Scops Owl - Johan Scherft

[Don Boose]

Great work, Kevin! I appreciate all the information about your methodology. I anticipate it will come in handy when I try to build the JS kingfisher for the upcoming IPMS with the theme of "Something Fishy."

The actual creature is an interesting and odd little bird.

Don

[Kevin WS]

Thanks Don. So far I am enjoying the build.

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Kingfisher - I actually have this printed and ready to go somewhere. This is a nice little model with 8 or 9 pieces. I often watch the real ones when we are out of town and have always wanted to model this with a fish in its mouth. But I need to build it "stock" first, before thinking about trying to mod it. While I am sure I can get the shape, I am very uncertain about being able to paint the all the new pieces to match. This will be, I think, beyond me.

The model is very similar to a Malachite Kingfisher - I have always struggled to get a nice pic of these but got a fairly good one last time we were out. I will dig it out and post it in the Bird Pics section as inspiration for you!

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The real Scops Owl. Yes, this is an odd little bird. I have quite a soft spot for them (as well of for all owls).

[Kevin WS]

Now for the head.

PART 1.

Picture 1 shows the six parts that make up the head. Below the eyes on the left is the beak. On the right, at the top, are the two ear tufts, while below is a single piece that makes up the face - it looks like two pieces as I stuck a white block on it to stop pirating!

• Start the head with the main piece, which makes up the top of the head and the “bridge” or front of the face. Glue the tabs in the numbered order shown. This means you will start by shaping each side alternately, finally then joining the head together in the centre.
• Take time doing this, letting each tab dry before you do the next, and all should be well!

Picture 2 shows the finished result, along with the two eyes that have been shaped.

• It is important to note that the eyes, when assembled, are “dish” shaped, the printed side is on the inside of the dish so to speak. So, when shaping them bear this in mind.
• Then glue the tab on each eye to create the “dish” and ensures it dries correctly.

Picture 3 - The two eyes are then glued to the front of the head. Note the “dish” shape of the eyes. On the top of the head, there are also two large patches with no texture – this is where the ear tufts will be attached.

Picture 4 - This shows the head from a different angle. Here the shape of the eyes can clearly be seen.

• The tops and sides of the eyes are then joined to the head.
• At this stage the head should be shaped further to get the “eyebrow” above the eyes formed. This is simply done by pinching the eyebrow a bit to bring it into a a sharper shape!

PART 2 below is a continuation of this section of the build.

[Kevin WS]

PART 2

Picture 1 – Next the ear tufts are made. They are shaped into a cone, and then glued into the head.

Picture 2 – One ear tuft is in place. You can also clearly see in this photo how the head has been shaped to get the correct eyebrow shape.

Picture 3 - This shows the beak cut out and about to be glued. This is tricky - a small part!

• The piece in the centre curves down to form the outside of the beak, with the tabs on either side attaching to the sides of the beak.
• Shape the beak and then fold the tabs either side of the beak.
• If it is taken slowly and carefully it should not be an issue – do not be tempted to rush it, but rather stick one pair of tabs at a time, letting them dry in between.

Picture 4 – Here is the head with the two tufts in place and the beak waiting to be fitted – the beak simply slides up into the slot on the front of the head. Again, note how the eyebrow has been folded.

Picture 5 - With everything dry, the head is then joined to the body. Note the angle of the beak in this photo and the next.

When attaching the head take it slowly. The head for me fitted perfectly on this model, but it may happen that head is a fraction small for the body at the join. If this is the case, don’t stress – a few small slits around the neck will help you ease it on. Touch the slits up with watercolours and they will be unnoticeable.

Picture 6 – A close-up of the head, to show clearly both the eyebrow shapes and the beak position. And, it now looks like an owl!

Nearly there – next part of the build will be the base…….

[Erik Zwaan]

Very well done Kevin, great work of art. The scops owl is one of Johan's masterpieces and it's actually only a model consisting of two A4 size sheets. I have this one also on the stack, already printed out.

