Author Topic: Dabohaze plane  (Read 19412 times)

Offline andonio64

  • Fio Piccolo's understudy
Dabohaze plane
« on: April 14, 2014, 09:34:30 PM »
Hi there!
I'm pretty new of this forum, although I am mainly a WW1 aircraft modeller concerned by historical research on the models, I love so much fantastic realizations which do not put constraints on one's fantasy.
And I appreciate all the builds and writings I have seen on this forum so far!

I guess many of you already know Hayao Miyazaki... those who don't can have a look here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hayao_Miyazaki

I was wondering whether this is the correct place to publish the WIP am currently on: the Dabohaze plane of the Mammaiuto Pirates from the "Porcorosso" movie.
If you want some more visual hints about what it looks like have a look here: http://www.andonio.it/model/dabohaze/galleria/galleria.html

There is not (yet at least) a commercial kit around so I decided to build one of my own, and also decided to take some licence here and there from sticking "literally" to the drawing of Hayao...

So let me know if I am in the right place to post my WIP and I will start.

Thanks and keep having fun

Antonio


 ;)

Offline Kerick

  • Reportedly finished with a stripper...
Re: Dabohaze plane
« Reply #1 on: April 15, 2014, 12:25:22 AM »
I for one, am looking forward to seeing your project progress! You are definitely in the right place. Welcome!!!

Offline Weaver

  • Skyhawk stealer and violator of Panthers, with designs on a Cougar and a Tiger too
  • Chaos Engineer & Evangelistic Agnostic
Re: Dabohaze plane
« Reply #2 on: April 15, 2014, 01:18:23 AM »
Welcome aboard - you are absolutely in the right place!  :)

I managed to pick up Porco's Savoia for a very reasonable price earlier this year, and that's got me looking thoughtfully at Dornier flying boats ever since. Finding these in a bead shop was interesting too:

"I have described nothing but what I saw myself, or learned from others" - Thucydides

"I've jazzed mine up a bit" - Spike Milligan

"I'm a general specialist," - Harry Purvis in Tales from the White Hart by Arthur C. Clarke

Twitter: @hws5mp
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Offline Brian da Basher

  • He has an unnatural attraction to Spats...and a growing fascination with airships!
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Re: Dabohaze plane
« Reply #3 on: April 15, 2014, 09:20:19 AM »
Welcome to BTS, Antonio! I always enjoy WW I stuff! You might be interested in the WW I Group Build starting in late July.

You can post your WIP here and I'm sure I'm not the only one looking forward to seeing your work!

Brian da Basher

« Last Edit: April 15, 2014, 09:39:36 AM by Brian da Basher »

Offline andonio64

  • Fio Piccolo's understudy
Re: Dabohaze plane
« Reply #4 on: April 15, 2014, 01:35:47 PM »
Thanks everybody for the warm welcome...
I am at a very advanced point in my build but will try in the next days to sum up the work done, in the meantime you could have a look to the 2 Porco Rosso models I made so far and showed on Swanny's Forum - both are Fine Molds 1/48:

Savoia S.21
http://www.swannysmodels.com/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1325163115

Curtiss R3 C0
http://www.swannysmodels.com/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1324978284

Ciao

Antonio

Offline Brian da Basher

  • He has an unnatural attraction to Spats...and a growing fascination with airships!
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Re: Dabohaze plane
« Reply #5 on: April 15, 2014, 02:57:19 PM »
That's some mighty fine work!

Just so everyone gets a sense of these wonderful builds:

Savoia S.21



Curtiss R3 C0



Those are some very sharp models!

Brian da Basher

Offline andonio64

  • Fio Piccolo's understudy
Re: Dabohaze plane
« Reply #6 on: April 15, 2014, 03:11:09 PM »
Thanks Brian, I could post the whole set of pictures for both the planes in a couple of dedicated threads...

Offline andonio64

  • Fio Piccolo's understudy
Re: Dabohaze plane
« Reply #7 on: April 15, 2014, 05:26:21 PM »
Let's start with the WIP:

As no kit seems to be available at the moment I made some search on several forums to understand how to proceed and someone stated the similarity of the Dabohaze plane with the Supermarine

Stranraer.


It's similar enough but to me the tail looks different and I found it to be closer to the Do24


and the floaters placed on the side of the fuselage


So I bought these three kits...

Here is the heap of sprues I gathered together in a cardboard box

My faithful assistant is "keeping an eye" on it!

Here you can see the Stranraer wings on which I traced with a felt the parts to remove



Then I took the floaters from the Do18


But I fount those of the Do24 looked better, but I liked the circles appearing on the Do18 floaters...


so I cut them and pasted on the Do24



I re-traced a the panel lines and made some rivets on both faces...

