Bleriot XI - heavily modified!

[altbob]

Hi guys,

I wanted a plane to display as a bookends with my FG Gossamer Albatross (http://www.papermodelers.com/forum/improved-stock/25918-gossamer-albatross-working-prop-canard.html), another historical channel crosser, and what better plane that the Bleriot XI ?

I've always been fascinated by this particular plane, with its comparably modern monoplane profile coming just 6 years after the Wright Bros. Looking at the standard FG plans, I think they leave a lot to be desired, so I've been busily scouring the internet for plans and photos of the real plane, many versions of which are in air museums around the world, including an original flying example at Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome, not far from where I live. I plan to make mine in a similar fashion to that of Mike Smith, whose balsa stick "improved stock" version can be seen on the FG Bleriot XI page:

http://www.fiddlersgreen.net/aircraft/Bleriot-XI/IMAGES/mike-smith-bleriot.jpg

I plan to go a bit further if I can, including a working prop, dummy engine and working rudder and elevator. I will pass on making the wings actually warp...

I hope there is interest in such a project here and people are not offended by my use of unconventional materials beyond paper. I am fairly good at sculpting with epoxy resin, so as needed, I plan to use that skill on this project. If there is interest in what I'm posting please let me know. I have a feeling that this will take me a pretty good amount of time to complete, and it never hurts motivation-wise to know that others are interested. Not to mention, I am still somewhat new to this, so I am always interested in reading people's tips.

So, to start, here's a photo of the boom section of the fuselage, which I am using as a plan for the wooden build:

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e344/BobLipp/Bleriot%20XI/FGBleriotModWIP008.jpg

The wood is cut from coffee stir sticks that I grabbed from the local coffee shop. Much denser than balsa or bass wood, I don't know what kind of wood it actually is. I have to cut it length-wise with a metal ruler and X-Acto knife to make it the proper width. I can get about 3 usable strips per stick.

The plan is to cut the paper out after this dries and add the rigging. Next up, I will begin to tackle the front half of the fuselage. Again, comments welcome!

BTW, if someone could tell me a better way to upload images I would appreciate it. I'm currently using Photobucket. Thanks!

[Darwin]

Bob, you'll get no complaints from me. Looking good, and I'm appreciative of what you are doing. It's more of a pain, but you can also use bamboo skewers as a source of stripwood...and completely authentic, too.

[altbob]

Hey Darwin, thanks. I have some bamboo skewers on hand, but they are way too big in diameter and round to boot. The photos I've looked at of the actual plane (and the one at Old Rhinebeck Areodrome - photo below from my last visit in September) show the wooden sections to be plank shaped.

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e344/BobLipp/Bleriot%20XI/OldRhinebeckAerodromeRCJamboree2013025.jpg

BTW, I realize that the FG "contest" is long since over, but looking around the forum I didn't see anyplace to post this that was more appropriate. Mods: if if should be somewhere else please feel free to move it and let me know where it ended up...

[Bengt Fredén]

Hi altbob,

I would (boldly) have posted the thread under "Aviation", even though some parts of the model are not made out of paper. We have to be broadminded in this forum! I really like your careful FG Blériot XI modificaton. (It will be yet another great model tribute to the memory of Chip Fyn).
I have actually thought of modifying the fine FG Levavasseur 'Antoinette' VII model along the same lines, but I just haven't got around to doing it yet.

Why not use the Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome Blériot as your modeling subject, and paint or draw a "7" on the tail feathers? It looks like it is also yellow in the linen fabric... just a thought.

The rigging intricacies of the real thing - this is (one of) Swedish aviator Mikael Carlson's own full-scale flying Thulin-Blériot XIs:
http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f307/Bengt123/Bleriot-in-flight.jpg
http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f307/Bengt123/Cockpit-rear-rigging.jpg

Best regards and New Years Greetings from Sweden,
Bengt :rolleyes:



PS. The web site of accomplished vintage aviator and airplane constructor Mikael Carlson: The Aviator (http://www.aerodrome.se/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=7&Itemid=1)

[Rubenandres77]

...
BTW, if someone could tell me a better way to upload images I would appreciate it. I'm currently using Photobucket. Thanks!
You can upload the photos to the forum itself.
Here it is explained how:
http://www.papermodelers.com/forum/howto-use-forums/6588-how-post-pictures-thread.html

[Bengt Fredén]

I am using Photobucket, too, Rubén,

all the way back since 2005. It is a great place to store loads of photos, and easy to use, at no cost. For newer Mac OS X system users than me, there is even a backup system for ALL your photos and videos on your hard drives. Not bad!

Best regards,
Bengt :rolleyes:

PS. Thanks for the useful photos uploading link, though! I will try it!

[altbob]

Thanks Ruben for the tip about photo posting. Here are some other images of the Bleriot from Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome ("ORA"), taken in 2009, which was the last time, I believe, that I actually saw it fly, on it's 100th birthday! I go every year, usually on Father's Day, although now that my son and I are into flying RC planes we may switch to going on the RC Model jamboree day (which is what we did this year).

Bengt, what a great idea to paint a "7" on the tail! Only thing is, the tail shape is different from the FG kit. Come to notice it, the tail shapes varied a lot on the Bleriot from model to model. Perhaps I'll give it a try. it should not be too hard to cut that number out as a jpeg, scale it down and print it out on tissue paper and glue it on like a decal. Indeed, maybe the simpler solution is to just print the entire tail out on paper and make the part from that. Thanks for giving me something to ponder!

One thing to note, the engine on the ORA Bleriot in these photos is not the Anzani 3-cylinder that appears on the Fiddler's model. I am actually modelling the Anzani, which actually goes inside the frame (which is the engine that the original XI had), as opposed to the ORA engine, a later "Y" configuration model, which is sticking out on some kind of firewall (see the close up in the last photo) and is a more modern engine type.

[Rubenandres77]

I am using Photobucket, too, Rubén,

all the way back since 2005. It is a great place to store loads of photos, and easy to use, at no cost. For newer Mac OS X system users than me, there is even a backup system for ALL your photos and videos on your hard drives. Not bad!

