seiran01 Posted March 20, 2017 Share Posted March 20, 2017 There has been a LOT of talk about Wingnut Wings Sopwith Camels of late, so instead of jumping right into the dromedary build (I have multiple in the stash already), I've started the DH.9. This particular bird likely had a rather unsightly hump at one point in its life- for passengers. It will be built as the bonus scheme in the WNW kit - a New Zealand Permanent Air Force bird. The DH.9s gifted to NZ post-war ended up being converted for passenger use with a few variations - some with exposed "cockpits" for 2 passengers and others with an enclosed cabin for 2-3 people behind the pilot. After a few years of civil use, they were converted back to approximate original design to serve with the NZPAF. I suspect the specific aircraft in the kit may be a DH.9 that had its fuselage painted with wavy yellow and red stripes but I can't find my photos of that plane at the moment. So far I've cleaned up mold seams and made a few modifications. Photos show this dh9 unarmed so I've removed the molded-on gunsights from the top cowl and filled the shell chutes on the left fuselage side and slot for the interrupter pump fairing on the underside. By extension, the interrupter gear pump has been removed and I've opted to have the camera mounts fully removed as well. Here's the bird in question, after modification back to a military aircraft. Sitting with two of NZPAF's gifted DH.4s And the royal review! Territorial Air Force lineup of 3 Bristol Fighters, 2 DH.9, 2 DH.4, and 5 Avro 504ks This bird seems to be the rarest of the converted passenger DH.9s that flew in NZ, judging by how long it took me to rediscover this photo. Original photo caption in the book I can't find (and fear I donated!) stated red and yellow-striped fuselage. Same plane from the other side. It seems as though one passenger sat in front of the pilot, and one behind... Another NZ passenger DH.9 variant that is fairly well documented. Ok, kiwi DH.4 not a DH.9, but standing on the exhaust stack to refuel just doesn't seem like a very smart thing to do! Iain, Anthony in NZ, KiwiZac and 2 others 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seiran01 Posted March 20, 2017 Author Share Posted March 20, 2017 Wood Grain has begun! I'm testing out Dave Johnson's new method of wood grain that he used on his superb WNW Camel build (see March 2017 Military Illustrated Modeller for his full build). The grain is simply Mig/AK/Ammo streaking rust used in place of an oil, over Mr. Color C.19 Sandy Brown. I've used Streaking Grime as I don't have Streaking Rust on hand, it's a little darker and less red. The fuselage side wood panels are finished and I'm VERY pleased with the result. The massive benefit of the enamel streaking effect over using oils is the drying time. I had a good 4-5 minutes to work with the grain, and after 20min or so, it was dry to the touch. No more waiting days for oils to dry! Anthony in NZ, MikeC, Rick Griewski and 3 others 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anthony in NZ Posted March 20, 2017 Share Posted March 20, 2017 Ooooh boy! Love this project! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick K Posted March 20, 2017 Share Posted March 20, 2017 nice woodgrain. I hope to start my DH.9 this summer. Would be fun to have a NZPAF sitting next to HNAS. Watching... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeC Posted March 20, 2017 Share Posted March 20, 2017 Beautifully done. Following this with interest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Barry Posted March 20, 2017 Share Posted March 20, 2017 Lovely looking kit. Enjoy. Wood looks great! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seiran01 Posted March 21, 2017 Author Share Posted March 21, 2017 Thanks guys. Aside from realizing I missed painting the rudder pedals and fuel pump props (oops!), everything that should be wood grain has been painted. Clearcoats to varnish (some with a hint of clear red and some a hint of clear orange) will follow. Dry-fit of unvarnished "wood" looks good to me! KiwiZac, Jan_G, Anthony in NZ and 3 others 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RNoAF Posted March 22, 2017 Share Posted March 22, 2017 Cool. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DonH Posted March 22, 2017 Share Posted March 22, 2017 That is a very nice wood effect, good job! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seiran01 Posted March 22, 2017 Author Share Posted March 22, 2017 Same parts now varnished. I used a mix of Tamiya smoke and clear red for most parts, fuselage panels are mix of smoke and clear orange. Loving this! MikeC, Jan_G, Whitey and 2 others 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seiran01 Posted March 24, 2017 Author Share Posted March 24, 2017 Question for anyone somewhat familiar with the DH.9 - what colour should the fuel tank be? The instructions call out linen as the colour but I'm thinking it's got to be either brass or painted battleship grey. The DH.9a has the tank painted battleship grey. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kagemusha Posted March 24, 2017 Share Posted March 24, 2017 Great project, very much looking forward to seeing more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seiran01 Posted April 7, 2017 Author Share Posted April 7, 2017 Finally a little time to do some detail work. Control panel done! Jan_G, MikeC, Anthony in NZ and 1 other 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seiran01 Posted April 7, 2017 Author Share Posted April 7, 2017 Darn it! With the pic showing up as large as it is, I can see the placard in the center of the panel isn't centered on it's raised rectangle. Grr... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeC Posted April 7, 2017 Share Posted April 7, 2017 Amazing what the camera can see - I bet it doesn't show when you look at the actual plastic. This is great, I'm learning a lot to try when I next tackle some wood. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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