1:32 scale Lancaster Mk.1 Hachette Partworks

What a complete pleasure to watch your work.

On the bad side, I now feel fully unqualified to open a bottle of model paint.

With Dave...!

Gerry, just fantastic work mate - bet the jaws will drop at that model meet!

Lovely work so far Gerry!

Can only say wow.

Holy holy things! Superb work Gerry !

Simply awesome man!

HATS OFF GERRY.....a true craftsman dedicated to the cause. Thanks for the up-dates.

Thanks again David, Evan, Gnomey, Andy, Terry, Wayne Scipio for your continued upbeat assessment of my progress.

David, don't ever get discouraged. I have exactly the same sentiments when I view some of the other builds on this forum, most recently that of Aviatik's Shinden George, to name but one of many. I think that we all see more errors in our own builds than we ever spot in other people's.

I am currently trying to tidy up my work area and trawl through the magazines to identify what I need to do to complete the sections I'm working on.

Cheers,

Gerry

This is going to be a real stunner when its finally finished 8)

Looking at the radio sets it makes me want to ask a question!

Most if not all wartime Lanc's had four aerial wires, two which attached to the upper fins and connected to the canopy
and two wires which came out either side of the fuselage below the upper turret, these wires attached to the rear fins.

What was the use of the wires and to what was they connected to, yes the radio sets but which part ?

Hoping someone will know as I don't exactly.

Voice transmission to other aircraft, and to UK when in range, on HF, and Morse transmission, on LW, for all other. There was also a trailing aerial, fed via the fairlead housing on the port side, beneath the W/Op's station, for transmission/receipt of Morse signals at longer range. The fuselage to fin wires were, if memory serves, the early IFF, replaced by a dipole beneath the nose.

Brilliant work Gerry just awesome.

Superiorly Awesome...

Great stuff as always Gerry.

Geo

Looking great as always Gerry!

Thanks everyone for posting and thanks Terry for your info on the aerials. I had assumed - but didn't know -that the aerials from the tail fins to turret were IFF, like the ones on the early Spitfire marks. I feel that knowledge like this being shared in this thread makes it a very useful reference for anyone building the Lancaster in any scale. I have wondered where the aerials that enter the cockpit run once inside? Despite having some interior canopy refs, it's not obvious.

I've now completed my trawl through the remainder of the issues. I found some cabin and instrument lights which I had overlooked which need to be installed along with lots of cabling. I can get back to building now and will keep you updated as I progress.

Cheers,

Gerry

As far as I know Gerry, the twin aerial wires run along the internal canopy frames, then through the 'roof' on the W/Op's compartment, to the connections behind the radios - those shown in that diagram.

Well.....I can not surpass the statements about your work herein above...so I will say...with you all...!!

Outstanding work Gerry, simply outstanding!

Me thinks you're building it full size,
then a hot bath to shrink it to scale.

Thanks Terry, Martin, Jan Bill,

I've found it a bit slower to get back into this than I'd hoped, but have started to make some small progress.

As you know I'm hoping to finish the cabin and the nose section for a meeting later this month. I've collected all the missing pieces together and am finally getting on with it.



There are two parachutes required for this section, the pilot's and the bomb aimer's. But I thought that it would make more sense if I painted all the parachutes at the same time, so that meant going back through the relevant issues to locate them. The series supplies 5 'chutes and stowage boxes. The 6th came from a reordered issue. Everything is now ready for a coat of primer and painting.

(A) is the undercarriage lever and trim wheel unit that sits to the right of the pilot's seat. This has been partially assembled but won't be fully assembled until after painting as there are a number of colours involved. (B) is the front valve (not supplied) made from a spare nut and button. (C) is a scratch-built wheel that sits on the port fuselage, just behind the pilot's seat. however, it looks too small so will have to be re-done a size larger. (D) are two cable junction boxes for the starboard fuselage, opposite the radio op's position. (E) are overhead fuselage lights, one of which goes over the navigator's position (I think).
Finally, (F) are two cockpit lights to light the instrument panel.



This is the start of the bomb aimer's position. The metal bulkheads have been riveted and, after a coat of paint, will be glued to the bulkhead. Of course, it would have been much simpler if these could have been added before the nose section was built, but what's new! Everything is just test fitted for size. (A) is a slanted triangular cover for the back of the central column supporting the instrument panel. (B) is the oil tank/step to the bomb aimer's level. This is made from a plywood box covered in aluminium. Despite the flash reflection, you can just about see the grated top section. (C) is the only piece that wasn't supplied. It's part of the cabin heating system and will be simulated with a spare pump I have. (D) is the bomb aimer's parachute. The space to the right of the parachute will be filled by the camera stand, which still needs to be assembled and checked for fit.

That's progress to date. Thanks for looking in.

Gerry