Marek's Albatros CXII

[Ron0909]

Hi everyone :)
I've put the Modelart P-51 on hold for a few days until I get a drill to get those tires done. After looking through what I had on hand, I chose to tackle
Marek's Albatros CXII. This technically was my entry into the Marek competition so kindly sponsored by Chris Gutzmer. With any luck I'll be able to handle this old bird half as nicely as Peter Crow's build! This is the German version of the kit. First things first, I rearranged all the pages to fit letter size stock. I started cutting out a few pieces and found that I was having one of those blessed days when the knife stays true. I got carried away and kept cutting and painting the edges.

More tomorrow
Ron

[cgutzmer]

Sweet!!! I l like this one a lot :)
Chris

[member_3]

Marek has some of the best wood textures I have seen. This model is a winner in either version.

[Ron0909]

Hi Guys

I don't know what I've gotten myself into...My God...the fiddly bits! Since getting the new puppy there hasn't been that much modeling time. Anyways, got the formers all glued down and started off the cockpit detailing. The CXII is double blessed in that aspect as there are positions for both pilot and observer/gunner. As it sits it's ony half-way done with the pilots position remaining. This has got to be the most detailed Marek kit I've ever had the pleasure of cutting up :) New hole punches are definitely on my list of 'have to gets' for all of the engine detailing etc. The last pic is Samson with a mouth full of roadkill :)

Have a good night everyone :)

Ron

[Foxbat]

Very clean and precise work, Ron! As always ;)
Will be very interesting to see your building report. I've bought that bird, too.

More pictures, please! :D:):)

Sergey

[Amazyah]

Aaawwe! He's cute as a button!

Your build is beautiful too!

Russell

[the hermit]

hmmm what kind of cat is that

i am unfamilar with that breed

is that one of the hairless kommando kats of spain?

he/she looks like they are plotting total world domination???

:eek:

o/0

[Ron0909]

Hermit, Mexican Hairless cat. Yours does look like he's plotting world domination! Samson belongs to my wife (shhh I didn't say that!). I live for my 2 cats as any self respecting paper modeler does:) Thanks guys. More pics tonight I hope..If I can get some modeling time in

Ron

[Ron0909]

Hi guys

Tonight was a bit frustrating with these tiny bits and pieces. Who would have guessed there would be a modeled camera with bellows? Marek didn't forget anything :) I think I got it all anyways. The control stick will be left out until later on as I'll probably just break it off building the fuselage. There is a cross-hair device on top of the camera. From what I could gather it is supposed to be made of wire but is way too small for me. It ended up being a small lens where I can *imagine* the cross-hairs. I need to say that I'm really and truly amazed with you designer types...The top part of the pilot's chair was made from 2 pieces laminated together to make the front and back and then curved. When they were flat, they were not even close to being the same size. As soon as that curve was introduced when the glue was a bit wet they lined right up. No trimming at all! It's incredible the things that need to be taken into consideration when designing. If I ever hear of anyone whining about the price of a paper model, they're going to hear my mouth!
Anyways, hopefully more tomorrow when I can start putting the fuselage together. Oh...just came back to toss in the last pic. I was putting the piece away for the night and put it on top of my P-51. What a difference 26 years made back then!

Have a good night!
Ron

[Ron0909]

Crap! Just noticed the mistake I made. The darn back of the Pilot's chair is inside out!
I never print instructions very often and refer back to the computer. I was wondering why the belts were short. The glue points were supposed to be on the inside not out :(
Oh well....

[Texman]

Well Ron,

1) Excellent work. I wish my photography could come out as clear.
2) I don't think it is a big deal on the seat belts. It gives the appearance
that the belts are threaded through the "holes" in the seat to secure them. And,
it doesn't matter if the belts are a little short in appearance, it just means the pilot has to adjust them when he gets in!

Lovely work

[buffalowings]

a paper camera, now that's crafty

[Don Boose]

Yes. The pilot's seat looks fine and in the context of that beautifully-crafted interior no one would ever figure out that it's inside out. Don

[Wyvern]

Hey Ron,

I'm in with Ray and Don; this cockpit is beautifully constructed and the only way anyone's going to know (looking at the finished model) about that seatback is if you tell them! Super work; looking forward to seeing more.

Wyvern

[Ron0909]

Thanks guys :) I guess a different perspective was needed. Ray, those pics are really easy to take. Here's what I did....
1. Bought a cheap camera from the local pawn shop to replace the expensive one I *lost* that never took good pics anyways (Canon powershot a720 for 70.00)
2. Turn off the flash and switch it to macro mode
3. Point the worklamp straight at whatever you're working on. That's it :) If I ( the world's worst photographer according to my wife) can do it....oh, the room light on helps too.

More tonight if I can get it together. Thanks for the encouragement!
Ron

[Ron0909]

Oh the horror....the horror

I'm kidding :) The little tiny pieces that simulate ribs in the cockpit interior had to all be cut out individually. I tried to cut out the printed lattice but no way was that going to work for me. I got a little fed up of painting the edges and gluing down what I had so I wandered off track onto the bigger stuff. I didn't want to be hiding my own Easter eggs by the time I finished the fiddly stuff! It's nice to get a peek at what the general shape of the fuselage is going to look like so I put together a few of the segments. The wood grain on this model is perfect! Marek really outdid himself on this kit. I hope I can come close to making it work. All I can say is thank God I can look at Peter's build as well!!

Night all :)

Ron

[Don Boose]

That is some really fine precision work, Ron. The fuselage sections in that natural wood color and with the very clean construction are a treat for the eye.

Don

[Wyvern]

Looking good, Ron!

[birder]

Ron that looks awesome.:)

[Ron0909]

You guys are way too kind but thank you. I needed that after this morning's little adventure. I was reading about the endless debate of butt joint vs. joining strip and decided to try butt joints for the umpteenth time. What a mistake! I've been converting everything to joining strip since 2004 and my 2nd day of paper modeling. If you have a conical section, how do you get the larger former in correctly? I tried bevelling the edges, sanding etc. To make the formers I cut them out as precisely as possible, turned them face to face and tacked them together. Then they were sanded together as a pair. Did it ever look like CR*P by the time I actually got it to fit. I'm going back to the strips wherever I can. If you guys have a solution, please, let me know :) I need it! This pic I hope will show what I'm mumbling about

Ron

[member_3]

All I can offer is the suggestion that when you have the bulkhead pairs together for sanding/trimming, try to bevel the edges of the pair to roughly match the taper of the fuselage at the joint. This should result in an aft bulkhead that is slightly smaller than the other one in the pair. I try to keep them tack-glued together while dry-fitting the joint and separate them only when the fit is satisfactory.

Beautiful build so far - and you are right about Marek's wood grains. They are the best!

[Ron0909]

All I can offer is the suggestion that when you have the bulkhead pairs together for sanding/trimming, try to bevel the edges of the pair to roughly match the taper of the fuselage at the joint. This should result in an aft bulkhead that is slightly smaller than the other one in the pair. I try to keep them tack-glued together while dry-fitting the joint and separate them only when the fit is satisfactory.Ron, thanks for that. It makes perfect sense to me your way :) This way they still keep the identical shape along with the ability to taper them. I'm off to try it once more.
Thanks again!

Ron

[Ron0909]

Hi all
Not much for tonight other than the joining of the fuselage segments from the cockpit back. There is no way this side of Viking hell I am going to attain mastery over the butt joint. Everything was converted to strip. This will cause a few issues with the cockpit walls (they're inserts) and the cockpit floor, seats etc. I really don't anticipate any problems in the end. Everything fit without a flaw. Every panel line came together perfectly.The cockpit interior is just sitting inside for a look-see in the pictures. This is definitely one of Marek's best and most detailed kits. Chris, thank you for this one as it's a real pleasure!

Goodnight everyone :)

[Wyvern]

Great work!

Wyvern

[Runkle]

Amazingly clean work. Your edges are so crisp, colour matched perfectly, and your forming, very smooth.

I'll be tuning in on this build and your 51 as well.

Runkle

[cgutzmer]

gorgeous! keep these awesome photos coming :)
Chris

[Ron0909]

Thanks for the encouragement guys :)
This part of the build left me with a few less hairs. Marek designed this model using butt joints as I mentioned earlier. I converted it to joining strip so the assembly wasn't quite as modular as intended. The first mistake I made was to complete the entire cockpit assembly. The way this kit is designed, the cockpit floor is meant to be slid in sideways and rotated into the horizontal position. Having the seats in place wouldn't allow this. If you build this kit, wait until after you have the cockpit 'floor' in. The other thing that messed me up were the paneled inserts. Prior to sliding the cockpit in, I dry fit the pieces and said hey...that looks ok.... a little trim is all that was needed. No way. Using the joining strip method put my formers slightly out of place so the inserts wouldn't fit. The other thing that caused a ton of grief were the little pieces of paper used to represent slats of wood on the inserts. Because of the way I built it, the formers had to be slid in after the fuselage segments are glued together. With the inserts along with the silly wooden slats, that former was NOT going in as it was intended. I ended up making new formers at 96% of the original size in order to fit. Again, if you're going to build this one, use thinner paper for the slats. I have a feeling that things would be way too tight even if assembled the way it was intended. Now that that stuff is almost out of the way I can get onto some of the good stuff :)

Goodnight everyone
Ron

[f18fixer]

Thats AWSOME, really nice work on the fuselage, your work is really good stuff, I hope I can build that good some day !

[Ron0909]

It aint that good f18fixer. You should see the pile of leftovers on my desk! I swear, somedays I have to do things 3-4 times or more. I just don't show the mess-ups :)
Ron

[Foxbat]

Amazing accuracy, Ron!! :) Very, very clean. Good work!

