Vought OS2U Kingfisher - Monogram 1/48

Started by George R Blair Jr · 246 · 1 year ago · 1/48, Jim Sullivan Group, Monogram, Vought OS2U Kingfisher
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    George R Blair Jr said 1 year, 6 months ago:

    Colin (@tail-dragon): Thanks for the info. I had found some of the diagrams from my internet searches, but the instructions from Kittyhawk kit will be helpful. I'm not sure I am prepared to jump as deep down the hole as you did, but we will see. It will be really hard trying to follow your great scratchbuilding.

    Spiros (@fiveten) and Brian (@brithebuilder): We will see how far I am willing to jump down the rabbit hole. I was hoping this would be a quick build, but I don't think that will happen. I may shoot for something between building the kit out-of-the-box and doing a full replacement and scratchbuild of most of the kit.

    I do have a couple of interesting developments:

    First, I got the complete 3D print from Flightline Engineering. It has a complete interior, engine, and float for the Kingfisher. It won't be here for several weeks, so it will go on the next Kingfisher.

    Second, I was digging around in my storage room in the boxes that have my models and other stuff that I moved from my last house. I discovered a resin set for the Kingfisher from Lone Star Models. The set is about 20 years old, so I'm not sure what parts it has and what shape they will be in. I will open the box later and see what they look like.

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    Eric Berg said 1 year, 6 months ago:

    If you go down the rabbit hole, you better wear a helmet because based on all that info Colin supplied and those resin kits, you have a lot of spelunking ahead of you. Wish they had those around when I built mine some 30+ years ago. 3D printing sure has changed the game.

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    George R Blair Jr said 1 year, 6 months ago:

    You are right, Eric (@eb801). The only decision now is how deep to dive.

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    George R Blair Jr said 1 year, 6 months ago:

    The resin set from Lonestar Models is a mixed bag as far as quality goes. Some of the parts are pretty nice, and some are pretty sad. The detail is ragged on some parts, and some of the detail is assymetric. For instance, the troughs for the rudder pedals are not the same length, and they come out of the bulkhead at different angles. Other detail has been compromised to make it easier to mold, especially in the area of the seat. This set was cast back in the days when resin was poured in a mold. Remember the old days? Colin (@tail-dragon) has been kind enough to share his experience using this set, so I kind-of know what to expect. The newer resin set by FlightLine Engineering is produced using 3D printing technology, so the detail should be lightyears ahead of the LSM set. I won't get this new resin set for several weeks, so I plan to use what I can from the LSM set for this build, and then use the FlightLine set for a later build. So, down into the rabbit hole.

    4 attached images. Click to enlarge.

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    Tom Cleaver said 1 year, 6 months ago:

    With care, Mike's set should work. You definitely want the Falcon vacuform canopy now.

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    Spiros Pendedekas said 1 year, 6 months ago:

    Yes, this is the resin of the past, my friend @gblair: in some cases, it was less than perfect. I am sure you will come up with a wonderful result, though.

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    Eric Berg said 1 year, 6 months ago:

    From the sound of it, you might save yourself a heck of a lot of grief by waiting for the FlightLine goodies to arrive, George. Have you been able to peruse their instructions yet?

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    John vd Biggelaar said 1 year, 6 months ago:

    This definitely looks like a challenging resin set, George @gblair
    I'm sure you can tackle those parts and make a great interior out of it.

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    George R Blair Jr said 1 year, 6 months ago:

    Thanks, Tom (@tcinla), Spiros (@fiveten), Eric (@eb801), and John (@johnb). The Flightline set will be a big improvement over the LSM, but they say it takes 2-4 weeks to come in. I want to save the Flightline set for building a float version, since the set comes with a replacement float that looks really nice. I printed the instructions from the Flightline set because they have some great diagrams about how the various parts should look and go together. Some great clues how I might add to the LSM set to level-up the detail a little.

    I think the LSM is mostly usable, providing I can get the pieces off their casting lugs. The resin has gotten very brittle over the years. My plan right now is to clean up the parts from the LSM set and use them in this build. I can add to the set, or modify if I need to. I initially thought this would be a fairly quick build, and I think I still might be able to use the resin to move things along. I got a replacement cowling yesterday, but still need an engine. I found one on Ebay and it is on the way. Squadron is making vac canopies again and I have one on the way. I have never used a vac canopy before, so another new experience.

    I am still working on cleaning and arranging my hobby room, but should get started soon. When we moved into our new house last year, I did just enough work in my hobby room to make it usable, but there was a lot of stuff that was never really put where it needed to be. I am taking a few days now to actually arrange and store stuff so I can find it when I need it. I hope everyone has a great weekend. Cheers.

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    George R Blair Jr said 1 year, 6 months ago:

    I had an interesting day today. I was thinking about cleaning up the resin from Lone Star Models, but I just couldn't get going. The parts aren't bad, but they aren't really good, either. One of my synapses fired just right and I remembered that Cutting Edge used to make really good resin sets "back in the day". What are the chances that they had a set for the Kingfisher? I checked on Scalemates.com and discovered they had a very comprehensive set that looked very nice. I found an online review of the set and apparently this resin set can actually walk on water. I think Cutting Edge closed their doors in the early 2000s, but perhaps I could find the stuff I needed somewhere. I checked all of my online hobby shops with no luck. I tried several of the overseas hobby stores, but no luck their either. I tried oldmodelkits.com and rare-planedetective.com with no luck. I tried Ebay with similar results. I tried a general search on Google and found lots of info, but no sets for sale. After looking for a couple of hours, I abandoned the search.

    Later in the day I was searching Ebay for some photoetch I needed for another kit when I looked down and there was a message that said I might be interested in the Kingfisher set from Cutting Edge, with a note that it was just posted. I hit the link and discovered a mint Kingfisher set had just been posted. The problem was that it was up for bid, and the bids didn't close out for 10 more days. I contacted the seller (with little hope) to see if they might be interested in selling the set immediately. I have seen some of the Cutting Edge sets for other models going for almost $100 on Ebay, so I didn't think there was a chance. I got his reply a few minutes later and he asked me to make an offer. I was really surprised when he accepted the offer. I think he could have gotten a lot more if he had let the auction run its course. I did tell him in my initial message that I was building a kit right now that could really, really, really use this set. Maybe that's what convinced him. So, anyway, the Kingfisher set is already on its way and I have again received evidence that my Karma is in sync with the universe. The resin should be here by mid-week. Yeah.

    1 attached image. Click to enlarge.

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    Eric Berg said 1 year, 6 months ago:

    I always thought Cutting Edge cockpit sets were superb. So are their decals which you can still buy new at ridiculously high prices direct online from Dave Klaus. Good move George @gblair. Luck is with you.

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    Tom Cleaver said 1 year, 6 months ago:

    Yes, the Cutting Edge set can walk on water. I did it and it really made everything sit up and sing.

    https://modelingmadness.com/review/allies/us/cleaveros2u.htm

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    Tom Cleaver said 1 year, 6 months ago:

    @eb801 - since nobody else did the markings options of any of the Meteor/Cutting Edge decals, they're still good and the prices aren't out of line for what you get.

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    Spiros Pendedekas said 1 year, 6 months ago:

    The Universe converged to your willingness, my friend @gblair! Thisooks to be a superb cockpit set. Looking forward to see it on your Kingfisher once it arrives!

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    John vd Biggelaar said 1 year, 6 months ago:

    Luck really turned towards you, George @gblair
    This Cutting Edge interior looks great. Let's hope you will get it delivered shortly.