ALF18 Posted January 20, 2019 Author Share Posted January 20, 2019 On 1/7/2019 at 8:02 PM, Specter1075 said: I am. I know its not the same as Canadian variants, but just curious if you had any thoughts (If you have tried it). I've only watched a few minutes of in-game footage. Looks very nicely done. The in-aircraft software looks pretty good. For sure, the sensor pod is not the same as the CF-18's (we have the Sniper, and the game is probably Litening 2 or whatever the USN has), but the overall interface is quite high fidelity. When I was actively flying, I refused to play such games, because it's too easy to learn bad habits. With the CF-18's HOTAS (Hands-On Throttles And Stick), we developed muscle memory that was crucial to the split-second timing in air combat. For example, when dropping a single target track, I pressed the NWS (undesignate the target), selected Gun, then my weapon for my next radar search mode (there was a classified reason we went through Gun mode first), then boresight ACQ mode, then undesignate, which effectively centred the search volume again. I'm sure in the game there is the same kind of feature, but the selections on a computer keyboard are wildly different than in a real cockpit, and so much of what we did was head-out while activating things by feel inside, that it was best not to get into different habit patterns. ALF Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Specter1075 Posted January 20, 2019 Share Posted January 20, 2019 That is a fantastic response, Alf! Thank you! I could pick your brain all day, I'm sure. Another guy that always wanted to do what you were able to. 🙂 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ALF18 Posted January 21, 2019 Author Share Posted January 21, 2019 Finally, a bit more progress. Of course, it is necessary to chop off the extra ECM bumps on this kit.  Partway through the process. The large bumps behind the gun door/ID light area on each side, and also the ridge defining the forward bulge location above the formation light.  As Chuck suggested, I am making the landing gear solid by ensuring the metal wire is solidly glued into the plastic parts with CA glue.   Nose gear in progress. Contrary to the instructions, it is not necessary to glue this into place prior to joining the fuselage halves. I have found it can be installed afterward, allowing for better and easier painting.  All the landing gear ready for when it's time. Sorry for the low contrast.   Now for the fuselage, front halves.   More soon. ALF Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Slartibartfast Posted January 21, 2019 Share Posted January 21, 2019 20 hours ago, ALF18 said: When I was actively flying, I refused to play such games, because it's too easy to learn bad habits. With the CF-18's HOTAS (Hands-On Throttles And Stick), we developed muscle memory that was crucial to the split-second timing in air combat. ...selections on a computer keyboard are wildly different than in a real cockpit, and so much of what we did was head-out while activating things by feel inside, that it was best not to get into different habit patterns. A YouTuber named C.W. Lemoine was a Viper pilot, then switched services to the Navy and is now retraining in the T-38 for Adversary work. He recently tried DCS F/A-18 and he made similar comments. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
AX 365 Posted January 23, 2019 Share Posted January 23, 2019 Good morning, Maestro!  I read your thread last evening ALF but I couldn't get signed into the forum to post a comment.  Looking good, as usual.  Thanks for the tidbits about which IP to use and using CA on the main landing gear.  I have one of these kits in my stash along with the Kinetic kit.  I wasn't sure which one would end up as a 9XX build and which would be a 7XX build but he Wolfpack resin looks like a nice addition for the Academy kit.  Have to see if I can get one from Sprue Brothers.  Keep it up chum  I'll be looking forward to more progress.  Mike Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ALF18 Posted January 30, 2019 Author Share Posted January 30, 2019 On 1/21/2019 at 2:23 PM, Slartibartfast said: A YouTuber named C.W. Lemoine was a Viper pilot, then switched services to the Navy and is now retraining in the T-38 for Adversary work. He recently tried DCS F/A-18 and he made similar comments. I follow that guy's channel. He has written some books that I really like. I've read all but the last two (which are in progress on my Kindle). ALF Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ALF18 Posted January 30, 2019 Author Share Posted January 30, 2019 On 1/23/2019 at 9:08 AM, AX 365 said: Good morning, Maestro!  I read your thread last evening ALF but I couldn't get signed into the forum to post a comment.  Looking good, as usual.  Thanks for the tidbits about which IP to use and using CA on the main landing gear.  