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For the good of the Party, Comrades!
Okay, it's not really a "spy" camera (as far as I know). It's a vintage Soviet camera, called a Kiev 30. It's a "miniature format" camera that uses 16mm film. 16mm is the same size as 110, but this camera uses kind of a weird cartridge. It looks somewhat similar to 110, but it uses unperforated film (no sprocket holes).
This camera is so cool. It looks like it's really well made, everything on it is metal. It's also completely manual exposure - you adjust the shutter speed and aperture. It even has manual focus. That's really unusual for a miniature camera like this. With manual exposure, you can get much better pictures.
I think I found where I can get the film too. I found a website for a guy who sells film cut into different sizes. He specializes in miniature format film. And he can re-load cartridges, including the kind of cartridge that the Kiev 30 uses. I just emailed him, and hopefully he will reply. If I can get cartridges re-loaded with black and white film (like maybe Kodak Plus-X) then I can develop the film myself.
I also want to try color film with this camera, but I'm looking for a lab that will develop 16mm film. Dwayne's Photo does develop 110 film, and technically 16mm is the same size as 110. But when I called and asked if they could develop film from a re-loaded cartridge, the lady I talked to said that they don't want to develop custom loaded film because they've had problems with the film not being cut straight and it getting damaged.
I'll figure it out eventually.
www.artman.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk
This is a screenshot from a promo video I made a while back which can be viewed here
The Yakovlev Yak-3 (Russian: Яковлев Як-3) was a single-engine, single-seat World War II Soviet fighter. Robust and easy to maintain, it was much liked by both pilots and ground crew. One of the smallest and lightest combat fighters fielded by any combatant during the war, its high power-to-weight ratio gave it excellent performance and it proved to be a formidable dogfighter.
The origins of the Yak-3 went back to 1941 when the I-30 prototype was offered along with the I-26 (Yak-1) as an alternative design. The I-30, powered by a Klimov M-105P engine, was of all-metal construction, using a wing with dihedral on the outer panels. Like the early Yak-1, it had a 20 mm (0.79 in) ShVAK cannon firing through the hollow-driveshaft nose spinner as a motornaya pushka (моторная пушка - Literally: 'Motor Cannon'), twin 7.62 mm (0.300 in) synchronized ShKAS machine guns in cowling mounts and a ShVAK cannon in each wing.
During the Battle of Stalingrad, Luftwaffe fighters exhibited significant speed, climb rate, and armament advantages over those of the VVS. The Yak-1 then in service was understood to be in urgent need of a modernization were it to fight on equal footing against the latest models of German fighters, as well as better energy retention and higher firepower.
Then, in 1943, a group of designers headed by Alexander Sergeyevich Yakovlev designed the Yak-3, a further development of the proven Yak-1 aimed at improving survivability, flight characteristics and firepower, which required a lower weight, a higher-power engine and therefore, faster speed.
The first of two prototypes had a slatted wing to improve handling and short-field performance while the second prototype had a wooden wing without slats in order to simplify production and save aluminium. The second prototype crashed during flight tests and was written off. Although there were plans to put the Yak-3 into production, the scarcity of aviation aluminium and the pressure of the Nazi invasion led to work on the first Yak-3 being abandoned in late 1941.
In between 1942 and 1943, Yakovlev built the Yak-1M, a prototype that would ultimately lead to the Yak-3, coupled with the VK-105PF2, the latest iteration of the VK-105 engine family, where "P" indicated support for a motornaya pushka - an autocannon that fires between the engine banks, through the hollow propeller shaft - mounting. It incorporated a wing of similar design but with smaller surface area (17.15 to 14.85 m2 (184.6 to 159.8 sq ft)), and had further aerodynamic refinements, like the new placement of the oil radiator, from the chin to the wing roots (one of the visual differences with the Yak-1, -7, -9). A second Yak-1M (originally meant as a "backup") prototype was constructed later that year, differing from the first aircraft in that it had plywood instead of fabric covering of the rear fuselage, mastless radio antenna, reflector gunsight and improved armour and engine cooling.
After the VK-105PF2 engine received a boost from a manifold pressure of 1050 mmHg to 1100 mmHg, additional tests were needed to determine how it impacted the flight characteristics of the Yak-3. State trials revealed that this boost reduced the time needed to reach 5,000 m (16,000 ft) by 0.1 seconds, the takeoff run by 15 m (49 ft), altitude gain in a combat loop by 50 m (160 ft), and speed below 2,400 m (7,900 ft) by 5–6 km/h (3–4 mph).
