Wonwings Diary-a blog with a difference.

[Guest]

Barry,

Thanks but the links do not seem to give much information. In fact one of them just returned me to your blog!

rickdev65

[wonwinglo]

***The page will not give any information on the sanding tools,that is only a lead,these people stock 85,000 seperate items impossible to put on their web pages ! :computer: now you need to contact them either by phone,snail mail or e-mail :write: ( do all three ) 020 8761 4244 help@hobby.co.uk Hobby Ltd,Knights Hill Square,London,SE27 0HH.

Dont take no :nono: for an answer from them,they are Sandvik agents and as such should be able to supply from stock,speak to someone in charge such as a supervisor.:angel: Keep at it and do not give in.

Barry,Thanks but the links do not seem to give much information. In fact one of them just returned me to your blog!

rickdev65

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Building from plans-Making parts from brown paper using blue foam.

Having dealt with how to make a fuselage from blue foam from scratch,there is another important use we can apply this material to,that is by using it to make excellent lightweight and strong shells,anything from a complete hull,fuselage,cowling can be made with a material that can be found in any domestic home,what is this material ? simply brown paper,properly applied can be made into tough workmanlike forms,everyone who went to school will remember 'paper mache' whereby shreds of newspaper were mixed with glue to make forms around a plastercine mould,well our system is similar but smoother and even better than the time established papier-mache techniques.

Firstly carve a plug from blue foam exactly as described in earlier posts here,there is no need to split this one but just carve it whole the shape that you want,once this has been fully sanded up get some domestic cling film ( the type used to wrap sandwiches etc ) and carefully pull this around the plug smoothing out any wrinkles until you are satisfied,probably best to use a jig to hold the plug at this stage,two pieces of wire pushed into place either side ( nose to tail ) and held into a simple wooden jig will suffice,this way you can turn it like a pig on a spit.Next job is to obtain some medicinal bandage,the cling film acts as a release barrier between the foam anf the dry brown paper/adhesive build up,buy a big roll from the chemists the wider the better,apply a coat of Polyvinyl Acetate adhesive ( PVA glue ) to the plug covering well, and with the bandage held slightly at an angle carefully and tightly bind this around the former,the adhesive will squeeze through so just smooth this out with a wide paintbrush,leave this icky sticky mess to dry out throughly overnight.Now while you are waiting for this to dry get hold of a few sheets of thin brown paper,ordinary wrapping variety will do fine,so ut it into strips about one inch wide,you can if you so wish cut some with a taper to them especially if your former is wide at the front and narrow at the rear.

Now with a large bowl water by your side quickly dunk the strips as you use them one at a time,while you do this apply another coat of PVA to the former and apply the strips one at a time slightly overlapping at the edges,smooth out the brown paper with your fingers ( a rubber latex glove is ideal for this ) once properly dry repeat this process again,this time overlapping in the middle of the last join,keep going until you have at least four layers of paper,by now it should be rock hard and ready for removal from the former,now for the exciting bit ! take a Dremel or similar tool with a circular saw attachment fitted,mark a pencil line either each side or along the top,carefully rest your hand against the former and run the circular blade along the mark,keep going until you get to the end,do this the other side cutting into the tough shell of the brown paper.Now with a thin table knife prise open the two shells,you will now have the basis for either a lightweigh fuselage or boat hull that can be fitted out,next time I will show you how to fit out these parts and then the important job of joining the parts together.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Out of office message.

http://www.alexisparkinn.com/aviation_videos.htm

Wonwing is out of office at the moment but has left you a link to the most remarkable pieces of flying that you will ever see,give yourself a bit of time to enjoy the superb flying,and perhaps a little sorrow at the awful crashes,but we must live and learn from our mistakes and make sure that they do not happen again.

[Guest]

Loads of entertainment there Barry but I'm not so sure I should be watching the airliners section just before a TransAtlantic flight next week!!

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Congress attempt to ban royalties on military models.

A leaked document sent to industry has come to the notice of scale-models-

Congressman Andrews' "Military Toy Replica Act"

Dear Industry Colleague,

As you likely know by now, Congressman Robert Andrews(D-NJ) attempted to attach an amendment to the 2005 Defense Bill banning the licensing and collecting of royalties by defense contractors for replicas of military models. This amendment passed the House, but was ultimately defeated when the Bill was sent to the Senate for ratification. However, the issue is still very much alive, and I wish to update you at this time.

