Star Wars GB

TD4438 wrote:

I started an AMT Snowspeeder today.When I saw how bad the pilots are,I wanted to puke.I sprayed the cockpit flat Panzer gray.It dried to a mirror finish for some reason.I am not thrilled with the start of this build.

if the figures are like the one that came in the X-Wing kit I built before (one of the ones from the late 80's, "return of the jedi" box) then you're definately right that nothin can save them.  I did the best I could painting the poor guy but.. it wasn't so much that he was BAD, it was that he wasn't an X-Wing pilot.. he was a race car driver!  I know that kit was supposed to be a 1:72 scale (at least that's what I read online), but I'd almost swear it was the same figure from one of the old Indy cars I had built, even though the Indy car was made by Monogram and the X-wing by MPC..

I dunno when I'll start on my Star Destroyer, but it shouldn't take me too long to build. The main reason for this is well I can't reach it right now It's somewhere in my stash and well my stash is.. scattered throughout the house.. in my room.. the livin room.. spare room...   I may add another one in addition, because I have several SW kits, and I'm sure at least ONE of them are easy to get to XD  If that would be okay to add somthing other than just the Star Destroyer.

Boba Fett wrote:

In my opinion, a wise choice. I think the only way to have decent figs in there is scratching some.

great little trip down memory lane...  iron-ons for T shirts, jeez....  

Hard to explain to the "young ones" what an epic change in movie craft, expectation, etc Star Wars started...  LOR got close, a tad close, in terms of public response and "wow" factor.

Now, if I had just NOT thrown away my millenium falcon and nolan ryan rookie cards....

I know I'm really late to the "Hardware Wars/ Troops" discussion. If you all thought those were good, you gotta check this one out. I'm not sure if it's the full version, but it's funnier than h***! It's long, but well worth it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJ06RKGcPBI

Think of the scratchbuilding possibilities!

Hey Guys, I had an idea for pilots. Try Sw minis. See if you can find a place that sells them individually, and get these 2. A little underscale, but looks nice in an X-wing pit! Just mod them to be in a pilot position, and viola!

Alright....here is the start of my daughter's and my entry. She painted all the cockpit pieces, including dry brushing the center console and I did the figures.

btp2k2 wrote:

Alright....here is the start of my daughter's and my entry. She painted all the cockpit pieces, including dry brushing the center console and I did the figures.

WOW!!!! Awesome job with those figgies! Will you build a control console in front of them for a little accuracy? Just looks wrong without... Your daughter is well on her way to being a good modeler!

Working on my Starfighter. I'll spare you the open box treatment and just show you how I'm modifying the kit.

The R2 (R4?) unit was a bit of a mess. He came molded in two halves, and the seam was a bear to remove. The opening for his central "eye" was oval and crooked, so I filled it w/ Aves and sanded it smooth. I then drilled another hole, to accept either an MV lens or a homemade one. He also looks a bit static as molded, so I chopped off his head so I could rotate it some.

I furthermore thought that he sat too proud of the fighter's surface, so I shortened his torso a bit. Now he looks all hunkered down and worried. I think this will bring a little life to the model.

The engines as molded are supposed to be trapped between upper and lower hull parts early in construction. As I wanted to paint the engines w/ metallics, and the fighter proper w a Gull or Sea Grey, this would greatly complicate the painting process. Sooo, I modified the engine parts by cutting off their bases. The bases themselves were a little loose in their fittings, so I thickened them up a bit w/ sheet styrene. Now I can paint the pieces separately, and just slip the engines in during final construction.

That's all I got so far, but I'm having fun! 

smeagol the vile wrote:

Chewie sort of looks like nen numb (sp off)You know what I would have tried? Painting him black, giving him a wash of dark brown, then drybrushing the brown onto him, give him a real depth.  But I might be wrong

That's what I did....the figures are so small (about the size of my thumbnail) and the detail so horrid, that is how they came out.

