FM-2 Wildcat 1:33 (Card Army - nr 2)

    It is a good metaphor indeed, but it appears to be a spider that bites....: the next step in the construction showed me that the tops of the triangles should have been not less than 9 mm closer to one another and for this reason the connecting bar 28+AN is far to short. I will try to fix the problem and correct the angles of the triangles without damaging them.

    But how far am I supposed to 'think ahead' in a step by step instruction?


    Do not ask me how, but I managed to correct the angles of the triangles and now the ends of the horizontal bar are resting on the supports as they should.

    Next step: a... new series of bars and rods is waiting to be installed.... :)

    This build is getting more and more complicated but....:the 'spider' is fixed in the 'web' . Two remaining small bars (for those of you who own this model: AX and AY) at the lower side will be added after the installation of the oil cooler in the still open space in the lower nose section.

    I hope the 'spider' is correctly placed; several parts of the landing gear will have to be attached to it in a later stage.

    Quote from jcvandenbergh

    This assembly is only 17,4 mm in length, but it is meant to become the spider in a web of rods and bars as parts of the fuselage structure and the landing gear mechanism. Fixed to the sides are the fuel pump and fuel filter.

    For the two triangles at the front I have tried to follow the drawing as well as I could, but a template on scale would have been helpful: with the exact angles the position of the two supports at the top (important for the next steps!) would have been guaranteed.

    This particular element is called "web plate", so You are not far from truth ;).

    The finished oil filter

    With all these bars and rods there was very, very little room left for the oil filter, but with just one minor adjustment I think I managed to place it inside the frame in the correct position.

    Hello JC,


    incredibly complex the interior of the engine compartment ! Glad you could manage to place the oilfilter where it belangs.


    Kind regards


    Zaphod

    I added a hose, made of 14 pieces + metal wire inside the frame. Look well and you will see it right above the oil filter. It leads from the aggregate to the very right end of the oil filter. Getting it inside the frame in the right position was ...well, let me say rather a challenge...

    Yes, it worked well, but I am glad that the work inside the 'web' is finished for now. Next step will be the landing gear; a new challenge because it is -again- very complex in design. But I am getting used to it: everything in this model is complex and every step is a new adventure!

    Quote from jcvandenbergh

    Yes, it worked well, but I am glad that the work inside the 'web' is finished for now. Next step will be the landing gear; a new challenge because it is -again- very complex in design. But I am getting used to it: everything in this model is complex and every step is a new adventure!

    JC,


    Way to go. I am still following your report and happy to see your progress.

    Please keep your great work.


    Seo by the Bay

    Hi Seo!

    Good to know that you are still following my building report. Don't know if I will be able to make it all the way -the level of detail in this model is incredible and therefor a real challenge- but I'll do my best!

    I remember Seo writing something like "Yes... I did it!!" when he had successfully finished the landing gear bay and the complete landing gear mechanism. Well, that moment of joy is there for me too. I hope that these pictures will show you why I am really happy with the result.

    And now what will be next? I am afraid that I will no longer keep my promise of following strictly the working order of the instructions; give me some time: I will soon explain why.

    The inner walls of the cockpit sections are ready to be installed around the frame..... But that means (a well known issue in card modeling) that 70 or 80

    percent of my work from the last few month will simply disappear forever---

    Furthermore 'dry fitting' of these skin parts showed me that installing them correctly might not be fully 'painless' (to say the least)...

    I could skip this step for the moment and continue by starting the rear fuselage.

    But my promise was to follow the instructions step by step...

    I will decide tomorrow.

    I have made my choice - it is obvious that this step would have to be taken sooner or later, so why not take it right now. I started covering the frames with the inner skin parts; right side of the skin in place.

    While Seo is working on his folding wings (amazing!) and has the finish in sight,I am continuing quietly at my own pace:

    I was aware from the start that this step would be a decisive one: trying to cover a defective fuselage frame is a guarantee for disaster; the inner and outer skin layers have no mercy, and any major adjustment will always remain visible .... This was the first (and only) occasion to test if all the work on the cockpit section (with all its sub assemblies and no main frame to control the overall dimensions and alignment) has been ok. I now now that I have made no major mistakes: otherwise the outer skin would never have fitted the way it does. I hope that the pictures will show that (for my standards) the fit could hardly have been better and I am really glad it worked so well.

