"Memories of Flying School"

[JohnReid]

[JohnReid]

Here I am working on the final placement of the "T" and the WW1 pilots on their landscaping module.I kind of like this arrangement as it allows some space for the viewer to be included.I also like the idea of the back of the leg of the Patton figure just touching the Fords tire.Why? I really don't know.I just think it looks cool.

[JohnReid]

[JohnReid]

Foundation underbrush.

I took a piece of wood wrapped it in waxpaper and used it as a simulated hangar foundation.I had originally built up a small mound a sand all around the hangar perimeter which left a nice little depression which I can now fill with vegetation.

There would naturally be more vegetation around the foundation as it is not as subject to wear and tear.

I used different colors of what they call "underbrush" and then played around with adding turf here and there until it looked more natural.In the pic the glue mix (25/75 )has just been applied so it still looks a little whitish but by this morning it is completely transparent.

The jar of underbrush on the right has had a little yellow ochre sprayed on it using the sieve/airbrush method.

[JohnReid]

Take a look over on:

http://www.scalemotorcars.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=69

for a couple of Camels and a Jenny build.

[JohnReid]

[JohnReid]

Normally there would be a wood plank ramp laid down over the central door panel but obviously this aircraft will not be going anywhere for awhile .

I will put more wear and tear (tire impressions etc)in the area where the aircraft would be rolled out on to the ramp.Once I get it in the sunlight I will decide where more vegetation may be needed.

The whole thing looks a little vacant right now but I plan on adding a horse drawn wagon,wheelbarrow and other odds and ends off to the side of the front panel as I don't want to much there to distract the viewer from the main subject.The crashed Albatros will be added behind the L/H hangar door and won't be readily viewable from this angle.

[JohnReid]

[JohnReid]

Back to Jenny for awhile.

The Camel bridges two of the landscaping panels which I only realized could be a problem till now.Will have to think about this! Either join the two panels together,figure out some way of easily separating the airplane from the truck or using two removable wheel screws instead of just one for stability.

[JohnReid]

[JohnReid]

Not bad for a city boy, eh!

[JohnReid]

[JohnReid]

[JohnReid]

First step is to remove the military uniform.I do this by hand which takes a little time.Changing from military to civilian is great ,rather than the other way around, as it is a case mostly of removing stuff.The faint belt lines that you see are actually filled with very thin super glue and sanded smooth with the surrounding surface.The rest of the parts can be used as is ,it will make a nice 20's mechanic when finished.He too will also will be sporting a cigarette in his hand.

[JohnReid]

[JohnReid]

What your well-dressed ground personnel would be wearing in the 20's

As you can see it is a real mixed bag of civvy and semi-military styles!

[JohnReid]

[JohnReid]

[JohnReid]

The smoking buds bodies an done ,now it is on to the heads.I employed my usual method of shading with pastels over flat paint.I think that I will have to put the big guy standing in a gully.

[JohnReid]

[JohnReid]

[JohnReid]

Well now it is back to the crashed Albatros.I am really looking forward to doing this as it is something that I have never attempted before.I plan to build the whole thing on a skid type platform that I can easily rotate 360 deg for ready access to everything.I figure that chances are that if they were in a hurry to remove it from the field they would have slid planks under the engine area and dragged it off the field ,probably with horses.Once deposited near the hangar,there it would be scavenged for parts.

[JohnReid]

[JohnReid]

What Happened?

My analysis of the accident scene is that for some reason the aircraft was subject to a nose over while the engine was still running which would indicate a mechanical failure of some sort or loss of control by the pilot.The undercarriage looks in good shape except for the one blown tire.Brake failure can be ruled out as the aircraft didn't have any.Overheated or jammed bearings in the wheel is a possibility though.The wing tips are in good shape so there doesn't seem to be any evidence of anything other than a straight nose over at hi speed or a crash why flying inverted close to the ground.The crash would have to be of such force that the fuselage would split at the cockpit area near the rear landing gear strut.There is no evidence of fire ,could lack of fuel be a contributing factor?Although the prop damage looks as though it was still spinning at the time of the accident.

On second thought,because the aircraft is relatively intact , maybe this is not a hi speed accident after all.The center section and wing struts show no sign of damage which you would expect to see in a hi speed accident.There is some damage to the R/H horizontal stabilizer and to the L/H elevator on the tail but none to the tail skid.Could it be that this was the result of the aircraft coming in contact with something on the ground?

Maybe I am missing something really obvious here ,any ideas?

[JohnReid]

What I am planning!

My model will be somewhat different in that I am planning to do a structural type

model with fire damage.A lot of the fabric will be burnt off in a flash type fire.Because the airplane is inverted I plan to remove some of the bottom panels to reveal the engine.The model will show a combination of accident damage and some scavaging for parts.

I will start with the engine.