Certainly, Real G! You’re on the list. That one looks certainly under 50%. (Gorufukurabu wa sore dakede jūbundesu ka?)
I consider 50% to be completely assembled with cockpit painted, but the rest of the paint and decals not on (or thereabouts). YMMV.
Gary
Gorufukrurabu? A Japanese friend once told me “Neeru-San, in gorufu, you no get three strike.”
Gary: I’m not sure. I looked for the kit but couldn’t find it. I thought it was Revell though. Maybe a different kit, maybe I’m imaging it. I dunno…
Real G: Very cool! It’s an awesome looking plane. I wish someone would do it in 1/48th.
Gamera,
I hate it when that happens. [;)] And I didn’t know of this aircraft, so I’m surprised it is even in 1/72nd!
Just a few more days until this GB gets underway.
Gary
I seem to recall seeing a Hasegawa B-47 in an AMT box, so maybe that was the case for the Rita.
I would love it if Hasegawa went back to their large 1/72 aircraft catalog and made new kits. They already did the Betty and Emily, but there must be demand for the others as I regularly see them being built, like the P-3 Orion, which seems to be one of their evergreen kits. I’d really like to see new kits of the Rita, Mavis, Marlin and B-47.
It’s time to begin the X-periment. I hope I’ll make it interesting for you guys, so most of all, have fun! Nothing I hate more than beginning a project only to have many things go wrong. Let’s hope all of your builds are trouble free!
Meanwhile, since this is the anniversary of the breaking of the sound barrier, I’ll include a little write up on the aircraft I’m building, the Bell X-1 (or XS-1).
The Bell X-1 is one of the most significant aircraft in the history of aviation. It was the first manned aeroplane to exceed the speed of sound in level flight, a feat it achieved on October 14, 1947. This marked a critical point in aeronautical research and forever changed the course of aviation, paving the way for the development of supersonic and eventually, hypersonic flight.
In 1944, during the last years of World War II, the U.S. Army Air Forces and the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA, the precursor to NASA) jointly launched a research project aimed at breaking the “sound barrier”—a perceived limit to how fast an aircraft could fly without suffering severe aerodynamic problems. The initiative was given the name “XS-1,” with the “X” standing for “experimental” and “S” for “supersonic”.
Bell Aircraft Corporation was selected to develop the aircraft in 1945. The X-1 was powered by a Reaction Motors XLR-11 rocket engine, which used ethyl alcohol and liquid oxygen as propellants. Additionally, a unique launch process was used whereby the X-1 was carried aloft under the belly of a modified B-29 or B-50 bomber to save fuel, before being air-dropped for its flight.
Test flights were conducted at Muroc Army Air Field (later renamed Edwards Air Force Base) in California, a location chosen for its remote desert setting and long, flat surface—ideal for the X-1’s skid-based landing system. X-1 was approximately 30.9 feet long with a wingspan of about 28 feet. Its overall height stood at around 10.4 feet. The aircraft adopted a shape reminiscent of a .50 calibre bullet, known for its stable flight even at supersonic speeds.
The fuselage of the Bell X-1 was constructed from K-Monel, a robust and corrosion-resistant copper-nickel alloy, designed to withstand the immense heat and pressure generated at supersonic speeds. Its windscreen was made of quartz and was capable of handling temperature up to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
In conclusion, the Bell X-1 was more than just an aircraft; it was a marvel of engineering, embodying the dreams and ambitions of the time.
I’ll post up pictures of the actual model parts later. Looks interesting.
Gary
And it had… The Right Stuff.
I’ll get my coat.
Well… someone did. [:D]
The kit itself is interesting. There are 3 versions you can paint up, and it comes with four fuselages. Two halves are transparent, so you can show the internal workings of the rocket system. If you only had two more wings and tail you could build two different versions. Maybe I’ll try to make them and build two, but not for this GB.
Also, it comes with convenient ball bearing for weighting the nose. I guess it would be a tail-sitter without it.
Of course, I intend to build it wheels-up, so no need for worrying about weight.
Anybody know what color orange I should use?
Gary
Okay, kicking off the GB with a test fitting.
The Meng Ki-98 fits like a glove. The Xtrakit SR.A/1, not so much. Not even a little. Not even a little bit. Holy time warp, Batman, it’s like MPM back in the 1990s! But I big boy so I no cry. It’s the 21st century, and I have my tools of destruction and skillset (HA!) to deal with this kit. A fellow over on Britmodeller, I believe, recently did this kit to an exceptional level of fit and finish. So the bar is set.