Best regards,
Bengt :rolleyes:

PS. Thanks for the useful photos uploading link, though! I will try it!
Photobucket is great. I've also used it for a long time.
It is my choice when I wish to share the same photos in several forums. Saves a lot of time instead of uploading the photos every time to every different place.
A very good service. :)

[altbob]

Here is a set of plans that I am making extensive use of to scratch build the engine and other parts. The last 3 are actually instructions to put together a Russian made plastic model kit that I found on the web. Useful insofar as it lays out the basic order of construction. The Bleriot model in those instructions appears to be a later version used in WWI although the differences are rather subtle. Mainly the auxiliary fuel tank in the boom (which I plan to omit).

I would like to come up with a way to do all that lovely rigging inside the boom. Getting the thread inside is going to be hell though! :eek:

[Rubenandres77]

...
I would like to come up with a way to do all that lovely rigging inside the boom. Getting the thread inside is going to be hell though! :eek:

I have a GPM Bleriot XI that I started a couple years ago but haven't finished yet.

In the mean time I also started a RAF Se5a. It also has some rigging, similar to the Bleriot.

You can see my attempt at this kind of rigging here:
http://www.papermodelers.com/forum/aviation/19906-raf-se5a-ribbed-plane.html

I used silver embroidery thread, cut to size and glued with a drop or two of CA glue.

Is very time consuming, and lots of patience are needed. But it is doable.
the details are explained in that unfinished build report.

You seem to be gathering a good amount of documentation, and that's very good to create a nice-looking model :)

Kind regards.

[Darwin]

Bob, this is where the pain part comes in with bamboo skewers...you need to split the beggars lengthwise to release the square stringer that is hidden within. Back in the day, I used to make curved wing tips and rudder/stabilizer outlines using split bamboo. Bending the bamboo was accomplished by stealing one's sister's curling iron, wetting the bamboo, then steaming the wood against the curling iron while gently applying pressure to bend the bamboo into the correct shape. The pain occurred when sis discovered where the curling iron was....

[altbob]

Thanks for the tip Darwin, I may try that with one of my bamboo skewers. I'm sure the wife can sacrifice one to my hobby obsession.

Ruben, your SE5a is looking great - a big inspiration! As mentioned in my comment to you there, I am currently sidelined with a very badly broken ankle, so if I can figure out how to build and keep my leg elevated at the same time, let's endeavor to keep each other from sinking too far into the doldrums old chap!

Onward with my little Bleriot, following generally the steps outlined in those Russian instructions, I am going to try to tackle the front end and engine next. The results are attached.

I am not sure about the front structure. I made this following the FG plans, using all wood strip, but looking at the actual plane and blue prints the vertical bits on the far ends over the wheels are actually supposed to be rods with bungee chord shock absorbers on them. I may do this over.

As for the engine, it is made of a couple wooden dowels of various diameters, cut and glued together, with thin steel wire wrapped around the cylinder heads to give them some detail. I used a little epoxy putty on top of the 3 cylinder dowels to form reasonable looking cylinder heads.

The center of the "engine" was drilled out for a square brass tube (I didn't have a round one small enough!). I will insert a bit of brass rod into this later to serve as a prop shaft. That's basically what I did for the working prop on the Gossamer Albatross (http://www.papermodelers.com/forum/improved-stock/25918-gossamer-albatross-working-prop-canard.html) build, and it worked out really well.

More work needs to be done on the engine, adding spark plug wires and exhaust pipes, but that will have to wait for another night.

[altbob]

More work on the engine.

1) Prop shaft added and polystyrene strips cut and fitted to either end. Shaft spins nicely!

2) Wires bent for spark plug leads and exhaust pipes and held in place by green epoxy putty cylinders behind the main cylinders.

3) Also a small carburetor modeled from brown epoxy putty.

Still a bit more to do on this to make it look right. I've included some photos of the real Anzani "W" form engine for comparison.

Mine might be just a little bit big, but I think it's acceptable given that the Fiddler's kit isn't really perfectly to scale anyway...I'll make it fit :rolleyes:

It will do for my paper plane collection if I pay enough attention to the details. It's not going to be anything close to what can be done with a brass etched kit like this one I found on a German modeling site. Holy cow! (http://www.kartonbau.de/forum/bleriot-xi-gpm-239-construction-reports-aviation/board3-aviation/t13894-f8/?e41c3e48)

[altbob]

Work continues, now moving to the front end of the fuselage (normally the Fiddler's Green kit's Bleriot fuselage is one long piece, but I broke it in two so the back end can be done in sticks and rigging as seen in the upper left of the second photo in this post).

I discovered that the Fiddler's Green model has a weird central wing section that is supposed to go inside and hold the wings in place. It wouldn't ordinarily be visible since the cockpit is just a printed sheet of paper on top (the real Bleriot was completely open on top with no canvass coverings).

The first photo below shows what the actual current (2014) Fiddler's Green Bleriot fuselage is supposed to look like in front of the tail boom. I'm going to cut my fuselage open on top like the real plane, which would leave this central section visible...can't have that! But since I don't know how else to attach the wings I kept just so much of the center section as was needed along the fuselage walls. But the rest was cut away. Wooden sticks were glued in place, cut from coffee stirers, to match the position of the artwork on the Fiddler's kit. I also cut color bits from a second print-out of the kit so that I could glue them into the inside panels. Otherwise the inside would just look like white paper.

I mounted the seat on what was left of the center wing cantilever section. I can't even imagine, based on the plans and blueprints I've downloaded from the internet, how it could look right mounted on the top of the fuselage as per the Fiddler's instructions. Even so, it still looks too high up for me. I will have to lower it...stay tuned!

The last image shows the front of the fuselage as modified. The bit of paper in front with the oval end and the blueish tint pattern is what the fuselage would have looked like on top without modifications. Rather disappointing. Right now I'm really glad I put the work into changing it into something that at least resembles the actual Bleriot XI!

