John H. Rood
-
Posts
284 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Blogs
Gallery
Calendar
Downloads
Posts posted by John H. Rood
-
-
Beautiful! Under the gun, but VERY well on the way! Way to go, John.
-
Soooo cool!!!
-
Phil, such beautiful workmanship, and a superbly helpful blog!
-
First flying machine I've finished in ages! Long overdue for me to get back in the swing of things. I'm building an A-4 Skyhawk for the 2016 PSSA UK Mass Build event, and this little "Alula TREK" already is helping me shake off the rust, dust and crust from many, many years away from the fray.
Too, I'm happy to report that my 10 year old radio transmitter and receiver are working fine with the new servos and batteries I bought with this innovative, deceptively precision "almost ready to glide" kit. This glider is an Alula TREK, designed by Michael Richter and produced by his forward-thinking company Dream-Flight in Goleta, California. www.dream-flight.com #alulatrek #slopesoaring #dreamflightrc
-
Best wishes for a great weekend, all! Happy Landings!
Thanks so much for all the inspiration and good guidance.
-
Phil, thanks for that good and helpful feedback. All told, my little exercise there reveals:
1.) My existing template shape ideas will be fine and should fit your outlines well enough for my imaginary World Scale Masters Scale Fidelity Gestapo Irregulars!
and
2.) I have run out of excuses and I need to just SHUT UP AND BUILD IT!
-
Q: What is accurate? A: I don't know!
Q: Does it really matter here? NO.
Recently I was made aware of a far more detailed depiction of the A4D-1 (A-4A) profile than I've seen thus far. I don't know if it is correct or not, but I have enlarged it for comparison with Phil and Matt's build plan for the A-4E/F, and also to compare it with the mods that I've previously drawn up. As you can see in the above photo, there is variance with the build plan --- a more shallow underbelly and a shorter tail TE.
BELOW: With my A4D-1 nose sketch/template, the fit is better than I expected; the centerline matches what I'd drawn up and the length and shape are close.
Edited By John_Rood on 09/08/2016 22:53:39
-
Brother, trust me, it's a COMPLIMENT!
Before, during, and after Vietnam --- the Trash Haulers made it all happen. C-123 Thunder Pigs, C-124 Old Shakys, C-130 Herks, the works!!!
A blog post: **LINK**
A book: **LINK**
Another book! **LINK**
And, on a personal note, my Uncle Paul Renfro was a Trash Hauler!
Amigo, your wicked awesome PSSer C-17 TRASH HAULER is steeped in a tradition of EXCELLENCE!
Edited By John_Rood on 06/08/2016 17:51:23
-
Andy, ha! And honest I don't want to spam up your thread any more, but I'd just add that your observation is precisely why I was thinking of this trial n' error eyeball shaping method as the way to go for my little project. Getting things in 3-D will tell the tale!
I utilized a side profile comparison published by Tommy Thomason here: **LINK**, and I carefully drew up an appropriate centerline, ref points, etc. so I could at least have a reasonably good start-point. But we will see!
Meanwhile, if you're not completely bored yet, sift through my image stash here at your leisure! **LINK**
Enough yapping from me... back to you and your excellent CANBERRA!
Edited By John_Rood on 04/08/2016 23:20:09
-
Posted by Andy Blackburn on 01/08/2016Wasn't there some Marvel superheroes giant character with a lantern-shaped head that emitted some sort of disruptor ray? Or am I thinking of something from an Ian M Banks novel?
Or possibly someone figuring prominently over here in the US Presidential, ummm, "election" ?
_____________________________________
But on a less crazed note I do appreciate your technique of carefully blending what's in published drawings with what you see and sense via the powers of the Mk. XVIII eyeball! I've been planning to use that same "top plus side profiles" technique for shaping the nose on my Douglas Skyhawk PSSer build, where I'm shortening the A-4E/F nose to the early A4D / A-4A/B config:
I haven't as yet been able to locate an "accurate" cross-section drawings for this early nose, so the Mk. XVIII Eyeball enters the fray!
I plan to drug/buy off the scale judges with their micrometers and raised eyebrows...
Edited By John_Rood on 04/08/2016 17:47:42
-
John, thanks for taking the time to answer my "slow student" question there, and for sharing all that good info.
Another little idea floating in my head is to make wing tanks that could, say, stay put in flight but can literally be a cushion on landing ---if we're landing on a patch of relatively flat terrain, of course. (Dream on, dude!)
Fabricate, say, a pair of fixed or removable or even pop-off wing pylons for the two standard wing tank stores stations; make a ply base for each each pylon that spreads the load out a bit along the wing underside, and that base can be held on with small magnets (or even velcro?) to the wing underside. The under-half of the standard Douglas 175 or 300 gallon drop tanks could be made of a relatively hardy but soft foam, e.g. EPP, so they serve as shock-absorbers; their fins could be of soft thin plastic with plenty of give.