The chief test pilot for the project Petr Mikhailovich Stefanovskiy was so impressed with the new aircraft that he recommended that it should completely replace the Yak-1 and Yak-7 with only the Yak-9 retained in production for further work with the Klimov VK-107 engine. The new fighter, designated the Yak-3, entered service in 1944, later than the Yak-9 despite the lower designation number, and by mid-1946 4,848 had been built.
The designation Yak-3 was also used for other Yakovlev projects – a proposed but never built, heavy twin-engine fighter and the Yakovlev Yak-7A.
The first 197 Yak-3 were lightly armed with a single motornaya pushka-mount 20 mm (0.79 in) ShVAK cannon and one 12.7 mm (0.50 in) UBS synchronized machine gun, with subsequent aircraft receiving a second UBS for a weight of fire of 2.72 kg (6.0 lb) per second using high-explosive ammunition. All armament was installed close to the axis of the aircraft with a cannon mounted in the engine "vee" firing through the propeller boss, synchronised machine guns in the fuselage, helping accuracy and leaving wings unloaded.
Lighter and smaller than the Yak-9 but powered by the same engine, the Yak-3 was a forgiving, easy-to-handle aircraft loved by both novice and experienced pilots. It was robust, easy to maintain and a highly successful dog-fighter. It was used mostly as a tactical fighter, flying low over battlefields and engaging in dogfights below 4,000 m (13,000 ft).
The new aircraft began to reach frontline units during summer 1944. Yak-3 service tests were conducted by 91st IAP of the 2nd Air Army, commanded by Lt Colonel Kovalyov, in June–July 1944. The regiment had the task of gaining air superiority. During 431 sorties, 20 Luftwaffe fighters and three Junkers Ju 87s were shot down while Soviet losses amounted to two Yak-3s shot down. A large dogfight developed on 16 June 1944, when 18 Yak-3s clashed with 24 German aircraft. Soviet Yak-3 fighters shot down 15 German aircraft for the loss of one Yak destroyed and one damaged. The following day, Luftwaffe activity over that section of the front had virtually ceased. On 17 July 1944, eight Yaks attacked a formation of 60 German aircraft, including escorting fighters. In the ensuing dogfight, the Luftwaffe lost three Ju 87s and four Bf 109Gs, for no loss. The Luftwaffe issued an order to "avoid combat below five thousand metres with Yakovlev fighters lacking an oil cooler intake beneath the nose!" Luftwaffe fighters in combat with the Yak-3 tried to use surprise tactics, attacking from above.
Unresolved wartime problems with the Yak-3 included plywood surfaces delaminating when the aircraft pulled out of a high-speed dive, short-range and poor engine reliability. The pneumatic system for actuating landing gear, flaps and brakes, typical for all Yakovlev fighters of the time, was troublesome. Though less reliable than hydraulic or electrical alternatives, the pneumatic system was preferred owing to the weight saving.
In 1944, the Normandie-Niemen Group re-equipped with the Yak-3, scoring the last 99 of their 273 air victories against the Luftwaffe.
Total Yak-3 losses in combat were 210, 60 in 1944 and 150 in 1945.
Yak-3
main production version
Yak-3 (VK-107A)
Klimov VK-107A engine with 1,230 kW (1,649 hp) and 2 × 20 mm (0.79 in) Berezin B-20 cannons with 120 rpg. After several mixed-construction prototypes, 48 all-metal production aircraft were built in 1945–1946 during and after WW2. Despite excellent performance (720 km/h (450 mph) at 5,750 m (18,860 ft)), it saw only limited squadron service with the 897th IAP. Though the problems with the VK-107 overheating were eventually mitigated, it was decided to leave the engine for the better-suited Yak-9.
Yak-3 (VK-108)
Yak-3 (VK-107A) modified with VK-108 engine with 1,380 kW (1,851 hp), and armed a single 23 mm (0.91 in) Nudelman-Suranov NS-23 cannon with 60 rounds of ammunition. The aircraft reached 745 km/h (463 mph) at 6,290 m (20,636 ft) in testing but suffered from significant engine overheating. Another Yak-3 with 2 × 20 mm (0.79 in) Berezin B-20 cannons was also fitted with the engine with similar results.
Yak-3K
Armed with a 45 mm (1.8 in) Nudelman-Suranov NS-45 cannon, only a few built because Yak-9K was a better match for the weapon
Yak-3P
Production started after war[11] armed with 3 × 20 mm (0.79 in) Berezin B-20 cannon with 120 rounds for the middle cannon and 130 rpg for the side weapons. A total of 596 being built, none of them took part in combat.[12] The three-cannon armament with full ammunition load was actually 11 kg (24 lb) lighter than that of a standard Yak-3, and the one-second burst mass of 3.52 kg (7.8 lb) was greater than that of most contemporary fighters.