I have still been working closely with Congressman Andrews' office, as Mr. Andrews is not only very much in favor of our side of the issue, but he wishes to continue this quest on behalf of the hobby and toy industry. Within the next week, Congressman Andrews intends to offer a stand-alone bill to Congress, very similar to the amendment which did not pass when attached to the Defense Bill in 2005. Offering a stand-alone bill presents the issue formally to Congress, and potentially has much more of an impact on the members of Congress than an attachment to the defense bill. It brings the issue to the forefront, directly to those who need to know about it and who subsequently vote on the issue. Therefore, it is imperative that both the hobby and toy industries garner political support for this bill, titled the "Military Toy Replica Act" (there is no actual house bill number assigned to it yet).

Attached to this letter are 2 documents:

1. A copy of the "Military Toy Replica Act" as it will be introduced to Congress the week of February 27th or thereabouts. (see below)
   
2. A copy of the "talking points" regarding the issue, in order to provide you some guidance when calling the proper representatives in your district.

What to do next:

Call, DO NOT WRITE, EMAIL or FAX your members of Congress, both House and Senate.

Calls to these offices are taken immediately; faxes, emails and letters will not only arrive too late, but are often left for last for review. Ask for the aide in charge of military affairs, and begin to explain the Bill as well as the talking points to promote its passing. You are free to forward the attached copy of the Bill to anyone, it is open information at this time. These calls take but a few minutes each. If you receive voice mail, leave all the details of the Bill, the reason for the support needed and your name and number for a return call. Follow up later if necessary.

What is needed to get the Bill passed:

Congressman Andrews is a Democrat, so it is important to garner Democratic support among the members of Congress, but it is imperative that we obtain Republican support or even Republican co-sponsorship for the Bill. Ideal Republican candidates are those in Illinois(a large number of toy/hobby companies are located in Northern Illinois) such as Rep. Hastert, and Cong. Hefley of Colorado, who crossed party lines to support Congressman Andrews' amendment last year. However, any and all Congressional members in all districts can and should be contacted by those within our industry in order to have success at passing this proposed Bill.

Is there a deadline for contacting representatives?

Contacts need to be made at once, within days, as the Bill will be introduced very soon. I would ask you to contact me at this email address if you a positive response from any call. This is true particularly if it is a Republican, as Andrews' office will want to contact that member for co-sponsorship or general bi-partisan support.

Any questions on this process can be directed to myself at this email address. On behalf of the hobby industry, I thank you for your help in this effort. If we all work together on this issue, we will be successful.

TALKING POINTS ON THE "MILITARY TOY REPLICA ACT"

Congressman Andrews' Bill would require the Department of Defense to include a provision in their contracts with all defense contractors prohibiting them from requiring licenses and fees from businesses that manufacture, distribute or sell models and model kits.

These contractors have approached manufacturers and distributors within the hobby industry, pressuring them to sign licensing agreements and pay fees for the use of military designations and likenesses.

The designations for military vehicles (such as "F-16") are determined via a system established by the Department of Defense and the designs are implemented through the use of taxpayer funds.

In previous agreements, the contractors have sought 2-8% of the costs of each unit from manufacturers. On a typical $8 model kit, this amounts to about 40 cents, which, when multiplied over 15,000 units, equals $6000. This increased cost, which is necessarily passed on to the consumer, is negligible to these multi-billion dollar corporations, but it is enough, when marked up to a retail price, to drive down demand and put small "mom & pop" hobby and toy shops in jeopardy.

This Bill does not amend trademark law, rather it adds a new requirement to Department of Defense contracts to ensure that the model industry is not eliminated.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Parts from Blue Foam-Fitting out and assembly.

Right having got the fuselage parts made from blue foam and the covered brown paper laminations all completed,the last stage we discussed was when the halves had been prised from the pattern with the cling film membrane assisting removal,this was then scored along the edges with a rotary Dremel tool.

The next important stage is to add formers inside the two halves and join them together,to get the shapes of the formers obtain one of those carpets layers shape tools,these consist of dozens of wire pieces which when pressed into a corner replicate the shape,in our case simply press into the fuselage half,transfer the shape to a suitable piece of material for the part,draw around and cut out.

Glue the formers in place with PVA adhesive,if you want to then tack at strategic points with a glue gun to assist in holding them in place while the adhesive dries out.You can either build the formers as two halves,or as a single piece,the later will assist locating the two hales together but just make sure that the former is not over-sized otherwise you will not get a clean join at the seam.Dont forget to install any control rods,snakes or runs at this crucial stage,make sure that if the model is intended for IC motors that the nose formers are made internally large enough to accomodate the fuel tank,also plan the throttle runs alongside the tank at the same time.

