RAFM update
The above pic is from the RAFM London where my next diorama will be headed.This is the first time that I have seen pics of the inside of the museum.Looks like a great collection!
I am still in the research stage with this diorama and hope to have a lot more info shortly.
Cheers! John.

(Insert whistle here.) Matching your diorama to this venue is going to be very impressive. Your vision may be different of course but I am toying with a Sopwith factory floor diorama after my Issoudon piece is finished.

Hi Stephen! I have only just recently learned that there were no aircraft manufactured at Hendon during WW1.I am expecting a package from the museum soon,including pics to help stimulate the old imagination!
Your Sopwith factory sounds very interesting.What scale are you planning?
Cheers! John.

Hey John ! Definitely 1/48. This is an BEF 1 1/2 Strutter repair shop floor. Training facility?

Another

Mags & Cylinders.
I drilled in 8 holes in the magnetos face and test fit the wire leads.I then glued and pinned the magneto to the top of the block.

I also glued and pinned each cylinder to the block.No problems there,just make sure to re-drill all holes and test fit the manifolds and water pipes.All spark plug holes are drilled on the rear side of the cylinder with the the water pipe hole pointed outboard.With the cylinders pinned in and the manifolds temporarily fit on ,I glued down the cylinders using super thin crazy glue at the base of each cylinder.

Another

Another

Missing parts/Carb heat
The copper piping and plastic red piping were added by me because the cast parts were missing from the kit.I bought the 2nd Jenny kit from a friend and somehow these pieces were missing.When painted and weathered it won't be noticeable.
Speaking of weathering ,I think that I will heavily weather this one .The engine on the Canuck now looks relatively new , so this engine could represent an engine change having taken place.A broken prop still attached to the shaft would go well with the broken wing tips on the wings.A little moderate damage from a ground loop or nose over.I plan to finish this engine as a type that would have been installed on a JN4Aor D with the exhaust manifolds and carb heat tubing.
Speaking of carb heat ,I never did resolve how the short stack version like on the Canuck,bleed off carb heat to the engine.Any ideas?

OX5 V8 in 1913
For some reason I always mistakenly thought that the V8 engine was a Ford development of around 1930.Guess where he got the idea!Looks like Curtiss had one in a 1913 flying boat.Ford never did get a ride in the flying boat though,he said his wife wouldn't let him!

Another

Another

About finished the OX5.
Except for the carb heat and bottom rad tubes the engine is finished.I added the old prop as though someone had just cut it off with a saw.The next step will be to build some kind of a old stand or wood blocks to put it on.Then it will be on to the weathering which is always fun to do.I think that rather than put it inside the main hangar ,I will set it on the outside loading dock near the engine room, so it will be available for close up inspection of the details by the viewer.This is an interesting little engine and a piece of history all by itself.
In the accident the prop took a lot of damage but the engine itself remained intact with only a few oil leaks here and there .It may be repairable and is waiting inspection in the engine shop now that the Mercedes is just about finished overhaul.

Another pic

Looking at this last pic I noticed that some of the rocker arms are bent.They went on straight but somehow got bent in handling.Rather than take the chance of breaking them off trying to straighten them ,we will just call it a little accident damage.
What to do next?I have been waiting for the weather to improve at bit here in the GWN, before I venture outside to cut the oval base.Once the base is cut I will have to break down the diorama for ,I hope , the last time and rebuild it on its new base.Then I will finally have to decide whether to build an outside or just leave it as is.There are a few other furnishings that I would like to build such as a nice old wooden wheelbarrow that I saw somewhere and a tool box or two,things like that.

Wheelbarrow/old Jenny parts and pieces.
After some searching I finally found the pic.This is a great old wheelbarrow and would make a nice addition to the diorama ,especially if it was piled with old Jenny parts waiting to be thrown on the junk pile. It looks to be all wood so it should be easy to make.
I will have to take some measurements from my modern steel version to get an idea of dimensions.When scratchbuilding it is always a good idea to use whatever 1:1 scale examples that you have available for this purpose. The figures will also help a lot in this regard. I think that this will be a fun little project!