HK Models Avro Lancaster Mk.I WIP: Canopy Attached 3/31/2021

[Dennis7423]

A brief update, but an update nonetheless!

 

While waiting for parts associated with the front FN5 turret to dry, I continued work on the cockpit, and began mods to the FN-20 rear turret.

HK molded the rear turret floor as a flat piece, which is inaccurate. The rear turret had a bowl at the bottom of the turret where the gunner could put his feet, which also contained several other boxes and such associated with the operation of the turret:

 

eecf65b4efb148f9944920ace109e851 by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

Wingnut Wings appears to be molding this correctly on their soon to be released kit:

 

32044 1_32 Avro Lancaster B.Mk.III Type 464 (Provisioning) CAD render (FN.20 rear turret) by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

I started modifying the kit part:

 

73546232_537993106992717_3587851615622660096_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

The hole right now is square, and once more of the internals are fit and I get a sense of the size and dimensions, I will round out the cutout. You can start getting the idea here:

 

74569032_814196029011923_1386552684533776384_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

Moving to the cockpit, the pilot's pedestal has been reattached, 3mm lower than before:

 

75233644_493736614547576_2356345648451682304_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

The bracing on the port side will be recreated, as well as the pulley system under the pedestal floor that is visible from the nose glazing.

 

That's all for now folks! As always, comments and critiques are most welcome.

 

- Dennis S.

  Thornton, CO USA

[Uncarina]

Beautiful work as always Dennis, and I am taking notes. 

 

Cheers,  Tom

[Dennis7423]

A small update today.

 

Interior work continues. I have completed the basic renovations to the pilot's pedestal, and now I can start attaching the smaller bits in anticipation for further detailing with plasticard, photo-etch, and various gauges of wire:

 

75593867_2718980981496237_6343334317262897152_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

You'll notice, too, that I have begun the corrections associated with the pilot's seat. I have lowered the floor mountings, and have begun further fixes to the seat. I recently acquired a 1/32 resin set intended for the Revell Mosquito to covert it to a Tse-tse. I will use the Tamiya kit for this conversion, which has a nice and complete cockpit. What was included in the Paragon resin set, however, was a nice resin seat that I could steal the lower seat pan from. Some cutting and fiddling, and it will work nicely to correct the very long, deep kit pilot's seat:

 

76605025_1254169184791918_600204937833480192_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

Moving back to the turrets, the basic frame is built for the front Fraser-Nash, and now I can start scratching some of the smaller bits, to include the ammo chutes:

 

75380352_2441406749437231_2237330163354304512_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

Moving to the rear Fraser-Nash, I have completed removing the turret floor in preparation for a new lower bowl. None of the parts are attached here, just checking sizing and whatnot:

 

76767483_1698135893644842_3507912855380819968_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

I have also started molding parachutes for the interior, using a modified True Details RAF parachute as my master. Also featured here is an American parachute, of which I am molding several for another 1/32 B-17 project (B-17F "Nine Yanks and Jerk" from the 100th BG) and a 1/32 B-24J (B-24H "Callipygia" of the 489th BG):

 

75380030_564308527719298_372482056652849152_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

That's all for now folks! Next update should have some more interior bits fitted to the pilot's pedestal, as well as further work on the turrets and front interior. As always, comments and critiques are welcome. Stay tuned!

 

- Dennis S.

  Thornton, CO USA

[Dennis7423]

All-

 

Happy Thanksgiving to those that are celebrating tomorrow. I hope it is a great time of fellowship with your families, both blood and chosen!

 

When I left you last, I was completing some upgrades/corrections to the cockpit. I have since completed some of those, and wanted to share the progress with you.

 

The pilot's pedestal has been lowered, and the support framework has been added. The control wheel has been upgraded with the brake lever and the center cap, and I boxed in the column itself. I also added the control cables for the control wheel below the pedestal, as these will be visible from the nose to the keen eye that looks inside:

 

76978619_423979045215840_7982335116347179008_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

77006274_2839194226114116_6833098152514420736_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

76726111_473347983567332_3309174719911034880_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

The conversion of the pilot's seat has been completed as well. I extended the rear seat pad at the bottom to better represent a full cushion once the lower pad was removed from the kit part:

 

72985956_2823751524336486_3125124599499456512_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

And here it's blue-tac'd in place on the pedestal. Pretty pleased with the result:

 

76686426_1015083235501409_6044080808761753600_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

76779594_2509705899127561_5003582568503705600_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

That's all for today. I will have more to post on the turrets next time, as work has continued on them. Hoping for some bench time tomorrow with the holiday!

 

 As always, comments and critiques are welcome. Thanks folks!

 

- Dennis S.

  Thornton, CO USA

 

 

 

[Out2gtcha]

Great work Dennis!  Good to get bench time before the tryptophan chain reaction kicks in tomorrow.   

[Uncarina]

Nice update Dennis! This has been a great build to see unfold. Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family as well.

 

Cheers,  Tom

[Dennis7423]

All-

 

Work continues on cockpit bits and bobs to update the accuracy of the kit. When I left you last, I had finished updates to the kit seat and pilot's pedestal. I made a few more additions, after studying some more photos and the CAD images from impending the WnW Lancaster. I added an additional travel prohibitor in front of the control column, added the prominent piping around the pilot's controls, and began work on the camera. I added the cone for the lense, and moved the camera forward so that it was centered in the opening in the fuselage. I also have begun building the framework that surrounds the camera itself:

 

77272949_718727508617794_2839201887801049088_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

78942790_589756851820593_942594581004812288_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

The resin parachutes I made up have nestled nicely in place as well:

 

79527358_467913170393188_2441821428991918080_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

I also added an additional bench seat that I observed in the WnW instructions:

 

78193145_760392777798346_3975118336982777856_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

Moving back to the turrets, I have completed the upper framework for the nose turret, and have begun working out the ammo chutes:

 

78399925_533358627216260_7938352310478962688_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

Once I have those sorted, I have some flexible resin .303 belts to add to them before boxing them in appropriately. Then I will begin further outfitting the turret with other scratch-built parts to bring it up to snuff. This little guy might be the first completed part on the kit, as I won't get to painting the cockpit until I get the forward portion of the bomb bay sorted out.

