Another pic

Greetings John;
I am glad that you have found some inspiration. I'll see if I can find that image of Göring's damaged Tuxedo Alb. D.III. There are also some interesting images of pilot's having photos taken with derelict aircraft as a main theme.

You may remember my old 1/48 diorama titled "The last time we were altogether" ? The boys from a pilot pool were at a depot awaiting assignment and they had an Idflieg photographer take a shot of them clowning around the derelict Alb. D.Va fuselage. I got the idea from a couple of images Greg VanWyngarden has published (one was a Pfalz D.XII and another was Neithahmmer's Alb. D.Va) Both being used in a similar manner.





Here is a thread I did on this subject of derelicts.

Click Here

Here is a bit of fun concerning Göring's damaged Tuxedo Alb. D.III (date circa 16.7.17 ?)

Another pic

Unfortunately the lighting system is a little complicated on this my first diorama.I used RR type lighting which makes the bulbs a little more complicated to change when the burn out.They are however quite easy to get at as the hangar roof is completely removable. With all the windows,doors and plexiglass viewing portals lights are really not necessary.I put them in mostly for my own picture taking purposes which I have already done and plan to do a lot more of in the future.
Once inside the glass case I don't think that these bulbs will be changed very often anyway unless the staff up there can think of some ingenious way of doing so.This is especially true for the Jenny diorama where the windows are smaller especially on the surrounding office,engine shop and WC modules.

"THE ACES WHO NEVER WERE"

I have been looking for a good storyline for this diorama.Something a little beyond two guys looking on while another wipes down the engine.
This diorama will represent a training unit situated well behind the front lines.It is dedicated to all those fledgling pilots and their flying instructors ,on both sides of the line,who never actually made it into combat and especially to those who made the ultimate sacrifice while learning how to fly.

Very interesting John. I did a good bit of research into the 31st Aero at Field Five at 3rd AIC at Issoudon and it was a real eye opener for me. I would be glad to donate a Pdf copy to the cause. Lots of images. It may have more bearing on the allied activities. But still the duties may have been similar to the German Jastaschules. The Albatros training accident came from a relatively quite school setting at Lübeck-Travemunde (DFW sponsored training school). Ltn. H. Frommherz of Jasta B fame did a tour of duty there as an instructor.

You may even do a twin diorama someday noting the allies side? Model On!

No surface in nature is completely level not even airfields.I am spreading sand around here and there to help make it look more natural.I then sprayed on some alcohol using a fine sprayer (in order to break up any surface tension and let the glue mix sink in)Take a water dispenser and then drop by drop apply a glue/water mix of 25/75%.Let this dry overnight.You can re-work this until you are happy adding layer upon layer as you go.

Harley's new role!
I am thinking of taking Harley the dog(or fur-person as I like to call them)out of the office in the Jenny diorama, where he can hardly be seen, and give him a staring role as Fritz who lost his master in the accident.A lot of pilots,especially German fighter pilots kept dogs as their personal companions in a situation where bonding with you fellow pilots was difficult due to the high mortality rate.I plan to have him sort of behind the hangar door looking at the wreckage of his masters airplane.For those who do not know of this special relationship it will just be another dog but to those who do it will sent a strong message.I don't think Harley will mind!

Thanks Stephen! all donations are welcome.

nother pic

The final positioning of Fritz will depend upon what looks best when the wrecked airplane is finished.The Albatros is broken at the cockpit seat area with the pilots seat belts hanging out.Having Fritz looking directly at this area may help in understanding the storyline for the average viewer.These little things can be so helpful in getting your story across ,which is after all the whole point in doing a diorama.It is sometimes quite difficult to find the balance between subtlety and the obvious.Too obvious and the whole thing looks contrived ,too subtle and the viewer misses the point.Usually subtlety is the way to go as the impact on the viewer is greater once it is discovered.In this case a lot depends upon the knowledge of the viewer,WW1 fans will get it right away but then again the relationship between dog and man is well known to the general viewer.Anyway I still have a while to think about it.

I spread the sand on slowly using the green topped toothpick dispenser with large size holes in the top.The middle one is used for the spraying on of the 70% alcohol in a fine mist.This one was originally used for eyeglasses.The yellow bottle on the left contains the 25/75, glue/water mix ,it is a squeeze bottle that allows for drip-by-drip application.
You can see by the edge just how soaked the sand gets but when dry it is like cement.This is why I am so careful about sealing the raw plywood with 2-3 coats of lacquer especially the edges.To be on the safe side the panels can be clamped down while drying.

Pinching dirt!
This may sound a bit extreme but I find that the best way to apply the dirt over the sand is to pinch it on bit by bit.It leaves a nice natural wavy surface that you can't get any other way but it does take time.
I do about a 4X4 inch square at a time.I pinch on the dirt in a uneven coat,apply the glue/water mix and immediately apply a second coat of dirt until
it soaks up all of the moisture.

Stephen,would you have any idea as to the paint scheme on this training Albatros?

I can tell you the reasons I went with my choices. The title of the diorama was ‘The Order of the Wooden Cross’

Since Alb. D.V 2042/17 had previously served in Jasta 15 and was early in the production of this type, I figured it wound up at Lübeck -Travemunde as a trainer. Since it was not designated as a trainer on the factory floor it probably had the late model version 180 hp Mercedes D.IIIaü. By this virtue it may have had the higher horsepower and been designated to and instructor (Ltn. Kerns or Ltn. Wegener.) It also possible that it was a unit hack. They did have an Alb. D.II in similar markings as well.

The aircraft has an overall dark appearance but the wood grain on the fuselage is still apparant in the side profile of the intact machine.

The flying / control surfaces seem to have new paint coatings as in on shot they are high gloss. So without too much speculation this machine has gone through a bit of re-covering and repair..

I chose the red tinted varnish as this would give a close approximation of the fuselage. The wings are a bit of a guess. But since the lt blue was retained on the undersurfaces I went with a slightly darker version of the mauve to give it a similar tonal value to the green.

In truth if the wings had been recovered they could have used the plain linen. But again they seem to have kept the lt. blue undersurfaces. So a school applied camouflage was my choice. The cowling panels do seem to be the mid grey found on some Alb. D types. The spinner is definately a darker tone. I applied a bit of a swirl in white and so is the one on the Alb. D.II from the same unit. The larger serials were definately school applied. I am surprised the did not have the phone number applied there as well. The rudder is over painted and the chipping can be seen in the image of the tail unit being hoisted on the shoulders of the four round crew. Note the seat cushion / parachute has been picked up and set on the upturned top wing at the trailing edge. I guess Wegener did not use it on his fatal flight.

For your version I have several small comments that might help.

1. Remember that when a machine was salvaged the airframe was often taken apart with the wings removed.
2. In the above image of the real overturned machine the plain fabric is seen on the inverted top wing surfaces where the paint has been scrapped or chipped due to the crash. This is mostly on the rib caps.
3. The natural thing for the salvage crew to do was stack the wings temporarily against the building side. And then prop up the forward portion of the fuselage to begin dismantling it. You could even have a figure(s) engaged in this activity.

Just some thoughts.

Wow! Thanks Stephen for the great pics and info.My idea is to have the wreck look like it was just recently dragged off the field on a skid of some kind, probably horse driven.I want to scar the ground with drag marks.I think with this and Fritz sitting nearby it will be enough.I plan to show just the horses harness on the ground,no horse that would only deflect the attention from the dog.