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1/18 Scale Blue Box F4U-1A Corsair Modification


JayW

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18 hours ago, JayW said:

And finally - all nine front row cylinders are finished and mounted onto the engine block:

 

uyvkVnfl.jpg

 

 

 

 

that is the finest bit of engineering I have seen in many a long while... it is impossible to comprehend that every cylinder fin is handmade..

 

it just looks perfect..

 

I thought you were mad as a box of frogs trying that, but your quite incredible effort is quite breathtaking and hugely inspirational

 

perfection can be achieved - it just takes inordinate skill, time and patience..

 

Peter

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"...it just looks perfect.."  Says Peter (Airscale).  Strong praise from the master and I am humbled.  But Peter, the difference here is that while that photo might make the front row look perfect, magnify a couple of times and the imperfections creep in.  As opposed to your efforts as I see them on the Mustang, where an extreme closeup still shows perfection!  Thanks Mate.

 

I am getting some of my inspiration BTW from Wolf Buddee's Corsair currently under construction, which many of you are following.  Tamiya has provided, in 1/32, the finest and most accurate R-2800 by far that I have ever seen out of a manufacturer, or an after-market for that matter, for their F4U.   Combine that with a master modeler's skills, which Wolf possesses in abundance,  and you get a singularly spectacular engine.  I am using that effort as a bar that I must somehow leap over, or meet.  Scratch builders of course cannot benefit from mass production techniques and computer-designed precision that Tamiya uses, but we also are not shackled by limitations of injection molding.  Anyway, my goal is to have an engine that looks as good as Wolf's.  A big challenge even as I get to work with a larger scale.

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8 hours ago, TwoHands said:

The cylinders look great- tell me you are NOT going to cover them up with the cowling??? J

 

Good question.  I actually have a very grandiose plan - to make it like the real thing.  That is to have a permanently installed nose cowl attaching to the front row cylinder heads with many many little ribs and links, and a permanently installed cowl flap ring with the flaps attaching to the aft row cylinder heads with many many little links.  The large cowl panels between the nose and the flaps will be removable.  Also, I intend for the panels over the engine compartment aft of the cowl flaps to be removable.  If Tamiya can do it, then by god so can I.   With all those removable panels off, the engine will be very exposed.

 

Really?  Much easier said than done.  What I have described will be an enormous challenge especially for it have good gaps and other edge matching, without steps, and with good alignment relative to the engine centerline.   If things are not working out well, I will have to change the plan accordingly.  And if it goes extremely poorly, maybe I throw away teh Corsair and just display the engine!

 

 

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On 4/20/2020 at 9:49 AM, JayW said:

 

Good question.  I actually have a very grandiose plan - to make it like the real thing.  That is to have a permanently installed nose cowl attaching to the front row cylinder heads with many many little ribs and links, and a permanently installed cowl flap ring with the flaps attaching to the aft row cylinder heads with many many little links.  The large cowl panels between the nose and the flaps will be removable.  Also, I intend for the panels over the engine compartment aft of the cowl flaps to be removable.  If Tamiya can do it, then by god so can I.   With all those removable panels off, the engine will be very exposed.

 

Really?  Much easier said than done.  What I have described will be an enormous challenge especially for it have good gaps and other edge matching, without steps, and with good alignment relative to the engine centerline.   If things are not working out well, I will have to change the plan accordingly.  And if it goes extremely poorly, maybe I throw away teh Corsair and just display the engine!

 

 

I have learned in my own modeling that the limit of my ability extends to the number of times I can get it wrong before I get it right and my sanity. I wish you success!

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The stuff of nightmares:

 

mDEbNFNl.jpg

 

Little plastic wafers for lower cylinder cooling fins.  Two of hundreds, each one carefully cut from .005 inch sheet from scribed circles (.406 inch and .344 inch diameter), then sanded, filed and drilled.  It's a process.  For cylinder 3, the 16th of 18 cylinders, so I am oh so close.  Also shown is my handy little cylinder build-up fixture - it is well worn.  It's a race to get these cylinders done before I go stark raving mad!!

Edited by JayW
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This is a big milestone.  After months of repetitive toil on 18 cylinders, they are done.  Here is the now complete aft row, still resting in it's assembly jig:

 

naxEACWl.jpg

 

The front row, which I showed complete a couple of posts ago, now has the exhaust and intake pipes attached to the cylinder head ports:

 

UNTuRjwl.jpg

 

When combined on the assembly jig:

 

tMKEVAcl.jpg

 

Well that jig was very useful.  It assured a reasonably exact location of each cylinder, and the exhaust and intake pipes.  But now I no longer need it!  HaHa!!

 

So take a look at the cylinders and crank case more close up:

 

ZqOpa39l.jpg

 

1FXsKOjl.jpg

 

Front view:

 

KwIMnxdl.jpg

 

And rear view:

 

hLkQJ6Fl.jpg

 

In that rear view you see 36 points where either intake or exhaust pipes will have to fit up to.  What a challenge!  

 

Next up are the intake manifold pipes.  Stay healthy, stay safe.  Thanks for looking in.

 

 

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