Allen's (V2) F-108 Cable Reel Trailer for SimonT

[JR]

Dude 1
Watching with interest .
Dude 2

[Allen Dewire]

Evening Folks,

Yea, it's me again and time to give you a little update on this critter. Rick, Andrew, Tim, Jimbo, PaulE, Graeme, Nick and Dude 2, sorry for not personally answering each of you. I do thank all for the support and your great comments and will answer some things as we go.....

I spent the most part of my table time (don't have a bench) on Saturday studying my whopping 6 pictures of this trailer. I wanted to try and get an idea of how the reels slid out and how the rail system itself worked in the compartments. After about 5 hours and mistaking dust spots on my screen for parts, I came up with a pretty good idea how to make a rail system. My plan is to have 3 compartments with the ability of the reels to be moveable, slide out and drop down, like the real trailer. And folks, there was no alcohol involved in this fit of madness!!!!

First I rummaged through the etch stash and then broke out the RPToolz cutter and went to town. Here's what we got together,



The pieces on the left are the rails for the 6 open compartments. Each one has 4 rails and the front 2 compartments only have 2 each. The rails are Evergreen 1.5mm I-beam pieces. On the right are the pieces for the hinged drop down reel holders. They are from 1.5mm U-beam pieces. The etch will be the hinges and I used some of the pins from the trailer kit too. Ok. I know it's boring!!!! But, here's what I got,



Hinged rails that will slide in and out of the trailer with a reel and drop down. I will also make the rear reels behind the 3 working ones slide forward too.....No, I'm not intoxicated!!! I have at least 2-3 weeks of free time over the holidays to make this all work just like the real thing.

This will also give me the time to create 6 hinged doors that will open and close too. YUP, lost my mind and and will be going whole hog here. Time to get serious in my old age!!! And, just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water...........NOT, Olga will once again be put back to work as I want to show what/how this trailer was used for and I ordered another set of this,


I got it from the Kit Cupboard in the UK as there are none here to be found. This Aber set is from 1999 and phased out. Each trailer had 2 reel carts hung on the back and they were used to roll out the cables at the launch site. They look like this,



Yes Sir, I will be scratching these too, with one hanging and one on the ground with the wheels on it and a reel set in place. I could have Rudi getting ready to pull it around if I have a suitable fig in the stash. Damn, did I say figs????

This will be a real beatch to paint inside and hairy sticks are the only option. I can spray the outside with the doors closed and the undercarriage too, but that's kind of a long way off now. All the little crap details have to be finished first.

Thanks again for looking and please stay safe. All comments good, bad or disgusting welcome!!!

Prost
Allen

[JR]

[COLOR=rgb(226, 80, 65)]WOW ! [/COLOR]

[Tim Marlow]

Going great guns here Allen. The planning is almost as precise as the building.

[minitnkr]

Peace Allen, I've gone down this rabbit hole before. It is way fun to mess around w/when done, but the novelty is lost on most. PaulE

[Jim R]

Hi Allen
Madness, total madness to take this on.
However you are certainly doing a great job with great research. You are definitely going to end up with a unique model.
Jim

[Si Benson]

Hinges, wheels, flaps, reels.......Holly smokes man, your blowing my mind with all this scratcherry :dizzy::dizzy:!!

I bet you’ll finish this and they’ll bring out a kit of it :smiling5:
Great to see the project still rolling forwards, some lovely work buddy :nerd::thumb2:

[Mini Me]

Oh Sir.......I have a question Sir, ARE YOU CRAZY??? Look Man, I'm calling Matron and she will get you sorted. If you persist in this, I shall follow along to see how this goes as I might want to try it in 1/87 scale (NOT) sometime :tongue-out3: Seriously though........the lip you mentioned around the doors, in your previous post seems to indicate that they are a flush fit, probably for weather integrity.........is that how you see it? If so ,you will need a recessed opposing lip around the door frame for them to close against except at the hinge point so they open freely. Have fun and keep us posted, Rick H.:thumb2:

[Mickc1440]

The pills are obviously not working, this will be epic

[JR]

There is little hope of returning to a normal life after this, as Rick has said Matron is indeed packing her bags as I write.
She is of course exempt from any lock down and tier numbering or borders. Est time of arrival is tomorrow pm.

[Steve Jones]

Top notch work Allen. Its a real joy to see your work. Keep it comin my friend

[Allen Dewire]

Afternoon Good People,

So sorry for the late replies. I have been trying to catch up on here with all your fine builds, working on the trailer and totally forgot about my own post. I have off until the 10th, so hopefully I can accomplish quite a bit on this project before you all fall asleep from boredom.....

Dude 2 - Sorry Brother, but Matron never made it. She got turned back at the border because she was carrying inferior beer supplies with her. Here in the Fatherland, we have strict laws against this (Rheinheitsgebot)...Love your baby pic though!!!

Tim - Thanks Sir, but there is practically no info available for this trailer as it was all top secret stuff. All I can do is analyze my 6 pictures and give it a shot in plastic..."So where the hell was Biggles, when you needed him last Saturday"???

PaulE - I can understand that my friend. I am only going to build this one time though. Most people still won't understand the trailer's purpose, but I'll do my best to make it clear.....

Jim - Thank you Sir! It's actually real fun and a test of my nerves and skills. Did I mention my eyesight too??? It will be a one-of-a-kind...

Mr. Benson - You know that is always what happens...Seriously, I don't think a major kit manufacturer would bother. maybe a resin cottage firm, but it would be a lot of work to produce and probably really expensive. Thanks for the kind words......

Rick - You have the right idea Buddy, sort of like the doors on a regular trailer. The main door sits flush with the frame and the lip keeps out the elements (Usually with a rubber seal around it) I wish I had a better pic to show ya. BTW ref. Matron, see above.......

Mick - Sorry my friend, I'm afraid the pills aren't working...The good beer is though and thanks for checking in on me.....

Stevie - A big thanks too Bro. Should be some good progress over the next few weeks....Stay tuned!!!......

I only have one pic to show at the moment as I keep forgetting to take them. I finished the 3 sliding drop down reel rail thingies and gave one a try,



And the damn thing really does work!!!!!!!! Now I have to get them painted up the rest finished too.......More, with luck and a beer, later.........

Prost
Allen

[Fernando N]

Wow, you’re on a jazz with all the scratch work mate:astonished:

Neat wheel and reel solutions:thumb2:

[JR]

My word you are on a roll, keep it up Dude 1.

[minitnkr]

Some beautiful work. PaulE