Iain Posted November 13, 2022 Author Share Posted November 13, 2022 Thanks Thierry, that's good to know! Iain ctayfor 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wunwinglow Posted November 14, 2022 Share Posted November 14, 2022 On 11/6/2022 at 6:21 PM, scvrobeson said: Great progress on the Andover! So Revell Contacta cement works to bond the 3D printed parts? That's good to know. Figured it would have required something a bit hotter to weld it together. Matt If the parts are printed in HIPS, which is the same plastic that injection moulded kits are made from. AVOID PLA AT ALL COSTS!!!! You cannot chemically weld PLA in the same way you can with HIPS, only physically bond it with glues like epoxy or acrylic adhesives, which rely entirely on physically gripping the parts together. No where near as strong as a chemical solvent welded joint. Excellent work Iain, but then that goes without saying!! Paul in Napier, ctayfor, scvrobeson and 3 others 5 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iain Posted November 19, 2022 Author Share Posted November 19, 2022 I took the question as "does the Revell Contacta work with the One Man Model prints in ABS" - to which the answer is, apparently, yes! Until it all falls apart on me... EDIT: Well, they sort of fell apart - see post below... But, yes, FDM prints for scale model use should, ideally, be printed using HIPS IMHO. The ABS prints *are* pretty tough though... Iain ctayfor, wunwinglow, scvrobeson and 1 other 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iain Posted November 25, 2022 Author Share Posted November 25, 2022 In further news re. using Revell Contacta on the ABS parts... DON'T! Looking at the bonded fuselage parts I noticed a crack forming - a little pressure and I was able to separate the bonded parts again relatively easily. Previously bonded surfaces will be dressed off with the sanding bar to remove any remnants of Contacta and I'll re-bond with Plastic Weld. One step back - but further up the learning curve! Iain scvrobeson, wunwinglow, LSP_Kevin and 4 others 6 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iain Posted November 28, 2022 Author Share Posted November 28, 2022 That's better - re-bonded with EMA Plastic Weld - I think that'll be the go to for any further ABS bonding. You live and learn... Iain LSP_Kevin, wunwinglow, Landrotten Highlander and 3 others 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wunwinglow Posted January 25, 2023 Share Posted January 25, 2023 (edited) On 11/28/2022 at 10:51 AM, Iain said: That's better - re-bonded with EMA Plastic Weld - I think that'll be the go to for any further ABS bonding. You live and learn... Iain All EMA's pipe, tube, girders etc are moulded in ABS, the fittings sometimes Butyrate which is a bit springier so snap into place really well, and some of the finer strip items in polystyrene. Plastic Weld is the best 'all purpose' cement I have found for this kind of construction! It works on acrylic (perspex/plexiglas) as well. https://ema-models.co.uk/ No commercial link, just a happy, if occasional, customer! Tim Edited January 25, 2023 by wunwinglow clarity. Snap has two meanings! LSP_Kevin, Iain, ctayfor and 2 others 4 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iain Posted February 17, 2023 Author Share Posted February 17, 2023 OK - so a bit of an odd week, this week... Just before lock-down I contacted the RAF Cosford site of the RAF Museum to ask if I could access the Andover E3 they had on display - specifically the interior. A polite email came back saying that, unfortunately, this wasn't possible - but they offered to take photos of specific areas I required. Lock-down came and with everything else going on I got sidetracked. Fast forward to this week - son Cameron is on holiday from school, so I suggested a 'boy's day out' up to Cosford to see what shots I could get of the Andover - without crossing the barrier. I took a few hundred images - mostly of the Andover - but came away frustrated that there, in a museum, was a surviving airframe that held all the gaps in my research for the project, yet I couldn't get underneath/inside. Get home - happened to be on Facebook, and saw a 'share' on the HS-748 Group of an RAF Museum 'Members' event this coming Sunday - with 'over-the-barrier' and cockpit access to the Andover!!! Pity the staff I talked to on Wednesday didn't mention/know about the event - and I didn't see anything advertising it!? Anyhow, more by luck than information on display at the Museum on Wednesday, I'm now a 'Member' (£50 per year) and am booked in for the event on Sunday - so I *should* be able to fill in all the gaps so I can make a start on the interior and gear bays. Happy days: it does feel like Wednesday's 200 mile trip was a bit of a wasted exercise - but balanced with a strong feeling of serendipity in accidentally seeing the Facebook post before bed that night! Will share all the images from Wed, along with, hopefully, hundreds more to the shared reference repository I created for our resident Andover builders. Maybe, just