Hasegawa Fi-156c - Norwegian air force

[Grunticus]

My Phantom is nearing completion and I was eying what kit to start next. I chose Hasegawa's Fi-156C Storch. I got it cheap. It wasn't in the original box but all parts are there, and included in the box was an old Air International article about the Storch originally written by the man we all envy the most: Capt. Eric Brown. A nice bonus that will serve as a reference.

 

 

The contents. I already bought some Eduard PE for the cockpit, and masks.

 

 

I'm a bit tired of Luftwaffe / Axis, so I went on the web to find an interesting scheme. I found one that I thought was Lebanese, but further investigation tought me that Hungary had the exact same insignia as Lebanon for a short while. You learn something new every day.

 

So, NOT Lebanon then:

 

 

Then I found out that one can learn even more than one new thing in a day, as I came across images of Storches in Norwegian livery. I had no idea the Norwegian air force flew them. They all were surrendered by the Germans to Norway at war's end in early May of 1945. Norway it is. I will replicate the blue & yellow one.

 

 

There are not many photos to be found, but I did find a nice .PDF file about them, good reference.

 

I will start this one in a short while. I will be adding tidbits of scratch, and create my own decals with the Silhouette and laser printer.

 

Cheers!

[titan]

Following this.  I want to get my own Storch going soon.

[mc65]

beautiful old kit, I decided to make it last year after having had it on the shelf for years. I can't find my thread, but there are a couple of points that can easily be improved: the horizontal tailplanes and the undercarriage structure. I keep looking...

Edited December 18, 2023 by mc65

[mc65]

nothing, for some inexplicable reason I can't find the discussion on my fi 156D-1. but I have +700 photos of the wip in my archive, if I can be useful to you, simply tell me.
 

some points that - in my opinion - deserve some attention: tail planes, the kit offers them with the classic plug-in system, but in reality they were only supported by two pins, and were separated from the fuselage.

 

the undercarriage assembly: the kit is really well thought out, but inserting a metal tube into the cockpit structure will make the whole thing more solid and straight.

The engine can be made completely visible with a simple operation on the upper cowl. moreover, the engine itself is a bit basic, but there are several references and - if desired - in the Eduard Bf108 kit there is a state of the art one.

 

These are the main things that come to mind right now, but I repeat, let's go deeper if you like!

cheers, Paolo

Edited December 19, 2023 by mc65

[LSP_Kevin]

2 hours ago, mc65 said:

nothing, for some inexplicable reason I can't find the discussion on my fi 156D-1.

 

This one?

 

 

Kev

[Grunticus]

9 hours ago, mc65 said:

nothing, for some inexplicable reason I can't find the discussion on my fi 156D-1. but I have +700 photos of the wip in my archive, if I can be useful to you, simply tell me.
 

some points that - in my opinion - deserve some attention: tail planes, the kit offers them with the classic plug-in system, but in reality they were only supported by two pins, and were separated from the fuselage.

 

the undercarriage assembly: the kit is really well thought out, but inserting a metal tube into the cockpit structure will make the whole thing more solid and straight.

The engine can be made completely visible with a simple operation on the upper cowl. moreover, the engine itself is a bit basic, but there are several references and - if desired - in the Eduard Bf108 kit there is a state of the art one.

 

These are the main things that come to mind right now, but I repeat, let's go deeper if you like!

cheers, Paolo

 

Thank you Paolo, very helpful. I will take these things into account in my build.

 

6 hours ago, LSP_Kevin said:

 

This one?

 

 

Kev

 

Thank you Kev!

[dennismcc]

You don't see one of these built very often so this will be very interesting.

 

Cheers

 

Dennis

[Grunticus]

I've made a start. I was going the route to sand the details off the instrument panel as the Eduard instructions indicate, but after I sanded it I changed my mind and made a new panel, with a slightly large center panel (going by photos).

 

 

I still used the Eduard outer panel, after some adaption. It does look nice and is a good guide for where to place the minuscule PE parts (God help me!). The instruments are also from Eduard (not in the Fi-156 specific set). I think they look nicer than the approach as provided in the Fi-156 PE set. There just loose on the panel of course and still need some flattening and glue. I think they will look nice on the RLM66 background.

 

 

I will give some of the levers a knob with wood glue.

