John Everett

You'll see that the kit floor will leave a 3mm gap on either side of the fuselage once you get the side joined. It's not a problem if you model the cabin doors closed. But you'll need to address the gaps if the doors are opened. (I've still got the file for a replacement floor on my hard drive at home. Let me see if I can scribe out a couple copies for you.) https://photos.app.goo.gl/bhuVFnD2GMKaR7qQ9 https://photos.app.goo.gl/4YEizCWa4EL1X13Q8

Despite being at work far too much in April, there was a fair bit of progress on the AeroSubaru nonetheless. Using a Silhouette Cameo and sticky, sheet vinyl to combine printed photos into perfectly aligned multi-layer build ups. Instrument layout to match the cutouts of the vinyl sticky sheet then printed at best resolution to photo paper.

I've been busy at work the last three weeks. But there has been small progress. Panel paint beginning. "Carpeting" in the baggage hold. Fuel injection lines and "spark plugs".

Thanks for watching. Update: Baggage area enclosed. The "avionics" included with the kit are representitive of very old radios from about 1960. I've at least brought the new panel into the mid-70's by stealing castings taken from the 1/20 Cessna panel, which has newer style radios. Resin panel (tan) vs kit panel (black). If there's an empty space forward of the main gear, we should add weight to that space.

With the DHC-2 complete (Abandoned, actually. I'm tired of polishing a fundamentally bad kit.) I can focus full time on finishing the AeroSubaru in 1/20

Many thanks to Peter who very graciously sent me a scanned copy of his instruction manual. This has been a huge help in clarifying where some of the smaller parts need to go. Getting enough weight in the nose is also a challenge with Nichimo's Cessna kit. So every space forward of the main wheel will need some extra mass. The door will need some trimming before it's a perfect fit. But I wanted to have as much of the interior visible as possible. Just as Peter did with his Aero Subaru, more lead is hidden under the floor. If you've never used the Infini tape cutting board, it's pretty neat. The black grid lines are actually channels cut into the surface which serves to guide the blade. I've never seen a better tool for producing consistent tape strips.

I'm just getting a start on Nichimo's 1/20 AeroSubaru and have been pleasantly surprised to see that fellow member MGBooyV8 (Pete) is nearing completion on his version of this rare kit. I plan to steal many of his ideas and observations in building my own. So I'll thank him in advance for helping me to avoid the rough spots. My kit unfortunately didn't include the instruction booklet. But I was able to find a few pages photographed by a Japanese blogger. So that helps a little bit. (Pete, If you're seeing this, a few photographs of your instruction booklet of the cockpit section would be most helpful. Find me at EYJohnny@gmail.com) I'm just at the preliminary stages. But since the main gear struts must be installed prior to joining the wings, I did get that much completed. I've done a the other two kits in this series, the Cessna and the H-500. But the F-200 kit is hard to find within the US. I was lucky to get this one. Previous Cessna build (Seen here before) Previous H-500 (Not sure if it's been posted here.)

Can confirm the wholesomeness of Resin2Detail. He makes good stuff. I’ve used their “quick fix” engines and upgraded control columns in my version of the kit.

It's up on floats and the engine, at least three of the four cylinders, is installed.

It turns out the floats I built were too large. I think I might have been using numbers for a larger set, like for the Cessna 206 or C-207. There were also some bad spots which I knew could be corrected if I made the commitment to constructing a new set. Thus, five days later, we have new floats! The red and grey parts of the paint scheme are also complete. I'm hoping to have at least the model finished by end of May. But then I've got to start getting work done on the 1/20 shop scene. Better, thinner float compartment hatch covers. (.005" styrene cut on the Silhouette Cameo.) Rivet lines done on the Cameo rather than with a rivet wheel. Second time around I knew what I wanted to change. Work will now switch around to airframe completion and then mounting to floats.

Realized I've not updated the Cessna in a while. But if you're on Facebook you've probably seen these already. To help answer common questions about the vinyl masks and painting: 1. Cameo Silhouette cutter using the Silhouette Studio software (Free download if you want to goof around with it before spending the money on a cutter.) 2. Oramask 813 vinyl sheet (blue) 3. Painted with MRP brand paint mixed with a little Tamiya Gloss White or Gloss Red to increase opacity and thinned with a few drops of Mister Leveling Thinner to slow down the dry time and allow for smoother finish. All sprayed through a cheap-a$$ Iwata Neo. 4. Windows were masked with Parafilm. (Neat stuff. Looks like wax paper. But stretch it and it gets mildly tacky and sticks well to non-porus surfaces. Fun fact: Both the masks for painting AND the plastic sheet for the floats were cut with the Cameo.