 

I did more work on the rear turret, too. I have begun adding some of the missing framework, with more to come once I sand and shape what I have already. The lower "bowl" has been attached too, and will require some further meddling before it'll fit nicely into place in the tail. A spare AMK 1/48 Mig-31 burner can was just the right size, so I cut it down and made it work. Once I get that sorted out, it too will receive further outfitting to detail it appropriately:

 

78496954_432151957459290_7932891976821637120_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

As imposing and huge as the Lancaster is, the turrets, because they will be mostly natural metal inside rather than black, will be a focal point for viewers. I certainly want them to draw people in and further enjoy the rest of the build as they go.

 

That's all for now folks! As always, comments and critiques are most welcome.

 

- Dennis S.

  Thornton, CO USA

[Dennis7423]

All-

 

Small update today, as bench time was pretty limited over the last week or so.

 

I have completed the basic internal structure of the rear Frazer-Nash turret, which was missing from HK's kit parts. They provide a good start, but some of the additional bracing needs to be added to be more accurate. I used the great CAD images from Wingnut Wings to outfit the structure. Now that it is completed, I can refine it a bit with some filing, and add additional detailing. It's coming along nicely:

 

80005875_1702651516537895_5785239266023964672_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

78885941_448994522679680_2971810420404256768_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

And she fits nicely inside the solid glazing:

 

78679787_433133367359067_3684887150316224512_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

That's all for today folks! Hoping for some more bench time this Monday, if the wife doesn't fill the day with tasks.

 

Happy modelling!

 

- Dennis S.

  Thornton, CO USA

[Uncarina]

Dennis, I know the feeling. Wish I could contribute with more info, but this is some brilliant work. 

 

Cheers,  Tom

[Pete Roberts]

Nice work there Dennis! Following with interest.

 

One small point - the internals of the turrets would not have been natural metal. If they are silver, they were likely painted aluminium. 

 

Sorry, just being a pedant.  

 

PR

[monthebiff]

Nice update, turret is looking good.

 

Regards. Andy 

[Gazzas]

Love the detail work!

[Dennis7423]

Folks-

 

Wow, it's been a long time since I gave an update! I think it's about time.

I had shelved the Lancaster after getting frustrated trying to sort out the ammo chutes for the .303's in the turrets. The kit molded parts have the ammo chutes going in a funky direction, and I sanded them off fairly quickly with the intent to create something more accurate. I was having a hard time scratch building them, so it went to the SOD for the last 6 months or so.

 

I pulled out my Tamiya 1/32 Mosquito the other day, and observed that I had purchased the Eduard Brassin armament set for it, which contained resin ammo chutes for the nose .303's. The were perfect! They were structured correctly, and even had the correct bend in them. I was able to heat them in boiling water, shorten the curve a little bit, and then trim to fit. Viola! They worked perfectly. I ended up ordering two more sets from Barracuda Resin to complete the upper turret, and also to replace the ones I robbed from the Eduard set. While the Eduard set is pricey and covers the entire gun assortment, the Barracuda set covers only the ammo chutes. It's also significantly cheaper to boot.

 

115984721_574545806570140_1501663275536710403_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

With the ammo chutes sorted out, I could move forward with the rest of the scratch building in the nose turret. This consisted of new ammo box covers with the circular cutouts (complete with .303 ammo inside), the turret locking lever, and various pipes and hoses.

 

115908154_745118143004819_7613127090577830365_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

116420309_603844623657521_4125874062612944937_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

116347576_285479516092194_2984050289915380796_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

Another missing piece of the turrets are the spent casing bags. These were scratched using Milliput, and wiggled inside the turret mechanism. They aren't very flattering, I must say...

 

116274594_1152592251793364_6747290124345493417_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

Another missing piece, and quite visible, is the framing on the rear of the turret dome. The piece is molded in clear, but it is metal on the rear bird, so being totally neat here wasn't a problem. The stringers were added, along with a passable oxygen regulator and associated hose:

 

109449528_933406410490108_712335263458866913_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

116353671_700797260553173_7143077821224813437_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

116345491_289098379005505_2976607860387803828_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

With that sorted out, I could start adding some paint. This is only a basic painting with interior black and flat aluminum, with further details and whatnot to be added later. Best I could muster with 20 minutes at the bench this morning before work! Feels good to get a little bit of paint on this beast.

 

116702278_327074281806705_2974317843926589177_n by Dennis SAuter, on Flickr

 

The only other piece I intend to scratch build for the nose turret is the metal backpad at the rear of the turret opening. I am planning to fashion this out of tin foil, as its a complex curve. Here's to hoping it works!

As always, comments and critiques are welcome. Thanks for tuning in.

 

- Dennis S.

  Thornton, CO USA

Edited July 29, 2020 by Dennis7423

[allthumbs]

Looking good Dennis! 

 

I was holding out for the WNW Lanc, but will most likely invest in one of these, which looks to be a good model in its own right.

 

Keep up the good work...I'll be following your progress.

 

Rich

[Finn]

Good work Dennis, here is a pic of a rear turret:

And the other end:

Jari