Bughunter

A rotary engine needs a bearing! A smooth-running one due to the relative small scale of 1:48.

So this is my solution for this problem, Attention, that are macro photos as the parts are very small!

Pic 1 I turned brass bushing on my lathe

Pic 2 The part is finished and can be cut.

Pic 3 I carefully enhanced the inside with a reamer so that the steel axle on top will run smooth in the brass.

Pic 4 I soldered a piece of brass sheet to the axle and turned it round on the lathe.

Pic 5 The axle, and brass parts

Pic 6 Now the tricky part: Put the brass sheet on the back and adjust the position for some clearance. Now solder the brass sheet to the back of the axle, WITHOUT letting any solder get into the bushing.

Pic 7 To finish the bearing I filed the end sheet and the solder down to a smaller diameter than the bushing

Pic 8 For a safe mount of the bearing I added a piece of sprue to the kit front wall.

Pic 9 The position of the oil tank must be taken into account.

Pic 10 The fuselage is plugged together without glue and you can see the bearing at the front.