How I build large scale dioramas! (4 Viewers)
- Thread starter JohnReid
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thebritfarmer
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The same to you John.
JohnReid
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Whats wrong with this pic?
Notice on the jig where it says "Front", now take a look at where the engine is placed in the fuselage.Now look where the leading edge is,then the trailing edge.@#$#$$$$$^&*!@# You guessed it the engine is on backwards.Wow what a stupid mistake!!!!!!!It is so easy to lose the big picture when you get too involved in the details.Somehow between Oct 19 and 21 I had a major brain fart of some kind and only discovered it today when I went back to work on the airplane.
Of course everything has been glued in place but luckily I think that the engine mount will be OK where it is, because if it was also involved I would pretty much have to start over again.
Notice on the jig where it says "Front", now take a look at where the engine is placed in the fuselage.Now look where the leading edge is,then the trailing edge.@#$#$$$$$^&*!@# You guessed it the engine is on backwards.Wow what a stupid mistake!!!!!!!It is so easy to lose the big picture when you get too involved in the details.Somehow between Oct 19 and 21 I had a major brain fart of some kind and only discovered it today when I went back to work on the airplane.
Of course everything has been glued in place but luckily I think that the engine mount will be OK where it is, because if it was also involved I would pretty much have to start over again.
JohnReid
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Thank goodness for "Uncure" and the fact that I didn't use epoxy!
The fix was easier than I thought that it would be and I am just happy I discovered it now and not after the wheels and other stuff were on.
This picture gives you an idea of where the major components should be when the flier is completed.(I better keep this pic near the workbench)
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The fix was easier than I thought that it would be and I am just happy I discovered it now and not after the wheels and other stuff were on.
This picture gives you an idea of where the major components should be when the flier is completed.(I better keep this pic near the workbench)
__________________
JohnReid
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Fuselage/tail assembly.
I modified the jig by cutting off the bottom portion but still leaving the upper for protection for the wings.I then hot glue melted the wheels to a building board.(the glue is easily removed later by re-heating it).
The building board is exactly the width of the tail booms.I could have made a separate jig for the tail assembly but I thought that it would be more fun to build it like the original must have been done.
I know Curtiss used bamboo but others also used ash wood for these booms and spruce for the struts.I will use ash(basswood) for these due to the difficult of representing the growth rings on the bamboo which would hardly be seen at scale distance anyway.
The measurements I used for the tail assembly are from the Aeronautics publication May-June 1912,page 161.
I modified the jig by cutting off the bottom portion but still leaving the upper for protection for the wings.I then hot glue melted the wheels to a building board.(the glue is easily removed later by re-heating it).
The building board is exactly the width of the tail booms.I could have made a separate jig for the tail assembly but I thought that it would be more fun to build it like the original must have been done.
I know Curtiss used bamboo but others also used ash wood for these booms and spruce for the struts.I will use ash(basswood) for these due to the difficult of representing the growth rings on the bamboo which would hardly be seen at scale distance anyway.
The measurements I used for the tail assembly are from the Aeronautics publication May-June 1912,page 161.
thebritfarmer
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Thanks for the updates John. I hadn't noticed that it was in backwards and even when you pointed it out still looked fine to me. Knowing the perfectionist you are I had a hunch that you would fix it. Personally I would have done the same (if it was me building it) as it would have bothered me every time I looked at it. Looking forward to more of your work, great stuff.
JohnReid
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I heard from the CAM yesterday and their renovations are to be finished in about a year from now. I probably have another year or so just to finish the Backyard Flyer so I will drop it for now and complete the Albatros,Neiuport and Jenny dioramas first.
The Neiuport is about 99% finished ,the Jenny about 90% and Albatros about the same except I have recently (today) added more to it.
A modeling bud of mine kindly gave me another Albatros that he was working on himself but has too many things on the go right now.I got it as a surprise Chistmas present and as you will see I am putting it to good use.
