HOW TO BUILD AIRCRAFT DIORAMAS - Page 210

JohnReid · 31 May 2007, 05:57 AM

Although this little grouping is only temporary for picture taking purposes,I kind of like the idea of the van delivering mail to the office.(not the wooden box).The pic was mostly taken to show off the use of the vegetation ,the rest are just props for now.I think that I will add just a small "Air Mail" sign somewhere on the Reid & Sons company van ,as I have never seen a photo of government air mail truck here in Canada.I doubt if the air mail traffic here in Canada,at the time, would even warrant such a truck on the road.The red truck and the green hangar doors make a nice contrast with the grays and beiges.
I tried to put more vegetation in the scene but removed it as I find that just a few well placed fall grasses and a little mossy green along the bottom of the siding is enough(keeping in mind the previous picture.)
I know that I might be be-laboring the point of the lack of vegetation around the immediate vicinity of the hangar structures but that is the way it looks to me.I hope you RR guys agree with my reasoning here.

JohnReid · 31 May 2007, 03:43 PM

JohnReid · 31 May 2007, 03:54 PM

Today I went back to my model ship building days and made up a grated air vent for the roof.I designed it so that the panels could be slid open to reveal the inside roof rafters etc...On the back wall I plan to put a brass plaque dedicating the diorama to my dad.
This work is very tedious and very time consuming,trying to get all those strips to line up properly.I think that it looks good in the natural laquered wood and chose not to paint it ,other than the little overhang at the top.

JohnReid · 1 June 2007, 05:49 AM

Ross_Moorhouse · 1 June 2007, 05:54 AM

Do you have sons John???

This is one impressive dio mate.

JohnReid · 1 June 2007, 06:15 AM

In this pic you can see the inside back wall of hangar where I plan to put the dedication plaque.The rafter assembly is not yet permanently installed but the back wall is still easily visible when it is.I plan to light the plaque up from the inside.
On the front wall above the sign I plan to put an outdoor flood light of some kind or maybe two ,one shining from each side.

JohnReid · 1 June 2007, 06:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ross_Moorhouse

Do you have sons John???

This is one impressive dio mate.

Hi Ross! Nice to hear from you.Yes,I have a son in his 40's now and he is a school teacher.The "Reid & Sons" refers to my dad ,myself and my brother .(he flies the Airbus but is about to retire)
So far it looks like the Reid's involvement in aviation will end there as none of the younger generation has taken an interest.I really can't blame them though,as there are so many other interesting things to do today ,and aviation is surely not what it used to be when it was new and exciting and it seemed anyone could be a pilot ,if they wanted it bad enough.Today there are so many rules and regs and restrictions that it is hard for the young ones to get near the airplanes or even the hangars anymore.In my day a lot of young pilots were born just hanging around the older guys and soaking up the atmosphere!

JohnReid · 1 June 2007, 06:54 AM

I thought that you guys might be interested in this!

Hi John: Looking very good indeed!..I've enjoyed the photos of Camp Borden and they have reminded me of an incident that answered a very strange question. The hangar floors at Borden were of an ashphalt composition and each hangar had a number of large keyhole shapes imprinted into the floor.

One quiet day in 1969 I had a US registered Cessna 310 inbound from Toronto requesting a low pass and a break for a landing. This was approved, the pass was low and fast and the break was very smooth and tight. After parking the 310, the pilot stepped out and he was probably about 75 years young.

I gave the pilot a tour of the hangars and he stated that he had been a pilot trainee at Borden in 1917 and wanted to see the old stomping grounds one last time. In our flying club hangar, I asked about the keyhole impressions in the floor. He laughed and said that the hangars were heated with pot bellied stoves and that is where they had been fired with coal all those years before...and he had shovelled coal many nights to keep the aircraft warm enough to start in the winter mornings....and the reason for the strange trussing was to support the coal that had been stored in the lofts!!!!!!!!

Barney