McDonnell-Douglas KMD-11

[kerick]

I have an idea to make it even more what-if: build it/her as single-engine airplane tanker!

That would make a good 'Ultra-Whiff', yes
But I think my innate sense of aeronautical 'correctness' wouldn't let me do that, as it'd never be able to fly.

No need to make it fly, this would be just to enjoy in shelves:

I was going to suggest one engine three times the size but three engines all in one place will work too! Only the mechanics would be unhappy, having to work so high in the air!

[PR19_Kit]

This kit has the most complex cockpit of any 'airliner scale' model I've built!

The complete assembly has no less than TWENTY parts! Eight of them are separate armrests for the four crew seats, which are so small I can only JUST see them! 

All this is wasted as the cockpit windows aren't that large anyway, and you'll only be able to see the Captain and First Officer's seats I reckon.

[sandiego89]

This kit has the most complex cockpit of any 'airliner scale' model I've built!

The complete assembly has no less than TWENTY parts! Eight of them are separate armrests for the four crew seats, which are so small I can only JUST see them! 

All this is wasted as the cockpit windows aren't that large anyway, and you'll only be able to see the Captain and First Officer's seats I reckon.

Yikes, I often leave those fiddly bits in the box, especially when they won't be seen. 

[PR19_Kit]

I doubt I'll be fitting all those armrests, I'd go blind doing that!

[PR19_Kit]

LOTS of flash on this kit, but not like Novo-flash, that's in large flat sheets that do their best to hide the actual parts. No, this Eastern Express-flash is a small ledge running along the long lengths of the moulds, very odd, and takes some filing to get rid of.

I've got most of the fuselage together now, with the aid of LOTS of Tamiya tape holding it place. I foresee a fair amount of PSRing to fair in the top and bottom seams, which don't match all that well. I've glued the cockpit in place already as the transparency is a Minicraft type thing that is actually most of the roof as well, so there's plenty of room to get the seats and panel in place through the massive hole.

There's a tricky shaped wingroot spar that fits across the fuselage before you glue the belly fairing in place, and it would be very easy to put it in back to front, with dire consequences for the wing fit, but luckily I figured it out in time, phew.

I MUST remember some nose weight before I glue the tail and the #2 engine in place, but I may not be able to glue it in, so it could be a 'clunker', like many of my airliner models.

[PR19_Kit]

As I mentioned above, I really HAD to remember to add some nose weight, so trawling through my box of tyre weights (they're free from your local friendly tyre dealer if you know them well, and with three largish cars I sure know mine VERY well!) I came across a re-cycled weight that came from a scrapped out airliner kit. As luck would have it, it was a Douglas product too! A DC8-62 in this case, my first (failed...) attempt at doing the Braniff Calder Eight.



It was easily heavy enough and it slid down the fuselage of the KMD-11 nicely so job done. 

No, I didn't try and glue it in place, a quick 'nose down' tip before placing it on its wheels will have to do.

So after that I could glue the tailcone in place. The styrene that Eastern Express use is pretty soft, and it's a good thing as it needed lots of filing before the two parts would fit, one side of the tailcone was at least 1 mm longer than the other. As I intended to use the wing hose reel parts of a Roden VC10 K3 tanker on the KMD11 I sorted the VC10 kit out, and found that the centre line hose reel was a separate part, unlike the Airfix VC10 tanker which has it moulded as part of the fuselage. It's quite likely that the centre line reel will also end up on the KMD-11 now too. 

Looking at the two kits side by side makes you realise quite a how BIG the MD-11 is, of course it's almost Jumbo size, but you tend not to remember that. The other thing I noticed was quite how similar the two kits were as kits. The way the sprue gates are moulded and the weird long lengths of flash are almost identical, and the styrene itself is very similar. Could it be that there's a commercial connection here?

Progress so far, and the Super VC10 as well, which just may end up being a PanAm or Braniff aircraft, eh?

[Scotaidh]

I also tried the faith-based system once, but didn't like the rattle (and shift in CG ) when strafing the dog ... I was 8, OK? 

I had a disastrous outcome with regular model glue and many small weights - split shot fishing sinkers.  I now know I usd too much glue, but at the time it was very traumatic.  I also tried using putty, but that also turned out to be quantity-limited, for the health of the kit plastic. 

Now I use a silicone-based glue - Goop - for making sure nose weights stay in place.  It's viscous, clear, and even sticks to food-grade plastics.

[PR19_Kit]

Now the KMD-11's got it's tailplanes fitted and the PSR on the rear half is pretty well sorted.

Still got to do the front PSR, but I need to finish the cockpit and glue the canopy on yet.



Yes, the tailplanes are larger than the normal MD-11 bits, but it's had DC-10 tailplanes fitted, as mentioned above.

[sandiego89]

Looking at the two kits side by side makes you realise quite a how BIG the MD-11 is, of course it's almost Jumbo size, but you tend not to remember that......

Wow, that really does show the size of the MD-11- a big beast!  And they even made the tail plane smaller than the DC-10 to save weight, not a good idea in hindsight.

Good call on the tire weights, they are handy- even if spelled wrong....

[PR19_Kit]

IIRC the MD-11 had a partially computer controlled pitch control system as well as a fuel tank in the tailplane, and this allowed a smaller surface to be used. It also decreased drag, always a problem with the Douglas tri-jet designs.

[PR19_Kit]

It was a total waste of time doing all that stuff in the cockpit as the canopy/roof doesn't fit all that well, and needs filing and PSR as well. It'll mean sanding over the windows, and they're TINY as it's 1/144 scale. Luckily the kit includes decal windscreens, two of them, so I think I'll go that route.




At the other end of the fuselage I've added the TV camera so the tanking guy can see the receivers and also added the larger hose reel from the VC10 K4. Yes, I KNOW it's not on the centre line, but there'll be a socking great boom there so it's offset. The KC-10 has it's hose reel offset too, but on the other side.

[PR19_Kit]

The KMD-11's got one wing on now, after a lot of filing and scraping in a somewhat vain attempt to get it to fit properly. Once I produced a reasonable gluing area on the fuselage I thought the hell with it, and stuck it on.



It's not too bad, the undersurface is nicely flush with the fuselage, but the upper surface? Oh dear......



There's a vast gap, about 1.5 mm, almost the entire length of the joint, and that will need filling and some serious PSR I guess. It was either a gap there or one on the underside, but that gave it much too much dihedral, so I'm stuck with it as it is.

In other areas, both #1 and #3 engines are now PSR's and primed and ready for some colour coats, and I'm well into scratchbuilding the boom, modelled directly on one from a KC-10 of course.

[NARSES2]

Those photos will give Tophe ideas 

[PR19_Kit]

Hehehe, for an MD5.5? 

[Tophe]

Those photos will give Tophe ideas 

Yes, glory to the MD-11 with a single wing (port)! Great asymmetry! (no need to fly, and crash, this is just for shelves).