Tale of the Tail Plane

Monday was one of those annoying days when nothing seemed to get done. Today was much better. I made some more progress on the Aerial Flyer, and the last major components are underway.

Here we see, in their various stages of completion and/or painting, the tailplane with gear box and drive shaft in place; the propeller (with the red boss, bottom); bomb racks (standing on edge, just above propeller); ventilators (to the left of the bomb racks); three-barrel 57mm Rotary Cannon (on the splint of wood to the right of the bomb racks).

The tailplane is basswood, cut and sanded to shape. I glued it in place with epoxy adhesive for speed and strength of bond, reinforcing where it joins to the fins by drilling holes and inserting two pins through each. The drive shaft and propeller boss are more resin Hirst Arts castings drilled to accept a length of brass tube to act as the prop shaft. The gearbox is a confection of plastic card and cardboard. Rivets were, of course, applied copiously...

I intend to wrap thin plastic card around the joints of the propeller blades to reinforce the join and hide the ugly brass tube connecting them to the boss. More rivets will be applied then it'll go into place. The ventilators and bomb racks will be glued in position once they're painted. Onward and upward!