[Ron0909]

Hi all,

I'm pretty much stumped. The CXII has a gun ring mounted on the rea cockpit opening. It's made up of a few pieces more than I can figure out. Peter got it together and mentioned that it had him for a bit getting it alligned. I can't for the life of me get it sorted out.
Here are a few pics of the diagrams, the parts sheet and what I have put together so far. Some are pretty obvious like the reversed insides of parts etc. Does anyone have any idea how this works? I've literally tried 5 times so far with this being the 6th.
Getting the weird peanut shaped pieces to form round on top for the ring and conform with the oval cockpit opening just doesn't want to go for me.
Parts 5 and 5a are the outer ring of the gun ring. I can't see the point of
the grey internal part as I don't think it will be seen at all. If anyone can help I'd really really appreciate it!
Thanks again for the encouragement in your posts guys :) It keeps me punching away at times like this.

Ron

[B-Manic]

Hi all,

I'm pretty much stumped. The CXII has a gun ring mounted on the rea cockpit opening. It's made up of a few pieces more than I can figure out. Peter got it together and mentioned that it had him for a bit getting it alligned. I can't for the life of me get it sorted out.
Ron

It looks to me like 4a is an internal liner for 4 likewise 5a for 5. The 4s are attached to the fuselage opening lobes down (to match the opening curves) with the 5s inside at the top (flat) edge then the 77s on top of that.

_______________ 77
_______________ 5
_______________ 4
_______________ fuselage

That's what I see anyway. I would build it as a complete assembly and see if it fits. If at first you don't succeed . . .etc :)

This is a very impressive build and I hope this does not become a stumbling block.

cheers
~ Douglas

[Ron0909]

Douglas, thank you for that!
My brain was getting frazzled re-doing this over and over. Your post helped me re-focus. Building the piece as a module worked! The trick was to build the complete gun ring (using all the pieces:)) and then wrap the odd shaped skin around the gun ring flush with the top of the ring. Slide the completely dried assembly in and line it up front and back. You can see where I messed up towards the front of the piece. It left a gap I need to slide a piece of card into. The gap is only about the thickness of the stock I'm using so hopefully it will be ok. Maybe tomorrow I can show a bit of noticeable progress that won't be so dull! The last pic is just a comparison once again with the P51. It still freaks me out looking at the technological and the size difference

Good night all
Ron

[Wyvern]

Looks great! Glad you got the observer's gun ring dealt with!

Wyvern

[rmks2000]

Glad it's sorted out. Your build is impressive.

[georgerutherford1861]

Ron,

Sorry to ask a newbie question in the middle of your build thread, but how do you treat your paper edges? Mine stick out like the glaring white paper edges they are, and I've been trying some varying methods of dealing with them, but whatever you're using looks ideal. Thanks for the inspiration.

Doug

[member_3]

Doug - there are as many different methods as there are paper modelers but the most common are felt tip markers, water color pencils, acrylic paint and the like. There are one or more threads dedicated to this subject here (I just can't find one right at the moment...)

[Ron0909]

Thanks again for the kind words guys :) It's a relief getting that part out of my hair!
It's still not as good as I'd like it (it's not perfectly round and the visible gaps) but it's glued down and done with. Thanks Ron for answering that one. Doug, I don't mind answering at all. It's like Ron said, everyone has a different method that suits them best. Back in the old days of a forum far far away I wrote an article on just that 'Edge Coloring'. I was a huge fan of watercolor pencils and then the cheap Prang brand pencil as they could lay down a nice layer of color with just a touch of water applied to the pencil tip. I've now been converted to acrylics as it's faster and once dry they are pretty much water proof. I get mine from the dollar store in the craft section for a 1.27. I'm sure any art supply, dollar, craft store etc etc. will have them in a huge variety of colors. They clean up easily, don't smell and mixing colors is easy. Regardless of what you choose, try to go with a color just slightly lighter or exactly what you need.

Hope this helps :)
Ron

[Ron0909]

Small headway today. It's starting to almost look like an airplane. I'll let the photos speak for themselves. Construction was straight forward with everything fittting together perfectly. The colors are beautiful on this kit! I can't wait to tackle the wings.

More tomorrow I hope
Goodnight all :)

Ron

[Ron0909]

Hi everyone,

The tail end is completed other than the skid, the control horns (right name?) and a couple of struts. The kit calls for two tubes to be rolled over wire for the struts however I found this old picture that looks like the struts were flat. Maybe you guys can tell better than I can? The horizontal control surfaces were attached with a wire pin system that ensured that everything stayed nice and straight during assembly. It's really a nice system as things just sort of slid into place and everything was solid. The one thing I did change was to cut off the hinges. They were actually part of each half and I thought it would look better to make the separately. I'm a little bit on this side of being chicken to start the forward engine section but I probably need to get at it now :)

Have a good night everyone
Ron

[member_3]

Most WW1 vintage struts were a symmetrical airfoil shape - usually a metal tubular core with wooden fairings fore and aft.

[Ron0909]

Thanks Ron,
That not only makes sense, it makes the struts easier to model

Right on! No rolling of thin paper to make silly tubes :)

Ron

[Ron0909]

I just had to do this :) Thanks Chris for a wonderful project! I know...
this is just soooo blatant! If y'all can't see the logo on the block, the 2nd pic should do it

[pahorace]

Work with unparalleled accuracy.
Particularly mindful of this thread.
Thanks Ron.

Orazio

[Ron0909]

Orazio, thank you for that. It's nice knowing somebody is following this thread :) Today was pretty trivial but every little bit added helps get this bird closer to completion and looking like an Albatros.
The tail skid assembly was simple edge gluing and a former. There is a call for using thread to represent a bungee cord for the skid 'suspension' but I need to hit my favorite dollar store for some suitable stuff in the beading section.
The tail struts were meant to be card rolled around wire but after studying a photo I had I figured they should be flat. 2 pieces of card laminated, painted and cut to sized worked well. Now it's time to tackle the forward section. The framing for the front end is mostly done up with double formers. The skins will be joined using strips and laid down almost like a hull on a ship. I swear, that's the toughest former assembly I've ever used for an engine housing! This beast will be big when it's finished! I threw in a shot with the forward framing kind of stuck in place for a look see.
That's it for today

Ron

[member_3]

Looking fine! The engine compartment is very clean and accurately cut. This is definitely one of the great build threads of the year!

[Retired_for_now]

Superb work Ron - and I'm sure I speak for the other 1,200 sets of eyeballs that have followed your build!

Yogi

[flying rasta]

Its builds like this that causes us to pay attention every 5 minutes. Got to get back to work. In the middle of a production shoot!
The care you put into building the tail section is stunning.

Will be following closely!

Keep on inspiring.

[Ron0909]

Oh crap...I'm sorry if my last post sounded like I needed my hand held! I read the last few posts and wondered what was up then it dawned on me.
I was just being my usual facetious self (that certain demeanor that gets me in trouble with my wife).
From the last shots and the shots from today you can see the engine 'housing'. It's meant to slide in and meet up with the last former in the front of the built fuselage. As I converted all the formers and sections to joining strip method, the last internal former was slid in to a guesstimated position. Because of this, the engine housing slides in but doesn't stop at the exactly prescribed position. I need to almost visually estimate the 1mm (1mm is the estimated 1/2 point of the 2mm formers) that the first housing former will protrude as a base to glue to.
Here's the question....should I wing it and go with the estimated 1mm and glue the skins directly on the former? Or... should I continue with the strip method and pray that when the engine housing is inserted that it will end up where it should be? I'm worried that like a ship's hull plating, I'll end up with a whacked out piece in the end.
I hope you can understand what I'm asking...I'm confusing myself these days :)

Thanks everybody for your help and the very kind comments
Ron

[B-Manic]

Would it be possible to skin it with the engine compartment installed? The strip method does seem to be working very well for you.

(equally confusing response provided free of charge, cause that is probably what is is worth)

~ cheers
Douglas

[Ron0909]

Thanks Douglas :)

I did what you said as it seemed like a logical course of action. The engine housing was installed. I positioned it so that the first former protruded about 1/2 way or 1mm. My gut told me to just glue the darn skins down so I started and it worked! I guess we'll see how things finish up when I put on the last piece. I also tried attaching skin sections together with joining strips for the next 2 pieces. This doesn't work as even a small thickness added to the skin segment adds to the thickness and it won't wrap properly. Bomarc, if you're reading this, I know you mentioned doing the same sort of thing on your 2nd engine nacelle...Don't do it my friend! Actually, knowing you, you'll pull it off :). I added a couple pics to show how it went down. Tomorrow should have the fuselage finally completed other than the nose. I'll be leaving that off until the engine is installed.
Now I'm off to bed. This was bugging me for some time!

Good night everyone
Ron

[Ron0909]

The fuselage skinning is done! (less the nose piece for engine installation).
I'm not really happy with how it turned out. Now that its all glued down, there are traces of the dreaded hour glass syndrome between the formers. They joined up pretty well but the bottom seams ended up being mis-alligned. None of this is the kit's fault. In retrospect, more careful sanding of the formers was needed and more attention payed to the former placement. I have to touch up a few spots where edges are lifting and burnish the seams a bit. With the machine gun in place along with the engine and top wing this whole kerfuffle will be partially out of view :)

Engine is next and maybe a machine gun to take my eyes away from engine area

All the best :)
Ron

[jagolden01]

Ron, the build is simply beautiful. I think you're being too critical of yourself. As the builder, you always know and see things no one else will.

Detailed builds like yours here, showing the skills and ways of producing clean work, and also that patience is the order of the day, is what has helped me progress my skills.

Fine builds like these make me want to stretch, and I have seen my skills get better (not great - yet).

Don't be so critical - just enjoy!

I look forward to the engine build and the machine gun.