    I still follow the instructions step by step which means that the rear fuselage section andhorizontal and vertical stabilizers will be next

    Just for fun I momentarily coupled the cockpit section and the finished rear fuselage frame. It all seems to fit like a dream. Now I will separate the two sections again to cover the rear part and when finished the two parts will be (re-)united for good.

    The rear fuselage section is almost ready to be joined to the cockpit section. Covering this rear section was a joy: I know that nowadays CAD (computer aided design) is of great help, but I am still amazed about the way the designer has succeeded to make these skin parts fit so perfectly over the frame....

    Pictures of the joined sections will follow soon!

    Thanks, Zaphod!


    Now that the hinges for the rudder are in place, the instructions tell me that the moment has come to join the front and rear parts of the fuselage. And so that is what I just did. The joint is hardly more visible then the the printed ones to the left and right. It all works well until now!

    Next are the horizontal and vertical stabilizers, the rudder and elevators.




    JC,


    It is great to see your construction.

    Very nicely done. I have my own mixed-up construction order but it is really great pleasure to see an ordered construction.


    Seo by the Bay

    Hello JC,


    the fuselage is a wonderful design and I am convinced that you will do great on the stabilizers too.


    Kind regards


    Zaphod

    The horizontal stabilizers are in place, and for some unknown reason, the tail wheel was now first in the row to be assembled. Once the fork was ready to receive the tail wheel, I put the resine tail wheel (last February I ordered the full package, including the resine wheel set and the plastic canopy) next to the 'regular' tail wheel that I had just finished. I found out that the resine wheel is of little added value; it is on the small side and apart from the fact that it has to be painted it looks more like a 'plastic kit wheel'.

    In my opinion the 'cardbord' wheel looks better and therefore that is the one I have preferred for my Wildcat:

    (For the the resine main wheels set things will probably be different: they offer a degree of detail that can never be obtained in cardboard - although I will, of course try to make my cardboard wheels look like them as much as possible. :))

    The complete tail section (with all the beautiful small details like the trim tab controls ) is finished. My "number 11" now really begins to look like a Wildcat.

    I placed the elevators intentionally slightly in down position. Don't as me why, but for some reason I think it is always looking cool for a parked aircraft not to have all the control surfaces perfectly set in the neutral position.



    I know, I know: the canopy is always one of the last steps in the construction. But as we have seen before, the Wildcat instructions are sometimes a bit peculiar: they wanted me to add the canopy right now, and so I did. The front part was rather a challenge, the rear part a piece of cake.

    I have considered to keep the canopy closed, but one look at my Dauntless with open canopy (my building report probably still exists on this site) convinced me that for me the open position simply looks more attractive; and large parts of the cockpit interior now remain visible.

    And now what will be next? There is the engine (which will take lots of time and and many identical sub-assemblies), but there are also the main wheels and -of course- the wings ( a story of their own).

    From left to right: main gear wheel hub parts as proposed for the 'light' version; resine main wheel parts -perfect for a detailed plastic model, but to perfect in my view for my model: my material is cardboard and where necessary, metal wire (and a plastic canopy). Using cardboard to the limit is the real challenge. Finally, at the right side, the wheel hubs and tires in the ultra detailed version -very complex; for beginners the light version (or the resine wheels) seem more advisable to me.


    My choice was clear:


    And now for the engine!

    Thank you, Zaphod. Yes, the wheels look fine indeed.

    By the way: As Marcin Dworzecki explains in his instructions, historical pictures prove that the VC-80 White Wildcats (and also my number 11!) flew with closed wheel caps covering the hubs (many pictures to be found on the internet showing that that is correct). Fortunately the wheel caps in the model (parts 66j) fit so well over the hubs that no glue is needed to fix them, and also no need to hide my beautiful hubs forever ;)