mozart

Yep, agreed Hubert. I have invested too much time, emotion and money for this to end up as a shelf sitter or a model which offends my eye. Had to be done! I have given plenty of thought to each step Kev, so as long as I work carefully and methodically I reckon it should turn out ok. Busy time on the Hawker airfield Rich. Keeps an old man busy and happy!

We have our crosses to bear don’t we Dennis but as long as we’re happy doing so, that’s all that matters. The end justifies the means. I know the firewall isn’t going to be as good a fit as previously Jay, a gap or two I’m afraid but I have a “maintenance” plan in mind that involves an oily cloth!

The Hawker engineers were called to the Typhoon hangar today so the Fury had to wait a while longer:

The old PCM Hurricane does, I have spares if you want them Erwin.

WARNING! If you are of a nervous disposition, close this thread now!! Since Rafju commented on the apparently wrong dihedral in this photograph (and he was right though there is some parallax distortion in the iPad pic) and I tried to tell myself that it was "OK", I knew in truth that it wasn't because the iconic gull-wing shape was missing: So it has been much on my mind; where did the faulty angle originate, and then, what could I do about it? My suspicions were the base of the firewall and the fact that I had to cut off so much of the interlocking tabs on the kit: This morning was the day to find out! I managed to get a knife blade into then behind the firewall/fuselage join and began working the blade around the perimeter, it was looking promising...all the while trying not to damage the engine. But the problem was at the base of the firewall, left and right, where some small "wings" were firmly glued into the walls of the wheel well. A knife wasn't man enough to release these so some agricultural grinding was necessary before the engine was finally free. Flexing the wings showed that the fuselage needed widening, so a 34mm spacer (1) was glued in place. Then, having previously cut down the centreline on the underside, I brought the halves closer together with a substantial "beam" (2). There are some ugly holes to fill: ......and I have no idea how well the engine assembly is going to go back in place, but I'm much happier with the wing angles now: All part of the fun of modelling!

Thanks Ernest, just a couple more pipes and bits and bobs to go on the Sabre….expensive but worth every penny!

My childhood “happy place” was the Modellers’ Den in Bath; Dad and I spent many happy hours in there despite its diminutive size. Mum meanwhile would be looking at everything in Woolworths whether she was interested in buying it or not! The Den site is now I think a kebab shop or similar, breaks my heart!

The fitters and riggers turned up this afternoon and, after a successful search in the archives for the construction manual, made a start on re-fitting the fin and tailplane. They had an extended tea break with a chocolate biscuit or two so didn’t manage to get the job finished….the foreman wasn’t ‘appy!

See my post above Nick!

But then of course I have Jadlam less than an hour away………

We have the Frome Model Centre not far from us……but the last few times I have visited they haven’t had any of the items in stock that I needed, and we’re talking Swann Morton knife blades amongst other things. I think they survive primarily by online sales. Shame.

A very happy birthday to my very good friend Geedubelyer aka Guy! Have a super day chum.

This is all grist to the mill Peter, so not a thread hi-jack at all. It just illustrates some of the difficulties that you and your ilk who provide us with beautiful models, have to go through in your research and manufacturing stages!

Thanks for the update Peter, always good to hear from you.

Let’s hope it’s a happy ending then OBG!

The Inspectors have been already Andy and decreed that it’s not a Cat E Write off, but a Cat B, repairable at the contractor’s site. Disassembly has already started with an assessment of new parts to be manufactured….only a tail strut so far: They think the tail assembly may be salvageable as a complete unit!

Yep, s**t happens Mike. But I’m too attached to the Fury to leave it in bits, and in a perverse sort of way I’m actually looking forward to the rebuild!

I noticed recently that one of the undercarriage struts on my Hawker Fury II (AlleyCat model) had come loose, so I took it to be fixed.....easily done. Picked the model up to return it to the display cabinet and........ > > > > > > ......dropped it! Absolutely mortified, I picked up all the bits, put them in a box and hid them away in a deep dark place...a bit like my mind really! Only now, several weeks later, I have I felt composed and "strong" enough to examine the damage to see what can be done: A lot of clean up, complete re-rig and re-drilling of rigging locations, and most awkwardly a "re-skin" somehow of the shiny cowling, could be a complete strip back. Anyhow, I thought the trials and tribulations that no doubt lay ahead might be worth a build thread......bear with me fellas!

I don’t imagine so Chris. I really don’t know what all the “experten” get so aerated about, there are absolutely no definites in this argument.

That makes sense Kev! I have managed to find some more shelf corner supports on eBay which I have adapted and superglued in place. I’m getting some extra glass shelves cut for both cabinets, one is going to be a “Hawker fighter” cabinet but there is an unfortunate back story about one of the models which I will be explaining soon!

I don’t know Kev, I’m not familiar with the Detolf ones.

In my humble opinion, squadron code letters are the easiest part of the aeroplane masking process. Cut a piece of transfer material (what kind are you using, it’s best if it’s transparent like the Cricut stuff) slightly larger than the code letters, I always weed out the letter(s) BEFORE I apply it to the fuselage, smooth it down taking out any wrinkles, take away the transfer sheet….Bob’s yer uncle….done!

I tried one of my 110s in the cabinet, ok for fuselage length but the wing span is too much.

Yep, single width so I bought two. It will take my Meteor and Hunters but not the Lightning: I’m fitting extra shelves to make the most of the space.

Yes you’re right, the dihedral is a bit flat probably because of the sacrifices I had to make with the locking tabs on the kit in order to accommodate the front end being cut away and the engine fitted. It’s not a big issue for me, it still looks like a Typhoon.