WC-130A Rainmaker

[Da SWO]

Hard to see, but the Blackdog exhausts fill the hole in nicely.

 

 

[Da SWO]

I did a little work over the last month.

 

I partially painted the fuselage.  I use spray cans and was concerned about my ability to get paint and masks on under the wings, 

 

 

I am also getting the engines mounted on the wings.  The OzMods engines are a little bigger than the mounting nacelles on the model, so putty and sanding (my two least favorite modeling activities) was the order of the day.

After getting everything done, I somehow snapped the one engine off and am now redoing the putty/sanding routine.  😞

 

 

 

 

I also started working on the props, I found a set of White Metal props at a model show and started painting them.  Interestingly, the Matte Black is glossy and not flat like I thought.  The props are painted silver, de-iceing boots and propeller hub are black, awaiting a dull coat.

Photo's I have found suggest a semi-gloss appearance ( @aircommando130 ?) with a shiny section near the tip.

 

 

 

Finally, I also built the two external tanks and am prepping them for paint.

 

 

 

 

[aircommando130]

The cuff where the blade flares out down to the prop dome is black too. Depending on how new the prop is 

kinda determines the shine of the black. 

 

Cheers....Ron

[Da SWO]

On 4/24/2024 at 4:31 PM, aircommando130 said:

The cuff where the blade flares out down to the prop dome is black too. Depending on how new the prop is 

kinda determines the shine of the black. 

 

Cheers....Ron

Would the spinner be flat?

Found a photo online where the props and boots looked flat, that's the direction I am looking at.

 

I also have conflicting guidance on markings.  Stars and Bars on the upper left wing, did they go on the lower left wing or lower right wing?  I have illustrations showing both.

[Dutch]

Brett, I am pretty sure the US insignia is upper left, lower right.  The South Vietnamese AF sometimes did both uppers and lowers. K/r, Dutch

[A-10 LOADER]

1 hour ago, Dutch said:

Brett, I am pretty sure the US insignia is upper left, lower right.  The South Vietnamese AF sometimes did both uppers and lowers. K/r, Dutch

 

What Dutch says.

Steve

[aircommando130]

New prop domes are gloss black but as they fly and sit in the sun and fly through rain it dulls pretty quick to a semi gloss to

eventually a flat black color. You could always tell whrn your airplane had a new prop installed!

 

Cheers...Ron

[Da SWO]

@aircommando130

 

I put two "vents" on top of each engine, and am wondering what they are? do?

 

 

 

 

[gmat6441]

Here are two prints of 552 that I have.

https://imgur.com/FNuNbKP

https://imgur.com/Pa582wj

 

Da SWO The scans are not very good. The original print is better and the second print isn't as dark.Tried adjusting it on my computer but no joy. Cheap Brother's printer? Will see if I can do better.

Grant

Edited May 19, 2024 by gmat6441
redo link

[Da SWO]

7 hours ago, gmat6441 said:

Here are two prints of 552 that I have.

https://imgur.com/FNuNbKP

https://imgur.com/Pa582wj

 

Da SWO The scans are not very good. The original print is better and the second print isn't as dark.Tried adjusting it on my computer but no joy. Cheap Brother's printer? Will see if I can do better.

Grant

Thanks, I got my "penny" on 552.

[Da SWO]

Slow work as life and a massive honey do list keeps getting in the way.

 

I built the OzMod external tanks.

 

I don't have a lot of experience with resin parts, I assume these are cast and not 3-d printed.  The tank/pylon seam was pretty straight foward to putty. 

 

There was a large gap between the center of the pylon and the bottom of the wing.  I used Mr Dissolved putty to fill the gap, but it took multiple applications before it was smooth.

 

 

I have a few tweaks to do to the engines, then I can glue the wings to the fuselage in the next couple of days or so.

[Trojan Thunder]

Those OzMods tanks are definitely not 3D printed, I have had a couple of the C-130A sets in my stash for over 20 years. I used one set on a RAAF C-130a I built back in 2010.

