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Piper Super Cub (PA-18-150) floatplane


Zero77

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Hi,

 

It's one more build started a longtime ago, but i want to finish it. It's a rather small kit, with not many parts, but some areas need special care to look accurate, or just to look good !

The fit is very good anyway.

I will make one of the schemes from the box, the white and yellow swiss aircraft, this one :

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Those nice pictures just make me want to have a walk in the moutains near a beautiful lake... :)

 

For the paint, i have ordered some paint from Gravity, a spanish company who produces amazing paints dedicated to (racing) car models. I tried them yesterday and they are great (fast curing, extra smooth, very fine pigment, airbrush ready....). For the yellow i bought a bottle of school bus yellow. The colour is very good, but it doesn't match the Revell decals colour (for the lightning on the floats and the code on the wings. Anyway, we'll sort out that later !

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When i get back to that build, i had already made a lot of small subassemblies.

The cute little engine :

20160211_000857_zpsk4lybu0x.jpg

I wont detail it more as i think i am going to build it with all doors closed.

 

The lower engine cowling. I glued and blended the cylindrical cover in the middle, as on the real stuff it seems to be one part (2 parts in the Revell kit), or at least almost no seam is visible. I also carved it, thinned the walls of the cylinder and will add a black sphere inside after the paintjob.

20160211_000830_zpsqzgk6hnz.jpg

20160211_000840_zpsqbfyrzhl.jpg

 

 

The cockpit is straight from the box, i did not add anything. I even used the molded seat belts (they looked good to me) and the dashboard decal. I just added a drop of krystal klear on each instrument to make the glass. I also painted the floor with a wood grain technique.

20160211_000936_zpsxdibejz8.jpg

20160211_000951_zpsq3bh4dax.jpg

Edited by Zero77
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At the moment, i am detailing the floats. I am going to add all the float rudders control cables. I built small pulleys, and had to redo the rudders themselves.

 

Here is what's from the box :

20160210_234116_zpstp6zxga2.jpg

 

It's a bit too much simplified.

Here is the result. I still have to build the other one :

20160210_234122_zps6lxcw1ln.jpg

20160210_234141_zpsudtizs5a.jpg

20160210_234146_zpstrydgaps.jpg

 

They may not be 100% accurate as i did not found real close-up picture. But they look good to me. I still have to add details on the upper part of the axle (i did it yesterday, but have not taken any pictures since then).

 

The brass is cut into 0.15mm brass sheet, then bent and the small rivet added with a scriber :

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I also had to fill the landing light on the left wing, as the aircraft i'm buidling dont have one !

20160211_000916_zpsg1dx4tdl.jpg

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very cool project!

 

I've always had issues cutting brass without getting a lot of bending at the edges. What are you using to cut your brass so cleanly?

 

Thanks

 

I use a Xuron sheer cutter (the one with blue handles). But indeed the parts are a bit twisted, so i flatten them with a pair of pliers thereafter.

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Thanks guys !

 

Next step was just surgery. I still have not finished. In fact, i noticed while watching actual pictures that Revell should definitely not have chosen this aircraft, as it is FAR away from what you can build with the kit. Ok, it's not really noticeable on every pictures.

But when i found this one, i understood that i was dealing with something non standard.

2595482223_95498f1fcc_o.jpg

 

The roof has a large clear area, so it is flater than usual, and in the inside one can see the tubular frame, whereas in the kit there is an interior hiding the tubes.

 

On this picture, one can also see that the tubular frame around the clear roof is not standard either. There is also a black rectangle. I dont know what it is, nor how to deal with. Maybe it's a small window?

hbpqj.jpg

 

 

So i had to cut open that kit roof and destroy all of the interior. Ok.

Here is the kit as i built it so far (following the Revell instructions !) :

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Following the well known technique, first i drilled holes :

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And then remove the square :

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ANd clean the cut :

20160214_160109_zpseflabvov.jpg

 

I then shaved and sanded it carefully until i only got the plastic thickness. I still need a bit of material to fix the clear roof.

 

Then i destroyed the interior part with a pair of pliers, and here we are :

20160214_161448_zpsdqftxsps.jpg

20160214_161504_zps0m3dk0dt.jpg

Edited by Zero77
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I then cut a rectangle of quite thick clear plastic (from a packaging), using a template made of tamiya masking tape taped on the roof, so i have an almost exactly dimensionned rectangle.

20160214_180830_zpsgxt4gogz.jpg

 

I stripped the paint on the inside but it was not easy and quite coarse. So i just glued a thin plastic sheet cut to the correct dimensions :

20160214_235532_zpskxhh5rvv.jpg

20160215_000625_zps39zteiik.jpg

 

Now I still have to rebuild the interior tubular frame. Actually it's done, but i still have not taken any pictures. Maybe this evening if i have enough time (i go on vacations tomorrow !).

 

 

At the same time, i also built the small pulleys that go on the floats to lead the float rudder cables :

20160214_171552_zpsrmr4ng08.jpg

 

And add a few millimeters on the bottom engine cowling as the kit one was too short to match what i see in the pictures :

20160214_161700_zpsvt3pevqx.jpg

 

 

 

 

When i started this build, i thought it would be fast and straightforward.... Huge mistake !

Edited by Zero77
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