Nieuport 11 Duks (or Dux, or Дук�...) made (russian)

[Zero77]

I sprayed tamiya smoke for the post shading. The very risk is that you overdo it and when you unmask, it's just "blimey, what's that contrast, that's too much !". It's very difficult to gauge how much you tint the undercoat when you dont have a color reference besides. Next time, i better have a scarp piece painted with the same color to check what i'm actually doing.

But yesterday i tried to continue my weathering with staining the fabric with Flory washes, and it looks quite good and not so contrasted.

 

Now i need to weather the fuselage.

 

When i painted the fuselage with the alu/grey paint, i first painted the wooden plate under the fuselage with Tamiya white primer, and then polished it so it's almost glossy. I then masked it. When everything will be done for the fuselage, i will apply some HGW wooden decals on it. I dont know if it was unpainted on the real aircraft, but neither nobody else, so it will just be nice and fun.

[Zero77]

Guys, i need help from the Lewis MG experts !

 

Any clue about the model seen here? The picture is not very good and i cant identify it.

 

I have these models from Gaspatch : 

-Lewis Mk.I stripped (half heatsinks):

 

-Lewis Mk.II : 

 

 

I may also have other from various WNW kits. But i dont know which one to use !

[Zero77]

I cant tell if what i see on the period picture is a cooling jacket with a reflect on the upper side, or just a barrel.... Any idea?

[Tnarg]

I'm leaning towards thinking that is the larger cooling jacket. You are doing an amazing job on a plane with difficult reference material.

 

Tnarg

[Zero77]

I'll try to look in my WNW kits if i can find a Lewis gun which looks closer to my reference picture. Otherwise, i think i will use the Lewis Mk.II .

 

I've finished the painting and basic weathering (actually just staining of the fabric).I still have to add some oil and dirt, but at least i unmasked everything to check if everything was ok, and i'm quite happy with what i get.

 

 

I also painted the wood grain on the tail skid "ball" and wing stuts.

 

And added a wooden decal from HGW on the underside plate :

Edited June 12, 2016 by Zero77

[Zero77]

I wanted to finish the wheels, too, but unfortunately i forgot the Special Hobby rule #1 : "never forget to degrease that damn SH plastic !"

Rule #2 : never forget rule #1 ....

 

So i need to restart....

 

 

I then made a quik dry fit. The front cabane struts are still unpainted and the rear cabane strut is missing, and it's VERY unstable, but it gives an idea of what it looks like.  

[LSP_Kevin]

That looks terrific, Nicolas! I love it. And thanks for the tip about the Special Hobby plastic.

 

Kev

[Zero77]

Thanks Kev !

 

Yes, it's highly recommended to degrease the plastic of Special Hobby kits (and certainly other short run kits) as there must be a releasing agent all over it. I usually never do that with injected moulded kits (and never have any issue), but i discovered it with pain with my SH A5M kit, when the paint lifted when i unmasked my hinomarus.

 

I now just wipe it quickly with some mineral spirit (as alcohol seems to dissolve a bit the Mr Surfacer, and i often use it to fill various seams), and it works nicely. Soapy water must work too, but it must be a bit longer to rinse and dry (so it should be done before starting the build, as with resin kits).

I did not have any issue with this Nieuport, though i had a lot of masking.

But i forgot to degrease the wheels...

Edited June 12, 2016 by Zero77

[Zero77]

I am ill for two weeks now, so i dont progress very fastly.

 

I worked on various small details, so now i just have to assemble them.

Here is the PE windshield from the kit. It's supplied with a small rodoïd sheet and a counter-screen.

 

I detailed the undercarriage with bungee cords. It also adds some strenght :

 

Here is the windshield finished (not glued yet) :

 

And the painted undercarriage and cabane struts :

 

With the wheels :

[Out2gtcha]

Terrific work so far Nicolas 

[Zero77]

I also started the rigging.

I glued gaspatch turnbuckles were i spotted some on the period pictures.

 

The tail control cables are done :

 

The cables are glued on the upper wings. Next step will be to glue the upper wing and then attach the cables. This is not a WNW fit !

[Out2gtcha]

That looks excellent!   Great job on fitting a not so fitting kit 

[Zero77]

Thanks Brian !

Yes, it's not as easy as a WNW kit... There are many parts that must be improved or strenghtened (have to add locating pins, drill holes and so on...). However, it's not that bad. It just ask for more work. The details OOB are pretty good, too. I also have a SH Nieuport 16 and a A-model Nieuport 11. I think this one wont be easy at all...

I have a Nieuport 21 in project, too, with an Academy Nieuport 17 for fuselage and wings and various parts from Nieuport 11 kits and engine from WNW Pup. I'm sure it wil be a lot of fun (and putty !).

 

The good point is that my next WNW will be a piece of cake !

[Zero77]

One of the best moment in a build in my opinion is when the end is near and a new puppy will join the display case pretty soon.

 

Yesterday i finally glued the upper wing (in fact it was not so difficult with the help of a few rubber bands) and finished the rigging, which was pretty straightforward, too (not like a Fe.2B !). In fact i attached the rigging wires while the wing struts were curing.

 

 

The woodgrain decal looks very weird on this picture as we can see the halftone dot. But it's only on the picture and absolutely un-noticeable with the eyeball.

 

 

Here is where i am :

 

I also found a nice little detail from another decal sheet (Begemot Nieuport 21) : a Duks factory logo in cyrillic.

 

 

Now i just have to glue the wheels, find the correct machine gun, attach the mount, add some dirt on the underside, and it would be done !

Edited June 21, 2016 by Zero77

[LSP_Kevin]

This is such a terrific build, Nicolas! It really looks fantastic.

 

Kev