David Sack

While all the other bits and pieces are coming together I decided to turn my attention to the drop tanks and Sidewinder installation. I made the club generic drop tank and found it was the incorrect shape for the FJ3 but it was a learning curve and taught me some new tricks. The sidewinder is also very different from our genernic plan. So using photos, models and more photos I designed a mounting for the AIM-9B as carried by the Fury's. My prototype is made from a plasticard frame with foam surround and a final layer of balsa. It may sound heavy but the weight is currently 20g with the missile attached. The missile is made from A4 paper rolled around a 12mm knitting needle. My wife owns a wool shop so it was easy to source ! The paper was glued with pva and allowed to dry. There were two coats of polyurethane varnish allowed to dry and harden. Next a coat of white primer again allowed to dry. The fins were cut from 3mm balsa and secured with cyano. The missile is attached to the mounting at three points on the Fury FJ3 and I have emulated this with the fixing on the model. So this is where I am at at the moment. Great fun ! (.....now where's that MIG ??) Once this is done I will make the new shape drop tank, and that is going to be a challenge ! If anyone has any plans or drawings for the naval version I'd be glad to hear

Brilliant pictures Sir, thank you very much I believe the aircraft is one of the VF-84 'Vagabonds' squadron. The squadron was established 1st July 1955 and equipped with FJ3/3M Furys. The squadron was deployed twice as part of 'CVG-1' aboard the USS Forrestal. The FJ-3Ms deployed on the USS Randolph between 1958 - 1959. The USS Independence may have been used during the sixth fleet operations in the Med in January 1957, I cannot find proof of this though -sorry The Fury's were later replaced by Crusaders, Phantoms and Tomcats. Are you going to build the boat ?? ( asks he who has a loft full of unmade airfix kits) Glad you are back in the saddle in your workshop and looking forward to more of your build. Cheers.

Yay ... correct it was Albanian - 'good health to all'. I lived there for some years, lovely place and great people. Thanks again Chris, pics will follow

Some great ideas there Chris, thanks for the inspiration and for remembering my request. For my throttle control I purchased a crochet marker from my wife's wool shop - yes she made me pay ! I am still working on the dashboard and have managed to get the colours toned down, I have also corrected some of the instruments. For the dash i've been using photoshop at the pixel level - amazingly satisfying but not for 'normal' people ........ hey - we arn't normal The 3d effect using cutoutsof a printed board is not proving very effective but I shall persist. If I do not get satisfying results this week I'll move on. Dirks cockpit mould is superb. My version using polyurethane is not as sharp but has enabled me to curve the frame a little as it is very flexible. I'll upload pics when I can. Thanks again Chris, keep safe Te githe te mirat.

Thanks for that Chris. I know what you mean about the cutting at 1/10 scale and a 3d printer would certainly help! I will see how I get on anyway but may well end up as you have suggested. Its something to keep me amused during this lockdown. I will watch for your piccys of the handles and copy unashamedly. Keep well and stay safe.

Lookin' good Sir ! Any thoughts on modelling the joystick and engine power lever, my efforts so far have have failed to impress - helpful hints appreciated, Im looking for easy solutions that look the part Will you be 3d modelling the dash ?? My effort is a combination of dials found across the net I could not find an accurate one for my plane I hope you have more luck with the 'dog' I will be giving each dial a 3d effect by cutting a frame for each dial - well thats the plan.

