1:32 scale Lancaster Mk.1 Hachette Partworks

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Hi again Everyone,

This update covers detailing the outboard starboard engine but, as usual, it took me longer than I'd anticipated as I wanted to take my time and get it looking as right as I could with the engines supplied. I've done some engine detailling before (see page 64) but not as detailed as this one, as the other three engines are enclosed in their cowlings, with the exception of the starboard inboard engine that has the outside service panel removed on its right side.

I've long had doubts about the accuracy of the engines supplied with the kit and they are definitely different from the Merlin 23, used on the Lancaster. This is most obvious around the induction pipe from the supercharger, as you can see in the instruction photo below (A).




The pipe from the supercharger looks more like an air intake. I have come to the conclusion – and I'm willing to be corrected on this - that they were trying to model a Packard built engine that has an enclosed structure covering the pipe but the supplied pipe just floats free from the supercharger and doesn't connect with any part of the engine. This might suit a Lanc Mk iii but not a Mk i.

Having said that, I've been working from references of the Merlin 23 and have tried in my own way, bearing in mind the engine block supplied, to get it looking more like a Merlin 23.




Here the basic cast metal engine block has been assembled and painted black. The pipe (A) had to be cut from the the supercharger with my Dremel. I used part of this to deepen the area under the supercharger. The correct style of induction pipe will be cut from the piece of transparent sprue (B) that is about the right scale diameter and trimmed and sanded to fit.




I followed the ref photos of the Merlin refs – I found some from most angles - for detailing the engine to as close a profile as I could manage. Here are the results.




Left side: The main thing was placing the pipe-like induction, which is more visible in a later shot. Lead wire was used for the ignition harness and the various pipes. The section under the supercharger was extended downwards and filled. Various levers and valves were added to the rear of the supercharger and the exhaust stubs were installed and painted. I also added a scratch-built exhaust deflector – if that's what it's called - around the exhaust pipes. Some further plumbing runs were added, finally.




Right side: A lot more plumbing was required on this side.




Top and front: The area between the cylinder blocks was detailed, the coolant tank was added, to be connected to the radiator later. The propeller governors were added under the prop shaft. I added some heat discolouration to the exhaust deflectors.




Finally, from the rear: Here you can just see the curved shape of the induction pipe and more of the levers and linkages on the supercharger.



Next, I need to plumb the cradle, from the firewall to the engine, then mount the engine. This could be tricky to do without knocking off some of the pipes etc. I'll post again when I've got that done.



Gerry
 
Good stuff Gerry. FWIW, here's a pic of the top of a Merlin 29 from our Hurricane:



You can disregard the two co0lant pipes going along the length of the block just inboard of the valve covers as the Hurricane's header tank is mounted behind the engine vs the Lancaster's front mount.

Here's an exploded view of the induction system with the supercharger inlet on the near side at bottom right.



So, what happens is that the induction manifold, the large pipe that you have replicated, runs down the full length of the block and is nestled deep in the crotch of the Vee. It has six flanged openings in the top which connect to the two cylinder induction manifolds which in turn connect to the the cylinder heads. These rest on TOP of the central manifold and can be seen in the above photo to either side of the ignition wires. The central pipe, as it were, can barely be seen from above.

I think that this layout is the same on the Merlin 23, the visual difference in this area only being how the ignition cables are routed. Here's a pic of the top of a 23 from this site, which has plenty more reference pics. The supercharger end is at right.

 
Just thought Gerry, something that may help with the "plumbing" and wiring etc, in addition to using lead wire.
I discovered, and have just received, some braided cable, used by car modellers. Obviously, this is for larger scales, 1/24th and up, but could be useful for some areas of the Merlin. It looks exactly like the braided cable (and hoses) used on aircraft systems, and is a steel colour.
The smallest gauge I've seen so far is 0.7mm, then it rises from 1.2mm upward, and there are also braided hoses available, which can expand, and can have wire fitted within, which start at 0.8mm., both types being supplied in 1 meter lengths
The 0.7 mm would equate to 22.4 mm in 1/32nd scale.
I found mine (pic below) on-line at Prime Miniatures, but many other car modelling and model engineering suppliers also sell the stuff.


 
Thanks to all of you for that last set of very positive comments. And thanks in particular to Andy and Terry for their illustrations and comments on the Merlin and the braided cables.

Andy, that's very enlightening about the top structure on the Merlin. I hadn't realised that the induction pipe stretched the length of the engine, I assumed it just angled downward quickly into the engine block. I had found, online, some of the photos your link leads to but only 4 - 5 shots, not nearly as many as that site contains and none that showed the top in as much detail as some there. In fact, the ref shot I showed is, I believe, of the same RAF Hendon engine. But it's all new, very informative and useful information going forward and thanks for sharing that with us.

Terry, I would be very interested in exploring your braided cable. I hadn't heard of that before and would look to get some for future builds. The lead wire I have comes in gauges of 0.2 to 1mm which is more suitable for smaller scales. I think I used 0.5 gauge for the spark leads but larger sizes for some of the other plumbing. I have a few, three I think, 1:24 scale aircraft in my stash including the Airfix Mosquito. It could be very useful for those. I find the lead wire very useful for wiring and plumbing but it has its drawbacks. It's very soft and can be very easily marked if you're anyway clumsy handling it.

Another thing I have never managed to find is small scale pipe/wiring connectors. Have you come across these anywhere? The would make plumbing much neater and cleaner, rather than having to cut minute lengths of brass or aluminium tube.

