Aerotech DH-88 Comet: Finished.

[Ericg]

I thought I would get into this kit due to next years Model Expo in Melbourne having a new civil category starting up. I will do this one as the red Grosvener House Comet. I know I have a significant amount of models on the go at the moment but it is all part of the game plan.

The Aerotech kit was limited to 150 made, and is not available anymore, so when the chance for me to get one came up I took it. A a large sum of money changed hands and here it is! Resin, White metal, photo etch, vac formed canopies. Whilst not wanting to `go to town' on the model there are a few improvements that I will make in order to give it an edge and to refine it as per the original.



Just the right size in this scale



Eric.

First up was the cockpit. I have chosen to represent the woodgrain using Uschi decals. They give a very convincing look and are reasonably easy to use provided care is taken. You will see the difference they make between top and bottom.





Next up was the wing root fairing. The kit has this represented with a panel line. I reckoned it would look cooler as a panel, and also take the opportunity to improve that area. The aircraft has fairly straight fuselage sides whereas the kit is slightly flared.

Notice the gap under the knife blade.



I scraped away at the fuselage using the panel line as a guide.



Once the fuselage was straight it exposed the wing root fairing and consigned the panel to history, leaving a nicely raised `panel' I blended and smoothed it back towards the fuselage to thin it out a bit and the result looks very nice.



I noticed that the kit nose appeared to be too bulbous. The nose cone on the real aircraft has been formed as a seperate part and whilst it generally follows the lines of the fuselage, it is slightly more pinched and doesn't have some of the curves. I sanded the nose cone such that upon first examination it looks like it blends exactly to the fuselage but upon a close look it has its own shape, just like the real thing.



Next order of business was to de-curve the fuselage. There is quite a distinct change in direction in the top half of the nose which is readily viewable in period photos. The kit is too curved in this area and I wanted it sorted.

The original curves



The modified. notice that there is now a much more prominent line running down the length of the fuselage. You can also see how the nose cone has its own seperate shape in this pic too.



Eric.

[hrtpaul]

Oh yeah baby. I'll be watching this with utmost enthusiasm I can tell ya. Best I get the mop and bucket in preparation for the drool to come

[tor lives]

Yep....met too, I can't wait to see how this one progresses. Having narrowly missed out on one of these on ebay recently, I think this is the closest I will get to one.
And it is really encouraging and exciting to see that people are now starting to build with our new category in mind.
Keep us posted Capt Eric.
TOR

[Ericg]

Thanks guys. Have done a bit more to the model but will wait to put more pics up.

TOR, I know of one that is in a stash close by. Will enquire as to its availability for you.

Eric.

[tor lives]

TOR, I know of one that is in a stash close by. Will enquire as to its availability for you.
Eric.

I would be most appreciative Capt Eric.....as the days have gone by I am spewing that I missed that one on ebay.
I would love to do one of these as a big, beautiful, gloss black "Black Magic".
TOR

[Ericg]

Another small issue with the kit is the way that the line that should be straight all the way down the fuselage kicks up toward the horizontal stabilizer near the end.

Here is a pic of the fuselage with the rear part unchanged. Hard to spot initially.



Much more apparent once a piece of straight tape is ran down the line.



I fixed it in about 5 minutes by using a knife blade and a sanding block. This small modification makes the aircraft look longer and sleeker and is well worth the time spent on it. You can now see how the change in direction with the curvature of the fuselage now extends all of the way from behind the nose cone to under the tailplane, just like the real thing. Once the model is finished, it will catch the light very effectively.



The line under the tailplane is readily apparent after the modification. I have also started the process of carving the fuselage and tail away from the fairing that joins both surfaces up, just like I did with the wing root fairings.



Eric.

[RayS]

Nice work Eric, your attention to detail with those subtle changes are going to pay off in the end.

Watching as well

[tor lives]

Yep.... we maybe looking at the inaugural winner of the "Civil Aircraft" category being created before our very eyes .
TOR

[Ericg]

Some more progress.

I pinned the rudder onto the fin by drilling and inserting brass rod, without gluing it to the model. I did this to assess the overall shape and to correct as necessary before I need to remove it to apply the fabric effects. I discovered that it did not have a constant curve to it, as in the rudded and fin have slightly different curvatures on the leading edge and it looked slightly too swept according to comparison with photos. Here is the unchanged fin and rudder.



And here is the correction. I sanded it so that it had a more upright look to it and also ensured that it had a constant curve. If you look at the fairing, you will see the 1mm or so that I have sanded from the leading edge of the fin in order to accomplish it. It looks allot more refined and smoother.

[tor lives]

Looking good Capt Eric....if ever I do get my hands on one of these beauties this thread is the ideal tutorial for building it.
Please keep the good stuff coming Sir!!!
TOR