Airfix 1:72 Tiger Moth

[dr_gn]

Some of the photo-etched levers and quadrants are seriously small on this one:



I blobbed some black paint on the ends to give the knobs some depth.

The fuselage frames and lever quadrants were secured using dilute PVA wicked into place with a paintbrush.

I also dusted some Tamiya light gunmetal powder onto them, which will hopefully show up slightly better with a matt coat.

[dr_gn]

Some more parts fitted:



The rudder bars (below the instrument panels) are very fragile - I managed to break a couple while bending into shape. They're now pva'd back together.

I'll add some control rods to the levers, and a bit of cockpit wiring tomorrow if I get time. I think the longer levers on the port side of the cockpit should be parallel (like the stbd. side) - I assumed everything is linked front and back. That's what you get for follwing instructions...

[dr_gn]

I cut some 1.5mm plastic rod into 0.6mm lengths, painted them neutral grey and added the Eduard compass faces on top. Then secured to the brackets with pva:



That completes the instrument panels, I’ll fit them after camo painting towards the end of the build.

[dr_gn]

Did a bit more work on the cockpit tonight. Applied a dark wash to everything to give some depth to the detail:



A wash can often dry a bit grainy, so I lightly brush over with a slightly lighter shade of weathering powder to blend it in and it also highlights the raised bits. I’ve given the edges of the bulkhead plates a dusting of gunmetal to take the flatness off them too.

Finally, I’ve assembled and curved the photo etched cockpit doors. They’re now ready for the same weathering process as the cockpit:



The front ones should have angled front edges, but I doubt anyone will notice.

[dr_gn]

I’ve detailed the cockpit with control rods, pipes and cables made from copper and lead wire, and stretched sprue. Maybe not 100% complete (no two cockpits seem to be exactly the same), but at this scale, an impression of what’s there is often good enough:



Also added a map pocket (scrap photo-etch) to the back of the pilot’s seat, and rudder bars. Next job is to add the seat harnesses.

Edited by dr_gn on Thursday 8th March 22:24

[dr_gn]

The instrument Venturi tubes on each side of the fuselage are represented by moulded-in lumps:



I made a more refined version by heating some brass tube and flaring the end with a pin:



Then glued a straight piece to the end, along with a mounting spigot:







This will form a pattern for resin casting a pair. I’ve done a bit of resin casting before, but decided to treat myself to a new kit:

[dr_gn]

So here’s the pattern pva’d to a plastcard sheet, surrounded by a Lego mould box:



It’s small enough to not need runners or risers, I’ll just inject resin into the cavity and drill out the end after cleaning up.

[dr_gn]

I’m hoping the instruction not to use the supplied release agent on the pattern itself was correct...

[Turn7]

Im not sure you are paying enough attention to the tiny details if Im honest.....



I didnt even know "basic" Airfix modeliing went to this level of detailling, so

[RichB]

dr_gn said:

The instrument Venturi tubes on each side of the fuselage are represented by moulded-in lumps: I made a more refined version by heating some brass tube and flaring the end with a pin: Then glued a straight piece to the end, along with a mounting spigot:

Why wouldn't you fit the brass one and paint that?

[dr_gn]

RichB said:

Why wouldn't you fit the brass one and paint that?

I need 2 identical ones - one each side, plus I’ve got another model that needs some casting, and at the end of the day I just want to play with some chemicals.

[dr_gn]

The mould set, and the pattern pulled straight out:



I’ll wait until I’ve got some spare resin from my robot build, then try casting a few:

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

[dr_gn]

Fuselage ready for closing up:

[dr_gn]

Drilled out the intakes in the cowl, and scraped off the over scale hinge lines. I’ll replace these with sprue in a more realistic scale, and in the correct position for the modified cowl alignment:



I managed to lose the separate cowl air scoop, so made a replacement out of a cut down Polikarpov gun fairing. I’ve also made a start on hollowing it out.

Finally, drilled out the exhaust pipe.

[Turn7]

OOI,How do you hold these tiny pieces for machining ?

[dr_gn]

Turn7 said:

OOI,How do you hold these tiny pieces for machining ?

Fingers for these. It’s mainly drilling, so fairly easy. For the intake I used the flank of a small drill as a file - that was a bit difficult to hold the part, in fact it’s not finished yet.

[dr_gn]

Got the lower wing and tail assembled:



Also added a false bulkhead (black painted decal protection paper) to eliminate any see-through effect into the cowling and vice versa:



It’s clear that the cockpit rear bulkhead joins are going to take some thought to make them realistic.

[dr_gn]

So the cockpit bulkheads: I noticed that some Tiger Moths have what appears to be a separate panel above the seats, with apertures for the harness. The surrounds for the apertures are provided in the photo-etch set. I made some plasticard panels and temporarily pva’d the surrounds in place. After spraying black, I removed the surrounds, and will now cut rectangular holes. I’ll then paint, re-attach the surrounds and fix them in place after main painting is complete. To finish them, I’ll use 0.2mm lead wire to form a representation of a trim beaded edge around each one, then fix the harness:

[dr_gn]

Cockpits now masked with Blu-Tack, tissue and Micro Mask. Now ready for a guide coat of Tamiya primer decanted into the airbrush. Dressed and polished the airbrush needle ready for some spatter-free pre-shading on a tiny scale!

[Yertis]

dr_gn said:

The mould set, and the pattern pulled straight out:



I’ll wait until I’ve got some spare resin from my robot build, then try casting a few:

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

Why aren't you just using the brass pattern on the model?