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Here is another of my latest builds. The base is Lukgraph's Potez 25, heavily moded with some home-designed and 3D-printed parts. It was built as part of the "Sandbox" GB on LSM, where you can find a more detailed build log. Before the pics, some background on this project. The idea was to build a project "that had something to do with use in the sand or desert". When doing some preliminray reserach, I stumbled upon some pictures which had an irresistible appeal for me . Let me explain why : 1. French colonial presence in North and Western Africa. In the the XIXth and XXeth Centuries, France expanded its colonial empire across large chunks of Africa, in the North, with Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco, and in the West and Center, expanding from the Ivory Coast and along the river Niger. In 1893, Ensign Aube, on an armed launch, went thus up the Niger river, until he reached Tumbuctu, with the goal of establishing a French presence there. After a few weeks, he was unfortunatley massacred with his expedition by the local tribes, which were subsequently defeated and submitted by a French ground brigade. The French presence in Africa went with the development of routes between the colonies, and thus the French had to tackle a major hurdle between the North and the West of Africa, i.e. the Sahara desert. This was was progressively mapped and crisscrossed with a number of roads, during the 1920s. A road was thus departing from Morocco, Tunisia or Algeria, to merge in Algeria in the North of Sahara, and then went south across the Tanezrouft and Sahara towards Mali and West Africa. Along this road, a number of stations were established, every 50 kilometers, initially by burrying a barrel of water ("bidon" is the French word for barrel), and developing limited infrasructures along these "Bidon" outposts, namely ways to refill the tanks of the trucks, coaches, cars ... and aircrafts which attempted to cross the Sahara. A famous post is "Bidon 5", in the Tanezrouft, which even had a "hotel" made of the bodies of two coaches. The "Black Cruise" ... and the Pink Cruise In 1933, France established the Air Force as a separate entity from the Army. To celebrate this event, a PR stunt was put in place : the "Black Cruise". The idea was to have a major force, made of about 30 aircrafts, that would fly from Paris to the Western African colonies, and back. Under the command of General Vuillemin, the Black Cruise was a huge success, and demonstrated the capacity of the newborn Armée de l'Air to project its force across the empire. This widely acclaimed feat warmed the inter-service rivalry between the Air Force and the Navy, which had its own aerial component, and more specifically the feelings of Rear-Admiral De Laborde, a consumate sailor AND aviator, who commanded the French Navy forces in Africa. De Laborde wanted to show that the French Navy was as able as the new Air Force, by replicating the Black Cruise. In December 1934, a commemorative plaque for Ensign Aube was to be unveiled in Tumbuctu. De Laborde informed the Ministry, that, as the most senior French Navy representative in Africa, he would personally attend the commemorative ceremony, with his wife. He only "forgot" the mention that he intended to reach Tumbuctu by aircraft, in a remake of the African leg of the Black Cruise. Thus, in November 1934, De Laborde, leading a flight of three aircrafts, with his wife as passenger, took off from Bizerte in Tunisia, to cross the Sahara and reach Tumbuctu. The flight was a success, and although a veil was put on it officially to avoid fostering the inter-service rivalty, the flight earned the somewhat derisive nickname or "Pink Cruise", to take into account the presence of Countess de Laborde, wife of Jean de Laborde. I found a period picture of the three aircafts, adorned with their "fishhook" roundels typical of the French Navy aircrafts, during a stop in the middle of the Sahara. The idea of a Navy aircraft about 3000 kms away from the nearest shore was just irresistible for me. And thus my GB entry was set ! 