[Ron0909]

Thanks for that Jagolden. It's needed some days. It still looks like poop when you get your nose right into it :) It's not as bad as I thought after a bit more bunishing and I reglued the bottom of the last skin piece.
As mumbled before, I was going to start the engine. Now this is a ton of fiddly stuff guaranteed to make you go blind. Why didn't they tell us about going blind this way when we were kids?:D Seriously now, the engine is a Mercedes 6 cylinder inline mk.4. This is where getting detail out of paper becomes difficult for me. Contracting out to Bomarc makes more sense to me! In case you are not familiar with Bomarc, he is one of our resident model engine experts with an ongoing build thread here of his Mitchel. The first pic shows the parts that we're going to try to squeeze into this engine. The second shot is just an indication of how fiddly things are. It's one of six engine mounts and that's one of the bigger ones! The 3rd shot is just how far we got this evening and the 4th is to get an idea how things fit and how the engine distracts from the bad nose job :). I'm going to try and stay with what the kit offers for parts so other than the exhaust and radiator pipes everything will be stock.
Good night all!
Ron

[jagolden01]

Yo! That is a lot of fiddly's. I thought the engine on Mareks Pfalz D_IIIa had a lot of small parts!

On the long tube (part 38?) you might consider rolling a solid tube then notching it to make the curves. Still fiddly but for me it's easier.

[member_3]

Despite your misgivings I think you'll do your usual stellar job on the engine. The exhaust manifold for the Mercedes engines of this period are definitely a challenge to model in paper. If you have the tiny Roly-Stick marketed by our fellow member, this is a good application for it. Now, a REAL modeler would have totally completed the engine and then checked to see if it would fit - LOL! It's great watching this come together and the tips you have provided will make the construction of mine a lot easier.

[Bomarc]

There's a tiny Rolystyk? Ooooh!

Ron, your build is first rate, high-end stuff (and I'm not just blowing smoke up your you-know-where). The fuselage is clean, crisp, and straight, with the smoothest joints I've ever seen (my PBJ engine nacelles should be so smooth) so I don't know what this misgivings with the nose business is all about. And you certainly don't need me to build your engine, you're already off to a great start on it. Just detail it to your satisfaction, it will look great!

But, you may indeed need the tiny Rolystyk (a tiny one you say? Ain't that something....). I think I need the tiny Rolystyk....

Continue sir.....post lots of picture as you do so....:)

Mike

[member_3]

The official designation is MiniStyk (1/8" diameter) whose wickedly sharp tip is excellent for spearing mice and other small varmints. Contact Shrike for details/pricing...

[Runkle]

http://www.papermodelers.com/forum/attachments/aviation/24798d1252824805-mareks-albatros-cxii-albatros58.jpg


Yumpin' Yimminy! my friend, you must have eyes of an eighteen year old. I have to use one of those magnifier headsets for jewelers to see what I'm doing.

Can't wait to see the finished product of your talent, no rush, I'm enjoying the build as well... oh the dilemma!

Runkle

[Don Boose]

Beautiful work on a model of a beautiful airplane, Ron.

Don

[Ron0909]

As usual, you guys make building more fullfilling than just sticking stuff together. Thanks again for that :) The Rolystik (all sizes) are on my wish list as is the Dremel. The Dremel is this weekend's expenditure as I think I have the wife convinced I need one. Not really much tonight but a couple small parts added to the engine. I messed up a bit with some glue so I thought what the heck, silver it up a bit to see what it looked like. If it passes, I'll keep it. Maybe with the pipes, rockers etc it will be ok. I'd say about 80% of this engine is hidden but it's nice to know its all there (we all have that form of OCD...ever notice?). Tomorrow, if I get it done, I'll show a shot of the top of this thing. I've dug out my soldering iron and found some heavier copper wire to turn into piping so that should be fun. Thanks again to all of you for keeping me at this thing. It brings more into my life than you could know!

More tomorrow
Ron

[cgutzmer]

Awesome! Love that engine :) looks great!
Chris

[Don Boose]

Oh! Didn't that engine turn out well! Now on to that flaring exhaust manifold!

Don

[Ron0909]

Thanks Chris and Don :) We're not yet done though. That's just the base.
The kit calls for card to be wrapped around wire to create some of the needed pipes. As one pipe needs a 90 degree turn and then an offset to get around the cylinders, this is next to impossible with thick card as it kinks. I couldn't see using the kit's pipe as it was a strip with a ton of notches cut out to accomodate the bends. I found some of the thinnest paper known to man...zig zags!! These are are rolling papers for your favorite smoking substance so I felt very awkward buying them at my corner store. It was pretty easy after that. Start the tube by placing some glue on the wire base (nice and thin) and then place the rolly on the wire with the glue strip opposite from the end you're gluing. Start rolling it up and lick the glue edge when it comes to the end. Finishing was watered down PVA and then bent to shape and painted again. I'll have this done tonight I hope so I can get on with the rest of the build. Thank you for the support guys!
Ron

[member_3]

Zig-Zags! (Puff, puff, but don't inhale) That is absolutely brilliant! The finished item is absolutely perfect! <<The crowd leaps to its feet with a thunderous standing O>>

[GreMir]

I will second OldTroll - BRILLIANT!
Have to get some of those rolling papers for the pipework in P.11c...

[cgutzmer]

so wire inside the paper..... I like the idea myself but then I am not a purist :) if you roll those around really thin wire how well does it bend if you were to take the wire out? maybe dab some watered down elmers on the joints (so it soaks in) then hold it for a bit while it hardens to shape? :)
Chris

[jagolden01]

Engine is looking great!

Hey, where are the Twinkies?

[Ron0909]

Thanks guys! Chris, once the paper is taken out and then the tube bent, it kinks.
I was a commercial electrician prior to messing up my knees and bending pipe was 2nd nature. When we bent pipe we used a dedicated bender which is an arc with walls that actually supports the pipe walls as its being bent. The other really old school way was to fill the pipe with sand and plug the ends. The sand being compressed stopped the walls from kinking. The wire inside does the same sort of thing. The problem is getting the wire out after the fact. Maybe a really soft wire like solder? The newer lead free solder is tougher than the regular stuff so maybe it will pull out better and not break? Marek calls for the wire so I'm sticking with it :) Purists have a special place in my heart but I sort of look at them like reformed smokers (not that harsh tho). I'm only kidding! To be able to do these things without the help of other materials is just mind boggling! I just saw this after I had posted Hey, where are the Twinkies? and had to keep myself from falling off the couch! HAHAHAHAHAH :)
More later guys :)
Ron

[cgutzmer]

I agree :) wire for me too ;) was just wondering if you had any thoughts on the subject! I have used those conduit benders a few times - work great! Need someone to make a REALLY small one for paper ;)
Chris

[B-Manic]

This process works pretty good for me for true 90 degree transitions.

[shrike]

Rolling papers have been a staple of mine for a while. Wait 'til you roll MG barrels that are <1mm and hollow<G>.
Q-tip sticks are also good for pipes and other round goodies. - And they're paper too.

[Ron0909]

Good evening everyone :)

Tonight was crazy with our little guy Sam the Chihuahua dominating the time of 3 adults and 2 cats. Man....who ever thought such a small package would be so full of Pi** and vinegar! I added a few more pipes and cylinders and decided it was time to stick the thing into the fuselage. I'm sure you guys are as tired of hearing about it as I am fiddling with fiddly bits! Actually, pretty much everything else I'm going to do to this engine can be done after it's mounted. I want to get onto the rest of the plane! I'll get at it before the top wing goes on. Tomorrow will be the front machine gun and if that goes ok I'll prep the rear one. The shots are again of the 'thing' prior to mounting and after once again. Shrike, I think I'll be messing with the papers sooner than later :) 1mm hollow machine gun barrels????? ARGHHHHHHHHHHHH!

Talk soon :)

Ron

[member_3]

Something is amiss with the 3rd photo, Ron; it gives a link error.

[B-Manic]

Something is amiss with the 3rd photo, Ron; it gives a link error.

Pix look and work fine for me. The engine does look great!

[Ron0909]

Hmmmm wonder what I messed up?
Thanks for the heads up. I'll send it again

[Foxbat]

Ron, your work is outstanding! It's so presize.. I've no words..

[Ron0909]

Thanks Foxbat :) You just don't get to look too close! I keep posting pics here of even minor little things as it's sort of a build record for myself and for anyone here who might be interested. I hope you guys don't mind as some of it is kind of redundant. Todays very little effort was the pilot's machine gun. It's a pain with this paper as it delaminates so everything has to get cut down to their little components. It just won't score and fold properly when the pieces are small. Other than that the gun itself was really straight forward. Luck has it that I had a former right below the gun cutout so I had to carefully hack some of it away so it would recess into the fuselage. I still need to add the ammo hopper but that will come after a bit more surgery.

That's it today. Maybe tomorrow or after I'll have something more substantial. Oh, I almost forgot...I found a Japanese paper drill with 6 bits for 35.50 Canadian! C'mon payday!!! I was waiting for something like that to come along so I can finish up my cylinder heads etc. I've been rolling paper around toothpicks for my discs :( I've been so poor I can hardly pay attention!
http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=1&p=51577&cat=1,43456,43461

Good night everyone :)
Ron

[Don Boose]

Beautiful work! You do a superb job with the fiddly bits and I think you will find that Japanese paper drill (screw punch) to be a very useful tool.

Don

[GreMir]

Excellent work!
Delaminating paper might be a blessing in disguise as it woul be almost impossible to fold those small boxes so neatly - I usually tend to cut them into separate surfaces to get nice straight edges...

[Bomarc]

Ron, not surprised at all that you'd turn out a beautiful engine! The gun's equally exquisite.

That spiral punch thing is pretty neat, thanks for the link.

Mike

[shrike]

Excellent work!
Delaminating paper might be a blessing in disguise as it woul be almost impossible to fold those small boxes so neatly - I usually tend to cut them into separate surfaces to get nice straight edges...


It's definitely a blessing when it comes to rolling small parts. Roll it until it starts to delaminate, peel the inner layer off and you can roll it even tighter.

