karimb Posted September 27, 2016 Author Share Posted September 27, 2016 Tuesday September 27th: Hello fellow LSPers! Today's update will be very short and with no photos! I have just finished my third overnight flight in a row having left doha yesterday night at 2300 and walked back in at home at 10 this morning. During the days past since i started this thread I have managed to get quite a bit of work done on the albatros. The wnw instruction start off with the cockpit but i decided for a change i was going to start off with the engine build as i could do this in stages and it needed less concentration and less messing about with techniques i am still learning (like the woodworking). I have managed to squeeze in a couple of hours everyday after coming back from my night flights between the mandatory food consumption and the required minimum amount of sleep i need. The Mercedes D3 engine is a real jewel of a kit in itself and i am pleased to say it is now completed! I used part of the HGW etch set for the engine although I didn't like the wiring harnesses they provided. The harnesses and all the piping and wiring were scratch built using albion tubing and electrical wiring. I also decided not to use the barracuda cast resin intake manifold and ended up simulating the asbestos lining with tamiya tape cut to size. For paints i have used most of the range of mr metal color buffable lacquers and for acrylics i used tamiya and gunze paints. I weathered the engine to my hearts' content too, lol, using abteilung oils, ak pigments and washes and watercolor pencils... I have four sectors tomorrow and another four sectors the day after then i have two days off during which i will upload the photos and post a proper build progress log with all the photos! I have to say, this build up to now has been surprisingly refreshing and a has been huge amounts of fun. I caught myself smiling a couple of times after realizing how enjoyable this little gem of a kit is! Good times!! Next we will start either on the top wing or on the cockpit, as I haven't figured out yet what goes where and when in my mental sequence... building a biplane is quite different from building and painting a jet Till the update in a couple of days Stay safe everyone and happy modeling! Karim Lothar and Shawn M 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted September 27, 2016 Share Posted September 27, 2016 Does sound like fun buddy! Can't wait yo see the pics. Be careful out there....Harv Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zero77 Posted September 27, 2016 Share Posted September 27, 2016 Salut Karim ! Very glad to see you back and tackling a WW1 aircraft !!! Great ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasta 14 addict Posted September 27, 2016 Share Posted September 27, 2016 I've always said it, once you build a WNW model you're hooked. When i started on my first WNW kit (the Roland) i was also surprised about the fun factor of such a model. Once i put it in my display case when finished, i realized that these sort of models have a unique appearance, the same unique features when we build them came back into this display case. I'm really curious about the pictures of you're work Karim, but i'm sure you're work will be superb my friend. Greetz Danny Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karimb Posted October 4, 2016 Author Share Posted October 4, 2016 Does sound like fun buddy! Can't wait yo see the pics. Be careful out there....Harv Indeed it is Harv...best fun ive had in a long time building a kit ! Alot of stuff i had never done before or just barely brushed upon and its nice to get to try new stuff! Thanks for following the build buddy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karimb Posted October 4, 2016 Author Share Posted October 4, 2016 Salut Karim ! Very glad to see you back and tackling a WW1 aircraft !!! Great ! Hey Nicolas, comment vas-tu ? Its been so long my friend. J'espere que tu va bien et la famille aussi! The ww1 aircraft has been a real mouthful lol its so different than what i am used to doing but i am enjoying every single minute of it! Thanks for following up the build buddy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karimb Posted October 4, 2016 Author Share Posted October 4, 2016 I've always said it, once you build a WNW model you're hooked. When i started on my first WNW kit (the Roland) i was also surprised about the fun factor of such a model. Once i put it in my display case when finished, i realized that these sort of models have a unique appearance, the same unique features when we build them came back into this display case. I'm really curious about the pictures of you're work Karim, but i'm sure you're work will be superb my friend. Greetz Danny Danny youre completely right. The ww1 stash is just keeping on growing. Added two more wnw kits since the last post lol. I dont know how far this thing is going to go though im starting to run out of storage for the kits and aftermarket i might start using the closets in the modeling room for the stacking lol... fun factor is through the roof just as you say my friend i havent enjoyed building a kit like this for a really long time. pictures on the way in today's post...its actually going to be quite picture heavy! Let me know what you think or what you would have maybe done differently on a ww1 model thanks for being along for the build! