Another of my hobbies.

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GaryRR
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Re: Another of my hobbies.

Post by GaryRR »

Lewis - A2A wrote: 15 May 2020, 04:56 Beautiful work, love the I-16 inparticular, but I am bias having got a nice kill online recently in the il-2 sim whilst flying the Rata. The detail you are putting into the cockpits is amazing, great work, thankyou for posting.

cheers,
Lewis - A2A
I would love to get into the IL-2 franchise. Particularly the Pacific Fighters version. I never did when it was current because I didn't have a PC to make the best of it but I do now. Are the hacks to make the IL-2 series run in Windows 10?
Also, I had CFS-2 and really loved operating from an Essex class. Wish that would run on Win 10.

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Lewis - A2A
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Re: Another of my hobbies.

Post by Lewis - A2A »

Ah, I am talking more the newer IL-2 series, the great battles series that has eastern and western front stuff, WW2 and WW1, rather than the old il-2/pac fighters stuff.
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GaryRR
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Re: Another of my hobbies.

Post by GaryRR »

I would sure LOVE to see a brand new 64 bit Pacific WWII sim released. With the whole Pacific Rim in the map. And all of the historic battles. The ability to be part of a historic US Navy, Marine, or USAAF squadron and fly a historic tour of duty. With aircraft and ships done from the best historic technical specs available. Or be able to fly with a RN squadron in South Asia area. Can't forget about our great cousins and brothers-in-arms. Even to the point of flying Corsair in VMF 214 with Pappy in the lead. Or launching from Hornet in a B-25 with Col. Doolittle leading off. Or flying a P-38 as Richard Bong's wingman. Or captaining a real B-29 on one Lemay's historic raids. Or even Enola Gay. (Sorry Col. Tibbets). Maybe the last is a little too sensitive to include in a sim. But overall what a project that would be especially if all the planes are Accusimmed.
I don't want much, do I?

GaryRR
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Re: Another of my hobbies.

Post by GaryRR »

I would sure LOVE to see a brand new 64 bit Pacific WWII sim released. With the whole Pacific Rim in the map. And all of the historic battles. The ability to be part of a historic US Navy, Marine, or USAAF squadron and fly a historic tour of duty. With aircraft and ships done from the best historic technical specs available. Or be able to fly with a RN squadron in South Asia area. Can't forget about our great cousins and brothers-in-arms. Even to the point of flying Corsair in VMF 214 with Pappy in the lead. Or launching from Hornet in a B-25 with Col. Doolittle leading off. Or flying a P-38 as Richard Bong's wingman. Or captaining a real B-29 on one Lemay's historic raids. Or even Enola Gay. (Sorry Col. Tibbets). Maybe the last is a little too sensitive to include in a sim. But overall what a project that would be especially if all the planes are Accusimmed.
I don't want much, do I?

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FAC257
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Re: Another of my hobbies.

Post by FAC257 »

Gary & Lewis,

The Pacific Theater is my favorite for simulations. I just picked up the new "War On The Pacific", by Killerfish Games. As to not step on this thread I posted some of the first screenies I've taken in the first few hours of play, down in the "Other Sims" section of the forum.
viewtopic.php?f=104&t=73180&p=556468#p556468
FAC257
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Dogsbody55
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Re: Another of my hobbies.

Post by Dogsbody55 »

Deleted.
Last edited by Dogsbody55 on 27 Mar 2022, 00:27, edited 1 time in total.
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Dogsbody55
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Re: Another of my hobbies.

Post by Dogsbody55 »

Finished another 1/32 scale model a week or so ago, this time a Dornier DO-335A-12. This was quite a lengthy build as the model is very complicated.

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How complicated?? This complicated, and I've left a few things out here, such as some bomb bay detail as I decided to close up that part of the kit. Not keen on bombs, especially with current events.. :cry:

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The A-12 version is a two seat trainer, and as with all DO-335's, the pilot's cockpit is fitted with an ejector seat. No such luxury for the instructor.....

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As you can see, I've loaded this plane with as much weight as I can to make it sit on all three wheels. The front engine is filled to the brim with shot type weight.

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Here's the engines. Rear engine first.

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Front engine.

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And to make it more complicated yet, I decided to make hinges for all the engine cowlings and cockpit canopies. This was done with various combinations of brass and steel rod, as well as brass tube. And a lot of experimentation :lol: .

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I also added some extra plumbing on both front and rear engines, as well as the wires going into the backs of the instruments, as these can be seen through the windscreens. The tyres on the main wheels were also flattened at the bottom for that "weighted" look. As I said earlier, this is a pretty complex model. For example, there are twelve pieces alone just in the nose wheel leg.

The particular model I've built is one that was captured as a war prize by the British at the end of WW2, and was taken back to the RAE at Farnborough. It features in one of Captain Eric Brown's books, Wings of the Luftwaffe, where he describes flying this very fast machine, and also it's tragic end in January 1946 when it crashed vertically into the ground as the result of the rear engine catching fire while in the landing circuit. The pilot, flying this plane from the rear cockpit, appeared to be unaware of the problem, or he was trying to get it back to the airfield. It's likely the control cables were damaged in the fire. Here is the actual plane.

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Cheers,
Mike
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GrahamP
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Re: Another of my hobbies.

Post by GrahamP »

I am in awe of your skill and what you have achieved. Absolutely amazing!!!

Dogsbody55
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Re: Another of my hobbies.

Post by Dogsbody55 »

It's been a while since I updated this, and since the launch of MSFS it's felt a bit like the "off season" with no A2A planes to fly in that sim so more time at the workbench. However, since we appear to be edging closer to the return of normal service, my modelling activities are likely to slow down soon.