 

 

And I stumbled onto this set in one of my drawers. After building three Bu-131s I don't think there will ever be a fourth, so they will be put to good use here.

 

 

Not much, but a start. Cheers!

[Grunticus]

On 12/19/2023 at 1:20 AM, mc65 said:

nothing, for some inexplicable reason I can't find the discussion on my fi 156D-1. but I have +700 photos of the wip in my archive, if I can be useful to you, simply tell me.

 

cheers, Paolo

 

Paolo, I am planning the replicate the tube structure inside the cockpit by soldering brass rod together. Do you have any good plans of what goes where? That would be most helpful!

[mc65]

hi Grunticus, 

I tried sending a PM with some documentation, but it seems like it's too heavy to handle this way. Do you have an email address that can handle it? In the meantime, here are a couple of photos that might be useful to you...

 

 

as regards the diameter to use, I started by taking the existing structure of the kit as a reference, essentially using two diameters of evergreen round profiles referring to the drawing above to discern which one should be larger than the other.

observing it you will notice that there is a larger load-bearing structure that holds the frame together, and another, of a less thick diameter, which supports the glass, windows, door etc.

 

let me tell you something that was not requested, but which I think will help you: I also started with the idea of creating the structure in welded brass, for greater sturdiness of the structure, above all I was afraid for the long landing gear, which will weigh on this one.

but after having done a test with the evergreen profiles I noticed how these, if well assembled following the real drawings, produced a structure absolutely capable of withstanding the stress of the assembled model, and with much less effort and expense!

also, in such a complex structure, you would have to keep the previous welds cold as you progress in the construction, certainly a annoying job. instead, by welding the styrene profiles with Flex-i-file glue or MEK, you will work much more quickly and without great risks.

well, just my usual two cents reichspfennings! 

 

cheers, Paolo

Edited December 21, 2023 by mc65

[rafju]

Hi All

@Grunticus if you wish, just take a look here:

 

conclusion Hase fuse is too long for at least 5mm.

factory drawings:

 

 

[Grunticus]

31 minutes ago, rafju said:

Hi All

@Grunticus if you wish, just take a look here:

 

conclusion Hase fuse is too long for at least 5mm.

factory drawings:

 

 

 

 

 

Wow, many thanks for this Rafju, it's very helpful! I can't help you with dimensions as I am not knowledgable on the Storch, and only have one book about it (In Action book).

Edited December 21, 2023 by Grunticus

[rafju]

My goal was only about the fuse length as, with many kits on hands, I found differences when putting all to the 1/1 scale,

and piece of chance, a friend of mine sent me a copy of an original factory drawing, what else ;-)

Conclusion:

1/48 Tamiya kit, the best, as good as possible!

1/32 Hase kit: 5mm too long

1/35 Tristar, good, no carrection needed

 

and even with the RC:

1/6 Svenson: too short about 35mm

1/6 Dennis Bryant plan, good, no correction needed

 

hope this helps

ps: I did the correction with my Hase fuse, I think the easiest is to cut a "slice" just behind the cabin, of course some putty is needed to perfect the joint and to re-do the hatch starboard side with thin palstic card.

 

[Grunticus]

2 hours ago, rafju said:

My goal was only about the fuse length as, with many kits on hands, I found differences when putting all to the 1/1 scale,

and piece of chance, a friend of mine sent me a copy of an original factory drawing, what else ;-)

Conclusion:

1/48 Tamiya kit, the best, as good as possible!

1/32 Hase kit: 5mm too long

1/35 Tristar, good, no carrection needed

 

and even with the RC:

1/6 Svenson: too short about 35mm

1/6 Dennis Bryant plan, good, no correction needed

 

hope this helps

ps: I did the correction with my Hase fuse, I think the easiest is to cut a "slice" just behind the cabin, of course some putty is needed to perfect the joint and to re-do the hatch starboard side with thin palstic card.

 

 

 

 

You did a great job there! 5mm is quite a lot, but I'm not going to cut mine. There are already enough challenges in this build for me (internal structure, detaching rudder and stabilizers, correcting seats they are too round on top, making seat cushions). Thanks for letting me know, I certainly appreciate it!

 

Cheers!

[Grunticus]

I got a little bit done today. The instrument panel is finished and put aside. Then there was the tough job op separating the ailerons and rudder. That old Hasegawa plastic is very tough            .