I have one of these kits in my stash along with the Kinetic kit.  I wasn't sure which one would end up as a 9XX build and which would be a 7XX build but he Wolfpack resin looks like a nice addition for the Academy kit.  Have to see if I can get one from Sprue Brothers.  Keep it up chum  I'll be looking forward to more progress.  Mike Thanks, Mike. Bundle up... apparently it is quite chilly in Florida these days. Just so you don't feel bad, Brian in Montreal says it's quite cold there, so you're still better off. I'm having a b*tch of a time with this resin pit, getting the forward fuselage to close up properly. Will post some pictures soon. Right now, I'm painting the landing gear struts, and slowly hacking away at the resin to get the pit to fit. ALF Quote Link to post Share on other sites
AlienFrogModeller Posted January 30, 2019 Share Posted January 30, 2019 17 hours ago, ALF18 said: I'm having a b*tch of a time with this resin pit, getting the forward fuselage to close up properly. Will post some pictures soon. Right now, I'm painting the landing gear struts, and slowly hacking away at the resin to get the pit to fit. ALF Interesting...I'm following closely. Â Cheers AFM PS Its chilly here too, I had to cancel my golf on tuesday past and wear socks around the house. Stoopid polar vortex. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
AX 365 Posted January 31, 2019 Share Posted January 31, 2019 On 29 January, 2019 at 7:03 PM, ALF18 said: Thanks, Mike. Bundle up... apparently it is quite chilly in Florida these days. Just so you don't feel bad, Brian in Montreal says it's quite cold there, so you're still better off. I'm having a b*tch of a time with this resin pit, getting the forward fuselage to close up properly. Will post some pictures soon. Right now, I'm painting the landing gear struts, and slowly hacking away at the resin to get the pit to fit. ALF  It's been cool but nowhere near as bad as at home.  And…there's no snow!  I just keep reminding myself of that. 21 hours ago, AlienFrogModeller said: AFM PS Its chilly here too, I had to cancel my golf on tuesday past and wear socks around the house. Stoopid polar vortex.  That's just wrong!  I feel your pain, AFM.  We've had the heat on overnight here in Fort Myers.  I don't want to rub it in for ALF, but we haven't been over 65F in a week.  I know his heart bleeds for us.  :D  But he'll get to rub it in sooner or later.  Mike Quote Link to post Share on other sites
AlienFrogModeller Posted January 31, 2019 Share Posted January 31, 2019 On 1/20/2019 at 7:04 PM, ALF18 said: Finally, a bit more progress. Of course, it is necessary to chop off the extra ECM bumps on this kit.  More soon. ALF Alf, let me know what airframe number your doing...I'll get you some effectivities, such as the "PULL THIS HANDLE AND RUN AS FAST AS YOU CAN" door - the one forward of the refuelling panel and behind the AOA probe.. It is not on all airframes.  Cheers  AFM Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ALF18 Posted February 2, 2019 Author Share Posted February 2, 2019 On 1/31/2019 at 1:48 PM, AlienFrogModeller said: Alf, let me know what airframe number your doing...I'll get you some effectivities, such as the "PULL THIS HANDLE AND RUN AS FAST AS YOU CAN" door - the one forward of the refuelling panel and behind the AOA probe.. It is not on all airframes.  Cheers  AFM Thanks, AFM. Can't remember which tail number I'm doing, but from memory, only our earliest Hornets had that door on the right side of the forward fuselage. I'll ask when I remember the number.  So, here is some of the hassle I went through with the resin cockpit fit. After I tried to force the forward fuselage halves together and glue them in place, I realized it was not a good job, so I opened them up again. Luckily, I used a trick Emvar taught me by simply reapplying the Tamiya extra-thin glue to the seam, and have it come apart fairly easily. Then, I realized I needed to trim more off the casting block of the cockpit tub. It goes into this spot. First, I had chopped off the locating pins at the rear (that are on the kit part, but the resin tub is deeper than the kit part). Note the little step at the front of the nose wheel well; after I tore the fuselage apart, I did some surgery to reduce the height of the step, which better fit the resin I had chopped.  Here is the bottom of the resin tub, with some more hacking done. I also chopped some off the sides and top of the avionics bay. Note that there is a tiny hole in the thin bottom; it doesn't show inside the dark fuselage.  Some of the trimming required at the top of the avionics bay.  Endless chopping and dry-fitting. This is not fun. The flat parts of the kit fuselage above the resin tub should meet nicely in the middle. Obviously, the resin is too fat for now.  Another view of the one thousandth dry-fitting... getting bored and frustrated with this part.  