But yeah, the Ki-98 is super simple by comparison, so it will get done first.
Oh yeah, some potted history:
The Saunder-Roe SR.A/1 was borne from a late 1940s Royal Navy requirement for a jet propelled seaplane fighter. The idea was that the need for vulnerable forward air bases would be eliminated, allowing the fighter to be deployed almost anywhere there was a body of water. Three protoypes were constructed, and while they exhibited decent flying characteristics, it was felt that their performance fell short of the land based jet fighters that were being developed at the time.
Notable features included use of the first production Martin Baker ejection seats and an ingenious outrigger float retraction system that rotated the floats so that they nestled under the wings in an inverted positon to cut drag. Two were lost in accidents, and the sole surviving aircraft currently resides in the Solent Sky Museum.
The Mansyu Ki98 was a late WW II Imperial Japanese Army ground attack aircraft project that didn’t proceed as far as the Saunders-Roe fighter. I beilieve a prototype was under construction, but all materials and documents were destroyed to prevent them from falling into Aliied hands. The Ki-98, although fantastic looking for an IJA aircraft, was similar to a number of successful designs like the SAAB J 21 and DeHavilland Vampire.
The Ki-98 was designed for ground attack, so a pair of 20mm and a single 37mm cannon were to be housed in the nose. Power was to come from a turbo-supercharged 2,000 HP engine buried in the fuselage and cooled by flush slots and no doubt an internal fan. Another unusual feature was the tricycle landing gear, necessary due to the rear mounted pusher propeller.
Its IJN cousin, the Kyushu J7W1 Shinden, got a bit further with a completed prototype and even a few test hops. The Shinden was designed to be a bomber interceptor, but both it and the Ki-98 featured heavy nose mounted cannon armament, pusher engines in the 2,000 HP class, and tricycle landing gear.
Gary,
I think the X-1 was painted a straight orange, not the day-glo or international red that subsequent prototypes were painted. I have seen some photos of the real X-1 looking faded on top during testing, probably due to the scorching sun.
Real G-no doubt in my mind that you’ll have both kits whipped into shape in no time. And thank you (and Gary with the X-1) for the history behind the planes.
I was able to get some work done on the Olds Aerotech. Got the body primed and had an extra tail section for the long tail-decided to see if I liked Tamiya spray Gloss Aluminium (left side) or Tamiya acrylic Chrome Aluminum (air brush with Tamiya lacquer thinner)-right side. Think I’m gonna go with the rattle can for the gloss finish. Now I’ll tape off and spray/airbrush some Gunmetal Gray and see if that works out.
Assembled the short tail chasis/floor pan-not the best of fits but nothing that super glue and putty didn’t fix
Did some dry fitting and and now aware that this kit might not be best served to leave the upper body panels unglued to the chasis pan-we’ll see but maybe the engine cover and cowling might be left unattached.
Primed chasis with Indy Car sub-structure primed-chasis interior will get airbrush aluminium and Indy Car fuselage with be black-Carbon fiber would be better but black is close enough…
Probably won’t get much more done until Thursday but pleased with not waiting until close to the end of a GB to get started.
Real G,
Thanks for the write-ups on the Ki-98 and the SRA-1. I was planning to do episodes on X-craft as a feature of the group build to keep it interesting, and to learn something. Always happy when someone beats me to it. [:)]
As for the problems with fit of the SRA-1, I guess that can be expected. Hopefully, they won’t be too much of a problem.
And as for the color, I did a bit of research last night. I think Testors orange might be close enough according to sources. We’ll see.
Bob,
That is nice! I think the rattle can gloss looks best on the left side. I like to get an early start on GBs, as I usually run into problems that make me months late. YMMV.
As for me, I’ve cut out the pit and fuselage to see how they fit. I don’t expect any problems with it since its from Tamiya. I’m not sure about the color call-outs, however. I get various colors from different sources. Guess that’s too be expected too.
I’ve made a tracing of the wing on some plasticard to use on a future version. Luckily, Tamiya provides a canopy for a later version, though no pit. Looks like some scratch-building in my future. [:)]
The Testor bottle is there to show size. A pretty small aircraft.
