After looking around for any 1/5 scale things for my plane, Arizona Models was the only company that had the Spandau guns and half LeRhone Engine crank case kit. I'm in contact with them now through Email and will be ordering it this Tuesday.

A few days ago I ordered the Hanger 9 Fokker DVII Landing gear kit and after a little manipulation, I got it to fit on the fuse. I measured the length of the stock landing gear and compared it to the Hanger 9 Fokker landing gear struts and I found that the Hanger 9 landing gear strut measures about 3-4mm more in length, and the width (strut to strut) is more narrow by about 5mm when everything is tightened down on the plane. Not much more in length, but it looks way better.

In order to make the bungee system work, I had to take a 6" long 5/8 drill bit and drill right through the landing gear stock strut lower wing. I first attached the the gear struts to the body of the fuse and clamped everything down with screws, then I attached the landing gear with screws to the stock strut lower wing to the the gear struts. Aligning and marking with a pencil everything up was a pain in the *****!

Then taking my long drill bit and using a float bubble level and using the metal hole on the Hanger 9 Strut, I drilled through from both ends of the wing. I worked it untill the wheel rod went all the way through and had no up and down resistance.

I attatched a O-ring to both sides and slid the wheels on and put it on the floor and compared the pictures of the full size Fokker and it was a perfect match in landing gear height, and the angle of the lower wing was perfect. I wish I could have been able to slide the struts in the wing like the full size Fokker, but then I wouldn't have been able to reach the O-rings if I needed to.

The rudder and rear fuse is completely done. I took balsa and filled the hinge slots with epoxy and filler. Everything is ready to be re-slotted.

In the pictures, I just slapped everything together without tightening anything down- so you all can see how the landing gear will sit on the fuse.

What you don't see is that the wheels sit actually lower on the landing gear struts, down on the ground when the O-rings are in place, and the landing gear struts are more narrow looking from the front when everything is tightened up. Sorry, I forgot to take a pic of that, but you will all see what I mean when everything is covered and it's being all assembled for the final time.

My wife wants me to do Josef Jacobs' second black plane. That's the one without the Devil on the sides of the fuse. It had a white rudder, and had the straight white and black crosses on the rudder, fuse and top and bottom wing. I have the color profile, but I don't have permission to post it from the artist. So I'm giving you all a picture of a 1/72 model of it instead.





I thought about doing Udet's or Kirschsteins Fokker, but then I thought it would be easier to do Jacobs after talking with my wife. This skin will be a more accurate black Fokker, not like the the so called "Flyboy" version that's been showing up at some shows. Most of all, it won't be "Just another Red Fokker." JMHO


Pete