Kaa-'Tsai Lecon Prane?

[aquilon]

Man am I stoked I got in on this!

[PetarB]

I've been waiting for you to make things with wings for a long time, Cap'n! And the wait was worth it, this looks fantastic!

[Grapeape]

This is BEYOND incredible - and, hey, do you live on a steady diet of pizza and RED BULL? Can't believe how quickly this thing is taking shape...from SCRATCH, no less!

[valhary]

i want one in 1/60 scale

[captain america]

This is BEYOND incredible - and, hey, do you live on a steady diet of pizza and RED BULL? Can't believe how quickly this thing is taking shape...from SCRATCH, no less!

Funny Fact #1: I actually used to work at a MUCH faster pace, fueled by substantial amounts of coffee & sugar, but I started to slack off in the last few years so as not to wreck my health.

Funny Fact #2: working from scratch is actually a lot easier than most people think; far, FAR harder to fix "problems" on an existing model. In fact, I'm glad you reminded me, I'll try to do a little segment in the next update to cover custom tools.

[Ranger565]

yeah beautifull. I am sad that I am selling every other of his kits right now in the for Sale section. Just I really do want this one.

[captain america]

Captain's log, Friday, May 14th. The Enterprise is trapped in a strange energy fi—woops! Sorry, wrong reality! I've had such a long week that I lose track of what dimension I'm in. Wait, where was I? Oh yeah, the Kaa 'Tsai update.

Pic 1: solder. It makes soldering possible. It also makes super-detailing possible—and fun! Its easily pliable nature and availability in several different diameters makes this a wonderful tool for adding wires or piping to a model.

Pic 2: this is just one example of what solder wire is good for. The main gear bays are now starting to take shape. I don't normally get so busy with detailing so early into a build, but the nature of this project requires a much less conventional procedure.

Pic 3: the aircraft's V-tail undergoing some spot putty repair. Due to the complex nature of the shaping of the tail, I couldn't just carve the whole thing out of one solid block, so certain structures are added gradually along the build process to ensure that the kit has a good foundation and good symmetry.

Pic 4: the aircraft's sto-wing folding mechanism. The interlocking teeth you see were all added one by one, by hand.

[captain america]

Pic 5: here, a more detailed view of the mechanism; the stub attaches to the engine nacelle. There will be a bit more detailing done to these parts, but not just yet.

Pics 6 and 7: here we have the newly-converted double-bogey main gear and nose-gear being test-fitted. The struts themselves still need to have some parts & detail added, but for now I will content myself with the knowledge that everything fits.

Pic 8: once again, testing for symmetry and fit. A-OK so far.

[captain america]

Pic 9: I'm test-fitting the main fuselage parts, and everything looks excellent! As you can see, the engine nacelle is now properly rounded. The main fuselage now sports the bucks for the canopies, and the wings have their trailing-edge flaps secured temporarily with tape. The rear V-tail also has a separate flap, so the builder will have the option to build the plane in flight (wheels up), on the ground with drooped flaps & wings extended, or on the ground w/wings in stowed (folded) position.

Oh, did I mention that I plan to add a mid-air refueling probe? Just seemed like a natural (if not critical) thing for a carrier-based bird to have, so that's just one more display option... Now I just have to find a place to put it (those mid-fuselage intakes prohibit putting the probe in a more “conventional” location.)

Pic 10: front view of the engine nacelle. I may still round the top & bottom slightly.

Pic 11: a better view of the flaps. This bird's wings have absolutely MASSIVE chord!! I was contemplating leading edge slats, but trust me, she doesn't need 'em! In fact, I have to wonder if the drag they produce doesn't outweigh the lift benefits...

Pic 12: here is the wing fold mechanism again, this time with the trailing edge flap attached. Not finished yet, but looking great so far.

That's it for this week; I was going to do a comparison with the YF-23 as well as show a few “homemade” tools, but I think that can wait another week, seeing as how this was already a pretty dense update. Stay tuned for more next week

[cool8or]

Wing fold mechanism? I didn't expect that!! Awesome! This is a kick ass for Tanmen version!!

[ahiachris]

Wing fold mechanism? I didn't expect that!! Awesome! This is a kick ass for Tanmen version!!

Indeed never expected the Captain will think of adding a wing fold mechanism and all the details of the wheel bay. I better ask my friend to cast all the little 1/72 ground vehicles that were already available .

[captain america]

Wing fold mechanism? I didn't expect that!! Awesome! This is a kick ass for Tanmen version!!

It seemed only natural, as all navalized aircraft have a Sto-wing mechanism to reduce their footprint shipboard. Gotta take into consideration that the Cat's Eye's wingspan is roughly 1.5 times that of the YF-23

[cool8or]

And fold wings will be very useful in our cases, too

I better ask my friend to cast all the little 1/72 ground vehicles that were already available

Are they available? Please keep us tuned!

[Chronocidal]

It seemed only natural, as all navalized aircraft have a Sto-wing mechanism to reduce their footprint shipboard. Gotta take into consideration that the Cat's Eye's wingspan is roughly 1.5 times that of the YF-23

Aside from the wingspan, the plane itself looks to be about the size of an RA-5 Vigilante actually. And it's looking beautiful.

[Grayson72]

Aside from the wingspan, the plane itself looks to be about the size of an RA-5 Vigilante actually. And it's looking beautiful.

I'm hoping Trumpeter will make a Vigilante in 1/32 scale someday.

[Heavy Melder]

ooooo since this bird is gonna be heavy I hope the gear is metal cast. I doubt wire re-inforced resin cast gear is gonna stand up terribly long....

[jadefalconguard]

Holy Frack....this thing is bigger then I expected Beyond words this.

[PetarB]

ooooo since this bird is gonna be heavy I hope the gear is metal cast. I doubt wire re-inforced resin cast gear is gonna stand up terribly long....