Gary
To keep up the X-perimental nature of this group, I present the
Oldsmobile Aerotech
At the end of 1984, the development of Oldsmobile Quad 4 engine was beginning. It was an inline-4 engine incorporating four valves per cylinder and dual overhead camshafts, an innovative technology used on a four-cylinder engine at the time. Oldsmobile advertised the engine to be highly fuel efficient and powerful. The engine generated a maximum power output of 150 hp (112 kW) and 160 lb⋅ft (217 N⋅m) in its standard configuration, outclassing the four-cylinder engines developed by German automobile manufacturers BMW and Mercedes, even rivalling Honda’s 2.5-liter V6 engine.
By the end of 1986, the construction of the first car was completed; the car was tested by A. J. Foyt at the General Motors proving grounds at Mesa, Arizona. Foyt, who was initially skeptical about the car’s potential, admired the car’s capabilities as he managed to take the car to speeds up to 218 mph (351 km/h) on the test track. Foyt is said to have admired the car for its stability at high speeds.
After the successful runs at the General Motors proving grounds, the development team decided to put Welburn’s long-tail design to test as well. Construction of a second car in this specification had begun in late 1985. The second car was almost the same as the first but featured elongated rear bodywork tapering downwards and a different engine, departing from the original 2.3-liter single turbocharged Quad 4 engine built by Batten to a twin turbocharged 2.3-litre Quad 4 engine, built in collaboration with Fueling Engineering. The new engine proved to be even more capable than its predecessor and generated a maximum power output in excess of 1,000 hp (746 kW).
On August 26, 1987, the development team, in the presence of FIA officials, tested the two completed cars on the Fort Stockton test track. Initial tests with the short-tail version of the car resulted in an average speed of 250.919 mph (403.815 km/h), falling close behind the closed-course speed record set by the Mercedes CIII-IV development prototype. As the team went on to adjust the car’s aerodynamics, A. J. Foyt tested the second car (long-tail version). The long-tail version proved to be even more capable than its short-tail sibling and allowed Foyt to attain a top speed of 275 mph (443 km/h) at the flying mile after some practice runs.
The next day, Foyt set a new speed record with the long-tail version, averaging 267.399 mph (430.337 km/h) after flying-mile runs in both directions of the track. The runs made with the now improved short-tail version, shortly after, resulted in a new closed-course speed record of 257.123 mph (413.799 km/h), beating Mercedes’ record by a big margin.
Oldsmobile produced three versions of the original Aerotech to prove the capabilities of the company’s Quad 4 engine. Two cars were built with shorter rear body work and were called Short Tail versions (ST), and one was built with a longer rear body work and thus called the Long Tail (LT).
Subsequently, between December 7 and 15, 1992, another version of the Aerotech, this time powered by a 4.0-litre Oldsmobile Aurora V8 engine and now fitted with functional lights, broke 47 speed endurance records, including the 10,000- and 25,000-kilometre world speed records. Other national and international speed records ranging from 10 kilometres to 24 hours were accomplished by a team of drivers working 24 hours a day for 8 days. These records were also set at the Fort Stockton test track.
Finished up the pit and glued the stabilizers on. Not the greatest, but its done. The red blob is my attempt to create a pilot figure. We’ll see how it goes.
I then glued on the wings. I’ve put together the stand that comes with it. This is where she is now. I’ll attempt to refine the pilot figure and give her some filler and primer next.
She’s coming along nicely.
Gary
She looks good Gary. Think I’m going to have to add that kit to my stash-makes more sense than the Revell 1/48 kit-especially for space purposes.
If you are building Yeager’s record setting flight, be sure to add broom stick to the cockpit [;)]
And thank you for posting the info for the Aerotech. I did get most parts primed today and hope to paint the body tomorrow. Still researching the color(s) for the floor pan. Nice thing is that there are plenty of pics online.
Those look great guys! Sorry I’ve been a little out of the loop but hopefully I’m back now.
Bob,
Thanks! It’s a nice little kit. You actually get two for one, as long as you can make some wings for it. I’ll include the broom handle just as soon as I find a saw small enough. [;)]
I was meaning to ask, is this the long-tailed or short-tailed version?
Gamera,
I understand you’ve been down with the flu. Hope you’re feeling better! Take care of yourself. This is just a hobby, after all. [:)]
Gary
Gary-Short Tail version. Hope to pick another one up someday and build the Long Tail.
Gary: Thanks, I’m feeling a lot better now.
I still have some stuff to finish up by the end of the year but I’m thinking of getting a little work done on the FV2005. The suspension system is so complicated I can work on it during some downtime.
Bob, email me. jeaton01(at)gmail.com