1/32 Trumpeter EE Lightning F.Mk.6 XS904

[Derek B]

On 10/26/2022 at 8:04 AM, Stevepd said:

Good old milliput, I’m doing a Harrier GR.5 at the mo with a Milliput nose. Last time used it was around 82/83!. 
 

Great work and a pleasure to follow along

 

Thank you Steve 

 

Yes, Milliput is still awesome stuff (or at least, the original standard stuff is), and, like you, some of the Milliput I put onto the ventral fuel tank was from 2008! Of course, the grey stick obviously grows a thick brown skin and the good stuff has to be dug/cut out of the middle, but once mixed with the green stick, it always performs flawlessly! Good luck with your Harrier GR.5.

 

Cheers

 

Derek

[Anthony in NZ]

Quite remarkable work Derek!  That’s quite a difference in tank shape and size, makes a huge difference when pointed out.

 

Now, I’m actually here to go back through your ejection seat work and see how to make an RAF harness.  I found that in the Black Box cockpit they give you a Mk7 without belts!

 

Keep up the fine work buddy, going to look amazing 

 

Cheers Anthony 

[Derek B]

Work continues slowly. The ventral fuel tank shape is now fully developed and the majority of the rivet detailing has been applied (still more work to do). I have just noticed that a correction is required - the rearmost panel line is in the wrong place, which I am already addressing (it should be where the plastic arrestor hook firing joins the tank at the end, which I have measured and found to match; this shows that I have made the tank the correct length). Next job is to complete the rear ventral tank detailing, including new ventral fins correctly located on the tank.

 

Additionally, having modified the leading edge (LE) of the wings to introduce the omitted wing root 'kinks', I found that the angle of incidence was now too shallow (the LE wing tip was too low on the fuselage. To correct this, I enlarged the kit fuselage wing location slot by angling it up at the front until the wing LE was in the correct position in relation to the kit scribed panel lines, whilst keeping the trailing edge of the wing in its existing location. This created a more tilted up wing which caused both an enlarged wing slot (I added equivalent thickness of plastic to the wing tabs to fill this gap) and meant that I had to file away the wing underside root moulding to match the new position (see images). I will fill the top gaps once the wings are finally attached to the fuselage.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Derek

[Derek B]

46 minutes ago, MARU5137 said:

Hello Derek,

I am just catching up with your amazing  build.

Your methodical and meticulous workmanship  is tremendous and impressive!

 

Your ejection seat  , Cockpit and the ventral  fuel tank etc  PHENOMENAL  as is the whole build with superb  modifications to make this model just SO correct.

 

 

You know your stuff so well having worked in the aircraft industry and on the Lightning. 

I love your precision  work (man after MY own heart).

 

Keep up the EXCELLENT work. 

Stay well 

Best wishes to you and Sandra.

 

 

MARU5137 

 

 

 

Maru,

 

Thank you so much for your very kind words and wishes (they are extremely appreciated). I also need to thank you for all of your selfless encouragement and support that you give to all members who share their builds on LSP.

 

Kindest regards 

 

Derek 

 

 

 

 

[Panzerwomble]

I swear somebody did that milliput trick with my stomach during lockdown ....( & very nice work on the tank BTW !!)

 

Said it before, anyone taking on one of these terrible kits gets all my admiration .

 

As much as I love the Lightning (I've modeled it more as a subject in 1/72 / 1/48 than anything else ) , I couldn't bring myself to spend all that on the kit and then have to start chopping into pieces to get it to look like a Lightning . Not a case of adding a few rivets at all !

 

For all the new Spitfires appearing , this subject is so much more deserving of some new tooling in various scales

I live in hope to see the real XS904 fly down a runway again before people get to old to care for them or interest fades .

 

EDIT - my profile pic I just realized........ is me sat in XS904

 

 

 

Edited November 18, 2022 by Panzerwomble

[Derek B]

24 minutes ago, Panzerwomble said:

I swear somebody did that milliput trick with my stomach during lockdown ....( & very nice work on the tank BTW !!)

 

Said it before, anyone taking on one of these terrible kits gets all my admiration .

 

As much as I love the Lightning (I've modeled it more as a subject in 1/72 / 1/48 than anything else ) , I couldn't bring myself to spend all that on the kit and then have to start chopping into pieces to get it to look like a Lightning . Not a case of adding a few rivets at all !

