duncan

Was there ever an aircraft called "Swan" ? Sopwith Swan sounds right but I cant remember one.

wonwinglo

The great thing about modelling is that we can create any period of history,or any object in miniature,the themes are endless and even the history of aviation in miniature is a daunting project as many have found out.But there is another avenue to take,that of creating a 'Marque' in miniature,by taking a particular company we can trace the evolution of that subject in a logical and constructive way,for example I have been working at the De Havilland theme for some years now,this in itself is far from easy as many of the aircraft have not been kitted,but by using plans and photographs enabled me to scratchbuild quite a few of them.The picture above shows a few Moths with a Spartan Arrow on the extreme left to show of a strong contender to their light aircraft designs,a follow on to these are the Dragon,Rapide,Comet,Mosquito etc.
Just as stamp collectors can never hope of acquiring every single issue of the world,as builders of models we need to set our aims,by doing this we have an objective to work towards and thus gain a specialist interest in our subject matter.
As suggestions you could not only choose to model a particular manufacturer,but the history of a particular squadron or airline,or say the history of VTOL flight ? the permutations are just endless,and once more in the unlikely event that you have built every model in that particular stable,you can then move onto another subject to keep you busy ?

__________________
'And there I was oil on my goggles from a broken pipe,then I looked at the altimeter,all I could see was the makers name !'
www.wonwinglo.scale-models.net/

Nigel.D

Duncan It was a joke mate lol !!!!!!!

wonwinglo

BE2C Card cut out model.


BUILDING MODELS FROM CARD

Card and paper modelling is probably the oldest form of model building in use today,in fact there is a new and revived interest thanks to the internet,now thousands of card model designs can be easily downloaded,printed and built up into practical small scale models,we have our very own card models here on this site which have now been downloaded in their thousands to individuals and schools throughout the world,so why card as a modelling material ? well there are many good reasons firstly it is available anywhere and appeals to many who live in conditions where sanding dust etc is a no no,also it replicates very nicely the structures of boats,battleships,farm and fairground equipment,aircraft,trains and traction engines,being a sheet material that is easily bent around an inner structure it lends itself to some detailed built up constructional techniques,once more it is easily sealed to make it not only tough but waterproof and can be painted with either enamel or acrylic paints as desired,in fact the sky is the limit and only your own imagination restricts what you want to build,its fun,cheap and available.
One of the better card stocks is called Bristol board,this is obtainable from local art shops in sheets or large format books,it has a nice smooth surface,is easy to bend and form into the most tricky of shapes,a good tip is to get hold of some sorbo rubber,three layers of carpet underlay is ideal,place the card onto the sorbo and with an ordinary domestic teaspoon rub gently against the card which is placed onto the foam,soon the card will take on a dished shape,much the same as a panel beater uses a sandbag to do his panel beating,with practise all types of forms can be made up,simply experiment and get to know both your tools and materials,other useful tools are a good steel rule,the best can be an industrial hacksaw blade,the staggered teeth either side assist in gripping the card which is placed onto a self healing mat,ordinary craft knives are suitable for cutting out the shapes or a small pair of curved nail scissors also come in useful,adhesives are imporetant with card as every type of modelling,UHU do some excellent products,also thinned PVA adhesive applied with a stick or stiff paintbrush are ideal,for sealing the card use two part furniture sealer,better known to us as Tufcote fuel proofer,once mixed up apply to the card outside as this stuff really stinks,once set it is like a piece of metal especially as it soaks into the pores of the card.Also useful in card modelling are various types of adhesive tape,masking tape is excellent for the temporary holding together of the parts,for inner strengthening use the licky sticky type of brown paper tape,you can still get this from art shops simply ask for watercolour paper securing tape and they will know what you want.
You can easily design your very own models drawing out the subjects onto the card itself and scribing fold lines with a blunt tool such as a well worn kitchen knife,to fold the card hold it against the steel rule and bend it over,the inner joints can be re-inforced with strips of balsa wood used as a suitable fillet,for making up railway buildings card reigns supreme,it is easy to cut and shape.More ambitious shapes can be created by rolling around a piece of dowel,use a wooden rolling pin to curve the card gently onto the sorbo rubber base,by applying different amounts of pressure you can get different effects,secure the ends with tabs cut into the card,splay these outwards or inwards if it is possible to get at the parts during assembly if this is not possible plug with pieces of balsawood.
I have seen a variety of models made up from a tiny scooter and side car to an impressive bridge modelled on Ironbridge for an exhibition,there are also hundreds of card cut out books available if you are prepared to look out for them,these originate from an early pioneer called Wallis Rigby,this person used a variety of card models as advertising mediums,he would get manufacturers involved and sell them his wonderful designs,these appeared in full colour during the early thirties,also some comics had weekly parts within their pages,for example aeroplane models with one wing one week,then some parts for the fuselage etc much the same as modern part works,except more reliable ! So you can see the modern Plastikard sheet is just a development of good old cardboard,save your cereal boxes they not only make excellent templates for your models but is also good material in itself for building small miniatures.Most of all remember card modelling is far from dead,in countries like Czechloslovakia it is a very popular form of modelling,and these countries are excellent sources of inspiration for us all.

