100% scratchbuild 1/48 lancaster

[DOUGRD]

This is 100% handmade, no, 99.9% because I copied two radio sets T1154-R1155 from Tamiya Mosquito as you can see on the previous cockpit photo. The fuselage and the wings were of heat pressed stylene sheets supplied by Tamiya-san, on wooden molds which had been made by me. Wing ribs are in the same material.

It looks great!! very nice work! In the photo that accompanied this quote I see three fuselages and various wing components. Can you go into more detail about how you made these parts? How is the "Heat pressed stylene sheets" formed?

 

[Heinz]

Wow is all I can say. A superb piece of work/art!!

 

[Bf109_g]

That looks like a really awesome Lancaster! Keep up the good work!

 

[evangilder]

NIce job!

 

[ppopsie]

I started it by having the DVD "The Dam Busters" first, in early 2005. Then I got some wood pieces from a DIY shop nearby. The grain-less wood material is reasonably soft (not as soft as balsa), has uniform density and is suited for hand-carving.

Information about the Lancaster gathered included the plans scanned from the Lancaster Manual book. I found that THESE are very accurate by comparing them with various photographs, and I could use them by simply resizing into 1/48 scale on the PC and print them on the paper.

Shaping the wood blocks were not very complicated job thanks to the simplicity of the aircraft's shape. I mainly used a middle sized plane and coarse grained sand paper and no magics.

 

[Matt308]

Excellent.

 

[Soundbreaker Welch?]

It looks like a tough thing to think out. How did you make the inner struts of the wing so well? And how about all the bolts, screws, and fine lines? Exo knife?

 

[ppopsie]

I used 0.2mm thick PET plastic films to reproduce the mushroom rivet heads. Rivet head tool is made with 25 hand sewing needles.

Each wing sectiones were drawn on the PC and printed onto an adhesive paper. The sheet then was to put on a stylene sheet which can be cut easily.

 

[Wurger]

 

[ppopsie]

Just a little progress. Plane shape of the X like part fitted between the bomb sling arms is from my guess, as deduced from German documents.

Note: not superbly painted markings.

 

[Heinz]

great stuff!


Glazing is great!

 

[ccheese]

I've been building models for a long time, but never nothing like that. I
prefer balsa and silkspan. I am impressed ! Very good job....

Charles

 

[ppopsie]

Thanks! Don't mention that.

 

[Screaming Eagle]

great work ppopsie!

 

[ppopsie]

Glazings; honestly I didn't expect to have that effect but I used thin (0.2mm) transparent PET plastic sheet to reproduce rivet heads on the fuselage. The sheet was cemented to the original plastic surface by using black color non-transparent scilicone glue. Each panes were masked over prior to applying Mr Color's plastic primer. Then top coatings were airbrushed.

Also it was presumed that the fuselage window panes actually were blacked out on AJ A-apple, as several existing photos suggested.

That combination brought such an effect and for now I am satisfied with that.

 

[Wayne Little]

Looking good ppopsie!

 

[Becco_UK]

This is all very impressive. Great work.

 

[ToughOmbre]

Excellent work

Wish I could do that.

TO

 

[tpikdave]

ppopsie

Terrific workmanship. Great methodology and technique.You are truly gifted.

 

[ppopsie]

Its nothing. No big stuff. To make corrections on an existing plastic kit to get a satisfactory one should be more troublesome to make one from scratch.

It has indeed been relatively long time to bring the model onto that level. My motivation deflated quite often but each time it was regained by playing the Dam Busters movie DVD endlessly while working on the model. In case if you are buiding a B-17 model, it would be 12'o Clock High or The War Lover.