Fitting a bit better, but not quite there yet.  Finally, got it to sit fairly well. Will glue the front part first, then after it has properly set, will glue the aft part.  Ensuring the fuselage width is correct, to receive the upper fuselage part and the radome without bumps.  Thankfully, the tape holds it nicely. Not too wide now.  More soon. I've been slowly building up the white on the landing gear struts, and preparing the engine and intakes. ALF   Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ALF18 Posted February 11, 2019 Author Share Posted February 11, 2019 Ya know, being retired is a lot of work... 😴 Amazing how busy you can make yourself, even when you're not working. I've been slowly plugging away at this model, with most of the time taken up getting the resin cockpit to fit. Here, I've glued in the resin cover to the avionics bay. A bit nicer detail than the kit part, and of course the resin part has a hole to see the avionics bay (the kit part is just a solid representation of the net over top of the bay). In behind, you can see the intake trunks and the engines. I have done almost zero detailing on the engine exteriors, because they are invisible when built. Curious why they made the engines with external detail; I guess some people might leave one out and put it on a trailer.  Here I painted the compressor blades black, then used a silver pen (visible at the top right of this pic) to make the fan blades pop a bit. Frankly, these engines are so deep inside the intakes that this detail does not really show. You can also see the white landing gear parts. More detail work to go on the gear struts, of course.  The trunking and engines fit nicely, with their locating pins, into the lower aft fuselage. I am using a high-tech weight to hold one contact point in place. Note the two "towers", one on each side of the red tool. Those are the receptacles for some of the screws that hold this big boy together.  Lots going on here. I've glued the upper and lower rear fuselage parts together, but left the sides off for now. I've also assembled the wing centre sections.  Wings in place.  Here is the upper forward fuselage cover, where the CIT (Combined Interrogator/Transponder) goes. Modellers call these the "bird slicers." The locating holes need to be punched out from inside. Nice touch; it allows the modeller to make an earlier version of CF-18 before the mods that added the CIT.  Here is the aft fuselage, ready to be mated with the forward fuselage.  Here is another reason I've been slow building. I've discovered 4K hockey games on my new Samsung Q7 TV... The picture does not do the image justice, but it is noticeably clearer than HD. I took this picture for my good buddy AX_365, because it was before things went downhill (again) for the Senators.  ALF  Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ALF18 Posted February 12, 2019 Author Share Posted February 12, 2019 (edited) The instructions show the preferred order being to glue the aft fuselage sides in place, then attach the intake lips in front. Previously, I have mated the intake lips to the side panels, allowed them to dry, then glued the whole assembly into the aft fuselage. It had the advantage of avoiding a noticeable step between the fuselage side and the intake front, but led to fit problems with the rest of these panels. This time, after considerable dry-fitting, I decided to follow the kit instruction order. Instructions: Some dry-fitting:  Here is the part where the forward sections of the intakes get glued into place, after the side panels. Look how tiny those little struts are (parts B30a x 2 and B30b x2). I had a heck of a time with them.  Assembled forward intake parts. I have allowed the tiny struts to dry in place. They are almost impossible to install after gluing the intake splitter plates in place... I've tried it on previous builds, and it was an even worse exercise in frustration. You can see the LEX (Leading Edge eXtensions) ready for installation in the background.  In the meantime, here is how well the parts fit together so far around the intake lips.    An appreciation of how huge this kit is.  Here is what I meant by the noticeable step between the intake fronts and the side panels. I will need to fill and sand them prior to priming!  Now to add the flaps and other panels to the wings and fuselage. First, here are the two parts included in the kit for the lower forward fuselage. The part that is still on the sprue (B16) is the correct one, while the one that has been detached is an F/A-18C part. The noticeable difference is the mesh screens on the later version, while CF-18s have the slits with screens (visible as deeper grooves) for avionics cooling. The 5 little teats are Radar Warning Receiver (RWR) antennae; they are sometimes called the "cow's udder." If the jet you're modelling does not have RWR installed, these should be shaved off to make a smooth blanking plate. Very few CF-18s in the modern era do not have RWR; back in the good old days (late 80s, early 90s), we had a limited number of RWR and jammer sets, so at times almost half our jets (i.e. NORAD ones) did not have RWRs.   