Where was the RAF at Dunkirk?

Started by Paul Barber · 148 · 5 years ago
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    Paul Barber said 5 years, 10 months ago:

    Louis, thank you!

    The Lysander has a large wingspan 50 ft- some 15 ft greater than that of the early spitfires, while their length was very similar (around 30ft). It is very noticeable looking at the kit parts. The same was true of The Storch. I'm a little disappointed by the lack of leading edge wing slats in the kit - although looking at photographs some seem not to have them (perhaps just closed) - the photo you posted from 1939/40 in France certainly does. It may be the variant - I am researching this. Although this photo doesn't show it, some came with a long ladder attached to allow the observer/gunner to get in and out - I guess when you are flying slowly drag reduction is not so much of a concern!

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    Tom Cleaver said 5 years, 10 months ago:

    The Lysander leading edge slats were "cranked" up and down, they weren't Handley-Page slats, and were usually cranked up before shutting down.

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    Paul Barber said 5 years, 10 months ago:

    Thanks Tom. I know it wasn’t originally an Eduard kit, but inclusion of those slats would have made a heck of a difference to this model.

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    Paul Barber said 5 years, 10 months ago:

    An update on the Lysander after my modem died - new one arriving today but I have taken some phone photos so I’ll post via my mobile.

    Started with the radial engine - interesting as the cylinders have to be glued into place.

    Then some masking - Eduard masks as part of the profipack.

    Small sanded parts primed using Vallejo Black Surface Primer.

    Engine painted - Vallejo grey and then mostly dry brushed with Citadel ‘Leadbelcher’ and some Tamiya black panel line accent to pick out details.

    And interior green (Mr Paint - goes on beautifully) and etch added to some key cockpit parts.

    The Spit and Hurri are mostly off sprues and sanded - more later when the new modem arrives!

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    Louis Gardner said 5 years, 10 months ago:

    Sorry to hear about the computer... I had it happen to me before, as have most of us that use these blasted things... But man they sure are nice when they work properly. It's almost a necessity to have one if you are to survive in a "modern" world. Everything is online now days.

    My favorite place is here... 🙂

    Lizzy is looking great, and your phone takes some nice pictures if this is how you're posting them. I'm particularly impressed with the instrument panel. It looks very realistic.

    Looking forward to the next installment, and some Spitfire and Hurricane updates... 🙂

    Good luck with the computer problems.

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    Paul Barber said 5 years, 10 months ago:

    Thanks Louis, well the saga continues - when metered the line showed the issue was outside of the house! So plunged back into Luddite conditions until Monday. No cable, no internet - 21st century problems! Quite enjoying it in some ways.

    So a minor a update but hopefully more over the weekend, engine finished with some rods made of 0.38mm black wire - and the various other bits and pieces attached.


    Also more etch glued on to the frame.

    Seeing the ‘Spitfire fest’ and all of those wheels being painted at once has confirmed that I am not exactly managing to do as I expected with 3 planes in the project. I guess the cockpits are suitably different and once they are put together and the fuselages closed up there may be some 3-way progress. Until then lots of small increments in individual kits.

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    Louis Gardner said 5 years, 10 months ago:

    Paul, you have made some great progress ! In particular I really like how the engine has turned out... It looks as if you somehow managed to shrink down a full sized version 48 times !

    The various metallic finishes look outstanding as well...

    I remember a time about a year ago when we lost power and internet service for over a week during the aftermath of a hurricane. It was living back to the basics. It was nice in some ways, but horrible in others. Things we take for granted, like clean running water, air conditioning and a refrigerator are what you miss most during times like this. The internet and TV would have been considered luxuries... nice to have but not necessary.

    I have found out during my multiple builds that you can get bogged down. This happens to me normally later in the game when you have multiple planes and all are painted differently like I had with the F6F Hellcats during the "Year of the Cat" GB. The parts where they are similar like painting the cockpits actually seemed to fly by.

    I'm hoping the same goes for us during our current endeavors...