[Dutch]

Brett,

Hmm. You seem to have tackled the pylon gap problem in good fashion.  I would have filed both ends down a little,  but may have lost the mounting tabs in the process. Carry on, sir!

Dutch

[Da SWO]

This build seems to go in spurts.

Wings are now on.

 

The left wing needed shims before I could putty it.

The seam on the right wing is tight, so I can can just put putty on.

[Da SWO]

Watching paint dry is so much fun....

 

 

[Da SWO]

The tape on the nose was peeling so I removed it.

 

Looks good so far, as I didn't get any bleed under the tape. 

 

 

[Da SWO]

Pulling tape off.

 

A bit of paint touch up is required, disappointed that paint still came off as I waited a week after painting to put tape on.  😞

 

 

 

 

 

Edited August 10, 2024 by Da SWO

[A-10 LOADER]

She's shaping up.

Sorry to hear about the adhesion issues, what paint are you using ?

Steve

[Da SWO]

11 hours ago, A-10 LOADER said:

She's shaping up.

Sorry to hear about the adhesion issues, what paint are you using ?

Steve

Used Tamiya spray paint.  The Aero Mask vinyl masks really tore the tan paint off.

[A-10 LOADER]

9 hours ago, Da SWO said:

Used Tamiya spray paint.  The Aero Mask vinyl masks really tore the tan paint off.

That's a shame.

Steve

[Da SWO]

Slowly she's coming around.

 

Touched up the paint.

Painted the engine intakes, white underneath and the back wall black with Tamiya Rubber.

I also painted the engine face where the props will go.

Crew entry door was opened up (I busted the ladder, so that has to get re-installed)

Nose gear doors are on, and the tailgate was glued in the up position (glue looper worked well)

A lot of fiddly details to get done, so work will be slow as I only get a couple of hours each week to work on models.

 

 

 

 

Didn't notice it until I looked at the photo, but the web seats show up well in the windows.

 

 

[Trojan Thunder]

Nice work on the paint, it is getting there! 🏆

[Da SWO]

Will try to take photo's Sunday.

 

A lot of little items getting done.  Dirtied up the exhaust area behind the engines.  I opted against weathering, the planes flew through thunderstorms and typhoons, so grime washed away.  That and trips to the wash rack every 90-180 days helped keep them fairly clean

 

Got the nose gear and door on. Fit was an issue again, I put the door on before the wheels, only to find out the wheels hit the door.  So off came the door, on with the wheels, then I glued the door arms to the bottom of the fuselage, not perfect, but that seems to be the fit standard for Italeri models (maybe the newer releases are better).

 

Building the main gear wheels, another fit issue but solvable.

[Da SWO]

 

 

 

Main Gear Wheels are on, I need to straighten one bogey out.

 

 

Crew ladder was re-glued, pitot tubes are on (that was a  questionable event).

 

 

Will finish the ramp this week.

Inner gear door need to get painted, then glued.

 

Lot of little details that take time.  My sprue for the flares arrived today.

 

Antennas and crew entry door also need to go on, I just need to decide what order to build everything.

 

[Da SWO]

Little things.

Ramp struts are on, and it's glued in-place.

Warning stripe around the crew entrance door was painted.

Gear doors are all on.

 

Amazon and Ebay purchases have all arrived.

 

Plan on cutting wire for the AM antennas tomorrow, and then gluing onto the fuselage side brackets.

 

I gave up looking for the EZ-line and bought a spool of infini rigging line.  The spool says it stretches up to 6x it's length, so I need to measure and cut to see how it looks.

 

I started painting the prop assemblies, paint bleed under the tape, so I have some more touch up to do.

 

I'll finish painting the crew entrance door tomorrow, and get it on after the side antennas are on.

 

I am also drawing up the flare assembly, need to decide if I want them up or down.