Yes, that whole wacky little fantasy sprang from seeing this insanely fun photo
...
Edited By John_Rood on 02/08/2016 19:15:16
-
Subscribed! Great stuff.
-
John, a fantastic build underway. Q: Is the action for your drop release simply the piano wire being pulled away from the slot that you created with those half-ribs?
Me, I've now closed-up my wing -- but the mad scientist Dr. Strangeglove within -- he barks that it ain't too late to add a centerline NUKE release.
Don't take my word for it, here's an A4D-1 (A-4A) in test in California mid-late 1950s with a nuke! (Happy Doomsday Sunday!)
May the gods have NO mercy on my enemies, real or imagined! Actually, I'd best just shut up and build, and keep mine SIMPLE.
Edited By John_Rood on 31/07/2016 19:12:52
-
Fellow Skyhawk Disciples,
What with the planet Earth's sudden and bizarre re-fascination with whatever "Pokemon Go" is,
, I now just feel it is my duty to make sure you all are aware of THIS, TOO --- more greatness from our weird and wacky friends and brothers in Japan...What is it?
A video... nearly 50 minutes of pure Skyhawk facts, divided up in chapters, a particular focus on development and the later models, some grainy early footage interspersed here and there ---- and YOUR opportunity to brush up on your best Japanese --- AND some wonderfully cheesy graphics, AND your appreciation / acumen for crappy cheesy canned soundtrack classic rock-ish dreck guitar music!!!
And, Grasshopper, because you are advancing in The Way of Tao, the Secret Samurai Way of the Skyhawk, you actually will NOT need to be fluent in Japanese to understand this sacred material.
YOU'RE WELCOME!
Click here to watch the 50 minute video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5CV0in03JM
Pokemon, GO!
Photo Credit: Troy Prince, USS Midway http://www.midwaysailor.com/midwayphotos/index.html
Edited By John_Rood on 23/07/2016 16:30:07
-
Such a great project underway! Congrats Andy on all this good stuff happening here. Love the blend of contemporary and old-school thinking and practice. Subscribed. now!
-
General Meade, your C-17 giant trash-hauler build blog does not have enough Skyhawks.
Quick-fix here while Her Majesty's Damage Control Unit evaluates further action.
-
I, too, used Super'Phatic to attach the upper skin, and I ran into some diffculty on my first panel, in just getting the surfaces to "set" properly without a lot of fuss, and then later, after things had pretty much cured on that panel, there was a spot or two where a rib didn't fully attach as it shoulda -- oh that dreaded popping sound! Not the end of the world but still a bit more fuss than necessary to apply, correct it, and then move on.
Never wanting to learn from my screw-ups, I used the same glue on the other panel -- but this time I took a lot more care by segmenting the gluing into stages, i.e., starting in one corner, nailing it down good and sure, and then gradually working outward. Worked fine. But I agree, Super'Phatic ain't ideal for attaching the upper wing skin.
Edited By John_Rood on 21/07/2016 03:53:35
-
Paul, although I am logged in to my Facebook account, I too am not able yet to view that video on your Facebook page. You might want to check the PRIVACY settings in place for that video: It would need to be set on "PUBLIC" (or however Facebook phrases it) so that a wider audience than just you or your FB friends can view it. Hopefully that's all the snag here.
-
Next, gluing on the 1/4" x 1/2" leading edges. I went with some fairly hard balsa there...
-
Love all those detail pics, Steve. Much appreciated here at the Douglas Aircraft PSS Rehabilitation Facility, Boston Campus. The pics really help me as thus far my build keeps showing me in excruciating detail just how flippin' RUSTY I am at all these traditional model-building elements! it is great to be back in the fray, but wow the learning curve just gets more and more fun. Or flammable, depending on what time one checks in with me here at the House of Corrections, Douglas PSS Aircraft Division.
Edited By John_Rood on 18/07/2016 16:05:39
-
Way to go, Shane! Lookin' good that bird.
-
WOW! Great stuff... this whole mass build just gets more and more fun.
-
ABOVE: That starboard panel sheeting attached "OK" yesterday, all secure and the washout looks good; all is "OK" yes but really not to my "OCD-overperfect-insane-oddball-weirdo" mil-standard; yesterday I glued all the structure at the same time, but I wasn't diligent enough about having materials in place AHEAD of time to lock down all the sheeting more thoroughly.
So today I'm gluing the port panel a bit more piecemeal, as follows:
Gluing it down at one corner, letting things set in strong there, and then I'll walk the process outward.
Edited By John_Rood on 16/07/2016 16:43:31
-
Peter, that's a terrific model! Kudos.
And what's more, a brilliant photo!
Edited By John_Rood on 15/07/2016 16:49:14
A4 Skyhawk - minimal build blog
in PSSA Mass Build 2016 - A4 Skyhawk
Posted
A terrific choice of Skyhawk to model, too. The Bonny Dick!
Great mix of bright colours over the gull grey and white. Kudos on all that careful work.