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Blackadder's Scratchbuilt Thunderhawk

Blackadder

By Blackadder
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Blackadder Veteran

Blackadder

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Vents Finally Done

 
After a week of knee surgery convalescence I finally got my groove back and finished the vent slats. Not up to my usual standard but they are in a position that I can readily replace them if I get ambitious.
 
The main gun superstructure should go together quickly now that these labor intense objects are completed.
 


http://i.imgur.com/JcsFVWZ.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/JcsFVWZl.jpg

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Paradigm Venerable Brother

Paradigm

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I just gave your thread a read-through. Got to say this is inspiring. I've been doing small scale scratch building for a long time, and can really respect your patience and dedication. This project is epic!

 

Don't worry about a plastic Thunderhawk. If they release one, it will be far less detailed. And if that happens to be the model in the background of those photos, its a lot uglier than yours.

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Aqui Venerable Brother

Aqui

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After a week of knee surgery convalescence I finally got my groove back and finished the vent slats. Not up to my usual standard but they are in a position that I can readily replace them if I get ambitious.

Cartilage? In any case, after two knee operations (PVNS/Cartilage) I feel your pain Brother sad.png

Still in awe of this project! I look forward to the day it is complete happy.png

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Blackadder Veteran

Blackadder

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Yes, shredded meniscus actually also painful but better now, thanks.

 

 

Superstructure Continues:

If there is a roundabout way to do things leave it to the Blackadder to pursue that course.

The superstructure seems a straightforward trapezoidal structure with nothing out of the ordinary to complicate building it until I decided the perpendicular sides should cant in a few degrees at the top and the three armour plates on either side likewise. This adds a taper to the structure's sides much as the columns curve slightly on the Parthenon to give a better illusion of straightness. Were the sides perfectly perpendicular they would appear to flair at the top.

I also changed the angle of the rear vent panel because my T'hawk is much longer than the original and therefore can be more streamline...... (? Really, Streamline?)

The overall effect is longer, lower and wider than the FW model and even the 3D rendering is slightly blockier.

I hope I don't come to regret these departures.........


http://i.imgur.com/aDLrvCg.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/aDLrvCgl.jpg


http://i.imgur.com/d9Ekz6j.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/d9Ekz6jl.jpg

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Blackadder Veteran

Blackadder

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Simple Trunnion Mount for Cannon

For those of us with childish bents that have to have moving parts on their models a simple trunnion mount for the main cannon on the T'hawk.

Starting with a reinforced 7/16 tube with an 3/8 tube sleeve inserted for strength I bored a 3/16th diameter hole through the exact dead center of the tube to mount the barrel core.

http://i.imgur.com/DzsSh0s.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/DzsSh0sl.jpg

Using 2 x 6 mm scrap strips for the trunnion mounts in the superstructure clamped in place with clothes pins overnight gave me a strong base to mount the trunnions.

http://i.imgur.com/YXQQDKO.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/YXQQDKOl.jpg

With the barrel mount trunnions in place in the slot I'm ready to seal the forward end of the mount to capture the elevation assembly for a simple and effective cannon mount elevation system.

http://i.imgur.com/jfO9HW2.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/jfO9HW2l.jpg

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Blackadder Veteran

Blackadder

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Green Stuff, Certainly Not!
 

When I make a bad seam as I have just done I feel its important to demonstrate how I remedy the mistake.
 
http://i.imgur.com/FXw7EYxl.jpg 
 
Now Green Stuff I understand is unreasonable costly and I have never purchased a tube and styrene is readily repairable; first I clean the bad seam so an inlay can be inserted:
 
http://i.imgur.com/rusfoJ5l.jpg
 
I then take a wisp of scrap styrene (Sorry for the blurred image) and slide it into the seam:
 
http://i.imgur.com/aq8pTx2l.jpg
 
Apply a drop of liquid styrene cement (I use Ambroid ProWeld Thin Cement) and allow to dry for a minute.
 
File off the excess and you're done:
 
http://i.imgur.com/yDlKDMal.jpg
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Blackadder Veteran

Blackadder

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Range Finder Component
 
I guess the rectangular box on top of the superstructure is some sort of range finder and since the ones included with the sponson mounted lascannons on the Landraider are physically too small I had to scratch a larger one. 
 
Fortunately the Leman Russ fenders are approximately the size required so I used the smallest for the 'Finder.
 
http://i.imgur.com/diH9vs8l.jpg
 
I used a Jerry can for the interior and a set of binoculars for the range lenses and am dressing the skin to simulate the surface of the item in the 3D image below
 

http://i.imgur.com/FXw7EYxl.jpg 

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Blackadder Veteran

Blackadder

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The Risk of Too Much Coverage
 
The Main gun superstructure was surprisingly easy to build considering how much I put off building it......... Jeez Blackadder that main cannon looks awfully tiny?
 
Right now the above wing armour is sketched in which should give a bit of a boost to the verisimilitude of the project. 
 

http://i.imgur.com/VWnMSIrl.jpg

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Blackadder Veteran

Blackadder

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Hull Armour
 
Heavier and Heavier, this model has slabs of simulated armour that causes serious doubt on the ability to actually remain in the air. Engines powerful as they may be eventually reach a point of diminishing returns. Slabs of armour 4 cm thick and covering 10's of square meters of coverage. That said the new armour surely looks cool. 
 

http://i.imgur.com/ey73N3il.jpg

 
I vacillate on liking this model to incredulity whether it  has any chance of airworthiness
 
http://i.imgur.com/7LnDZqxl.jpg
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Blackadder Veteran

Blackadder

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Free Raised Letters for Your Models
 
I scraped these off the mouthwash caps when I built the T'hawk's exhaust cones.
 
