AFV: How to make antenna
Edouard Le
Hi, I'm actually building a late Tiger I from Tamiya. I am wondering
how to make the antenna. Do you guys know which material should I
use?
thanks
ed
Mike Kendall
>thanks
>ed
Hi Ed,
Neat model, no? I've seen and used a couple of methods to make antennas, one
might work for you. The easiest is to find a piece of wire about the right
diameter, drill a small hole in the antenna mount and super glue the wire in.
Look at some pictures to get a feel for how long the thing should be (you
don't have to be exact, although there are probably folks here who know the
length for you).
Another method is to get down to some serious sprue stretching. Take a three
to four inch piece of left-over plastic tree from the kit, hold it an inch or
so over a candle flame, and begin to gently pull apart your hands, stretching
the plastic into a thin line, just as the sprue begins to sag from the heat.
As it begins to stretch, pull away from the flame and just keep stretching
until the plastic cools and won't stretch anymore. Watch out to keep your
fingers away from the flame.
It might take you a time or two, but with some
luck you'll get a length about the right diameter, that slightly tapers like
the real thing, and you can clip it to length and glue it on. The trick with
sprue stretching seems to be to keep a constant but gentle pressure on the
plastic as it is pulled apart. Sometimes the stretched plastic sags as it is
cooling, and you end up with a slightly bent antenna. No problem if you're
modeling a 100mph tank with the wind in your hair! Try to continue gently
stretching even as the plastic cools to keep it straight.
I don't think Tigers had a spring at the base, so the antenna just mounts
directly into the base plate.
Good luck,
Mike
GRN BERET
You may laugh, but try a cat whisker. No, don't run after kitty with
pliers, they generally lose one once in a while. They're very resilient
compared to sprue,and have a good taper.
Robert
It's better to have entered a model in a contest and lost, than to have
collected stamps.
Matthew Y. Hayashibara
grnb...@aol.com (GRN BERET) wrote:
>You may laugh, but try a cat whisker. No, don't run after kitty with
>pliers, they generally lose one once in a while. They're very resilient
>compared to sprue,and have a good taper.
Well, if you don't have a cat, you can use a piece of guitar string.
The .008 or .000 high "E" string on an electric guitar works pretty
well. The lower strings work great for small-diameter braided hoses.
Ivana and ZsaZsa wuld be truly upset if I used their whiskers on
models, and would probably destroy more models than they do now, just
to spite me!
MadMat
Cat lover(?), guitarist, and modeler
Not A Number
mken...@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (Mike Kendall) wrote:
>Neat model, no? I've seen and used a couple of methods to make antennas, one
>might work for you. The easiest is to find a piece of wire about the right
>diameter, drill a small hole in the antenna mount and super glue the wire in.
Piano wire can be bought at most hobby stores, used mainly for RC
models, in a plethora of diameters, and normally straight as can be.
>Look at some pictures to get a feel for how long the thing should be (you
>don't have to be exact, although there are probably folks here who know the
>length for you).
On the starboard side of the upper hull of the Tiger I there should be
a storage tube for the antennae. This will give you the correct
length.
>I don't think Tigers had a spring at the base, so the antenna just mounts
>directly into the base plate.
Correct. No spring, but there is an antennae mount/pedistal, which
should be on the antennae included in the kit. Just snip off the kit
antennae, drill out a hole in the mount and attach your replacement.
Warren
Jens Håkon Brandal
grnb...@aol.com (GRN BERET) wrote:
>You may laugh, but try a cat whisker. No, don't run after kitty with
>pliers, they generally lose one once in a while. They're very resilient
>compared to sprue,and have a good taper.
>
>
>
>It's better to have entered a model in a contest and lost, than to have
>collected stamps.
New problem;
Our secrertary has two cats, so how do I aks her for a whisker or two without her
thinking I'm a madman?
BTW;
Q: Why don't cats shave?
A: Because nine out of ten prefer Whiskas...
On a more serious note, I have found that human hair makes excellent wire aerials.
It is strong, thin, takes super glue very well, and if you ask politely, you will get some
for free.
Jens
MikeK92888
You can also try fine brass wire. It's sold in the model RR section as HO
scale "Pipe". It comes in several dia. I think the stuff I got is Detail
Associates 1" (HO) pipe.
GRN BERET
To care in asking in how you ask for a cat hair from her, or you may never
make it to the supreme court!
Not A Number
JGordon262
Use a high E string from guitar. Thin, resilient, dark color. Don't even
have to paint it.