[altbob]

Quick update - I lowered the seat to approximately where I think it's actually supposed to be based on the original Bleriot schematics that I am working from. That meant cutting away the last bit of the center support, so in order to attach the wings I used modelling putty to fix the inside edges of the wing root section against the inside side walls of the fuselage. Rather unorthodox, I know! I put interior wooden stringers and longerons in place to hold the shape and give support (just like the real plane had) and covered over the putty with another paper section of fuselage, cut into panels and reversed and glued in place.

I printed out another pilot seat, reversed it and glued that onto the seat back so that the seat pattern would be on both sides - don't want any blank white paper showing! I took a photo from the rear so you can see the pedestal that the seat is mounted on.

Also started the control yoke and gas tank, both of which will be quite visible in the open fuselage. Mea culpa, I used a bit of aluminum tubing of the right diameter and epoxy putty to make the gas tank rather than rolling paper. The tank should have curved, domed ends and I just don't think it's possible to get that shape in paper. I also used a bit of brass wire for the control stick rather than rolled paper or a 2-dimensional flat approach. I hope that isn't considered beyond the bounds by this group...

471 views of this thread and no comments from anyone in quite some time. It this typical?

[elliott]

Well, I'll comment by saying that mixed-media builds are by no means out-of-bounds here. It's not unusual to see one model with a little bit of brass tubing, another with some commercial plastic pieces, ships with brass photo-etch, etc. There are even models made entirely of aluminum cans!

So use whatever feels right to you!

[altbob]

Thanks for the vote of support elliott! Maybe the problem is that this build log wasn't started in the General Aviation area. Obviously the Fiddler's Green "Improved Stock" contest is long since over (indeed, it was over before I ever became a member here), but this just seemed the right place to put a Fiddler's model. Not that it's really going to be more than 10% FG by the time I get through with it :rolleyes:

Working on the boom end of the fuselage now. As you can see I have most of the wooden vertical supports glued in place and peeled the FG paper backing off, and have begun to add the fuselage bracing wires using black thread.

The last two photos show the boom from the inside and outside. Now to do the other one...

[RickTNRebel]

I really like your build. I've been thinking about building a stick & tissue version of this from some plans I have. The rigging on this bird is art display alone!

[altbob]

Thanks Rick. This is practically going to be a stick and tissue plane by the time I get done with it, except that I really like the Fiddler's Green wings and have no intention of making my own spars and ribs to scratch build the Bleriot wings. Like you I am really looking forward to doing all the rigging.

I am finding however, with respect to the rest of the plane, that using the Fiddler's Green pages as "plans" for stick construction is leaving a lot to be desired. Case in point, the fuel tank, which I originally made to the size printed on the Fiddler's model turned out to be too long. This was annoying as I had already painted it and given it a nice brown wash for weathering. I cut it down and primed the new front end with black primer, as shown below. The tank cap turns out to also be rather fanciful when compared to historical photos, but I think I will keep that detail as I like the way it looks, at least for now (I may yet discover that it gets in the way of the tank hanger/stringers).

Also did some more work on the control yoke - added a bell shaped "cloche", which the real Bleriot has as an attachment point for the control wires for wing warping and elevator control. I sculpted the cloche out of epoxy putty, although if this hadn't worked out my back up plan was to drill a hole in a split pea.

Also carved a rudder pedal from a small bit of balsa and mounted that on the floor in front of the yoke. Everything was painted with acrylics. Apologies for the somewhat blurry photo!

[altbob]

So I attached the tail booms and guess what? It made it even more clear to me just how far off the FG paper kit is from the actual plans and schematics that one can find on the internet. Among the most obvious being that the entire top side of the fuselage should have no canvas on it whatsoever. So I began cutting off the paper from the top of the model. This is a fairly tedious process and will require a bit of careful scraping with the side of an x-acto knife to clean up, but I think it it will be worth it...

I'm pretty involved in trying not to destroy any of the work that I've done so far that I actually like, so I haven't stopped to take many photos, except for the one below, which at least shows the potential of this model with the fuselage booms attached and the rigging at least finished on the sides.

I suppose a less stubborn person would just start over from scratch...

[altbob]

Let's take a step backwards...

I just picked up my camera to take some W.I.P photos and discovered that I had in fact taken some photos of the tail booms being put on! I think they are worth posting anyway to show what's going into this little model. Hope you agree!

[altbob]

This brings the build log up to date, with me ripping off the fuselage bits top and bottom behind the pilot's seat, as contrary to the FG plans, the real Bleriot XI had a completely open cockpit. Re-posting the photo of this step, now in it's proper order.

You will note that I've marked one of the stringers in this photo with an "A" - this is another error carried over from the FG plans which I plan to remove and correct. According to my research, this stringer 1) wasn't really there, 2) wasn't really this shape, and 3) wasn't actually a support stringer at all* but one of two cross pieces whose function was to hold the fuel tank. A few very basic instruments were also mounted on these cross pieces (fuel gauge and RPM gauge, I believe). I made some pencil sketches of what these are actually supposed to look like and will post a scan of this at my next opportunity.

*In fact, the whole top of the cockpit area was structurally held together with a very unique wooden hoop. I plan to recreate this hoop using bamboo...more on that later!

[altbob]

Continuing on with this project, I removed the horizontal stringers (which I discovered are actually supposed to be fuel tank hangers) and other features from the cockpit/fuel tank area of the forward fuselage and replaced them with the "racetrack" hoop of the actual Bleriot.

Thanks to Darwin's suggestion above, I decided to use bamboo for this part, bending it over stream and using a pipe of the approximate diameter I wanted.

I stopped to take some photos along the way which I thought I'd share with you all. I found I got the best result using a tiny rubber band from my son's braces. Both "C" halves were glued in place and lightly sanded at the join to smooth it all out and make it look fairly seamless. (Note my purple cast and crutches in photo #3!)

The final result is in the last two photos. As you can see, I removed the seat now altogether, as the exact placement should be made in relation to this hoop. I believe the next step should be to finish the rigging on the fuselage boom before putting any of the cockpit/fuel tank/engine details in.

I'm very satisfied now with how it's coming along! Hope you all agree and are getting something out of this. Comments welcome!