[Ron0909]

Thanks guys. I really appreciate the kind words:) That delaminating paper is a blessing
as it does make me take the time to try to do it properly. Shrike, you're right, I've peeled and rolled so many times now :) That Japanese push drill has been on my wish list since back in the day when I was dismantling cheap rotary leather punches for the bits. I couldn't believe the price at 35.00 when I've been seeing the same thing everywhere online for over 60.00. Martha Stewart (oh God forbid) has one out in craft stores with 3 bits for 38.00 I think. Bottom line is that I'm gonna punch me some clean
circles now!

Talk soon
Ron

[Ron0909]

Hi all,

Just a few notes in regard to the nose / engine housing when building this bird... Sorry if some, or all of these tips are old standard procedure but my dulled senses just realized them all too late :)

- When you're cutting out the front end formers, other than the last perfectly round former, cut them on the inside of the line or sand away.

- After the formers are cut out, carefully glue them in place and then sand a slight bevel on the leading edge of them. This will better accomodate the skins on the rather tight curve the nose makes. I didn't do this and things got bulgy etc. Doing this before-hand would probably work better but I had to do it after the fact but still not enough

- After the front end fuselage skin segments are cut out, give them a little
sanding on the unprinted side to make them just a tad thinner where they join the next skin. If you need a demonstration to clarify this, let me know :)
- Instead of using the kit's joining strip for the skin segments, use something thinner. I found that the tolerances are so tight in this kit that card stock joining strips are too thick.

Anyways...on to the wings!!!!!!!YAY!!!!!
Ron

[Ron0909]

Hi everyone :)

I started on the lower wings today. All the former laminating is done with the ribs for the lower wings cut out. I only got as far as getting one of the lower wing frames assembled as I was anxious to get a peek at what they would look like. The skin was printed on the same stock as the rest of the plane. When I bend it (ever so slowly) and try to form it, it delaminates the surface. God it looks like crap! I played around a bit and came up with a method of almost scoring it and compressing the bend with a burnishing tool. I took a shot of a piece of the skin using that method and it looks like it almost conforms to the leading edge. I wanted your opinion on it if you don't mind guys. Unfortunately the picture isn't that clear but you'll get the idea. I've printed the lower skins twice now with the first being messed up cutting and the second with this folding issue. Third will be lucky (I hope :)) If any of you are going to build this kit, don't be put off by the very fine wing frames. They are surprisingly solid. With the wire mounting system and the skins it will be really nice.

Have a good night everyone
Ron

[shrike]

I've run into the same problem - in extremis on old MM kits - two bits of advice. both or either might help.
If you have or can find a very blunt -say 3mm/ 1/8 in diameter- stylus, try scoring the backside with it. The back end of a paint brush perhaps. As sharp as the leading edge is you can probably work it pretty hard and keep the shape.
The other trick is one that I'm using even as we speak. Clamp the trailing edges together - I use a steel ruler and a weight sometimes - gently press it towards wing shape, but very gently - no creasing, no real pressure. Weight it down with erasers, pencils, whatever you can find to just hold it towards the right shape. Then walk away from it. Go read a book, watch a movie, whatever, but leave it for a few hours or even overnight. It will relax a little over that time, and when you return to it you won't have nearly as much work to get it to the final shape, and it'll be much less likely to flake, crease crinkle or otherwise misbehave.

[member_3]

I have used a combo of Shrike's methods with pretty good success. The edge on my work area is a rounded 90-degree angle. I start by aligning the leading edge with the worktop edge and gently running a finger along the paper. This "scores" the back as in Shrike's #1 and then I continue as in Shrike's #2. Your last photo looks pretty fine to me, BTW. Another "trick" is to breathe on the leading edge before and during Shrike's #2 - this will moisten the leading edge just enough to allow it to curve without delaminating. DO NOT LICK! LOL

[Ron0909]

Shrike, I somehow had a feeling it would be you that answered this one. I don't know how but thank you for that. I'm printing the skins again to give it another shot. This time no edge painting until after the bend! I thought those old Maly kits were more mushy than flakey. Damn it must have been bad having both of those terrible traits! I have those burnishing styli I'm going to try. The ball on one end is maybe 3/16 so maybe it will work. I'll post the finished wings tomorrow sometime. I'm gonna do the relaxed bend first and finish book 3 (The Majors) in one of Griffins series. Good advice that book reading stuff :) Ron I just saw your post too. Just in time to breathe on the edge! Thank you too!
I am going to do all that you two suggest and damn the paper's attitude towards bending
Goodnight guys :)
Ron

[jagolden01]

Ron, the last pic of the leading edge looks good to me.

Folded card items should be scored on the printed surface, though it's difficult to do a clean job and hair-raising to say the least.

When scored from the print side, the fibers are stretched a little longer than the back side - even though the card is thin. When the fold or bend is made, the paper should not crack or delaminate. Aligning with the grain is a huge help, of course.

If you ever have the chance, look at a scored but not yet folded printed piece. The "valley" is on the printed side, the "bump" on the back side.

Hope I haven't stated the obvious.

[GreMir]

....DO NOT LICK! LOL
On the outside ;)
I found that a little bit of moisture on the inside of the bend does wonders in helping to shape it.

[Ron0909]

Hi all,

Just wanted to say that thanks to Mr. Bomarc and his wonderful Mitchel build, I finally sprung for a rotary tool set. Yes bomarc, you planted the seed :) Anyways now I'm a very happy guy! The set was for sale on a local buy 'n' sell site and was basically brand new used once. Now....what can I make???? It's pretty cool with the extension attachment, flashlight, 90 degree attachment, angle thingy, circular saw etc etc. What was nice is that it will do from 5000-35000 rpm in small digital readout increments. It will also compensate speed and torque when in use. 5 year warranty with Canadian Tire (our national large hardware / everything store). Sorry, I got distracted from my Albatros wings....

Ron

[Bomarc]

I think I may have have created a monster! :eek:

Seriously, Ron that's helluva nice outfit. May it provide many, many happy years of useful service!

Now let's see some cool wheels....and spinners....and......:)

Mike

[Ron0909]

Here's what I get for gloating about my new rotary tool and blaming somebody else! I cut out 3 wing skins tonight (all the same) and assembled the wing almost twice. First was a bad fold with that paper. Second, I stupidly tack glued the frame in too close to the leading edge and when I folded it, rib marks were pronounced. Third time around was near perfect
with only slight delamination. The trick was to use my 3/16 burnishing tool
(looks like a small smooth chrome ball on a small stick) and score 3-4 times
over an area of 1/8th of an inch or so on the back fold line. Shrike had it down pat when he mentioned to do just that! Gently folding the wing and burnishing the finished edge as I went along produced something that was quite liveable. The payback for my gloating came when I went to touch up the scalloped trailing edges....oops with the paint!! The light blue on the bottom side was fixable but no way was the light blue paint on the dark grey upper surface. Oh well...Back to the cutting mat.

Here's a few pics for the fun of it and how the wing turned out. Next pics will be the whole thing...all upper and lower wings
Goodnight all
Ron

[Bomarc]

Here's what I get for gloating about my new rotary tool and blaming somebody else!

Ah, modelers karma never rests Ron....:)

Regardless of how many you ended making, the end result is what counts, and that wing is damn near perfect.

Mike

[jagolden01]

The wing came out just great. Can't wait to see all of them.

This kind of work is what I said earlier makes me want to stretch my building.
I just "have" to buy this and attempt to build.

[Ron0909]

I know...I know..no more pics until all the wings are done...
These wings will be my undoing! I just wanted show how these bottom wings go on and maybe help out a bit for the next guy who builds this kit.
These wings go together with a normal rib / former system that seems a little flimsy at first (I think I mumbled something about this before). Once the wings are skinned and the wires in, they become quite durable. The inserted wires also help form the very slight dihederal that these wings have.
The first tip is to use fine but *stiff* wire. All I had on hand was what I call chicken wire or binding wire. It's too soft. I'm guessing that thin floral wire or even piano type wire would be best. Thin brass tubing if small enough would be perfect! I don't know how my wings will work in the end as these thoughts are all after the fact :)

The next thing I should have done is this...have a look at pic 2 and 3. That small rib at the the very root of the wing should be brought back about 1.5 or 2mm (closer to the 2nd last rib). This will allow the wing to be located closer into the fuselage with the fillets being used as a gluing surface.
Don't trim the fillets! Actually, if those fillets would extend just another 2mm, we could avoid moving the last rib. God only knows about the accuracy but it would sure make life easier gluing the wings in place. I used the markings on the fuselage to drill my holes for the wires. Word of warning...you'll probably hit a former. It's no longer a deal with my Bomarc inspired rotary tool but if you don't have a drill, at least grab a small 3/32 drill bit for a dollar to help you get the wires through.

Thats it for now guys. More tomorrow I hope. I have a class to start on Monday to finish off my certifications but it's only 1/2 days so still time to play
Goodnight all :)

Ron

[Ron0909]

Hi all..
Got a little frustrated at the wings once more and amputated them. It's a sorry sight at 3:00 am but had to be done. One more time tomorrow again. I made a change to the size of the fillets in Photoshop. I hope it helps the problem.

Ron

[rmks2000]

Your perseverance is encouraging. I can't tell you how many kits I never finished because of frustrating fit issues (and a large portion of builder incompetence).

[Ron0909]

Oh I'm gonna finish this one if it kills me! I'll be hiding my own easter eggs by the time I'm done but I don't care!!! Seriously though...the kit is fine. It's me that has the issues. I get carried away and don't test fit properly, slip with a paint brush, slip with a gob of glue, use the wrong wire and all around do stupid things. I made the fillets a tad larger to cover up my mess on the underneath of the fuselage. Thanks for the encouragement! I'm off to the mat (as a cartoonlike *Woosh* appears in the air above the netbook and our protagonist disappears leaving dust particles swirling in the early autumn sunlight)

[birder]

Ron I can't believe how much progress you have made, I particularly like the engine, and the nice work you have. I guess even I didn't realize Marek had such a fine model of this.. really will be a great addition to your collection of fine models, as will the 51:)

[member_3]

It sounds like you took the "Old Troll's Correspondence Course for Paper Modelers" - at least you are using all my proven techniques! The funny thing is that the pre-rip out photos looked fine to me. Hang in there; this is too good a build to let go...

