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Thread: Having a go at fixing a crooked wing - Ares SE.5A model

  1. #1

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    Default Having a go at fixing a crooked wing - Ares SE.5A model

    I'm hoping to start playing Wings of Glory WW1 in 2020 and have been buying some models to play 1918 games. Unfortunately one of the models had a crooked wing. Now I'm no model building expert but I did decide to give it a go at trying to fix the problem. Probably there is an easier way of fixing these issues? Any advice or suggestions would be gratefully received



    The upper wing is going off at an angle on the left-hand-side when viewed in the above photo. Also, though not so evident in the photo, the tail is crooked and the tailplane is, again, angled to the left.

    To say I was disappointed when I noticed these defects would be very accurate, and since there wasn't much that could be done - the seller wasn't at fault, its a manufacturing issue - I decided to have a go at fixing the issue.

    It was harder than I imagined!



    Cutting away the upper wing wasn't as easy as I'd hoped. But do-able. I used a razorsaw.

    The tailplane, once removed with the razorsaw, was re-cut at an angle to meet the skew-whiff tail, then glued in place with superglue.

    The upper wing was then positioned as-near-as-I-could-manage-straight back on the model. That wasn't easy, and that's an understatement. Swearing. Sweating. Glued-up fingers. Finally it ended up in a position I'm happy with. Never again! (hopefully)



    I, also, replaced the plastic peg, that represents the pilot, with a metal miniature from Red Eagle Miniatures ...and then noticed that the plastic peg is connected to the inside floor of the model and I'd only gone and smashed out the bottom of the aeroplane. Doh! Luckily it was fixable.

    [since these photos were taken I've done some more work on the metal pilot miniature. Broke it free of the glue, filed the miniature's bottom half so it wasn't as tall, reglued and placed back in the cockpit. Now the metal pilot figure doesn't sit as high in the cockpit as it first did.]



    Quite a bit of superglue was needed to attach the upper wing - you can see the blobs in the above photo. Never mind. Maybe I can clean them up a bit before touching the paintwork up. If not, then they'll add strength to the glue join.

    [the 'bit' hanging from the left-hand-side upper wing, in the photo, is the factory paintjob/camo decal. Its been reattached.]

    I'll have to paint up the pilot miniature and I might, also, add some other painted details to personalise the miniature. Those are jobs for another day.

  2. #2

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    Well done! It is hard to fix these little guys, the older I get the harder. I have had to totally dis-assemble many over the years. The freezer technique is my preference, taking them down to the single parts is often required, extra factory glues and flashings will need be removed and the whole thing re-assembled carefully. At that point I usually do a new paint scheme as well . . . you have done an excellent job! Was this an Ares or FF mini?

  3. #3

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    Great job on your fix. I wholeheartedly agree with Dave, trying to re-work these can be a real pain.

  4. #4

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    Thank you. I'm not familiar with the freezer technique, but it sounds self-explanatory and I can probably google it or find it on this forum.

    Ares Games, I think? Its a reprint model from earlier this year, the box displaying an Ares logo.

  5. #5

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    Nice job fixing it! Haven't had a problem with crooked wings yet.

  6. #6

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    Great work, Roy!

  7. #7

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    Quote Originally Posted by RoyWilliamson View Post
    Probably there is an easier way of fixing these issues? Any advice or suggestions would be gratefully received
    Yeah, contact Ares and get a replacement !
    Great job on correcting it yourself though.

    "He is wise who watches"

  8. #8

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    Freezing is fun! Place the model in the freezer over night or longer. The theory is that the plastic and metal parts will contract at different rates in the same temperature forcing each part at the joints to fail or easily come apart. I found gripping wing struts with wide flat pliars and doing a quick twist will pop the struts off the wing without damage to the strut. Similar results with the empanage. Been a while since I had to do it . . .

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    Thank you Future Pilot. Cheers flash.

    clipper1801. Thank you for the explanation. I've noted it down, should I ever need to take action again.

  10. #10

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    That was a lot of work. Rep-worthy for persistence!

  11. #11

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    Just waiting for my order of three S.E. 5a,s to arrive and now hoping that none of them has this problem.

  12. #12

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    Excellent result following a lot of hard work.
    Kudos!
    I laugh in the face of danger - then I hide until it goes away!

  13. #13

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    Thank you zenlizard. Cheers Flying Helmut.

    Quote Originally Posted by Rebel View Post
    Just waiting for my order of three S.E. 5a,s to arrive and now hoping that none of them has this problem.
    Yeah, I was waiting on a Gerät Sopwith (at least, that is what I'm calling my Camel in German clothing) coming through the post today. It had me anxious, waiting to see if it was wonky or not. Luckily the model is okay. Paintwork is a bit iffy around the edges. The Snipes I got the other day, the roundel decals are comical to look at - if they were a pair of eyes, one would be looking top left and the other bottom right. Nowt that can't be quickly fixed though.

  14. #14

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    Would dipping the model in hot water, straightening the Wings, then dipping in very cold water work?



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