The Big Question ?

[leccyflyer]

Looking good - really like the removable gun trough cover as a battery hatch. My Mick Reeves FW190D "lessons learned"* kit has a nice long thick ABS moulding for that part, which I'd planned to cut down as a battery hatch.

 

 

*The lesson learned was that it is better to buy an original kit, instead of a started and savagely butchered version in the dark of a car park on a Friday night.

[RICHARD WILLS]

An well , to clarify the battery location .

The battery will drop in vertically and remain vertical . That will put all the weight on one spot behind the motor mount . (this will become obvious when we tidy up that area ) .

So the main part of the cowl will form a solid fixed part of the fuselage . The Gun troughs which have their own little panel starting at the back of the nose ring and ending at the back of the cowl will be removeable . That will leave a big  box in the main cowl so that people can use two 3s parallel (if they have say loads of 3s 22000 ) or one of the typical 4s 3300 packs that I have .  There will also be enough room to move them about to get balanced without lead . 

Bloody go idea , if I say so myself 😜

 

[RICHARD WILLS]

Ok , so while I am waiting for the cowl front mould to dry . I can turn my attention to the wings and tail feathers . 

With no undercarriage to worry about , this is a very fast build .

A stencilled wood jig comes in the kit . Use it to draw on the ailerons and then ... thats it !

No just kidding . Cut round the jig . Sharp knife with the grain , and razor saw across the grain . 

Face the back of the wing with short balsa stick provided . Aileron already formed in solid balsa . Add wing tips and leading edge . 

Note I push a pin through both skins to give a peg to hang elastic bands on to retain tip while drying . 

[RICHARD WILLS]

Tail Feathers next . All precut balsa only one joint, on the fin . Front piece and rear piece. My joiner was a bit too deep for the thin chord elevators so had to cut it down .

I will remedy that on the production version . Mylar hinges cut and ready to install . I like to cover it all first , so that can wait . 

Elevators were very carefully drilled to take the elevator joiners . 

 

[RICHARD WILLS]

Cowl mould ready for finishing . It will eventually be resin , but to create the first vac form for my prototype , this should be fine . 

An FMS 190 spinner is shown . I think it looks  correct for the Butcher Bird . Wouldn't  bother with the FMS one though . Too easy to break the  fan blades . The FMS zero one is more practical and allows three blades , but don't do three blade if you're belly landing like me . 

(Eflite picture to remind us where we are going . )

But with better paint job !!😁

[martin collins 1]

Brilliant Richard, you`ll have this built by Sunday evening! 😜 Once we have our kits on the work bench is there a prize for the quickest build from box opening to in the air? Be a good way to blow the Christmas/New year cobwebs away to beat the strip up with one of these Warbirds on January 1st!

[dan h]

Looking super quick to build !

very nice Richard, great job

 

Dan

[RICHARD WILLS]

It would be nice to see what colour schemes you all fancy ? 

Not sure if this link will work 

https://www.pinterest.com.au/geppdude/fw-190-colour-profiles/

if not , here are a few to get started on . 

 

 

[dan h]

Link works fine for me, so many to choose,

I'm thinking,

[martin collins 1]

Bottom desert scheme from your 5 Richard, got to give you some sort of challenge 😜

[leccyflyer]

Josef Priller's FW-190 featured in an attack on Sword Beach, D-Day, 6th June 1944.

 

[Paul De Tourtoulon]

I have a couple of grey coloured planes, probably a colour to be avoided in the British sky's.

[leccyflyer]

I tend to factor that into my decision when it comes to selecting the models to fly on a particular day. On a couple of occasions I have lost orientation when flying an FW190 on a very dull day, as the camouflage can be very effective. However, if one is interested in flying warbirds then it comes with the territory. I have a lot of grey aeroplanes.

[RICHARD WILLS]

All good choices . I'm sure we will get a a few examples on the thread from the speediest builders .

Ive done the desert one on the smaller GWS 190 . I liked it and enjoyed the challenge of getting the green "snakes" consistent!

I agree with all of the comments on disappearing models too . 

