Steve's Models

[Sailor Steve]

I'm so nearsighted that my natural focal length is about six inches. I take off my glasses for reading or building and it's like a natural magnifier.

[Sailor Steve]

Next project: The AEG C.IV. Not considered 'modern' at all, it relied on the tried-and-true 160-hp Mercedes D.III and it recieved very good reports from the men who flew it.

[Buddahaid]

Originally Posted by Sailor Steve

I'm so nearsighted that my natural focal length is about six inches. I take off my glasses for reading or building and it's like a natural magnifier.

Me too and it's the one blessing about getting older.

[em2nought]

Originally Posted by Aktungbby

Do you have a single bristle sable brush

Sharpened toothpicks make pretty good fine detail brushes. You don't have to clean them either.

[Sailor Steve]

It's been eight days since I posted. The day after the 'Kit' picture was taken I had the fuselage together. I waited to take a picture until I had the whole basic assembly together. And I waited because I was busy. Sunday I had the tailplanes on but didn't take a picture because I wanted to get it all together. And then I got sick. Now it's finally together.

[Sailor Steve]

First paint coat.

[Sailor Steve]

Painted. Apparently A.E.G. took the whole 'camoflage' thing seriously, and sprayed their planes right at the factory. All were done by hand, and every one was different. Colors are uncertain, and may have been two-tone green and may have been lighter. I'm still considering lightening it up a bit. Also the three prototypes may have been clear-doped linen, but the experts seem fairly certain they were light blue. It makes sense that they would keep that for the undersides, so I repainted those as well. I matched Vallejo paints from a WW1 color chart, so they should be close. This was my first experience spraying acrylics, and I have to say that thinning and cleaning up with water is a vast improvement over enamels and turpentine-based thinners.

[Sailor Steve]

Markings on. This seems to be one of the earliest examples of the cross with a white outline rather than a full field. This is odd because there are photos showing machines with newer serial numbers but the old cross design and vice versa. Again rather than try to find numbers in my decal box or waste time and money buying new sets, I opted to create the numbers in my favorite desktop publishing program and print them onto decal paper myself. The more I do this the more I like it.

[Sailor Steve]

Guns and crew installed. I'm having some trouble with the cabanes since they splay outward rather than inward. Inward means they meet in the middle and it's easy to trim them to the right height. Outward it's hard to get them all equal withouth overcutting and having to replace one or more. It's not hard but it takes time. I thought of building a jig, but If I didn't get that perfect I'd spend a lot of time redoing it as well, so I just fiddle with it until it's right. I could by a fully adjustable mechanical jig, but they are way out of my price range right now.

[em2nought]

Most of your models are made from the plastic that Gullows uses for detail parts on balsa model? I've never seen any of those in hobby stores in the US, looks pretty tedious the cut out the parts just right instead of just freeing them up from a sprue. I'd have to have a room with high ceilings so I could have the sky full of those things instead of stored away in a box. At least some of them.

[Sailor Steve]

Originally Posted by em2nought

Most of your models are made from the plastic that Gullows uses for detail parts on balsa model? I've never seen any of those in hobby stores in the US, looks pretty tedious the cut out the parts just right instead of just freeing them up from a sprue.

Vacuforming is an old and valued technique. Yes, injection-molded plastic is easier to start with, but there are literally hundreds of aircraft types that no injection company has ever touched. Every one of those I build is one that is available in no other form. I either put up with the cutting and sanding or I don't build that airplane.

I'd have to have a room with high ceilings so I could have the sky full of those things instead of stored away in a box. At least some of them.

Since I have more than 100 WW1 planes and close to the same number of WW2, that might be difficult. Also don't forget that I build these for gaming, so I have to be able to transport them to the game. I have built many display models in the past, but they were all either sold or given away. I also live in a small one-bedroom apartment and have no room to display anything.

[Sailor Steve]

The top wing has given me an endless amount of trouble, but it's finally on. I've had to repaint portions of the plane where the holes weren't aligned properly and I had to cut new ones.

[Buddahaid]

Looking pretty sweet. Is the underside painted sky? I don't see it on fuselage sides.

[Sailor Steve]

Yep, undersides are pale blue.

[Sailor Steve]

This is rapidly descending into a huge nightmare. For the last six days I've added a little bit of rigging at a time, only to have one part not fit right and have to start over again. Three days ago I finally got the port wing done. I started on the starboard wing two days ago, and had so much trouble I let it sit for a day. Today I was doing the other half of that side, and having to back up and start over. I was struggling with it when the whole thing jumped out of my hands and onto the floor. Four of the eight struts were hanging by the rigging, three were still intact and one was missing completely. A thorough search turned up nothing. I tried refitting them but the rigging no longer lined up correctly. I ended up tearing out all the struts and removing all the lines. I'll be starting over tomorrow.