Next step was working on the Stranraer fuselage halves: I filled some openings and opened a slot per side to fit the floaters.


I took some rounded windows from my scrap box (I used to make wooden boats a few years ago) and made a dry test to see if they fit:


I traced the panels on the fuselage with some riveting as well:

You can see I still have a lot to learn on straight tracing... :-(

Then I scratch built the door:


Offline ericr

  • He's like some sort of Dr Frankenstein of modelling...
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Re: Dabohaze plane
« Reply #8 on: April 15, 2014, 06:55:35 PM »
outstandingly courageous!

this flying boat is indeed one of the best characters in the movie :
I look forward for your progress.

Offline andonio64

  • Fio Piccolo's understudy
Re: Dabohaze plane
« Reply #9 on: April 15, 2014, 06:59:45 PM »
Thanks ericr!!!

Here is chapter 2 of the novel:

Next step was to build the cockpit, I liked the Do 18 control panel, sticks and floor, but the seat were taken from the Do24:


The floor was made using a blister of pills to simulate the texture...






I realized the cockpit was too wide to fit the Stranraer fuselage so I had to "open" the front, therefore I inserted a piece of plasticard as shown in the following picture:


To keep the two halves at a correct distance I imagined these transversal beams:

and made some detail work



Now it was time to invent the floor, I shaped a piece of plasticard and covered it with some plastic ribbon used to fasten the boxes shipped by mail





See you later for Ch.3

Antonio

Offline andonio64

  • Fio Piccolo's understudy
Re: Dabohaze plane
« Reply #10 on: April 15, 2014, 07:18:04 PM »
Here you see more surgical operations to transplant the tail from the Do24 to the Stranraer...


Tail excised from the Stranraer


Tail excised from the Do24...
The rightmost piece was cut away to shorten the terminal part of the tail


Here is the way I used a piece of the Stranraer's engine cowling to "fill" the gap


Here you see how the Do24 tail lfits with the Stranraer fuselage: in the upper part you can see the piece as it is and a pencil mark indicating where to cut, in the lower part the piece

has already been cut...

Here is shown the fuselage seen from top and from the starboard side (notice the "new cheeks")

bottom view:


Paint job on the interiors


some work to strengthen the new tail


Floor and cockpit glued in place






I glued the two fuselage halves and filled the gaps with plasticard (in white in the pics)

« Last Edit: April 15, 2014, 07:24:28 PM by andonio64 »

Offline andonio64

  • Fio Piccolo's understudy
Re: Dabohaze plane
« Reply #11 on: April 16, 2014, 03:16:59 AM »
I re-shaped the tail planes and ailerons:





Next surgical intervention has been to fill the gap adjacent to the tail, hosting the tail MG turret. I decided to excise it from the Do24 fuselage:


Here it is glued at its new place dne with the tail glued as well:


I also made a sort of dais to raise the gunner from the floor



I invented a sort of carriage to transport the plane, using wheels from the Stranraer and the Do24 stand (clear pieces).





Here it is painted





Offline andonio64

  • Fio Piccolo's understudy
Re: Dabohaze plane
« Reply #12 on: April 16, 2014, 03:17:26 AM »
New surgical operation: I needed some piece to make the MG turret over the cockpit.
So I took the Do24 on the operating table, cut off her nose and reshaped it:



Here it is fixed to its right place:




Then I added some more detail to the cockpit turret:




And to the rear one


The fuselage was complete now so I sprayed it over with white primer

Offline andonio64

  • Fio Piccolo's understudy
Re: Dabohaze plane
« Reply #13 on: April 16, 2014, 03:18:42 AM »
Some work on the 2 Machine Guns:
for the front gun I bought a 1/72 Browning M2 cal 50 which I modified with some sprue (in white)


and for the tail MG I have used a Vickers from the Stranraer kit (very well shaped!)


The 2 mounts are made from scratch, the browning one is a slice of a toothpaste tube cap...