[Ron0909]

Hi guys :)

I'm sorry I haven't been around to comment on all of the wonderful builds going on around here in the last week. It's been crazy with my MCSE certification classes starting again this past Monday. I've had a few minutes to do my usual Papermodelers.com check in but that's about it. One thing I did manage to get out of the way were the bottom wings of my Albatros CXII. Thank you everyone who pushed me to continue! This became my calling above all else!
In the end it wasn't so difficult. Use a good stiff wire for starters. I can't remember if I mentioned it or not but I pillaged the center conductor from some heavy satellite TV cable (RG6) and it was perfect. The last attempt at installing the wings left a mess so I surgically removed the offending piece, glued the already assembled wings in place and then covered the hole. This is definitely like the old midnight autobody shop I had my first job with... just missing the bondo :) A bit of paint hid the other little messes all over the place. Here they are...the last pics I'll take of these damn wings!

Talk soon
Ron

[rmks2000]

Great pics. Your perseverance has certainly paid off.

[B-Manic]

Those damn wings look mighty fine Ron. Flaunt them!

[cgutzmer]

Looks great! I could use some bondo on some of my builds though ;)
Chris

[kenlwest]

A fine precision build! Great pics!

Ken

[f18fixer]

ya this is a awsome build,so clean....man it looks SWEET

[jagolden01]

Hmm, hmm, good!

[Ron0909]

Thanks again guys :) It made the push all worth that much more knowing folks were enjoying this build. I know I am as the wings are finished!! Control surfaces are next but thats a cake walk! Nothing really to note about the upper wings other than a slight gap where the left and right wing frames join in the middle. This is no big deal at all as the wire supports keep everything together and alligned (a bit of crazy glue on the wires helped where they went through the ribs).

Just a couple pics showing the wing assembly with the rad installed, ribs and support wires. The next pic is the top wing just balanced on top of the fuselage for a peek. The last gives you an idea of the dihederal required. This is what baffled me at first as the kit is vague in describing the dihederal and how to achieve it. Tomorrow will hopefully get that top wing in place. I'm starting to think about rigging and want to try and make turnbuckles for this bird. I think I saw them for sale pre-made by Bob's Buckles? but I'm thinking of doing it myself with some very small wire and brass tubing. We'll see how it goes :)

All the best!
Ron

[member_3]

Oh my, that is gorgeous! I vaguely remember running across some 1:32 PE turnbuckles in the p*****c world somewhere - will try to find the link again.

[Ron0909]

Thanks Ron but the kit does the work of lookin' good all by itself. Marek really came up with a good one. That top wing was out by about 1mm on the top (slight overlap) and 1mm on the bottom (gap) and I can almost guarantee it was my doing. Pretty good considering how small the ribs and framing are. That wingspan is larger than the 1:32 P-51D! I found a good link for making turnbuckles that I'm going to try...see what you think as I've never worked with them LVG by Jerry Creager (Wingnut Wings 1/32) (http://www.hyperscale.com/2009/features/lvg32jc_1.htm) Maybe something simpler will be in order but it would look really good :)

Ron

[Wyvern]

Ron, your Albatros is an ARTWORK, my friend!

Wyvern

[Ron0909]

The wings are finally on!!!! Hi everyone :)
There were no problems at all fitting the upper wing. The struts that were
given in the kit were simple laminated stock over wire. I messed up a couple so decided it was easier to just make them all from scratch. This was a really simple process to mount the upper wing. Crazy glue the struts into the holes that I pre-poked into the wing. The top wing got the same hole poking abuse to it's underside :) To mount the wing I flipped the top wing upside down on the mat, flipped the bird (pun intended :)), added crazy glue to the struts and popped them into the holes. I'm serious guys...it was that easy. A little tweaking when the last struts go in and it will be all good. Tomorrow will be the control surfaces and maybe the undercarriage. I'm dying to use the new rotary tool to make some wheels!

Nite all :)

Ron

[Zathros]

A surgically clean build. The cockpit details are amazing. The kit may be fantastic, but your expertise is glaringly evident. I'd put that in an Argon filled glass case, with a mirror on the back and floor.

[Ron0909]

And I thought I was going to bed! Zathros, you are way too kind but this thing is *not* 1/10th as nice close up. See? that wacky German camouflage does work! I had to try something out in regard to rigging. I mentioned earlier that I was going to try to make my own turnbuckles. Here's a pic of the wired half. This will be looped through a small 'eye' in the wing or fuselage body. It's pretty darn small but I think I need to get the tube smaller. The buckle is made of invisible thread blackened with a sharpie. The tube is heat shrink tubing thats been heated and stretched to it's limits. Whats really good about that invisible thread is that a small heat source, like a soldering iron tip, brought close to the thread will tighten it up substantially. Tomorrow I'm going to try a silver sharpie after a trip to my favorite dollar store. They also have really fine beading wire that I'll try to make the eyes with.

Now I'm off to bed!
Good night again :)
Ron

[Texman]

The buckle is made of invisible thread blackened with a sharpie


Ron, if the thread is invisible, how did you see it to color it with the sharpie?:D

I do like your method for working to come up turnbuckles for rigging. Very well engineered. Oh, and it's looking great!

[Ron0909]

Thanks Ray :)
I never made it to the dollar store today for my silver Sharpie and wire so the rigging is on hold but got the wheels made and parts of the undercarriage. On the serious side, that invisible thread requires patience to work with. Damn is it fine stuff!
Hopefully get something posted tomorrow

Ron

[Ron0909]

Hi guys,


Not much going on here but little bits. I need an opinion if you all don't mind.
Down below is a pic with 3 tiny turnbuckles on a piece of card. Keeping in mind the 1:33 scale and the old aircraft, which one would you use? Black line / black tube, silver and silver or black and silver? or...whatever combo /color do you think?

Ron

[jagolden01]

Ron,
I'd use Silver/black or Silver/Silver.
However, in a couple of spots, I'd use a different one since there were probably plenty of times they used what they could get thier hands on the quickest for repairs.

Joe

[Runkle]

Hi guys,


Not much going on here but little bits. I need an opinion if you all don't mind.
Down below is a pic with 3 tiny turnbuckles on a piece of card. Keeping in mind the 1:33 scale and the old aircraft, which one would you use? Black line / black tube, silver and silver or black and silver? or...whatever combo /color do you think?

RonWOW! Your build is progressing along flawlessly.

I like subtle detail myself. like your engine for example with a light wash of silver, just enough for a highlight.

Continuing that detail and do the line in silver, the turnbuckle in one to two shades of a darker silver.

Love your lower wing save / solution.

Best,
Runkle

[member_3]

Silver/Silver for me...(and mighty purty turnbuckles they are!)

[Ron0909]

Hi guys
Ron, Runkle and Joe, silver it is. Thank you for your valued opinion! I added
a couple lines to the rear end control horns for a look-see. I need your opinion again if you don't mind. These lines look a bit thin to me. They're made of that invisible thread I was blabbing on about silvered with a sharpie.
They do look like steel cable but really, really fine steel cable :) Here's a pic so you can see what I'm going on about. They were hardly visible without the flash. I was all gung ho about using a couple buckles but they weren't even visible on the real thing.

Thanks!
Ron

[B-Manic]

The control wires look good to me. I tend to believe some people build these elements too thick. I suppose to make these details more visible. However, if one is trying to build to scale, consider, not many aircraft used 4" towing hawsers for control lines. Just my opinion.

~ Douglas

[GreMir]

Ron,
I will second Douglas' opinion - this looks perfect.

[shrike]

They'd probably be 3mm cable, maybe 5mm, so 0.10-1.5mm.
Pretty thin is what they're supposed to be.

[jagolden01]

Ron, considering the realistic quality of the rest of this build, I think the cabes are fine. As stated, they're not towing hausers.

As to not always being visible, again, on the real aircraft often you couldn't make them out because of color, light conditions, etc. It actually adds to the realism.

[Ron0909]

Thats it then...all settled. Thanks once again for helping me out! There isn't all that much left on this model except the rigging, cap off the engine cylinders and install the rad pipe, rear machine gun, control surfaces and attach the under-carriage which is mostly built. All in all a few days slow picky work ( I work slow...can ya tell?:)) Sorry I'm just thinking out loud about what's left to do. The 4" hawser cable had me laughing at the image of the rigging done in that stuff! I'm at a point where I need to start thinking about the next build.....Marek's Sopwith Snipe, Fitter's Albatros W4
Orlik Albatros B1 or something newer. I have no idea but I need to finish off the Modelart P-51d

Goodnight all and thanks again for the help
Ron

[Foxbat]

Hi Ron :)
Outstanding work! Every time I see your Albatros I can't believe that this is paper..

[member_3]

Well this would certainly count as good training for any of the Orlik WWI birds (Albatros, Phonix, etc.) They have some of the thinnest wing ribs and highest rib count of any models I have seen. If there are good candidates for the laser-cut option you will find them in Orlik's catalog!

[Wyvern]

Ron,

I agree with our fellows- your cables look entirely appropriate to the aircraft. Keep on keeping on.

Wyvern

[Ron0909]

I was just looking through Windsock Datafile #77 (Albatros C.VII) and was checking out old photos of rigging. How right you guys are when you agreed with how fine the cables really were. As a matter of fact, the turnbuckles were small as hell too. The ones I made being tiny are even too big. I wonder if it's worth modeling them? I feel like a complete bonehead not being able to make decisions without help! I just want to do it right I guess :) Judging by the real thing, I think a lot of those plastic 'pro's' have it wrong with their turnbuckles simply being too large. I guess it's a matter of representing the prototype to the best of ones abilities.... One more time and I won't bug you guys again (for this build anyways :)) I'm still scratching my head about what to build, old, new, prop, jet...I'm used to Marek's style again so probably stick with his stuff. Chris if you're reading this one, any Marek stuff you'd like to see built? Hopefully this stuff is up to snuff for your shop pics

Ron

[member_3]

This might be a case where art outweighs authenticity. I would be inclined to use the turnbuckles as is (smaller only if practical) simply because of "the look" it adds to the model. Bottom line - it is your decision, Ron, yours and only yours no matter what we say. It's all on your shoulders. You get all the blame. You. You. You!!!

