Scroll down to read the updates. Click on the images for larger pictures.

Welcome to my online build of the Contact Resine 1/24th Museum Series
Hansa Brandenburg D.I

Updated  03/12/2006: This is several updates in one. Some more work on the engine. The valve gear drive and rocker arms have been fitted. Each rocker arm is a separate piece.

I found because I did not line up the cylinders perfectly one or two of the rockers is now crooked. This is what I get for not doing these stages back to back at the same time. See if you can spot which ones are out??

I think that once the engine is fitted to the fuselage etc they wont be
that noticeable. I will blue the rockers with some blue ink just to give them a bit
more of a metal look to them.

Fitted the ignition wire cover. This was made from brass tubing.
Holes drilled for the spark plug leads. Painted aluminum and then squashed in a vice. Had to to get the carb induction system to fit. The CA used to glue the wires on
will be painted black to represent the rubber grommets used to stop the wires from rubbing on the holes that they come through the ignition wire cover.

Dry fitting the carb induction system. Still needs some more painting done to it.

Spark plug leads painted.

 So how much of this detail will be seen once the engine is in the fuselage?
A fair bit. I have the option of not fitting engine covers.

Updated  01/10/2006: Still working on covering the tail plane and rudder.
The one I had not ruined. I have found that the UHU Glue Stick mentioned in the kit instructions and the one I used does not glue the tissue down. The tissue pealed
right off. So I have stuck it back down again this time with PVA glue (Elemers for
those in the USA?)

Also I don't think I will use a 50/50 mix of PVA and water to get the tissue to pull tight. It pulls too tight. It warped the rudder I had ruined.

Also the engine was missing a part. See pic below of the real engine. I have
fabricated this out of brass. Drilled holes for the spark plug leads. It will be painted aluminium then the wire attached for the plug leads.

 Here is a photo with the above mentioned part made from brass tubing. Not painted etc yet.

Updated  27/09/2006: Wee bit of a user made disaster. I have covered both
sides of the rudder. But as the rudder is so thin the tissue paper touched each other when wet with watered down PVA glue. So they stuck to each other. This has dried
and looks really bad.

So I would recommend that one side is fully done at a time. In other words use the watered down PVA glue to tighten the tissue one side. Let it dry fully and then
do the other side. But be very sparing with the glue. Don't soak it like I did.

Thankfully I only ruined the rudder I am not using.

So at least I now know not what to do... or I could cut out the offending paper and replace it and it would like a field repair.

Update 2 for 02/09/2006: Continued with the covering of the Rudder.
The instructions tell you how to cut a margin of tissue around the rudder. Then wrap the tissue around the edges of the Rudder. The 2 pictures below are from the kit instructions.

Following this to the letter gives a great result.

To seal the margin of tissue over I used PVA glue. This is white wood working/craft glue. I think it's called Elmers overseas.
Before I cover the other side I will have to do some very light sanding of the edges of the covering on the bare wood side. I didn't cut the tissue close enough around the edges in places.

Updated 02/09/2006: Real life gets in the way of things that are more important. Like building this kit. So today I have been able to set aside some time for this kit.
Oh after spending time with the family today first. ;-)
 

So I thought I would make a start on the tail feathers and their coverings. The kit comes with what looks like Laser Cut wood parts for the Rudder, Tail Planes,
Elevators, and Wings. When I was a kid and made flying kits out of balsa you had to cut all the shapes out yourself. Not anymore. They use Lasers for this now days. Well they did for this kit. This gives a very precise cut and nice sharp edges.

 

The kit comes with 2 different styles of Rudder/Tail plane depending on which
markings you decide on. I know which decals I will be using but thought I would build both tail units anyway.

For the fabric covering you are given a very large sheet of silk tissue. The
instructions tell you to use a UHU Glue stick to stick the tissue to the wood parts.

So following the kit instructions I rubbed the UHU Glue stick onto one side of the wooden Rudder/Tail bit. Then placed it glue side down onto the tissue paper.
I had cut a small bit from the large sheet. With both Rudders glued to the sheet I
 held it up to the light to get an idea of what Clear Doped Linen looks
like on the real thing. ;-)

 There is a 2 hour wait while the glue sets. Then the tissue will need to be trimmed close to the parts and the other side glued on.



The tissue paper is white. In the above pictures it has taken on a whole different colour due to the cutting mat it's sitting on.

Updated 14/08/2006: Have done some work on the fuselage interior parts. The
 same wood grain process as was reportedbelow on the 3/6/2006 was used for these parts. I first of all sprayed the main part of the pod with white Tamyia rattle can paint
  AS20. I then used Winsor & Newton "Yellow Ochre" oil paint to do the wood colour. For some  variation I used a very small dash of Ivory Black mixed in with the Yellow Ochre. Makes it just a wee bit darker. This was applied with a flat brush. It was applied in the direction of the grain. I like the wood effect this gives. The kit parts come with a wood grain effect moulded into them. Looks like the masters would have been real wood. 

