Building Vacuform Kits Issues

I have been looking through many of the articles around the Aerodrome and have found many questions answered before even asking them. Thanks to all who have passed along so much information.

Now, I am looking forward to my first vacumform kits and have been accumulating as much info as I can find before trying my hand at it. I have found some great basic information at several sites, from a half-page artcile at Rosemont Hobbies to a multi-page article at Aeroclub. I will be starting a Wings 1/72 scale Hansa Brandenburg C-1 in a few weeks, and hope to post my progress to this thread, as well as looking for advice from the pros here. If you have other helpful info in the meantime, please share it. Maybe I have overlooked an older thread that will answer this. If so, please point me in the right direction.

I'm also trying to help in those areas that I have some knowledge that might be of service, such as board and miniatures gaming. My work in military history is focused mostly on the Army and the Chaplaincy, so I dont expect too much of that will be called for, but if you do need some help in those directions, please let me know. I have a great piece on the first ground combat actions of the Korean War. My actual experience flying was as an observer in OH-58 scout helicopters in the late 70s, so I dont think that will be of much interest, but I have been a volunteer at the Air Force Museum and can run in for photographs anytime somebody needs one.

Thanks again. I'm looking forward to working with you.

Tom Oxley

[Lufbery]

Originally Posted by Tom Oxley

My actual experience flying was as an observer in OH-58 scout helicopters in the late 70s, so I dont think that will be of much interest, but I have been a volunteer at the Air Force Museum and can run in for photographs anytime somebody needs one.

Thanks again. I'm looking forward to working with you.

Tom Oxley

Seriously?

Is there any chance you have, or can get pictures of the Martin MB-2 that is there?

Do you get Fine Scale Modeler magazine? There've been some good articles on building vacu-formed planes over the years in that magazine. I can see what I have, make copies, and send them to you if you'd like.

Regards,

I can run in this weekend and get some shots with a digital camera to send. My home is 6 minutes from the museum. I've been a volunteer for about 8 years and have seen so much change going on. Great place to spend time, and always educational, both to learn from the vets and to teach the young people. I'm looking forward to this year's Dawn Patrol.

I am just getting back into model building and havent done anything for about 10 years, having sold most of my unbuilt kits when I retired from the Army. I will start looking at magazine articles again. When I left Ft Monmouth, NJ 10 years ago (the 12th of July), I discarded all my model railroading and photography magazines that I had been carrying around for several years, just couldnt afford the extra weight or space.

Oh, mentioning Ft Monmouth, I wonder what will happen to the plack where "historic hanger #1" once stood, just outside the back gate, now that the place is on the base closure list. The plack indicated that it was where Eddie Rickenbacker learned to fly, but I had never heard that mentioned anywhere else. Hanger #1 grounds was a trailor park when I left, the bronze plack the only thing remaining .

[Lufbery]

Tom,

I will gladly spend some time this weekend digging up a few good articles from recent issues on the subject.

Please contact me via e-mail and I'll make arrangements with you to receive them:

[email protected]

I've been meaning to make it out to Dayton to visit the Air Force Museum. I often visit my grandparents in Pittsburgh, that would make a nice stopover before tackling the other 220 some odd miles to Dayton. I'll bet a nice long weekend could be made of the trip.

Regards,

[StephenLawson]

Originally Posted by Tom Oxley

"...I have been looking through many of the articles around the Aerodrome and have found many questions answered before even asking them. Thanks to all who have passed along so much information.

Now, I am looking forward to my first vacumform kits and have been accumulating as much info as I can find before trying my hand at it. I have found some great basic information at several sites, from a half-page artcile at Rosemont Hobbies to a multi-page article at Aeroclub. I will be starting a Wings 1/72 scale Hansa Brandenburg C-1 in a few weeks, and hope to post my progress to this thread, as well as looking for advice from the pros here. If you have other helpful info in the meantime, please share it...Thanks again. I'm looking forward to working with you.
Tom Oxley"

Greeteing Tom Oxley Here is a bit from the Laws of Modeling 101
Section "...8a.)There is 'NO' such thing as a perfect kit.
b.) Half built vacuform kits impress people with your skill.
c.) A completed Vacuform just looks like another model.
9.) There is no substitute for a well oiled Dremel motor tool..."