How's that for being helpful?

[cgutzmer]

I think I heard OldTroll say you should absolutely most defintely for sure use turnbuckles.... at least that what I think he said - the onus has shifted to his shoulders now - feel free to proceed without burden :D
heh heh
Chris

[B-Manic]

Just an idea . . .

Instead of trying to build endless invisible turnbuckles, I have once or twice just put a small (as in minute) run of PVA glue on the control wire let it harden and coloured it appropriately. See my masterful diagram below :) now imagine it in 3D if you will.

I would recommend experimenting with this option before doing it on the model though, it took me a few tries to get the shape right and be able to do it consisitently (remember that PVA shrinks as it dries, mostly in diameter). Do NOT try this with CA glue, it just runs down the wire.

.| Wire
.|
.|
[|] Glue
[|] Glue
.|
.| Wire
.|


cheers
~Douglas

[Zathros]

I would use the silver turnbuckles. They look appropriate in size as similar aircraft in Rhinebeck, New York, seem to be the same proportionately. Buy a small kids size bat and if you show someone the model and they make some kind of negative remark, hit them over their noggin to knock some sense back into them. You would be doing the greater society a service.

[shrike]

Good point on art vs reality.
Assuming a 1/8 cable, the widest part will be the thimble (eye thingie) at about 3/8 (but only 1/8 thick) The barrel will be barely bigger than the wire, so taking Douglas' fine ASCII offering I'd propose

| Wire
|
|
[|] Glue
|
{|} Glue
{|} Glue
{|} Glue
|
[|] Glue
|
| Wire

Where [|] is a tiny dab, and {|} is a tinier dab

[jagolden01]

Good point on art vs reality.
Assuming a 1/8 cable, the widest part will be the thimble (eye thingie) at about 3/8 (but only 1/8 thick) The barrel will be barely bigger than the wire, so taking Douglas' fine ASCII offering I'd propose

| Wire
|
|
[|] Glue
|
{|} Glue
{|} Glue
{|} Glue
|
[|] Glue
|
| Wire

Where [|] is a tiny dab, and {|} is a tinier dab

As Steve Jobs would say " just one more thing".
Have you guys lost it? Glue, wire, glue, wire, glue, glue, wire, glue dash, dot, dash,dash,dot, dot, dot..............

What the h**l is this, Morse Code!?

[B-Manic]

Good point on art vs reality.
Assuming a 1/8 cable, the widest part will be the thimble (eye thingie) at about 3/8 (but only 1/8 thick) The barrel will be barely bigger than the wire, so taking Douglas' fine ASCII offering I'd propose

| Wire
|
|
[|] Glue
|
{|} Glue
{|} Glue
{|} Glue
|
[|] Glue
|
| Wire

Where [|] is a tiny dab, and {|} is a tinier dab

Excellent point, er, dot, er, I mean dash, no I mean point!

[Ron0909]

I really appreciate all the advice! Man, you`re never too late to teach an old dog new tricks and I`ve learned a ton with this build. Non of it would have been half as much fun without this forum :) I really like that bat idea! It goes along with my sentiments lately. My son calls me `Red`from the 70`s show :) Anyways...I went with the silver on silver. The eyelets ended up being a tad too big but too bad! Seriously...I`m going to try to make them smaller on the next run. Heres a few pics....tomorrow I need to get back to the plane itself and get her done

Ron

[Runkle]

Hey Ron, your rigging looks brilliant and your turnbuckles are amazing... how did you get the line to be so taut.

Runkle

[Ron0909]

Hi Runkle,
It was pretty easy. I attached one end of the line with turnbuckle to the small eye and glued it in place. The second location had the eye pre-installed. Make sure the line is a few inches longer than what you need, thread on the tube (turnbuckle) and push the line through the eye and then back through the turnbuckle. Pull it taught until you have about 1/4 inch slack or less. Super glue it in place, trim the excess.
The last step was done with a cigarette but can be done with any heat source. Bring the heat source close to the line but not touching. The line will shrink noticeably. do this in multiple locations until it's taught. Be careful! I melted the 2nd one I did and had to do it again. I can post some pics of the process if anyone is interested

Ron

[rockpaperscissor]

Despite being more or less constantly logged on, I haven't visited the forum much at all for the past several weeks, and have missed a lot of wonderful build threads - this being one of them. I just read thru all 15 pages. Excellent, clean build Ron. Your precision is really a wonder.

[jagolden01]

Ron, the turnbuckles look incredible. Just one more fine detail bringing this more and more life.

[William (bill) Amos]

I HAVE A DOG LIKE THAT.."DANGEROUS DAN McGRUE" HE SERVES AS A CAT WRANGLER IN MY HOUSE.I THINK I HAVE A NEW HOBBY...WATCHING OTHERS BUILD..ALBATROSS IS LOOKING GOOD BILL AMOS "HAWKSTRIKES

[Runkle]

Ron, shrinking the line... now that's pretty clever. I could see myself attempting to "gently" pull it taut, but only having the wing collapse in the end result.

I no longer smoke, so when the time comes I'll be heading over to the heat gun.

Thanks for the tip.

Runkle

[B-Manic]

Ron, shrinking the line... now that's pretty clever. I could see myself attempting to "gently" pull it taut, but only having the wing collapse in the end result.
I no longer smoke, so when the time comes I'll be heading over to the heat gun.
Thanks for the tip.
Runkle

I would be very careful using a heat gun for this. I use my wife's hair blow drier on high. This works very well.

EXCELLENT turnbuckles Ron, very impressive.

[Ron0909]

Hi everyone,

Sorry for the lack of an update. School has me a bit bogged down so I've had little time to slice up some paper. I started working on the control surfaces and promptly buggered them up so I best wait until I get an hour or two of peace and quiet :) I'm glad those turnbuckles look good to everyone. I need to make them a tad smaller yet.
Runkle, a soldering iron works well too if you have one.

Nite everyone
Ron

[Runkle]

I would be very careful using a heat gun for this. I use my wife's hair blow drier on high. This works very well.

EXCELLENT turnbuckles Ron, very impressive.I was thinking a blow-dryer wouldn't produce enough heat... but your right B-Manic, we're only talking about a thin line here and knowing me the build would go up in smoke with the heat-gun.

I'll give the blow-dryer a try when it comes time, thanks.

Runkle

[Texman]

When I tighten my rigging, I use a cheap soldering iron. Works like a champ, and doesn't blow your model around!

[Ron0909]

I'm going to try and do a cheapo small video when I do the rigging this weekend. Maybe I can recruit my son or my wife by bribing them with something :) It's really worth learning how to do by watching. It's really so easy that you guys that haven't done it before will be amazed.

See ya soon :)
Ron

[Ron0909]

Hi all,

Ahhhhh...feels good to have gotten some modeling done! School has been in my way a bit but its the weekend :) The control surfaces are finished and installed. They are pretty straight forward with simple edge gluing and Mareks new wire allignment system. They really add to the top profile of the aircraft. The undercarriage was a tad frustrating but a little perseverance knocked 'em out of the park! Word of advice if you're going to build this one...see the small airfoils running parallel to the tires? Drill the holes for the axle and the two other wires *after* the ends are glued in place. I must have done them 5-6 times before it dawned on me. The tires are just straight forward laminated cardboard spun on my new rotary tool :) I smile every time I think of using that tool! I spoiled myself with a Japanese Push Drill yesterday. God only knows how I went so long without one. For the first time I actually punched out discs smaller than a normal hole punch without any effort and accurately! The Martha Stewart punch was 28.00 with 3 bits. This one was 35.00 with 6 bits and I didn't feed Martha Stewart buying it! Anyways..this one is soon winding down. Might have her done this weekend!
All the best :)
Ron

[member_3]

The landing gear is beautifully crisp and clean! This model is definitely in the masterwork category! I almost hate to see this build come to a close but then there is always the next one!

[Bomarc]

Ron, I agree with Ron (OK, will the real Ron please stand up). This is what a masterpiece looks like. I envy you coming to the home stretch and finishing, what's that feel like? :(

Those wheel tires look great! So smooth, and round....how'd you do that? :) (You've master that rotary tool well grasshopper!).

Looking forward to the finale.

Mike

[Ron0909]

Masterpiece schmasterpiece.....Thanks you two, but hell, like I've said before and I quote myself "you ain't seen it up close!". Mike, those wheels are standard fare Master for a rotary tool. The rough discs travel round and round at 30000 rpm while rubbing up against course chunks of stone stuck to some weird paper 'til they're nice and round:) Seriously now...after they were sanded to shape and painted, I Pledged them. The big drawback was that nothing liked to stick to them after that! I had to crazy glue the covers on both sides. I still haven't figured out whats next. Good night everyone! I just finished watching Star Trek (the latest one) and need to calm down so I can sleep. It was amazing!

[Ron0909]

Hi everyone :)
So much for getting finished this weekend. I got a bit done but unfortunately my wife took ill (not too seriously) and I had to hold down the fort a bit more than usual. I did get the center struts installed that attach the upper wing to the fuselage and a bit more of rigging. For anyone that is interested I took a small video with my still camera of the rigging getting shrunk taught with a soldering iron. The line I used was 8 lb monofilament fishing line silvered with a Sharpie. You can see it here YouTube - Albatros Paper Model Rigging (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_eiTWUN8gzw)
The shots below are just of the rigging from different views along with the latest struts. Hope you like the vid :) (It's not the best and about as exciting as watching paint dry)

Talk soon
Ron

[jagolden01]

Just stunning! The rigging actually looks like stretched steel cable!
I cannot conceive of doing the little eyelets/turnbuckles.
Absolute museum quality...actually...beyond!

