electric matthew Posted November 18, 2008 Posted November 18, 2008 Hello John, I just sent payment for 2 kits. Keep up the good work. Up the irons! Quote
captain america Posted November 21, 2008 Author Posted November 21, 2008 Hi guys! Sorry for not posting more frequently, I've been working on the molds, which are now done and casting has begun in full force. The only slight delay is caused by the waiting for the special tooling resin I need to do the vac-forming bucks, and I should have that by next Friday. In the meantime, I'll just be casting my tiny brains out. Also, I took some photos of the masters just before pouring the mold rubber. Honestly, due to the large number of tiny parts and multi-cavitied parts, this goes on record as being one of the most challenging kits I had to cast in recent memory. The first photo in the series is of the mold boxes awaiting the arrival of the mold rubber. Next, these are some of the first castings to come out of said molds. Everything came out great, save for a few voids that formed on the inside of the cockpits of the fwd fuselage (see pics 3 & 4.) Not the end of the world, but it means a little extra dremelling The rest of the parts came out looking very splendid indeed, and all the rivet detail has been faithfully captured. Now to start on the instructions! Quote
cool8or Posted November 21, 2008 Posted November 21, 2008 (edited) Not the end of the world, but it means a little extra dremelling No problem to my Dremel! Excelent cast Cap! Edited November 21, 2008 by cool8or Quote
Evil Bones Posted November 22, 2008 Posted November 22, 2008 Great looking cast Cap. Question...are we getting a 3 or 4 blade tail rotor?? looking at the cast i see 3 blades. Evil Quote
captain america Posted November 22, 2008 Author Posted November 22, 2008 4 blades for the tail rotor; the fourth is on another set of molds being made. Quote
big F Posted November 22, 2008 Posted November 22, 2008 Great work Using the Tupperware containers as molds is a great idea. Much easier that the way I do it with shutters and plasticine. Quote
PetarB Posted November 23, 2008 Posted November 23, 2008 This looks great. I thought the tail boom looked much bigger in previous pics, was probably just the lens and my eye! Quote
MechTech Posted November 26, 2008 Posted November 26, 2008 Looks great! Are there any reinforcements in the main rotors? I know thin resin will sag, although a little is alright in non-rigid rotor airframes like this. I'll contact you soon for payment. - MT Quote
ahiachris Posted December 2, 2008 Posted December 2, 2008 Captain, Payment was sent for one Commanchero Quote
captain america Posted December 2, 2008 Author Posted December 2, 2008 Hi guys! Yes I'm still alive. I've been quite busy trying to work the bugs out of my new vac-forming system, as the rig I was using for the previous projects was just too small and rudimentary, and so I wanted to take a tiny step up to something more durable. To that end, I constructed a new box with heavier plywood. Still very crude, mind you, but much sturdier and more practical. Also, during previous projects, I learned that regular resin isn't quite up to the task of handling the heat and pressure of vaccuum-forming plastic, so I ordered some hi-temp aluminium-filled polymer specially designed for vac-forming. Aside from arriving 2 days late, the material is also ungodly slow to cure --16 hours, and then about 4 hours of post-curing in the oven to fully harden it. Basically, this is what has been slowing me down more than anything, because casting-wise, well.... See for yourselves Barring any unforseen natural disasters ('tis the season!!) I should be shipping the first models next week; labels are printed, kits are cast and boxes are ready. Thank you all for your patience Quote
baxojayz Posted December 2, 2008 Posted December 2, 2008 (edited) Cool progress. Dude! You eat A LOT of cottage cheese! Edited December 2, 2008 by baxojayz Quote
MechTech Posted December 2, 2008 Posted December 2, 2008 Cottage cheese, the "breakfast of champions!" (and craftsmen) Those parts look great! Which one's mine Payment sent today! - MT Quote
cool8or Posted December 2, 2008 Posted December 2, 2008 Great! I'll be able for payment in next week. Quote
big F Posted December 3, 2008 Posted December 3, 2008 Although I was really up for one I have to bow out due to being made redundant on Monday. Working in I.T/media as I do I'm not sure if I will be employed anytime soon. Thanks News Corp International for messing up my Christmas and my hobbies. Wouldn't mind so much if it was down to money but its all about share price. Not that Im sad too much i now have time and enough supplies to at least do a couple of my Moscato kits. If I'm back in the running before the production ends then I will be sending my cash right over. Quote
