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CHAPTER I - Basic airframe & tail construction I found a dieast Solido scale model into a general toy store. It looks more than a toy than a detailed scale model, but it is a pretty good basis to support the attempted project. Using a screwdriver, I removed all the screws & support pins...

1/18 scale Hafner Rotabuggy flying Jeep Willys RAF Solido diecast conversion & scratchbuild The Hafner Rotabuggy (formally known as the Blitz Buggy or Malcolm Rotaplane) was an experimental aircraft that was essentially a jeep (actually a Willys MB) combined with an autogyro. It was designed by...

1/35 scale M-42 Duster twin 40mm Hellenic Army SPG - Self Propelled anti aircraft Gun model by Tamiya That's an almost 20 years old scale model project of mine, built in only few hours. The model represent one of the M-42 Duster twin 40mm SPGs, used to operate with Hellenic Army colours. In...

I’ve been asked about the available space where the rear passenger puts his feet on. From the pictures of the model have been published, and the art images found on the article’s first page, it appears that the rear seat is too close to the back of the front seat - and it is also clear from the...

Re:1/18 scale F-16CJ Block 52 HAF scratch CHAPTER IV - Main landing gear bay construction The main landing gear bay of this toy is so simple and looks so unreal. I realized that I had to pay much more attention and start scratchbuilding the area, starting from zero. The main landing gear bay is...

Re:1/18 scale F-16CJ Block 52 HAF scratch CHAPTER III - Engine's afterburner area construction Starting to work behind the engine's last stage blades and the afterburner's spoked frame, I had to simulate in scale the inner embossed detail on the afterburner's area. Following the exact blueprint...

Re:1/18 scale F-16CJ Block 52 HAF scratch CHAPTER II – Air intake tube construction Because the main BBI - Elite Force kit was very poor on detail and had the air intake tube sealed, I had to first open the air intake by cutting the plastic and then build from scratch the approximately 30cm...

Re:1/18 scale F-16CJ Block 52 HAF scratch CHAPTER I - Engine's 1st stage blades & afterburner construction Beginning the construction from behind, I should first scratch build the Pratt & Whitney F100 turbofan engine (F-16CJ Block 52) nozzle, the afterburner compartment etc as detailed as a...

1/18 scale Lockheed Martin F-16CJ Fighting Falcon Block 52 Hellenic Air Force BBI - Elite Force conversion & scratchbuild The following article is to describe step by step the 1/18 scale Lockheed Martin F-16CJ Fighting Falcon Block 52, currently flying with Hellenic Air Force, conversion using...

CHAPTER X - Epilogue Final details were added. VHF radio with headphones in the cockpit, mobile phone, seat belt buckles, main rotor control bars, cables, etc. To break the monotony of red, a toolbox and a tow added into rear storage area. At last, transparent plastic card were placed to...

CHAPTER IX - Applying paint, wash & weather effects Model parts were washed with liquid soap and warm water to disappear leaving oil traces, fingertips etc and then sprayed with light grey primer. The first base color layer sprayed with no problem and then a second white color layer...

CHAPTER VIII - Live After Death When I started building the model, I did not expect to present the CHAPTER VIII under this title. Bus as all the sad & bad situations in life, it was unexpected and accompanied by great frustration because suddenly I saw months effort to dissolve in only few...

It’s sad! Obviously, voodoo curses came from the unspeakable dirty Viper snake, got real and the final varnish finishes on the model suffered what the Americans call as FUBAR - F@cked Up Beyond All Recognition. In brief words, the color layers popped and “cracked” everywhere on the model’s...

CHAPTER VII - Canopy construction The Jukka Tervamäki Engineering JT-9T autogyro canopy is made by bented and cold-formed 3mm polycarbonate sheet. The backwards sliding canopy of the single seat JT-9 version, offers the possibility to taxi and fly slowly with the canopy open, a benefit in a hot...

CHAPTER VI - Landing gear system construction The single seat JT-9 and the tandem seating JT-9T, are available with tricycle landing gear system with a steerable nose wheel or a taildragger version too. For both types, the type of landing gear is based on the placement of the exact CG position...

CHAPTER V - "H" shaped tail construction The Jukka Tervamäki Engineering JT-9T autogyro designed by Finnish engineer Mr. Jukka Tervamäki, is equipped with a twin "H" shaped tail. To build this, I started by rolling flexible styrene sheet around a plastic tube and forming as required to look...

Remember the previously mentioned wooden picture frames, found at the local IKEA store for only 1€ each, securing the styrene plastic sheet to be vacuum formed? I kept these thin plexiglass plates, to use them as required. Continuing the cockpit construction, I had to build the rear cockpit...

To produce a thin-skinned right side fuselage, the polyester part, must be vacuum formed. That means, that I should build from the beginning a new vacuum chamber box. Vacuum forming is a very simple technique that can produce thin-skinned parts of various forms. I mainly used vacuum forming for...

CHAPTER IV - Right side fuselage construction As I said at the beginning of this thread, I decide to make the JT-9T building look more interesting and show the model in a way that airframe should look like cutaway side opened and let cockpit detail be easily observed. THIS artistic diagram gave...