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HK Models B-17 E/F backdated to a B-17D


patricksparks

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a little progress, haven't been able to start ant new fuselage parts due to being confined at home, I use my computer at work to draw and don't have the capability at home(major software...) But anyway I sanded all the diamond tread off the HK tires, a lot of photos I've seen show the early B-17s with smooth tires. I also finished patching the cockpit roof and will do a cut-out in it for the commanders observation blister. Also I started putting the engines together, I am using Eduard photo-etched wiring harnesses on them and some Airscale decals for the data plates on the crank cases and also added AMS resin prop govenors.

 

 

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Some progress and some experimenting with my 3D printer. I tried to print a new rear fuselage section in one piece, I reduced the thickness of the external walls and the thickness of the formers and stringers to try and reduce the shrinkage that was creating sink marks on the outside of the the first part. The part printed great, unfortunately the overall length is about 3/16" too long for my printer, in the attached photos you see the part the bottom is flat,it wasn't supposed to be, I didn't make the supports high enough off the build platform. The bottom is supposed to have a cut out anyway for the "TUB" gun, but this was just an experiment, the problem with the length is that I am trying to piece the fuselage parts at the actual section lines that the real plane has, the radio compartment rear bulkhead was supposed to be on the printed part....not there when the print emerged and the rear of the part barely has any wall thickness, too bad as all the rest of the fuselage sections get smaller in diameter so they will fit on the printer(MISSED BY THAT MUCH...) I will have to split the first section in half and battle a glue seam.( my hope is to have the rivets  and panel lines printed into the parts).

I've been putting wood grain on bulkhead doors and floor panels, I know that most of the floors on B-17s have anti-slip pads applied to them but I like to "brighten up" the interior a little bit as it tends to get very dark especially when the olive colored fabric liners were installed inside the aircraft fuselage, which all the early forts came with. I have added styrene sheet to the insides of the fuselage halves and painted it MM "Field Drab" I'm going to print window frames for the interior. I also did some detailing on the flight deck walls which I had to rebuild their rear portions with sheet styrene as the earlier model forts didn't have the oxygen tanks mounted to the walls behind the pilot's seats.NCMxfOU.jpg0sCBUve.jpgztBLWeL.jpgDaaklSC.jpg6xhntiL.jpgdGyAjPY.jpggJHojk9.jpg?1T4gRApr.jpg

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Great work Pat! the rear fuselage looks spot on and I especially like the door opening.  I see also that you have started to take off some to the instrument panel in preparation for flattening out the #3 area. The sidewall details and soundproofing colour look good to.

 

Keep up the awesome work my friend :)

 

Craig

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7 hours ago, brahman104 said:

Great work Pat! the rear fuselage looks spot on and I especially like the door opening.  I see also that you have started to take off some to the instrument panel in preparation for flattening out the #3 area. The sidewall details and soundproofing colour look good to.

 

Keep up the awesome work my friend :)

 

Craig

Thank you Craig, your project is looking awesome, great progress on it !!!! looking forward to more !

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Worked on some more interior, added addition jumps seats to the radio compartment along with thermoses and a paper cup holder to the bomb bay door which the early fortresses had. Some more work on the flight deck including the throttle quadrant and painting the seats. Also painted the tires, so bulbous and nondescript, they remind me of the Bugs Bunny cartoon with the Gremlin... 

 

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Worked on one of the dual 50 cal. rings, I used the HK kit ring and the kit has some individual buffer frames for the 50s, I mounted 2 of them to the ring based on photos, I bougth GASPATCH 50 cal. guns, they are beautiful, I just wish they had left the charging handle and plate separate  so they could be made left or right handed as per the real gun. Amazingly the HK frames are pretty much dead -on size wise ,they match the guns well. The GASPATCH guns come with both early and late style barrel cooling sleeves, the early ones are perfect for an early B-17.

 

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Finished one of the twin 50 cal. mounts, used some Eduard photo etched ring and bead sights from a B-17 set, I  also cut up one of the kit's 50 cal guns and robbed the feed section to create the link catching chute between the guns. Still have to paint the guns, I also had to carefully saw the charging handle off the left gun and reverse the side it goes on, you can see in one of the photos that I glued some black styrene pieces to look like the charging handle guide plate that needs to be there, also I very carefully scraped away the plate detail on the other side.

 

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4 hours ago, brahman104 said:

Nice work Pat! I've also got the Gaspatch guns and so will be doing the same. I just need to find a decent .30 for the nose now..... Your turret ring looks great, are you making another for the bathtub?

 

Craig

Thank you Craig, yes I'm going to make an identical ring for the tub, I was going to draw and print them but I haven't been to work for ever so I can't get any drawing done right now, but I found another ring on ebay last night and ordered it, expensive but it's the sprue with the ring and the buffer frames on it, so I firgure  it will save time over drawing(I still have to draw the rear fuselage Components....) I was thinking about the Gaspatch 30 cal. but I can't tell if the flexible version has the alternative early barrel...

Looking foward to some more updates on your Fort, it's looking great !!!

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Thanks mate! Just ordered the Gaspatch 30 cal.... Didn't know they did them! I'll deal with the barrel details later. I've started back at work so modelling progress is going to slow down a bit, but I did finally get both my outer nacelles printed (after 10 attempts!)

 

Cheers,

 

Craig

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