Updated 01/07/2006: No picture update today. But I did spray the main fuselage part with white Vallejo ModelAir paint. What a beautiful paint it is too. First time I have used this paint for spraying. The pigment seems to be much finer than some of the other leading brand acrylics. It was the first major spray job for my new Aztec airbrush too. So much lighter than my ancient Pasche. So I am learning how to handle the Aztec as well learning new things with multimedia kits.

I did have one scare with the Aztec. And it wasn’t related to a bad paint job. I had balanced the Aztec on an old birdcage. While I raced inside to refill the paint cup. No sooner had I sat down that I heard the Aztec hit the ground. NO!.. It’s brand new. I rushed outside to find it lying on the ground. Thankfully undamaged. Lesson learnt.
I am back to using the airbrush holder on the compressor.

I also took the opportunity to spray some Klear (We don’t get Future in our supermarkets downunder here) on the previously wood grained parts. That way the
oil paint was sealed and ready for a wash to bring out the grain.

It’s amazing how primer can bring out mould lines in parts etc. I have found some mould lines on parts that I did not see when it was just naked resin. Like the top
part of the over wing gun pod. That mould line has now been sanded down. Also
there were some really bad ones on the exhaust. Again to the naked eye unpainted I didn’t notice these. They are a jagged line. They have been removed and I will use stretched sprue to make the weld seams that should be there on the exhaust. So it pays to prime before you paint with your main colour.
 

Updated 18/06/2006: Work is progressing on the engine. First up I used Model
 Master Metalizer Lacquer Aluminum Plate (in a spry can) to paint the engine block. The cylinders were then painted with Tamyia TS-6 Matt Black first. This did not dry matt at all. The wet weather here has not helped this. But not to worry as the engine
will be weathered anyway. Then the bottom half of the cylinders were painted Model Master Jet Exhaust.

Now onto gluing the cylinders to the block. Here you must follow the instructions
very carefully. If you don't you can get the exhaust side of the cylinders wrong. They have to be on the right had side of the engine. I followed this. But made a mistake
in that the cylinders are numbered 2 & 3. The instructions show that the cylinders run from front to back in this sequence 2,3,2,3,2,3. I didn't follow this. Why? I forgot to. All it means is that some of the value gear looks a bit out of line. But to me this makes it look like the engine is not at top dead centre. Once the value gear is fitted and the engine is in the fuselage you wont notice this.

 The other thing to watch out for is that you get all the cylinders square off each
other. The photos above show that one or two look a bit wonky. But to the naked eye they look ok. Once the carburettor, ignition and oil lines systems go on this won't be noticed at all. The other thing to watch is that some of the cylinder bottoms are not
perfectly round. I had to sand one down a bit to get it to fit to the hole in the the engine block. I also found it very hard to get the bottom of the cylinders square
after I had cut them off their pouring blocks.

Just so you get an idea of how big the engine is ...

Updated 09/06/2006: Work is progressing slowly on the build. In my free
time I have been cleaning/washing the resin parts. Then leaving them to dry. Then priming them. Trouble is I spray outside and it’s been raining here in Sydney.

But it is worth spending the time preparing the parts for painting. In this scale a rushed paint job will stand out like you know what.

I do my spraying in an old wardrobe on the balcony. That way I can work at standing height. Also means I can leave freshly painted parts in the wardrobe to dry.
But as it is now winter and is raining I have to bring them indoors. Even though I
am suing Tamyia Fine Surface Primer it still smells. The way around this is to seal
the wet parts in a plastic bag. Just so happens that a bag from a model magazine
was handy and makes a great dust jacket as well. That way the parts can dry indoors. No smell and no dust to settle on the fresh paint.
 

Updated 03/06/2006: Started work on the over wing Schwarzlose 8 mm machine
gun pod. There was a little bit of dry fitting and sanding of a very small pouring gate on the top cover. This then sits nicely now.

The 'wooden' parts already come with a grain effect in places which, even in this
scale, I think in a bit over stated. I would have preferred no grain effect at all. I first of all sprayed the main part of the pod with white Tamyia rattle can paint. AS20. This was allowed to dry for a few days. Plus with some of my family sick with the flu I was distracted. I then used Winsor & Newton "Yellow Ochre" oil paint to do the wood colour. This was applied with a flat brush. It was applied in the direction of the grain.
 I like the wood effect this gives.

This was then placed in an air tight container to allow the oil
paint to dry for a bit and to keep the dust off it.I may or may not give it a weak brown wash to help bring out the grain effect.

 I will then seal the oil paint and paint the rear of this part of the pod in an
aluminium colour. Not sure if I will use Model Master Metalizer for this affect. If I do
 I will have to do the top cover in this too. But I don't want it to be too shiny. So I
may use some AlcadII.

The machine gun and top cover where primed with Tamyia Fine Surface Primer, Gray.
I then hand brushed the Machine gun with Model Master "Gun Metal Non-Buffing Metalizer" I know is an Airbrush only paint. But I didn't want to mess around with mixing and then cleaning out the airbrush for one small part. The
machine gun will then be given blue wash to give it that gun
blued look.

