P6 - Lightning & Thunderbolt

Pellson · June 28, 2021, 01:37:41 AM

But... you can't leave us hanging like that?! I get angst! Progress pics!!

Scotaidh · June 28, 2021, 01:48:19 PM

Quote from: Pellson on June 28, 2021, 01:37:41 AM
But... you can't leave us hanging like that?! I get angst! Progress pics!!

Sorry, mate. But I can't spray in my basement - I'd have no lungs left, and they're a bit dodgy as it is - and it's too humid to spray outside. These are just air-dried on at the moment. You can see, by the port-side lower roundel, the difficulties I had with these old decals.

Here I've got to free-hand a dash between the 6 and 7 ...

kitbasher · June 28, 2021, 03:24:44 PM

Sexy beast!

AeroplaneDriver · June 28, 2021, 03:38:41 PM

That looks soooo right. Pro level kitbashing. Love that area rule fuselage.

Pellson · June 28, 2021, 11:54:29 PM

Ooooh.. This is as x-rated as aircraft modelling can be, and yes, i've seen the manga Stratos TSR.

NARSES2 · June 29, 2021, 07:09:13 AM

Quote from: AeroplaneDriver on June 28, 2021, 03:38:41 PM
That looks soooo right. Pro level kitbashing. Love that area rule fuselage.

Totally agree

Scotaidh · July 11, 2021, 07:52:14 AM

well, the model is finished - now I need a stand. The usual way I do that is to buy a cheap cutting board at a thrift store as a base - but I can't find any locally.

So I'm trying to fabricate one.

Three pieces of wire, tops bent into a loop - check.
Coat loops with silicone glue to form resilient contact-pads - glue on, still drying.
Heavy compact base - check. (A large hex-nut I found.)
Super-glue nut to metal disc - check.
Glue on top & bottom obscuration devices - check.

Once the wires' glue-pads are dry they'll go into the centre of the nut, which I will then fill with glue. Once that dries, I can position the aircraft and bend the wires to suit, and then it'll be Final Picture time. Because I know there are those who crave pictures, here's one:

There's my base. <le sigh> I really need a more attractive way to pad the ends of the wires - they look rather as if I'd stuck them up a school-boy's nose ...

kitbasher · July 11, 2021, 10:45:51 AM

Quote from: AeroplaneDriver on June 28, 2021, 03:38:41 PM
Love that area rule fuselage.

Totally. So used to seeing the flat sides, the area ruling looks totally right - better than the real thing.

Nick · July 13, 2021, 10:11:30 AM

Have you thought about crafting foam on the tips?

The sort of hard foam you get on microphones or the sort you get on upholstery sheets.

Styrofoam balls could also work, spray them black and cut a slot in one side to push them onto the metal.

Scotaidh · July 14, 2021, 12:47:16 PM

Quote from: Nick on July 13, 2021, 10:11:30 AM
Have you thought about crafting foam on the tips?

The sort of hard foam you get on microphones or the sort you get on upholstery sheets.

Styrofoam balls could also work, spray them black and cut a slot in one side to push them onto the metal.

No - I didn't know about the first one, I'll have to do some research. Thanks!

Styrofoam - no, thanks. I have personal issues with the stuff, dating back to my childhood.

Scotaidh · July 16, 2021, 02:45:10 PM

I was all set - model finished, stand finally done, photo backdrop almost set up - them bam! Model bumped, fell off stand, there goes the pitot to parts unknown. <sigh>

Stretch some spue for a replacement pitot tube; modify the stand; leave backdrop in place for tomorrow's beauty shots ...

Goodnight, Irene!

comrade harps · July 16, 2021, 07:30:59 PM

Sexy beast that looks oh so good

Tophe · July 16, 2021, 07:51:16 PM

Uh, the result is pleasant

while I had problems at first to understand the project: single-engined EE Lightning?

Scotaidh · July 17, 2021, 02:08:29 AM

Quote from: Tophe on July 16, 2021, 07:51:16 PM
Uh, the result is pleasant while I had problems at first to understand the project: single-engined EE Lightning?

Yes - the Lightning had frighteningly short range. It was deliberate - the design sacrificed everything else for acceleration and speed.

As I understand it, Lightnings were supposed to respond to waves of Soviet bombers - their mission was to get up quickly, shoot off their missiles, and return home for more missiles and fuel and do it again. Obviously, the faster they could do that the more missions they could do before the bombers reached British soil, which is why the design team focused on maximum speed and minimum drag.

All that being said, no Lightning pilot dared let his eyes stray too far from the fuel gauge - so the P6 was attempt to increase range by reducing the number of engines, but they made it a stonking huge engine to keep the speed and acceleration. In the end, the P6 achieved something like 7% fuel savings over the Lightning ...

But, it is a pretty bird!

Scotaidh · July 17, 2021, 02:21:22 AM

As promised, beauty shots. The canopy gave me fits, and still isn't right. <heavy sigh>

Anyway.

Here she is, warts and all.

I finally scrapped my stand and went with a FlightPose stand. That might be my future "go to."

Right - that's done and dusted. On the the next one!