Yup still around, just been waiting on parts so I could really do the planning and changes that are floating around in my head.  Assembling the frame showed quite a number of faults (photos eventually).  Things that don't align or that really need extra bracing.  Plus have some ideas for the engine area.

I don't really want to make a model of a crappy movie prop.  What I want to end up with is a model of what a real Falcon would look like.  After all this is a model you can look at up close so not only is the size impressive, but the detail needs to be spot on.  It also needs a bunch of added detail in certain areas. I will print out on cardstock a prototype of the hold that I created a while back cut it out and assemble it for a test fit.  I can tell yu right now that everything in the interior will be pretty much scrachbuilt.  I am thinking about also creating a master floor grate and doing some resin castings then.  The detail should be right up there with the photo etch set from ParaGrafix.  Corridors and cockpit will also be redone.  Note that the cockpit does NOT need to fit inside the exterior of the boom like it was a second skin.  The movie sets are kind of that way but only really have to look good on film.  They don't really have to fit and make sense.  Models do when taken to this level.

Also the engine flaps will be getting a lot of work and revision done to them.  Again that will probably be a master part(s) that will be cast for 26 sets with revisions for specific extra details.

Have a couple of other builds I am working on that I want to finish before spending too much time on this.

Awesome, I was wondering where you guys had went with your giant Falcons. Glad to see you still making progress! 

Looking like you're starting to catch up with me! LOL... I really gotta do some work on mine and now that the holidays are over I'll finally be able to do some work on some of this stuff for a change! :)  Looking great my friend!

Happy New Year Paul.

We're awake now and have caught up with your progress. This is going to be a fun ride now

Had someone on another forum ask how the DeAgostini Falcon compared size wise to the older Fine Molds 1/72 Falcon.

They say a picture is worth a thousand words.

Also note the itty bitty Mtn Dew can.  

Love my Mtn Dew.

This is the last post (for now) I promise.  

Yes it is a big-un isn't it!  Having the frame fully assembled has already shown a number of things that need rework and extra support members.  Also it will help me revise the location of the hold and I can test fit my revised hold to see what will have to be done.  From this point on most of the posts will probably be in the Extreme venue.

Again, Happy New Year everyone and thanks for following along.   

Are we there yet?  (nope)  Here is part 5.  

How much more is there?  Wait and see. . 

Part 6 is next.

Yes this is part 4.

Hey, not done yet, part 5 coming up!

Part 3

Yeah there is a part 4.

Here is part 2.

To be continued...

It has been a while since I did anything on the Falcon.  Mainly I have been waiting on parts to arrive to a point where I could start planning upgrades and changes.  Having received shipment #23 (out of 25) I now have all the metal frame parts which is where I was needing to start with the revisions.

Playing catch up with all that and some ACTUAL CONSTRUCTION this weekend, I have a large load of photos to post so bear with me.  Most of this is just the usual "Got these parts with this issue"  But follow through (or skip it if you must) to the last photo and you will have a surprise of sorts.

As usual I will break all the pics up into small batches.  Works better for page loading in the browser that way.

Happy New Year all and enjoy!  

To be continued...

That is very cool, the perfect backdrop! 

Ran across this on ebay the other day.  Decided it would make an excellent back drop for the finished Falcon.  Definitely something unique and will be a nice addition.

I should be receiving shipment 20 with Issues 77, 78, 79, and 80 in the next few days.  Still busy with other projects at the moment, though they are such that I can think and ponder things to do with the Falcon. 

Thanks for looking in!

Just a note on this item.  The seller pulled a switch and then refunded my money.  While I didn't loose any cash on it, just goes to show that there are some folks out there that just take the cake.  Another friend ran across a post where this was up for sale again and the price was ridiculous.  HA!  Guess the guy will be sitting on it for a while or will have to wait for a real sucker to jump on it.  On another note, if I really wanted something like this, I have some contacts that could do a laser etched panel with anything I could want on it.  Why worry about a jughead that can't do a proper auction on the bay.