Updated 29/05/2006: A little note on the exhaust system. It's very well done.
If you are not familiar with aircraft exhausts systems and how they are made you
fall into a trap that would ruin the look of the whole thing of this beautiful cast piece.

In this case the exhaust of the Hansa Brandenburg D.I it is made from eight parts.
There are 6 pipes that bolt onto the exhaust ports on the cylinders. These then connect to 2 bits of sheet metal that have been stamped out from flat stock.

So what is the trap that you can fall into with the exhaust?

Don't remove what looks like flash on the main body of the kit exhaust. It is
supposed to be there. This represents where the 2 stamped parts have been
welded togther.

So how do i know all this about aircraft exhausts? I used to make and repair them
for a living many years ago. :-)

Tonight I also started removing flash and mould seams from the engine parts. This
to prepare them for a good old under coat of primer.

Updated 24/05/2006: No photo update tonight. Spent tonight going through the instructions. This is not a kit that you can just bang together. The parts on not on sprues so there are no part numbers near the parts, They are for the most part individual parts as mentioned below. Don't be put off by this as this is where the photo instructions shine.

Step 1: Engine. The cylinders have lovely valve springs moulded into them. I was thinking I would have to make these from wound wire. But no. But it is critical that
you place the cylinders in the right order according to the instructions. If you don't
you could have exhaust ports on the wrong side. So study and compare carefully.

To be continued......   

Added 23/05/2006: Boy was I excited when this kit arrived today.
I had been told it was on it's way to me from France and had been checking everyday with my post office awaiting its arrival. But I was not the first person here downunder to get there hands on this kit. Australian Customs opened the kit. I don't blame them. I bet the x-ray machine, that scans parcels, sounded alarms with all those resin, P.E., wood and tissue paper parts. Must have made the Customs Man scratch his/her head. If this person is a model builder they would be green with envy.

I had my breath taken away as I opened the box and started pulling out the parts.
So why I am so excited about this kit? First how about a wee bit of history on this plane. It's not like it's a Fokker DrI that everyone would recognise straight away.

 The Hansa-Brandenburg D.I biplane fighter was designed by Ernst Heinkel.
 

Yes that Heinkel, who designed the German WWII bomber He.III amongst other
 planes. The D.I was nicknamed the "Starstrutter" or "Spider" due to it's unique V
strut system. This plane saw service with the Austro-Hungarian Empire Airforce on
the Italian Front in WWI. Flying against Italian, French and British aircarft. The D.I entred service in 1916 and was widely used by Austro-Hungarian aces like Godwin Brumowski.

Now onto the kit. Lets start with a short in-box review. So lets dive in to see what's
in there!

The kit comes in a very sturdy cardboard box. The box artwork/label reminds you that this is one of only 500 kits 'one shot' Worldwide Ultra Limited Edition. Mine is No.15.

You are provided with a certificate that has the Kit number on it.
Also you are told that this kit will never be re-issued in any form in the future. So if you want one you had better contact them via their website
http://www.contact-resine.com/indexen.html If you do please tell them that I sent you. :-)

  The parts. Lots of resin. In lots of small zip lock bags. I have yet to count them. But looks like sub assemblies are bagged together. There is a bag of wooden pre-cut parts that make up the flying surfaces and tail feathers. There are 5 Decals options. There is also a sheet of ply wood and a few frets of P.E.
 The resin parts are very well cast. Very little in any in the way of flash. The detail of these parts are super sharp. There is a small box full of more resin. Seat, engine
block, cockpit coaming and some wooded struts? The fuselage main parts are cast in resin and come as two bits.
You get a sheet of tissue type (but is stronger than tissue) paper to cover the
wooden flying surfaces and tail feathers. This should give a nice ribbed effect. Resin parts for wheels. The wheel are slightly flattened on the bottom. A beautiful resin propeller, wing struts, engine parts and cockpit controls. The undercarriage is in cast white parts. This will help as the fuselage has some weight in it. Pictures speak
louder than words so the below ones should show you the breakdown of the parts for this kit.

So where are the instructions? There are none on printed paper. At first I
thought "Well I could wing this and guess where all the parts go...." But never fear.
The instructions in fact come on a supplied CD. I was wondering what was on that.  The CD contains 15 pages of build and colour instructions. These are all done in PDF
 format. So you will need a copy of Adobe PDF reader. If you don't have this you can get this from http://www.adobe.com/
 

The instructions show build sequences via photos. I like this as what you see in the instructions is what you get in the kit and not some vague line drawings that leave
 out details or don't look like the parts you have in front of you. The instructions are bi-lingual, French and English.

So if you haven't guess yet i am impressed with this kit of first look. Next will be to wash all the resin parts to remove mould release agents and then it can start to go togther. Stay tuned as you will be able to follow through with me on this
right here.

I would like to thank Contact Resine for this review kit.