[altbob]

Continuing on with the rigging. I made a tool from a milk container. The res plastic cap does not stick to the superglue, so it helps me to keep the rigging in place until the glue dries on each attachment.

Tossing up some close ups of the cockpit interior details, gas tank and engine, to which I've added some stripped wire insulation for exhaust pipes (which needs to be trimmed down a bit more).

I threw in a couple shots of the parts dry fitted together for some inspiration to keep going with this project.

P.S., I don't think making the tail surface movable would be too hard at all, so that's my plan for that. Going to try to do likewise for the elevators.

[RichO]

That is very cool!

[whulsey]

Thanks for the tip about the milk cap. Got to go dig the old one out of the trash.

The model is really coming along great. The bamboo surround for the cockpit is great.

[altbob]

Thanks guys! I know this is going pretty slowly, but the broken leg really slowed me down a lot. Anyway, I took a photo of where I'm at with the project, having stained the wood and painted the tail boom thread with some silver paint. I should have used silver thread to begin with, but I didn't have any. Hopefully this doesn't look too crappy:

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e344/BobLipp/Bleriot%20XI/Bleriot22014.jpg

I will get more done on this over the weekend for sure!

[altbob]

Time to get serious about the interior details so I can move on to the wings, landing gear and rigging! That means I need to tackle the yokes that hold up the gas tank, and these are very intimidating as the historic photos I'm working from show them as being elaborately shaped and given that this plane was made in 1909, hand carved. I made sketches of the hangers and their placement:

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e344/BobLipp/Bleriot%20XI/FGBleriotModWIP063.jpg

And am going about hand carving my own from popsicle stick wood rather than balsa, for the extra strength. Here are some WIP photos - hopefully my next entry will have everything in place and painted to match the wooden frame of the aircraft. The last photo shows the yokes on the tank I made...I'm actually now thinking, after shortening it, that it's too short! Damn you Goldilocks! The next one will be "just right"...

[altbob]

Quick update, all of the special stringers, including the two that serve as yokes for the gas tank, are finished and test fitted into place.

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e344/BobLipp/Bleriotscratchbuild.jpg

I have to decide now if the gas tank I made (in the background of the photo) is in fact just about 1 or 2mm too short. For sure, the gas cap is too big and needs to be redone. I'll be working on that next.

[altbob]

As mentioned, I am making a new gas tank for the Bleriot now that the stringer-yokes are done and I can tell the exact size that the tank is supposed to be. I thought I'd toss up a couple W.I.P. photos. The tank is made from aluminum tubing cut to size and the ends are modelled using epoxy putty which cures rock hard at room temperature. I will add the gas cap to the top and then paint this sub assembly next.

[altbob]

Working on the front-end engine and landing gear mount, again using the Fiddler's Green model for blue prints on all but the canvas areas of the plane.

last photo is a test fit of the engine, which is just primed black right now before painting. Still much to do...

Laboring in obscurity. I should probably restart this thread in "General Aviation" at some point.

[Leif Ohlsson]

Your way of modeling is very attractive - scratchbuilding each part, in mixed material, and based on various sources. It is not a mainstream way of doing things, and all the more refreshing for it.

The problem, as I've perceived it from the start of this thread, is the relative coarseness of the open framework. I realize strength dictates your choice of "timber" dimensions, but the overall frailety of the original somehow gets lost. I'm convinced I could not do better, particularly in your chosen scale, but the problem still is there, wouldn't you agree?

As a positive example your later work on the landing gear & engine frame carries so much more of the original's character. It is really good, and most attractive to see the use of mixed material in it. That is really true to the character of the original.

I've been reluctant to comment so far, since it is rather depressing to criticize something at such an early stage as when I first saw this build. Now that I've seen more of the true quality of your work, I feel free to raise the issue of the framework. And I'm confident you will be able to take it in the right spirit, as a discussion about the best ways and means of bringing the spirit of the original into one's work.

I will try to watch more closely from here on in.

Warm regards, Leif

PS. Never mind about restarting the thread in another section. It was the "Bleriot XI heavily modified" heading that caught my interest, and made me return to it.

[altbob]

Thanks for the comments Leif! I'm glad to have critique and not just people telling me how much they like my work. The critique is what pushes us to learn and try harder ;)

As for timber dimensions, I started this project out using the Fiddler's Green plans as a guide to the thickness of the timbers. I cut a coffee stirrer stick lengthwise into 3 strips, which is pretty thin. To be honest, until I added the stringers and glued the longerons together with the rigging the whole thing threatened to break apart nearly every time I touched it! It is now finally fairly sturdy, but I do see what you mean about it maybe being a bit too study in appearance. I wonder if the choice of wood stain (raw sienna) is contributing to that? I was actually thinking of repainting it a bit lighter in color, but what is stopping me is the yellow color of the Fiddler's Green "canvass" parts that I plan to use. I think it will look odd if the wood parts aren't darker than the canvass (paper).

As I've gone on I am more open to mixing media, and the brass wire seems to have been a good choice for the landing gear support posts. I will also build some kind of wire and wood construct for the tail wheel.

Thanks for the vote of confidence on my scratch-building technique. I've never gone this far with an "improved stock" modification before and every time I sit down to work I have to invent a way to move forward. There isn't really a fully fleshed out plan here. That, and the broken ankle, have made this project move pretty slowly. But I'm enjoying myself so much that I'm almost dreading the day this is complete and just sits on a shelf gathering dust. The building is the fun part! :)

[jagolden01]

Enjoying yourself is what it's all about! There's no rush, and like you, think others do not want the build to end. It is amazing and gives one ideas.

As to Leifs coments, the act of paInting might have brough out some roughness of the wood when it dried. Possibly a light going over with superfie sandpaper would have taken some of the roghness off. That said, though, I understand how dlicate the framework is from my Airco Dh2 and Demsoielle builds

Looking great!

[altbob]

Good suggestion about the fine sandpaper. The only problem might be that the longerons were made in two parts because the tail boom section was made separately from the front cockpit/engine/fuel tank section, and I used some modelling putty to hide the seams. The putty is not wood colored, so a coat of paint was used to tie it all together.

