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New 1/32 Tempest - master photos


Jan_K

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Anyways, back to the topic of the Tempest. The more I look through mine, the more I look forward to SH doing a Typhoon. I don't know why but I just like the Typhoon better.

 

 

I kind of understand that....as similar as the planes are...the Typhoon has appeal in a way because it is so primitive....like a blunt instrument.  Basically a Hurricane with a huge engine.  Pilots flew them into harm's way not knowing if they would black out from CO....the engine would quit....or the tail would fall off.  But they did it anyway.... It had guns that protruded three feet from the front of the wing...how can we not love that?

 

The Tempest is so much more refined, more complete, more polished.  It was a much more developed aircraft, more effective, but less ballsy and "in your face".

 

They are both dang cool aircraft.

Edited by Bryan
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I just received my Hi-Tech Tempest V from West Coast Hobbies (in a race against a pending postal strike) and all I have to say is...wow. Just wow.

 

Special Hobby has really stepped up their game. Compared to some of their earlier releases, which I have been perfectly happy with, it is a spectacular change. We'll see how it goes together, but I have been just blown away with first impressions. The Tempest has been given the treatment it deserves. If the Jak 3 is done to the same standards, we are in for a treat. And I will be looking forward to the Typhoon if that is in their plans. 

 

I was, and still am, happy with the PCM Tempest, but this kit is in a different class really. 

 

Richard

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  • 4 weeks later...

Hi

No expert on the Tempest versus the Typhoon, but I took the SH Tempest nose section and compared it to Bentley's 1/32 Typhoon profile drawing and it was almost spot on, a slight difference in the bottom curvature, looked less than 1 mm at most.

 

Didn't check the spinner backplate dia though..but to me the profile looked good, but I have to check it more closely again now :-)

 

/ Gunnar

Edited by Gunnar J
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Hi guys

I am RELUCTANTLY going to step into this conversation. And if you are not a rivet counter then best you move on.....

I have been studying these kits, parts, photos and also I have copies of the factory lofts. I have spent weeks looking into this for someone else and found a solution (it is all very well finding problems, but for me it is about finding solutions....plus I find that part interesting!

Thankfully SH have the thrust line correct, but the front third of the nose explodes into a bulbous shape throwing spinner dia out, and the whole shape of the rad fairing is wrong as a result, as mentioned PCM nose is closer in some regards but in other areas is wrong. In conclusion they both missed the distinctive shape unfortunately.

The front 1/3rd of the SH nose needs splicing up and the dia of the spinner backplate reduced a couple of mm (cant remember exactly the measurements off hand) to match. However the effect of pulling all this together has a positive effect on the radiator top lip (Just under the spinner) as this is wrong in profile as well.  Now this is where the fun begins.  The 'mouth' opening is a little too big and very deep.  I initially got confused at where the issue was stemming from as I was using the Bentley drawings as well and although it kinda matched there was clearly still shape issues.  I was able to then get a hold of the original factory lofting drawings whuch was a godsend in many many ways.  The Bentley drawings are awesome, however like anything there is margin for error.  Straight away multiple errors were spotted, in fact I almost threw it in the bin and decided to forget it, but that would mean I had a kit with no nose, Lol.

 

Are you still with me?????

 

Right, I had fixed the outside dimensions of the spinner backplate down through to the radiator opening, but now the lower cowl line was just too flat.  A slot was removed horizontally through the radiator outlet and the back end pinched up.  I was getting closer to the correct shape now.  However, although mostly matching the factory drawings better the 'look' was still not there.....what was wrong????

 

More study revealed the rad opening was still not correct at varying angles.  I reduced the opening (now measuring off the factory drawings and dims) and the rad depth was still wrong, in fact the whole profile leading into the mouth needed re-doing if I was to get the correct result. More, shims, trims, splices and CA and I was finally happy with the whole 'mouth opening' and associated contours.  Fixing this then confirmed to me the radius of the 'cheeks' was too far back.  So the whole front profile was re-sculpted.  The shapes were finally getting close!  The radiator cowl had a bit of a 'chipmunk cheeks' look to it and this started to go as well.

 

Probably not many of you are still tuned in by now.....

 

The upper piece inside the rad opening needed fitting as it was the only way I could finish off the opening shapes and the distinctive blend up into the area under the spinner.  Now Bentleys drawings would have you believe the lower profile of the radiator fairing was nicely curved.  However photo's and factory drawings clearly show this ares to be very flat.  The whole bottom of this fairing was ground very flat to match. That lower part of plastic was getting thin.  But guess what???  I was finally seeing the shape come right!!!  

 

Still more needed sorting, but minor stuff now like fine tuning contours etc.

 

So that is how I fixed it.  Is it perfect???  What is perfect??  The thing you notice with these old planes (and I get it on my own rebuild)is that they were essentially hand made, sure things were jigged, stamped in presses etc, but at the end of the day the tin bashers had to make it all fit and it was mass production.  For example with Mosquitoes all the FB moulds were different even though they look the same and few parts are interchangeable.  Even if 2 Standard Motors built Airframes were produced in the same factory they were likely on different molds and hence hand finished to fit.  The same is true I noticed of the Tempest, when you look at things in uber detail you see all sorts of differences and I would work off one pic and then look at another for comparison there were small differences.

 

I sprayed Mr Surfacer on it on Sunday and was about to post it away to the chap when I spotted a tiny tweak I wanted to fix, back to the paint shop again tonight....

 

Its been a massive job and certainly not an easy one, it took a bit of persuasion to take it on but I feel satisfied I have achieved the correct 'look' now.

 

All going well this might become available to the market along with a new spinner...not my call.  If it dosent then I will gladly just stick it on my kit and build it.

 

So this is my findings with the info I had at hand (sorry I dont have photo's with it)  and how I fixed it.  Hopefully you will hear more on it down the track.

 

Dont shoot me...........

 

Cheers

Anthony (see I am actually doing modelling, but just not on my own projects!!!!)

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I'd be very interested in a correct nose and spinner from some enterprising aftermarket company.  Just out of curiosity - do you have any before and after pics?

 

I have started my SH Tempest, but plan to leave the nose off until a corrected one is available.  There's plenty of cleaning up and fine tuning to do - it is no Tamiya kit.

 

Jens

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Thanks Anthony!

 

This just demonstrates that whatever may be their quality, two-dimensions plans never give a full view of a complex, rounded three dimensional object! To replicate correctly the nose, a 3D scan is surely not the cheaper but probably the easiest and most accurate solution...

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