Yak-3PD
high-altitude interceptor with Klimov VK-105PD engine and a single 23 mm (0.91 in) Nudelman-Suranov NS-23 cannon with 60 rounds of ammunition, reached 13,300 m (43,635 ft) in testing but did not enter production due to unreliability of the engine.
Yak-3RD (Yak-3D)
experimental aircraft with an auxiliary Glushko RD-1 liquid-fuel rocket engine with 2.9 kN (650 lbf) of thrust in the modified tail, armed with a single 23 mm (0.91 in) Nudelman-Suranov NS-23 cannon with 60 rounds of ammunition. On 11 May 1945, the aircraft reached 782 km/h (486 mph) at 7,800 m (25,600 ft). During the 16 August test flight, the aircraft crashed for unknown reasons, killing the test pilot V.L. Rastorguev. Like all mixed powerplant aircraft of the time, the project was abandoned in favor of turbojet engines.
Yak-3T
tank destroyer version armed with 1 × 37 mm (1.5 in) Nudelman N-37 cannon with 25 rounds and 2 × 20 mm (0.79 in) Berezin B-20S cannons with 100 rpg. Cockpit was moved 0.4 m (16 in) back to compensate for the heavier nose. Engine modifications required to accept the weapons resulted in serious overheating problems which were never fixed and the aircraft did not advance beyond the prototype stage.
Yak-3T-57
single Yak-3T with a 57 mm (2.2 in) OKB-16-57 cannon
Yak-3TK
powered by a VK-107A engine, and fitted with an exhaust turbocharger.
Yak-3U
Yak-3 fitted with Shvetsov ASh-82FN radial engine with 1,380 kW (1,851 hp) in an attempt to increase performance while avoiding the overheating problems of VK-107 and VK-108. Wingspan increased by 20 cm (7.9 in), wings moved 22 cm (8.7 in) forward, cockpit raised by 8 cm (3.1 in). Armament of 2 × 20 mm (0.79 in) Berezin B-20 cannons with 120 rpg. The prototype reached 682 km/h (424 mph) at 6,000 m (20,000 ft) and while successful did not enter production because it was completed after the war.
Yak-3UTI
two-seat conversion trainer based on Yak-3U powered by Shvetsov ASh-21 radial piston engine. The aircraft became the prototype for the Yak-11.
From 1991 to 2002 there were 21 Yakovlev Yak-3, Yak-7 and Yak-9 aircraft produced in the former Soviet Union using the original plans and dies. These aircraft are powered by the American Allison V-1710 or the Pratt & Whitney R-1830 Twin Wasp engine in place of the Klimov V-12s used during the war. Several of these aircraft are airworthy, mostly based in the United States with others in Germany, Australia and New Zealand. Others have been converted to "Yak-3U" status from original Yak-11 trainers for private owners and museums.
Flying a modified modern production Yak-3UPW powered by a Pratt & Whitney R-2000 engine, William Whiteside set an official international speed record for piston-engined aircraft in the under-3,000 kg (6,600 lb) category on 10 October 2011, reaching 655 km/h (407 mph) over a 3 km (1.864 mi) course at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah in the United States, greatly exceeding the previous record of 491 km/h (305 mph) set in 2002 by Jim Wright. The following day, Whiteside used the same aircraft to set an unofficial speed record for aircraft in the category of 670 km/h (416 mph) over the same 3-km (1.863-mile) course.
Specifications (Yak-3)
General characteristics
Crew: 1
Length: 8.5 m (27 ft 11 in)
Wingspan: 9.2 m (30 ft 2 in)
Wing area: 14.85 m2 (159.8 sq ft)
Airfoil: root: Clark YH (14%); tip: Clark YH (10%)[16]
Empty weight: 2,105 kg (4,641 lb)
Max takeoff weight: 2,697 kg (5,946 lb)
Powerplant: 1 × Klimov VK-105PF2 V-12 liquid-cooled piston engine, 960 kW (1,290 hp)
Propellers: 3-bladed constant-speed propeller
Performance
Maximum speed: 646 km/h (401 mph, 349 kn) at 4,100 m (13,500 ft)
Combat range: 550 km (340 mi, 300 nmi)
Service ceiling: 10,400 m (34,100 ft)
Time to altitude: 5,000 m (16,000 ft) in 4 minutes 30 seconds
Wing loading: 162 kg/m2 (33 lb/sq ft)
Power/mass: 0.35 kW/kg (0.21 hp/lb)
Take-off run: 345 m (1,132 ft)
Landing run: 580 m (1,900 ft)
360° turn: 17 seconds
Armament
Guns: ** 1 × 20 mm ShVAK cannon, with 150 rounds
2 × 12.7 mm Berezin UBS machine guns with 170 rpg
Cartoon illustration from unmanned satellites and probes book put out by the Soviet Academy of Sciences in Cold War days. From book shown in previous frame.