Boba Fett...yeah, the scratch built console is the goal. I was going to give it a go this afternoon but ran out of time before I had to leave for work. I need to find some good pics of it too

Great minds eh'  (still cant get past your avitar eh')

Those little figures can be such a pain.  And what really bugs me about them, is bandai puts out 1/100 and 1/144 scale figures, that come with their kits... that are molded amazingly, with some great detail.

btp2k2 wrote:

smeagol the vile wrote: Chewie sort of looks like nen numb (sp off)You know what I would have tried? Painting him black, giving him a wash of dark brown, then drybrushing the brown onto him, give him a real depth.  But I might be wrong That's what I did....the figures are so small (about the size of my thumbnail) and the detail so horrid, that is how they came out. Boba Fett...yeah, the scratch built console is the goal. I was going to give it a go this afternoon but ran out of time before I had to leave for work. I need to find some good pics of it too

I'll give you a shot of my console for ideas. Not now though. Maybe later today.

btp2k2 wrote:

Alright....here is the start of my daughter's and my entry. She painted all the cockpit pieces, including dry brushing the center console and I did the figures.

Ok you can put me down for just the TIE Bomber for now, as I will have to build it fully from scratch. Now I would like to say at the same time I'll be working on it I want to try and scratch build the [J-Type 237 Nubian Royal Starship] - [Naboo J-Type Diplomatic Transport]

JMart wrote:

reddog-03 - very nice! wash made the difference dmk - nice detailing of the 'pit"; yep, i never liked the orange suits but oh well.. not much military "logic" in SW. Glamdring - neat kit..surprised at the level of detail, as you say.. it IS mark hamill! lol terry35 - I really like how it came out..nice weathering! Boba Fett - yours too! I need to get myself one of those lol Am I the only one old enough to have worn a "May The Force Be With You" iron-on T shirt in the 70s, when the first movie came out?

Not really, I think I had one of those T-Shirts, but when Star Wars came out first I was 8.

Terry.

Yo J, waht are you using for the lense?  If I may, can I recomend these things

http://www.mechaskunk.com/store-mu.htm

There for gunpla mono eyes, but they are really nice looking, and would work great for an R# unit, imho

smeagol the vile wrote:

Yo J, waht are you using for the lense?  If I may, can I recomend these things   http://www.mechaskunk.com/store-mu.htm There for gunpla mono eyes, but they are really nice looking, and would work great for an R# unit, imho

Thanks stv. MV Lenses are model railroading AM parts. They are used to simulate headlamps on trains. Armor modellers started using them for AFV headlights a while back, which is where I heard of them.

They come in a variety of colors: amber, black, red, white/clear, etc. They are less rounded / convex than the lenses above, so I'll probably stick w/ what I've got. Thanks for the heads up, tho'.

True, but not as much as the Mecha Skunk lenses above. Those look too jewel-like to me, like something on those pewter dragons and wizards you find in a Hallmark store. The MV lenses have a much more realistic curve, like a camera lens or a headlamp.

For flat lenses, I recommend taking a piece of clear styrene or acetate (like you find on a blister pack), and just knock them out w/ a Waldron punch and die set. I do this for larger scale cockpit instruments or gun sights.

Or, you could always just paint them.

I see I see.  Well, whatever works.  Never hurts to know where to find something different, if you ever need it.

I just like the crystals, because you put them in the silver monoeye holders that they sell seperatly (less then like 7$ for the lot or something) and it really makes them glow when there in the back, inside of the head of a mech.

smeagol the vile wrote:

I just like the crystals, because you put them in the silver monoeye holders that they sell seperatly (less then like 7$ for the lot or something) and it really makes them glow when there in the back, inside of the head of a mech.

Yeah, those do look cool. Kinda big for this project. I got one of those 1/20 scale Scopedog kits, its got these turned aluminum lens housings, but the eyes/lenses themselves are just shiny stickers. I might try the MS bits on that project. It will be a bit before I get to it though.

With the exception of the space-monkey pilots,I really dig the AMT Snowspeeder.It's building up nice.I'm giving it a retro paint job.You guys will understand that when you see it.

I ran into yet another problem with my spray paint.The stuff was coming out thick and slow.With no hobby shop for miles,I was kinda stuck with it.The finish so far isn't bad,but it could have been better.

One more hurdle cleared in my first FSM group build.

smeagol the vile wrote:

get warm water, submerge the can to about 75% of the way in the warm to hot (not boiling hot, but like, the tap all the way hot no cold, hot).  Let it sit for a min or so, take it out, and shake like theres no tomarrow.  The hot water will loosen the paint so the thinner can do it's job.

  Also, it pays to test spray on a piece of scrap plastic or even a piece of metal (really anything that isn't porus) to see how that can will spray. Better to learn on scrap that the nozzle is bad or something wrong with the paint before ruining the finish on your model.