Impatient Pete Posted March 18, 2005 Author Share Posted March 18, 2005 Hi Guys, Thanks for the compliments! I will post answers to your questions in the next day or two, as soon as the madness of mid-terms is over. I brought "Sadie" out of the paint booth where I put the final coat of primer on 'er this week . Next step is to make a fiberglass mold. Hopefuly next week! Pete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Impatient Pete Posted March 18, 2005 Author Share Posted March 18, 2005 Chris, Yes, that's right. I made the masters from basswood. There are also elements of styrene, bondo, aluminum, and resin. I'll explain. Styrene was used for the smaller details that you probably can't see in these posts. I will show them in posts below. The reinforcing plates around the wheel wells, and the stabilizer mounts (officially called the Unit Horizontal Tail). Bondo was used to "saddle the wing". A rough space was cut out for the wing to sit on the top of the fuselage. Then foil was applied to the bottom of the wing. After everything was fixtured up to sit squarely, bondo was smeared into the cutout and the wing was smashed into the space while the bondo was still wet. You have to jig the wing for a quick fit-up, as the fast setting time of the bondo doesn't really allow eyeballing and adjustment. Then, after the bondo has set up, you can trim away any that may be locking the wing in place and remove the wing from the fuse. Then sand the excess bondo away from around the fuselage sides and you are left with a perfect fitting joint that still allows the parts to be separated for individual molding and work. Aluminium was used for the trailing edges of the wing to fuselage fairing. This area required allot of sanding and putty to get the surfaces to interact and intersect correctly. All of this putty and sanding would be impossible to get symmetrical without a hard, fixed reference point that would stand up to the abuse of repeated sanding and puttying. Aluminum is hard enough to resist sanding, but easy to work with on the hobby desk and will maintain the sharp edge and points that are used as references. Resin was used for the gun fairings. I inserted brass tube into slots cut into the sided of the fuse where the guns would be. They were cut long enough to terminate at the correct point on a side view of the F-8. Then clay was used to build up the fairings to the correct contour (according to the many pics I took at the local museum F-8c, but it's still correct for a "dash-E). I used clay because I knew I might have to work on it for a few days and epoxy putty (Milliput) wouldn't give me the working time I needed. Also, I didn’t want to sand the contours into the finished parts, as the forward fuselage contours were already set after many hours of fine sanding and shaping. Clay would allow me to work on them over a period of days if needed, or to thoroughly remove it and start over without permanently altering the fuselage. I didn't want to risk moving anything while working on the guns. Anyway, I sculpted the fairings, then made plaster molds of them by glopping some thick plaster onto the area and letting it set. Then later I removed the plaster molds, cleaned off the clay (I should have used a degreaser here too as later, some of the clay residue hampered primering attempts), and put the plaster molds back in place. With the clay gone, there was a cavity into which I could pour the resin, through a couple of 1/4 inch holes I had drilled in the plaster. This may sound complicated, but I wanted the fairings to be separate pieces so that if they didn't look right or work out, they wouldn't be attached permanently. I suppose I could have put a barrier on the fuselage, then sculpted the fairings, but I had the brass tubes to work around. Other than that, the rest is all basswood, as you stated. I used the old tried and true method of getting a 3-view and cross sections and carving the forms according to the plans. Be careful though when doing this that the side views and top views "jive" with the formers before you start cutting. The first time I started this project, I was using the side view from an F-8C, and cross-sections from an F-8E. Now those of you who know the Crusader, know that the nose is entirely different on the two models. I knew that too, but I neglected to foresee how much that would matter when I tried to visualize the surfaces around the nose. So the result is that the pieces you see here are the second set, the first being a horribly misshapen C model! As for planning the whole thing, well...I knew that I wanted to make copies of all of the main parts. The fuselage was too big for me to consider doing out of resin (or is it...hmmmmm) so I am making fiberglass molds. Part of the reason for the fiberglass is that I can maintain a thin shell without the extra work of hollowing out the parts. I also don’t have to worry about the high cost of a huge silicone mold. Fiberglass is actually pretty cost effective for a project this size. The wing will be cast in resin. I think that it is too thin to make a nice fiberglass mold, and the size of the mold is small enough to be reasonable in cost. Also, it will be easiest to cut apart and make 2nd generation masters that I can detail before making the final production mold. My plan is to make "solid" desktop type models first, then either wait for Trumpeter to come out with a proper plastic model , or work on finishing it up as a scale model complete with cockpit and landing gear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Impatient Pete Posted March 19, 2005 Author Share Posted March 19, 2005 Here is a pic of the Styrene and aluminum bits. The surfaces are pretty bumpy now as I haven't sanded them again yet. Also, if you notice the "glittery" effect in the paint, that is one of the many joys (overspray in a wide variety of pretty colors) of sharing a spray booth with a bunch of college students who have never even seen the inside of a garage. Ya' gotta love em though, they are doing some great stuff and are really excited about learning all of this neat tech. