Post by dennisp on Aug 29, 2008 20:42:14 GMT 8
With the jet meet in October getting close it was time to get my act together and build the Fly Fly F-86…
So a little history first…..
We all know that USAF F-86 was a successful MIG killer but I suspect that not many of you realized that the RAF also had Sabre’s, mainly due to the late arrival of Hawker Hunters to replace the Meteor and Vampire. The Canadair Sabre F.4 is actually a F-86 built under license by Canadair and is the Mk.4 version, they were delivered to the RAF in 1953 as part of the Tactical Air Force Squadron no. 67, followed by Squadrons 3, 4, 20, 67, 71, 93, 130 and 234 which were all based in Germany . The RAF Sabre XB982 (#73) was used as a test bed for the Bristol Siddeley Orpheus 801 engine.
The life of the RAF Canadian Sabres in active service was very short and they were all replaced by Hawker Hunters in 1956 and most them were transferred to Italy (180 aircraft) and Yugoslavia (121) the 302 ex. RAF Sabres were returned to the USAF between 1956 and 1958 and were given the designation F-86E(M) for modified.
So what is the plan well being I was born in the UK my F-86 has to be a RAF one and I just happen to possess a limited edition die cast model of XB673 which was based in Widenrath, Germany in 1953 to get the detail from (thinks I was xx years old then…!!).
Let us get started…..
Just a heads up well in advance this is going to be a relatively slow build for reasons that will become apparent as we move along…
Having emptied the box on the bench it was where do we start and the size of the FF is big and the instant concern was hanger rash on that foam, decision time was here to glass or to brown paper cover..? Both methods have their plus points and also their minus points but after some deliberation glass was to be the way forward.
Next decision to use varnish or PVA, that one was easy as PVA can be wiped up with a damp cloth and the MOHA does not attack me with her broomstick….!! To be honest I have only done test pieces with PVA and glass so there was a learning curve to go through which if I failed Capt. Sky would need to sell me another bird..
The PVA paste
So to the PVA paste part I use the tried and tested Chris Goulds mix of 60% PVA (white glue much cheaper) and 40% water all mixed up to make the paste, the first tip is to lay cloth on the part and brush the PVA from the middle outwards, the opposite of covering material where you tack the ends stretch and iron.
Glassing the fuselage
A gentle rub down of any high spots and avoid going through the original paint very important…, more on this later…!! ER’s finish is El Supreme as he fills every dent and cranny to get super finish. For me dents have to stay as I wanted to avoid as much filler as possible as this is really heavy stuff, so the end result will not be up to ER’s high standards..
For the fuselage I have used ¾ ounce cloth so it would stretch round all the nasty corners of the fuselage
Once the first coat had dried a rub down (600 grit) and then a 2nd coat, do not be alarmed as the amount of PVA paste you will use is actually very small and remember 40% is water and will just dry away. One more rub down with 600 grit and a look at what we have OK not too bad but those small areas where the paint was removed now show as little white areas drat and treble drat… what to do ..?
Ok one more coat of the PVA paste mix but this time I added about 5 to 10% Tamiya light grey acrylic paint into the mix so we now have a colored PVA paste, yep much better. So here are some pictures of the front and rear fuselage halves.
Back in the bags for these bits and on to the rear tail feathers…. And the first crash and burn….!!
The first clue is in the picture... OMG that stabiliser.... grrr.
Stay tuned for the next part which is experimenting to get a better result but stuffing up...
Oh yes the experiment using a roller was also a failure if you use the ones in the picture, the sponge foam works a treat but the paste goes off at Mach 4 and you have a solid roller Ooop's.
So back to paint brush and tub of water..
So a little history first…..
We all know that USAF F-86 was a successful MIG killer but I suspect that not many of you realized that the RAF also had Sabre’s, mainly due to the late arrival of Hawker Hunters to replace the Meteor and Vampire. The Canadair Sabre F.4 is actually a F-86 built under license by Canadair and is the Mk.4 version, they were delivered to the RAF in 1953 as part of the Tactical Air Force Squadron no. 67, followed by Squadrons 3, 4, 20, 67, 71, 93, 130 and 234 which were all based in Germany . The RAF Sabre XB982 (#73) was used as a test bed for the Bristol Siddeley Orpheus 801 engine.
The life of the RAF Canadian Sabres in active service was very short and they were all replaced by Hawker Hunters in 1956 and most them were transferred to Italy (180 aircraft) and Yugoslavia (121) the 302 ex. RAF Sabres were returned to the USAF between 1956 and 1958 and were given the designation F-86E(M) for modified.
So what is the plan well being I was born in the UK my F-86 has to be a RAF one and I just happen to possess a limited edition die cast model of XB673 which was based in Widenrath, Germany in 1953 to get the detail from (thinks I was xx years old then…!!).
Let us get started…..
Just a heads up well in advance this is going to be a relatively slow build for reasons that will become apparent as we move along…
Having emptied the box on the bench it was where do we start and the size of the FF is big and the instant concern was hanger rash on that foam, decision time was here to glass or to brown paper cover..? Both methods have their plus points and also their minus points but after some deliberation glass was to be the way forward.
Next decision to use varnish or PVA, that one was easy as PVA can be wiped up with a damp cloth and the MOHA does not attack me with her broomstick….!! To be honest I have only done test pieces with PVA and glass so there was a learning curve to go through which if I failed Capt. Sky would need to sell me another bird..
The PVA paste
So to the PVA paste part I use the tried and tested Chris Goulds mix of 60% PVA (white glue much cheaper) and 40% water all mixed up to make the paste, the first tip is to lay cloth on the part and brush the PVA from the middle outwards, the opposite of covering material where you tack the ends stretch and iron.
Glassing the fuselage
A gentle rub down of any high spots and avoid going through the original paint very important…, more on this later…!! ER’s finish is El Supreme as he fills every dent and cranny to get super finish. For me dents have to stay as I wanted to avoid as much filler as possible as this is really heavy stuff, so the end result will not be up to ER’s high standards..
For the fuselage I have used ¾ ounce cloth so it would stretch round all the nasty corners of the fuselage
Once the first coat had dried a rub down (600 grit) and then a 2nd coat, do not be alarmed as the amount of PVA paste you will use is actually very small and remember 40% is water and will just dry away. One more rub down with 600 grit and a look at what we have OK not too bad but those small areas where the paint was removed now show as little white areas drat and treble drat… what to do ..?
Ok one more coat of the PVA paste mix but this time I added about 5 to 10% Tamiya light grey acrylic paint into the mix so we now have a colored PVA paste, yep much better. So here are some pictures of the front and rear fuselage halves.
Back in the bags for these bits and on to the rear tail feathers…. And the first crash and burn….!!
The first clue is in the picture... OMG that stabiliser.... grrr.
Stay tuned for the next part which is experimenting to get a better result but stuffing up...
Oh yes the experiment using a roller was also a failure if you use the ones in the picture, the sponge foam works a treat but the paste goes off at Mach 4 and you have a solid roller Ooop's.
So back to paint brush and tub of water..