For the servos you can install some stripwod rails,this enables the servos to be slid fore and aft to obtain the correct centre of gravity of the model,right so you are now in a position to join the two halves together,first do a dry run and make sure that everything fits properly,get out the medical bandage again all at the ready,a good idea is to tack glue the front,middle and rear with some gel cyno,a quick zap with some kicker ( accellerator ) should do the trick,now impregnate the bandage all over with PVA adhesive and with a stiff brush push the adhesive through the open weave of the bandage,lay the article onto its side and allow to dry out properly,the next day you should have a really strong and rigid part,whether it is a simple cowling or a complete fuselage this method of construction is superb.

[Guest]

Barry,

Those shape tools you mention are an exellent, although, mainly forgotten tool capable of creating the specific shape required.

They are absolutely perfect for making model boat stands as I have done on a number of occassions, although I think the last time I used it was when fitting floorboards around a door frame moulding.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Is this the best news ever news for Osprey ?

After a shaky start with numerous niggling problems,the Osprey looks all set for a real task to prove once and for all this innovative design which a lot of people have such great confidence in,this could be just what is needed to put this machine well and truly onto the aviation map-

The Marine Corps plans to send the innovative Osprey aircraft into combat zones within a year and will take a step toward that this week by activating a squadron of the tiltrotor craft.

obviously, due to operational concerns we don't want to tell exactly when they will deploy,said spokesman Master Sgt. Phil Mehringer at Marine Corps Air Station New River, where the squadron will be based.but it's certainly going to happen in the near future. Definitely, within a year.A ceremony is planned Friday to formally activate Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 263, which will carry the Vietnam-era "Thunder Chickens" nickname of the helicopter unit it is replacing. There are about 250 people in the New River-based squadron and at least a dozen aircraft.

Ospreys will replace the aging, Vietnam-era fleet of CH-46E twin-rotor helicopters that are so worn that they can't carry a full payload. The Osprey, which takes off and lands like a helicopter and flies like an

airplane, can carry more cargo and fly five times farther at speeds around 300 mph.

The squadron preparing to be activated has trained for several months training and will continue training before its deployment, Mehringer said.

It's the standard training package that any Marine aviation squadron would conduct prior to deployment,he said. "This one is a little longer in that all of the Marines coming together are new. They are starting this from scratch.The Marines have been testing the Ospreys at New River for several years as part of a testing squadron.

The program's future fell into doubt for a time after four Marines died in a 2000 crash in North Carolina and 19 were killed in a crash that year in Arizona.

The North Carolina crash near Jacksonville in December 2000 was caused by a ruptured titanium hydraulic line. The Arizona crash was blamed by investigators on pilot error.

Last year, the Pentagon approved full production of the Osprey in a $19 billion program and the corps has been showing off the aircraft.

Just last week, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld flew from New River to nearby Camp Lejeune in an Osprey to attend a military ceremony and the aircraft flew over the base several times.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-First Typhoon delivered today to 3 Squadron.

Exciting news today as the first Typhoon was delivered to the R.A.F at Coningsby.

ZJ922 (BS013) coded "QO-C" dep Warton for Coningsby today 16:43Z c/s "Typhoon 01" in full 3 sqn mks (the double letter code is

believed to have been used during WWII by this sqn).

also now in 3 sqn mks is ZJ918 (BS009) coded "QO-L" which may be delivered tomorrow (certainly within next few days).

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-History repeats itself-The Typhoon.

Now this would make a great scale subject,research on 3 Squadron states that they operated the Hawker Typhoon from February 1943 to March 1944,they used the codes QO-,todays modern Typhoon sophisticated jet aircraft flew with the very same codes used on those original aircraft,a model of each in these distinctive markings would certainly be an eye catcher,and above all what a piece of history in miniature ?

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-A glimpse of the new Airfix TSR-2 kit.

TSR-2 Model by Airfix.

A few shots of the sprues and the beautifully executed decal sheet,the only crib that I have seen so far has been the detail around the inner jet intakes and the lack of cockpit detail,neither of which really present any big problems for the determined model builder.

Note that the pale blue of the roundals was typical of the anti-flash nuclear era,just like the Vulcans,Victors and Valiants in service with the OCU's Operational Conversion units,the general idea being that the white would reflect the nuclear radiation after the mission had been completed.So after all of these years we finally got our injection moulded TSR-2,Airfix have dragged this one out more than any other kit that they have produced,you can bet your life that sales will soar,it is just the injection that Airfix have needed,the start of a new era perhaps ?







A few sprue pictures and the lovely decal sheet of the new ( at February 2006 ) Airfix TSR-2

[Guest]

Everyone should have 2 of these kits one should be painted in service colours ie green and grey no1 or 617 squadron and the other either cosford or duxfords example

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Wonwing & the The Men from the Ministry.