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karimb Posted October 4, 2016 Author Share Posted October 4, 2016 Hey everyone! Long update on the build progress today! Since our last update on the 27th of september i have just been working overtime lol with just one full day off otherwise it has been all round trip flights which has at least given me some time to come home and work on the albatros during the downtime between flights! What an enjoyable build up to this point. The repeating keyword here is FUN. I cant say enough how much different this whole build has been to the usual, mostly, jet builds i do. Everything seems to be smaller in size and more delicate and fragile but otherwise the same basic principles apply to all kits. The mould quality of the wnw parts is second to none and the more i read and study the instructions the more i realize how much attention and love has been put into producing the kits. Darn, i wouldnt even call the instructions instructions, its a reference 'booklet'. Nothing but praise to the team at Wingnut Wings! Lets see, there is so much to update you guys about. I have taken more of a paced building speed on this one as it is my first ww1 airplane and i did try some new things or applied new techniques i had simply brushed on in my previous builds. Having to juggle between all the aftermarket parts and additions also made the build progress slower, but i just realised this is not like other subjects, once you got the fuselage halves closed, basically all you are left with is the painting of the different subassemblies and decaling, then the rigging... I dont know how i am going to split the build report this time over because i have covered alot of ground. What ill try to do is work in sections for each subassembly and post photos for the assembly in progress... so multiple posts, and heavy with photos! Let's start below then! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karimb Posted October 4, 2016 Author Share Posted October 4, 2016 The engine: The heart of the build! What a lovely little jewel this engine is! I have built the engine block mostly out of the box. I had planned on adding the barracudacast asbestos lined intake manifolds and the taurus timing gear but at the end decided to keep those for another one of the build as this is the first time i babble with a great war subject. On the other hand i did add most of what i could add with basic creative use of common modeling material lol. I used the taurus spark plugs and those are TINY! out came the optivisor and i ended up with a silly band running across my forehead after having put my eyes to the test for a long time lol... adding the spark plugs wasnt hard per se as wnw have precast holes in the cylinder heads but what makes it hard is the size and the fiddliness of the plugs. I think overall they do add alot to the build. I have painted those as per the taurus instructions off white and iron for the lugs at their bottom. I have also used the HGW set for the engine but selectively. I didnt use the spark plug wiring provided nor the magneto wiring and built those using copper wiring 'borrowed' from a three channel dvd to tv connector as those are quite thin. for the individual spark plug wiring i used two copper threads that i wound to give the braided look that i saw in many of the reference photos i have been using. for the connections to the magnetos i just used single wires instead of the braided type. I used the kit supplied plug rod and just drilled 0.2 holes in them to be able to fit the spark plug individual wiring and the magneto bundled wires. To simulate the intake manifold asbestos coating i used thinly cut strips of tamiya kabuki tape and just wrapped those successively onto the piping. i also added the piping that i saw in the reference photos. There was no seam cleaning on the engine as the way wnw engineered the engine makes those either tuck below another part of just stay out of sight! I also have added the connections of the oil lines to the air pump but i mixed up the connecting point routing at the top of the engine front. The one at the top should be connected to the bottom drilled hole on the crankcase and not the way i did but that's not something i am going to lose sleep over. Next albatros build this will be corrected. I also added two lines at the bottom of the throttle body and then had to remove those once i realised they were not applicable to the throttle body i had built... I used the HGW set for the magneto strapdown ties and for the throttle body actuator. I forgot to mention the piping i used was all albion brass tubing of different diameters. I first primed the subassemblies with mr surfacer then used mr metal color buffable lacquer paints for the metallics (you guys know how much i like those lol!). I airbrushed aluminum for the crankcase that i had preshaded with black and then postshaded with tamiya smoke. For the cylinder heads, i first painted the front red, then masked the red with a strip of 1mm oramask to have the red band and then airbrushed a dark gray. On top of that i airbrushed AK worn effects and then flat black which i chipped. selectively