Hi all - My local model club here in Canberra Australia is having their annual model competition in May, and one of the categories is known as the "Kittyhawk Cup". To be elligible to enter the Cup, you need to build a kit nominated by the club; the kit must be built strictly from materials out of the box, however any decals can be used. Previous years have included various WW2 aircraft, and jets. This year, the club nominated the Roden 1/72 Fokker D.VII series of models as the Kittyhawk Cup kit. So off to the LHS I went, and picked up the Roden 1/72 Fokker D.VII OAW(mid) - I prepared to build the kit as it comes in the box, warts and all....

The cockpit and engine went together well. The only additions were seat belts cut from the instruction sheet (still OOB!)... lozenge decals were used on the interior, and the bracing wires drawn on with a pencil (hence why they are so wobbly!). So far so good.

Having read a little about this kit, it is obvious that it is not an easy OOB build. Two minutes of dry fitting fuselage and wings confirmed this was the case... so, out with the file and sandpaper, and straight to it. The biggest challenge so far was the lower wing fit - the gap on the lower wing piece is way too narrow, so much cutting, sanding and filling was needed to get this piece to fit. Other challenges included the horizontal tail plane - again the cut out at the front end was way too narrow - alas I had to use stretched sprue from the kit sprues to add an extra strip along the leading edge of the tailplane to allow me to sand the piece so it would fit on the wideth of the fuselage. Much more preferrable than thinning the whole fuselage and weakening joints... and technically still OOB.... Anyway, here are some pics.









Now to decide on markings... I hear a few schwabians calling....



BC

Very nice detailing Brad

yes, looks very good so far considering the fit problems...I love the OOB solutions though *smiles* does that mean anything in the box can be used then?.....staples, bags, instruction sheet, are all viable material

its been an age since I tried anything in 1/72, nice work.

Keith

I built Roden's 1/72 Fokker D.VII once. I recall the problem with lower wing - I cut it in two pieces and then attached. The gap was then filled with plastic and sanded smooth.

Still, this D.VII is looking great, Brad!

That is a great challenge building out of box . A most excellent idea . Looking great so far Brad .

Brad -

That's a novel idea your club has! I like it! I have a couple of the Roden unbuilts and your workmanship let's me know I should pull mine off the shelf-of-doom and get cracking someday! Nice job! I really like how you did your interior!

Hhhmm the 7 Swabians in 1/72? Sounds like you have a set of PD decals.

Sure do Stephen ... i'm a little worried that they may be a natch old though...

BC

Looking good Brad -

Wow , yes I used to have that set as well. Haven't a clue who I gave them to now though...just a suggestion. If you have it, use that 'decal film' to prevent the 7 Swabians from turning into 7,000 -- in the form of decal splinters...

How goes the build Brad ?

Hey Terri - no progress on anything of late, have been away with work for the last week and a half. Back on deck now so should see some progress in the next week or so

BC

Wow, but 1/72? I cant even see 1/72 scale pieces.

It's been a while since I have worked on this one, but here is an update. Painting is mostly completed. Decals are from PD decals, and worked well. You do have to paint the individual colours of the fuselage motif however! Lozenge is Techmod (as I had no other alternatives and did not want to use the Roden lozenge).






And dry fitted to the undercarriage:


BC

Hello Brad -

That's outstanding!

What colours did you use for the engine & tail section as well as the fuselage in general?

Keep it going! Great work!

Brad,

Yet again, Fantastic work!

Duncan

OMG Brad this is awesome!!! Your D.VII looks like its in 1/48 scale. And your photos are amaizing as well. Do you use a soft box for taking photos?

Great build Brad! I have to hand it to you. I could not successfully follow that challenge. I would have to modifiy the gun mounts. But your ground rules say you can't do it. I would develop apaplexy. . .Nicely Done finish as usual. Model On!

(How about a kit review for us here?)

Hi guys - she is now finished. Some trimming of the struts were required but otherwise the rest of construction went smoothly. In keeping with the OOB rules of the comp I am building for, the rigging was done from stretched kit sprue. First time I have used this material for rigging - I am glad I don't usually use sprue for rigging as doing it this way is a little fidley. Anyway, here are some pics of the finished model:










All comments, criticisms and feedback welcome!

BC

Beautiful Brad! Another of your jewels. My sincere thanks for your posting here.

Outstanding Brad!

That is really a nice kit and a great choice of markings!

Another fantastic job Brad ! Most excellent job done on the lozenge . What did you use for the control horns ? those are really small , I almost didn't see them at first . It's a shame though that the engine is inclosed your painting of it is super .

looking forward to your next adventure . Thanks for sharing your build !

Great work, Brad, and in 1/72 scale to boot!

Mark

Many thanks guys!

Terri - the control horns are stretched sprue from the kit - I destroyed the moulded on items during construction, so had to restore them - I took the opportunity to make them more "to scale" in the process

BC

great, You have turn this one into a gem Brad,The wooden plinth is a nice touch.

Larsa

Brad --


Which paints did you use for the fuslage? They sure did turn out nice!