Migina 1 - profile by Arc3371

[Weaver]

Okay, now I've finally got somewhere to build stuff, I'm going to belatedly join in this GB. I was going to build one of these anyway, so I'll try to get it done in in time for the GB, but I'm otherwise occupied for the next two weekends, so I might just run out of time....

It's a mixture of two of Arc3371's very imaginitive profiles, with a set of Patchwork World markings that I invented and he used in a third profile.


Basically, it's this aeroplane (a MiG-9 with a G-91 nose):



In this "Toolslinger's squirrel" colour scheme, but with square dots rather than round ones to make it "urban":



Using these People's Republic of Greater Manchester markings:



Which were used by Arc on this J-29:



Here's the bits: Airfix Gina (no box) and A-Model MiG-9:





The MiG-9 is a well-designed but poorly moulded kit with lots of flash, and the dividing line between MiG and Gina is not straight-forward either, so this should be "interesting....." 

Arc's thread is here: http://www.whatifmodelers.com/index.php/topic,17429.0.html

[pyro-manic]

This should be interesting! Looking forward to see how youy manage this one. I have a Yak-28 by A Model, and as you say, it's well designed, but awfully moulded. I had a look at it, and have chickened out for the time being...

[Weaver]

This should be interesting! Looking forward to see how youy manage this one. I have a Yak-28 by A Model, and as you say, it's well designed, but awfully moulded. I had a look at it, and have chickened out for the time being...

Yep! 

Neither kit is brilliant to be honest: I spent as much time opening out the Gina's intake last night as I did cutting the fuselages up. The design's already drifting in the face of the real world, 3D practicalities. There's only a few points where the fuselage cross-sections converge, and I think Arc kept the lower part of the MiG's intake, whereas I've used the whole G-91 nose.

Mock-up picture tonight.

[Arc3371]

I kept the lower part on the intakes on the profiles you posted here as the MiGs had deeper intakes and gave smoother lines, I didnt really expect anyone trying to build them which makes this so much more interesting. Cant wait for the mock up pics

[Weaver]

I kept the lower part on the intakes on the profiles you posted here as the MiGs had deeper intakes and gave smoother lines, I didnt really expect anyone trying to build them which makes this so much more interesting. Cant wait for the mock up pics

I had to use the Gina's intake because there's actually a logical impossibility in the profiles (applies to the Migina 2 as well). In the profiles, the side-looking camera "flat" on the nose overlaps the intake, which can't happen in 3D as the MiG's intake is about twice as wide as the Gina's nose cone. I did consider just grafting the Gina nose cone and cockpit onto the unmodified MiG fuselage, but a) the curvature of the nose cone and the fuselage don't match, and b)you then lose the Gina's side-guns, which are such a part of it's identity.

I ended up cutting the Gina in line with the back of the nose u/c bay, which keeps most of the gun panel (and it's lovely sink mark.... ). The corresponding cut on the MiG is in line with the front edge of the small rectangular panel that projects forward from under the wing root. The fuselages match up pretty well at this point, except that the MiG is deeper. However, the Gina's canopy is also much longer than the MiG's, so I then cut a diagonal slice off the top of the MiG's fuselage, which now forms the flat deck under the rear of the canopy.

I didnt really expect anyone trying to build them which makes this so much more interesting.

Me too, with several of mine!    Attempting my Canberra B.Mk.10, with it's deepened forward fuselage, would be very tricky, and as for the Thunderdragon (XF-91-based)......

[Weaver]

Quick and dirty mockup:

[Arc3371]

More!

[Weaver]

Patience........

Next steps:

Glue the $%^&*ing MiG fuselage together (it's got NO locating pins so it's a pig to mess around with)

Fiddle around with bits of cockpits. Gina: seat hanging in space on two pins (the source of the sink marks)  MiG: lots of slightly odd detail, a relief dash and a miles-too-big decal  , but unfortunately, all of it mounts to the top of the split intake ducts, which don't fit in the Gina's nose due to it's moulded-in nosewheel bay....

Try to get a bit more definition on the nose shape (flats barely there, NO window frames) and try to get the nose to fit....

Fun point: the MiG has engraved surface detail and the Gina has raised......

[sotoolslinger]

NEAT I'm glad this is going so well

[Weaver]

Well I'm glad somebody thinks it's going well.....

MiG fuselage together. Lots of sanding, big gaps, not nice. No I havn't fitted the "nozzle tray" too deep, by the way: the fuselage sides really do come down the outside of it. Took me ages to figure it out...





General progress. I'm going with the Gina seat with a pilot in it, and no dash 'cos you can't see it anyway through the thick canopy and tiny hole (did I mention before that I hate cockpits?). I rejected the MiG cockpit because it looks like it hasn't got a bang seat in it (just a seat pad and pads on the back wall  ) and the Gina seat wouldn't fit in the tub. The front bulkhead is needed so that you can't see up the pilot's trouser leg by looking into the intake, and the back one is needed to support the top of the seat, since I cut the fuselage level with the back of the cockpit opening. I've also made an extension piece for the bottom of the nose cone, so that it doesn't just end at the intake face.






Mockup shot. Getting that one wing built (all two pieces of it) took as long as everything else combined: had to sand half the thickness of the lower surface away to get anything like a decent fit, and the sprues ran right onto the leading and trailing edges with thick overlaps.





Mockup from a different angle. It turns out that the side and lower camera ports are on the decal sheet, which isn't a bad thing. However, the front camera port is represented by an off-centre hole in the nose cone... I'm not sure wether to do it gear up or down at the moment. On the one hand, cleaning up the MiG's heavily flashed and complicated main gear doesn't appeal, but on the other, they've gone to the trouble of detailing the wheel wells and it seems a shame to waste them...

[Ed S]

Looking good.  I'm amazed you got the two fuselages to fit together as well as you did.  By the way, I built that Amodel Mig 9 last year (real world) and I know what you're going through.

Ed

[Arc3371]

Seems to take shape nicely, looking forward to the next update

[sotoolslinger]

Excellent hacking  Remember epoxy putty is your friend

[BlackOps]

Ooohhh, Looking really good!    My Amodel kits have so much flash I can't tell where the parts stop and start, I've never seen any other kit with more flash than my MiG-9.

[Weaver]

Sorry folks - no more updates until Tuesday now, since I'm going away camping for the bank holiday.

Thanks for all your comments.