More soon! ALF Edited February 12, 2019 by ALF18 Corrected image duplication. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Specter1075 Posted February 12, 2019 Share Posted February 12, 2019 (edited) Very informative updates as always! I like your approach to the compressor blades. Im going to keep that in the back of my mind! I'm born and raised in Ottawa, but boycotting the Sens this year. Your pic is all I've seen of them this year. #MelnykOut :) Edited February 12, 2019 by Specter1075 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
AX 365 Posted February 12, 2019 Share Posted February 12, 2019 Coming along nicely ALF. Intake openings always seem to be a bear. Something else I'll keep an eye on when I get around to building this kit.  The Sens have been a disappointment. They haven't been the same since that two game trip to Sweden last year. Yeah they beat Anaheim and Winnipeg and from what I hear could have beaten Toronto too but I'm afraid this is another lost season. If they don't sign Duchene and Stone, I'm afraid the Sens and Melnyk will lose more fans. Nice movie theatre screen by the way. 😄 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Jamie Cheslo Posted February 12, 2019 Share Posted February 12, 2019 GO LEAFS GO! This is our year, folks! By the way, beautiful work on that CF-18! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Specter1075 Posted February 12, 2019 Share Posted February 12, 2019 Don't plan the parade yet, Toronto! 😆 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ALF18 Posted February 12, 2019 Author Share Posted February 12, 2019 I just want to say that I used to be a huge Habs fan, but that died about the time my son was born... my wife was in labour during the last Stanley Cup parade down Ste Catherine Street (June 93). Now, I just enjoy the hockey, and I save myself lots of heartache by picking teams I think will win in the playoffs, and cheer for them - until they lose! Then I jump on another bandwagon. Maybe the Leafs have a chance this year. I used to despise them, but now my list of teams I cannot stand is reduced to one: Boston. Â Speaking of flaps (like the tempest I may have touched off within the Bruins fans on ARC), it's time for the flap actuators. My trick is to glue the actuators in place, and allow them to set. I used to get very concerned about the little locator pins (visible on the aft portions, atop the actuators), but now I find that if they fit, fine, if not, I shave them off and mount the flaps and ailerons at the proper place to avoid gaps. The large actuator (for the aileron, just outside the wing fold) is the only part that is not symmetrical in this group of 4. It is important to locate the little cutout so that it faces outboard. That is the spot for the underwing navigation light. That tiny transparency is one of the most difficult parts to install on this kit, but not nearly as tough as on a 1/48 Hornet! Â My next step, after the actuators were starting to set, was to install the leading edge flaps. For those who do not know, the CF-18 (and all A/B/C/D versions) will usually be parked with the LEF (Leading Edge Flaps) and TEF (Trailing Edge Flaps) fully drooped. The LEF droop at 12 degrees down. The position of the LEF is entirely dependent on where the pilot sets the flap switch prior to shutdown. If he sets it UP (called AUTO on the Hornet), then the LEF will be flush with the wing, horizontal. They will remain there all day; they do not droop after hydraulic pressure is removed. If the flaps are set to half or full, the LEF will droop to 12 degrees and remain there. A CF-18 will almost ALWAYS be left with the flaps in half or full (i.e. LEF drooped 12 degrees), because it makes LEF lock-ups far less likely when the FCS (Flight Control System) is reset after start, especially when cold-soaked. If the LEF lock up (because they did not respond quickly enough to the demand to move after reset), then the pilot must go through a few manipulations of FCS test functions, which are time-consuming and waste time and fuel prior to take-off. The TEF, regardless of flap switch position, will slowly droop to 45 degrees down after engines and hydraulics are shut down. Ailerons droop to that angle as well. That's why I always pose mine with flaps and ailerons fully drooped. While we're on the subject of FCS after shut down, the stabilators (horizontal tail planes) will always sit in a nose-down position. That means the front of the stabs will be up high, while the rear portion will be down. Rudders tend to sit fairly flush with the tails, but the wind may blow them a bit off-centre. Here is my precisely-measured LEF 12 degree angle, using the TLAR method. Â Â Note that the outboard end of the LEFs terminates before the end of the wing centre section. That's because the missile rails (which I will install after painting the upper and lower colours to save masking), include a small part that fills in that gap. Â More soon. Thanks for chiming in. ALF Â Quote Link to post Share on other sites
