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Hello Gents,

I've got one more 2-seat F-16 conversion in me-This one will be the block 60F from the U.A.E. I'm starting with the Tamiya 1/32 block 50 kit.

I started by making the cuts in the fuselage for the aft cockpit. The razorback behind the aft cockpit was cut down from a fuel tank from the spares bin. The bulkhead behind the headrest area of the aft seat is a resin item cast by my friend JP. who is also doing a very nice block 60F conversion as well.

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I wasn't totally happy with the canopy I made for my Polish 2 seat viper, so I mastered another canopy. I'll make a resin copy of this, polish it; and use it to vac form the canopy for this block 60F-

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I started making the spine, using the same method I used for the Polish jet. Just a box built-up from .030 sheet with a Miliput top to form the curved top profile-

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But then the Isaracast Sufa conversion showed up, and I decided it would be quicker to simply modify the Isra spine than finish scratching my own again-

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More to follow-

Pig

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The spine will get a vac form skin. I pulled a few skins in .010 and will use this to cut out the individual panels. Doing it this way makes it easier to rivet each panel, and cutting each panel out ensures very fine panel lines

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I also started on the intake. I like to get this moving along because the aft cockpit will sit on top of the intake trunk, so I need to have it together to adjust the fit of the aft cockpit.

The block 60 has the "bump" in the intake aft of the inlet strut. Here a section of .040 sheet is in place. Note also the arrow pointing to the slot in the bottom of the intake. I always fill this, and remove the corresponding tab from the intake ring. I do this to make painting the intake much easier. The paint demarcation between the grey intake ring and white intake is always along the intake ring-You can paint the intake ring separately and slap it on later, but if you dont remove the tab you'll end up with a little grey square at the base of your intake-

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Bump blended with Miliput and Mr Surfacer 1000

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Pig

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The block 60F has a different ECS vent configuration on the intake. There is no vent on the right side, and the vent on the left side extends farther forward. To eliminate the vent on the right side, I chiseled away an area to allow the vertical vent from the block 32 kit to fit flush:

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I marked the location for the left side vent and placed a stand-off to ensure the vent opening was the correct size:

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and built up the new vent. A few adjustment required but you get the idea-

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More to follow-

Pig

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OK. I get a lot of questions about the "paint dump" method of intake painting-so here's a few images to clear it up.

First, I cement the top/bottom halves of the intake and sand the seam..no filler-just clean up the seam real quick. Then grab some latex house paint. This time I used Benjamin Moore semi gloss that I had laying around-

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Stick the intake in some clay and stand it up so the opening is pure horizontal. Stick some clay in the opening for the intake strut too-Pour in the paint-

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Fill it all the way to the edge-

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Let it run out the back-

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And there you have it! The thick paint fills the seam and blends out the intake bump-

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Regards,

Pig

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Wow Pete, love it! Happy to see another conversion on your workbench. Quick question, is the VacForm thing homemade or commercially available? If its homemade, care to share how it was done? Lookin' good!

Aaron

Hey Aaron,

This is a commercial rig I got about 15 years ago. There is a heater in the top. The sheet gets clamped in 2 frames and heated up. A shop vac connects to the base. There is also a reverse bicycle pump for a few extra inches of vacuum. There is some voodoo involved, but it works pretty well-

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Regards,

Pig

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Hey Aaron,

This is a commercial rig I got about 15 years ago. There is a heater in the top. The sheet gets clamped in 2 frames and heated up. A shop vac connects to the base. There is also a reverse bicycle pump for a few extra inches of vacuum. There is some voodoo involved, but it works pretty well-

Regards,

Pig

Perfect, thanks for the quick info.

Aaron

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Dang Pete... you're getting this "2-seater conversion" down to a science. Ever think about marketing a resin/ vacform conversion?

You'd need:

-2 hole cockpit tub and IP

-2-hole forward fuselage (just do a copy of that part in the first picture)

-2-hole canopy and rails

You could even leave out a second seat (or a first seat... make folks buy them from someone else.) Until Tamiya comes out with thier own family-model Viper, you'd probably sell a whole mess of these.

Also, on your intake-painting technique: Do you let the paint sit in the intake for a bit, or let it pour out immediately after you get it full?

Edited by RedHeadKevin
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Nice Pete, I like your paint dump method much better than mine. I will try it the next time I do a Viper intake. I would like to know also if you let the paint sit any time, or just dump it immediately.

Sitting back and watching this one...

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It's good to see you back, Pete.

I feel like I've gone thru a dry spell without seeing your work.

I always look forward to the learning your problem-solving skills afford and marvelling at your efforts.

Many thanks.

Sincerely,

Mark

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on your intake-painting technique: Do you let the paint sit in the intake for a bit, or let it pour out immediately after you get it full?

Hi Kevin-

I let it sit for about a minute or two-It is important to make sure the paint gets right up to the edge of the lip..I think we called that a "meniscus" in chemistry class. Doing that without slopping it over the edge is the trick to master, but not hard-

HTH

Pig

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