added different chips of rust colours here and there to give a bit of variety to the finish. The tubes carrying the ignition wiring were painted hull red then lightened up with various rust colours. Mr metal colour gold, copper, iron and dark iron were used for detail painting. The asbestos lining was painted buff and sand yellow, then got a heavy coat of tamiya smoke for post shading. I have seen quite a few pictures of the engine quite dirty and grimy. specially oil splatters. I wanted to replicate this so i might have gone a bit heavy handed on the weathering but i am quite happy with the outcome. I used pinwashes from AK, engine grime and oil stains are also from AK. I also used Abteilung oils for some of the thicker grease staining and gave the cylinder heads a coat of satin gloss but very selectively to give the cylinders a patchy look from the heat and the abuse. The photo below are of the work in progress and the finished engine. some of the things you see on the photos have been during the process changed or amended (like the two wires from the throttle body!) After that we're off to part two of the post kike_gt, Zero77 and Bomber_County 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 4, 2016 Share Posted October 4, 2016 OMG buddy, some fine work going on here. Engine is outstanding.......Harv Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karimb Posted October 4, 2016 Author Share Posted October 4, 2016 The spandau guns: Wingnut wings provides you with two options for the Spandau Lmgs one is an etch part that you have to roll into shape and the other is a solid styrene version of the guns. I used the Master brass barrels for the guns and all it takes is a simple modification of the styrene parts out of which you have to cut the actual gun barrel and a small notch into the attachment point of the guns to the frame of the aircraft. The barrels themselves are impeccably clean with no burring or anything. Also there is a pe fret for the attachment points and the crosshairs. those things are tiny tiny tiny (recurring theme!). Thank God for CA debonder, which i used quite a bit on assembling the lmg jackets! I had a bottle of UVDR brass etching fluid so i thought what better than use it rather than paint the gun jackets and have a chance of clogging the vents? I gave two successive baths of the parts in the blackening solution, each of 20 minutes with a good rubdown between baths with micromesh pads to bring out the natural shine and clean up the buildup. After that all i had to do is carefully tack ca the parts together. To be honest i did leave out the bottom connectors as i will be using the kit molded ones and not further modifying the styrene parts and rendering them more fragile. I havent painted the main body of the guns yet and wont be installing them until further down the road after i have the fuselage painted. I will try to see if this approach works at least! below the photos! On with more stuff... Zero77 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karimb Posted October 4, 2016 Author Share Posted October 4, 2016 The top wing radiators: Nothing to say here other than FIDDLY. Not just a capital F but all the letters caps locked! Took me the good part of an afternoon trying to find a way to get this bloody thing to line up and stay there. you have to modify the wnw molded in radiator by removing it which leaves a 'frame' of styrene that is quite fragile. The way i managed to pull this one off is to have the radiator sheet glued down then to glue one side frame first, then lay a piece of bluetack on the side. after that i just slid each louver in but flat with the radiator surface until all of those were tacked to one side. I lay another worm of bluetack on them to get the pin spacing correct and slid the xacto blade under the flimsy contraption. i put the radiator to the side and just pushed the louvers outwards and kept trying until i managed to line the pins with the holes of the other side frame. when it all clicked (after many many tries and swearing sessions) i tacked the frame down and glued the frame down with CA. The louvers were now trapped between the two frames. removed the bluetack worm and they were mobile. Another pain was to gem correctly aligned for the pe handle to notch into each one of them. unfortunately i later realised they were angled the wrong way but oh well. no big deal! When all was CAed into position had to cut the handle extension (because i had done the louvers in the wrong direction) and CAed it the other way (right way!)