Try to build one of your vacuform kits to represent a cutaway They are great for that.

Thanks! The first kit I found on Ebay for $0.99 sounds like the perfect one to start with so the older Wings kit it is. Looking at Ebay under "72 vac", there are lots of kits out there that somebody seems to have bought and then thougt better of it once they saw it. I figured for the price I could afford to give it a try.

I love those rules. Most of my kits from my childhood ended up being stuffed with black powder somewhere while I was into Civil War Reenacting, before I joined the real Army in '74. Thankfully, I wasnt able to pack them well enough to actually explode! They just burned real fast !

Thanks for the encouragement. With my handy digital camera at my side, I will journal the build. Kinda like the job I have this weekend, replacing the bathroom floor, another job I have never had to do before but one I find lots of help with on the internet. As with everything else, I hope my mistakes can prevent somebody else from making the same ones.

Tom

[Brad]

Originally Posted by Tom Oxley

I have been looking through many of the articles around the Aerodrome and have found many questions answered before even asking them. Thanks to all who have passed along so much information.

Now, I am looking forward to my first vacumform kits and have been accumulating as much info as I can find before trying my hand at it. I have found some great basic information at several sites, from a half-page artcile at Rosemont Hobbies to a multi-page article at Aeroclub. I will be starting a Wings 1/72 scale Hansa Brandenburg C-1 in a few weeks, and hope to post my progress to this thread, as well as looking for advice from the pros here. If you have other helpful info in the meantime, please share it. Maybe I have overlooked an older thread that will answer this. If so, please point me in the right direction.

I'm also trying to help in those areas that I have some knowledge that might be of service, such as board and miniatures gaming. My work in military history is focused mostly on the Army and the Chaplaincy, so I dont expect too much of that will be called for, but if you do need some help in those directions, please let me know. I have a great piece on the first ground combat actions of the Korean War. My actual experience flying was as an observer in OH-58 scout helicopters in the late 70s, so I dont think that will be of much interest, but I have been a volunteer at the Air Force Museum and can run in for photographs anytime somebody needs one.

Thanks again. I'm looking forward to working with you.

Tom Oxley

Tom,

Hopefully I'll get to meet you in September/October at the big shindig.

Brad

My initial Ebay win of the Hansa Brandenburg C-1 came without instructions. After a quick email to Don's Models, they asked a few questions to make sure they knew which kit, then got the instructions ready to send. In the meantime, I thought I would check a couple of the other kits, so with the reduced prices on their Ebay store, I got a Buy-It-Now purchase of the HB C-1 Ufag, the oddball with the conning tower looking observer's position that puts the skarff ring above the wing and the prop level for 360 degree firing, and their Salmson 2A2. The last one has a good set of metal castings for guns, seats, struts and a few other items, while the others are completely vacumform kits needing either accessory packs or scratch building. I was also happy to find a 4-page flyer on building vacumform kits, which exceeds their single-page that is available at their website. For my first experience with this sort of thing, I guess that this stage can be listed as a review - if you havent gotten a vacuform kit yet, but depend on good customer service, try one of the Wings models. The HB C-1 and the Salmson are both destined to be wargaming models without rigging, at least for now, but I may change my mind as I go and get some details for them as I go. Before I start cutting anything, I have to wrap up work on the Revell Sopwith Tripe and a flight of four Airfix F2Bs I have started. And this holiday weekend is shot with the need to do some home repairs, so not much time to build anything this weekend. Plenty of time to read and familiarize myself with building techniques, though. More as I go. Hope this isnt a problem as I post my experiences and my questions here. Maybe somebody else can learn along with me.

Tom Oxley

I appreciate your posts Mr Oxley and will enjoy following your progress. I find I learn so much from other Forumites' experiences.

Welcome to the 'Drome!

Brian da Basher

Okay, where is the best place to put the MB-2 pictures?

Tom