FIGURES FINISHED, SOVIET DIORAMA COMPLETE. THANKS FOR ALL THE FAVES ALONG THE WAY AS WELL AS THE FEEDBACK AND COMMENTS !
Chaika is a little half-frame Soviet camera I started using recently. It takes vertical pictures and fits two images in one 35 mm frame. 'Chaika' means Seagull, a funny resonance of the Chinese brand, and seems perfect for accidental pairings of photos.
T-35 heavy tank abandoned on north of village Lopuszno Kremenets district, Ternopil region, on the road to Pochayiv.
A Soviet mural in a former cultural center in Žirmūnai. The large gray building is now largely in a state of disrepair, although a wing of it is used for a guitar school. Photo by Nathan Greenhalgh.
+++ DISCLAIMER +++
Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based historical facts. BEWARE!
Some background:
The Lavochkin La-7 (Russian: Лавочкин Ла-7) was a piston-engine Soviet fighter developed during World War II by the Lavochkin Design Bureau (OKB). It was a development and refinement of the Lavochkin La-5, and the last in a family of aircraft that had begun with the LaGG-1 in 1938.
By 1943, the La-5 had become a mainstay of the Soviet Air Forces, yet both its head designer, Semyon Lavochkin, as well as the engineers at the Central Aerohydrodynamics Institute (Russian: TsAGI), felt that it could be improved upon. TsAGI refined earlier studies of aerodynamic improvements to the La-5 airframe in mid-1943 and modified La-5FN to evaluate the changes between December 1943 and February 1944 and proved to have exceptional performance.
Using the same engine as the standard La-5FN the modified aircraft had a top speed of 684 kilometers per hour (425 mph) at a height of 6,150 meters (20,180 ft), some 64 kilometers per hour (40 mph) faster than the production La-5FN. It took 5.2 minutes to climb to 5,000 meters (16,404 ft). Main change was the use of more lighter but stronger metal wing spars to save weight.
The La-5, as well as its predecessors, had been built mostly of wood to conserve strategic materials such as aircraft alloys. With Soviet strategists now confident that supplies of these alloys were unlikely to become a problem, Lavochkin was now able to replace some wooden parts with alloy components.
Combat trials began in mid-September 1944 and were generally very positive.
However four aircraft were lost to engine failures and the engines suffered from numerous lesser problems, despite its satisfactory service in the La-5FN. One cause was the lower position of the engine air intakes in the wing roots of the La-7 which caused the engine to ingest sand and dust. One batch of flawed wings was built and caused six accidents, four of them fatal, in October which caused the fighter to be grounded until the cause was determined to be a defect in the wing spar.
Production of the first aircraft fitted with three B-20 cannon began in January 1945 when 74 were delivered. More than 2000 La-7 aircraft were delivered before the war's end, and a total of 5753 aircraft until production ceded in 1946.
Still, the basic concept had more development potential, and as soon as March 1945 work on further improvements for the La-7 started, while in parallel a new type was under development - the La-9, which would enter prototype stage in 1946. An interim type was needed - and this became the La-7bis. It was based on the proven La-7, but already incorporated crucial elements of the future La-9, e. g. its laminar flow wing shape as well as an increased share of light alloy in the construction.
Overall, the La-7bis was tailored to higher operation altitudes than the standard La-7 and was intended to intercept high flying bombers and reconnaissance aircraft like the Ju 388. Therefore the interim type incorporated many small refinements and changes, most notably a bigger wing and fin area, a four-bladed propeller and a pair of new 23 mm Nudelman-Suranov NS-23 cannons which considerably improved firepower and weapon range.
The La-7bis was built in parallel to the standard La-7, but only at Zavod Nr. 99 in Ulan-Ude, where 433 aircraft were built until 1946. Only a few La-7bis reached the front units during WWII in time, and in Soviet service the type was quickly superseded by the La-9. Many aircraft were used in flying schools and training regiments, though, or quickly handed over to allies like China and Korea.
With these operators the La-7bis actively took part in the Korean War and remained in service until the mid-Sixties, when piston fighters were finally replaced by the highly successful MiG-15.
Even though a sub version of the La-7, the type received the separate Air Standardization Coordinating Committee (ASCC) code "Flake" as it was initially mistaken as a new Lavochkin type.