A simple cheat , though not for the purists is to choose your scheme and then add white wing tips . Its quite a common "Luftwaffe " look , so doesnt jar the scale sensibilities too much . The Dessert schemes may well have them anyway . 

Red is also useful as a visual marker , so Red 23 which is often modelled is a good one especially with the white tips added . Just a thought. This one also usually has a yellow under cowl panel .  (Red 23 and 13 were flown by the same .....Geezer) 

 

[Graham Davies 3]

2 hours ago, leccyflyer said:

I tend to factor that into my decision when it comes to selecting the models to fly on a particular day. On a couple of occasions I have lost orientation when flying an FW190 on a very dull day, as the camouflage can be very effective. However, if one is interested in flying warbirds then it comes with the territory. I have a lot of grey aeroplanes.

I put my Regianne on the ground ready to fly and then spent half n hour looking for it. Curse those effective camouflage schemes...

[GrumpyGnome]

I'll do mine in a fictitious scheme with red cowl and red rudder - like my avatar..........

[GrumpyGnome]

Any progress on the Tempest?  I know, I'm a cheeky so and so.....

[Graham R]

Amazing progress Richard. Looking forward to seeing it finished.

[martin collins 1]

1 hour ago, GrumpyGnome said:

Any progress on the Tempest?  I know, I'm a cheeky so and so.....

That`s the one i am waiting for but expect Richard will get the FW built up first, i don`t know why but the 190 has never sparked my imagination like the 109 does.

[RICHARD WILLS]

The Tempest wont be far behind . 

[RICHARD WILLS]

Leccy , 

Can we have a bit more detail on your home made Dolly ?

(not that one ) 😬

The one helping your Spitfire to get off the floor .

Although these models could be fitted with retracts later , the whole point is to keep them fast to build and light and easy to operate . 

[Ron Gray]

Now there’s a thought, one of my foam model stands with wheels 😎

[leccyflyer]

Sure Richard.

 

The venerable dolly is the result of my pal Kev and I both making dollies for launching funfighters and Balsacraft fighters. I went conventional with a square and four wheels, but Kev's design was far better in a tricycle configuration. They were both made with the remains of a wrecked Wendy house, comprising plastic tubes and joints, with conventional model aeroplane wheels, which worked well on bowling green standard grass, as here. The tailwheel is a stock item, but I don;t recall the manufacturer. My Balsacraft FW190 and Bearcat worked well, both being rudder equipped.The Spitfire and Zagi even went off the dolly despite the lack of a rudder.

 

 

 

When I moved to a less manicured surface I modified the wheels, using a pair of much larger Flair vintage wheels, as per their scout series. Not shown on these pictures is a third piece of foam, which supports the tail of the model from bouncing up and down on bumpier ground. I rarely use the dolly now as I'm blessed with the assistance of two superb handlaunchers. At 55" span though I think these fighters might be a bit challenging.

 

[leccyflyer]

One mod I might make if doing the dolly again would be to lose the piano wire axle and substitute a pair of stub axles - the reason being if the grass is a bit long then drag on the full width axle might slow the dolly down. I'll weigh the whole thing later and update the thread with the AUW. AS I've observed earlier the most successful dollies that I have seen have been minimal, lightweight strucutres - all too often folks try elaborate, tall contraptions that are unstable, heavy and don't give the model the best chance of getting away - the dolly need be no taller than the appropriate undercarriage legs would be.

[RICHARD WILLS]

Excellent Leccy , we need to get the Dolly options sorted out . 

I was sorry to hear about Wendy's house , hopefully the insurance paid out eventually or she is now living in sheltered accommodation . (what with winter coming ) 

Also , can I suggest , that when we get to the definitive version of a launching Dolly , we refer to it 

as Barbara ?

 

My old friend Brian Brassey , sadly no longer with us , was a master of Dolly launching . His was made of a crucifux shaped heavy gauge piano wire (I hate silver soldering ) and had two vertical pins sticking up into to loose tubes in the wings . As the model got some lift, the top of the cross (under the cowl ) levered the pins out cleanly . 

He even launched his 72" Aerotech Mossie on it !