[Ron0909]

Thanks Jag but if if you saw the residual splops (best I can describe 'em :)) of cyanoacrylate glue you'd turn and chuckle into your hand! Those eyelets are easy too as they are just beading wire wrapped around another piece of wire to form a small loop. They're really easy to make. Thank you anyways! This is usually what keeps me going when those little loops get stuck to my hand or in my hand!
Ron

[Wyvern]

Ron, this is simply stunning! Almost there! How do you intend to display it- a sealed, climate-controlled display case? that's what it deserves!

Wyvern

[Royaloakmin]

Hi Ron, who did you get the Japanese push drill from? Rigging looks fine, not sure why so many folk think it should be black.

[Ron0909]

Thanks Wyvern :) My wife is actually insisting on keeping this one as I usually give them away. We have a curio type glass and wood cabinet that she wants to put it in, in the dining room. It's kind of embarassing actually! Fred, I grabbed the push drill from Lee Valley tools Spiral Punch Set - Lee Valley Tools (http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=1&p=51577&cat=1,43456,43461) There's a Lee Valley in London, Ontario but even easier is their mail order which is first rate

Ron

[cgutzmer]

Looks awesome! Glad she wants to keep it :)
Chris

[Ron0909]

Hi folks :)
I'm chugging along finishing off little outstanding things like the front machine gun ammo hopper, pilot's windshield, broken off control horn etc. I have a question for anyone who has this kit...what part(s) and sheet are the pieces that close up the top wing above the pilot's head? I mean the 'u' shape cutout on the top wing. There is a small piece that gets folded over from top to bottom to cover the gap...that's there. It is likely one piece about 2.5cm in length, aprox 3mm in height and tapers in on both ends. I can't see that 'u' cutout being pinched flat as the formers are cut blunt right there. I'll post some pics tonight of the progress. Thanks Chris :) I'm actually a bit leary as to her motives!

Talk soon
Ron

[B-Manic]

Hi Ron, who did you get the Japanese push drill from? Rigging looks fine, not sure why so many folk think it should be black.

Black does provide visibility.

It would be interesting to know what type and/or colour of lubricant was used to preserve the metal rigging and cables. Regardless, I don't think they would be a consistent colour. During flight ops they would be exposed to engine exhaust, dirt, dust, and they would show normal corrosion.

I found some info here WW1 Aircraft Rigging Colour - Page 2 - RC Groups (http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=343990&page=2) that suggests cables were often lacquered to prevent corrosion and would appear dark brownish while solid tie rods (aka streamlined flying wires) were shiney stainless steel. No doubt more definitive info is available.

[jagolden01]

...what part(s) and sheet are the pieces that close up the top wing above the pilot's head? I mean the 'u' shape cutout on the top wing. There is a small piece that gets folded over from top to bottom to cover the gap...that's there. It is likely one piece about 2.5cm in length, aprox 3mm in height and tapers in on both ends. I can't see that 'u' cutout being pinched flat as the formers are cut blunt right there. I'll post some pics tonight of the progress. Thanks Chris :) I'm actually a bit leary as to her motives!

Talk soon
Ron

Ron, I had the same question when I built Mareks Pfalz D_IIIa. I just pinched it shut but do not believe I was correct to do so.

[HamsterX]

Oh damn... The texture colors, the detail and perfection of the rigging... A misinformed person would never believe that is made of paper.

Ron, the surfaces of this model are very smooth, with a nice glossy touch. How did you manage the printing? Laser or inkjet? And what type of paper? Any varnish over it?

I must say this has to be one of the best looking models I've ever found in this site. Awesome! :eek:

[shrike]

OK, I'll leap in for a moment.
Flying and drag wires are almost always solid rods, rather than stranded cable. They do have turnbuckle ends, so fret not<g>

Brunton's (Scotland) introduced the first stainless steel streamlined flying wires for the RFC in 1917. While there was a lot of production under license between countries at war (Vickers had to write Krupps an astonishingly large check for fuse royalties) it's doubful that this would have been one of them.

I'm not 100% certain that the Germans would have used stainless anyway, but some variety of ductile steel (you would rather have the wire stretch than break) and a dark mill finish is probably as accurate as anything (there is your justification for black<G>)

As to dirt or corrosion? Absolutely NOT! While paintwork might get grubby, a slack, kinked or nicked wire would really ruin your day, so they would be de-bugged, cleaned and inspected before and after each flight.

[Ron0909]

HamsterX, Thank you for the compliments. I really appreciate them :) The model is not all that well built. There is glue everywhere (after my rigging job) and paint touchups where I slipped in so many places! I'm going to start looking for a clear coat to hide the messes once I figure out what to use. The paper is Domtar cover which has a really nice smooth finish but delaminates like crazy. The printer is a cheap Brother multi function and the ink is Ebay cheap after market stuff. Jagolden, I never did figure it out with those, or that, missing piece. I made my own from some extra pieces I had when I was printing the control surfaces.
Shrike you're right about those cables not being dirty! Rigging was almost considered a God given talent and a very high end specialty. I really doubt a person working on the rigging would leave a trace of dirt as a matter of professional pride. The pics just show that space in the top wing filled in and the rigging again thus far. It's slow going but almost there. I really need to start a new one soon!
PS...found this pic of an Albatros C.CVII and tossed it in. Looking closely it almost looks like a stranded cable but I can't be sure
Goodnight all :)
Ron

[HamsterX]

Well built or not, that lparticular combination of skin textures, smooth paper and photos sure make a difference. Also, it looks like the joints in that "wood" add to the realism :).
I used plain 160 g/m2 Staples bond paper and a Canon inkjet printer with cheap refills for my Spitfire Va (anyone interested check the Member Area -> Gallery Announcements) and its surfaces look somewhat fuzzy... But probably my supermacro short distance photos have turned the effect much more visible.

Good luck and lets see the final result :)

Regards

João

[Ron0909]

Joao,
I switched from Staples brand paper to the Domtar brand. I used strictly Staples paper 4-5 years back when it was made by some other company than it is now. I got back into the hobby after a bit of a break and found their paper to be very rough on the surface so I switched. Both this build and the P-51 are on the Domtar stuff. The finish is *way* finer :) Macro mode is perfect and I shoot almost exclusively in it (even for some of the shots that are further away). Lately I've been trying to capture the feel of the entire aircraft and it's rigging as a whole so I keep the camera back a bit. I use the super closeups for the small stuff like cockpit areas etc. Your Spit looks great :)
Ron

[William (bill) Amos]

Thanks ron for the comments on butt joints when a modeler of your rank cant get them to work ....it gives me great hope that someday i will be as good as you bill amos

[William (bill) Amos]

O.k. Guys maybe its my pottery background..but i make my pipes exhausts and a lot of other stuff with sculpy clay(try your local crafts section) just roll em bake em and paint whatever color..works good for making bucks for canopy pulling too.......bill

[Ron0909]

Bill, that's a brilliant idea! I've been pulling my hair out thinking of a way to make the exhaust pipes on this bird. I gave the provided parts a rough tryout
and quickly went on to something else. Thank you :) I'm grabbing some of that stuff on the way home from class! It might be cheating to the purists but hell, I think it's a perfect means to an end!

PS...many thanks to everyone that has kept me going with all your support and compliments. It's been a long haul coming back to what I like to call normal life. This forum has helped me hold my head up on many occasion and I really thank you all for that :) Hopefully I can give back as much as I have received

Ron

[member_3]

You might consider Fimo as an alternative to Sculpey. In my experience it is much easier to carve/sand after baking - much like carving hard soap. Fimo can also be gotten in colors - though I'm not sure how useful that would be in paper modeling. One online source is Dick Blick (http://www.dickblick.com) - just do a search for Eberhard Faber Fimo Classic Polymer Clay. I find the soft easier to work than the classic but that's more personal taste than anything.

[birder]

Ron this is a great project and model, love the detail on the struts, and "wires" which I defer to those more learned than I (Shrike!). The overall effect is really nice, and agree with others about the clean work.:) I did use macaroni noodles once for exhaust pipes, so I think anything is a go if it works!

[Ron0909]

Hi guys..just a few quick pics. Maybe a few more later. I bought a small block of Sculpy after classes today and tried it out. This stuff is a blast! The first step was to cut off a slice with a normal kitchen paring knife. Roll it out until it's a bit thicker than you ultimately need. I laid a template of the pipe I was making on top and gently pressed it in. 2nd last thing was to carefully cut out the profile of the pipe and bake it for 10 minutes. I brought out my now 'trusty' rotary tool with a small medium grade sanding drum and went to it. A couple minutes later we had the main pipe. The secondary pipes going to the cylinders was just one long rolled piece cut into segments and glued on.
Bill, thanks again for the suggestion :) It worked like a charm!

Ron

[Peter Epps]

Can it just keep getting better? A- wooey waa woo!!!!!!
Peter

[jagolden01]

Yowza! That is perfect!

I say what everyone else has: this build just keeps getting even better.
The shared tips and techniques from so many folks really shows the community aspect of the site.

Can't wait to try that myself!

[GreMir]

This is one of those "WHY DIDN'T I THINK OF THAT EARLIER" moments...
This stuff is perfect!

[Bomarc]

Sculpy huh? Way cool....

That's TWO build tips I picked up today....

That engine of yours sings to me. Very nice.

Mike

[member_3]

Did you find working with Sculpey "exhausting?" Ba-dum-bum!

[Texman]

Did you find working with Sculpey "exhausting?" Ba-dum-bum!

Grrooaaaannnnn

[rickstef]

30000 comedians out of work, and we have Old Troll



Rimshots heard around the world

[Retired_for_now]

At least he's (OT) not in his curmudgeon phase.