The next model completed was a Messerschmitt Bf-109G-4/R6 "Kanonenboot". This particular plane was flown by Ober Leutnant Rohwer of 2/JG 3 based at Monchen-Gladbach in the summer of 1943.

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Instrument panel
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Cockpit
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I also built a display, as this is one of the few planes in large scale that will fit into a display case. To add a little bit of interest to it I've added a replica Iron Cross medal found in a museum while I was on holiday up there last year.

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So this is one of the few models I have which won't get destroyed by dust. :D Next, another '109, this time an Emil. It represents a plane flown by the CO of 2/JG 2 based in Germany, Frankfurt-Rebstock, in early 1940. Again it fits into a display case, so I've built a simple display depicting an aircraft having some maintenance performed. This is the first early '109 I've built in about thirty years.

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This model took quite a long time to build as the kit was missing the gun cowling when I bought it, and getting a replacement part proved to be q big drama. So it was dropped for a while while I built a 1/24 scale Hurricane Mk IIc, more of which later.

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Engine
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Cockpit
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Hurricane MkIIc nightfighter, as flown by Flt Lt. Karel Kuttelwascher of 1 Squadron in mid 1942. The plane was used in night intruder ops, flying by map and compass over occupied France, with the intention of shooting down enemy aircraft over their own bases. Kuttelwascher was extraordinarily successful in this, destroying fifteen enemy aircraft in a three month period.

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The engine in this kit was rubbish, so I updated an engine retrieved from a scrapped model instead, and put that on display by the Hurricane. Much of the detail I added around the rear of the engine was from photos I took in the Darwin RAAF museum last year. The kit engine was thrown together and included only as it has to support the propeller.
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However, the cockpit on this kit is good, but I've added more, including the structure aft and below as it is visible when you look into the closed up model.

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Presently, I'm working on a Spitfire MkXVI for a client in the US who's father used to own that particular plane. I've built the model previously in 2018 and the model images are on the web which is how I was found by the gentleman (another Scott!!) asked if he could buy it. Unfortunately, it has deteriorated thanks to peeling decals so I suggested building another. This is the old model, pre decal peeling. I have fixed it, but I'm likely to have to do more repair work on it later.

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This project has interrupted a Yak-9T which is not too far off paint.

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So it's now a race to see if I can get these two projects finished before the A2A Comanche is released. I figure I'm likely to have only a couple of months.


Cheers,
Mike
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Lewis - A2A
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Re: Another of my hobbies.

Post by Lewis - A2A »

WOW beautiful as always, some stunning skills on display. 8)

Night air ware over Europe is a fascinating one, the night intruders like the assassins of the nights, striking at the right moment, at the exact moment the enemy is the weakest. And in the case of the Hurricane and interesting side hustle that kept the ever aging Hurricane on the front line as a real workhorse.

cheers,
Lewis
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bullfox
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Re: Another of my hobbies.

Post by bullfox »

Very nicely done. Great model work.
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AKar
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Re: Another of my hobbies.

Post by AKar »

Very nice work indeed! I am a big fan of quality scale models, even if lacking patience to assemble myself! :)

-Esa

Dogsbody55
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Re: Another of my hobbies.

Post by Dogsbody55 »

Lewis - A2A wrote: 09 Jan 2023, 09:00 WOW beautiful as always, some stunning skills on display. 8)

Night air ware over Europe is a fascinating one, the night intruders like the assassins of the nights, striking at the right moment, at the exact moment the enemy is the weakest. And in the case of the Hurricane and interesting side hustle that kept the ever aging Hurricane on the front line as a real workhorse.

cheers,
Lewis
Thanks Lewis. It's kept me busy as my flightsimming has been limited in the last couple of years, mostly because I've found MSFS very unreliable. The latest iteration seems OK though, touch wood.

Yes, it is interesting to see how after the Battle of Britain, the Hurricane took on a new lease of life. Yet in the far east, they were still a front line fighter at the very end of the war. It was better suited to night operations than the Spitfire too, being more stable on touchdown and less problems with glare from exhaust flames. The MkIIc also had tremendous hitting power and with drop tanks fitted it also had a 900 mile range so it was the best available for such duties. The draw backs were no radar and only 9 seconds of firing time. So pilots had to be very good navigators as they only had a compass and a map to find their way about. The strain on the pilots must have been incredible, so Kuttelwascher's achievement in this Hurricane is remarkable. Between April 1942 and July that year, his squadron accounted for 21 enemy aircraft, Kuttelwascher accounting for 15 of them. He was the most successful night intruder pilot, and the sixth most successful night fighter pilot. He survived the war, but died from a heart attack in 1959, aged only 42. I've built his plane as it was on the night of 4/5th May, 1942, when he shot down three Heinkels near St Andre, France, within four minutes. That includes the red patches all over the canvas area of his plane that fixed battle damage.


Cheers,
Michael
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Dogsbody55
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Re: Another of my hobbies.

Post by Dogsbody55 »

bullfox wrote: 09 Jan 2023, 15:04 Very nicely done. Great model work.
Thank you. I've only been building models for sixty years, so I'm starting to get them right at last :D .


Cheers,
Michael
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Dogsbody55
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Joined: 26 Aug 2013, 22:03
Location: Perth, W. Aust

Re: Another of my hobbies.

Post by Dogsbody55 »

AKar wrote: 10 Jan 2023, 03:23 Very nice work indeed! I am a big fan of quality scale models, even if lacking patience to assemble myself! :)

-Esa
Thank you. Patience is also not my forte either, but being retired gives me the time to put into them and advancing years have taught me when to walk away when it's not going well.


Cheers,
Michael
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