Dandiego

Here are the next pieces that have come off of the printer. I have completed the rear fuselage and am working on the engine pods. Different colors on the prints as I changed filament spools. The head of the model has been sanded vigorously. The print lines from the FDM printer were very prominent. It also has a coat of primer, or 2. White squares are small patches of white sheet plastic added to replicate the details seen from several sources. I have added a few white pipes with many more to follow. As I researched Y wings I think I can honestly say that no 2 are exactly alike. Detail differences abound and paint work is quite varied. Several collectors are in pursuit of the perfect movie model. This will not be one of those. The method that the designer used for the long "T" connectors was practical for ease of printing but not for construction. I have replaced them with Evergreen T shaped rails. A closeup view of the engine pod shows many unacceptable print lines. I may need to find a way to print the engines on my resin printer. Stay tuned. Although the basic Y wing file was only $25, many areas lack sufficient detail for such a large scale model. Luckily you can purchase detail parts to add to your model. I have looked at nearly a dozen of these detail packages. Most are in the $20 range. You can easily get lost in the weeds purchasing all of these parts. Perhaps this is the designers game plan. Purchase the basic kit for $25 and end up spending over $200 in detail parts. Not gonna work with me. I will design and print out whatever extra parts that I need. Dan

Having been a strictly airplane guy for the last 40 years this build is a big step....sideways. I have always liked the Y wing and have always wanted to build one. But a big one. The only IM kit is a Bandai 1:72. Nice but small. So while wandering one of the 3d print sites I saw some Y wing files for sale. $25. What a deal. The transaction was simple and 10 minutes later I had the files. In all of my research I came across a term that I was unfamiliar with, Studio scale. Essentially this is the scale that was used to produce the movie miniatures that were used in the movies. Or 1:24th scale. Cool. Nice and big. The downloaded files were in 1:18th scale. Even I am not this crazy. Well, at least not yet. So after doing some math I determined that if the files were reduced to 75% it would be 1:24th scale. So I reduced the size and began preparing the files in my slicer. However, many of the parts are way too big to fit my smallish resin printer. This necessitated printing the smaller parts on the resin Machine and the main body parts on my filament machine. Anyway here are the first parts. Both printed on my filament machine. Stay tuned. lots o fun ahead. Dan

Bill, those are some really nice photos. My build stalled because my launch vehicle began to fall apart. It will be necessary to rebuild the entire vehicle. Your photos will be a big help. Dan

Major markings have been completed. Wheel wells and weapons bay are next. Canopy also needs to be completed. Dan

Squadron markings painted on! Clear gloss to follow tomorrow. Dan

I have been working on finalizing the markings. When you build something that never existed it can be a little difficult to come up with some markings that look "right". Anyway here are some photos of some mocked up markings. Some changes may occur before I actually paint them on, but this is close. Dan

And a little paint. Not done yet. Lots of touchups and improvements still to go. That's all for today. Dan

Here are some pics from the first coat of NMF. I have found that you should apply the shiniest shade first. This is Polished Aluminum. I will follow with Airframe Aluminum and then Stainless Steel. Dan

I think every plane looks slick in gloss black. But a bare metal finish is a coming. Maybe a bmf with some dayglo? Who knows. Dan

Surface prep and gloss black undercoat has been finished. Bare metal next! Dan

Sorry about the problems! But it still looks awesome! Dan

Slowly working on the Voodoo nose and camera bays. Here you see the forward camera station in the nose. I installed a camera made out of plastic tubing and the glued on the window. It is just a thin piece of clear plastic glued onto the flat face on the nose. It will be trimmed to shape. Next are some 3d printed cameras, fresh off of the printer and in situ. And last for today is my first version of the main wheel bays. Dan

Pat, that is so cool. Dan

A small update. I have added a small square hole in the aft end of the speed brake well to accommodate the actuation cylinder. Here are the exhaust cans. This was designed by my friend Chad. Apparently he had been working on a Voodoo in the past and offered me a few goodies. He also sent me the drop tanks and the intakes. I had to resize Chads exhaust cans to fit the fuselage by a positive 12%. And some components of the tail. That's all, Dan

Yeah, I thought about it. But the vac model surface has it's own issues. An uneven surface, really rough panel lines and lots of dimples left over from the vac process. I have already begun smoothing out the 3d print lines. It's not that bad. Stay tuned.... Dan