phantom Posted February 13, 2019 Share Posted February 13, 2019 9 hours ago, Jamie Cheslo said: GO LEAFS GO! This is our year, folks! By the way, beautiful work on that CF-18!   Love this kit, yours is coming along great as always. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ALF18 Posted February 13, 2019 Author Share Posted February 13, 2019 14 hours ago, phantom said:   Love this kit, yours is coming along great as always. Thanks, Shawn! As usual, it takes me a lot longer to come up with a result similar to your work. 😎 ALF Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ALF18 Posted February 13, 2019 Author Share Posted February 13, 2019 Slow and steady. I am giving things time to dry in between, which leads to less mess and more solid assemblies. For example, after I glued the CIT blades in place, I let them set before attaching the big assembly to the forward fuselage. It was a bit of a pain to make sure they were all parallel, with only one locating pin per blade.   Here it is glued in place. With 4 separate parts (top, bottom, and two sides), the forward fuselage could potentially be a fit nightmare, given that the radome is moulded in one piece. That is one reason I spent so long trimming and dry-fitting the cockpit tub, to make sure the fuselage sides were the right shape when glued together.  For the radome, I always deviate from the kit instructions. See the circular part J15? There are two similar parts, one that goes inside the radome, and the other that goes into the forward fuselage. These two parts are supposed to mate, but I always find the fit to be terrible. I DO glue the other part inside the radome, because it provides a supporting platform for the gun ports, but I leave off J15.  Here, I have dry-fit things together with J15 in place. There are always gaps, so I leave it out.  This is the fit with J15 left out. I have also left the metallic part for the gun ports off for now. I will insert it after the fuselage is painted, so that it will have a nice, crisp line between the metal and the grey. Some CF-18 paint jobs have a silver-coloured rim around the gun ports (the u-shaped part with the rivets at the top of the radome here), but sometimes that part is painted camouflage grey.  Poor focus, but the fit is nice after it's glued in place.  The flap actuators are solid now. I have just glued the flaps and ailerons in place with CA glue. They are hanging at slightly differing angles, which is not unusual with power off. That's my story, and I'm sticking to it! At least until the Commons Justice Committee orders an inquiry, and I will then invoke client confidentiality. 😈  More later! ALF  Quote Link to post Share on other sites
danny59 Posted February 14, 2019 Share Posted February 14, 2019 Alf, about the CIT antennas, you are better to check your references, because they are NOT parallel.  Daniel   Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ALF18 Posted February 14, 2019 Author Share Posted February 14, 2019 (edited) 14 hours ago, danny59 said: Alf, about the CIT antennas, you are better to check your references, because they are NOT parallel.  Daniel   Are you referring to the possible splay outboard of the aft portions? Hard to tell from this picture, but damn near parallel. Thanks for pointing it out. Would you believe I actually made them splay out slightly? No? Oh well, I tried!   ALF Edited February 14, 2019 by ALF18 Clarification Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Colin K Posted February 17, 2019 Share Posted February 17, 2019 (edited) On 1/6/2019 at 6:53 PM, skyhawk174 said: Well Alf I am sure you know that the SAC gear would not be appropriate for a CF-18. But then your customer may not care or notice. Actually, the SAC gear would be appropriate for a CF-18. All that needs to be added, is the correct shock absorber. I used SAC gear on a 32nd CF-18B build, many years ago (article is in R/T 34-4). What I did for the shock strut was assemble the kit parts, then cut off the ends that attach to the gear legs. Then, I made the new strut out of plastic tubing, glued the attachment points to either end, and done!  Edited February 17, 2019 by Colin K Quote Link to post Share on other sites
danny59 Posted February 17, 2019 Share Posted February 17, 2019 (edited) Alf,  I found my notes about the dimensions/location of the CIT antennas. Here is a rough drawing for the benefit of everyone.  Danny   Edited February 17, 2019 by danny59 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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