2. The Potez 25 The Potez 25 can, in many aspects; be considered the F-16 equivalent of the 20s and 30s. Built by Potez (who had been associated in WWI with Marcel Bloch to build propellers, before Bloch and Potez parted ways in the early 20s), using conventional WWI construction techniques, but with an innovative engine bearer structure that allowed almost and 500 hp engine to power it, it was produced at more than 3 500 units, and sold un used by 24 countries, not a bad number for these troubled peacetimes. It was thus sold to Poland, and it is because of this Polish Aviation link that we now have a 1/32 kit of the Potez 25, thanks to Lukgraph. The main variant of the Potez 25 was the A2, powered by the very successful and reliable Lorraine W12 engine, and this was the one used by the Polish Air Force and therefore represented by Likgraph. Bu the French developed a specific version for the Potez 25, the "TOE" (for Theâtre d'Opérations Extérieures", aka foreign opertions theater). Compared to the A2, the TOA had many differences, starting by a heavier weight dur to an enlarged main tank (which was jettisonable in flight in case of fire), and an additional fuel tank of 300 liters, conforming to the belly of the Potez. The extra CFT and larger main tank implied a revised nose cowling, to fair into the deeper belly, and a fariring of the under-rear fuselage, up to the tail. The TOE had also a larger radiator, to cope for the wemer climates it was supposed to operate into. This was achieved by adding "ears" to the radiator, fairing in the covers of the lower cylinder banks of the Lorraine W12 engine. To cope for the heavier weight, a new oleo undercarriage was developed by Messier, as well as a new tail skid. The Potez TOEs of both the Black and Pink Cruise also had two extra water tanks that prolonged the fairings of the lower cylinder banks. De Laborde's aircraft, coded "BZ 65) (BZ stand for Bizerte, the main base of the French Navy aircrafts in North Africa), also had a revised upper fairing above the cockpit, with the suppression of the rear gun position, a new windscreen for this position, a head-rest fairing for the rear position. It also had a seat comparable to the pilot's one in the rear position, as opposed to the initial bench-type for the rear gunner, and a set of radio emitters and receivers, identical to the ones used during the Black Cruise. 3. Building and converting Lukgraphs' Potez 25 The Lukgraph kit ias a sound, if not perfect, basis for a Potez 25 A2. To represent a TOE, I had however to proceed to some major surgery and changes. I designed the conversion parts, and 3d-printed them. The list of new parts include: - a new radiator, - new fairings for the clyinder banks, including the extra water tanks - a new lower nose / cowling - an extension of the mainfuel tank - a new underbelly conformal fuel tank - a hew fairing for the rear fuselage - a new main undercarriage - a new tail skid - a second seat for the rear position - new wheels as the TOE ones wear of bigger diameter and larger thread than the A2 ones. The standard practice for aircrafts crossing the Sahara was to have a third, spare, wheel fastened to the side of the fuselage. - radios for the emitters and transmitter (3 sets overall) - a new upper fuselage fariring over the cockpit. This Included the head-rest fairing. - a new windscreen for both the pilot and the rear passenger. In the end, i designed the whole new upper fuselage with the windscreens, and then printed it in clear resin. - new throttle quadrants and throttles, as the supplied PE parts were too flimsy … The kit is a typical high-quality resin kit, with some 3D-printed parts. It has, however, a significant issue, namely the - large - main upper wing is molded solid. When assembled, the upper wing alone weighs 186 grams. And the finished aircraft with all the additions is close to 370 grams. One of my pet topics is trying to replicate the "mass feeling" of the original subject in kit form. In theory, using the same materials, we would have a similar density. Thus, if the all-up weight of the Potez 25 was 2500 kilograms, the 1/32 kit shoudl weigh 2500*1000/32^3 = 76 grams. The finished kit is almost five times more heavy than it should be if the density was constant ! This creates issues of their own : a) large resin wings are known to sag and flex over time, b) the 3d-printed resin undercarriage may not be strong enough to withstand durably the weight of the finished kit, c) the supplied interwings struts and cabane struts, in 3d-printed resin, may just as well be unable to withstand the weight of the upper wing in the long run, as they have holes for just stub inserts of rods, but are not designed to have the reinforcind