Last week we installed some doors into the aft-most section of the fuselage, and removed the side of the mid-upper turret’s section to install some “hydraulics.”
This week we worked on the cockpit, a bit more of the hydraulics and the vertical stabiliser.
The parts for this week were:
The first task was to build the vertical stabiliser and its rudder, beginning with removing all of the pieces from their frets.
These came together relatively swiftly, the most time consuming part was sanding them into shape.
As before, at this point I couldn’t resist a dry run of the assembly.
I then put these parts aside for painting.
Next I put together the two small assemblies which could be assembled prior to painting, the second of the ammunition containers and a control panel.
I also added rivet marks to the frame to go on the back of the pilot’s chair.
Before setting everything aside to be primed and painted.
Looking ahead in the instructions at this point I decided that, much like last week, I would have to remove the side of the cockpit section in order to make my work as straight forwards as possible.
I also thought that it would be easiest to fit the Navigator’s instruments (these would have been done in early August otherwise) before closing the section back up, so I passed the relevant pieces to my father to assemble.
I then placed the instruments into the Navigator’s position.
I now painted all of the parts set aside prior to this point.
Before completing the assembly of the second ammunition container and gluing it to the first.
And then gluing them into place above the aft-end of the bomb-bay.
Next, I attached the frame to the back of the pilot’s chair.
Before adding an oxygen bottle.
Then I trimmed down and inserted the silver rod into the vertical stabiliser.
And glued the fire extinguisher into the cut-out section of fuselage.
I then first glued the front piece of the electrical panel to the piece of paper showing the dials.
Before trimming the paper and gluing the assembly to the body of the panel.
This was set aside to be added to the model later in this diary.
Next I coiled a small piece of wire and added it to the panel assembled near the beginning of this build diary.
This panel, and the hydraulic reservoir were then added to the hydraulics added last week.
Before I added a pair of hand rails to the same section.
Finally, I returned to the cockpit, first adding the two small box shaped pieces to the cut-out section, and adding wires from them to the engineer’s instruments.
Before threading a series of wires into the frame and connecting them to the terminals of the panel, which was itself glued to the frame.
I then put the cockpit back together, threading the wires through the rest of the frame, and gluing the cut-out section back into place (putting in new stringers to replace the once which had broken when the section was cut out).
This task brought this week’s task to its close.
Next week we’ll be adding skin to the underside of the port wing, building the other side of the horizontal stabiliser and adding the first of the ammunition feeds to the model.