VC-10 testbed for the RB.211 engine

[PR19_Kit]

Looking good Harro!   

You've got that 'the engine's escaping' look for the RB-211 mounting just right.

[Hobbes]

Thanks Kit, I had some help with that pylon. None of the photos I found on the web showed exactly how the pylon connects to the engine, so I contacted the RR Heritage Trust. They sent me a couple of photos that were very helpful (and not for publication, sorry).

I've just applied the orange paint on the tip of the tail 'canoe', and I checked the decals. I'll have to cut them carefully, the transparent film is continuous (instead of being small 'islands' just around the printed areas).

[PR19_Kit]

A bit late now, but here's a couple that might have helped. The big one was from Flight magazine around the time that 'XLR was being converted, and the little one shows the unique engine mounting beam that they used to connect to the Conway mounting points.

[Hobbes]

I've seen those Kit, the problem was there's a cover over that mounting beam that these drawings don't show. You can see part of it in the photo: it's that dark gray piece on the end of the Conway mount.

[Hobbes]

let's hope the minor disasters are behind you!

Sigh...

The damn thing continues to throw obstacles in my path. This time it's the decals (from TwoSix Decals). The blue stripe over the windows is too long, and (worse) I've got to stack decals on top of each other: the doors and that blue stripe are separate pieces. The weird thing is that they've printed the door handles and the rain gutter in the correct places relative to the blue stripe so that's all one piece. But the door outline is separate.

Also, despite using a new scalpel blade, the cuts I've made in the decal film are ragged. Scissors work better.

[PR19_Kit]

I've heard similar comments about Two Six's stuff before, although their choice of subjects are always superb. Seems you need to be a decal surgeon to get the best out of them. Did you try a direct vertical cut down through the stripe at all? Sometimes I find that works best with very thin decals.

[Hobbes]

Rolling towards the finish line:



Most of the decals are on, and I'm installing the RB.211. There was a small gap between the engine and the pylon, so I placed a thin layer of Milliput on the end of the pylon and pressed the engine into it, squeezing the excess Milliput from the gap.  

[Hobbes]

It's done!
It's been on my bench since August of 2009, I'm glad it's over, and a better result than I'd've expected given the problems I encountered.







This pod under the right wing contained a bunch of heating elements. These dissipated the electrical power generated by the RB.211.




There were a few last-minute adjustments: I'd neglected to put any weight in the nose, so I've made a small stand out of perspex to support the back end.

[NARSES2]

Nice one Harro 

[Captain Canada]

Wow....she came together perfectly. Love the blue lightening stripe on white.

[kitnut617]

Very nice Harro, well done --- 

[PR19_Kit]

Excellent Harro, I've seen quite a few models of 'XLR started (including mine.....) but yours is the first I've ever seen finished, well done indeed. 

Brings back memories of Farnborough in the early 70s, when the R-R test pilot put on an almost acrobatic show and then announced they'd only been running on the RB-211! And it was LOADS quieter than if they'd had the Conways running too, but then almost anything in the aviation world would have been. 

[The Rat]

One of the most beautiful airliners ever, and you've done her justice!