Dear all,
It has been a long time of silence without updates, things have been difficult here and at times surrealistic because of the changes that bring the loss of a loved one.
Things have to go on and so does work. I also spent a good amount of time readjusting my workplace to make things easier for me, to maintain a better order and to make a better use of the space.
Today’s update is a major one, at least from what I used to post. Needless to say, the time that I am having at this moment is wider, but like a little puppy exploring the outside for the first time, I am also in a similar phase where I am taking steps with everything at a time.
The first update I want to share is about the 1/12 B737NG cockpit. Both sidewalls were done:
You can see light bleed coming from one of the corners, this is something I will solve once I make the outer structure past the main panel. The details like rivets or screw heads will be added later prior to the casting.
I have been working on the radio panel:
The idea is that each module will be placed individually for more building inmersion and to make things easier when assembling the specific knobs and switches, you can see holes for now, but these will be used to add the knobs.
I have finished making the glarewings and the outer shape, but because I have to test things first, I will show this in another update.
Since I have done the sidewalls in the current software, I decided to also make the main panel again, this is all for better fitting purposes.
I am glad to count on the help of my friend Philippe for this project, it is a huge project so I am working on sections at a time. I want to finish the main panel details, then work on the fire panel and the throttle quadrant.
Another project that I had lying on the table for quite some time now were the A350 wingtips:
The winglight will also be made with translucent resin as I shared on earlier entries for the B747 wingtip and the Airbus narrowbody family.
This wingtip is intended for Revell’s A350-900 models, it represents the new version that was later fitted on the early builds and fitted by default currently at the Airbus factory.
Obviously the airfoil presented some difficulties because I had to make the profile as per Revell’s wing profile which is thicker because of the plastic, then there was the issue of the thickness as the shape reached the tip, so I had to work within those tolerances. I want to express my thanks to a friend who helped me greatly to make these as accurate and close to the real ones as possible.
The next update I wanted to share is about the B747-8F/-400F. I know that some may be skeptical about this, was making a new fuselage really needed? Well, yes because the main deck and the cargo holds are a major part of the fuselage inner structure, I could not simply modify Revell’s fuselage so mine will be ready to fit all those elements.
At the same time, I am also going to make a thinner representation around the nose door edges and make a new cockpit. The windshields will also be different from those on the Revell model, I may be doing a combo of PE and acetate.
The project was on a long pause because I was struggling to make the end of the hump properly, since the transition edge should not be fully smooth, it has a round edge. I was fortunate enough to have the help of my friend Jan at LearnSolidworks.com, a website that I fully 100% recommend for those who would like to initiate in 3D and for those serious about learning.
The wing root (the first section is a test here) has also been giving me a lot of headaches because the Revell’s original wing indent, was going way too further deep interfering with the interior of the fuselage, so I am at this moment figuring out the best solution for this, the idea of using Revell’s wing is still in the plans, but modifications to it will surely be required, most probably a cut and a fitting modification.
Note that the fuselage has no detail so far, I am just working on the overall exterior shape now, I want to solve the wing union first and once this is done, I will start the outside work prior getting into the cargo holds and main deck.
During all this time working on the new radomes, I also decided to remake the MCS8200 radome. The first version I made was handmade, so I decided to make a new version of it although I am still unsure what to do, due the similarity in shape I may catalog this as “Boeing” radome and continue providing the original MCS8200 radome:
The other radomes I made did not present an issue if using them for either narrow or widebody aircrafts, however, for this one, a narrowbody and a widebody version will be made, the one featuring on these photos is on a B737.
I have also been working on the new type of baggage carts, this was something I had in the plans but that took me more than I thought. Currently a first prototype was built, other two versions will be made; a fully covered one and a lining covered/semi covered version.
The biggest difference between this and the previous version is the towbar, it can rise up and down now, also, this “open” version has photo etched straps at the sides.
This GSE model is still a bit far from completion because I am still doing tests with the parts since these are quite thin.
Another update regarding a GSE is this Pulsar 7D transporter:
This model was requested to me a long time ago, so it will be the first one of the Mulag family, for which I expect to make the rest of the models (belt loader and tractors).
About the other projects:
The 1/72 Schopf F59 is currently in the casting phase, a new body was done so I had to discard the initial molds. I will be doing a first test assembly soon since the interior is nearly completed.
The B787 galleys and cargo holds are ready for packaging, most are already packaged, PE for the galleys is needed to make.
Due to the recent events as I mentioned at the beginning of the email, the process had to be paused. I will resume the packaging stage soon and give a release date once I have units of the rest of the new items ready (pitot tubes, radomes, antennas, etc).
That is all for now, I think this is the largest update I have given since I started with this business. For me I am still on my adapting stage but surely continue working on all the projects.
I hope to share another update soon and give more info on the release date.
Best wishes,
Guillem