Heavens Eagle

You can do the flaky soda straw if you want, but I don't think it is really viable.

I was thinking it would be a covering (like dryer hose) to a more elaborate workings underneath.  Perhaps it would be laser sheilded to protect the inner working robotic positioning system hinges from being damaged (but of course that didn't work too well in TFA! LOL!)

LrdSatyr8

I noticed the same thing about the gun turret.  I'm thinking of a telescoping support the bends like a flexistraw.  Whatcha think?

 

I noticed the same thing about the gun turret.  I'm thinking of a telescoping support that bends like a flexistraw.  Whatcha think?

Wow, the more I watch this I'm convinced that it'd almost be less work to build one of those full-sized kit cars!!! This is going to be amazing when done. 

Here are the parts groupings and layouts.  Finally getting the mandible parts and then there will be the side frames. (FINALLY)  I have decided that most likely I will remove most of the plastic plates off the hull bottom, build up the framing when I get it all and take some photos and do some reinforcement design work on the frame.  It will also allow me to figure out if some of my mod ideas are going to be feasible or not.  Here is the rest of this posting now.

Thanks for looking in folks.  Mostly obtaining the parts these days and brainstorming up a fart! 

You laugh, but I kid you not, there could be farts in the Falcons future.. .Bright ones.

Night all!

Here is the new upgraded screw sheet.  I will also correct the one at the beginning of the posts as it is a "for reference" sheet.

And now the rest of the photos. . .

Here is the next batch. . .

Still another batch coming your way.

Here is another big update and I will do it in multiple posts as it is about 30 photos.  Part of why this is such a big post is that shipment #17 got delayed several weeks and then I finally got it about a week before shipment 19 posted.  I did a special order to get shipments 17 and 18 bumped up and get a little ahead.  All it did was get things all crossed up so I will let the last 6 shipments come as they may.

Here we go!

To be continued. . .

Supercruise

My uncle was a draughtsman for British Railways at the Derby technical center - I wish I had payed more attention to him when I was a kid.

Is there any link you can share or maybe point me in the right direction to the work being done on moving the ramp motor? - I have considered using an RC servo - I fly RC helicopters so I have spare ones to experiment with and I know the guys who fly RC aircraft sometimes use plug in boards to sequence and control the speed of gear doors.

Thanks in advance.

Dave.

Hi Dave... I've been currently working on several ideas that will move the motor off the top of the ramp and out of the way but still be able to lift and lower the ramp... One design I have is currently in the process of testing, but my intentions will be that you'll be able to print a few parts, assemble them together, and move the motor out of the way mounted to those parts, and everything will still work without having to change or modify the motor or it's gears at all.  I don't want to spoil anything until I have a working prototype thou... want to make sure everything works and will even put together an instructional video when it's ready to let everyone know!  Trust me... it's gonna be AWESOME! :)

So far what I have seen is just some concepts and possible ideas.  If you are going to use the DeAgostini control board it runs a regular DC motor with up and down limit switches.  The trick is designing the linkages to do the job.  An RC servo isn't needed and won't work for what you would want.

So far the big wait is due to the fact that no body knows just how much room is between the bottom hull and top hull.  Best suggestion I can give at this point is to keep an eye open on this thread and watch how that problem gets solved.

My uncle was a draughtsman for British Railways at the Derby technical center - I wish I had payed more attention to him when I was a kid.

Is there any link you can share or maybe point me in the right direction to the work being done on moving the ramp motor? - I have considered using an RC servo - I fly RC helicopters so I have spare ones to experiment with and I know the guys who fly RC aircraft sometimes use plug in boards to sequence and control the speed of gear doors.

Thanks in advance.

Dave.

Thanks for posting Dave and Gamera!  Yeah, unfortunately the Millennium Falcon has the "Lost in Space" set to model problem and they don't match or make much sense.  If you take "stated" sizes and dimensions you almost always end up with problems so lets turn it around a bit and look at it from a reverse perspective.

