Red Arrows Falcon GR.1A (FIAT G.91R)

TsrJoe · February 28, 2012, 06:02:33 AM

#4 works for me, im sure itll be a head turner when its completed

Weaver · February 28, 2012, 09:30:00 AM

Loks like No.4 has it then!

I was going to say that's the most difficult to mask, but I've just has a sneaky idea on that score......

kitbasher · February 28, 2012, 12:30:24 PM

Quote from: Weaver on February 28, 2012, 09:30:00 AM
Loks like No.4 has it then!

I was going to say that's the most difficult to mask, but I've just has a sneaky idea on that score......

Yes, number 4. But what about an inverted flash? Same position, of course, but running to the top of the intake.
OK, Theme Build - variations on a Red Arrows G91!

buzzer · February 28, 2012, 03:13:19 PM

number 4 for me also..
REALY like the look of this one... mainly because i love the little G-91

Weaver · February 28, 2012, 04:13:10 PM

Quote from: kitbasher on February 28, 2012, 12:30:24 PM
Quote from: Weaver on February 28, 2012, 09:30:00 AM
Loks like No.4 has it then!

I was going to say that's the most difficult to mask, but I've just has a sneaky idea on that score......

Yes, number 4. But what about an inverted flash? Same position, of course, but running to the top of the intake.
OK, Theme Build - variations on a Red Arrows G91!

The idea of having the flash the way around that I've done it is to reconcile the two different "natural" stripe positions, i.e. the high one centred on the nose and the low one centred on the jet pipe. The area immediately behind the intake on mine will be quite "bumpy" too, because there will be a fairing over the cannon port and a bump in the bottom part of the gun bay door too.

tc2324 · March 04, 2012, 03:35:26 AM

No 4 please....

Weaver · March 11, 2012, 04:27:18 PM

Airframe basically done:

What a pig! I'm beginning to wish I'd gone with the idea of grafting the nice Revell fuselage to the accurate Airfix wings, but it's too late to start again now...

The bulges on the side are supposed to be bulges in the gun-bay doors to accomodate smoke tanks, thereby avoiding the wing-mounted tanks seen on the Frecce Tricolori aircraft. Real Ginas except the pre-production/PAN aircraft (on which the Airfix mould is obviously based) have a small fairing just below the gun door on each side wihch appears to have an intake in the front end of it. I can't find out what it is and whether it's do-without-able or not yet though...

rickshaw · March 12, 2012, 02:27:50 AM

The intake is more than likely intended to remove exhaust gases from the guns firing. There have been many times when aircraft access doors have either blown off or been rather bulged after the aircraft fired their guns for the first time. Making a tight seal is a good idea from the aerodynamic viewpoint but a bad one from the armoury viewpoint. The build up of gases from weapons firing can be very rapid and it needs scavenging quickly.

Weaver · March 12, 2012, 05:47:46 PM

Quite possibly so - would be nice to see it confirmed though, because the scoop fairings don't seem to be connected to the same compartment as the guns...

BUT

Man am I stupid! So stupid I even amaze myself sometimes. I've spent ages going through the spares box and various donor kits to find something to make the mystery fairings out of, and after looking at dozens of donor kits, I've finally found the perfect pieces: in the Matchbox G.91Y kit, where you might reasonably have expected me to start.....

Small extra relief: I don't need two more little fairings to cover the cannon muzzles. I've found pictures of German Ginas with the cannons removed and the muzzle fairing covered by a flat blanking plate, which is quite logical really...

Weaver · March 17, 2012, 10:04:37 AM

First undercoat of white revealed lots of remedial work to be done, so it's currently a patchwork of filler again...

tc2324 · March 20, 2012, 09:45:35 AM

Any more updates Weaver...?

Weaver · March 21, 2012, 05:37:26 AM

Funny you shoud say that....

Did the masking for the stripes last night. The arrow on the underside was easy enough, but the zig-zag side stripe was "interesting". My plan was to draw it out on paper, then use that as a template to cut it out of wide masking tape, flipping it over to ensure that the two stripes were mirror images. Trouble was that holding the fragile piece of paper still against the tape while cutting against it proved nearly impossible, so I thought I had a brainwave: stick it to the masking tape with double-sided tape.

Well it was good in theory, but the trouble was the double-sided tape was WAY too strong to get the paper template off again without breaking it! After much head-scratching, I used the "negative" template (i.e. the piece of paper I cut the template out of) to do the other one, but the result was that I now had one stripe that was very thick (because it had a layer of paper stuck to it) and one that wolud rather stick to my hands that the model because it had the double-sided tape on it.....interesting.....

I got the stripes on eventually, then gave it another coat of white to ensure that the inevitable "creeps" didn't show up. Then, just as I was going to bed, I realised that I hadn't put circles in the back end of the stripes for the roundels to sit in.....putting those on will be "interesting", given that one of the stripes is now very thick....

kitbasher · March 21, 2012, 10:19:25 AM

I realise this might be a bit late but I've some leftover (as of this afternoon) Matchbox Gnat markings - including Red Arrow lightning flashes - if it'll help your build. No fin flashes, I'm afraid.

Weaver · March 21, 2012, 10:40:59 AM

Thanks for the offer, but they wouldn't help. I've got Gnat lightning flashes too, but they're the wrong proportions for the G.91: to get the main line centred on the exhaust and the front line centered on the nose, the zig-zag part has to be much wider than on the Gnat.

kitbasher · March 21, 2012, 12:48:33 PM

No probs. Hope the build is going to plan and living up to your expectations - I'm looking forward to seeing the finished article.
Never built a G91.