**** DONE: 1/32 Fw 190D-9 - Allied Advance and Defense of the Reich WWII.

[Airframes]

Here you go John, hope these help.
I took loads of detail pics, mainly of the engine and wheel bays, but only got these showing the wheel assembly !
Check the first pic I posted, and you'll see that the brake line goes into the rear of the hub. From what I remember, the attachment point wasn't actually visible.

 

[Airframes]

Just had a look at some pics of the Champlin D-9, and other preserved examples, in the 'Aero Detail' book, and the brake line set up is the same. The Champlin aircraft has RLM 02 legs and wheel bays, but this looks like a re-paint, so not sure if it's correct. The others have RLM 66.

 

[JKim]

Thanks Terry! That's the same type of wheel on my Dora. What interests me is that triangular cut out in the wheel hub. Unless I find out otherwise, I am going to assume that this is an tire inflation port and not associated with the brakes.

 

[Airframes]

You're correct John - brake line definitely connects to the rear of the wheel hub. When the complete gear door is fitted (only the main leg door is fitted in my photos, as the aircraft was under maintenance), the connection can't bee seen, but it's about a third of the way in from the wheel rim.

 

[fubar57]

Very nice and detailed, John.


Geo

 

[Crimea_River]

The Ju-88 and other larger aircraft had twin drum brakes whereas the smaller aircraft had a single one built into the hub. Hence the single brake line on the 190. And yes, the triangular divot is for the air valve.

 

[JKim]

Thank you for the input guys... especially the good photos Terry! Here are the landing gear bits painted up minus the main wheels and tail wheel. If you look closely, you'll see that I've added bolts to the oleo scissors bases that I punched from thin plastic.

I've not yet weathered the wheels but here's how they look with some paint on them.

The tail wheel painting was going a-ok until I put the flat coat on and got that white haze from a touch too much Tamiya Flat Base. Tried retouching and mussed that up so I ended up scrubbing off all of the paint to start again. All of that handling resulted in the tail wheel assembly breaking into two pieces. Not a major deal since the break was at a joint. I've added a piece of brass tube to strengthen the join. I may keep these two pieces separate to help me locate the flat spot on the tail wheel to imply weight on the rubber tire.

 

[Wurger]

Looking great.

 

[Crimea_River]

Sure does. Tempted to try 1/32 but I don't have the display room,

 

[JKim]

Sure does. Tempted to try 1/32 but I don't have the display room,

Neither do I but that hasn't stopped me! Seriously... you should give it a shot! I'm gonna go the other way and try a 1/72 scale bird soon.

 

[Wurger]

Oh.. 1/72 scale ... looking forward to that John.

 

[Airframes]

Great work there John.
Here's a couple of pics which might help with detail. The smaller pic shows a tail wheel recovered from a crash site in the White Carpathian mountains in the Czech Republic, showing the RLM 66 paint finish.

 

[JKim]

Thanks for the tail wheel shots Terry! I'd love to put that tan ring around the tail wheel but I don't have the molded detail to use as a guide like I did with the Ju88. Plus the yoke is in the way.

Hey... the tail wheel on the Dora isn't "steerable" is it? I've never seen it any way except straight but now that I have it separated, I have the ability to put it at an angle.

 

[fubar57]

Geo

 

[Airframes]

Not steerable, but capable of castoring, as shown in the pics Geo posted.
BTW, that 'tan' ring is actually a dirt-stained, or worn, white ring. It indicates the earthing properties, for dispersing static electricity, very important when re-fueling !

 

[Wurger]

 

[JKim]

Ah yes... not steerable but capable of swiveling is what I meant. I guess I have the option of putting a little angle on the tail wheel then! Thanks for the pics Geo! Also good to know about the white ring.

The wheels have been weathered with some pigment and scuffed lightly with a colored pencil. Also the outer surface of the landing gear covers have been painted. I added some orange-red putty marks around the landing gear attachment points to indicate wear and tear.

The wheel well insert has been glued into the bottom of the wing.

After that has dried, the upper wing halves can be glued into place.

A little detail that I thought I would attempt. This would be all but impossible at a smaller scale but I drill an eensy-weensy hole in the aerial mast atop the tail fin using a brand new x-acto blade. You can also see some White Milliput that I've used to clean up the joint at the base of the mast.

Using the smallest micro drill bit that I have as a form, I wrapped a short section of electrical wire coils to form a tension spring for the aerial attachment.

I've hung the coil from the drilled hole just to see how this'll work out. This coil is already a bit tweaked from handling so I will most likely wrap another.

 

[Airframes]

Great work John.

 

[Gnomey]

Looks great so far John!

 

[Wurger]