The Neiuport is about 99% finished ,the Jenny about 90% and Albatros about the same except I have recently (today) added more to it.
A modeling bud of mine kindly gave me another Albatros that he was working on himself but has too many things on the go right now.I got it as a surprise Chistmas present and as you will see I am putting it to good use.
JohnReid
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Now this should be lots of fun! I always wanted to do a junkyard.The question is though ,because it is a military airfield ,I don't think that junk would be allowed to lay around too long and that limits the amount of weathering I can do.Worn but not too rusty.No evidence of fire this time but an accident case just like the other.
This is a German aircrew training field and accidents were all too common in those days.I am dedicating this diorama to all the pilots and their instructors who never even made it to the front lines ,both German and Allied.
This is a German aircrew training field and accidents were all too common in those days.I am dedicating this diorama to all the pilots and their instructors who never even made it to the front lines ,both German and Allied.
JohnReid
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I visited a couple of local hobby stores yesterday and to my surprise I saw something amazing.Ten years ago, except for the amour guys ,hardly anyone knew about dioramas or even what they were.Not only most modelers but the arts community too!
Things are finally changing,they now have craft materials for kids, even under ten years old' labeled as "diorama kits".I am not just talking about the modeling section of the stores but in the childrens craft section as well.Sure,I know that this kind of craft thing has been around for a long time but I never have seen a kit designed especially for kids and labeled a diorama.
So what is the big deal?Well maybe sometime in the future makers of dioramas will not have to explain to 9 out of 10 people that they meet what kind of art they do.
Things are finally changing,they now have craft materials for kids, even under ten years old' labeled as "diorama kits".I am not just talking about the modeling section of the stores but in the childrens craft section as well.Sure,I know that this kind of craft thing has been around for a long time but I never have seen a kit designed especially for kids and labeled a diorama.
So what is the big deal?Well maybe sometime in the future makers of dioramas will not have to explain to 9 out of 10 people that they meet what kind of art they do.
Ken & Ericka Osen/H&A Studio
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Hi John,
First off I would like to say how much I have enjoyed viewing your thread. I drop in from time to time to play catch up. It is nice to see the progress of your projects... and the results.
I think the art of diorama making made it's big splash here in the US in the mid 1970s with Shep Paine' s wonderful skills presented with the various armor and aircraft model kits released by Monogram in that time period.
His work was the driving force that inspired an entire generation of young modelers. The full color guides included with these kits gave wonderful modeling tips and gave many of us the courage to try these techniques ourselves. I know it is the common thread with almost every military modeler I meet.
Combine this with the articles that appeared in both the British and American 'Military Modeling' magazines and the art of diorama making grew in lock step with the rest of the hobby.
We live in a time where almost any small detail bit can be found in certain popular scales.
Wonderful technical and historical information is now widely available along with new materials and procedures to improve accuracy and increase productivity. It is indeed a great time for the art of the diorama and scale modeling in general!
All the Best!
Ken Osen/Hudson & Allen Studio
First off I would like to say how much I have enjoyed viewing your thread. I drop in from time to time to play catch up. It is nice to see the progress of your projects... and the results.
I think the art of diorama making made it's big splash here in the US in the mid 1970s with Shep Paine' s wonderful skills presented with the various armor and aircraft model kits released by Monogram in that time period.
His work was the driving force that inspired an entire generation of young modelers. The full color guides included with these kits gave wonderful modeling tips and gave many of us the courage to try these techniques ourselves. I know it is the common thread with almost every military modeler I meet.
Combine this with the articles that appeared in both the British and American 'Military Modeling' magazines and the art of diorama making grew in lock step with the rest of the hobby.
We live in a time where almost any small detail bit can be found in certain popular scales.
Wonderful technical and historical information is now widely available along with new materials and procedures to improve accuracy and increase productivity. It is indeed a great time for the art of the diorama and scale modeling in general!
All the Best!