Johan's Barn Owl has the great feature of the eyes popping out and in that respect, it's a pity that the scops owl's eyes are flat. Would have been great if the design had the same attentive detail.

Looking forward to see the finished bird!

Cheers,
Erik

[Don Boose]

Looks terrific! Thanks again for the excellent narrative and images.

Back to kingfishers: our local birds are belted kingfishers, a few of which hang out along the Conodoguinet Creek (300 yards behind my house). When I walk down along the creek, I love to watch them zip by, making a noise like a rattle noise maker, or seeing them perched on a snag or overhanging limb.

Occasionally, I hear owls, but have yet to make a sighting in the 28 years we have lived here.

Don

[JohnM]

Very nice build and clear instructions Kevin. As Erik says, pity about those flat eyes, but in #4 post you did show us that you have the suitable tools available.

Using the ball ended tools with a little spittle on the reverse side, a convex shape can be coaxed into the eyes, and a dab of clear nail varnish to glaze them looks quite effective too.

[Kevin WS]

Thank you Erik! Its a nice build, so hopefully you will be inspired to get going soon! The finished model is going to be nice as it is not going to take up much space either.

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Don - When I get a gap, I will go through my pics and post some kingfishers and owls for you. Apart from the owl around the house we sometimes see, on our bush trips we are often lucky with owl sightings during the day. Seems to come in waves!

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John - what a good idea for the eyes, but also too late for me to try as the head is together!

My guess also is that to do this properly it needs to be done on the eyes before they are assembled to the head.

Having shaped them, I would then give them a few coats on the inside using some white glue or a coat of superglue, so they keep their shape when later working on the head and shaping the eyebrows. Next time!

Erik and Don - maybe you want to try this when it's your turn?

[Kevin WS]

BASE - PART 1

Nearly there – the base now, along with the legs. Another interesting part of the model!

The actual base is made up and the legs and claws are attached directly to this. The body is then mounted on the legs.

The base consists of 4 parts – two parts for the actual base, and two parts that go on the top and are basically the owl’s ankles.

Picture 1 – This shows the two ankles. These are simple cones – pre-shape carefully as they are pure cones, and the pointed end therefore, can be quite tricky. The untextured “teardrops” are where the claws will go. The untextured “teardrops” are where the claws will go.

Picture 2 – All the base parts. From left to right – One of the ankles to be glued on. The top half of the base, with an ankle already in place. The bottom half of the base.glueing glueing the ankles be careful as there are also not identical. They are lettered “A” and “B”. The mount has a flat edge at the back – ankle “A” goes on the right as you view the base from the front. Align the angles so they sit comfortably and cover the untextured area correctly.

In the bottom half of the base is a hole. This is there to help you hold the tabs in place on this part when it is glued to top half of the base. I cut the hole bigger – it is easier then for me to get a finger in. but the main reason for doing this was so, if necessary, when the model was completed, I could slip in a couple of coins and glue these to the base to give it stability.

Picture 3 – The base now assembled. When glueing the top half of the base to the bottom be careful to align it correctly so the marks on the bark match up. There are a couple of larger marks that help you do this – I also made a small alignment mark on the on the back as an aid when I was dry-fitting the two parts.

Next, the claws go on.......

[Kevin WS]

BASE - PART 2

Picture 4 – The first claw attached. Remember these are all different and have letters on them.

Picture 5 - The first instruction sheet clearly shows where each lettered claw goes.

Picture 6 - The finished base from the top.

Pictures 7 and 8 – The base from the front and side.

Picture 9 shows the last step – the legs glued in place.

When glueing the legs in place have the body handy so you can check the angles and alignment of the legs before they dry in place.

There are two things here you need to be careful of and get right. One is how wide apart the legs are – they obviously need to fit in the holes in the body.

The second thing to watch is the angle of the legs – from front to back – as this affects the posture (and balance of the owl) of the owl. The angle does not, however, have to be exact. I will post a side on picture of the finished owl when it is finished to help with setting the angle of the legs and the posture.

And that’s it for this session – legs filled with tons of glue, so they will be nice and firm, and now they need to dry properly.