Howdy All,
Finally managed to get hold of some 30 min epoxy glue on a recent trip to Hong Kong and found out that my P-47 ain't a CMPro but more like a clone looking suspiciously similar to a Nitroplanes arf... Anyway, everything ends up being a clone here in China! Loads of typos on box and manual should have given me a clue
I've moved along and hit a few hurdles along the way, namely the stock mechanical retracts... probably clones too and of the worst quality. First they were too short and did not reach far enough down the wheel enclosure. Secondly, they were real flimsy-looking. Took them to a metal-working store next door, got them cut, added a good 2 cm in length and metal-soldered the whole lot with a second strut-like piece of metal for good strength.
Now they look somehow stronger, are of the correct length but I challenge anyone to make something uglier than that... Spray-painted them aluminum, trying to help. Again, I do not expect them to withstand my first landing!
Any comment on these modified gear struts? Obviously, Hangar 9 retracts would be great but it will be like searching for the holy grail here.
Ailerons and flaps are mounted with provided CA hinges (before I learned of the "clone" affair but they looked ok as far as CA hinges go) while rudder and elevator are with standard Dubro-type nylon hinges bought in Hong Kong. Once mounted, I drilled through all control surfaces at the hinges and jammed in a toothpick with epoxy.
Control horns came with the box (as seen on the tail photo) and seem ok but I do have much stronger ones from a previous built which take 3 screws instead of two. Would that be overdone?
I also wanted to hide as much of the muffler as possible within or below the cowling with the engine still inverted. Got myself a flexible tube to connect the muffler, struggled quite a bit to avoid having a too sharp angle on the flex pipe and eventually gave up. Muffler will show until I have a better solution. A friend suggested to get the flex pipe through the firewall and have the muffler stick out a little behind and below the cowling. Sounded like a possibility after 1st beer, looked like a great idea after the 3rd beer but now thinking back much sober I'm afraid this is beyond my skills and tools at hand. Could that really be a solution?
Anyway, I'm about to set up the fuel tank, the receiver, elevator & throttle servos with control rods. All should fit nicely with plenty of room to spare.
Haven't done any cosmetics on the frame since the previous photos but planning to add the four .50 cal machine guns in each wing. The sticks from the chupa chups lollipop candy are just right! Have eaten 8 this week and collected all the sticks. Painted them gun-metal and will glue them in in each wing. Wife gave me the looks while I was happily chumping away on the candies and still refuses to believe that I really needed 8 for the plane. Her point is that 4 will do since they are meant to be cut in half at least... Darn her
The red cockpit frame will also be weathered to match the overall look while oil stains and blue burnt effects will be added near the cowling & guns. Ref pics on the net and home literature do not show much exhaust stains on P-47s. I seem to recall that exhaust is actually located near the tail on the Thunderbolt, that should explain it all I suppose.
Finally, the stickers look so so. Again, I couldn't find the right shade of blue in automotive spray can paint for the US star. Another thing on my next Hong Kong shopping list.
That's about it for now. All comments welcome. A few pics attached.
Zaijian
Hong Weibing