Lucien Harpress Posted November 30, 2007 Share Posted November 30, 2007 Remember this shot from a while back? Well, just to show you that I'm really serious about building it, here's a few interior in-progress shots: Overall the Maquette kit is rough, but detailed enough from what you can see through the windows (which is quite a bit!). I have a sneaking suspicion that some parts (like the control yolk and table immediately behind it) are oversized, but somehow I was able to cram everything in there without too much difficulty. I may also have mixed up the placement of a few things (like the interior door), but few people will notice the mix-up... I hope. If they do, I'll blame it on the instructions. :D Finally, here's a shot of the fuselage dry-fitted together, with a few of its Russian friends. I should have the basic fuselage finished relatively soon. But on the other hand it's nearing Finals Week at college, so how much work I'll actually get done is up in the air. In any case, thanks for looking! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sebastijan Posted November 30, 2007 Share Posted November 30, 2007 good luck with this one... after seeing one in person and delt with few Maquette kits before, I know you're gonna need it :D Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Flankerman Posted November 30, 2007 Share Posted November 30, 2007 I'll be following your build with interest Lucien..... I have the same kit - along with a different one made by ICM. I can't remember which is the more accurate ?? I purchased them to go alongside my Master Club Tu-160 - with the name 'Illya Muromets' on the side. I thought it would make a good display - Russia's first strategic bomber alongside it's latest one - and both called 'Illya Muromets'. I'll get it built one of these days...... Ken Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lucien Harpress Posted November 30, 2007 Author Share Posted November 30, 2007 From what I've heard, neither one is really very accurate. The ICM is much better detailed (so I've been told- I haven't seen it for myself), but suffers from a major problem in the tail surfaces. The horizontal tailplanes are about a third too short. There are also problems with the wheels and fuel tanks. Now, the Maquette kit may have this same problems. So far, though, no one has mentioned anything other than it's a rough kit. I'm willing to put up with this if it means I don't have to scratchbuild anything major. Besides, I don't plan on making a 100% stitch-for-stitch Ilya anyway- more like a representative example of the whole group (as each airframe was pretty much an individual aircraft when it came to the details). Thanks for the comments, and nice Tu 160! I may have to pick me up one of those one of these days...along with an M-50....and about a million other things. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lucien Harpress Posted December 3, 2007 Author Share Posted December 3, 2007 The fuselage box is now a box... with wings! (And part of a tail) Closeup of the cockpit- it's pretty rough, but will all be taken care of later. While this entire sucker is huge, the tail is noteworthy in being especially broad. There's probably more horizontal surface area in the tail of the Ilya than there is in the entire I-16! I also was able to get the top wing together. It consisted of five pieces, all of which had a different airfoil shape. Somehow I got it together, and will need to begin to clean it up. I could have waited to attach the wings to the center section, but by constructing the entire wing in one piece, I was able to get a reasonably flat wing, and still have the opportunity to clean up the (nasty) seams between pieces before final assembly. The downside is that now I have a massive one-piece wing I need to attach to the fuselage all at once. Which should be... interesting. Ah, well. Next up- the wonderful and exciting process of SEAM CLEANUP! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Aggressor Supporter Posted December 3, 2007 Share Posted December 3, 2007 I have this feeling you like unusual planes with large wingspans. :D Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ChernayaAkula Posted December 4, 2007 Share Posted December 4, 2007 Nice progress, Lucien! I have this feeling you like unusual planes with large wingspans. :D :D Me too! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lucien Harpress Posted December 4, 2007 Author Share Posted December 4, 2007 Right now you can add Russian, too! Yeah, I'm a sucker for two things- huge size and an oddball subject. Anybody can build another Bf 109, right? But who's the last person you know who's built an Ilya Muromets? Or an ANT-25? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Old Man Posted December 4, 2007 Share Posted December 4, 2007 Right now you can add Russian, too! Yeah, I'm a sucker for two things- huge size and an oddball subject. Anybody can build another Bf 109, right? But who's the last person you know who's built an Ilya Muromets? Or an ANT-25? I thought I recognized that Tupelov dominating the background, Sir, though I took it for a TB-1. That thing makes a Wellesley look compact and well proportioned.... Regarding the heavy upper wing. One trick I found useful on occassion, that is well short of a full jig, is to cut 'spacers' of heavy plastic equal to the gap and curved for the airfoil, stick them to the lower wing with white glue, and rest the upper wing on these for strut assembly. The white glue in large quantity will hold well enough, and can be soaked loose later with wet paper towel packed on it. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lucien Harpress Posted December 4, 2007 Author Share Posted December 4, 2007 I plan to do something similar when the time comes for me to attach the upper wing. First off, I'm going to use liquid cement (as opposed to superglue) to attach it- that way I'll have plenty of time to get it in the correct position. I made up a small set of temporary struts out of balsa that I hope to use to help line up the upper wing. I'm going to glue it only to the supports above the fuselage starting out. The balsa struts aren't anywhere close to the correct length, but I'm not worried about that yet. I just want to get the angle and alignment set first. Then, once the upper wing is dry, I'm going to go in and add the final struts. The struts in the kit are nowhere near the correct length- thankfully, they are too long. I'll have to go through and (CAREFULLY!) sand down each strut to the correct length. The wings should be flexible enough for me to slip all the struts in without any major problems. But I'm getting ahead of myself. I still have a LONG way to go before I need to worry about this, and when it comes to techniques, everything is still up in the air. Thanks for the tip! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Tancist Posted December 7, 2007 Share Posted December 7, 2007 Oh, you're crazy man So, why you didn't kitbashed ICM and Maquette? It will more easy. If not - sorry, I've never get this kits in my hands :) Oh, if you had any questions about russian in instruction, oк anywhere else - asking, I'll help Quote Link to post Share on other sites
madmike Posted December 7, 2007 Share Posted December 7, 2007 A tough kit to build from what I have heard. BTW, I love the little I-16. What kit is that? MikeJ Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lucien Harpress Posted December 9, 2007 Author Share Posted December 9, 2007 That I-16 would be the 1/72 ICM kit. While it has a few problems (the windscreen it COMPLETELY the wrong shape and the decals leave much to be desired), it's probably the absolute best I-16 in the scale. The engine alone is made up of about 16 parts and includes a full firewall and engine mount. I'll probably build another one, correcting a few mistakes I made on this one. If you're interested, here's more photos: http://www.arcforums.com/forums/air/index....=126434&hl= Now, back to the Ilya- why didn't I kitbash the two kits? Because I'm a college student who's continually strapped for cash, and buying two kits (for me) doesn't make financial sense. Long story short- couldn't afford it. :D That's fine, though. I appreciate a good challenge. Right now I'm just doing some cleanup work. I may be able to get the top wing painted and decalled somewhat soon, so stay tuned for that. The main airframe will need a bit more work, as I need to mask the windows, fill nastier seams, and drill more holes. Ie. I just realized how much work I need to do.... See ya later! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Tancist Posted December 9, 2007 Share Posted December 9, 2007 Because I'm a college student who's continually strapped for cash, and buying two kits (for me) doesn't make financial sense. Hm. In Russia Maquette kit cost about 2,5 $, and ICM kit about 7-8$. It's not so expensive :D Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Tancist Posted December 9, 2007 Share Posted December 9, 2007 (edited) I'm a student too, and don't know words like "Photoetched parts" and "Resin correction set" :) Edited December 9, 2007 by Tancist Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lucien Harpress Posted December 16, 2007 Author Share Posted December 16, 2007 True 'dat...... :D Anyhoo, I was able to get a bit of work done on the engines of this beast, hopefully a focal point of the final model. Unfortunately, the kit parts were- disappointing. Little more than plastic bricks, they needed a bit of work. Now, if I wanted to be REALLY accurate, I should have scratchbuilt replacement, exposed cylinders. I didn't want to do that much work, though, so I just added a number of linkages on one side of the engine blocks. Thankfully, after painting, drybrushing, and the other kit hoses, the engine still looks pretty good. The left engine is the kit engine block. The second is the same part after my additions. The third is a painted example, without detailwork. The last is the final engine after drybrushing, mounting, and finished up with kit parts. Here's the engine where it's eventually going to be. Behind this will be a bit more detail, along with a very prominent radiator. Overall.... not too bad! Next up- more seam work and LOTS of drilling! