Fiat G-50, Answer, 1:33

[Don Boose]

Superb work, as always, Carl. The clarity and precision of your description and the fine photos are most valuable.

And it is another of my favorite airplanes, so this is another thread that I am watching closely and saving key portions for future reference.

Don

[Golden Bear]

Orazio, I love the Italian planes - I have a build thread for the Folgore over at Zealot as well as the little WWI seaplane. I have been waiting for a 1:33 model of the G-50 and am glad to have the nice printing of the Answer kit for it.

I wish there were kits for the many Caproni planes of the inter war period also.

Here is a sort of update shot. I continue to be uncertain about how parts are supposed to line up with the frames and such so I'm forming and attaching the skins separately from the frames. This is another example for Don of how to shape things just right before gluing them down!

I'm proceeding in a sort of haphazard manner and cut out the wing frames (not shown) and fit them last night. They are rather fragile and there is at least one apparent misfit, so the drama and uncertainty will continue there.

In the background of the photo you can also see the main landing gear. I like to do the landing gear and tail assemblies early in the process before they become nuisances at the end of the build. I find that I concentrate my efforts better. My black paint had gone dry so I bought a new kind at the art supply store rather than from a hobby dealer. It has a sort of satin gloss finish which I actually rather like even though it doesn't at all represent tires that have been rolling around on dirt and grass runways. I'll just imagine that the mechanics used ArmorAll on them.


Carl

[eatcrow2]

Originally Posted by Golden Bear

I wish there were kits for the many Caproni planes of the inter war period also.
Carl

I second this wish!!!

[pahorace]

Carl,
I see your work is absolutely outstanding, very nice the main landing gear.

Originally Posted by Golden Bear

Orazio, I love the Italian planes -
...
Here is a sort of update shot. I continue to be uncertain about how parts are supposed to line up with the frames and such so I'm forming and attaching the skins separately from the frames. This is another example for Don of how to shape things just right before gluing them down!
...
Carl

I agree with this, for example a first time in my "S-79", I was glued to the skins on the frame of former and came out a disaster.
Then I modeled rather than the skins and adapted the former and was acceptable.

Thanks for the advice much appreciated by me.
I follow with attention your thread.

Orazio

[Don Boose]

I appreciate all examples of how to do things. As mentioned, this is becoming another chapter in my uncommonplace book of paper model techniques, reviews, and builds. Each such example puts me a step further -- I just have to apply the techniques, try to be patient, and find the time to practice, practice, practice.

So the advice is much appreciated by me, too, as well as Orazio's further reinforcement of the lesson.

Don

[Golden Bear]

I've been finishing up the cockpit detail so that I can finally get all the skins and frames together. Here are a couple shots. Of course it is pretty much a waste of time since all you can see through the cockpit opening is the top of the seat. Don't know why I bother.

After many fittings and head scratchings I finally realized that the floor of the cockpit is 1mm short (at the front), in reference to the side skins and all the struts and things inside the cockpit. I've dismounted it.

I'll assemble the thing by lining up the cockpit lines first with the back of the cockpit, while I can look in from the front. Then I'll stuff in the front frames and firewall and attach the skin assembly before things are too dry so that I can eyeball them to correct look.

This is a classic example of not rushing to glue. A little tough to fit everything with so much up in the air. It will be nice to actually have a solid piece of plane at some point.


Carl

[Don Boose]

Well, we will always have these photos to show us exactly what the cockpit detail looks like.

Superb detail it is, too!

Don

[Golden Bear]

I've actually lost one assembly entirely and had to scratch build the top strut on the, umm, left? side. It can be bare metal rather than painted.

I might point out that the assembly drawings are not at all definitive (there's at lieast one part not in any view) and the instructions (Polish, but I've built enough of these things to muddle through the importatnt stuff) does not explain much at all. Pretty much "attach x to y. then build z."

I love the artwork on Answer's kits and their range of subjects but they can be just a pain to build.


Carl

[pahorace]

Interior of extraordinary detail and color, I like to do things like that but I do not know if I can ever. :(
However, it is a pity that it is very hidden in the finished work.

Orazio

[Golden Bear]

This model is turning out to be a chore. I had a similar fight with the Bf109 also and just tossed the P-36 Answer models because of these issues.

Problems so far:
1. the front disk has the slot cut about 1mm too low
2. the floor of the cockpit is 1mm too short.
3. who knows where 2a goes? I sure don't.
4. there are wing formers that don't match the long struts
5. the fuselage formers, which are floating, are too small - so far all of them except the one behind the pilot's seat

So it doesn't look like I've done much I know, but I cannot record the hours of test fitting, cussing, planning, cussing, etc.

After joining the front fuselage skins together, I started by fastening the cockpit skin to the aft cockpit bulkhead and floor since I could look in the front and get everything as square as possible. Then I wrapped the front of the skins around the front of the nose framing and stuck the whole thing onto the cockpit skin as square as I could eyeball... remember that the floor doesn't reach to the front bulkhead. Yippee! Something finally joined together!

Now I can just run back on the fuselage and have something easy to build for a bit. Oops, the formers either are too small or are meant to fit somewhere other than at the joints.

On the assumption (and my desire) that the bulkheads go inside the joints between skin segments, I've been wrapping them to get them to fit nicely. This involves a double wrap of card.

To do this, I cut a ~1mm (eyeballed) strip of card off of an edge of the parts sheet and glue it tight around the perimeter of the bulkhead. Of course, it is now just murder to get the thing to fit inside the joiner strip but that's life. Good thing that I am fond of this plane - and that the skin coloring is beautiful.

In the photo I attempted to show the bulkhead in the one parrt with the wrapping on it. Don't know how clear it is.


Carl