    I'll be looking forward to the next installment... well done !

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    Paul Barber said 5 years, 9 months ago:

    Thanks Louis, yes I am looking forward to the camo part of the build. I think the lysander will be suitably different to warrant its own updates - looking at the instructions the Hurri and Spit are a little different in the building too - however I am reading a lot (especially since the outage) and am really enjoying building to a theme. I watched a little of 'The World at War' the other day on DVD and lo and behold there was a Lizzie during the late days of the Battle of France (sadly crashing into the sea) that had what looked to be a metallic underside to the wings.

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    Paul Barber said 5 years, 9 months ago:

    OK, after what seems an eternity here is an update. The framework that makes up the cockpit is built and painted, and some photo etch parts included in the profipack have been used to give the whole thing a bit of a boost. The fuselage interior walls have been painted interior green (Mr Paint). Once the cement has dried I will put a very thin wash over some of the recess lines , but I am generally inclined to move on and close the fuselage around this framework. I have some metal gun barrels to upgrade the kit MGs but will add that assembly towards the end to avoid damaging it or having to paint around it.

    Here some different angles of what I have been up to (phone cam so not perfect).

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    Louis Gardner said 5 years, 9 months ago:

    Stunning... Brilliant... Simply Amazing... These words immediately come to mind when I look at the progress you have made with the Lizzie...

    The engine, along with the seat belts and instruments really make this one pop ! It's almost a shame to cover up these little details with the fuselage. However I think that a good portion of this detail will still be visible once everything is buttoned up.

    I'll be looking forward to seeing the next installment...

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    Paul Barber said 5 years, 9 months ago:

    Thanks Louis, most of it will still be visible as you say - build should go a little faster now that the 'detail' part is done - however the canopy looks 'interesting' - more later on this...

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    Paul Barber said 5 years, 9 months ago:

    Another brief update in the spirit of ‘warts’n’all’. The canopy, bearing in mind my recent experiences with the wonderfully fitting and engineered Tamiya Storch, is looking a little challenging. Not a huge surprise given the humble origins of this kit. These photos show the closed up fuselage around the framework of the cockpit - which fitted well. It will need a little filling.

    The various parts of the canopy can also be seen (the front windscreen is glued in place). The side panels are not the tightest of fits. I will try to work out my strategy for this part of the build overnight!

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    Paul Barber said 5 years, 9 months ago:

    This may seem like another ‘glacial’ post but it is probably important if you are going to build this Lizzie. The support for the wings and the canopy sides are a tight fit. Given that it is a pair of stand alone clear parts - glued to other clear parts - care needs to be taken.

    Above all however I’d suggest building the wings up before any of this construction takes place and making sure they fit well by sliding the support part into place.

    For this to occur for me the wings needed a little filing and this was much better done before the support piece was put in place.


    I am currently considering how I might improve the support mechanism - which feels a little flimsy.

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    Louis Gardner said 5 years, 9 months ago:

    Wow Paul !

    What an update. Your Lizzie is making some serious headway... Looks great too !

    I don't have any ideas for the support mechanism other than possibly trying to hide some fine metal wire inside the tubing ? It's hard to tell by just looking at the pictures online.

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    Paul Barber said 5 years, 8 months ago:

    I managed to get a few hours at the bench today - a rarity at the moment!

    Firstly I cut out a gun bay - the Airfix kit offers the option to pose the bays open, so I decided that on one side I'd give it a go.

    Then I primed various parts of the hurricane cockpit - and painted them using Mr Paint RAF interior green.

    Next I used Alclad lacquers on the Lysander and the Hurricane.


    The Lysander wing undersides were painted with 'Dull Aluminium' - using the undercoat of vallejo black primer to allow a non-uniform coverage (in the first photo the wing on the right is unfinished).

    The cockpit was mostly painted with 'Airframe aluminium' - in this photo the difference between the two Alclad lacquers is fairly obvious!

    Hopefully time will allow me to construct the Hurricane cockpit through this week...