Another P.38 Lightning.

[Kittyhawk]

Here another P.38 doing the teak oil curing thing. Wife is not altogether enamoured with it sitting on her lounge table for the next few days but its just too cold in the workshop for the oil to do anything.
Have built a few of these over the last few months as orders just keep dribbling in so I am somewhat 'over' this model, particularly as I find the twin tails and wing components difficult to assemble with regard to correct alignment. So I built a jig to make things easier in the future which pretty much guarantees this will be the last Lightning I get to build. Ever.

On the plus side, building lots of the same thing provides a handy reference and looking at past photos I think this latest P.38 is a bit better than the first one so thats encouraging. And also learning things. One of the difficulties in attaching wings to fuselages is that fuselages are curved fore and aft and also top to bottom. So I discovered putting the wing to the fuselage, drawing around it with a pencil and then using a chisel to scrape off the top to bottom curve simplifies things greatly as there becomes only one curve to deal with. You're all allowed to laugh and say gee whizz, everybody knows that. Well I didn't.

Next on the list are two B.17G's for the same man that ordered the Lightning. Why he wants two I have no idea but, not my problem. He has had a number of models from me and is an avid collector of aeronautical memorabilia. His latest witticism when we last spoke was that since he considered the models to be collectors items he couldn't decide if he preferred me alive or dead. Alive, he could commission more aeroplanes. Dead, the ones he already had would become worth more.

 

[clogs]

can I say smart living / drying room.....?
we gave up and have tiled floors....
3 dirty Border Collies n 5 cats....
Just needs an industrial vac and power washing.....
only our bedrooms remain smart coz animals are not allowed upstairs....hahaha.....
love ur work mate....

 

[Stigmorgan]

Absolutely stunning @Kittyhawk I for one prefer you alive so that we can see more of you amazing creations

 

[Jameshow]

Fantastic your more than welcome to fly them over and cure them in my living room!!

 

[Kittyhawk]

can I say smart living / drying room.....?
we gave up and have tiled floors....
3 dirty Border Collies n 5 cats....
Just needs an industrial vac and power washing.....
only our bedrooms remain smart coz animals are not allowed upstairs....hahaha.....
love ur work mate....

Thanks for your comments.
The carpet is a bit beaten up thanks to one lunatic teenage dog. When she has quietened down a bit and matured in another 5 -8 years time we think to replace it with some sort of composite flooring.

 

[furnace]

So I discovered putting the wing to the fuselage, drawing around it with a pencil and then using a chisel to scrape off the top to bottom curve simplifies things greatly as there becomes only one curve to deal with. You're all allowed to laugh and say gee whizz, everybody knows that. Well I didn't.

Have you previously tried morticing the wings into the fuselage? Just a shallow mortice and you'd have a crisp line where the two surfaces intersect. Just a thought.

 

[Kittyhawk]

Have you previously tried morticing the wings into the fuselage? Just a shallow mortice and you'd have a crisp line where the two surfaces intersect. Just a thought.

No, I haven't, but I will.
Cutting a shallow aerofoil shaped mortise would be easy with a Dremel and the edges tidied up with a small sharp chisel.
That's a great idea. Why couldn't I think of it? Should I worry about myself?