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Impatient Pete Posted March 19, 2005 Author Share Posted March 19, 2005 Here is a pic of the nose that shows the gun fairings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Impatient Pete Posted March 19, 2005 Author Share Posted March 19, 2005 And one more, the inspiration that keeps me going is pics like this. This is the one at the local air museaum here in Santa Rosa. It was rescued from a park in san francisco where it had been decaying for years and the cockpit had actualy been filled with concrete! The volunteers here at the museum have done a great job with all of the planes on display there. Pacific Coast Air Museum is the name. If you are in the Northern California Bay Area, check it out. They just got an F-106 that is in great shape! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ted Barrett Posted March 19, 2005 Share Posted March 19, 2005 All I can say Pete is... WOW!!! Keep on trucking!! Ted Barrett Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Impatient Pete Posted March 21, 2005 Author Share Posted March 21, 2005 Hi Guys, Well I don't have anything to show you on my landing gear. I am makin' molds this weekend. This is a big step, in that I am going to goop epoxy and fiberglass all over my precious baby and cross my fingers. If all goes well, I will be able to make more 'Saders with little effort. If things go south... ... Here are some pics of the process. The first one is after polishing. I will be laying up the cloth tonight, so maybe more pics will come later. Say goodbye to 'er guys, and cross your fingers! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Impatient Pete Posted March 21, 2005 Author Share Posted March 21, 2005 Here is a pic of the two halves laid out on the "tooling board" It's a piece of 3/4 inch particle board with malamine surfaces. I screwed a couple of pieces of 36 inch long, 1 and 1/2 inch steel "L" beams to the back for rigidity and flatness. It's pretty dang flat! The model half gets glued down to it (lightly) and then the edges are sealed with clay and any area that need more draft (like in the wing saddle) are filled with clay and then the draft is added with a scraper. Thats a standard X-Acto knife for scale. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Impatient Pete Posted March 21, 2005 Author Share Posted March 21, 2005 Adding draft: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Impatient Pete Posted March 21, 2005 Author Share Posted March 21, 2005 And ready for the big layup: P.S. Am I posting too many pics? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ted Barrett Posted March 21, 2005 Share Posted March 21, 2005 Hi Pete, I have my fingers and toes all crossed!! Personally I don't think you're posting to many pictures. The ones you've posted give you a good understanding of what you're doing. That's my opinion anyway. I'm looking forward to the next set. Good work! Ted Barrett Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maverick728470 Posted March 21, 2005 Share Posted March 21, 2005 Pete, Been eyeballing u'er work and with all the congrat's and keep up the good work.One would have to say.My comments are spoken for.And for popping the first time for molding from the build of the F-8.I would say to u and in all fairness.If one has done what u have done and i say this,that u can't go wrong with doing the fiberglass molding of the fuselage and wing parts.I know what it takes to do fiberglass and when the mixing begins,then the pouring follows. Remember one thing on mix the glass resin.Mix it to the right portions and u have it made.Good Luck and hope to see the results soon.Larry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Impatient Pete Posted March 21, 2005 Author Share Posted March 21, 2005 Thanks Ted and Larry, Well, first half lay-up is done, whew! and not a beer in the house DAMN! Anyway, it went pretty smoothly. I used to make fiberglass model airplane fuselages for a living, so it's a pretty familiar process, but that doesn't mean I can't thoroughly screw it up! Larry, the epoxy that I am using (West Systems) has a self-metering pump dispenser. One stroke of the resin plunger+one stroke of the hardener plunger=perfect mix every time . For anyone thinking about doing any fiberglass projects, I strongly reccommend it. It is a high quality product with very little odor. Almost none in fact. Not like the old days of polyester. Man, with that stuff, you couldn't work in the house. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Impatient Pete Posted March 21, 2005 Author Share Posted March 21, 2005 Here she is under ten layers of cloth and resin. She looks like a fish wrapped in bubble wrap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Impatient Pete Posted March 21, 2005 Author Share Posted March 21, 2005 There's an F-8 under there somewhere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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