Gilbert Skyflash, about as far as I'm going to take it

My son came over a couple of days ago for a day of log cutting and brush burning.  He always noses around my workshop and checked out the Gilbert.  He liked it a lot, especially the airfoil wing.  Maybe this Spring.  Of all my plastic airplanes this one shows the most C/L potential.  

Next victim is already under construction....................








When you just don't care, and weight isn't an issue.

Marleysky wrote:What is that? Bondo?

Looks like it, but no it's just off-the -shelf spackling compound.  I just now gave it a final sanding with 400 grit and hardened it with Min Wax sanding sealer.  

I removed the foam/plywood affair that the PO used and replaced it with plastic mesh screening formed and sealed along the edges with canopy cement.  Really, it's pretty thin.  The old rectangular Perfect tank will go back in as it fits well.




Instead of taking the model apart the PO just cut a door in the planes side and slipped it in.  Made a mess, but I think he just wanted to get it back in the air.  This one gets an olive drab paint job and decals.  Wings and tail will remain yellow.

I painted the fuselage on that cut-up P-26.  Satin Italian olive.  The spackled repair turned out pretty nice, difficult to tell it from the original.


 




If it turns out nice, I will steal one of the other P-26's engine cowl and false cylinders.  I printed out both sticky backed and water slide decals for it in the correct scale.  Thinking about an over-coat of gloss clear to resemble the picture above, but military style favors the satin look.  

The Gilbert is in good company.    A couple more and I will have a squadron.  




I call this seeifican See-if-I-can.  Just to see if I can.  I can make the extremities out of balsa, but the back half of the fuselage is a challenge.  But I'm happy with the results of the plastic mesh screening and spackling compound although plaster of Paris might work better.  Just form the screen over one of the other fuselages back half and apply compound and let dry, then harden with sanding sealer.  Seeifican!

getback wrote:the repair came out good , is that a plane that needs a fuse section thats missing? wing has a nice shape to it .

Yeah, just trying to make something out of nothing on that one.

Other one is coming along. I keep pecking at it. Put the same fuel tank back in without all the stuff that the PO had holding it. I just tacked the four corners with canopy cement and plumbed the overflow, something that the PO did not do. Still have to cut and secure the bitter ends. Aluminum tube will provide some stability and be secured from underneath.







Old half balsa wing behind it's tail will have to give up it's cowl and false cylinder array for the painted model.

Oldenginerod wrote:



Bob.  I'm not sure what's going on with the fuel tank position there, but I doubt that you'll have any fuel feed if its ever flown.  Looks 90º out to me!

Can't help it Rod, that's the way I found it and it evidently ran/flew as there was residual fuel in the line.  But your right, I will never attempt to even run it.  I just try to make them runable/flyable for future generations.  I have several tanks that I could use that might work better, but this one I have to admit is a great fit.  

Can't get over the PO cutting the side open to get it in.  Butcher.

The engine is a replacement, the original had the needle broken off in the spray bar.

And yes, It is 90 degrees out. Fuel pickup should be on the other side.  I used the original fuel lines with the bends that fit best.  I might swap it with new tubing.



Big tank, full it would take a while before centrifugal force would starve the engine.

I still have decals to go on. Much reduced in size especially the side stripping. And no extension on the cowl. Original pictured above is way to garish.

Looks a little like what I have going on with this "see-if-I-can" P-26.



This morning I have been working on this:



Sad story maybe told later with hopefully a happy ending. But for now, I'm off the dirt/burn pile. Getting close to the end of it. Thankfully. I have been at it for 10 days straight.