Avro Albany B Mk2 (Project Wrathchild) - finished pics page 9

[zenrat]

Thanks Lee.  Only Mossie I have is an Airfix one.  I thought about using its wheels but rejected the idea because I thought a Mosquito would be significantly lighter than this aircraft and therefore the wheel size would not be suitable.
However, I opened a parts box and found a pair of 1/72 Il-28 Beagle wheels just laying on the top.  Some quick comparisons with kits in the stash revealed them to be the same diameter as Blenheim wheels.  Thinking them to be a touch too small I pulled out a Revell/Matchbox Privateer.  The wheels for this were perfect in size but I will be wanting to use them when I build it so I decided to see if I could get a resin pair for a Liberator or a Privateer, put the sprues back in the (stupid opening ended) box and went to put it back in the stash, moving another kit to do so.
That kit was a 1/48 Monogram Me 262 I robbed the engine nacelles from for a 1/25 Hovercar.  A horribly evil fitting kit made of nasty hard brittle plastic it nevertheless turned out to have wheels which are the perfect size for Project Wrathchild and which are now safely popped into the Lanc box.

[kitnut617]

Edited: Manchester wheels are a bit smaller as you can see here.  And that's a Blenheim wheel I'm using for the front one

[zenrat]

Looks good Kitnut.


Bit more patchwork on the tail today plus started cutting down the interior to fit.

[Captain Canada]

Good to hear that the project will keep 'rolling' lol

[zenrat]

Yes, it is maintaining my interest so far.

Today I added to the patchwork tail and then cut some large round holes in the lower wings.  These are for the wheels.  The main undercarriage will be mounted just inboard of the nacelles and fold inwards.

[James W.]

What engines are under consideration?  Got a couple of P-47 kits handy, or a B-29 that is due an upgrade & has R-3350s spare?
Or staying British with  -  a brace of Sea Fury Centauri?

[zenrat]

Merlins, the kits outer nacelles.

[zenrat]

I completed patching pieces of plastic into the tail today.  Now it needs PSR.
I also finished cutting out the main gear openings in the wings and glued the halves together.  For one awful moment, given the size of them I thought I was building a 1/48 kit.    But the moment passed and I feel much better now.

I continued with the interior.  This is a slow process as due to the shortening of the floor all the location pins are in the wrong place and I have to match the various bulkheads and instrument panel up against the fuselage halves to make sure they are in the right place.
I did paint the inside of the fuselage though.
Tomorrow I should be able to tape it all together and prop it up on its wheels to see how it looks.

[Old Wombat]

Depending on the time period any of these Merlins would be sufficient for this cut-down Lanc to carry a sufficient medium bomber payload.


Merlin 63 & 63A
1,710 hp (1,275 kW) at 3,000 rpm at 8,500 ft (2,591 m), 1,505 hp (1,122 kW) at 3,000 rpm at 21,000 ft (6,401 m); strengthened two-speed two-stage development of Merlin 61; +18 psi boost; Reduction gear ratio .477:1; Merlin 63A did not have extra gears for pressurization and incorporated a strengthened supercharger drive quill shaft. Used in Spitfire F Mk.VIII and F. Mk. IX.

Merlin 66 (RM 10SM)
1,720 hp (1,283 kW) at 5,790 ft (1,765 m) using +18 psi boost (124 kPa gauge; or an absolute pressure of 225 kPa or 2.2 atm); low-altitude version of Merlin 63A. Fitted with a Bendix-Stromberg anti-g carburettor; intercooler used a separate header tank. Used in Spitfire L.F Mk.VIII and L.F Mk.IX.

Merlin 130/131
2,060 hp (1,536 kW); redesigned "slimline" versions for the de Havilland Hornet. Engine modified to decrease frontal area to a minimum and was the first Merlin series to use down-draught induction systems. Coolant pump moved from the bottom of the engine to the starboard side. Two-speed, two-stage supercharger and S.U. injection carburettor. Maximum boost was 25 psi (170 kPa gauge; or an absolute pressure of 270 kPa or 2.7 atm). On the Hornet the Merlin 130 was fitted in the port nacelle: the Merlin 131, fitted in the starboard nacelle, was converted to a "reverse" or left-hand tractor engine using an additional idler gear in the reduction gear casing.

Merlin 133/134
2,030 hp (1,514 kW); derated 130/131 variants used in Sea Hornet F. Mk. 20, N.F. Mk. 21 and P.R. Mk. 22. Maximum boost was lowered to +18 psi gauge (230 kPa or 2.2 atm absolute).


Anyway, James, this IS Whif World, where it's not all about "accuracy" & "realism" (there are other sites for that). Here the Rule of Cool is as valid as the Physics of Aerodynamics.

[kitnut617]

Not forgetting of course, some of the Packard Merlins were even more powerful

[zenrat]

Anyway, moving on.

Managed to escape the tyranny of painting the bedroom and get down to the shed and taped it all together.


New dimensions are;
Length 60' 9"  (Lanc 69 '4", Manc 70') Span 80' 3" (Lanc 102', Manc 90' 1").
I then started building up the walls of the wheel wells.

[NARSES2]

Right lad's at Zenrat's request I've purged this thread so as to get it back to the modelling thread he intended.

Most of the posts that have been deleted were replies to, shall we say more "provocative" ones and as such have only been deleted because without the others they made no sense. I even had to delete one of my own for that reason.

"Phew". I've done more moderating in the last few days then I've done in the last 10 years 

Thanks for your attention and if you would like a farther explanation please PM me.

Now back to the build 

Chris

[Old Wombat]

 


The Build's the Thing!

[zenrat]

And the build has progressed (slightly).
Blow in's ruined my plans for today but I did manage to finish gluing strips of plastic round the edges of the wheel wells, sort out propeller mounting bosses (I like to have my props removable - Revell disagree) and complete the construction of the nacelles.

[zenrat]

Better progress today.
Nacelles are glued onto the wings now and the wheel well boxing is complete.
Stage one PSR on the tail is complete and i've glued the horizontal stabilisers together.  I may cut them down slightly to put the vertical surfaces directly behind the engines.
Interior is all painted green but I have to detail paint everything before I can close the front end of the fuselage up.  I also have to figure out what to do they the nose.  Painted over turret as a solid nose with original bomb aimers bubble below it would be easiest but as she's getting tricycle undercarriage I'll need the bomb aimers space for the wheel well.  I'm toying wiht the idea of doing something similar to what I did at the tail - cut it off and turn it upside down.  This would let me use the original bomb aimers glazing.
Another option i'm looking at is to leave it all the right way up but fair in the lower position and find some glazing to use to replace the turret.  An Airfix old mould Beaufighter canopy looks promising as does the dorsal gun position glazing from an Arii Mitsubishi Nell.
More study and some measuring is required.