maybe, some planets in alignment... Blue skies, Iain Starfighter, Derek B, Anthony in NZ and 9 others 12 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iain Posted February 21, 2023 Author Share Posted February 21, 2023 Just in the process of processing 508 detail photos (I shoot in RAW) - so now have enough material to crack on! So, two worthwhile visits - and the first one last Wednesday not wasted as the lighting was better for the external shots - the lighting in the hangar is quite poor - and gives quite a strong cast that I've had to edit out, Could still do with some detail shots from underneath at the rear wing/fuselage interface, as I ran out of time as I needed a chaperone every time I went under the wings/gear-bays. #feelingenthused Iain Landrotten Highlander, KiwiZac, LSP_Kevin and 5 others 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anthony in NZ Posted February 21, 2023 Share Posted February 21, 2023 Great stuff Iain! I am pretty sure I have some good shots in that area. If not I can get some. I’m feeling as excited as you I think…lol I’ve still got the kit out Cheers Anthony TheBaron, Derek B, Iain and 2 others 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheBaron Posted February 21, 2023 Share Posted February 21, 2023 Immaculate work Iain - enjoying catching up with this very much. Iain and Anthony in NZ 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iain Posted February 24, 2023 Author Share Posted February 24, 2023 All photos now processed and uploaded to the Andover Database I've created on Google Drive. A few below - as smaller images - but will give a taste of how useful last weeks' photos will be to the build... Cockpit: Navigators/Flight Engineers Stations (layout unique to the E3A variant): Galley: Rear door - port-side - with para-drop lights: Emergency door opposite: General cabin view looking aft - pax seats fitted: Back in a mo... Iain LSP_Kevin, TheBaron, Landrotten Highlander and 2 others 4 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iain Posted February 24, 2023 Author Share Posted February 24, 2023 Some more... Port engine: Starboard engine: Port main undercarriage bay: Nosegear bay: Passenger emergencies card - I have both sides so that I can replicate in 1:32 And for those sitting at their desks reading this, the Emergency Exits... Are here, Here, And here. Iain KiwiZac, TheBaron, Anthony in NZ and 3 others 5 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iain Posted February 24, 2023 Author Share Posted February 24, 2023 And last few for now - I'll post more when they are relevant to specific stages in the build. Nose: Upper fuselage (as clear as I could get in very poor light): And that tailplane/fuselage interface - captured a few days earlier - with sunlight from the overhead skylights: So, continuing the build... Iain KiwiZac, LSP_Kevin, ctayfor and 3 others 5 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iain Posted February 24, 2023 Author Share Posted February 24, 2023 OK, so getting back to the model... Front and rear fuselage 'tube' sections re-bonded using Plastic Weld: And work commenced on smoothing the interior surfaces, prior to detailing and paint: Front/rear sections of the 3D Printed floor bonded together with Plastic Weld and the surfaces dressed off - these will be 'skinned' with styrene sheet proir to adding surface detail: Some holes where the printed internal structures were removed... Upper and lower 'cockpit structure' bonded together - shapes are pretty good - but all surface detail will be removed/replaced: And loosely placed in position on the flightdeck floor: Iain ctayfor, HerculesPA_2, Fanes and 7 others 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iain Posted February 24, 2023 Author Share Posted February 24, 2023 Another area that I've been able to progress with this week, now I understand the routeing of the nose intake ducting, is the nose. The outer/external part of the intake has been removed and will be replaced by a vacuum-formed one later in the build. The opening in the nose where the trunking would be has been filled with Milliput epoxy putty - and an opening shaped wet with a cocktail stick - this will be refined later: The nose was then filled with lead shot (the stuff I use is sold as diving weight material) - and filled with casting resin to form a meniscus slightly above the level of the nose component. Once cured, this has all been dressed off a-la-vacform by circular sanding on wet 400 grit wet and dry paper, followed by 800 grit: Same sanding process applied to the cockpit section - to ensure a surface that is true, and clean of paint etc.. Dry fitting looked good: And bonded with Plastic Weld - *very* strong assembly: Good that it's strong as I'm going to be doing some heavy re-shaping - especially at the sides... More when there's more. I can almost hear those Rolls Royce Darts spooling up now! Iain Landrotten Highlander, blackbetty, patricksparks and 6 others 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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