I'm thinking about a lighter drybrushing to perhaps bring up the texture of the wood and add some lightness to the tail boom areas. But I think I will wait to decide until I do another test fitting with the wings and tail feathers. I'm about ready to do just that once I finish painting the fuel tank and tank yokes and engine.

[Leif Ohlsson]

Bob, I found this site for you, about the restoration of a Bleriot XI. It is the French Classique Air Service - Bleriot XI. Here's their computer image of the engine mount. Very much the way you built it:

http://www.papermodelers.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=199901&stc=1&d=1394037869

There are many, many other beautiful photos on the site.

Best now, Leif

[altbob]

Thanks Lief! Nice later model 7 cylinder rotary engine on that one. I'm trying to stick to an original "W" form Anzani engine on mine.

I have looked at so many Bleriots at this point, and Bleriot blue prints, that the only thing I can say for sure is that no two planes were probably identical. I love that they all have this hand-crafted quality to them. You didn't include the URL of the website you looked at, BTW. Can you pass that along?

I wish I could have made the wooden longerons and stringers thinner and more to scale but I honestly think they would have broken too easily had I gone any thinner, unless I used metal or plastic rather than wood. Maybe next time :rolleyes:

[Leif Ohlsson]

So sorry, Bob. Of course I intended to:

Classique Aero Serviec - Bleriot XI (http://classiqueaeroservice.free.fr/2-%20Atelier/Bleriot%20XI.en.htm) (and several other aircraft, finished & inprogress; beautiful site).

And I agree; at your small scale, it would be near impossible to do the Bleriot fragile framwork true to scale in every respect. Even in my preferred larger scale, I wouldn't really know how to go about it. And you're doing a fine work of crossbracing it. I applaud that effort.

Leif

[altbob]

Thanks Leif. I had to chuckle at the comment on that website: "The antique drawings have insufficient detail..." Boy am I finding that to be true!

BTW, now that the cross bracing has been added to this model it no longer breaks every time I put it down on the table too hard or when I hold it in my hands too firmly while working on it! So the bracing is actually functional, not just for show :)

[Leif Ohlsson]

Hello Bob,

I'm glad you find the rigging functional. That is what I've found, too, for biplane rigging. It helps a lot to maintain the strength of the model & its struts (which otherwise would be very prone to wiggling and breakdown).

http://www.papermodelers.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=200025&stc=1&d=1394204547

I found this nice painting for you today. Here's the thread from a Russian site, Forums Eagle (http://forums.eagle.ru/showpost.php?p=1627666&postcount=11). It contains many fabulous cut-away drawings.

Leif

[jagolden01]

Leif, you and some others on this site are such wealths of information and advice. I feel like a shallow idiot most times.

Thanks for the last bits of information. Very interesting for those of us following along here.

Joe

[altbob]

Those cut-a-ways are insanely cool! Thanks for sharing! I wish I could get a full size, less blurry version of that Bleriot XI poster - I'd hang it in a frame :) I'm still going to make use of this picture however, so thanks again.

I note the auxiliary gas tank in the tail boom section. This wasn't present in the earliest Bleriot models and I therefore chose to omit. Certainly not too late to change that decision...what do you folks prefer?

[jagolden01]

I spent some time looking around for the poster. Also looking for the name by the artist. Couldn't find a high resolution print.

Best I found was a ~27" x 9.3" 72 dpi jpeg. Same one as Leif posted.
If you'd like that one at least, PM me your email and I'll send it.

Joe

[Leif Ohlsson]

Joe, I was actually on the hunt for a Spad cut-away drawing that came up in a search for drawings of that aircraft. The Bleriot (and the Fokker Triplane cut-away (http://www.papermodelers.com/forum/aviation/28119-fokker-dr1-2.html#post412820) dwg) were just "collateral damage"...

Bob, glad you liked them! The tank in the rear of the fuselage was an emergency flotation tank for the Channel flight, I believe.

- L.

[altbob]

Right Lief, that poster calls it an "Air floatation bag for emergency decent on water" - I've never seen it referred to in this way before. I will see if I can confirm this. If so, then it truly adds a lot of "color" to the model and I will take the pilot seat out so that I can make this part and insert it into the boom. Should be very easy to make.

[altbob]

I spent some time looking around for the poster. Also looking for the name by the artist. Couldn't find a high resolution print.

Best I found was a ~27" x 9.3" 72 dpi jpeg. Same one as Leif posted.
If you'd like that one at least, PM me your email and I'll send it.

Joe

The one on that website is 1947 x 672, 72 dpi. I think that's the same one you have...

[jagolden01]

Yup, that's the one.

[Formerly Styrene]

Formidable I think that is what Messr. Bleriot would say upon viewing your model. The level of detail you have achieved is quite remarkable. I especially like the steam bent bamboo to strengthen the cockpit area. Light and strong, this is what made the Bleriot XI last through WW1 as a trainer for many countries, although with upgraded engines, while the delicate Taubes and Antoinettes faded away.
Good show!

Formerly Styrene
aka David

[altbob]

Thank you Mr. Styrene! :cool: I am looking forward to making some more good progress on this model now that the weekend is nearly upon us. I painted the Anzi engine with acrylics during the week and I must say that in silver and black it looks a lot more like a working engine than it did when it was wood, wire, plastic wire insulation and modelling putty!

Some of the latest progress photos, so folks don't have to read the entire blog to up to speed...

[altbob]

Just a quick shot of the painted engine, front and back (so you can get a good look at the carburetor and exhaust pipes) before I install it...

[Leif Ohlsson]

Very nice little Anzani engine. As a spectator, one realizes that you really love what you're doing - and rightly so! :) - L.

[altbob]

Thanks, I am certainly learning a lot from each step of this process. I finally got all the pieces together (photo attached!) and I'm pretty happy with the way the Anzani engine looks. I can't wait to get a prop on that shaft, but that will probably be the very last thing I do.

So before I can go further I need to edit the Fiddler's Green plans to delete the "Egregious dotted lines" that appear all over the covering and will ruin the look of the finished model. I circled and labelled the lines in question in the attached image so you can see what I mean.

[jagolden01]

Looks so good! Am really enjoying your work on this.

