Ok this is part two of a new project that I have sort of been hinting about and the base components have been photo bombing. Again I blame Arnold for this rash of “unusual” builds.
Basically this is a “what shall I do with the left-overs” build, but after having a look at what will be involved a far more substantial build than the Arado one. One of the big issues was to the layout of the undercarriage and to where to fit it! With the two engine pods for the BWM’s there is no room for undercarriage. I could have gone with something exotic like a bicycle mains with outriggers but that does suit the look I’m after. But I now have a cunning plan that will be revealed a bit further down.
Ok a bit of a mock-up to see what it will look like, it’s workable and a bit odd. It will be an all metal body so a whole lot of new panel lines will need to be done…oh what fun that’ll be!!!
So first off the wing, this will be the whole wing and engines leftover from the turbo-Prop build. Like the Jumo Arado the wing actually sort of fits the fuselage, which will make stitching this together a lot easier. I’ve cut the Arado’s wing to suit the wing cut out of the 154, this gives me the correct (?) position for the new wing.
I’ll need some packing to get the wing to sit at the right height.
With it all together now (well held together by tape anyway) I can new get a good idea of how she will look. I will use the tail plug for the 154-A2 mod kit. The nose is still quite stubby but I am thinking about extending time a wee bit from behind where the RO sits, maybe enough to have the pilot level or just in front of the intakes.
Plus I will not be using the FuG-220 antenna array, instead I will use the extra resin FuG-240 “dustbin” I had from the Arado P5 build. Seeing this is a Luft46 aircraft it’ll need a more modern radar! I don’t have any photos to show but it is the perfect size an looks amazing!
Ok now for the main gear, after lots of thinking and looking in the spares box I ended up coming back the Arados main gear. With very little moding of the gear bay it fits perfectly! So some quick marking up using the Arado as a guide and one hole later we have it! Looks pretty sweet and are in a similar position to the Arados.
So this is a doable project, a bit more complex than her sister, plus she will have a new resin cockpit. Most of the work will be getting the wings to fit and on, plus re-profiling.
This won’t be a quick project at all, this one will take time but should be lots of fun as well.
TrickyRich Aviation Werks is now in full production mode!! Business logo on the way!
