Alright I'm back I had wanted to post this yesterday but didn't want to rush and pull off the fresh paint AGAIN!! As some of you know this plane has been made in loving memory of Susan Jolene Jones....06-05-60 to 03-08-04 My late wife.

I still have more to do but I wanted to do this now (if you take not of the date) and if the weather breaks I want to take this plane outside for some nice sunny shots But this is the last of the paint details and this is what I had envisioned since the beginning! so check it out.

Well I'm still not finished I had another set back I up and pulled one of the stencils up to soon or to fast this was the last one also the name that I have chosen for this plane. I was lucky and was able to get all of the remaining paint off and have ordered another stencil, so in the mean time I'll be doing final touch ups and hook ups but here is what she's looking like thus far ...Continue Reading

ALRIGHT I got my stencils today so I'll start to apply them this weekend and do some painting then I'll post some final pictures

Well I sent all of my pictures to Callie so let's see what she comes up with and how much this will cost no I have heard that she has reasonable prices just hope she can do the small details??

well I'm sorry to say there has been a set back w/ the graphics I have been told that they couldn't copy some of the things I have in mind for the final look of this bird.
but I will get some vinyl and hand cut the final touches so it may take a bit longer but I am going to make this the way I had planed
so bear w/ me if you please

nothing new to show this time just waiting on the rest of my graphics I will post when they arrive and then I can finish up with the painting but here are some of the photos I had on hand. ...Continue Reading

well I picked up the screws today and went ahead and finished the prop hub it worked out just like I planed one more little thing done

OK I went to the fastener supply co. ROBNET these guys are great you don't have to buy large amounts and the service is fantastic they had one of the bolts and are ordering the others I will have them Friday if they don't have it they will try to get it for you call toll free 1-800-771-bolt or Email: sales@robnetfasteners.com so at least I found a good source for hard to find nuts bolts and screws at a fair price. so I temp put on the prop hub and it really makes it look nice

OK well this morning I looked at the new prop hub that I received from tower and just like every thing on this plane it to has to be customized so I will show how I did that but the biggest problem is finding the replacement screws that I need went to three hardware stores and no luck and one always has what I need when no one else does so then I thought of mcmaster carr but I only need one of one size and four of the other not 25-50 ct any ideas w/ this guys the sizes I need are metric cap head 5mm 0.8 x 50mm long and counter sunk hex drive 3mm 0.7 x 40mm I don't mind buying a couple of extras. so my quest continues there is another specialty hardware store around here but it is a trek. so any take a look at how to adapt a hub w/ out having a drill press it can be done if you take your time....Continue Reading

today I glued in the aft hinges and connected all of the hook ups and touch ups. I used 45 min epoxy w/ milled fiber glass I brush on p-jelly at pivot point liberally then I used a bamboo skewer to get the glue deep in to each hole, then dipping the ends of the hinges in the glue and let the excess drip off then place each in it's proper hole wiping off the excess glue w/ alcohol and a paper towel. this is just the way I do hinges there are many others check out the pics and maybe they will help more. I all most have this BABY finished just kidding alot of small stuff to go yet. ...Continue Reading

Alright I did the other side and I just had to make them match so I tried to show how I did that for those of you just starting to build and for some of you that just like that sort of thing I hope this is helpful ...Continue Reading

OK well after I shot the bolt I saw it was to small so I waited to see if any would say anything and wouldn't you know my friend kmot caught it also and he also doesn't like both on the wheel pants and the fuse but I do so I have changed it a little bit made it thicker and bigger don't know if this is it or not I have to sleep on it and rethink it in the morning check it out. if you go back one post you will see the one I have been looking at

http://www.airliners.net/photo/0260498/L/ this is the one I like the best

OK I got one of the large lightning bolts painted today!

well I have been told that my stenciles are in the mail and I should have them this weekend that is the ones for the call letters and the large lightning bolt down the side. the fancy ones are still being made by willsonman and his wife and I hope to get them in a week or two. ...Continue Reading

well I'm just waiting for the rest of my grapics so I'v been looking over my Brian Taylor DeHavilland Mosquito plans and getting an order ready for some balsa, this will be a very light build much lighter than my last two but it still has an 80" wing span and will be a real change I think I will use two four strokes on this plane gas engines may be to much and I have all ways wanted to use some four strokes, I will post that build under fuel scale planes on these forums. These are some award winning plans and should be a challenge for me to keep it light and still look scale. so it's back to the P-38 I still have a lot to do on her the Night Lightning.

happy thanksgiving to all of my viewers this is how we have it here in Maryland USA

well I'v been working on all of the little things still and have come to the conclusion that the dummy engine will be for display only and I will have to make a pair of dummy pipes also. It's most likely better to do it that way because more air circulation as the dummy was right up against the DLE 30 and could have melted.so not to much going on just but I all together again to see what I had and that every thing still worked w/ the exception of the control surfaces I will do those when I get it all painted, I have just a bit on the wings and that will be done when I shoot the call letters. the other thing I have yet to do is the head liner, I need to get some more mat. for that next trip to the store. check the pics....Continue Reading

all right I got the pipes painted and moved on to running the wire for antenna and rear light on the rudder. I had gave each their own tube to try to make it less of a pain in my I used 30 pound fishing line to pull the wires through all was going well, but before I was going to glue the hinges I thought I had better check that the light worked and I am so glad that I did; it didn't work then I thought what my friend Kmot said that this is when all of the little gremlins come out of the wood work I thought he put a hex on me I thought I would have to tear the fins covering off to fix it but then I realized that had made a splice in that wire because it was to short; so I checked it out and when I used heated the shrink tube I must have melted the casings on the wires so they shorted. any way fixed that. all of this little stuff takes longer than building the thing so I still have to glue the hinges and hook up the pull pull system and push rods; no worries though just getting every thing ready for my graphics as soon as willsonman gets them to me He and his wife did a great job on the lightning bolt on the wheel pants!! they cut them out of a mat. that has a sticky back so I could just put them in place and use the paint I was spraying so my colors matched. so if you need any work done he is looking to start up doing graphics on the side you can find him on these forums just send him a PM. that's enough out of me check out the pis of my progress ...Continue Reading

to day I started off by remaking the door handles and installing them, then gluing the hatches and one of the doors getting ready for the big lightning bolt to be painted. last night I installed a rubber cap that covers the wheel collars that I used in place of that ugly bulky metal cap that came with the engine that wouldn't stay on anyway; although I was reading on the engine forum here on RCG that I may have a problem with doing this because I got rid of the resistor and these plugs don't have one so it may cause interfearince and that the metal cap was a ground; one gent said they do make plugs that fit w/ a resistor but I cant find were to buy them if any knows any help would be nice and if any has some thoughts on this I would love to hear them. I could always run a thin wire for a ground to the plug! any way the rubber cap was made from the the internal parts that came w/ the ignition. the other thing I have heard is that the tachometer can cause the ignition to fry it's self has any else heard this? and why? If worst comes to worst I'll just buy and install a new cap harness it's $20 I just don't like the look of it. the other thing I am going do to night is install two copper tubes where the latters will attach these have to be removable so the landing gear can also be removed. the tubes will make for a tight fit and hold up longer than the balsa. the other thing I will do is paint the exhaust w/ high heat paint (BLACK) then on to gluing the hinges on rear control...Continue Reading