Yes, they probably could have done something different to indicate the fold, maybe a soft shadow line with fold lines indicated outside the art area.

Joe

[Leif Ohlsson]

Oh, nice fuel tank! Haven't noticed that before, really. - L.

[altbob]

Glad you like what you see! Yes, the fuel tank looks very authentic once painted, I think. I mixed some gold into the brass paint and gave the whole thing a brown ink wash to bring out the texture detail of the gas cap.

Moving on, I had a new covering painted in Photoshop but it printed about 2mm too small, so I need to do that over again. Meanwhile I was able to remove part of the old covering which you can see below...a somewhat messy process, but I well worth it in the end to get rid of those "egregious dotted lines" and other imperfections, such as stray glue and paint from all the design changes and rebuilds this model has already gone through since I started.

Also decided to put the engine mount diagonal supports on now as I don't think they will get in the way of the new covering on the underside and this adds a bit of strength to avoid accidentally breaking the mount off while doing the covering and next, the landing gear.

[altbob]

Getting this tread moving again after a pause in construction for real life concerns.

I went ahead a re-drew the fuselage cockpit coverings without the dashed lines and actually flipped the sides on the computer so that it would be a solid piece, wrapping around both sides from the bottom (the Fiddler's Green kit has a top portion, and so there was seam on a bottom corner).

I printed and cut out my work and did a test fit, making notes on it that I could follow when printing and second covering and cutting and folding it to fit perfectly. The fuselage cockpit is now re-wrapped with a nice new covering with no seams, dotted lines or stray glue or paint from the rather messy design-built process that got me to this point.

Here are some W.I.P. photos (sorry if they are a little blurry, but I was taking with my camera phone them one handed while working!)

[Leif Ohlsson]

Good to see you are persevering with your project! - L.

[altbob]

Thanks for the continued support Lief! In case anyone else has a similar masochistic urge to build this kit in the modified way I am building it, I am including the reworked cockpit covering that I drew. As you can see, the sides were flipped and the dashed lines were eliminated. The end result is very smooth and I'll post some new WIP photos soon, as I move on to the landing gear.

Anyone have a top where I can find a nice 1/2" spoked wheel? I made some decent hubs out of cardstock, but I need the spokes...

[altbob]

Hey guys, it's been a rather crazy year for me, badly breaking my ankle in January, demolishing a house to make room for a new self-designed cutting edge solar and geothermal Energystar "Zero E" house, managing the construction of that house (never again...) and now moving into it and combining two households worth of stuff. All of my models, except for a few in my office, are still in storage and what little time I had for scratching my aeronautical itch went into building/repairing and flying RC models over the summer.

Now that I'm finally in the new house and slowly turning it into a home, and having been inspired by Texman's awesome Fokker E.v cutaway, I've managed to set aside a little coffee table space to get back into this Bleriot project that I started back in January, 10 months ago, and havn't touched since March :eek:

So, picking up where I left off, I was trying (unsuccessfully) to make some spoked wheels for the Bleriot. I finally pushed that forward now, using a combination of a jig incorporating some plastic from a milk container (I found cardboard was just too flimsy) and using my panavise - honestly until I brought out the vise I was ready to lose my mind with my chubby, arthritic fingers and that unwieldy monofilament!

Here are some in-progress photos. Still a lot to do on this, but I dare say the worst of it (the first wheel, anyway) is behind me for now.

[Texman]

Yes, those first spokes are the beasties! I spent well over 3 hrs trying to get it started.
Good news, the worst of that wheel is done! The panavise, what a great idea to use
that in this instance. Wish I would have had that!

Best of luck!

[altbob]

Thanks for the encouragement Ray! Only someone who's actually built one of these godforsaken spoked wheels can possibly understand the pain involved. I nearly had it 7 or 8 times only to have it all come apart and have to start over. Spent several hours on Saturday with nothing to show for it but a lot of stress. After sleeping on it, I awoke Sunday with the milk container jig and panavise epiphany. If that didn't work I would have been really disappointed to put cheater spokes (paper cones with the spokes printed on) in place of realistic scale wheels, and my model deserves better ;)

Also, the suggestion in the instructions I downloaded here on Papermodelers.com to use 4 foot lengths of monofiliment was nuts! I couldn't even find the ends on strands of fishing line that long. 6" lengths at least gave me a fighting chance! Anyway, on to the hubs now :)

[altbob]

Managed a couple hours of hobby time this weekend between unpacking boxes, plumbing repairs and moving furniture... Starting to really look like a Bleriot wheel now!

[Texman]

Its getting close. The worst is over.

[altbob]

LOL, sort of, but not really...I still have another wheel to make, or two if I decide to go with a rear wheel rather than a tail skid! But thanks for the encouragement!

I found it nerve wracking to cut the wheel free. I was so worried that the glue wouldn't hold and a spoke would break lose. But thankfully that didn't happen...whew!

[altbob]

The next part, rolling tiny rims on either side of the interior spoke connection points was also quite an ordeal. Took me about 4 times before I got the paper strips to lay flat and flush. I think after this I'll try something easy for a change, like maybe finding the cure for cancer!

[nighthawk78]

Impressive wheels, looking forward to more!
NH78

[altbob]

Well, I finished the spokes and rims on the second wheel and laid on strips of paper to make tires. Very tedious process, and as you can see I still need to finish these with some glue to fill in some gaps, and then need to be painted. I tried using a permanent black marker on the first wheel as suggested in the post here on PaperModeler.com, but I found that the black rubbed off from all the handling the monofilament line is subjected to in the process of stringing it over the jig. I am going to try painting with black acrylic paint, although I have no idea how well it will adhere to the monofilament line without some kind of primer. Wish me luck!

BTW, these look better in real life - the extreme close-up shows every defect!

[altbob]

Quick update:

After much fiddling around with paper, brass wire and some brass sheet, the landing gear struts are finally in place! Some rigging and more fiddly bits need to be added, and I have to find the box my paints got packed in, but a couple progress photos attached for now, as this truly feels like a milestone!

