Trident K2

[JayBee]

This model was first started about 15 years ago along with two other projects in 1/144 scale.
Here they are then :




Two have both since been finished and were :

The Vickers Nimrod MR2.

http://www.whatifmodellers.com/index.php/topic,25003.msg361897.html#msg361897

and the Vickers VC-10 AEW-5

http://www.whatifmodellers.com/index.php/topic,26266.msg384581.html#msg384581


The third one is at last progressing and will become a Trident K2.

So we now move on quite a bit of time and work has at last started on this again.
The first move was to up-engine it. For this I used the Conway pods from the VC-10 AEW5. The inner engines and the outer ones being cut along the middle, then the two halves being joined together to give single Conways. Then the task of PSR which I confess has delayed this model for a LONG time. I just could not face it.




That shot really shows the difference in size between the Spey and the Conway.

The tail pipe for the No.2 Conway was enlarged with a bit of a drop-tank, of indeterminate origin from the spares box.





I do not have any shots of how I enlarged the intake for the No.2 engine but it was done by cutting and splitting laterally, then PSR.







Eventually I got round to the PSR for the rear fuselage.





And this is how it looks now. My thoughts are that it has just a bit of a look of a Tu-134 about it.








Then we get round to the front end.
The cockpit transparencies in thes early Airfix Skyking kits has never been one of their best points, certainly not the fit. However this one was not too difficult to put into place. Yeh, it still did not fit well.
However I kept going and after a couple of days of trying to mask the windows I gave up. Have a look at photos of a Trident's cockpit windows, talk about straight lines. Forget it.
There is only one solution, which I personally do not like, but that is to fill it in and use a transfer for the windows. (Note to the less well educated : Transfer is the correct term for decals.)

Here is the nose with filer applied.





This is the home made transfers for the cockpit windows, waiting for the coat of varnish to dry.





Those last two photos were taken within the last couple of hours, and that is where we are at the moment.

[Hobbes]

Interesting idea, that should have improved performance no end...

[PR19_Kit]

Interesting idea, that should have improved performance no end...

You're not kidding Harro, it'd go like crazy with three Conways! The Trident's 'Ground Gripping' days would be well and truly over. 

Will it be a 2-point or 3-point tanker Jim?

[Captain Canada]

That looks great ! Great job on the engines.

[JayBee]

Interesting idea, that should have improved performance no end...

You're not kidding Harro, it'd go like crazy with three Conways! The Trident's 'Ground Gripping' days would be well and truly over. 

Will it be a 2-point or 3-point tanker Jim?

Two point, and even that presents some problems, wait and see.
As to a three pointer, would you want to be flying something that close to the efflux of three Conways?

[kitnut617]

Interesting idea, that should have improved performance no end...

You're not kidding Harro, it'd go like crazy with three Conways! The Trident's 'Ground Gripping' days would be well and truly over. 

Will it be a 2-point or 3-point tanker Jim?

Two point, and even that presents some problems, wait and see.
As to a three pointer, would you want to be flying something that close to the efflux of three Conways?

With Tristars you did.   

[PR19_Kit]

... and with VC10s you'd be close to FOUR Conways! 

I imagine the ground clearance of the hose pods on the wing could be problematical with a Trident, it's a pretty low device.

[JayBee]

As far as the closeness to the jet effluxes is concerned you have to consider the time line. The powers that be were rather concerned at that time about the safety of the air crew concerned.

Kit, your concerns about ground clearance for the pods is very correct and I have three potential solutions, maybe four.
Ah but which one to go for. Three will require quite a lot of work on the model and that will add time. The fourth is just to say "to He11 with it I will ignore that problem". However I just  do not see me giving in to that, especially after 15+ years of build! 

[lenny100]

why not put the pods on the wing ends , the wing of the trident is built like a tank and could probably take the strain

[kitnut617]

Kuchemann type ones maybe   

[zenrat]

Just put them on top of the wing.

[JayBee]

Thank you gentlemen, and Whiffers, for your thoughts on this subject. I have spent the last two days thinking about it.
Prior to that I had come up with various ideas as to where to put the refueliing drogue housings.

1/ Fit them outboard from where the wing fences are just as Knightflyer did in his Trident.   http://www.whatifmodellers.com/index.php/topic,41101.msg699793.html#msg699793

But this would not work as you would only be able to tank one fighter at a time, the drogue units being too close together.

However this is an attractive option as it does enable the units to be fitted without messing up the LE slats or TE flaps, and it would realy cut down the build time for this model.

2/ Move them further out a bit.

Not a great idea as they will now impinge on the operation of both slats and flaps, and would still only allow fighters with pretty small wing spans to tank at the same time, like Harrier and Jaguar, but nothing bigger.

3/ Go further outboard and mount them under the wing tips just outboard of the LE slats.

This does make them far enough apart but it would seriously affect the movement of the ailerons.

Also none of these ideas solves the problems of ground clearance for the drogue units.

4/ Mount them on the wingtips. Lenny 100 did suggest this as the Trident's wing is strong enough, and I had thought of this, however I do think that wingtip vortices could cause havoc with the stability of the drogue baskets.

Then Kitnut617 suggested using Kuchemann fairings as a possibility.
You know the "carrot" fairings that were prominent on the Convair CV 990 Coronado and the Victor B2. These would not be any use as the drogue units require the small wind driven turbine on the front for their operation.
However looking on the internet at Kuchemann I found a small drawing  of a sketch about area rule shapes and this started me thinking.

So I now know how I am going to do this, and it will solve ALL the problems.
Apart from the fact that there is not a snowballs hope in He11 that I can get this finished for the Glasgow show next weekend. SIGH!

[NARSES2]

At least you can see the road ahead mate 

[Gondor]

Thank you gentlemen, and Whiffers, for your thoughts on this subject. I have spent the last two days thinking about it.
Prior to that I had come up with various ideas as to where to put the refueliing drogue housings.

[snip]

You know the "carrot" fairings that were prominent on the Convair CV 990 Coronado and the Victor B2. These would not be any use as the drogue units require the small wind driven turbine on the front for their operation.
However looking on the internet at Kuchemann I found a small drawing  of a sketch about area rule shapes and this started me thinking.

So I now know how I am going to do this, and it will solve ALL the problems.
Apart from the fact that there is not a snowballs hope in He11 that I can get this finished for the Glasgow show next weekend. SIGH!

Telford possibly Jim?

Gondor

[JayBee]

Thank you gentlemen, and Whiffers, for your thoughts on this subject. I have spent the last two days thinking about it.
Prior to that I had come up with various ideas as to where to put the refueliing drogue housings.

[snip]

You know the "carrot" fairings that were prominent on the Convair CV 990 Coronado and the Victor B2. These would not be any use as the drogue units require the small wind driven turbine on the front for their operation.
However looking on the internet at Kuchemann I found a small drawing  of a sketch about area rule shapes and this started me thinking.

So I now know how I am going to do this, and it will solve ALL the problems.
Apart from the fact that there is not a snowballs hope in He11 that I can get this finished for the Glasgow show next weekend. SIGH!

Telford possibly Jim?

Gondor

You never know Alistair. You have claimed in the past that you build at a glacial pace but I am sure you have overtaken me on a number of occasions.

This being despite the fact that I have had a rather large head start on just about anyone here. 

Jim