miriya Posted December 3, 2008 Posted December 3, 2008 I am sorry to hear about your redundancy BigF. May you have good fortune soon and land a new position quickly. Quote
Vostok 7 Posted December 5, 2008 Posted December 5, 2008 UGH I want one SO BAD but I don't have the time, resin skills or money :( I love the Commanchero, I've always wanted one!!!!!!! Vostok 7 Quote
Berttt Posted December 5, 2008 Posted December 5, 2008 I'd get one and sort the rest out later V7. Quote
Vostok 7 Posted December 5, 2008 Posted December 5, 2008 I'd get one and sort the rest out later V7. Yeah, but then I got another problem, my wife killing me :lol: Vostok 7 Quote
Grayson72 Posted December 6, 2008 Posted December 6, 2008 You just gotta make sure to intercept the package from the mail before she see's it, that's all. Quote
Berttt Posted December 6, 2008 Posted December 6, 2008 (edited) LOL I know a bloke that gets all his goodies delivered to a mates address for just this reason. Don't let em fool ya - they dip in for little presents for themselves And besides is easier to ask for forgiveness than permission. Edited December 6, 2008 by Berttt Quote
captain america Posted December 7, 2008 Author Posted December 7, 2008 Hi guys. I just spent the weekend re-tooling the canopy masters; it seems that undercuts on vacuum-formed parts are very much a no-no Anyway, these models WILL be completed and shipped even if I have to hire Santa and his little leprechaun followers to make the canopies around the clock! In a nutshell, I had to remove absolutely all undercuts on the canopy masters, re-polish, and re-mold them, and then start producing some new bucks to vacuum-form off of. Anyway, no worries, things are finally in the clear now that I got that major problem taken care of. I'll be working as fast as I can to get th kits completed and shipped, so just PM if you need me. Don't be surprised if my answers are a little weird though, I'm running on NO sleep these days Quote
captain america Posted December 13, 2008 Author Posted December 13, 2008 Hi guys. Just wanted to give everyone an update to say that things are back on track production-wise. I did some initial tests for the canopies and they come out looking excellent! Now it's just a matter of time getting them back from the subcontractor. For future projects, I will be investing in a proper vacuum forming machine, so any such delays will be a thing of the past. As for the kit itself, I will let the pictures do all the talking. I still have about 10 kits available, so if you want a Commanchero, now is definitely the time Quote
captain america Posted December 13, 2008 Author Posted December 13, 2008 More pics. Sorry about that canopy picture, it looks dreadful here, but I can assure you that the canopies themselves are very nice indeed. Quote
PetarB Posted December 13, 2008 Posted December 13, 2008 In the words of Neo: "Woah!" I'm really looking forwards to receiving mine. That second pic looks awesome. Quote
cool8or Posted December 14, 2008 Posted December 14, 2008 Simply beautiful. John, you're my greatest hero ever! Quote
Evil Bones Posted December 14, 2008 Posted December 14, 2008 wwwwwwooooooSMURFINhhhhhhhoooooo!!!! OK John, will we get them before Christmas?? The model looks awesome. Cannot wait to get this gunship in hand. Great work. Evil Quote
neptunesurvey Posted December 14, 2008 Posted December 14, 2008 HOT DAMN! Can't wait to get this one or three when I get home. Quote
captain america Posted December 14, 2008 Author Posted December 14, 2008 wwwwwwooooooSMURFINhhhhhhhoooooo!!!! OK John, will we get them before Christmas?? The model looks awesome. Cannot wait to get this gunship in hand. Great work. Evil Sadly, I think getting them out before Christmas is a strech given the turnaround time necessary to get the canopies done. I prefer that the work be done properly than be compromised in favor of a fixed due date. Everything else is pretty much done though; by this time tomorrow, all orders will be packed and awaiting canopies before I seal up the boxes and expedite. The one good thing that comes out of this delay is that now I FINALLY have some time to sit down with a gallon of egg-nog and relax! Quote
MechTech Posted December 15, 2008 Posted December 15, 2008 Beautiful work! All the details show up great, even the turbines in the exhaust! Can't wait to get mine, but I'm not in a hurry to rush the quality! Thanks again Cap'n! - MT Quote
cool8or Posted December 15, 2008 Posted December 15, 2008 This is pure magic. I can't wait to have it in my hands. Quote
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