One year ago I was making the
1:72 Revell P-47
Thunderbolt. Unfortunately CA's mists have had made
kit's canopy foggy . I decided to make it on my own using the vacuum technique.
Today I will show you how to do it with 1/48 Spitfire canopy. What we
will need is: vacuum cleaner, scraggy plastic foil (using to cover the
binding), wood or plastic box with holes and some free time of course :-)
Steps:
1. Splice together the canopy parts
Click on
images below to see larger images
2. Now make a wood box with many
small holes on the top and one big one on the side the same diameter as
the vacuum cleaner's
pipe. Next fix template (kit's canopy) to the top of it |
Click on
images below to see larger images
|
|
|
3. Then cut the clear plastic
sheet with big surplus and fix it to the frame outline |
|
4. Go to the kitchen and connect
the wood box with vacuum cleaner and turn on the
burner |
|
5. Keep clear plastic
sheet in the frame above the flame (about 30cm) until the clear
plastic sheet gets soft and sags slightly |
|
6. Then turn on the vacuum
cleaner and as fast as you can put the hot clear plastic sheet
on the template. Vacuum cleaner will pull/suck the clear
plastic sheet on small holes
and make new
beauty canopy :-)
It is important to turn the vacuum
cleaner on before you move the clear plastic sheet to the vacuum
forming machine.....which should be very close to the burner.
The clear plastic sheet will cool very quickly and to get good
results......you'll need to have the clear plastic sheet very
soft.
Good luck!
Łukasz Studniarz |
|
|