Next up, the tail wheel...because the memory of nearly losing my mind making spokes from monofilament line has apparently faded just enough... :rolleyes:

[altbob]

Starting work on tailwheel...

[altbob]

I continue to work in obscurity (heheh...), not having begun this build log in the "aviation" section of the forum, but no matter. After several missteps I am finally, happily, DONE with the fiddly Bleriot landing gear! Well, not really - I still need to make some bungee chord shock absorbers. But the worst is definitely behind me now, and my wife can celebrate as I can now move this project off the coffee table in time for holiday entertaining!

Here then is the rear landing gear. As you can see, I opted for the original spoked wheel on caster design that the model XI "channel crosser" used, made from lots of reference photos and blueprints. The wheel is paper based on the plans found here on Papermodeler.com "Spoked wheels by Eric Goedkoop" Spoked wheels by Eric Goedkoop (http://www.papermodelers.com/forum/vbdownloads.php?do=download&downloadid=57). I think they came out pretty good. The other landing gear parts are all made from brass sheet and brass rod and some floral wire for small diameter parts than I could locate in brass. I just didn't imagine paper struts holding up - hopefully this doesn't offend any purists here.

Next up, I need to do the kingpost on top and wing warping cage below. These will also be made from thin brass rod. After than I will return to the Fiddler's Green plans for the wings and tail feathers...and then comes the rigging!

Enjoy and comments welcome, if anyone actually sees this...

[jagolden01]

Masterful work.

JoeG

[Pgtaylorart]

Very nice spoked wheels. I know of your pain since I've worked on wheels for my Fokker D.VI.

[altbob]

Thanks guys! I will admit they get a little easier with each one you make, which is good because I wanted to make my next two planes after this an Antoinette and a Damoiselle. I already have a Taube (although when I made that one I had no idea it was even possible to make a spoked wheel for a paper kit!)

[altbob]

It's been a while since I've worked on this model, in part due to the summer RC airplane flying season redirecting my building efforts (and spare time) to flyable planes. But with the Fall upon us, I have some time now to get back to this and a desire to see it finished. So I have the upper and lower pylons fabricated and attached now, and a small pulley for the lower pylon wing warping rigging. Now I've finally attached the wings (which are stock paper parts from the Fiddler's Green kit - for a change!) and have begun the rigging - beginning with adding the proper dihedral with the upper rigging. Here are some progress photos:

[rmks2000]

Wheels and rigging look great. Nice detail on the engine and framework as well.

[Texman]

Sweet work my friend!

[elliott]

Wheels and rigging look great. Nice detail on the engine and framework as well.

What he said...

[Kevin WS]

Beautiful work!

[altbob]

Thanks everyone! Lots of fiddly work went into this and the project went from a modest idea of modifying the FG plan to nearly a full out scratch build. Learning a lot along the way and really looking forward to seeing this done now - especially since my wife has made it known that the table on which this sat unfinished is going to be moved and I need to relocate the W.I.P. "ASAP" ;)

[altbob]

Well, this project got shuffled aside again, first to build a planting table for the wife in the garden shed, then by house guests, then crashed and had to repair a couple RC planes and do my taxes and build a compost bin...and in the interim I ordered some rigging needles from MicroMark - wow, what a difference to have these! http://www.micromark.com/RS/SR/Product/81009_R.jpg

I highly recommend getting some:
Big Eye Needle (Pkg. of 3) (http://www.micromark.com/big-eye-needle-pkg-of-3,7629.html)

So finally back on track now and on to the wings and rigging! The see-saw thingie at the bottom of the wing warping pylon actually worked just as I'd anticipated, so the back warping wires are in place. Next up, finish the rigging on the wing and start the tail feathers!

Let me know if anyone has any questions or comments - happy to reply :)

[altbob]

The coloring of the ribs and spars on the center wing section of the Fiddler's Green plan doesn't match the coloring of the main wings, so I cut and added some wing panels to cover the wing roots. The join is nearly invisible.

[altbob]

Putting on the tail at long last! Naturally it's a working control surface, as will be the elevator (the prop will also spin and the landing gear wheels do turn as well). The wings however, do not actually warp :(

I plan to put another layer of covering on this so that the brass rod is not in any way visible (see close-up).

I had some photos of the hole drilled into the end of the fuselage but they were accidentally deleted. There is a layer of epoxy putty on the end to add some strength to the joint (otherwise I was afraid that it would eventually break off from moving the rudder back and forth). This was all repainted to hide the mechanism and the putty, which has a grayish color.

[altbob]

I wasn't completely satisfied with the rudder/tail, even though it moved side to side, because the brass rod within left a visible bump beneath the paper. So I cut some ribs from cardboard and glued them in place (pic 1 and 2) and filed them down on the ends (pic 3) so that the transition would be smoothed out.

The final photo (pic 4) shows the result with new covering glued in place over the old rudder - the skeleton now casts a very realistic shadow and the covering has a lovely scalloped texture just like the real thing!

Moving on now to the horizontal stab/elevators! Comments?

[elliott]

Just that it's great work and to keep it up.

[altbob]

Beginning work on the horizontal stabilizer and dual elevators, which naturally will be movable control surfaces. Rigging placed in advance. Care must be taken to get the proper camber on the airfoil and avoid creases in the paper that would give away the mechanism when complete.

Not sure if this will work or not. The brass rod in the plastic straw needs to be a tight fit or the whole assembly will wiggle. Also, in my heart of hearts I'd have some kind of rib formers on the ends so that the hollow interior wasn't visible.

[altbob]

Just wanted to give you all head's up. I have been warned by my wife that I must relinquish the dining room table by Thanksgiving, so expect to see some real progress and (hopefully) completion in the next couple weeks! :eek:

I am about to attach the elevator, which as designed actually moves (photos soon!), and from there I am on to the propeller. This model certainly deserves a nice one, especially as the prop shaft is designed to spin, and I have been looking at Lief's designs for laminated props. http://www.papermodelers.com/forum/design-threads/2618-laminated-prop-paper-9.html

I have no idea what scale my Bleriot is in, but the prop on the Fiddler's Green plans is 2 and 1/16 inches long. Given the small size, I am thinking the simplified prop will suffice. Going to study this thread carefully and try making a prop soon! http://www.papermodelers.com/forum/aviation/17299-liefs-simplified-laminated-propeller.html

Fingers crossed, and hopefully not glued together!