Best regards,

Gerry
 
Gerry, I discovered a lot of really amazing accessories for model car enthusiasts, in scales ranging from 1/43rd, through 1/32nd and 1/24th up to 1/12th, and these include such items as scale electrical and pipe connectors hose and cable clips, and, would you believe it, even tiny toggle switches, and pre-wired distributors, for the really dedicated !
I found these by accident really, when looking for some extra bits and pieces for my Lotus and Escort models, such as 1970's style rally seats, and I was staggered at the variety, and numbers of different types of "add ons" available.
Most of the web sites have pages and pages of various stuff, and it can take some time to search through them all, but it's worth the effort, as many bits and pieces can be adapted for aircraft modelling, in various scales.
Some of the items, such as wires, are, of course, re-packaged lengths of commercially available "bulk" items, but are all at one site, rather than having to search all over for, say, a 0.25mm red and yellow wire.
One example of this I saw was 1/24th scale seat belt material, for modern racing / rally cars, in 2mm and 3mm width, which could cost around £2 per pack, of maybe 1 meter in length, in one of the common seat harness colours.
I checked some art and craft sites, and found the same stuff - smooth, double faced satin ribbon, in various colours suitable for seat belts, and bought a mixed bundle of colours, in 1 meter lengths, for 90 Pence for 3mm wide, and a 10 meter roll of one colour in 2mm width, for £2.50 !! ( note, this same ribbon, in 2mm width, would also work for 1/32nd scale and 1/24th scale aircraft models, and although slightly wide for 1/32nd ww2 belts being around 50mm wide,, it wouldn't be that noticeable ).
One of the sites I visited is Hiro Hobby, in the UK, and there are many others in Europe, two of which, in Germany and Czech Republic, I've ordered from, and had excellent service.
Let me know if you want some site addresses, and I'll sort them out.

I know what you mean about the lead wire - it's very useful, but has some limitations. I also use some telephone "jumper" wire, among other bits of wire I've collected over the years.
I was given a 1000 meter reel of the "jumper" wire a few years back, and it's been very useful. It's on the reel in two parts, one green wire, and one yellow (so a total of 2,000 meters ! ), each wire being copper, in the coloured sheath, so it can be used "as is", or strip the sheath, and you have two diameters to use - the copper wire, and the slightly wider diameter sheath, which, of course, can be used as a hose or a wire also.. and both accept paint easily.
I can't remember the overall diameter, including the sheathing, but I think it's around 0. 4 or 0.5 mm - I'd need to check.
If you would like some of this, send me your address in a PM, and I'll get a load sent off to you - it would take me 100 years, building a model a day, to use it all !
I remember when my friend gave it to me, as I'd asked if he could let me have a few feet. He gave me the entire cable reel, saying "Well, you've got a few feet, let me know if you need more !"
 
Hi Gerry. I can't add anything to Terry's detailed suggestions about the connectors and hope you found my post useful. I debated showing you those details after you had already done such a magnificent job on detailing your engine as I was concerned that, after seeing what i posted, you would want to rip it apart again and redo it. I think that what you've done will really look the part especially once you run all the plumbing to the firewall. Keep up the great work.
 
Terry, thanks for all the extra information on the accessories and the suppliers. Now that I know the pipe connectors and clips etc actually exist, I will be much more diligent in trying to track them down. The other item you mention that I would be very interested in is the scale seat belt material. That could be very useful combined with PE buckles. I'm at a disadvantage gauging the scale size I need, as most times I'm unsure of the full scale dimensions of the equipment. I tend to try certain sizes and if I think it looks right against references, go with it.

Thank you also for your offer of the wire but I have kept many offcuts of various cables for this reason, from speaker cable to Telephone and ethernet and in a variety of sizes. I also have a collection of commercial brass and copper wire in various gauges. I find these harder to use than the lead wire because the wires are more rigid and sometimes are difficult to shape and not spring away from contact points but in general terms I'm pretty wired up! Thanks again for the thought, though.

Andy, I had a good look at my efforts after your post but unless you were to look at it through a magnifying glass, I don't think you would notice the absence of the induction system on top of the engine. So I would be very loathe to redo it unless it was really obviously wrong. I'm very happy for any comments or suggestions to be made about my efforts as I firmly believe that they're made by people genuinely trying to help and never made in a negative way, on this forum.

Best regards,

Gerry
 
No problem Gerry.
Regarding the seat belts, most seat and parachute harnesses from the WW2 period, and indeed up to today, employed webbing straps around 2 inches ( 50.8mm) to 2.5 inches ( 63.5mm ) wide. I'm not sure if the satin ribbon is available in sizes under 2mm ( I haven't really looked ), but the easily available 2mm ribbon would equate to 64mm in 1/32nd scale.
When I was looking for the material, it was for rally car harnesses, traditionally 2 to 2.5 inches wide, but these days some harnesses, particularly in modern race and rally cars, employ wider straps, three to four inches wide, so I need to look for suitable material in all these sizes. Most of the colours available are solid, bright shades -[ blues, reds, greens, yellows etc - but there are some pale browns and similar shades, which are close to WW2 harness colours and, although I haven't tried it yet, I think they could be painted if required.
In the past, I have used off-cuts from roller blind fabric, which I have painted successfully, and this is another possibility for 1/32nd scale and up.
 
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