The black is just Tamiya Semi-gloss black (X-18). The "Cessna tan" is mostly Tamiya Buff (XF-57) with just a little brown to darken it slightly.

The instruments are just images stolen from around the internet, arranged carefully with Microsoft Paint (or similar program) and then printed at best quality to photographic paper. The plastic sheet of circles was cut on an Silhouette Cameo cutter. Additionally, I want to open up some of the inspection panels for the model. Drill out the spot for the inspection cover and then add a small sheet plastic ring, cut on the Silhouette Cameo. The blue stuff is a vinyl masking film called Oramask. I'm hoping to be able to use for for the inspection covers after it's been painted.

The two halves of the airplane are together. I was able to make contact with the current owner of the airplane which I wanted to replicate. He was good enough to send me photos of how the airplane currently appears.

An update to the Cessna. It may be a few days before I know how I'm going to go for the color of the interior. But there's a lot I can still get done if preparing the cabin for a maintenance diorama. Replaced the kit floor (bad fit) with one which fits a little better. This is how I'll be displaying the model, interior still in, but carpet and seats removed. There were a dozen ways to handle the interior trim of the C-172. In this case I'm planning to go with a combination of hard plastic headliners and trim overlapping fabric headliners. (Early to mid-1970's style) Examples of plastic panels over fabric liners.

About 1mm thickness is the heaviest you can get a reliable break in the plastic. Most of the time I'm using it on 1/2mm and 1/3mm. 1/3mm is what's pictured above but the walls and main bulkheads of the float bodies are 1mm for strength.

Generally, yes. These won't be the amphibious version, though. I was worried that wheels installed in the floats would be a weak spot and eventually have trouble holding up the weight of the model. I couldn't find any cross sectional views for Wipline floats, only the most general dimensions. So I'm calling these "Wiplineish". They're close but not perfect.

I blogged two other copies of this kit here on LSP. This third one will be considerably modified from what came in the box and be mounted atop a set of floats. Parts are scribed on the Silhouette Cameo cutter using their free download software, Silhouette, Studio. Slow and careful follow up with a #11 can help a lot in safely removing fragile parts after they've been scribed on the Cameo. The wire segments are solidly CA'ed into each mounting position and then each wire is anointed in epoxy and slid into the tubes until set. The foam core jig holds it all in place. Wallace approves. The final paint scheme hasn't been decided yet.

It's done. And it's a good as we might expect from a model first produced almost 50 years ago. (Documentation contained in the box indicated that this particular model might be more than 40 years old.) And for my next trick! ----- Not actually sure yet. I still have another copy of that 1/20 Cessna SkyHawk.

GeeWhiz. Has it been two months already? Paint is on and much of the heavy work is complete. I'll finish up the details and get it photographed in the next week or so. Window to hull fit here...not so much. I think the fuselage side may have warped a little during its four decades of storage. But this side fit very well. I started work on the base this morning. I'm not sure how much effort I want to make there. But I'm thinking yachtboard helipad.

Just realized I've not updated in a long time. There's progress: There's been even more added to the engine bay. But I don't have pictures of it yet. Thanks for watching! John

I meet a lot of modelers who say they have this kit. But none of them seem to be building it. I'll be adding some interior detail.

Thanks for your interest and for following the build. It wont go all the way through. There's still the need to break the sheet along the scribed line. Depth: about 8-9. This doesn't matter so much. Just so long as it's anything greater than about 7. Speed: slow. I set speed to 1. I have lots of time. Force: Middle. I use about 15 or 20. It is just plastic and doesn't require too much to cut. Passes: 2 or even 3. Two seems to be best. 3 or even 4 (I tried that once) doesn't seem to make much difference. Yes - Premium blade. The blue top blade is sold as a "durable" or "tough" blade. (It's also almost twice the price.) It does seem to last longer than the standard. And, obviously, a new blade is better than an old one.

With the Cessna finally finished I've been able to turn more attention back to the long languishing Grumman Tiger (1/20). I've been making good use of the Silhouette Cameo cutter for wings and control surfaces. .015" styrene in the Cameo Repeating shapes are laminated into a solid whole.

Cessna is done. A few pictures here and the whole series (and everything else- including the red Cessna - I've ever built) on the website link. http://www.coldbasementmodels.com/?page_id=334