[altbob]

Horizontal stabilizer completed (with working elevators) and attached. My model now has a fully articulated empennage!

I considered making some sort of ribs to cap off the ends so that the hollow interior wouldn't be noticeable, but it really didn't work out given the internal tube and rod mechanism already installed and in the way, plus the elevators were already attached so glueing small tabs internally would probably just ended up making a big mess of things. Far too fiddly. If I did this h-stab over I might make it all out of separate pieces with internal spars, ribs and hinges then assemble it all, but then again, if I'm going to do all that work I might as well make this 1/5th scale, install a brushless motor, servos, receiver and fly it! As a "just for lookin' at" model, this is really fine as is.

At least I had the forethought to put the rigging wires in place from the start. Attaching the rigging to the boom was pretty simple. I painted two small paper squares with silver acrylic and glued them on as anchor points, as per Bleriot reference photos I've seen.

I'm bothered by the way the printer ink so easily rubs off or scratches, and I don't like that the edges of the paper appear white. I'm going to experiment with some thinned down acrylic paint and see if I can mix this exact color, perhaps I can do some touch-ups at the end of this project. Have people tried this with any success?

[altbob]

So it's finally come to this, the crowning touch, the propeller! :)

I really like the prop in the Fiddler's Green plans, but it just won't do to put a flat prop on such a heavily modified model. Then again, due to the scale (I'm guessing 1/85ish, but does anyone know the scale of the "regular" FG Bleriot?) a fully laminated prop seems like overkill, so I am using http://www.papermodelers.com/forum/aviation/17299-liefs-simplified-laminated-propeller.html design which I admire very much for its beauty and simplicity.

The prop center section was a real challenge for me given the size, but I eventually got it together. It is solidly filled with rolled paper because it's going to eventually be mounted on a brass rod prop shaft that spins freely and I need something solid to attach the shaft to.

As you can see, I messed up and somehow put the first twisted prop blade half on backwards! Pay careful attention to the "front" and "back" in the directions, doh! :eek: Luckily I was able to cut this free and start over. I'm glad in a way because on further reflection I really didn't like the coloration used on Lief's plans with this model. So as you can see, I recolored the plan using GIMP to be a closer match to the burnt umber and raw sienna colors that I'm using.

Still not happy with the hub, as it's just gray paper and all the other metallic parts on my Bleriot are painted with metallic paint. I may try using some metal foil, or painting the parts. I also like the idea of drop of dried & painted glue to simulate the bolts, as I simply cannot cut perfect circles the size of microdots.

I like the wood grain too much to cover the leading edges of this prop with bronze foil from an expensive chocolate bar, as suggested by Miles Linnabery. Great suggestion though - I'll have to try that in the future!

[altbob]

Spent the weekend tinkering around trying to improve on the prop before installing it. I wasn't happy with the hub printed out from Lief's plans - too light in color to go with my recolored prop blades. I tried increasing the contrast and reprinting the hub and it was much better, but while that was set aside I also tried making a 3D version with drops of glue on the bolts (painted bronze) and a raised central cap in the middle. I like this a lot more. I also brushed the blades of the prop with gloss lacquer to make the prop really shine (literally!)

Lastly I repainted the ANZANI logo on the engine. The original logo was done with a fine tipped mechanical pen, and the lines were too fat and uneven due to slight defects in the surface of the dummy engine. I painted over with a coat of silver and reapplied the logo using a very fine 0001 brush, and Vallejo black paint. It's about as good as I can make it, given the curved surface and how hard it is to hold the model perfectly still with all the rigging already on.

[altbob]

Well, at long last (and on the evening before my wife needed me to clear the table for Thanksgiving), my Bleriot XI model is finished! I'll need to take some good photos of it, but probably won't get to that for a little while. In the meantime I took a tiny video of the model with the propeller attached and spinning. All it takes is the slightest blow to get it going!

I started this in January of 2014 when I broke my ankle. While it took a long time to finish, in my defense I moved 3 times and built a house while this model was in progress, and it sat on a shelf in my office (out of harm's way) for at least 6 months. I am very satisfied with the result, and the whole journey - except for the part where my leg would swell up every 20 minutes because I was supposed to be in bed with my leg elevated ;)

3HRlCFrKsfU

I'll post finished shots in the main Aviation folder when I have the time to take them, where people are more likely to see this. Cheers everyone! :cool:

[altbob]

Received word that my camera light box (Xit CUBE Photo Studio Kit) https://www.massdrop.com/buy/xit-cube-photo-studio-kit?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Transactional:%20Joined%20Drop is in the mail on it's way, so I should have some nice photos of the finished model soon. In the meantime, another video of my Bleriot XI with its modified version of Lief's simplified laminated propeller, enjoy!

a05Aj5IsKy0

[milenio3]

Beautiful work you've done with this little airplane!

Kudos!!

[altbob]

Thank you Milenio3!

[jeanma]

ouahou !
nothing else to say, fantastic job

[Bengt F]

Indeed, altbob,

I concur on all (three) cylinders with my good friend Gerardo (Season's Greetings!) - absolutely beautiful!!!

I also intended, a long while ago, to use this rather simple FG Blériot XI model and enhance it somewhat (along with the Levavasseur Antoinette VII and the Sopwith Tabloid) but alas, it is still only half-finished (and so is the Antoinette VII, which I re-colored somewhat lighter, and the Sopwith Tabloid shares the same fate, I'm afraid).

I guess I gave up somewhere on all the small and thin fuselage struts on the Blériot...

Excellent job!
All the best from Stockholm,
Bengt :rolleyes:

[altbob]

Thank you jeanma and Bengt! I am also considering doing the same with the FG Antoinette, but that may not be for a while as I have a parkflyer sized Antoinette RC kit that I want to build first, as well as a Taube that I want to build and fly. This was a heck of a lot of fun though, so my next paper model won't be too far behind :)