The North American Fury FJ3 Cockpit Some of you may have noticed I am rather obsessive on the cockpit area. The Fury FJ3 variant has been a challenge in terms of identifying the correct dash and then sourcing the components. After some work searching my final design is based on the Fury Flight Manual downloaded from 'flight manuals on line'. My original dash had been made using cutouts and lacked precision and some details. For this work I scanned the image of the dash and then cleaned it up in photoshop. Working images are tif files and the highest resolution I could obtain. The details will be lost on compression but the better quality you begin with the better the end result. Step 1 Step 2 was to add some 'lights' using photoshop for the detailing. These could be detailed with holes cut into the dash and with thin coloured plastic glued behind. A light source would then be required to illuminate the dashboard. I'm not going that far just yet ! Step 3 was a bit more involved. Each instrument had to be either recreated in photoshop or copied from on line photographs and resized to fit. Again using tiff rather than jpeg files as a personal preference. Step 4 was to complete the detailing. This next image shows the final version of the dash with my original - inaccurate - version for comparison. Several copies of the final dash were reproduced on photographic paper at the best available resolution for my printer. The dash was cut to shape and tested in the 'office'. I'm good with that. The next step is to create the other cockpit panels which is going to take some time, especially as they will have to be drawn, uploaded and then edited. And finally a stand off picture of the 'tub' which is coming on slowly but nicely. As always comments for improvement will be hugely appreciated. Before I close off, and for the benfit of the rivet counters and MIG pilots, I will add that the dash has been identified as the one on my particular aircraft, following some upgrades, including the fitting of air to air missiles Keep safe and keep well everyone.

Hi Peter, thanks My sanding around the cockpit area of the fuselage is largely complete and the seating of the canopy has been tested all along so it should be okay. This earlier photograph shows the Mk1 canopy mould being aligned by the primordial fuselage The canopy and the fuselage marry up quite well despite the slight differences between the F-86 and the FJ3. As Phil Cooke has noted there are adjustments to be made. I have had to cut the supplied canopy in order to get a longer 'windscreen' and as a result the top has flattened by about 5mm so the curvature is slightly incorrect. This is the bit I am battling with. From a little distance I doubt anyone would notice but it irritates me no end ! In this picture the Mk1 frame and the cockpit tub are side by side. This picture shows Capt. Grey looking out from the seated frame.   Lots more work to do but great fun. Having never done a build like this before I'm learning a lot and enjoying seeing how other peeps tackle problems - then unashamedly stealing their ideas. Hopefully we will have a presentable plane that flies. It would be my first since I was about 14 (Keil Kraft Swan and some jetex planes) some 50 years ago (gulp!!!!) when I was a young member of the Stevenage Model Aviation and Marine Society. Happy days.   Edited By David Sack on 16/04/2020 09:00:09

Well I could not let a day go by without a posting appearing on our forum ! My work on the Fury FJ3 fuselage and tailplane at the moment is progressing but mostly its just sanding down. The canopy is at the mark 3 stage and getting close to how I want it, being diifferent from the Sabre it has required a bit of extra fiddling as I have already mentioned. Using a modified 'Dirk Technique' employing clingfilm and polyurethane varnish the frame is now quite firm and in the final shaping phase. I did spend some time on the ejector seat which is again different to the Sabre version. Getting good pictures has proven difficult and my seat is based on the few good ones I have found. Tbh I am really pleased with the look of the seat, its got that 'used' feel - Captain Grey is quite happy with it, and so am I.

Superb, the lighting is critical in your photo and the shadows enhance the surface effect, making it look worse - in your opinion - but in fact I think it looks pretty darned good. Martin talks about the diamond hard which is a polyurethane resin. IMO this is the perfect way forward providing a lightweight durable finish. Follow Martins instructions !

Yours is coming on nicely. Glad to hear your not the only one with pilot problems, mine keeps moaning that I'm going to throw the plane off a cliff and he doesn't have a parachute! The ADF antenna system used on the F-86 was used on the early FJ-2. The early FJ-2 had the clear dome mounted aft of the armor plate and a sense antenna on the inner surface of the sliding canopy, straight from the F-86; the dome was replaced by a wire loop on the FJ-3 with no sense antenna on the canopy (I seem to remember reading that this was applied to later F-86's but I may be mistaken). The area behind the ejector seat was simplified - not quite so satisfying from the modelling front but a lot easier.

My build has progressed slowly, largely due to paid real life work ! However my work on the cockpit canopy has been an enjoyable challenge and has come on quite well. I have not made the frame as tidy as Dirks (yet), but the fact I have a prototype frame that looks like a frame has made me smile. So more careful cutting is required and the pilot -Captain 'Stalker' Grey - is most impressed with the cockpit so far. But he remains concerned that he does not have a fuselage, tailplane or wings. The story continues ......