Ken Osen/Hudson & Allen Studio
JohnReid
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The Model Elephant In The Room
When visiting my local hobby store the other day,I overheard a conversation that seems to be all too familiar these days.A local RR modeler had recently passed away and word finally reached the store about two weeks later.He was a regular visitor and buyer who had spent a good portion of his lifetime building a model RR layout.The store owner called the widow to express his condolences and mentioned to her something about helping her find a good home for his labor of love.She informed him that she had already thrown a lot of his stuff in the garbage and the rest her brother would sell on e-bay.
I hear about things like this all too often.For those who aren't familiar with the modern RR layouts,I can only describe the best of them as 3D works of art.Moving trains in a static setting never much appealed to me personally but when looked at as dioramas ,they are some of the best work I have seen.A lot of these RR types developed their artistic skills over time working on their huge layouts over many years.Their initial interest may have been in the moving train, which was the hook for their interest, but many of these guys became diorama artists in their own right.To see a lot of this stuff go in the garbage has always saddened me.
I wonder if some more thought was given to smaller layouts made in sections and not huge layouts that are difficult move and store, would it make better sense ? I don't know what kind of relationship the modeler in question had with his wife,maybe she considered it junk,I don't know but I am sure that there are families out there that would love to be able to keep some of uncle Joe's or grandpa Fred's stuff for future generations to admire.Whether we realize it or not we are living,in what I believe, is the golden age of modeling ,as we know it.Modelers should think about this because someday this stuff will be rare.If just a little thought were given to this during the construction of layouts then areas of the layout could be made into dioramas.I know a lot of you guys will say "who cares, I'll be dead" but a lot of craftsmen /artists I know, do care whether secretly or not.
You could plan for this by making your favorite areas of the layout into little dioramas of their own but with only a temporary role in the bigger layout.
You could have nice display cases made for your best work to be put into upon your move to a smaller home or after your departure for the "happy hunting ground." You could even take the route I did and approach museums with a gift of your work ,so that kids and the young at heart can enjoy it for many years to come.Cheers! John.
When visiting my local hobby store the other day,I overheard a conversation that seems to be all too familiar these days.A local RR modeler had recently passed away and word finally reached the store about two weeks later.He was a regular visitor and buyer who had spent a good portion of his lifetime building a model RR layout.The store owner called the widow to express his condolences and mentioned to her something about helping her find a good home for his labor of love.She informed him that she had already thrown a lot of his stuff in the garbage and the rest her brother would sell on e-bay.
I hear about things like this all too often.For those who aren't familiar with the modern RR layouts,I can only describe the best of them as 3D works of art.Moving trains in a static setting never much appealed to me personally but when looked at as dioramas ,they are some of the best work I have seen.A lot of these RR types developed their artistic skills over time working on their huge layouts over many years.Their initial interest may have been in the moving train, which was the hook for their interest, but many of these guys became diorama artists in their own right.To see a lot of this stuff go in the garbage has always saddened me.
I wonder if some more thought was given to smaller layouts made in sections and not huge layouts that are difficult move and store, would it make better sense ? I don't know what kind of relationship the modeler in question had with his wife,maybe she considered it junk,I don't know but I am sure that there are families out there that would love to be able to keep some of uncle Joe's or grandpa Fred's stuff for future generations to admire.Whether we realize it or not we are living,in what I believe, is the golden age of modeling ,as we know it.Modelers should think about this because someday this stuff will be rare.If just a little thought were given to this during the construction of layouts then areas of the layout could be made into dioramas.I know a lot of you guys will say "who cares, I'll be dead" but a lot of craftsmen /artists I know, do care whether secretly or not.
You could plan for this by making your favorite areas of the layout into little dioramas of their own but with only a temporary role in the bigger layout.
You could have nice display cases made for your best work to be put into upon your move to a smaller home or after your departure for the "happy hunting ground." You could even take the route I did and approach museums with a gift of your work ,so that kids and the young at heart can enjoy it for many years to come.Cheers! John.