So let's look at the Combat Vac vs the 3d print. First the vac is big and the plastic is thin. Which makes the vac flimsy. Which makes it harder to work with. Lots of work just to assemble the parts and have them hold up. What about shapes? Lets compare the two kits. Nose shapes are very close. Actually the vac kit has a really good shape and compares well in all areas, except one. Where is the issue? The underside of the fuselage on the vac is flat. Should have bulges for the engine nacelles. This is a limitation of the vac process. Another issue with vacs, there is almost always a difference from one side to the other. Hard to get absolute symmetry when making something by hand and by eye. No disrespect to the person who made this kit. It was state of the art 30 years ago. But now, design one side of a fuselage and the computer will give you an exact mirror image. That's all for today. Dan

Well for me, and this is just a guess. 200 plus. There were the childhood years and then nothing for quite a while. There was a trigger that got me modeling again, it was Star Wars. I went out and bought an X wing after seeing the movie. First modified kit was an Otaki F-16. It had the smaller nose of the first prototypes. I inserted a balsa plug to extend the nose. I've been modifying kits ever since. Dan

Stay tuned. The designer has plans to release all 3 major variants. Dan

Got it Lee. Dan

OK, lets take a closer look at what I have. Starting at the tail. This is a nice solid print. You can see some indentations around some of the recessed detail. SC believes that he can tweek the print settings when he begins full scale production and eliminate them. For me with this sample print I will fill with putty and sand smooth. Next, rear section of main fuselage. Once again really solid with internal supports. Red marker highlights some vents that I will be improving. Cockpit section. Nose section. More to follow, Dan

Alright, have a look at what arrived on my doorstep today. About a week ago our fellow member Scjh unveiled his ambitious Voodoo project. It has been meet with an enthusiastic response. We have been corresponding for several months regarding his triple threat project. F-101A, RF-101A/C and F-101B. I have been asking about his timeline as I was anxious about when he might begin production and begin releasing completed kits. His work is still progressing, and he doesn't have a firm release schedule as of yet. With all that in mind I asked him if he could possibly send me an RF fuselage. He said yes, details were worked out, and today it arrived. My plan is to marry his fuselage to my old Combat Models Vac wings. Should be interesting and super fun. Since this is still a work in progress for Scjh I will be adding lots of details of my own. Maybe even a few Dandiego designed parts. Sit down, strap in and hold on! Here are some photos of what I received. Remember this is a work in progress and Scjh will be making corrections and additions as time goes on. First I have to say that I am very impressed with the size and shape of this baby. Looking forward to getting things started. But since I have several builds in progress this one will move a little more slowly until I get a few other projects finished. I also have parts for the horizontal tail. Thanks, Dan

So some work on the forward parts of the engine pods. Pod with engine faces. And with gloss black applied in prep for bare metal finish. Tanks. Exhaust area. Bondo sanded to shape with nozzle. And last for today Sidewinder launch rail and pylon. Dan

A little more work. I have been working on the cockpit details. The IP and side consoles have been 3d printed. I have painted everything and added many different decals to enhance the look of the "office". Also added, out of sheet plastic, is the IP cowling. The canvas cover is made out of tape. Here are some wing tanks. I used scale drawings to get the shape and size. I will soon be adding some custom pylons as well. Here is the forward portion of the engine nacelles with the compressor faces. Thanks, Dan

A little more work. First onto the aft keel between the exhaust nozzles. This was something that Chad didn't get to, so I am on my own. I tried designing it in Fusion 360 but didn't get a good result, so back to some good ole scratchbuilding. First some sheet plastic and then some Bondo. Don't worry a little sanding and it will be fine. Next are some exhaust nozzles for the engines and for the Bullpups. And last for today is my 3d printed Instrument panel. My unique way of installing the IP allows me to install it after the fuselage is closed up. Thanks, Dan

Work continues on the wings. The metal support has been super glued into the wing root and the plastic top and bottom have been attached to the metal support. You can see the metal support extending out from the wing, this will support the engine pods. Next the engine pods, with a slot cut into the interior side, are slipped over the metal tab and glued on. This sounds simple but it takes some fine adjustments to get each side level and plumb. I have added plastic square stock on the interior of each pod to give a firm support that ties the metal support to the pod. I will be designing and adding jet exhaust nozzles to the rear of the pod. Fun fact....the F-109 had 8 engines to achieve vertical flight. 2 in each pod. Two in the rear fuselage, these rear engines could have their thrust diverted straight down during takeoff by opening some doors on the top and bottom of the fuselage. And finally 2 engines right behind the cockpit that were only used during VTOL operations. Warload was rather small due to the constraints of VTOL. Basic ordinance would be 2 Folding fin Bullpup missiles. Folding fins were needed to fit into the weapons bay. Thats all, Dan