General characteristics
Crew: 1
Length: 8.89 m (29 ft 1 1/2 in)
Wingspan: 10,16 m (33 ft 3 in)
Height: 2.41 m (7 ft 11 in)
Wing area: 19.59 m2 (210.2 sq ft)
Gross weight: 3,315 kg (7,308 lb)
Powerplant:
1× Shvetsov ASh-82FN air-cooled 14 cylinder radial engine with a two-stage supercharger and
fuel injection, 1.380 kW (1.850 hp), driving a 4-bladed VISh-110V propeller
Performance:
Maximum speed: 680 km/h (422 mph; 367 kn) at 6.000 meters (19.685 ft)
Range: 665 km (413 mi; 359 nmi)
Service ceiling: 11.500 m (37.667 ft)
Rate of climb: 17.25 m/s (3.410 ft/min)
Time to altitude: 4.8 minutes to 5.000 meters (16.404 ft)
Armament:
2 × 23 mm Nudelman-Suranov NS-23 cannons, 150 RPG, plus 200 kg (440 lb) of bombs
The kit and its assembly:
This whif was a bit of a spontaneous use of a Hobby Boss La-7 kit, part of a kit lot, for which I lacked any good idea. Anyway, I always had an eye on kits for the more streamlined La-9/11s – and then the idea was born to convert the leftover La-7 into something that would come close to the later types.
Biggest surgery concerned the aerodynamic surface; everything was modified:
• Outer wings from a Matchbox P-51D
• Stabilizers from a Heller P-51D
• Fin tip from an Academy Fw 190A
Wings were cut just outboard of the landing gear wells, while the Mustang wings were cut at the 2nd machine gun. Depth fits surprisingly well, only the La-7’s trailing edge had to be adapted, but that only a small effort.
Another mod is the new, for-bladed propeller, scratched from the spares box, and I added some cockpit details and a pilot torso (the canopy was to remain closed). I also removed the original tunnel oil cooler and moved this device into the wings’ leading edges, for a cleaner fuselage.
For the same clean look I left away any ordnance. Actually, when all major parts were in place, I even considered to make a race aircraft (Reno Unlimited?) from the kit, since the Lavochkin looks really fast, but then I reverted to the military use option. A North Korean whif was still missing!
Painting and markings:
When I started building there was no clear idea which country should use the La-7bis – I did not want Soviet markings, though. After some search in the decal stack I found spare North Korean markings, and from there things unfolded naturally.
The odd paint scheme was derived from real Korean La-11 fighters – a kind of tiger stripe pattern, dull green over a grey background with pale blue undersides. I used Humbrol 64 (light Sea Grey) and FS 34096 from Modelmaster, and FS 35414 from Modelmaster, too, for the undersides. Later, these colors were shaded with lighter tones. A yellow fin tip is the only color marking.
North Korean roundels come from a Print Scale MiG-15 decal sheet, the tactical code comes from the scrap box; the fine silver trim around the cowling and the black stripe under the yellow fin tip are decals, too, from generic TL Modellbau sheets.
All interior surfaces were painted with Humbrol 240 (RLM 02, plus a black ink wash), and to add some Soviet style the wheel discs were painted in dark green. The panels on the fuselage flanks were painted in a Metallizer Mix of Steel and Titanium.
The kit received a light black ink wash, plus some soot stains around the cannons and the exhaust shields. Finally, all was sealed with Revell’s acrylic matt varnish.
In the end, the La-7bis looks like less work than it actually was - one can argue if the effort has been worth it? The major transplantations are hard to discern and you have to look at least twice to recognize the differences between a La-7 and the later La-9 and -11. But that was intended – subtle and unspectacular.
For those of you that love the recent Movie “Welcome to Marwen” you may enjoy this Collection that I am presenting
Standing around in a local bar one evening, artist Mark Hogancamp drunkenly admits to a group of white supremacists that he often wears woman’s shoes.
After a nearly fatal beating by local homophobes, his memory & artistic ability is wiped away.
Mark uses the artistry of photography with dolls in a miniature WWII Belgium town he creates to help him recover from his acute memory loss, post-traumatic stress & emotional disabilities left behind by the attack.
These dolls often resemble people in Mark Hogancamnp’s life.
This Doll, Anna, the Soviet resistance fighter is meant to represent Anna, his Russian care-giver.
In the Marwen Movie, Anna is played by Gwendolyn Christie who you may know as “Brienne of Tarth” from Game of Thrones fame.
The Soviet space program comprised the rocketry and space exploration programs conducted by the former Soviet Union (USSR) from the 1930s until its dissolution in 1991. Over its sixty-year history, this primarily classified military program was responsible for a number of pioneering accomplishments in space flight.