Ongoing issues-The aileron pulleys.

[wonwinglo]

As we come to the end of this project there are still a few issues that have not yet been resolved,one that will be affecting us soon is the badly cast pulleys for the aileron control runs,you will remember that these were cast in an oval rather than a true round form,why they were made like this is anyones guess ? but having dealt with some very oddly shaped or manufactured parts that either are of the wrong dimensions or badly shaped this perhaps comes as no surprise.

My guess is that very few of us will be able to get the control system to work in a satisfactory manner especially in view of those pulleys,a search to find a satifactory replacement has met with zero results,it is not beyond a model engineers capabilty to manufacture these pulleys but for most of us without access to a lathe and who only have simple hand tools almost impossible to make them by hand from rod stock.

So unless by some miracle Hachette come up with a set of replacement pulleys the operating control system looks doomed to not function as it should do.

Also we still await the material to actually link the controls ? unless we are expected to use that awful thread supplied a few weeks ago !

[Guest]

Barry,

Have a look at some of the model boat suppliers such as Caldercraft, Billings, Graupner etc...etc...

A lot of them do blocks and sheaves for boat rigging and may well be able to help with small pulley wheels.

Have a look at //www.model-dockyard.com

[wonwinglo]

Barry,Have a look at some of the model boat suppliers such as Caldercraft, Billings, Graupner etc...etc...

A lot of them do blocks and sheaves for boat rigging and may well be able to help with small pulley wheels.

Have a look at //www.model-dockyard.com

***Thank you Richard,sounds like a good alternative.

[wonwinglo]

Looking at these pulleys it would not be too difficult to start with new pulley blocks as opposed to using the existing castings,all that would be required would be a suitable wooden block that has been channeled out,into this piano wire rods could take the pulleys,any side play could be taken up with small sleeves made up from brass tube.

This would be better than trying to adapt the existing block.

A trial run will be done in the future and photographs taken.

[Guest]

Dont you just love this model ?

I haven't posted for some time, so perhaps its time for a progress report.

Regarding the aileron pulleys. Although I haven't fixed these yet, if you look at the cover photo (eg. issue 80 ) it seems the control runs pass through the holes in the wing formers and if the inboard pulley block is fixed up against the spar, as per the instuctions, the pulleys wont line up with the holes. In the photo it seems to be spaced away from the spar. But the instructions dont state this.

Personally I'm only up to issue 83 and have just completed the floor and rudder bar/control column. No real problems here apart from being fidelly. I've managed to maintain the constant width of the fuselage by making braces from stiff wire which clip over the longrons to stop them splaying out, and this way I can teporarily clamp the horizontal brace bars in place without glue. Am I right in thinking that the bar that holds the vertical rudder pivot also locates the guns ? I've made new ones that actually fit.

The other parts that made me swear were the frames on the back of the engine bulkhead which hold the carburettor. Thanks to your great tips and photos I finally got the air inlet pipes to line up with the holes in the wooden fuselage sides by making a similar spacer to yours. By the by I only cut these holes the size of the pipes, rather than the size on the template, then they dont foul the wooden formers. Thanks to your photos again.

Having corrected the front fuselage dimensions and fitted the floor brace bars I was pleasantly surprised to find on a dry run that everything fitted and was resonably square. With the wings attached its beginning to look like a proper Fokker.

I'm really looking forward to rigging the control wires and fuselage bracing.....not.

Trevor

[wonwinglo]

Trevor,it sure is good to hear from fellow modellers such as yourself,you have highlighted some interesting points especially about the rear bulkhead carb arrangement on the Red Baron model,this is just another area that has been conveniently ignored by Hachette and no alternative parts have been issued subsequently.I m pleased that the pictures assisted you in solving this dilemma,using the existing pieces and a bit of tube at least the assembly can be made in the central state rather than the odd looking offset arrangement that just will not work.

Now you have highlighted something that has been bothering myself for some time,the control runs from the wing pulley assembly certainly appear incorrectly positioned as you have rightly pointed out,it appears also that the aileron cables go straight through the mid wing spar ! this has already been pointed out to me by someone advanced with their construction on this model,brace yourselves for some major modifications in the near future,this scenerio could have easily been avoided if allowance had been made to route the cables correctly as per the original aircraft.

I take your point about the manifold pipes,that makes good sense to just cut back what is required.

One thing to remember is that the cover photographs bear no resemblance to what we are actually building,it is neither the Hasegawa model or our own model ! I suspect that it is a prototype model made from pattern makers parts,there are so many areas that differ,likewise the instructions as you will have noticed show different parts as well.

Yes the rudder pedal assembly is also linked to the upper gun crossbar,this makes assembly pretty fiddly in that area,it would have been better to have had it attach to another crossbar fixed below the one that the gun uses,currently you are faced with juggling a lot of fiddly bits to get everything positioned,it can be easily modified as an independant assembly.

Anyway carry on regardless,if nothing else this has been an exercise in getting around problems for more experienced builders,but a right pain in the butt for many others.