... Very fiddly but sure looks much better than the moulded on radiator! The handle connector to the wing will be added after the wing has been painted! Guys do you think i should just weather the radiator or paint it as wnw's book says in green/gray? Oh and a couple photo of the seat cushions i managed to cast in the reusable mold material! Photos below On with the internals! Zero77 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karimb Posted October 4, 2016 Author Share Posted October 4, 2016 The internals: The build is straightforward here. The wnw instructions are superbly clear. There is one thing that i have found to be outstanding, wnw gives you a page where you have the whole internals/cockpit shown in an exploded view with all the colours on the same illustration. Why didnt any other manufacturer think of that? its just simply brilliant! I first started off by removing best i could the pinmarks on the inside of the fuselage halves. To be honest i didnt know how many would show, and also in the process forgot some of them. duh! I built everything slowly in subassemblies. I am not very happy with how the woodworking came out. I used buff for the base colour of the wood and preshaded and post shaded using tamiya acrylics. I think the woodgraining i did this time with the stencils were a bit too much subdued and maybe next time i will make it a bit starker and then blend it all in with a very light coat of the base colour on top of the graining. Same goes for the engine wooden mounts where i used darker colours for the base and graining. for the dark wood i used clear orange for the glazing and for the light wood i used a mix of yellow and orange at a ratio of 50/50. On the other hand i used oils for the inside paneling of the fuselage. I am not very happy with the colour, but i am happy with the graining. Its a steep learning curve but i am happy about where i got at this stage. I used burnt umber and ochre for the graining and gloss coated the insides of the fuselage with the same 50/50 yellow and orange mix after the oils had dried. i also satin coated all the interior to give a nice sheen to the woodwork. I have read in other builds that due to the very fine tolerances involved in the wnw kits you might end up not having a clean joint between fuselage halves if you didnt scrape the paint from the mating surfaces. for some reason this didnt happen to me today (after i finished taking the photos and closed the fuse up - for next update!) The seat was preshaded roughly with black and then slowly covered with successive layers of hull red as per the instructions, enough to let the preshading show through. on top of that i added a black and then brown pinwash then satin coated the whole thing. I maybe should have drybrushed a lightened version of the leather colour but overall i am pleased with how it turned out. For the belts, i used HGW fabric belts. I made use of a great tip i found on the net which says its easier to cut the belts and then thread them while the buckles are still attached to the pe fret. worked a treat! seatbelts took a whole afternoon too but i was really pleased at how they turned out. I used a very diluted brown oil wash to stain the belts! I also predrilled the holes for the flight controls rigging at that point. I also added the wiring from the control column to the lmgs with ezline, and added copper wiring to some of the controls and added the bent throttle control wire to the throttle on the left side. Now the problem is i cannot get it to go through all the way to the throttle body on the engine, so what i did was just get the rod to the inner ribbing under the cockpit hood and drilled a hole on top of the fuel tank out of which i have glued some modelkasten very fine elastic thread which will then be connected to the throttle body on the engine hoping it will all look streamlined and continuous. I also added a rod which is on the left upper part of the cockpit which has a round handle. i have seen this in many photos but do not know what it is used for. It does show in some of the photos as i have permanently fixed it in just before closing the fuselage halves later today. The ribbing fitted very well and dint require any coaxing to just click in place. I used a pinwash for the interior of the fuselage and postshaded a bit the front area below where the engine will be mounted. The decals went down like a dream and i was surprised to see they even had a tiny little notch which lets them fit on top of the 'needle' that pokes out of the instruments on the instrument panels. i was really surprised at how much wnw took time to get things right and those little touches are what is making my wnw stash grow on a weekly basis. BRAVO wnw! The fuel tank was painted using mr metal color gold and then buffed and weathered with pinwashes, oils for grime and AK's fresh engine oil splattered on with short spurts of the airbrush on a loaded brush. Thats pretty much what i have done since the 27th! i hope you guys enjoy the build reports as much as i enjoy writing them. below some photos in no particular order. I am sorry about the quality of the photos as i tried my best using my iphone and editing them with photoshop lightroom on the pad! As of now the fuselage has been closed up and the little bit of seams there were simply sanded away, and primed to check. nothing there anymore! cant compliment enough the guys at wnw for the engineering! I impatiently await all you critiques, comments and recommendations my friends! Until out next installment ( probably in a week or so because i have my license renewal in 3 days and a roundtrip flight to Muscat tonight!) Stay safe and happy modeling! Karim Zero77 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karimb Posted October 4, 2016 Author Share Posted October 4, 2016 Zero77 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 4, 2016 Share Posted October 4, 2016 WOW !!......Harv Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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