Back to the wings now:
here is how I indicated the cut to make


And here are the 2 wings after the treatment:


As you see there is a gap between the wings, therefore I decided to use a piece from the Stranraer:

which is n.25 in the right vignette

To make the wing thicker I used this "trick: I put a cylindric piece of sprue between the leading edge of the two alves of each wing;


Then I put a lot of filler on the side of the wings (see cross section below)


I marked a point on both the surfaces to insert a pin to strengthen the union of the 2 wings:

Offline andonio64

  • Fio Piccolo's understudy
Re: Dabohaze plane
« Reply #14 on: April 16, 2014, 03:20:12 AM »

here I started covering the gap with the lower half of piece 25 quoted above, you can see in the foreground a sort of corrosion of the plastic. It was due to my opinin to the big quantity of putty from which the solvent, when drying up, wasn't able to find its way to the air and made the plastic melt
Same damage was underneath (but on the other side)


Before closing the gap I glued a small piece of tubular plasticard

on which I glued the other half of piece 25


Then I decided to take care of the melting problem and after a couple of days I cut avay the damaged plastic ...



and invented some sort of lids...



and here is the top wing complete and set in place (not glued yet)





Re: Dabohaze plane
« Reply #15 on: April 16, 2014, 07:22:28 PM »
That sir is looking mighty fine  :)
Were going to be finished in 2020 BEFORE I start any da*!#d new ones - Maybe When Hell Freezes Over - again? - CF-IDS Wolverine; Douglas Mawson; Bubba Wants a Fishin' Rig; NA F-100

Against the Wall - Maton Dreadnought; Fender Telecaster; Epiphone Les Paul Stud

Offline uncle les

  • Aussie Whiffer Extraordinaire!
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Re: Dabohaze plane
« Reply #16 on: April 16, 2014, 07:55:44 PM »
Very nice..  Porco Rosso is a fave.  :D

Offline Brian da Basher

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Re: Dabohaze plane
« Reply #17 on: April 17, 2014, 07:04:13 AM »
I've got a real soft-spot for flying boats and I'm really enjoying watching your latest come together, Antonio!

Your detailing is a wonder to behold sir.

Brian da Basher

Offline tanktastic43

  • Newly Joined - Welcome me!
Re: Dabohaze plane
« Reply #18 on: April 17, 2014, 07:20:38 AM »
Great job so far.
I'm enjoying this project very much.
Keep up the good work.

tt43.

Offline andonio64

  • Fio Piccolo's understudy
Re: Dabohaze plane
« Reply #19 on: April 17, 2014, 12:58:51 PM »
I've got a real soft-spot for flying boats and I'm really enjoying watching your latest come together, Antonio!

Your detailing is a wonder to behold sir.

Brian da Basher

Thanks Brian and thanks everybody.
I'll post some more details later on.

@Brian: I have the same soft spot for  flying boats!

Ciao!!!

Antonio

Offline andonio64

  • Fio Piccolo's understudy
Re: Dabohaze plane
« Reply #20 on: April 18, 2014, 03:37:01 AM »
Some advance in the work:

I completed the set of struts holding the wing on the top of the fuselage.

The wing has been also sprayed with white primer.


Here is the radiator which is on top of the engine. I used a spare piece of resin and some pieces from the scrap box and some fantasy.

Then I went on to build the engine: I selected a plastic blister from a big box where I collect plastic pieces of any shape



The rectangular shapes extruded from the surface are exacatly what I was looking for, the width is ok but the height was a bit too big...
So I cut away a slice

here you see the hole for the propeller shaft


Here are the two faces of the engine, I re-joined the top and bottom pieces with a metallic adhesive tape (used by plumbers and found in a hardware shop)
You can see a couple of vertical plasticard chunks to stiffen the ensemble.

That's all for now.
At the moment I am working on the engine box (going between the two faces you see here).

Ciao and thanks for following!!!!

Antonio

Offline GTX_Admin

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Re: Dabohaze plane
« Reply #21 on: April 18, 2014, 03:40:53 AM »
Great work!
All hail the God of Frustration!!!

You can't outrun Death forever.
But you can make the Bastard work for it.

Offline Madhatter

  • BTS's Tony Stark
  • trainee plastic surgeon
Re: Dabohaze plane
« Reply #22 on: April 18, 2014, 04:20:08 PM »
Some seriously nice scratch building happening here! Looking forward to more!
I am quite partial to that jig you made for the wings - even though it's not part of the model itself, I think it's quite ingenious!
MH
2 Reasons why a model is better than a wife:
1) A model doesn't get jealous when you look at another model
2) A model doesn't yell at you for spending money on another model

Offline andonio64

  • Fio Piccolo's understudy
Re: Dabohaze plane
« Reply #23 on: April 18, 2014, 04:43:18 PM »
Thanks a lot MH (and all the rest of the crew of course) as per the jig it's a SRAM product that is available in shops...

Offline Dr. YoKai

  • Was in High School when mastadons roamed the plains...
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Re: Dabohaze plane
« Reply #24 on: April 20, 2014, 09:11:42 AM »
 A belated welcome, and....wow. Miyazaki himself would be impressed.