I second this, but he may not have budgeted for it.

Anyway, amazing work captain. The detail on this bird is amazing so far, looking forwards to more!

[captain america]

ooooo since this bird is gonna be heavy I hope the gear is metal cast. I doubt wire re-inforced resin cast gear is gonna stand up terribly long....

Brass rod inserts will do a better job than pewter any day of the week.

[cool8or]

Brass rod inserts will do a better job than pewter any day of the week.

But you'll add a brass rod in the cast of landing gears of we should add it in the building?

[captain america]

But you'll add a brass rod in the cast of landing gears of we should add it in the building?

It'll be incorporated into the castings, just like with the Gnerl fighter pod.

[captain america]

Captain's log, Friday, May 21st. She's almost done! There should be another two updates left and the Kaa 'Tsai will be ready to mold. In spite of the fact that it looks like a drunken sailor barely able to stand on his wobbly legs and just looking like total @$$ in the photos, I assure you that this is because it hasn't been primed yet, but the shape of the plane is there, and it's a beauty!

Sadly, because of the delicate nature of the parts, it's rather challenging to get the whole thing to hold together without unsightly masking tape and a little drooping here & there, so I must ask that you bear with me just a little longer. I promise, it'll be worth it.

While I won't go into another overly-verbose explanation of all the pics, I'll just touch on a few important pieces of info.

-Radome: will be modified from a 1/72 E-2 plastic kit radome and will therefore be made hollow on the kit.

-As mentioned previously, the landing gear will be reinforced with brass bars.

-The rectangular opening on the starboard side, below and slightly aft of the rear canopy is the hatch for the mid-air refuelling probe, and you'll be able to build it recessed or deployed.

-Canopies will be vac-formed, just like the Commanchero.

-I'm exhausted, so I'm going to go have a little nap and maybe some ice cream later.

[captain america]

Last 4 pics.

[baxojayz]

As a wise man once eloquently said:

FAP FAP FAP FAP

LOL

Looks AWESOME!

[cool8or]

Beautiful!! I can't wait to see your panel lines... that details make a BIG difference!

Cap, can you please make the wing lights in clear resin? This should improve the overall aspect.

At last, I would like to know its measures, to compare it with my Tanmen's Kaa-'Tsai.

[captain america]

Beautiful!! I can't wait to see your panel lines... that details make a BIG difference!

Cap, can you please make the wing lights in clear resin? This should improve the overall aspect.

At last, I would like to know its measures, to compare it with my Tanmen's Kaa-'Tsai.

Panel lines: couldn't agree with you more, so lots of panels and lots of rivets (in the right places)are a must.

Wing lights: not practical to make in clear resin due to size in this scale, but you can do this even better yourself by filling the light housings with white glue/Future floor wax and a bit of paint, or even using epoxy. In my 30+ years of modeling, those techniques yield better results than trying to file the flash and mold line off something the size of a large grain of sand.

Dimensions: @ 28mm long, by 26mm wide. No idea how that compares to Tanmen's kit because I don't have it.

[neptunesurvey]

Just beautiful. Another great work.

[nightmareB4macross]

That is beautiful work, captain.

[cool8or]

Dimensions: @ 28mm long, by 26mm wide. No idea how that compares to Tanmen's kit because I don't have it.

Tanmen's:

28mm long, by 31mm wide.

Edited May 21, 2010 by cool8or

[Chronocidal]

Umm... I hope that's "cm" and not "mm".... or the 1/72 pilots will need to ride on the wings.

Absolutely beautiful, I must say. Makes me wish I knew more about building resin kits.

Edited May 22, 2010 by Chronocidal

[PetarB]

I'll be making some new pilots to go along with this as soon as I get it, to ensure they fit.

Simply inspiring work Captain. Although I have to say the chord of those wings are massive! Still, the configuration of the plane probably means it needs it.

Can you tell me how you match up the bucks for the canopy to the frame so well? It looks like you couldn't slide a piece of paper in from here.

Regards, Petar

[captain america]

I'll be making some new pilots to go along with this as soon as I get it, to ensure they fit.

Simply inspiring work Captain. Although I have to say the chord of those wings are massive! Still, the configuration of the plane probably means it needs it.

Can you tell me how you match up the bucks for the canopy to the frame so well? It looks like you couldn't slide a piece of paper in from here.

Regards, Petar

Hi Petar. Excellent question, and you're right: you can't slide a piece of paper between them cos the parts fit together like a hand in a glove.

The process I use to make the bucks fit so seamlessly is the same procedure I use whenever I have to mate two complex shapes together. I start by carving one shape (in this case, the cockpit tub) and make sure that the shape is just the way I want it. Next, I carve the canopy buck and get it to fit as closely as possible with machining and hand-carving.

Next, I apply a spray mold release to the cockpit tub, then smear Bondo all over the mating side of the buck and squash it into the tub and wait about 3 minutes for the Bondo to start to firm-up. Then, I carefully pull the buck out, let it harden fully for a few hours, then do the final finishing. Not hard to do, just watch out for the putty fumes, they're nasty!

[Ranger565]

I'll be making some new pilots to go along with this as soon as I get it, to ensure they fit.

Simply inspiring work Captain. Although I have to say the chord of those wings are massive! Still, the configuration of the plane probably means it needs it.

Can you tell me how you match up the bucks for the canopy to the frame so well? It looks like you couldn't slide a piece of paper in from here.

Regards, Petar

Thank you Peter! Thats all i would need for this kit!

Carl

[THOR]

so awesome! thank you captain for lending us your supreme talent. we are not worthy!

[Myersjessee]

so awesome! thank you captain for lending us your supreme talent. we are not worthy!

Beautiful as always Cap!