I wanna give you devotion!

[The Wooksta!]

"Well, it's a long story....."

Starting another thread or project?  Not quite, this is just a base for thoughts at the minute.

You cannot view this attachment.

It's a Firecrest, but a mid engined one with the Napier Nomad.  There were proposals for a Sabre engined one, according to Tony Buttler, but it would have been moved amidships due to CoG issues, so I've a feeling that this is what it may have looked like - the Nomad was a continuation of work on the Sabre.

I have only got this drawing, sourced from Secret Projects, and absolutely no details as regards to span or length, so this was blown up using the measurements of a Magna Firecrest wing, which thankfully drops over the top neatly.

What to use?  Well, Firecrest wings and tail for a start, but I've been kicking around ideas.  My first thought was a Skyraider, due to the position of the cockpit, but it's really too deep.  Then I thought of an Aichi Val, but having acquired one (with grateful thanks to Gondor), it's too short - it's also too short for the Gloster proposal to the Defiant spec, but that's an entirely different thread as I've been wanting to do that one for a number of years too..  I also tried a Blackburn Skua over the plans, which kind of works for width, but again, too short.

I could rework the Magna Firecrest fuselage, but don't have enough in the stash.  Yes, I could mould the fuselage - I will be moulding the wings at some point - but all I really need is the wing centre section.  I can do that using that really cheap hand mixed Siligum rubber I have and the Firecrest mixed power proposal project I've tentatively made a start on - I have to cut the fuselage down anyway, so making a mould of the lower fuselage isn't too difficult.

Which made me think of the Rareplanes Firebrand, because the fuselage drops over a complete wing.  The fuselage length looks about right, after dropping a Magna one over the plan, and I do have a pair of Rareplanes ones tucked away that I'd picked up for much cheapness as I wanted the wings for a pair of twin engined Blackburn projects, one looking suspiciously like a Merlin engined Me 410.  If I'm lucky, I don't even have to sand it down, because I need the extra width, certainly at the front end.  Having compared a CMR old tool Firebrand fuselage, the latter looks even more promising, with the length from the fuselage just aft of the radiators cowling to the tail being bob on, and only the width  and fuselage top decking need rebuilding.  This looks a lot easier than I'd feared, having worries about having to rebuilt it all in the manner of the mid engined Wyvern.

The cockpit area kind of looks like a Sea Fury, so I may need a dead Frog/Novo fuselage for one of those at some point.  It's likely a Tempest canopy.  The cowling looks similar to the annular radiator used by the Kora Tempest conversion I'm working on elsewhere and I already have a mould of that.  The tailfin? Sheet plastic sanded back or a reworked Mosquito one? I think it's possible to rework the Rareplanes Firebrand one, although having dropped the Magna Firecrest fin over the plan, one of those hacked around on the leading edge could be better.  I have one spare, but putting it on the edge of a mould is no hardship.

So, that is possibly the next project, although after having fought the Eagle Wyvern, the P.103 and the Magna Brigand u/c, I may want something quick and simple.

Oh, the title? I try to do something humorous, even if only to make me chuckle.  This is the connection:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7br5T8eaeQ&list=RDc7br5T8eaeQ&start_radio=1

[The Wooksta!]

This calls for a very special blend of psychology and extreme violence.

A quick visit to the loft and I put my hands on the second Rareplanes Firebrand that's up there, in a box with an Airways Firefly AS7 (really awesome white metal in that kit).

I paid £2 quid for it in the Kitswap some years back (2014, I got two as I found the photo) and on opening, it doesn't have the nice white metal prop and nor does it have a canopy.  Neither of these are a handicap, as I just want the fuselage halves, possibly some of the cockpit interior bits, as well as...  I'll come to that later.

It got crudely cut from the backing sheet.  Unlike a normal vac kit, I don't want to remove material as I may have to widen it anyway. I'll still have to sand it back a tad, as right now it fits where it touches.  And it doesn't touch much.  I'm planning on using the same central template idea that I used for the Hawker P.1030 - I will be going back to that at some point, honest! - because I'll need it as a guide when I rebuild the top decking.  Then again, I may try the same method I used with the P.103A.  I think that one may work better.  I have several ideas, one of which includes use of P.38.  I may need to use that at some point anyway, as well as the filler primer.

You cannot view this attachment.

Legthwise, it looks almost bob on, although possibly a tad too long.  I'll remove a chunk at the front end.  Might need to dip into the Luftwaffe spares box for a BMW801 engine mount, we shall see.

You cannot view this attachment.
You cannot view this attachment.

And on top of the plan.  The top decking doesn't look like it needs too much work, but from the front view, it is significantly wider.  I'll know more when I cut a top decking out of sheet plastic.

You cannot view this attachment.

Taped up for a bird's eye view.  The width looks about right and likely more so once I've added a central core. Lets look at the tailplanes.

You cannot view this attachment.

This is the leftover one from the 1993 Magna horror.  It looks about right, but the tips need rebuilding and reshaping.  Or...

You cannot view this attachment.

The Rareplanes Firebrand tailplanes come as top and bottom.  Cleaned up, sanded down and with a thin sliver of plastic card cut to shape sandwiched between, then built up with sg/bs?  Which is going to be less work? Either way, I need to do a lot of sanding.

You cannot view this attachment.

Here's something I prepared earlier, a cast copy of the annular radiator from the Kora Tempest conversion, the mould and casting being made during lockdown 6 years ago.  I'd dug the mould out to cast a new one, but I may not need it.  It's not deep enough, so I'll build it up from sheet plastic card, but the profile and size is a good match.  A visit to ebay to get a compass cutter is in order.

So, I don't think this project is as daunting as I'd feared.  I mean yes, it's still going to be a lot of work reshaping a rather delicate vacform fuselage, but having done something similar with the vastly larger Contrail Ju 390, I have the experience to handle it.

[Gondor]

That fits rather nicely 

[The Wooksta!]

"Very probably, Micheal."

We really shouldn't be surprised that the Firebrand fuselage fits the plan, almost as thought it were tailored for it, given that the Firecrest was essentially a redesigned Firebrand fuselage with a new wing.  TBH, the Nomad version is likely going to be more slab sided than the drawing suggests, given the Firebrand/Firecrest heritage, because both of those are also quite slab sided.  It just looks like the top decking that changes somewhat, as it looks quite broad shouldered.

Thinking ahead to any possible scheme, it has to be the EDSG/Sky one with the high demarcation - I can't see a timeline where it would be in service before 1950 - although I really like the lower demarcation.  I'll keep that for the mid engined Wyvern, my "production" Eagle one from the CMR is getting the high demarcation and possibly the Dennis the Menace markings that came in the Trumpeter kit. The planned Clyde engined Firecrest is likely to have the late scheme too.

Damn!  Now I have to add a few more things into the plan for the year...

[NARSES2]

Damn!  Now I have to add a few more things into the plan for the year...

Well at least there's still 9 months to go