JohnReid; ". . .Shep Paine says"even when there are no people at all,as in the case of a derelict,it is the conspicuous absence that tells the story and makes the scene work."

"If it is OK with you guys and admin I would like to start a new thread dealing just with creative ideas for storyboard dioramas of all genres.

Storyboard dioramas tend to break down certain artificial barriers between model makers as they usually contain elements of other types of modeling.It would be great if all modelers could participate not just to display their work but share with the rest of us their ideas and where they came from.It would be wonderful if the 2D artists could participate as well as I know a lot of them have done 3D work too.Coming up with good creative ideas has always been one of the hardest aspects of creating any art including dioramas.Most of us will never live to see all of our creative ideas come to fruition but we all can all share some of those ideas with others. What to you think?"

Greetings all; Here is a bit of fun I have been experimenting with. This is a Nieuport 21 (80hp) N.4545 School #1100) from Issoudon. This school number was assigned to Field # Five. The machine has the fuselage of N4545 but the wings from N4579. Often times when wings were reconditioned or repaired the American star and meatball was applied instead of the French cockade. Though more and more toward the end of 1918 this was done on instructor's machines (Nieuport 24, 24, bis and 27 types) exclusively. Also some Nieuport trainers had two sets of rigging cables on the landing gear instead of just one set.

My experiment was with duplicating the castor oil exhaust glaze that tended to build up on the trainers of the AEF. Crews often had several aircraft that had to be readied for the next days instruction. This exhaust buildup usually had to be sanded off and the area repainted. In the AEF training units it was considered a waste of time to do, as portions of the machine would probably be recovered or repaired several times within a three month period. Quarterly reviews were done on airframes to note the amount of work involved in maintaining their serviceability.

This kit represents Fokker Dr.I 144/17 flown by Ltn Eberhard Stapenhorst of Jasta 11 when he was brought down by Anti-aircraft fire and captured on 13 Jan. 1918. It was given the British capture number G.125 It was later displayed with other captured aircraft in the “Agriculture Hall” in Islington. All of which had half of their coverings removed displaying their internal structures to the public for the price of 1 penny. Proceeds went to the RAF Hospital Fund. On the original machine the half fabric coverings tended to sag and had to be stapled in several places but two strips of its original covering were left intact on the fuselage to help stay the fabric as well.

This is the Aerobase 1/48 brass etched Fokker Dr.I kit. Almost all cockpit details, engine, wheels, cowlings and port side wing sections are from the DML / Dragon kit. I had to add 1/16 of an inch to the DML / Dragon wings used as the covered port side items. The ammunition box is modified by cutting out notches in the lower corners per the original type. The upper forward bracing is metal rod and the instruments on the original piece is not found on the real aircraft. Two scratchbuilt instruments are added to the sides attached to the metal rods as on the original type. These were the tachometer and oil pressure gauges. All of the national markings are from Americal / Gryphon decal sheets. The rigging is fine wire. The propellor is a hand carved wood item from Martin Digmayer’s line. The fuselage half covering is made from decal film and painted then applied in sections.

After having served in Jasta 15, Alb. D.V 2042/17 was a assigned to training duties at Lübeck-Travemunde and is known to have been destroyed in a landing in July 1918. Its pilot Ltn. Wegener is listed as KIC. This diorama took a first place at the IPMS USA Nationals in 2003.

This is the early issued Eduard Albatros D.V kit withtheir aftermarket PE set.