Timberkits Pelican
Finished model.
Finished model.
The mechanism employs a single cam and pull rod to operate the bird.
Box, parts and instructions.
I have always had an interest in "cut-away" machinery. So I initially assembled this model without most of the left-side components. The two pictures below show the cut-away iteration of my Pelican. These pictures clearly show the inner links that move the body. Note that I also used the cut-away for the animation at the top of the page. A few days later I finished the model.
Cut-away model.
Cut-away model.
The right-side neck was binding against the shoulder of the body. I used a small round file to carve a clearance notch into both the neck and the neck link. This problem may have been avoidable had I paid more attention while gluing up the pull rod between the cam follower and the body.
Neck and neck link notches (red arrows).
There is almost no margin of error for the fish assembly to drop into the lower beak assembly. More often then not, my fish would jam on top of the lower beak. I beveled the inside edges of the lower beak sides. I also beveled the bottom edges of the fish body, fish tail and fish pivot blocks. These modifications took a lot of fresh knife blades, sandpaper and patience since I had already mostly assembled the model. The fish assembly is particularly delicate. I would highly recommend that these bevel modifications be made before assembling the individual parts.
These pictures show how I beveled the inside edges of the lower beak sides so as to funnel the fish assembly into the lower beak assembly.
I had to adjust the curve of the lower left beak so as to fit tight with the left neck piece.
Using a sanding block, I adjusted the curve of the lower left beak so as to fit well with the left neck piece (red arrows).