1. The only thing "fixed in stone" about the model is shape and proportions.  NOT SIZE!  Shape and proportions can be either the 5 footer or the 32 inch.  In this case we are dealing with the 32 inch model so it's shape and proprtions are being used.
2. External details again can be from either model.  Usually whichever will look the best for a given part of the model.  NOTE: model "scale" has yet to be addressed yet.
3. Now we have the full (?) scale sets.  The external with ramp, the hold with corridors, the cockpit, and the gun turrets.
4. Now, the largest and only set that actually can be scaled is the hold.  It is a "fixed set size" with dimensions.  Placing this inside the hull (in 3 dimensions x, y, AND Z)  in a logical place will then give us a workable SIZE for the external model shape.  Note that this has to take into account ceiling height and shape as well as the 2 equipment pits.
5. With the size determined we can now determine REAL SCALE.  With that set we can now place the corridor at the top of the ramp, and try to place the corridors to the cockpit and gun turrets.  When there are actual proportions, sizes, and angles where things are supposed to go, it changes the "Loused up In Space" movie sets.

With all of that in mind, here were the steps I went through to generate the latest drawings.

1. Using the set drawing and photos I drew up a scaled and proportional hold.
2. Added some corridors based on other photos of the movie sets.
3. Placed and did initial sizing of model to hold.  (NOT hold to model)
4. Then it was place corridor time.  Ever since the origional movie folks have tried to force the model to fit the angles and spacing of the movie set corridors.  The answer is:  THEY DON'T FIT.
5. So I started with one end of the corridor at the hold.  Placed the other end just inboard of the boarding ramp.  Everthing between just gets shaped to run smoothly.
6. The biggest problem is with the corridor to the cockpit.  The movie sets place a nice sized wall section between the boarding ramp and 'pit corridor, then an equal sized wall to the hold.  It doesn't work as the angle between the ramp and cockpit corridors is too narrow.  Which then makes the length too long to the hold.
7. Final sizing and scale determination will come once I get the top frame AND sides to mount it to the bottom.  hen I will print up a basic hold printed on cardstock and glue it together for an actual trial.  When the size is found where it all fits the final scratchbuild will be done.

As to the ramp motor, there are a couple of folks working on a revision to get the motor out of the way so a ramp area can be built up to the corridor and still work.

I might try and get a photo posted of the ramp set drawing.  It really shows just how small some of the sets are.  The corridor inside just "barely" fits between the top and bottom of the falcon.  Looks good on screen, but not worth a flip for scaling purposes.

Good thinking there, I had no idea but it's good to see you back to work on this. 

Not to beat a dead horse but of course you've got a bunch of separate sets they film on and some cases no one checks to see if anything fits together. Maybe the set builders should get the modelmakers to come over and check some of their stuff?  Good work on getting everything to fit together. 

I remember with the original Trek shuttle the exterior mock-up was shorter than the actors but in the interior set they could walk around in without bending over... 

Hi - I have been following from the begining but this is my first post - You have done some sweet work on yours i.e. like the super-detailing on the turret but you have blown me away with all the theory of how they should actually operate.

I'm building two - One I was doing OOB the other was going to be a screen accurate - You have changed my mind :)

No.1 will most likely be gear up in flight No.2 sat on gear with ramp open - no motor so the corridor can be more detailed.

I do not plan to use the interior but make a dio. (this makes sense to me as it's the wrong scale to the exterior) as the full size film set with blue screens, scaffold, ply-wood and cameras etc - but time will tell on this.

Kudos to you on your build - I will be following.

Dave.

LrdSatyr8

Ok Paul... try this... I think the main problem is that the corridors are believed to be circular... when I believe they are more oval shaped.  If you take that into account, adjust the curvature of the corridor for your diagram in the one titled "Its a no good" and see what happens.  Muahhahahahahahaha! :)