rods going through them. So I modified the lower sesquiplane wings to incorporate a span-continuous double spar made of 2 mm aluminium tubing. The spars are connected to a reinforced carry-through structure in the fuselage. New struts were designed and printed that allowed to insert 1mm-dia steel rods across their wole length. The undercarriage was similarly designed to allow the introduction of brass rods reinforcements, and to be connected to the internal carry-trhough structure. By the way, the 3d-printed tail skid did not resist the weight and snapped after about a week. I replaced it with a new one sratchbuilt out of brass. The upper wing is made of three parts (a central and two outer wings panels). They were drilled to a significant depth to allow to insert 2mm-tube spars. And the rod-reinforced interwing struts and cabane struts all connect to the carry-through structure inside the fuselage or the lower sequiplane spars. The Potez 25 TOE was the workhorse mainstay used both for the Black Cruise and, as a utility aircraft, by the French Navy, and therefore for the « Pink Cruise ». De Laborde's Potez, coded BZ65, sported the 4-star pennant of a rear-admiral on its fin. This made BZ65 a true "Blue Goose" aircraft. The markings are a mix of masks, home-made decals and the kits decals (the "fishhooks" come from the Lukgraph decal sheet. All the rest is either masked or home-dessigned and printed. 4. The saynette I found many pictures of the various Sahara stops performed by French aircrafts. Whilst the major "Bidon" stops had fuel pumps, for both the wheeled vehicles and the aircrafts, in other places, the fuel drums were brought in by 4-legged bowsers, namely camels ! I had my scene : BZ65, the Potez of de Laborde and his wife, stopped in the Sahara, whilst camels bring in the fuel drums to replenish the aircraft. I found that the drums in these occasions used were not the "standard" 200 or 225 liters drums, but smaller, more handleable ones of 70 liters. A net search provided the specs of these 70-liters drums, which I also designed and printed. The ubiquitous "Japy" hand-pump was used for refueling. One was designed, printed and inserted in its location in the lower fuselage, where it cannot, unfortunately, be seen ... The 1/32 camels are 3d-printed, found on a German website. The figures, including Mrs de Laborde and his husband, are from various sources, like Red Dog or The Bodi Capsata, or others. Finally, a picture showed that these airbases in the Sahara had a windsock. One was designed and printed in clear resin. Duly painted, the see-through effect of the fabric windsocks was restituted pretty convincingly And now, after this lengthy intro, on to the pics. You can click on them to get enlarged versions. At the end are some detailed pics of the WiP process. I hope you like it. Hubert PS: the scene also had an « interesting » ingredient to it : part of the « sand » is actually some curry powder I had mixed up to the « right » colour on the Marrakech souk. The odour is now faded out, but my work area smelled very good for a few months 😂 …

Hello all, Since joing the forum recently after beginning to experiment with modelling at a larger scale, I thought I'd stick up an example of a previous project at 1/72. As there's never been a decent kit of De Havilland's Sea Vixen FAW.1, I found myself having to create one myself from scratch - In fact I ended up making two versions: XJ481 in its Martel trials livery, and XN708, which as sadly lost in Lyme Bay on a night mission. Both aircraft ending up utilizing a combination of 3d printing for the bulk of the features, with vacforming for the canopy, and homebrew PE for thinner elements like the crew seating and wing fences etc. All markings were painted using custom masks except for smaller markings around cockpit and drop tanks which were hand-painted in tempera. Panel lines around the underside were drawn in with pencil and ruler which I find better at expressing such details at that scale instead of moulded panel lines. XJ481 was built as a personal project whereas XN708 is designed as a display kit that can be posed with wings folded, Avon engines exposed, radome open and the AI.18 radar dish movable. PS. I only noticed afterwards that it had been spitting with rain whilst outside taking these photos earlier so please ignore any droplets masquerading as oversize rivets! Tony XN708 XJ481 Thanks for looking in.

