Airliner Group Build anyone?

[Samurai_Chris]

No updates from me. I will probably get a few pics of my fuselages on the weekend sometime..

[Samurai_Chris]

Originally Posted by Jens H. Brandal

I need some inspiration to finish my Scandinavian Airlines MD-80 in paperplane markings. 1:144 scale.

Jens

Should I officially add you Jens?

[Jens H. Brandal]

Yes please.

Jens

[Lenny]

If it's not too late I'd like to join with a Revell 1/144 A320-232 Jetblue.

[Samurai_Chris]

Originally Posted by Jens H. Brandal

Yes please.

Jens

Jens 1/144, kit and details mate...

[Jens H. Brandal]

Ah, it's the Minicraft kit with a BraZ Models corrected tailfin as well as some homemade improvements. Decals are Liveries Unlimited. There's a build thread here on Z-5, but I haven't updated it in a long while.

Jens

[Samurai_Chris]

So anyone else got some work done.. I am yet to pull out that A340 kit and fix it up.. Snowing here now, so may give me something to do this weekend..

[Peacock8]

Guys I have purchased the Revell 1/144 A380- Looking over the schedule i`m in on the GB. I just have to finish my F-16 before i start the A380

[Samurai_Chris]

Mate, do you want me to add you to the list. Or are you gonna hold off for a bit?

[860chrisj]

Didn't get nothing done this weekend. Ended up working most of Sunday and all Sunday night, fun little ice storm. Gonna try again this weekend.

[Samurai_Chris]

Yeah, snow here at the momment too, so I have been waiting for the weekend to make a start. So dont worry. Keep us posted when you kick on..

[Peacock8]

Chris: just sign me up

[MarkR]

Originally Posted by Samurai_Chris

So anyone else got some work done..

I just dropped my wife and kids off at the airport. I've got a day and a half to work on my kit before I have to go to work on Sunday. I hope to make some progress...pictures to be posted soon.

[MarkR]

Alright! I was finally able to get some work done, but I did not make as much progress on this kit as I had hoped. I also spent some time working on a Hasegawa Skyhawk that has been a shelf sitter. I started that kit in Oct 2001 just after it was released. But that's another story...

Well on to the 737. I got as far as filling the windows and joining the fuselage halves. Looking at some of the other builds of this kit on line it looks as though most builders fill in the door out lines too. So far this build has gone smoothly. I had a little trouble getting the wing assembly to fit into the fuselage. As a result I have a small step when the bottom of the wing and the fuslage meet. Nothing a little filler and sanding can't fix, just adds more work. Well enough of my drivel on to the pictures

First the obligatory box shots and the deecals and aftermarket winglets.






The winglets are well cast but need a little clean up. Before:





And after:

[MarkR]

Part Two:

The process of filling in the windows. I think I did this the hard way. I ran a strip of Evergreen plastic on the inside and the used several applications of filler to fill in the windows. Then a lot of time sanding. Anybody with more experience building airliners know of a better way?









Finally I joined the wings to the fuselage. There was a large gap at the root where the wings meet the fuselage. I used tape to pull up on the wing tips, applied Tenex at the joint along the root and used pressure to close the gap. I was worried this technique was going to mess up the dihedral of the wings, but when I took the tape off this morning things look okay. Unfortunately I broke off a couple of the blade antennas. I knew that was inevitable; nothing that can't be easliy fixed with plastic card.



Well I'm off to work for the next five days unless the blizzard in Boston causes my trip to get cancelled. So no more work until after Christmas.

Just for fun here's an old one of the Scooter.

[Jens H. Brandal]

There are more ways to skin a cat, but my way of filling windows for airliners is as follows:

1. rough up the inside of the fuselage with coarse sandpaper - this will provide some key for the filler.

2. Clean the fuselage insides by wiping with isopropanol to remove grease and dust - improving the adhesion of the filler - the last thing you want is the filler to pop in once the halves are closed

3. Knead a sausage of Milliput epoxy putty (other epoxy putties will work too) and put over the row of windows inside the fuselage.

4. With a wet finger, press the Milliput sausage into the windows so that it oozes out and creates a slight dome on the outside. Use a wet finger to smooth the outside "bumps" of the Milliput to minimise sanding. Leave a slightly raised bump until dry.

5. Sand off and polish said bumps - your fuselage should now be smooth with all panel lines intact.

Jens

[MarkR]

Jens,

Thanks for the tip. I noticed others using Miliput to fill the windows. I didn't think about goinig from the inside - out. Seems a much easier way to skin the proverbial cat. I'll have to try this technique I my next airliner.

Mark

[Peacock8]

Jens!! I´m glad i have miliput, that´s a great tip It will be a breeze to fill 220+ windows on the A380
Thanks!

[meagap]

I like the Milliput idea and will have to try that. I usually tape the outside then place a drop of super glue into the windows from the inside. A quick spray of accelerator and it's done. There's usually some pin holes to fill, but this is a quick and easy way that works for me. I try to avoid putty as everything I've used shrinks at least a little.

[MarkR]

After I looked at the tight fit of doors on the real aircraft I decided I should fill in the outlines of the entry and service doors and over wing exits. What do you guys recommend to use to do this?