Update #3
Looking at both fuselage halves, it became quite apparent that there is considerable work needed to prepare the inner surfaces of both halves prior to continuing working on the 2 compartments: Engine/Wheel Well, and the cockpit. Looking at the outside of each fuselage half, the wing mounting surfaces are raised above the fuselage surface so that there is a more positive gluing surface.
But that creates a huge issue on the inside surfaces:
The front portion is clearly visable in wheel wells, and the center section is also visible looking down into the cockpit. The only viable solution is to fill in those massive areas. To accomplish that, I 1st cut out and glued in a "spar" made from .020 sheet just to shallow the depression.
Then a layer of Milliput. I sanded the putty level making sure that I maintained the concave surface. Unfortunately my Milliput is rather old, and no matter how many pieces of dried skin I removed, some remained which is those dark spots. I filled any remaining depressions with Bondo, which is the red oxide colored material, and sanded it smooth. Hopefully the wheel well areas once primed won't need any more putty work.
The next area is between the cockpit and wheel well bulkheads which can't be seen, so I really didn't need to fill in the depression. So on one side I left it as is. And the area past the cockpit also can't be seen even though I filled and blended in that area as well.
Next I decided to skin the cockpit walls and added ribbing in a similar mannor to the Eduard interior PE set that is out of production and next to impossible to find.
Dry fitting over and over again, it should more then fools the viewer's eye especially once painted and weathered.
I still have work to do to get the cockpit aligned properly so that the fuselage halves will close correctly without having to force the issue.
Joel
Associate Editor