I started work on a 3D printed Wasp Junior engine, and this topic will give me space to write about the challenges involved. I've seen a lot of nicely done radial engines here, usually involving added wiring detail, so I started this project out of curiosity. Could I 3D print the whole engine, including the wiring? This engine project isn't designed to fit a particular airplane, which means the mounting system and exhaust system will need to be adjusted to fit. My goal is to build the engine with "short stack" exhausts and no mounting ring. Here are some repeat photos from the original Wasp Jr. thread. First, a CAD rendering of the forward engine block. I'm using AC3D for the CAD. Next, a print of the block and one cylinder. This was the first attempt. I fixed a couple things and printed again. Here is a screenshot of the slicing step, using Chitubox 1.91 for slicing. I only had to design the cylinder once and after adding supports I cloned it eight more times. Here is the support system I'm using for the ignition ring and wires. This is by far the most fragile shape I've printed. I ruined the first one while trying to remove the supports, so for this attempt I moved the supports a bit to make them easier to remove later. Here is one of the ignition ring parts after printing. I removed most of the supports while the part was still pliable, then I put them in the curing box for the final curing step. Here's a recap of the equipment I'm using: CAD: AC3D Slicer: Chitubox 1.91 Printer: Elegoo Mars 2 Pro Resin: Elegoo standard grey -- Dave

The Andover may not interest everyone as a model subject, but what a complete, 1:32, FDM Printed model aeroplane kit looks like might! One Man Model 1:32 Hawker Siddeley HS780 Andover C.Mk 1 Iain

1/18 scale Flettner Fl-282 V21 Kolibri 3D printed / scratchbuilt model After request, a 1/18 scale Fl-282 V6 helicopter with WWII Kriegsmarine markings built for a wealthy collector from Kiel, Germany. A second Luftwaffe’s Fl-282 V21 model followed for my own personal collection at home. Since the whole project cost (CAD design, 3D printing & model building) was entirely funded by the client, I did not hesitate to use the best available materials & machines to do the job. The text follows, is to describe the Flettner Fl-282 Kolibri (“B-0” series) helicopter as manufactured by Anton Flettner Flugzeugbau GmbH on early 1940ies, used by Kriegsmarine & Luftwaffe during WWII and scratch built by me as a 1/18 scale model, now days. Anton Flettner was a German aviation engineer & inventor who made important contributions on airplane & helicopter design. During the WWI, Anton Flettner developed remote control & pilotless aircraft projects, which culminated in the prototype Siemens Schuckert Werke 1000 kg wire guided air to surface missile of 1918. Following WWI, he directed aeronautical & hydrodynamic research institute in Amsterdam and during the WWII, he headed the Anton Flettner Flugzeugbau GmbH, which specialized in helicopters. It is believed that the firm was founded in Berlin in 1935. By this time, however, Flettner had developed the idea of counter-rotating, intermeshing twin rotors. Many of his advisers thought that the airflow disturbed by the intermeshing blades would make this system less efficient than one using a single rotor; but Flettner believed that any problems thus encountered would be more than offset by the reduced drag resulting from having no external rotor-carrying structure. His pioneer work is often overshadowed by the more publicised activities of his contemporaries Heinrich Karl Johann Focke and Igor Sikorsky; yet Flettner’s helicopter, was far superior to the Henrich Focke’s FW-61 and made a successful free flight several months before Igor Sikorsky’s VS-300 began tethered flights. Following pictures taken at Pfaffenwiesbach a district of the municipality Wehrheim, Germany. This artistic wall painting cultural monument, created by the local municipal council in memory of Anton Flettner who was the village teacher in Pfaffenwiesbach from 1906 to 1909. Although Anton Flettner built his helicopters for the German military, his wife Lydia Freudenberg Flettner was Jewish. Because of his personal friendship relationship with head of Gestapo, Heinrich Himmler, Anton Flettner’s Jewish wife and their family safely moved to Sweden for the duration of World War II. Anton Flettner’s partner and confidant was Dr. Kurt Hohenemser, a brilliant and thorough engineer who developed the details necessary for the helicopter’s success. Dr. Hohenemser's father was also Jewish, yet the pair remained unharmed during their tenure together throughout the War as they worked to develop the helicopter for military use. While the final product could be factory assembled, Anton Flettner and his partner Dr. Kurt Hohenemser insisted that they were the only ones who were capable of assembling the complex intermeshing rotor gearbox assembly. However, plans for 1000 helicopters mass production were made, the project was disrupted by the destruction of the designated factory by Allied bombing. In following pictures, Anton Flettner is proudly posing in front of his Fl-282s fleet at Schweidnitz (today Åšwidnica, Poland), on October 1944. The first helicopter is a V14 registered as CJ-SH. Upon the WWII conclusion, Anton Flettner was held in the “Dustbin†interrogation camp at Kransberg castle. After 1945, Flettner, along with many other aviation pioneers, was brought to the United States as part of Operation Paperclip. He started Flettner Aircraft Corporation, which developed helicopters for the US military. His company was not commercially successful, but his work was shared with the Army Air Corps. Many of his designs, such as intermeshing rotor concept, saw widespread use in a series of postwar helicopters built by Kaman for the US Navy and USAF. Anton Flettner moved to the United States in 1947 to work as a consultant to the Office of Naval research and became the chief designer of Kaman Aircraft, creating the Kaman HH-43 Huskie, a concept with intermeshing rotors. He died at age 76 in New York City, USA on December 29th, 1961 and buried in Eddersheim cemetery at Frankfurt, Germany where he was born. In following photograph, Anton Flettner (2nd from left) meets Wernher von Braun (3rd from left).

