fightnjoe

A quick update, two days off and hoping to get a lot of rest as well as just a little bit done on this. So here I am. The next major obstacle to tackle is the bomb bay. As I seem to be going all out on this build I figured why not? How bout a scratched bomb bay. So after a few nights of tinkering here is where I begin my process. The major framework is about 150 pieces. More is coming. The outer racks are also ready for the detail work. And finally, for this update, the rack in place with the pit/nav station and the radio station. And so the next phase begins. All comments, critiques, and criticism are encouraged. Joe

Many thanks. Joe

Many many thanks. The IP is a resin cast piece. The tower it attaches to is a mixture of the kit floor piece and scratched work. Joe

Well there has been a bit of a change. Sometimes you guide a build, sometimes the build guides you. At this moment the build is starting to guide me. I am not able to proceed the way I wanted to. It just will not happen that way. I need to let the build guide me as to what to do next. To that end I am posting a small update. I was painting and assembling the cockpit as well as some of the ins and outs of the build and hit a block. I could not proceed without changing what I was doing. First the pictures. Some long awaited colour for the front sections. Now for the change. I need to continue with the major construction moving toward the tail. The Bomb Bay is next up. I need to do the major construction. I will be working on some of the stuff left in the sections I have been working on but the bulk of my time will be in the major construction. Once the major construction is done I will go back to tie up all the loose ends. I cannot do that until I am just about ready to close up the fuselage as too early and the parts will break off and the build will become incredibly difficult. Thank you for following along with this, as always, all comments, critiques, and criticism are encouraged. Joe

Many thanks. Joe

Kev me too. I just do not want to rush into the painting stage. Joe

Me again. Just another small, but to me kind of important, update. This I believe will be the last picture of the forward sections without paint. That means they should be finished the next time you see them. The major construction I think is done. All that is left is to plumb it up. So the next step is to paint. Pictures of the Nav Station. And the work on the pit. This included the seat framing, the Throttle Console, and the Bottles at the rear. Note that the pilot frame is off a bit. That has been fixed. Also the canvass is in place. Like I said not much but it is significant in that I am ready to paint this. I hope to have these painted by the end of the weekend. I hope to have these areas finished off in the next week or so. All comments, critiques, and criticism are encouraged. Joe

Many thanks. Greatly appreciated. Joe

I am back. The progress will not look like much but it is one subassembly at a time and move forward. For this update it is all about the bomb sight and the crew access area under the cockpit. For reference the gray is kit, the white is resin (oxygen bottles and Instrument Panel) and styrene. Wiring is getting done and some things are in place permanently. The Bomb Sight took a while but it is almost done. And the crew access area both in place and out. Moving forward I plan to keep going on the fabrication and at some point I will start the pit area. All comments, critiques, and criticism are encouraged. Joe

Brian it is small for sure. I keep mumbling how much I want to get back to 24 scale. The parts are so much larger. Many thanks for the very kind words. Joe

Well here I am yet again. Time for a smallish update on what is going on. Work has begun to detail the Nav Station in the bomber nose. I have fabricated some electrical panels and some of the odds and ends that are in the real thing. First up the Starboard side and the little bit I did, the tank holder and the Drift Meter. Now throughout you will not see wiring yet. I have not gotten that far. The different panels and boxes on the Port side. And the flooring of the station. I will continue on this section and fill it out with the little things and then some of the major objects like the guns and such. All comments, critiques, and criticism are encouraged. Joe

Hope you enjoy the ride. Joe

Many thanks. Joe

Well I have gotten to what I am calling the final stage of my prep work for the interior of this build. The framing. One thing to remember, this is not intended to be an exact replica of the actual B-17G. It is intended to give the illusion. For that reason you will notice that I did not put every frame in. Two reasons, the interior would be more than a bit cluttered and I do not have enough styrene strip to actually do each frame. As it is I used three packages of strip. Also please notice that i really only concentrated on the Port side of the fuselage. The Starboard will not be seen as well so I skipped all but what would be seen. After I took the pictures I noticed that there are a few places I need to add some strip and also some backing. All in all I am pretty satisfied with how this looks. I will tidy up the last of it and then starting with the nose the detailing will begin. Pictures. Starboard side: Port side: Now there is no framing at the bomb bay area. This is by design as I need to build that up and to do that I will need to do the sides as well as scratch a bomb rack. More to come.... All comments, critiques, and criticism are encouraged. Joe

Many thanks for looking in. Joe

Just a quickie of an update to show the first cuts. Large chunks have been cut out to show different areas of the interior. What you see is after six hours of grinding, sanding, repeat. This will turn out good, I hope. You will also notice I have drilled and then cut out the access doors. These will be cleaned up and the edges thinned a bit. Next up will be to clean up the cuts and move into the interior with grinding and sanding away that detail. All comments, critiques, and criticism are encouraged. Joe

Thank you for looking in and for following along. Maru these pics are just what the kit offers. Kind of a before shot. I am still prepping this for construction. The kit is not bad at all. OOB it builds up very nice and there are some that have done some stunning work with the kit parts alone. My plan is to modify the kit to the levels my skillset allow. I just hope to do it justice. Joe

As with all builds there is a starting point. For this build it starts with the kit pieces. For me it means what do I need to do to prep this for what I am planning to do. This kit as most know, has a lot of moulded in detail. It all has to go. For my plan to work it needs to be a clean slate. I also need to remove all the positioning points for the flooring and bulkheads. For that I will need to fashion different ones that will be out of sight when I cut into the fuselage. So out came the white glue and the flooring and bulkheads were set into place. May take a while to get through the detail to a clean slate. Joe

Thank you for looking in. I hope you enjoy. Joe

Many many thanks. Greatly appreciated. Joe

First up will be to show you what I have begun to collect for this build. For most this will be enough to tell you what the twist will be. More to come..... Joe

Well time to start another project. This will be a familiar one with just a bit of a familiar twist. This will be for a tribute build on YouTube. The Year of the Dog. More soon. Joe

Many thanks all. Thinking, on to the next. Joe

Many thanks. Thomas your plan sounds fantastic. I did use drawings and photos found on the web as well as some incredible reference materials provided by some very kind individuals. I will gladly share if you wish. There were some things that artistic license was a requirement. I had difficulty with finding things such as the compass and some of the interior bits. However most was found in the reference materials. Last night I thought my post was a good idea. Woke up this morning and thought what an ego driven post that was. Call it excitement still from getting the news but still...... Sorry guys, feeling a little embarrassed for making a post like I did. Let my excitement get the best of me. Mind you I want to become a regular contributor to magazines, have had that desire since my teens. Mostly because of the cool factor of seeing my name in print as well as seeing my work published. But I am a realist and that means I realize that I am not a great builder, I am not a very good writer, and put the two together I am very lucky that I was given this opportunity. The opportunity speaks more for the wonderful individuals who shared with me so many great reference materials as well as shared with me some great advice. Joe

I am finished. No, no pics as of yet. They will be a bit delayed. In the last three weeks I had contacted an editor of a magazine and have been allowed to write up something to submit with the opportunity to have it published. This build was the subject. The editor contacted me and it will be in an upcoming issue. I was told that they wish to have the opportunity to publish the build prior to my posting the finish. That is the delay. It is my first article published. It is my first build published. I am excited, bouncing off the walls is a better way to put it. Joe