How I Build Dioramas in 1/16th.

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The lower longerons have been glued in place and the fuselage freed from its jig.The monocoque type construction is actually quite pleasing to the eye in its design.There were a few minor fitting problems in a couple of areas especially around the tail.In general the wood and the laser cut wood pieces only require some fine sanding and are of good quality.

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Before and after the big separation! I hated to do it but.....the fuselage is now in two pieces.I separated it at bulkhead 6 just behind the aft U/C strut.

From here on it is all new to me.I won't be following the sequence of build as per the instruction booklet.The engine and fuselage will only be joined after all the hardware is in.I haven't yet decided on the plywood panels surrounding the engine compartment.I could show them either on or having been removed for savaging purposes.Either way there will have to be some burn damage to the longerons and engine bearer etc...I want it to look as though the fire was put out pretty quickly after the flash burn of the fabric wings.

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John

Even my wife has been following this build and she says I have to ask:

What happened to the pilot

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He was Killed In Action (KIA) Maybe in my diorama he will be just wounded.:nurse:

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The engine bearer and ledges are in after some minor fitting problems.The fuel tank casting and its plastic card walls are temporarily installed.The tank casting is poor and requires a lot of filing and filling.

The shape of the casting indicates to me that there must have been a strap or wooden bearer of some kind to better support its weight.Nothing is shown in the plans!

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Firewall There is no firewall shown in the plans but this is a pretty good guess where it would have been installed just behind the engine but in front of the fuel tank.

The placement of the firewall is also important to the storyline .There would of course be more fire damage forward of the firewall.The fire that caused the flashover of the fabric more than likely would have been caused by the close proximity of the upper wing to the area forward of the firewall.Anyway that is my story and I am sticking to it! (I think)

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Hold the phone! I can't find mention or plans for a firewall anywhere in my references.When I built my 1st Albatros about 10 years ago I didn't put one in then either.It seems that firewalls were only common on rotary powered aircraft.No parachute,no fire protection ,I guess you just fried on your way down.