1/18 scale Hafner Rotabuggy flying Jeep Willys Royal Air Force 1943 Solido diecast conversion & scratchbuilt The Hafner Rotabuggy (formally known as the Blitz Buggy or Malcolm Rotaplane) was an experimental aircraft that was essentially a jeep (actually a Willys MB) combined with an autogyro. It was designed by Austrian born British designer Raul Hafner of the AFEE - Airborne Forces Experimental Establishment after their development of the Hafner Rotachute enjoyed some success. The prototype was built by the M.L. Aviation Company at White Waltham in 1942. One of several failed concepts for the equipping airborne forces, the effort and risk in getting the Rotabuggy into battle would probably have outweighed its utility. Initial testing showed that a Willys MB could be dropped from heights up to 2.35 metres (7.7 ft) without damage to the vehicle. A 12.4 metres (40.7 ft) diameter rotor was attached, along with a tail fairing and fins, but no rudders. The design work was carried out by AFEE staff, while most of the construction was undertaken by R. Malcolm Ltd, with H. Morris & Sons assisting in the manufacture of the rubber hub. The serial numbers RD123 and RD127 were allotted for the two Malcolm Blitz Buggys, although they were never to be used. The basic Jeep was fitted with a pylon to support the two-bladed rotor and a fairing to carry the tail surfaces. The Hafner Rotabuggy, as it became known, was to carry a pilot and a small load, together with a complete tankage of fuel and spare wheel, spare tank, tools and snow chains. The pilot occupied the starboard front seat, but an alternative arrangement for a second pilot was made in the port seat with dual controls. The tail fairing was a plywood monocoque structure attached at four points to the rear of the Jeep and cabin. Because consideration loads were transmitted through the fairing in some conditions of flight and in heavy landing, the Jeep was strengthened locally at the points of attachment. The twin-spar tailplane had trimming flaps on either side which were adjustable on the ground by means of turnbuckles. Large endplate fins were set at a slight angle in plain view to give incidence relative to the local airflow. Replacing the standard Jeep windscreen was a streamlined sheet metal framework with perspex sheets. The remainder of the cabin was built of plywood. Access doors with large perspex panels were fitted both sides. A hole in the cabin roof accommodated the pylon, with allowances for movement owing to the elastic suspension. In the cockpit a special dashboard on the starboard side contained an airspeed indicator, a rotor speed indicator, a sensitive altimeter and a turnand- slip indicator. A standard telephone system via the towrope allowed the pilot to communicate with the tug pilot, the amplifier and batteries being located behind the starboard seat. The Hafner Rotabuggy, camouflaged, carrying RAF roundels and a prototype “P”.