Well you asked for it,so here it is,how did a youthful Wonwing get arrested in connection with the TSR-2 project ? yes it is true I must be the only person ever to get arrested for possession of a photograph taken in a museum,here is the full story of what happened-

During the build up to the TSR-2 programme there was the utmost secrecy involved,it was vital that valuable information did not get into the wrong hands,as it happened the Russians did in fact eventually copy the TSR-2 design,as design details leaked back to the various design bureaus,the results were a much uglier looking design with the usual lack of finesse attached to them,the factories were on full security alert in readiness for the aircrafts extensive test programme,in fact that is what supposed to have happened but things sort of went very pear shaped, and the aircraft was the subject of the biggest ministrial blunderings ever as to cancellation of a manned aircraft,during this period of utter confusion,nobody told the security folk that the aircraft had been axed overnight and that their services were no longer required,consequently they went about their everyday tasks of checking every avenue where the details of this aircraft could be found out.

Meanwhile a young Wonwing,was working for an aircraft maintenance company earning a few pounds to make a living,to supplement this income he was gradually building up a vast library of aircraft photographs which one day would number some 150,000 individual pictures of aircraft worldwide,a small catalogue was made up and a scheme arranged whereby photographs could be exchanged or sold to broaden the collection,to this end he would take every single opportunity to visit different establishments throughout the UK including the College of Aeronautics at Cranfield where,surprise,surprise there was a complete and full sized example of a TSR-2,the opportunity was taken to add a set of photographs to the list and the type was a knock-out,in those days I used to do my very own black and white processing,every night the bath would be full of prints being cleaned of the photographic acid fixative much to my parents annoyance ! they would then be dried out in the airing cupboard,the best place in the house which just happened to be in my bedroom.

As the list developed and more exchanges made,I built up a large circle of correspondents,many of them worked at airports worlwide mostly civil,but in one case there was a serving R.A.F officer from Abingdon in Oxfordshire with whom I innocently exchanged photographs of aeroplanes,as the exhanges went on he requested if I had any pictures of the TSR-2 ? I sent on a small batch of this aircraft and then thought no more about it,so there you have the basics now for what happened a few months later...

I was working one day inside the fuselage of a small twin engined aircraft at work when someone called out my name,I emerged from the cockpit to be confronted with two very official looking characters with brief cases escorted by two policemen ! as soon as I was on the hangar floor they grabbed me by each arm and frog marched me off to a waiting car with not a word mentioned,they then drove me for miles arund country lanes as they fired numerous questions at me,still baffled and I can tell you terrified ! I just sat there with these big burly officials jamming me in the car,then they asked to where I lived and the policemen headed the car in that direction,we arrived at my home and you can imagine my mother was wondering what on earth was going on ? more questions followed and then they came round to my large collection of photographs which they asked to see,they made a right mess sorting clumsily through them disturbing years of work and filing in one swoop,they appeared to be selecting certain ones at random nearly all R.A.F machines,they put them into a large envelope,never even gave me a receipt for them and left without anything further said,I now know that they were from the R.A.F Military Police at Northolt and were investigating a spy ring set up in the UK,I was unfortunately in the middle of all this having supplied a few innocent pictures to the guy at Abingdon,they must have intercepted his mail on the base and found the pictures of the TSR-2,a few weeks later I had a letter from them, saying that they demanded an explanation as to where the pictures of the TSR-2 had been taken and were coming down again to interview me,they visited me again,at work once again this time I was requested to attend the managers office,all of this was getting a bit tedious and tiring,I explained that the TSR-2 was now in a museum and they grunted something at me in their arrogant manner,I also could not help asking if they knew about its existance there,they did not reply ? the manager for whom I also took official photographs of company aircraft before and after overhaul,he also vouched for my enthusiasm for which I was very grateful,the R.A.F police from Northolt were very rude and un-imformative,I just did not know where I stood at this time,or indeed even what I had done wrong ? they left once again non the wiser as to what they were trying to ascertain so once again I had to stick it out before receiving yet another communication from them,this time it was more in my favour coming from a senior officer at Northolt,it apologised for any inconvenience but said that it was only doing its job and I was clear of everything,in the papers at that time was an article on a major spy ring in the UK that included serving officers in the R.A.F,it was all now clearly clicking into place as to my supposed part in all of this,I was innocent and they had egg on their faces,especially not knowing the full story behind the demise of the TSR-2 project,imagine a secret aircraft being placed almost instantly into a museum for everyone to see and be photographed ? this story is an example of the incompetance of people supposed to be in the know.

This story has never been related before to anyone, so is an insight into what pressures the cold war placed onto people in those days including a very frightened Wonwing.

[Guest]

I can just Imagine " So comrade Wonwing you have a Zenit camera or if you were high up in the ring a Practica with a carl ziess lens ohhhh and i bet his teacher was mr Burgess lol