Scale Soaring UK

It was sometime back in the last century that my first 1/4 scale Habicht plan sprang into existence. I'd like to think I'd learnt a thing or two since then, but I could be wrong! That version featured the scale wing section, and although it flew reasonably well, this was before aerotow became popular, so it never really got the chance to build up speed from altitude. Since then, I've built a 3rd scale version with a Ritz wing section which I thought flew pretty well, but as my birth date continued to reverse into the mists of time, I thought something smaller might be appropriate. Encouraged by the rolling performance of both the 1/4 scale Petrel & Flamingo, I decided to use the same HQ section on the Habicht, and let the dice fall where they may...

Starting with the traditional fuselage half-shell...

I see you being from UK heritage the kettle for a cup of tea is not far away

Trust me, Jilles, you wouldn't want a cuppa from that kettle...

The formers are tied in place by glueing balsa strips between them, which also reinforces the keel for when the half-shell is removed from the board.
As ever, it's important to ensure that the keels are firmly pinned to the board throughout...

With enough planking added at the front, and the 5mm sq. balsa diagonals at the rear, the half-shell can be removed from the board....

Nice to see that planking come along, it gives even more a feeling of something beautiful being created!
What I wonder, looking at the first pictures of this build is;
How did you (back then) paint the white and red-striped model? I assume this model was made before the existence of Ora-stick?
Is the whole model painted, or is part of the color scheme done with coloured shrink foil?

Daniel

The 3rd scale version was covered entirely with Solartex and painted with 2-pack paint; this was around 2007...

Now, work can start on the second side of the fuselage...

As the rear of the fuselage is made rigid with the diagonal balsa strip, a quick alignment check is in order...