 

For all the new Spitfires appearing , this subject is so much more deserving of some new tooling in various scales

I live in hope to see the real XS904 fly down a runway again before people get to old to care for them or interest fades .

 

 

 

 

Hi PW,

 

Many thanks for your kind comments.

 

I know exactly what you mean! Nice video (I was there as part of the start crew on that video and had also packed and installed the brake chute!). Unfortunately, as an automotive storage company has a long-term lease on the Bruntingthorpe airfield, we no longer have use of the airfield or runway, so we are restrained to 'static' re-heat runs only (in fact, the LPG had their 'Twilight' engine run event last Saturday evening). 

 

Derek

[Panzerwomble]

I went a couple of times to Brunty's CWJ days , absolutely fantastic days out .

 

I'm glad they got the Buccs out , but the Victor , the Guppy destroyed , the others all crowded in now . So very sad, on a par with XH558's decline . Anywhere else but the UK they would be treated as national treasures not ignored .

 

Watched as they taxied the VC10 through the crowd ( proper grown up 80's stuff not a road cone parade or H&S idiot in sight, just "stand back a bit there "  ) , felt the power of the Avon engines and the look on my face says it all  . Took me 40 years to get in that seat  . Magical .

 

 

 

Edited November 18, 2022 by Panzerwomble

[Derek B]

1 hour ago, MARU5137 said:

Panzerwomble, 

Thank you for sharing your joy.

A little  jealous seeing you sitting there in the seat.

I have been twice too..  I think I met up with you Derek when I came with MY friend.

I loved the roar of the Lightning ..

and Derek I am excited to see this build knowing you worked on it..

I didnt take a good video (this is not MINE) but maybe its the same gentleman  that took the video Panzerwomble  shared earlier...

 

 

Is that you(Derek) with your back to us near the cockpit as the Pilot scrambled in...

 

 

 

Lovely videos Maru, thank you!  

 

Unfortunately, that is not me in the first video (this one was before I joined the LPG), however, I am sure that I was around somewhere in the second one! 

 

Derek

[Panzerwomble]

FYI I took the first vid and also "how to park a lighting" , the second one in your post . You can tell from my logo top left.

 

I think I've posted both here before. 

 

[Derek B]

Thanks Maru and PW! 

 

Here is a nice one I found on YouTube from 2015:

 

 

 

Derek

[Derek B]

2 hours ago, MARU5137 said:

Super fantastic  video.

Woo Hoo I was there  to watch the Lightning  Taxi in 2015.

 

That's why I posted it!

 

Derek

[Derek B]

Ventral fuel tank find. I was less than overwhelmed by the oversized flat plates provided by the kit which are supposed to be the ventral fuel tank stabilizing find, so I decided to scratch build replacement items from 1.5 mm plastic card. The real find are tapered (unlike the kit parts). I based mine off the Echelon kit instructions reference for them, but modified to fit my reworked ventral fuel tank (at the moment they have the Trumpeter kit top curvature shape, but I will modify that shape once I have worked out the correct location and how to eventually mount them!). I based the rivet detail on photographs of the actual find (always better than relying on drawings, which are normally incorrect - the rivet detail on the kit provided fins is entirely fictional!).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Derek

[LSP_Kevin]

Brilliant work, Derek!

 

Kev

[Derek B]

I may have been quiet for a while, but that doesn't mean that I haven't been busy! I have been reworking and reapplying every rivet and panel line on the wings and fuselage, which was a massive job considering how many rivets that this aircraft has! (plus adding an additional protected vent on the right fuselage side).

 

I am now working on the jet pipe area. Having sanded down the figure of eight ring to match the external fuselage shape, I am now in the process of making the brake chute twin cable channels. I have glued a 0.5 x 0.25 mm strip to the outside of the ring and made a 0.38 mm dis metal spacer wire which will act as a space guide whilst I make the inner channel strip.

 

 

 

Derek

Edited January 11 by Derek B

[Derek B]

Inner brake chute cable channel added. The wire will remain in place until I have completed reworking and correcting the jet pipes (the bifurcation fairing area, which needs scratch building to be correct) - the final top and bottom modifications will occur after I have joined the fuselage halves together and attached the jet pipes to the fuselage.

 

 

 

 

Derek

Edited January 11 by Derek B