Lancfan's Curtiss XP-55 Ascender ***FINISHED***

[lancfan]

Cheers Simon, gmg, Splash, David.

David.

[lancfan]

The wing halves have been cut out and now need to be fitted with wheelbays before they are joined together. After checking the kit engine parts against photographs of the full size machine I found that this would need rather more filler than I dared to use it being so far aft of the main wheels so a new engine will be carved from the block of balsa in the picture below.


David.

[splash]

Looking at all of your current builds do you have shares in Balsa should I stock pile it before you deplete the worlds stock

[lancfan]

No Splash rest assured that the world's stocks of balsa are quite safe but I do always keep a balsa bundle in stock, just in case.

David.

[lancfan]

The balsa block has been cyano'd to the fuselage and the basic shape of the engine pod has been carved/sanded into the balsa wood and this has been sealed with sanding sealer.


The pod has been primed in the first coat of Revell Aqua and a balsa spinner has been carved into which a propeller has been fitted.


David.

[lancfan]

The wings have been sanded down and one has been assembled, the other is about to follow it.


The fuselage is ready for the wings to be attached.


The wings are in place, apart from the canopy the kit parts have all been used now, the remaining parts were not included with this kit and need cutting out of plastic card following the shapes on the plan.


The wing roots have been blended in with filler and the model has now been put aside to harden.


David.

[DavidWomby]

That aircraft has a great shape. I love the sweptback wingtips.

I haven't used balsa on a model for years but still have a small supply. Back to the old Alan W Hall Airfix Magazine days!

David

[lancfan]

The filler has been rubbed down and the wheelboxes, engine cooling flange & ventral fin have been fitted.


David.

[lancfan]

The fins & canards have been made up from plastic card and fitted and spares box exhausts have been cyano'd into slots cut for them. The model is now ready for paint.


David.

[DavidWomby]

Looking good. Very futuristic!


David

[splash]

The beauty of the canard layout is the a/c can't stall, because the front wing stalls before the main wings, causing the nose to drop before the main wings loose all their lift.

[lancfan]

But they can be made to spin and can have frighteningly odd spin characteristics.

David.

[splash]

But they can be made to spin and can have frighteningly odd spin characteristics.

David.

True.

That could be why they are back in fashion with modern fighters.

[lancfan]

But we do have computers to keep them in check now and in 1943 when the first XP-55 hit the ground in an unrecoverable, inverted spin during high altitude stall trials they did not, luckily the test pilot managed to get out in time.

David.

[lancfan]

The airframe has been painted in Olive Drab & Neutral Grey and the decals have been applied, the next task will be to paint in the edges of the DIY decals.



David.