GTM Hanriot Build
 

I've not tried this before but have enjoyed build threads from others, so here goes. Glenn Torrence models offered a new kit this year of the HD-1 Hanriot WWI biplane. This is my first GT kit and I must say that I am impressed. The kit is very complete and the laser cutting and design seem flawless.

September 7th was the first day that I actually did anything besides study the plans and instructions. I did spend part of the Labor Day weekend checking the kit contents against the BOM sheets. Below are the pictures of the inital staining of the 1/4 square spruce and the initial fuselage layout.

RE: GTM Hanriot Build
 

Having built many indoor peanut scale airplanes, I figured the stick and tissue technique of building one fuselage side directly over the other would work. Separated by plastic film, this method produces two identical fuselage sides. The middle two pictures show the completed sides, one over the other.

RE: GTM Hanriot Build
 

When the time came to join the two sides, I thought my best chance to end up with a straight and square fuselage was to frame it up-side-down on the plans. This is not the procedure called for in the instructions, but I extended the ends of the frames off my building board to allow the front two uprights to hang over the edge, and allowed the remainder of the frames to lie flat. One big concen before starting this kit was which engine to use and how would it fit. I finalyy chose the OS 160 twin, and as the last picture shows, it fit beautifully.

RE: GTM Hanriot Build
 

Very nice work!

RE: GTM Hanriot Build
 

Thanks for sharing your build. Looking forward to watching your progress!

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Now THIS is going to be good! [8D]

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Look'n really good Randy. [sm=thumbup.gif]

Del

RE: GTM Hanriot Build
 

Thanks to all for your kind words and encouragement!! When I opened this thread I thought that maybe in a couple of weeks I'd get a response! I'll try to keep the pictures coming.

Not a lot of change this week. Not being satisfied with the excellent out-of-the-box fit of the OS 160, I decided to use some engine vibration eliminators as produced by Apache Aviation in England. I built a DHC- 1 Chipmunk from the Apache kit last winter and used their EVE's with great success to isolate the Saito 180 from the airframe. The sound of the Chipmunk is notably different than other models as the airframe resonance is not present. The pictures show the EVE's installed and the firewall drilled to accept them. The EVE's added about 3/16 overall length to the engine/firewall dimension, so I laminated a piece of 1/8 ply on the front of the firewall to move it back when mounting, but recessed the EVE's with the larger holes....

RE: GTM Hanriot Build
 

V2. A couple of questions for you.
1. Do the plans suggest that you stain the sticks, or is this your own idea.
2. What type of stain did you use?
I ask because I would think stain might hinder the absorbtion of the glue.
Cant' wait for more fotos.

Thanks,

RE: GTM Hanriot Build
 

Hi Roger,

Yes, the instructions give the option of using stain. The designer recommended Behlen solar-lux stain, which is alcohol and monoethyl ether based, so it is not an oil based stain. Proctor also recommends staining but they offer a special lacquer based stain that does not bother the glue. Maybe the Behlen is also a lacquer base, I just read the ingredients off the bottle. Behlen stain is available at Woodcrafters Supply, which is a franchise wood worker supply store. I did test it to be sure, and the test piece held up very well. I'm using Titebond III wood glue.

I never stained the sticks in a model before. Probably won't be at all visible when it's done, but it looks good now!

Randy

RE: GTM Hanriot Build
 

Randy,
Yes it does look great. I am not familier with this airplane but you should be able to see some of the stained wood in the cockpit. Gosh, they must have had a reason for suggesting the stain. Perhaps they were trying to simulate caster oil saturation of the wood members. LOL How do you plan to cover her? I am a proponant of Koveall while many others here like Solartex. I am just a Dope addict I guess.

RE: GTM Hanriot Build
 

Roger,

I really like silk and dope, but have not tried coverall. After many years of using aircraft dope with poor ventilation I find that just a little exposure can cause trouble. Right now I plan Solartex or Nelson hobby fabric, with Nelson paint or maybe just house paint, which will be new to me but others have used with good results. The Nelson paint is really nice, gives a great finish and realistic sheen. Takes a little practice to get just right, but so does everything else! I built a Proctor/VK Sopwith Strutter a couple years ago and used the Nelson paint. Gary and Joe at Proctor were good enough to put a picture of my Strutter in their web site gallery.

