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Arado 234 Nachtigall on Speed


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On 5/18/2023 at 2:49 PM, Peterpools said:

I'm front and center and waiting for the first of the painting updates :popcorn:

 

On 5/19/2023 at 10:42 PM, GazzaS said:

Great progress with the Arado, Rob.   Keen to see more.

Thank you Peter and Gary, I'll wait for the 1ManArmy masks to arrive, until I decide about the paint scheme. For brown/green, I have camo masks, but a grey German nightfighter camo is also a possibility.
Meanwhile, there is some detail work to be done. I added the PE hinges to the wheel doors and the breaking parachute release mechanism to the fuselage, where I used 0,55 mm brass rod instead of the supplied thread.

Cheers Rob

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3 hours ago, GazzaS said:

Very nice, Rob.   I have to admit...   I thought that loop under the tail was a skid of some kind to protect the tail during landing.

I'm not completely sure, how it works, but my guess is, the triangular resin bit contains an explosive load. When fired backwards the chute got pulled out of the compartment under the primed PE part. There is so much advanced technology built into this plane, it's amazing.

Cheers Rob

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1 hour ago, Peterpools said:

Pretty interesting for sure. 

It is indeed a very interesting plane Peter, well ahead of it's competition by far.

I masked wheel wells, engines and the canopy with sponges, tape and liquid mask and gave the Arado a rub with an alcohol soaked cloth. I paid a lot of attention to seal the canopy section air tight with liquid mask and with filling the gaps before with Revell Clear, because I hope to hinder the inside of the canopy from fogging due to thinner fumes.

Prime (er) time - I applied Mr. Surfacer 1200, which sprayed very well as always.

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After drying, I sprayed the canopy section gloss black, to accept the riveted decal strips for the framing, if I decide to use them.

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Now I have to check, where I have to further work on the surfaces, be it filling or scribing. Meanwhile I sprayed other parts like the Rato rockets and their parachutes, external fuel tanks and the parts for the landing gear, which will be detailed with chrome oleos and braking lines next.

Cheers Rob 

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19 hours ago, KevinM said:

Looking Good Rob!:unworthy:

 

18 hours ago, Martinnfb said:

You make it look easy Rob, really smooth 👍

 

15 hours ago, Peterpools said:

primer looks like glass - so very well done

Thanks fellas, the Primer sprays supersmooth, but there are some areas, I need to address. The lower wing roots need more flller and foremost the area around the radar operator hatch.

Cheers Rob

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21 hours ago, BlrwestSiR said:

Great work Rob. Such a sleek looking plane. 

 

6 hours ago, shark64 said:

Such an interesting aircraft. Nice progress

Thank you shark and Carl, the shape of the plane is very appealing and somehow no frills. There are still some details to add, like the Naxos radar and fittings for the rudders and antennas, which I will not add until after painting. I guess, the slender looks will remain though. Engineering wise, it's a most interesting airframe too, so many new technologies envolved and it was even flying in different roles. The night fighter variant shows also, where development fails sometimes, as the Arado was not well equipped for the job.

Cheers Rob

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While I'm still waiting for the 1ManArmy masks to arrive, I decided to do a little detail work and gave some love to the wheel struts. 
The oleos where covered with AK's chrome adhesive tape, but as this is a bit stiff, Bare Metal foil would have been the better choice. My Arado Monographs show the braking lines partly yellow and black, so I used my braded 0,5 mm Anyz line for the purpose along with Anyz resin connectors. The yellow line was soaked in Pledge, because otherwise it would have been to bright and have spots, where the CA stuck.
The clamping strips were made from pre cut Bare Metal foil of 0,5 mm width, secured with some drops of Pledge. After drying, I will rub in some steel pigments and add some shadows and highlighting.

Cheers Rob

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1 hour ago, BlrwestSiR said:

I was just looking at mine and the gear on one side has broken off. Which is odd as I used a wire to pin it in place. Might just be the glue gave out. 

Sorry to hear about your broken LG, Carl. I hope mine will hold up. I gave it some thinking in advance, using two wires per side to key the gear struts, which fit into brass tubes on the wheel well side. All is glued in with half a ton of 2K epoxy. On the picture, the struts are only half way pushed in.

Cheers Rob

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1 hour ago, Peterpools said:

The mains look great. Need to give the AK's chrome adhesive tape a try and see how it goes

Thanks Peter, I don't like the AK chrome tape too much and expected more out of it. It's a bit rigid, not easy to cut with a blade on the template and could adhere better. I prefer Bare Metal Foil or Uschi van der Rosten's chrome pigment, which are nearly equally good, when rubbed onto a well prepared surface (best is a very fine primer).

Cheers Rob

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1 hour ago, DocRob said:

Sorry to hear about your broken LG, Carl. I hope mine will hold up. I gave it some thinking in advance, using two wires per side to key the gear struts, which fit into brass tubes on the wheel well side. All is glued in with half a ton of 2K epoxy. On the picture, the struts are only half way pushed in.

Cheers Rob

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I'm hoping that the glue came apart but I'll have to take a closer look at it. It's in the display case and I'd need to take it out. 

Also, the nose gear isn't completely accurate if you compare it to pics and diagrams. I ended up modifying mine to closer match the original. 

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33 minutes ago, BlrwestSiR said:

Also, the nose gear isn't completely accurate if you compare it to pics and diagrams. I ended up modifying mine to closer match the original. 

I will take a look, Carl. I modified mine too, added brass rods for stability, but have to make a reality check again.

Cheers Rob

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14 hours ago, Landlubber Mike said:

Somehow missed this one Rob, but read through from the beginning.  Very impressive!  Your canopy work in particular is really incredible :notworthy:

Looking forward to seeing this cross the finish line!  Primed and smooth as a baby's bottom!

Thank you Mike for going through that long lasting thread. It's not the easiest kit to build, especially as a night fighter, therefore the long breaks. On the other hand, I was never completely frustrated and never thought about SOD-ing the Arado. I hope I can pull through now. 
The primer showed some areas which needed to be addressed and then it's decision time about the color scheme to chose.

Cheers Rob

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