Happy to announce hollow, 3D-printed Merlin engine exhausts, optimized to fit the new-tool Revell P-51D-5 kit, are now available. They can be adapted for other 1/32 scale Merlin-powered Mustang kits. The exhausts are left- and right-handed, feature nut detail, and are printed in "Frosted Extreme Detail" acrylic plastic by Shapeways. They sell for $7.36 USD per pair. Link: http://shpws.me/Q8P5 For the last four years, Model Monkey has been specializing in 3D-printed products for ship and armor modelers. This is the first design for aircraft modelers. There will be more. Best wishes and happy modeling! - Steve Larsen Catalog of over 1600 designs for scale modelers:https://modelmonkey.wixsite.com/modelmonkey

1/18 scale Wallis WA-116 Agile autogyro 3D printed / scratchbuilt model The following construction is a tribute to RAF Wing Commander Kenneth Horatio Wallis DSO MBE CEng FRAeS PhD, a pioneer gyrocopter aviator, who passed away early on Sunday morning, September 1st 2013. Ken was 97 years old. During the WWII, Wallis served in the Royal Air Force as Westland Lysander and Wellington pilot and flew 28 bomber missions over Germany. After the War, he flew the massive Convair B-36 and later involved in research and development, before retiring in 1964. He later became one of the leading exponents of autogyros and earned 34 world records, still holding eight of them at the time of his death. He was an inspiration to us all and we shall greatly miss him. A local hero and a national treasure. He was born on the 26th April 1916, at Ely in Cambridgeshire. With his father and uncle having built an aeroplane in 1908 to fly the channel in a competition that was eventually won by Louis Bleriot, Ken Wallis acquired an interest in practical mechanics at an early age and by the time he was eleven years old had built his own motorcycle. He eventually turned his attention to aviation following a flying demonstration he watched in 1936 of the Henri Mignet HM-14 Flying Flea / Pou Du Ciel. Ken will be greatly missed by the Flixton museum members. He was a frequent visitor, generous fundraiser and a great ambassador. In addition to the numerous professional institutions who welcomed Ken as a member and the vast number of clubs who regarded him with great respect and fondness, many ordinary people will also feel a loss in one way or another. Even a short chat with him left the individual feeling that it was something special and his warmth made them feel that he would remember them! Ken was recognised wherever he went. Admirers would soon gather and he would usually produce a small clipboard from a pocket, to sign and give away autographed postcards of him flying the 'Little Nellie'. I am sure that many a childless adult has asked for a card to give to their 'offspring'. Ken was inspirational, a great role model and possessed a rare old-world charm plus the impeccable manners of his age; all without a hint of grandeur. I am not alone in thinking that he was probably the grandfather figure we would all have liked to have had at some time. Norfolk was Ken's home from 1963 and I venture to think he was appreciated by such a large part of its population that he was likely a close second to its most revered inhabitant: Horatio Nelson. Goodbye Ken - our gyrocopter aviation hero and national treasure.

1/18 scale Instytucie Szybownictwa IS-A Salamandra 53 3D printed / scratchbuilt model The text following is to describe the 1/18 scale Instytucie Szybownictwa IS-A Salamandra 53 (1953 version) glider model building, as produced by aviation factories throughout Poland.

1/18 scale Bolkow Bo-102 Helitrainer scratchbuilt model The Bölkow Bö-102 Helitrainer was an unusual ground-based helicopter training aid that was developed and built by Bölkow of Germany in the late 1950ies. It embodied all essential elements of a conventional helicopter, but was mounted on an articulated gantry to allow a student controlled experience of helicopter systems. Designed to be mounted on a swivelling captive rig the Bölkow Bö-102 Helitrainer allowed trainee pilots to practice procedures such as engine starting, rotor engagement and manipulation of the flight controls. Many of the Bö-102's components, including the single bladed fiberglass main rotor were used in the company's next design, the Bölkow Bö-103. Looks like a kiddie heliride, a toy for big boys huh? Rolled out in 1957, this Helitrainer was powered by a Hirth 3-cylinder / 2-stroke 40hp ILO L3X375 piston engine rated at 30 kW, driving a simple 21 foot one-bladed fiberglass rotor with a counterweight. In all 18 of these Helitrainers were built operating throughout Europe, training military helicopter pilots. Although unable to fly, they were ideal for the teaching of hovering techniques and were replaced by dual trainer helicopters. The Bölkow Bö-102 Helitrainer offered a variety of advantages for a safe helicopter training and was developed in land and water based versions, both of which were semi-captive. The first training section was conducted on this model mounted on a boogie. It facilitated the training of starting, tuning the rotary speed, taking off, hovering, turning, and landing. Simple exercising device for beginners’ training. Safety risk minimized by captivation, yet limited flight maneuvers possible. This feature allowed the helicopter to rise to a height of 2m (6ft), turn around a vertical axis and dip at up to 6° but prevented it from flying outside these limits.