Perfect raised letters (excuse the shaking of the camera in the photo); I cut these off with the chisel tool in the picture but a razor would do as well. 
 
Of course you are limited to the common letters embossed on the caps of products and prescription drug containers but with judicious editing names etc can be worked out.......
 

http://i.imgur.com/HDHABhXl.jpg

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Blackadder Veteran

Blackadder

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The Flying Turbo Laser Spar
 
The hull trunnion mounts are simple now that I have addressed myself to the fabrication. The only problem is that the wing as I have it situated is about 13 mm too far forward. A simple matter to correct but a good learning experience for me. Don't apply detail until all the basic structure is completed.
 

http://i.imgur.com/KzQSzEG.jpg
 

http://i.imgur.com/KzQSzEGl.jpg
 
 
http://i.imgur.com/UQCNriJl.jpg
 
The most amazing thing about this mistake is it brings the wing trailing edge back to the original projected position when I first laid out the model.
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Blackadder Veteran

Blackadder

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In my defense the model has been kicking around for three to four years and has picked up considerable grime in that time. Some of the original plasticard has yellowed it is so old. 

 

You will note in the image below in the lower right corner my original mark and scrawl indicating the trailing edge wing root and the revised position about a half inch forward where I have cut out the gear well and glued in the gear retract guide.

 

http://i.imgur.com/UQCNriJ.jpg

 

 Now I must extend the well back 1/2 inch and reposition the retract guide likewise. It could have been worse, I could have mounted the completed wing and had to hack the thing apart to correct the mistake!

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Blackadder Veteran

Blackadder

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The Flying Laser Spar:

Now that the hinge points are established on the hull I can make an estimate on the placement of the Turbo Laser flying spar mount. This structure was added to the FW design to no doubt support the heavy moment of the wing as no amount of gluing could prevent the wings from falling off or drooping on the FW model. Even my wings lightly built as they are suffer from excessive tip droop with my temporary attach screws.
Anyway I guessed at the placement of the wings on the fuselage and for some reason doubted my placement and mounted them 13 mm further than my original guess. Now I have to reposition them further back the same 13 mm.
The Flying Spar core structure I guesstimated to be 145 mm long from hinge point to wing cradle the excess being cut off when the Lasers are manufactured. I placed the width at 35 mm which seems a judicious size to build on and 2.5 mm thick which gives me a nice slot to mount the Turbolasers.
http://i.imgur.com/ck138svl.jpg
All this will begin to make more sense once the spars are mounted on the hinge trunnion, least wise I hope as I am totally making this up as I proceed.......... biggrin.png
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Blackadder Veteran

Blackadder

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Flying Lascannon Strut:

 
Surprisingly the proportions appear okay and when the wing is positioned aft about a centimeter the strut should fall about mid camber (of course ''camber'' isn't something that concerned engineers in the far distant future but we won't go there.)
 
http://i.imgur.com/GfpJUvol.jpg
 
The tubing seems to provide enough friction to maintain the position in "Attack" and "Stowed" mode but I'll double sleeve the tubes just to provide for wear. 
 
http://i.imgur.com/41URWSjl.jpg
 
What's going on with the letter colour? Every reply I make the letters come out a dark gray almost invisible on this black background. How to I change this permanently back to white on black or reset the reply editor?
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Blackadder Veteran

Blackadder

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 TurboLaser Struts 1

 

My old drafting table has seen better days. Since the advent of digital drafting it has been employed as a styrene cutting board instead.

 

Right now it is a convenient place to image the T'hawk as the model has become too big to readily display on conventional furniture.

 


http://i.imgur.com/RoDb5QEl.jpg

 

Detailing the struts started with the root camber although "camber" is not the correct word to describe the bowing of the flight surface as it is symmetrical top and underside. Camber technically would refer to an asymmetry between top and bottom curves. Anyway I like the "camber" because it adds interest to otherwise boring flat surfaces with minimal effort.

 


http://i.imgur.com/oW9Sv3Rl.jpg

 

The struts in the stowed position as in the conventional FW original take on a less dynamic demeanor (IMHO) now that I see them in the attack mode. Those of you with FW T'hawks might want to try this configuration for a change from the ordinary.

 


http://i.imgur.com/RJVMlvcl.jpg

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Blackadder Veteran

Blackadder

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So what materials are you going to use to construct the cannon?

0.020 inch sheet styrene wrapped around a core tube to achieve the requisite diameter same as I did for the Warlord main cannons (This is where it pays to have a wholesale source of sheet styrene) and then just glue on gobs of detail bits until it looks something like a Volcano Cannon. 

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Blackadder

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Turbo Struts Continues:

 
Trying the struts out for fit everything seems in order to mount at least temporarily the Lasers so I can get an approximation where to put the tip saddles. 
 
http://i.imgur.com/AIuz4Otl.jpg
 
With the struts in the attack position this thing really give a thrilling aspect to the T'hawk concept.............. I'm starting to like this model.
 
http://i.imgur.com/dySV1XKl.jpg
 
(Note to self; install stops to limit degree of travel for the struts.)
 
The obligatory little guy for scale comparison. This ship is huge.
 
http://i.imgur.com/8efdRtYl.jpg
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