Ekranoplan 727 progress

The Rat · November 20, 2005, 05:32:59 PM

Finally got back to this beastie, one of the hardest parts is now done, I hope. Rather than try to carve an entire hull from balsa I tried a different approach. The middle section is made from Evergreen V-Groove, 080"spacing, 040" thick. After figuring out how wide I needed to make it I scribed it in three places and bent it to shape, using scrap sprue to prevent it from separating totally. In this picture you can see that I cut away most of the wing root box, trying to fit a hull around those curves would just be too much for my skills.

When I tried fitting the hull on it was a real bugger trying to carve it to fit properly around what was left of the rear of the root box, so I decided to shorten it so that it fits up to the end of the cut-out. Balsa will be used for the nose contours and the rear of the hull, wingtip floats will be from a 1/72nd Cessna 172.

I've also got the engine mounts reduced, now I need to make a decision. The tailplanes are going to be remounted as foreplanes behind and above the flight deck, with the numbers 1 and 3 engines attached to them. Should they be mounted on the upper surface, or would they look better attached horizontally to the tip? I prefer to go the second route, that way the distinctively bulged lower contour of the engine pod will not only look normal, but if there is a sound engineering reason for that shape then I don't have to explain why the bulge is now on the side, which it would be if they were mounted on top. (Yikes! Am I going all JMN on this?! ^_^ )

The outer wing panels are going to become the typically oversize tailplanes that Ekranoplans have, thanks to our buddy Mairfrog for explaining why in another post.

Hopefully I can pick up the balsa tomorrow and get cracking on this thing, I want to get it done for Silly Week on ARC. Still dithering on markings, I originally wanted to do it as a Chilean job, but decals are hard to come by. I have some Argentine decals, 1/72nd, but they appear too small. Maybe I'll go with the kit-supplied Pan Am or Lufthansa markings and build a backstory around that.

Leigh · November 20, 2005, 06:42:03 PM

AND WE HAVE A WINNER!!!!!!!

The prize for masochistic kitbash of the year goes to ........

The rodent with the Rudolf Hess wearing a bunny Swastika tie signature thingy.

Rat you are a braver man than I, just the mention of balsa has got me running and I'm loving this idea it's gonna look real special.
I'd go for option two on the engines and mount them on the tips.

cthulhu77 · November 20, 2005, 08:05:01 PM

This is going to be a great one...waiting with baited breath here !!!!

John Howling Mouse · November 20, 2005, 09:03:53 PM

WOW!!![/size]

For the engine nacelles, I would make a narrow, upward-angled piece at the outer edge of the foreplanes (like an "L" lying on its longest side) to get the nacelle up a little more away from the water.

Just an idea.

Anyhow:

WOW!!![/size] (again)

Sisko · November 21, 2005, 02:44:26 AM

Man I'm gettin a little excited here!

I can't wait to see more.

Ollie · November 21, 2005, 04:44:22 AM

That is crazy!

lancer · November 21, 2005, 08:22:57 AM

I propose that we name Rat san Mr. Seaplane...any seconders??

The Rat · November 21, 2005, 03:44:30 PM

QuoteI propose that we name Rat san Mr. Seaplane...any seconders??

Teehee! I do seem to have a fetish for hulls and floats, don't I? ^_^

Captain Canada · November 21, 2005, 07:59:31 PM

looking good, Ratman !

Keep the in-progress pics a coming !

John Howling Mouse · November 21, 2005, 08:02:04 PM

QuoteI propose that we name Rat san Mr. Seaplane...any seconders??

I second that! Any man who would work as long on a single hull as Ratty did on that last one deserves the title.

Long live Mr. Seaplane!

The Rat · November 27, 2005, 06:10:04 AM

Had an almost furious (for me) spate of work yesterday

Gobs o' putty and a chunk of balsa

Get the knives out!

The nose is still a bit kinky

The old 'sandpaper-wrapped-around-a-pen' trick starts to bring out the curves

Have to leave a wee step at the front to help break the water

It will be the Argentine markings after all. Rather small, but hey, it's a whiffer, and maybe they wanted a kind of low-viz effect. I realised that the back story I was tinkering with demands it in order to work in someone we all know and hate. The identity will be revealed on ARC during Silly Week I hope.

cthulhu77 · November 27, 2005, 06:31:09 AM

Amazing.

lancer · November 27, 2005, 06:43:22 AM

That is looking brilliant Ratty....

The Rat · November 27, 2005, 06:53:57 AM

Thanks guys. The hardest part at this stage isn't the carving, it's the fear of carving. There's always this nagging thought that you're going to somehow stuff it all up so badly that even putty might not work, and more balsa could be needed. I guess the trick is to take it slowly, no heavy pressure with knife or sandpaper, and monitor the progress after every couple of strokes.

Once the carving is done there's still the problem of getting a decent smooth finish to the whole thing, but enough layers of paint can help immensely, say about a hundred?! ^_^

John Howling Mouse · November 27, 2005, 07:42:37 AM

Wow, thanks-----your project puts mine into perspective. Verrrry gutsy!

As for the finish, you could hit it with an actual gel coat: would give you a glass-smooth tough finish in a single pass. I knew a guy who home-built his own RC submarines from scratch and this is what he used over virtually anything, including high-density carvable foam hulls, etc.

For an easier option, you could try Krylon's "Triple-Glaze" clear spray. Normally used by crafters for dried flower preserving, etc.

Only thing is, while it does go on thick, it does have something of a texture to it, but this is easily sandable.

Ekranoplan 727 progress

Ollie