Gree!
Great score on the P-51. I'm still watching your excellent build (quietly in the shadows). Soaking up all those ideas of yours for when I start to build mine.

Mark

Hey Gree,

Man, I am really sorry about the 262. That's not too encouraging. I guess I better plan on 4S from the get-go. Too many of my models last about 3 or 4 flights before they get bin bagged. I have given up on the Stein Typhoon, it's just too damn heavy and bites hard on take off and landing. I have a Hobby Hangar kit that should build out a pound or two lighter, it's in the queue.

I have picked up a couple of high-torque, low-profile, metal-gear digital servos for less than $20 from UH (not sure of the part #) to use with mechanical retracts, including the Lib, and they work fine with the servo slow. Half the fun for me is watching the gear ease up into their wells.

The Lanc came to a halt last summer b/c of retract problems. I want something at least semi-scale and we started with Alfas. They are too fragile, Walts wipes his out every single flight. I got some digital servoless units, but Fahim at Wowplanes pitched his b/c they strip gears on every flight. I have been breadboarding out some possible home-made alternatives, but that part is slow, so the lady just sits and collects dust.

There are about 5 of us building the Wowplanes B-24, which at 1/20 scale, is the same size as the Lanc. Two of the guys are ready to maiden, I am a week or two away.

Threads here:
https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=973325
https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/show....php?t=1016545
https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=910971

My build starts around p16 of the third thread.

Thanks for the info and pics on the 262, I'll let you know how mine progresses. Not sure if I will put up a build thread, interest in that plane seems to have waned.

Cheers,
Jeff

Gree, I just had a second look at your 262 photos and I see that your driver is the same guy I have in my Stein Typhoon (Pete's Pilots). Maybe THAT's the problem, we need to retire him to the local pub and recruit a dummy that can actually fly

Cheers,
Jeff

Hey thanks Jeff for the thread links. Will check them out. Yeah let's blame the pilot! Oh wait, that's me...


I found some posts in a forum somewhere where people had problems with digital servos and servo slows, so I think this was the problem. Maybe some brands of servo slows are susceptible and some aren't. Anyway seems I have to buy some non-digital servos for my flaps now I just bought 5 standard non-digital servos for $15 second hand and are waiting for them to arrive. This will take care of the inner gear doors anyway.

I have been chipping away at the dummy radial engine over the last day or so just so I would not have to think about the wing for the time being! Photo soon.

Just a couple shots on the progress of the dummy radial. Bit more touching up and weathering to do, then will put it aside until I get to the cowl.

I added a lot of extra lines made out of wire as per the original engine to try to give it a bit of depth. Still not fantastic, but I think it'll be ok when its tucked up behind the big 4 blade...

It's looking pretty darned good to me Gree .

Got a little done on the plane this weekend. The unfinished hatch for the air valve etc was bugging me so I finished it up.

Was going to use hidden hinges, but this didn't pan out, and since the hinges will be in the matt black anti glare area on the top of the fuse, I just went for conventional hinging. It is held shut with 2 rare earth magnets and part of a nail which I ran along the top inside of the hatch.

In order to make the hatch easy to open, I made a piece of wire bent into shape epoxied under the door. This is the 'bead' of the ring and bead gunsight, and it is in the scale location. This was part of my decision to put the hatch in this location.

It's not exactly the right shape, but.... it'll do... Here's a pic of the real deal. (OK you might have to squint but its there!)




All fits nice and neat. Am pretty happy with it. Just have to fill the weave now.


I also started planing the main gear door covers - looking pretty good. Pics soon.

Brilliant idea on the hatch and gunsight! Is that the scheme you plan to use? It's going to look beautiful.

Mark

Thanks Mark. I wanted an easy way to open the hatch and this just presented itself.

No that is not the scheme I am going with, but hope it will look beautiful anyway once done :P

Definitely coming along Gree. Can't wait to see it in paint.

Cheers,
Jeff

I hope to have it glassed in a few months. Lots to do yet and demands on my time are increasing. Thanks Jeff.

Long Time No Post!
Well work and study and freelance work on top of that have been keeping me away from the build for a while, but I have been spending 10 minutes or so here and there working on the cockpit detailing. It's a job that I felt I could do in between times, otherwise I was up to sheeting the wing which would have been a job that would have taken up a large block of time.

I tried to add a lot more detail to the Top Flite cockpit kit which was very poor. I custom made the gunsight from scratch, so too the top of the rear armour plate, the headrest, fuel selector, trim wheels, and lots of wiring etc.

It still is not really finished. I was thinking of replacing my white 'scribble' with proper labels I would make up on the computer (I have great resource showing what most of the cockpit labels actually say). I also still have to add one or two toggle switches etc here and there. But its been ages since I posted anything (except the demise of my CMP Zero in another thread ) so I thought I would post the pics as they were.

I might get onto the opening canopy after work settles down a bit next week before I return to the wing and the gear doors. Man I am all over the place on this one!


Some Reference Photos
I have also uploaded some of the reference photos I was working from out of interest's sake...

Looking real sharp! Love the details.

Thanks Abbeville. We'll see how it goes when I start putting it all together. Have the in-laws staying with us for two weeks, so I won't get any time to do much more work on it. I really want to get this thing done now. I have 6 kits in the queue behind it now - how gone a bit crazy!

Gree, Very well done on that Thunderbolt! Your attention to detail is truly marvelous. Watching your build has been particularly interesting to me as I have one patiently waiting in a box in the basement... Looking forward to your next installment.

As for your queue, what might those six models be?