[Ron0909]

HAHAHHAHAHAHA!!!!! I needed that one Ron (no matter how bad it *really* was :))

[Ron0909]

Very little to talk about tonight. I'm coming down to the end of things with this one. Just finished the rear machine gun less the mounting bracket. I'll be leaving it off until the very end. Tomorrow night *should* see the last of the rigging done and the 'brake' (I'm assuming that's what it is hanging off the undercarriage). The last thing will be the prop and spinner. Here's a couple shots of the gun...just don't mind my fat thumbs in the shot :) The things look HUGE in macro!

Nite all
Ron

[GreMir]

Great looking gun. Did you do weathering yourself (paint on the fingers would suggest that :D)?

[Ron0909]

Michael, can you tell? :D Having a weapon mounted on an aircraft that hangs
on a bracket, out in the open, just *can't* be pristine. That's my excuse anyways for painting it and I'm sticking with it....and I still have paint on my thumbs
Ron

[jagolden01]

Fantastic gun, Ron.
The greatest thing about building military is it's never expected to look perfect - they're always weathered or banged-up!

[Royaloakmin]

I can relate to the authentically weathered fingers, just don't touch anything else...

[Ron0909]

Hi guys

The rigging is done! Man have I learned some lessons for the next build!
First...pre drill, punch and poke everything! The small eyelets needed a hole to be punched in the upper and lower wing surfaces. I don't want to say how many times I got a pin-viced needle through the wing and into my finger. You'd think I would learn after the first bleeder :)
Second...pre make everything! Oh I have enough eyelets to get me through and of course 1/2 of the tiny buggers go where missing socks in the dryer go. I swear...there has to be a huge box in some ether filled void somewhere filled with model parts and socks! Anyways, I never had enough and had to stop my roll and make more items.
Third...cyanoacrylate glue needs less than more. That crap has a habit of looking like very little on the small toothpick until it touches paper. Then it turns into too much. I wish money did that!
I posted a ton of pics in the hope that anyone who wants to rig this kit can check here. I found few references online and the diagrams being nice were not complete with the rigging. Windsock Datafiles help a ton.
Not much left at all...prop, rear machine gun mount, a couple small engine pieces and the rad pipe. What can I bore you guys to tears with next?
Ron

[member_3]

Truly exceptional! The rigging looks outstanding and that wood fuselage still amazes me every time I see it. Keep all cats, kids and over curious friends away!

[HamsterX]

Yep, that wood is superb. And the shiny nose cone is a very nice detail, worthy of praise. Is it painted with silver ink ?

Regs

João

[jagolden01]

Absolutely perfect?
You edge coloring is extremely well done.
This build thread has been enjoyable and valuable.
Thanks for taking all the extra time to document and share the build - it's a lot of extra work!

Suggest a wood-based glass box for display. Maybe on a patch of grass with a standing or crouching pilot, small/medium dog and if possible a mechanic looking something over.

Can someone turn this build into an archive that can be put in the "Downloads" section for reference, please?

[Ron0909]

Thanks a million for your kind comments and suggestions :) It's almost finished but not quite. That spinner was a fluke accident. After painting it grey and a coat of diluted PVA it still looked like poop. I threw it on the rotary tool and gave it a light sanding/buffing. A coat of tremclad rust paint was thrown on top in a last ditch attempt to smooth it out. I was going to toss it out and wiped it off just before it was completely dry and that was the end result. Might be a down and dirty quick solution to making aluminum parts :)
Ron

[Royaloakmin]

Ron, can we see a close up of your eyelets? Always a big relief to finish rigging.

[Ron0909]

Hello everyone,
I've posted some pics of the eyelet (for Fred) and the whole rigging process for anyone who might be curious (or bored :)) After looking at old photos of German aircraft of the period and specifically the Albatros CXII, I figured I'd like to do something to emulate the turnbuckles and cable. The ones I did I feel are too large for scale but as a representation, I think they work.

I chose 8lb monofilament fishing line as the cable. It was silvered by pulling it under the tip of a silver Sharpie marker. In hindsight, I would choose 6lb as this one was a tad too thick.

The turnbuckles were simply 'stretched to the limit' heat shrink tubing, cut to length, available at Radio Shack. It's probably cheaper anywhere else that sells electronic supplies. I know that very fine tubing is available in brass and various plastics but I don't have access to them. These might be better for accuracy if that's an issue. Anyways, the tubing is black so a quick silvering again with the Sharpie did the trick.

The wire for the eyelets is 30 awg (gauge) beading wire from the dollar store. The stuff is available in brass too so maybe that would be good for other applications in our hobby. To start, the wire was looped and twisted around a needle in a pin vise. The first ones I did were a little too large as I used the center conductor from some RG6 coaxial cable instead of the needle to wrap the wire around.

This next step is where I messed up. Make sure that you plan this out a little prior to folding up your wings and other 'body' parts. Using whatever you use to poke holes, make all the holes where your cable will pass through or your eyelets get mounted. I did this, like I mentioned elsewheres, back asswards and ended up puncturing right through the wings and into my fingers :). I used the same needle in my pin vise that I used to make the eyelets. Now comes the fun...pre-make a bunch of cable assemblies (one end only) leaving a few inches extra length than what you need. This makes it *way* easier to tie up your loose ends later. Remember, when it comes to cable of any kind it's always better to be be 'lookin' at it instead of for it'! Grab the finished end of one of your cable assemblies with your tweezers and dip the eyelet's twisted end into some crazy glue or whatever glue you use. Glue an eyelet into the hole where your cable is going to end up. Grab one of those pre-made pieces of tubing and thread it onto the loose end of your cable. Feed the loose end of the cable through the eyelet and back through the tube. Gently pull the cable end until it gets taught and then slide the tube down towards the eyelet. A drop of crazy glue where the loose end comes out of the tube secures everything in place. Trim off the loose end and it's done. If your cable is flopping in the breeze a bit, use a good heat source (flameless :)) to shrink up the line. I use a soldering iron or a cigarette tip brought close to the line in a couple locations. The line will shrink down perfectly when the heat is brought close.

That's it! It sounds like a ton of steps however, once you get going it flies by quickly (no pun intended :)). If anybody needs something else, please ask away.

Ron

[Runkle]

Ron, Your work is just amazing, your eye for matching colour, forming paper, the rigging, your endless attention to detail. All that and you still managed to keep it simple... meaning original kit with minor alterations and no over painting or patching.

Just amazing,
Runkle

[Ron0909]

Thank you Runkle, I appreciate that :) This kit was built with the idea that Chris from Ecardmodels.com would hopefully be able to use the pictures in his store. With some luck the next one will look cleaner and more realistic with the lessons learned building this one. Not much was done today other than that rigging speech and photos. I did manage to tack on the prop and run around the room with the plane making machine gun noises. You guys should have seen the look on my wifes face!

Nite all :)
Ron

[Runkle]

I did manage to tack on the prop and run around the room with the plane making machine gun noises. You guys should have seen the look on my wifes face!
LOL! Can Runkle come over and play.

[Ron0909]

Hi everyone :)
160 photos and 20 pages here on Papermodelers.com and we've finally come to the end of this build. I've learned alot with this build and have had a ton of great advice and many great conversations. Thank-you everyone for enduring this one with me :) It's been fun! Chris from Ecardmodels.com, thank you for providing what I have come to think of as one of Marek's best designs. This kit had not one fit problem nor one panel line out of place. I missed 2 parts....one was the windshield which I will try to squeeze in sometime in the future. In my excitement to get the top wings on I forgot it. No excuse :) The 2nd piece I missed was right below the radiator. I got the base of it on but again in my haste....you know the story. Anyways, here are some pics of the final build. They might be a tad redundant but hey... :) I need to find a nice place to take some good shots for my album and when I get them taken I'll post a couple here.

All my best!
Ron

[member_3]

That is as fine a model as I have ever seen in any medium! You have provided us all with some great lessons and a fine example of what can be accomplished with a little skill, some collective knowledge and a heaping spoonful of perseverance. I admire your ability to stay with the project even on those days when things weren't going as expected. Thank you again for a great build, a bunch of lessons learned and an example of how to "git 'er done!" <<OldTroll stands on chair and applauds wildly>>

[Bomarc]

Well, it's about time! :)

Ron it's gorgeous. I echo everything the troll-meister wrote above, well, maybe except for the part about standing on my chair, but I am applauding!

Mike

[B-Manic]

It's a beautifully crafted model Ron. Thanks for sharing, this thread has been educational, entertaining and inspirational. You should be very proud.

[Ron0909]

Thanks guys :) I'm really glad you like it! Believe me, it was you folks that got me over the hurdles. Now what to build next.....? Think another extensive build thread is worth the effort?
Ron

[Bomarc]

Think another extensive build thread is worth the effort?

Always.....;)

Mike

[B-Manic]

Thanks guys :) I'm really glad you like it! Believe me, it was you folks that got me over the hurdles. Now what to build next.....? Think another extensive build thread is worth the effort?
Ron

I would enjoy following it but, then I would not be doing all the work.

[GreMir]

...think another extensive build thread is worth the effort?
Ron

Absolutely!
:D

[William (bill) Amos]

Ron..naturally we think another extensive build by you is necessary it allows us to build vicariously..and is more entertaining than"sex in the city" on t.v. Bill amos

[Royaloakmin]

Go for it. Big WWI planes are a nice way to keep yourself warm during the winter.

[Wyvern]

Ron- what can I say. I've followed you almost from the beginning, and I'm impressed beyond words. These will be beautiful illustrations of the product on eCardmodels- a well built model inspires others to buy it and try to build it to that level of expertise, so, bravo! I look forward to seeing your photos on eCardmodels because I'm one of the people you've inspired to buy and build this model!

Wyvern

[Ron0909]

I'm inspired...thank you kindly *again* for your kind words and the kick in the butt I needed :) Marek's Sopwith Snipe 1:33 is on the mat. I guess the Albatros CXII is officially finished. See you all in the other thread! (I smell a very round and deep cowling just waiting to frustrate me :))

Ron

[John Bowden]

I'm sure glad to see you back building again Ron. I missed these magnificent builds you do!

john