This new tool from CB
Model Products is a very creative and useful tool. I must admit when I
heard of this tool, I was skeptical that it was needed or that it would be
useful......the whole idea seemed like more effort than it was worth....oh how
wrong I was. Now
that I've tested it, I can honestly say it is a very useful and valuable tool
that I plan to use every chance I get.
For this review I
grabbed a variety of different models from my kit stash and taped them together
to show the versatile nature of this tool.
This landing gear
alignment tool will hold your model precisely to permit the glue on your landing
gear to dry thus giving you flawless results every time. It will fit the
tiniest model all the way up to models with slightly over 23" wingspans if
you use the additional rod you can install to double the length of the wingspan rod to permit
you to work with larger models. I tried a 1/24 Airfix Spitfire and this
tool was easily able to hold that size of model, although I would consider
drilling a hole in
the centre beam of this tool towards the rear where the tail wheel rest as I
found an extra hole was needed to properly hold the tail planes of the 1/24
Spitfire. For the photos, I secured the rear of the 1/24 Spitfire with the
braces holding the rear of the fuselage....which is fine provided you cover the
braces with tape to protect the paint on your model and avoid leaving
marks on your painted model's fuselage side. But one extra hole on the
main beam of this tool will permit it to hold the bigger kits, which is
important when you ponder the number of 1/32 kits being released.
Click on
images below to see larger images
So...the tool works like this.
1) Attached
landing gear to aircraft including the tail wheel.
2) Brace the
main gear legs (without wheels) in the jig and check the alignment of the tail
wheel.
3) Once you
are satisfied with the alignment of the tail wheel....remove the model from the
jig and apply slow setting glue to the tail gear.
4) Install the
model into the jig and secure it and let the glue on the tail gear dry.
5) Drill holes in bottom of the
main wheels/tires.
6) Secure the
wheels to the jig using the tiny brass screws that are included with the jig.
7) Insert the
main landing gear legs into the main wheel without glue.
8) Lower the
model on to the jig and connect your model to the main landing gear legs.
9) Adjust the
4 arms of the jig to hold the model in the correct position.
10) Adjust the
wheels from left to right to get the correct position for the landing gear.
11) Now look
from the top of your model to make sure your wheels appear in the correct spot
in relation to the wing......thus making sure the left and right main gear are
correct relative to each other.
12) Check the
height of each wing tip to make sure the model is sitting level from wing tip to
wingtip.
13) Once you
are satisfied that everything lines up perfectly.....remove the model from the
jig......apply slow setting glue and re-install the model in the jig. Make
final adjustments and let the glue dry fully.
If you have landing gear
that sit on an angle such as the Bf-109, then you would have to adjust the
holes in your wheels so the wheel will sit at the correct tilted angle when attached to
the jig. But the vast majority of aircraft have wheels that sit
squarely on the ground.
If you're
building an aircraft with tricycle landing gear......simply rotate the
model 180° and follow the same procedure as above but the "tail
wheel" in the instructions will be the "nose wheel".
Below is the
1/48 Revell F-15E in the jig, but it can also be used for such aircraft is
the P-61. I was also able to fit this jig to the massive 1/32 Tamiya
F-14 as you can see in the photos further below, so this tool does have
quite a bit of flexibility.
Why this tool
wasn't thought of long ago is a mystery to me, but I'm sure glad it is available
now.
CB Model Products is
new to the market with this being their second tool, but I am very impressed
with the high quality of their metal tools and the versatile nature of their
tools. This is not a tool designed for a kid slapping a kit together on a
rainy afternoon, but for experienced modellers that want to improve the quality
of their finished model, then this tool will be a valuable and asset that will
be used for each and every model. It will give you exacting results each
and every time you use it and remove the uncertainty we all experience when
attaching our landing gear.
I’d like to thank CB Model
Products for the review copy. The price is $40 USD plus shipping. You can obtain
your copy by contacting them at cbmodelproducts@hotmail.com
.
Steve Bamford
Click on
images below to see larger images
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