I read the Behlen stain bottle a little more and find that it is a dye based stain. It drys pretty fast....says that it can cause brain damage so it must be pretty good stuff!!!!

Randy

RE: GTM Hanriot Build
 

Randy, great looking work..!! Glenn is a fanatic when it comes to details and authenticity!! A friend has his Dr1 and its a great looking and flying plane. Please keep this thread going so we can see your progress. Hopefully Glenn will be at the Dawn Patrol the end of this month in Dayton Ohio at the AF Museum and have that plane with him. I look foward to seeing it.

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Bob,

Thanks for the compliments. I know a little of what you mean about Glenn's absolute authenticity. This model has the shortest of the short noses found on WWI types. Most if not all kit manufacturers and designers will fudge a little and lenghten the nose just to make the model easier to balance, but not Glenn. and the kit is just great. All the parts are numbered and bagged, and the spruce is the nicest I've ever worked with. I can't imagine bagging and numbering all those parts on a continuing basis and then packing the kits, much less designing the whole thing. Glenn must get a lot of satisfaction from a job very well done!

Randy

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Do you have a web site for Glenn Torrence Models? I have googled him 17 ways from sunday and cant' find a listing.


Thanks.

RE: GTM Hanriot Build
 

Roger,

Try www.gtmodels.com . Been thinking about the stain thing. I think the old airplanes were heavily varnished and so had that nice amber glow to the wood. Varnish on a model would look good but it would probably add a couple of pounds....

Randy

RE: GTM Hanriot Build
 

Randy.
Thanks for the site. That is a fantastic model. I would have a hard time covering all of that beautiful wood. And you are right about the stain representing varnish, it would have darkened the wood somewhat. Most of the early airplane builders were furniture makers and they would have varnised the wood members as a hedge against moisture.

RE: GTM Hanriot Build
 

Roger,

You must be right about the furniture makers building airplanes. I always thought that because of all the rigging within the structure and the flying wires etc that they were mostly ship builders....I'll bet the wagon and coach builders were in on it also, especially when the war started.

Today has been upholstery day so far. I'm trying to get back on track with the instruction sequence. The provided leather and brass nails worked just great. I used a fiber material from a fabric shop for the stuffing..I think it may be called fiber-fill or something. Titebond III worked great sticking the leather to the ply former.

RE: GTM Hanriot Build
 

No big changes but the building continues. Finally epoxied the firewall in and attached the formers. Put in a couple of stringers just to keep everything steady. The first photo is of the upholstered backrest being located with the provided template. A great idea. the last is of the seat bottom ready for upholstering.

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More small changes. the seat frame is installed and the fuselage is partially "rigged". I used kevlar from a pull-pull package and pre-painted it with water based paint. The seat is finished and ready to install. I plan to use velcro so the seat will be removable. I am nearly to the point where the instructions say to set the fuselage aside and begin the wings......

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How did you attach the rigging wires?

BTW, do you think Glenn is getting more scale with each kit or is each one pretty much at the same level? For example, his original DrI kit looks great but it seems like the Hanriot might be closer to scale construction.

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The rigging is so far in the future that I have just glanced at that part if the instructions, looks like threaded rods and clevis though.

This is my first GTM kit, but it seems that all the scale details are there..

Randy

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Actually, I had meant the cross-bracing on the fuselage. Did you just CA the kevlar in place?

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Yes, you just drill the uprights and thread two pieces per side the full length, then I ca'd them in place. I chose kevlar over thin cable to minimize any chance of radio interference...the fuse bottom will also be braced so it would have been like a wire cage back there. The Proctor kits that I'm familiar with use a similar method but the bracing is seperate lengths of aluminum rod, so it is not one continuous length of conductive material. The kevlar is a bit lighter also...

Randy

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And as with any WW1 model with a rotory engine, watch that weight in the tail.
I found that out on my first one. (D8)
Until I built it, I had never built a tailheavy plane in my life.
It was quite a shock.

Del