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Old Man Posted December 17, 2007 Share Posted December 17, 2007 Good work on the engines, Sir! After cockpits, motors are about my favorite part of a project. Am I right in guessing that the projections atop the fuselage are supports for positioning the upper wing, and not part of the final product? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lucien Harpress Posted December 18, 2007 Author Share Posted December 18, 2007 Nope. The Ilya didn't have cabine (sp?) struts, just these large, flat surfaces. It could simply be four struts with fabric covering in between them. The two lines that can be seen on the inside are positioning locaters for the fuel tanks. In a way, I lucked out. The one positive with the Ilya Muromets is that I don't need to mess with struts up there. Engine work progresses. I still need to add all the exhaust pipes (six per engine), and after I attach the engines to the wings I need to add a radiator to the backside of each. Overall I'm pleased with the total effect. One of these days I'll need to start drilling all the holes for the rigging. While I'm doing that, you may not hear from me in QUITE some time... B) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Aggressor Supporter Posted December 18, 2007 Share Posted December 18, 2007 That's looking good there. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lucien Harpress Posted December 24, 2007 Author Share Posted December 24, 2007 Somehow, before the snow hit, I was able to lay down a really bad first coat of paint on the two main sections of my Ilya. Not much to say, except for that it's a custom color of straight linen, albiet a bit dark. The only thing I painted is what you see- the undersides are still the color of primer. Also, I re-sanded some areas which got real nasty orange peel on them, to be taken care of later. I was going to finish up tonight, but as luck would have it, that's when a snowstorm blew in. So, this is how this build may stand for a while. Comments are welcome. (If you think I need to lighten up the color a bit, feel free to let me know.) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lucien Harpress Posted January 1, 2008 Author Share Posted January 1, 2008 Alright, here's a bit of an update, as I am unable to paint much due to the weather. I got one engine completely finished, including radiator and exhaust pipes. Also, I have the two fuel tanks all painted up and detailed awaiting their installation on the inner cabine pylons. And finally, a bit of a false mockup- the top wing, engines, and fuel tanks aren't glued into place, and the undersides are still primer colored. From this angle, though, you really can't tell. [:(] Enjoy! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Flankerman Posted January 1, 2008 Share Posted January 1, 2008 (edited) Alright, here's a bit of an update, as I am unable to paint much due to the weather. I got one engine completely finished, including radiator and exhaust pipes. Also, I have the two fuel tanks all painted up and detailed awaiting their installation on the inner cabine pylons. And finally, a bit of a false mockup- the top wing, engines, and fuel tanks aren't glued into place, and the undersides are still primer colored. From this angle, though, you really can't tell. [] Enjoy! Great build Lucien - I'm following it with interest.... I just remembered, I took this pic of the replica Illya Mouromets at Monino... As you can see, it isn't brilliant (the replica I mean!) - but it does give an idea of the size. Ken Edited January 1, 2008 by Flankerman Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lucien Harpress Posted January 2, 2008 Author Share Posted January 2, 2008 Thanks for the photo, Flankerman. Didn't they use original factory plans to construct that one? I want to say that's the version directly after the one represented in the Maquette model. The first five or so of this type had the knife-edge nose, while the rest had this blunt nose. The fuel tanks are a bit goofy, though... never seen them totally boxed in like that. In any case, this photo actually shows a few rigging line locations I forgot to add... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lucien Harpress Posted January 4, 2008 Author Share Posted January 4, 2008 Well, I finally got fed up and dragged the compressor inside so I could get some painting and decalling done. One or two nights later, and look at the difference! This is still just a dry fit. As soon as I get all the exhausts placed I'll get the engines attached to the wing for good. THEN I need to attach the upper wing and do a small bit of rigging in where the fuel tanks go, then I can slip the fuel tanks in afterward. Then it's onward to the main event- RIGGING! Overall, I think she looks rather nice, wouldn't you say? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Old Man Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 That looks excellent, Sir! I think you have got an excellent 'natural linen' tone there. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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