__________________
'And there I was oil on my goggles from a broken pipe,then I looked at the altimeter,all I could see was the makers name !'
www.wonwinglo.scale-models.net/

duncan

I know , I know , just wondering if they had ever used the name since it was a cinch for an amphibian, every other water-bird seems to have been used, Goose , Duck, Mallard etc etc. Why not a Swan. Bad Luck Bird or something ? Card modelling : check the Marcle Models site for an insight to the vast range of subjects available in that medium.

Bunkerbarge

Never underestimate the value of good old PVA glue. I use it a lot on the model boat superstructure in the form of Weatherproof Resin W glue but it is basically the same stuff I was using when I first started modelling many years ago.

It is a perfect medium for so many materials that would be susceptable to problems with some of the solvent types of glue.

One of the real bonuses though is that for intricate woodwork or cardwork you can water it down to whatever consistency you require and paint it onto assembled pieces and let the glue soak into the material. I quite often do this with delicate stuff then paint over a thicker consistency when things are held in place.

wonwinglo

PVA is so versatile,and cheap,you can buy a big bucket of the stuff from any DIY shop for a few pounds,I mix it in jam jars different consistencies,the thinnest is used as a type of clear dope on tissue etc,the full strength makes good fillets,I also like the way it dries smooth and clear and can be painted over,Polyvinyl Acetate is one of the wonders of this century coupled with the amazing qualities of Cynoacrylate.
Builders use PVA as a membrane on concrete floors,I have seen them using a broom to spread it across the surface.

__________________
'And there I was oil on my goggles from a broken pipe,then I looked at the altimeter,all I could see was the makers name !'
www.wonwinglo.scale-models.net/

Bunkerbarge

My garage floor got three coats of a proprietary treatment before paining which is basically a thinned PVA compound. I spread it around with a broom!

First coat very thin, second 50-50 and the last full strength.

When I was at school we used to mix it with powder paint and use it as oil paints. All the advantages of oils with the versatility of a water based medium.

I have also used it mixed with black powder paint as a caulking for model boat planked decks. (See the Ben Ain thread)

It is amazing stuff with endless uses.

wonwinglo

Apparently it seals all dust in the concrete floor,gets into all of the pores,your use at school with powder paint was pioneering stuff,as you know today we have acrylic paint a modern day oil colour,Winsor & Newton make a basic colour pigment for all of their range of colours ie Water colour,Poster colour,Gouache,Oil Colour,pastels, for water colour they add gum arabic,white body paint plus gum arabic for Gouache which makes it a non transparent version of water colour,ditto for poster paint but coarser pigment for cheapness,linseed oil plus driers for the oil paint,a binder for the pastel chalks and for the Acrylic range polyvinyl acetate,this makes into a thick bodied paint that does not take weeks or months to dry as per oil colour.
And then the former cellulose based plastic woods etc we now have...yes you have guessed it polyvinyl acetate,which is incidently finely ground into a powder and dissolves with the colour.
Knowing how these things are made gives you a much greater understanding of the individual products.

__________________
'And there I was oil on my goggles from a broken pipe,then I looked at the altimeter,all I could see was the makers name !'
www.wonwinglo.scale-models.net/

Nigel.D

Copydex the best masking material known to man!!!!!!