Super Stretch DC8

[PR19_Kit]

I'm a bit of a Douglas Commercial nut, as some of you will know, and I'm also a big Braniff fan, and these interests came together in the famous Braniff 'Calder' DC8-62. I've even got a framed Braniff plastic bag on my wall showing the Calder 8. 



Thanks to the efforts of a good friend who worked for Braniff, the late Joe Turner, I have a load of pics of the 'Calder 8' and I've always wanted to build a model of it, but that paint job would put anyone off, but......

Some years ago I came across a decal sheet for the Calder 8, deep joy! What I hadn't got was the -62 to go with it. The ancient Revell DC8-61 isn't that accurate, and has the earlier engines and wings, and would need a lot of work to make it into  a -62, but that didn't stop me trying. Sadly it was a disaster and I binned it 10 yrs ago.

But then along came Minicraft with their exquisite DC8-63! 

I got one of these pretty quickly, but a plan was forming............



Last week I bought a second one, the S&M marketed 'no box' version, which also comes with CFM-56 engines for the -73 version. The kit always came with markings inside the fuselage so you can cut it down to make the shorter -62 version, and other markings for the earlier -50s too I think, but that's not mentioned in the instructions.



The fuselage showing the cutting markings for the shorter -62.




Both engine types, the fat CFM-56 and the long thin JT3-3bs, shown here. I built one of each to show the difference.

'So what has all this to do with Whiffing?' I hear you ask.......

Well, if I've sawn out two sections from the fuselage of the Calder 8, they'll fit into the other -63 to make an -83 perhaps? And with the spare CFM-56s I've got the makings of another version that Douglas never built. 

Of course it may need longer wings to lift all that extra fuselage length, and I'll need to find some LOOOOOONG decals for it too! 

[McColm]

Good idea

[sandiego89]

That looks like a great kit, and with engine choices!!!! Great for the spares box or builders choice, wish more kits came that way.

The DC-8 seems a bit overshadowed by the 707, too bad, the stretch DC-8's are a real classic and great looking aircraft.

[PR19_Kit]

That looks like a great kit, and with engine choices!!!! Great for the spares box or builders choice, wish more kits came that way.

The DC-8 seems a bit overshadowed by the 707, too bad, the stretch DC-8's are a real classic and great looking aircraft.

I'm not sure if current Minicraft boxed Eights come with both engine choices, but the 'no box' versions do, but don't include any decals at all.

In the 80s when I flew back and forth to Holland very frequently KLM flew their Sciphol-Heathrow sector using DC9-30s usually (they also served a meal on the hour long flight, unlike BA's 'drinks only' policy  ) but the last two flights on a Friday used their DC8-63s because of the increased loading. I always tried to get a seat as far to the rear as possible as you could actually SEE the fuselage bend as the aircraft rotated on take-off! 

Even better was the huge number of cabin staff they carried in order to do the 'full service' with over 200 pax aboard. They were hauling the trollies out of the galley before the flaps were up and often still collecting the debris as we crossed the threshold at Heathrow! 

[Tophe]

Last week I bought a second one

I would not be myself if I forget to suggest using these 2 kits for a Zwilling version (DC-8Z?), with tandem wings maybe, this would be great! (and huge span moreover, which is a PR19_Kit trademark...)

[PR19_Kit]

Last week I bought a second one

I would not be myself if I forget to suggest using these 2 kits for a Zwilling version (DC-8Z?), with tandem wings maybe, this would be great! (and huge span moreover, which is a PR19_Kit trademark...)

Somehow I feel that was predictable. 

But I actually like the idea, and I may just have a go at it, especially as I just got paid for my one day's work earlier in the month.  (those box-less DC8 kits aren't all that cheap, so the expense is a consideration)

[ericr]

hurrah for the Calder DC-8 !

it is the very reason why I came back into modelling as an adult 

[zenrat]

... I always tried to get a seat as far to the rear as possible as you could actually SEE the fuselage bend as the aircraft rotated on take-off!

Did you point it out to whoever was sitting next to you?   

[TheChronicOne]

Oh yes!! I love it.

DC-8.... the first super sonic airliner!   

[PR19_Kit]

... I always tried to get a seat as far to the rear as possible as you could actually SEE the fuselage bend as the aircraft rotated on take-off!

Did you point it out to whoever was sitting next to you?   

On one of the trips I did, yes. He was an aviation nut as well and I told him about 'the bend' before we even pushed back, so we were both looking. We mentioned it to one of the FAs too and she said it was normal on the Stretch 8s!

[zenrat]

... I always tried to get a seat as far to the rear as possible as you could actually SEE the fuselage bend as the aircraft rotated on take-off!

Did you point it out to whoever was sitting next to you?   

On one of the trips I did, yes. He was an aviation nut as well and I told him about 'the bend' before we even pushed back, so we were both looking. We mentioned it to one of the FAs too and she said it was normal on the Stretch 8s!

I like to watch the wings flex on take off.

[PR19_Kit]

The instructions warn you not to paint the wing joints, the usual Mincraft interleaved 'fingers', as they are precision moulded. They aren't kidding!



The 'fingers' are meant to slide into shaped slots deep in the wing root and the inner portion of the wing is then meant to slide into the wing root fairing. Except they don't, slide that is. It's an incredibly tight fit and without some relieving it's just not going to fit.

[PR19_Kit]

Here's the framed plastic bag BTW.

[ericr]

Here's the framed plastic bag BTW.

thanks !

[PR19_Kit]

It's looking like a small scale version of the Long Beach production line here. 

I've sawn up both DC8 fuselages into their respective bits, and I wasn't as successful as I'd hoped. A couple of the cuts aren't really as straight as they could be, despite the marker grooves that Minicraft moulded for me. (I never was any good at sawing straight anyway.....) The earlier, boxed, kit is moulded in totally different styrene to the later one, it's semi-translucent and much more brittle, so much so that one chunk snapped off, as you can see in the first pic, top right.



The top fuselage is for the Super Stretch -83 and the bottom one for the Calder -62.

Then I glued all the sides together and re-arranged them as they'll look when they're built up, approx. anyway, and I cut off the tri-angular chunk and glued it back where it's supposed to be.



When the joints dry off I'll file and sand the cut faces and glue all the bits together. In the meanwhile I'll investigate how to get those darn wings into the fuselage joints..........