Leaderboard

Welcome to IPMS/USA. Whether you are a new recruit or a returning member, welcome aboard. For you new guys coming in, IPMS/USA is broken up into regions, and each region has an RC, or Regional Coordinator. It is our job to act as a liaison between local chapters and IPMS/USA National. If you're new to the organization, please reach out to your RC, as they can guide you to whatever local chapter is closest to you and introduce you, either in-person or online, to fellow IPMS members and chapter contacts in your area. It is a great way to hit the ground running. Again, on behalf of my fellow Regional Coordinators around the country, welcome aboard. Jeff Herne RC5 - Midwest 2024 IPMS National Convention Chairman

Moving forward with week three of “Magic by Moonlight” I assembled and detailed the engines using the photo etch add-ons. It was a little strange that the kit engines were not molded with the cylinder fins but Eduard was kind enough to provide these in the photo etch set. I then mounted the engines into the wings. I had to files two small grooves to clear the wiring for the cowl lights. Next came installing the seats into the cockpit and cabin. The photo etch set does not include the seat belts so I made my own using some 3M cloth tape. Since I will be displaying the aircraft in flight I took a 1/48 WWII pilot to place in the seat. In order to look like the actual pilot Matt Younkin I used a Google image of Matt and a 1/48 ground crewman to modify the pilot to look like him with his red shirt and red ball cap. Matt was then placed in the pilot seat. I then began assembling the fuselage. With 18 LED’s inside I routed all the wiring to the tail section and soldered all the connections. Then the styrene rod was installed and the wiring was fed down the center of the tube. After getting the wiring tucked into the tail section I was able to get the fuselage together. Everything lined up well considering I had to install the wings and tail on half the fuselage so I could route the wiring then carefully put the fuselage halves together. With the aircraft assembled I performed a light check and all the lights were working. I am now starting to mask the fuselage for the paint scheme. I should have all the painting and decals done in the coming week. Check out the short video of the light check in the build log. Check out all the photos and details from the start in my build log at https://davidsscalemodels.com/build-log/1-48-c-18s-magic-by-moonlight/