9, 2018 That 1/4 scale Spit almost looks like an early enough vintage to have sported a two blade prop in actual service. great work on the Mossie, btw. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators Clunkmeister Posted September 9, 2018 Administrators Share Posted September 9, 2018 So let me get this straight... Pete here comes back to the hobby after what? 35 years? And he’s making many of us look like rank amateurs. Pete, seriously with my tongue out of my cheek now, this is bloody amazing work! I’ve talked to a couple other guys here who are real life aviators like us, and it sure helps when you live with a single airplane for several years and see the wear patterns and how they develop over time. That experience in itself does so very much to help a modeler create true to life realism. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grunhertz Posted September 9, 2018 Share Posted September 9, 2018 My thoughts as well it's great work 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteF Posted September 9, 2018 Author Share Posted September 9, 2018 Thanks guys. I was always torn with my Nanchang...I spent hours and hours polishing and touching up paint, cleaning oil off and always thinking “I used to spend hours and hours painting this sort of detail on models!” I used to fly with real planes, including an F4F which had horribly non-scale paint schemes and think “I know modelers who spend more time on the accuracy of their paint jobs than you did on your multi-million dollar real fighter!” But no question, familiariy with and having worked on and flown planes removes a certain curtain of confusion about what is what, how it works and how it looks and wears. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteF Posted September 9, 2018 Author Share Posted September 9, 2018 Today was finish back of the firewall day. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterpools Posted September 9, 2018 Share Posted September 9, 2018 Pete Nice work on the gear and any strengthening you can do to the SAC gear should be a huge plus down the road. Keep 'em comin Peter 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteF Posted September 9, 2018 Author Share Posted September 9, 2018 22 minutes ago, Peterpools said: Pete Nice work on the gear and any strengthening you can do to the SAC gear should be a huge plus down the road. Keep 'em comin Peter The fact the axles and eyelets and pivots for the main legs are metal means they’re infinitely stronger than the plastic parts. People told me the plastic will fail within days or weeks of the model sitting with all its weight on those points if you use the plastic gear. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteF Posted September 10, 2018 Author Share Posted September 10, 2018 Also drilled the strut pivots so I can use brass wire through the rod end instead of just glue. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harv Posted September 10, 2018 Share Posted September 10, 2018 man, I like it ! Very nice......Harv 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grunhertz Posted September 10, 2018 Share Posted September 10, 2018 Lovely work 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocRob Posted September 10, 2018 Share Posted September 10, 2018 Great work Pete, the engines are looking perfect, with the different metal shades and the copper-tutorial comes in handy. Having used SAC gearstruts for my 1/32 Corsair built I have to say, that positively bendable hits it. I liked to work with theese, but I'm not sure if I will use their sets for a 1/48 Flanker with 'heavy' resin updates, because they might bend pemanently. Love to watch your build, Keep it coming Cheers Rob 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteF Posted September 10, 2018 Author Share Posted September 10, 2018 I can definitely see how a monostrut and smaller scale version of this metal would be delicate (and particularly prone to bending) because the metal is so soft. Not sure that in many applications it would be a better bet than the plastic though the connection points are stronger. The two main struts on this mossie are solid though. They have a lot of beef to them so are pretty strong in this application but I’m not sure what benefit they’d have for, say, a Spitfire with spindly gear. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteF Posted September 10, 2018 Author Share Posted September 10, 2018 Having fun painting and muddying the nacelles. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteF Posted September 10, 2018 Author Share Posted September 10, 2018 That's disappointing. I got the largest "Rosie the Riveter" tool (1mm) and it barely makes a mark in this plastic. Far too subtle to be useful. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnB Posted September 10, 2018 Share Posted September 10, 2018 That's coming along really well. Should be a real beauty! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grunhertz Posted September 11, 2018 Share Posted September 11, 2018 That looks lovely shame about the tool 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteF Posted September 11, 2018 Author Share Posted September 11, 2018 Well this is going to be a long haul. Airfix had NO rivet detail whatsoever on the nacelles (which are all-metal) and they have fabric control surfaces which were only used on early Mosquitoes. I searched and searched but nobody seems to have a 1/24 rivet solution. What I ended up with was using the "Rosie the Riveter" to mark a line of tiny dots then using a hand punch to punch out every second dot bigger. The scale is about right but it's laborious and the rivets aren't consistent sizes. Harumph. Once they're all in, I'll sand the panel and smooth them out but it's a ridiculous omission on such a large scale plane. I know on the 1/24 Typhoon kit that came much later than the Mossie, it's a rivet fest but this one not so much. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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