Armornut, glad to have inspired you!  Scratchbuilding is really about understanding the geometry of your subject and figuring out how to make it using the simplest methods possible.  Experience comes in mostly to help decide which technique to use to make it happen.  Honestly I am figuring out stuff as I go; there is no master plan.

Detail work is coming really soon, so hopefully I can reveal more helpful ideas!

    Real G, I am gonna figure out how to bookmark this thread so I can find it in my archives. These most resent pictures are really helping me to put the puzzle of scratch building together. I understand that practice is the key but you kinda showing how to start the prosess is great. 

     Absolutely love your progress, totally AWESOME!

Some progress on the outboard engine fairings.

https://flic.kr/p/LxeWnm][/url]Bakagalas-159 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

https://flic.kr/p/LxeVL1][/url]Bakagalas-160 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

https://flic.kr/p/Ly3GKN][/url]Bakagalas-166 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

I also started to make some vent details that could be dropped into blocked out openings in the fairings as well as other locations around the airframe.

https://flic.kr/p/25V2nZf][/url]Bakagalas-163 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

https://flic.kr/p/LxeW2w][/url]Bakagalas-164 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

They are built up as a strip that can be cut to needed lengths.  I figure this is an easier way to make rather than building them individually and directly on the model.  I made enough to do all eight engines, plus extra for the wings.  I'm going to need more sizes and different shapes for the wings, so this is a good way to trial the technique.

Thank you Bakster!  I don't have "clever apes" to assist me, so the going is much slower than I'd like.    

I admire your dedication to this project and the results. Nice work.

The four outboard engine fairings have been started.  They have a simple shape compared to the four inboard units, so should be relatively trouble-free.

https://flic.kr/p/28DryGc][/url]Bakagalas-158 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

I've also started on the second inboard fairing, but this is as far as I got before 1:00 am.

https://flic.kr/p/28yWqjy][/url]Bakagalas-157 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

I'm getting more used to setting the alignment of the fairings to the wings now, and improving accuracy when drilling locator holes.  The new fairings stay in place but are easy to remove for work.

https://flic.kr/p/28yWr3N][/url]Bakagalas-156 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

https://flic.kr/p/28yWqPw][/url]Bakagalas-155 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

Now where did that vac-form rig go...

Until I find my vac-former (ex-bread pan), I decided to get back on the engine fairings.  Since I never did drawings of them, except for the largest inboard units, I estimated their size and shape, cut some patterns from old business cards, and taped them to the underside of one wing.  It took two tries to refine their shapes, but I think I have something that I like.  The problem with making something from an anime is that a lot of times getting hard information is imposssible, and the images in the show are wildly inconsistent.

https://flic.kr/p/28Baiya][/url]Bakagalas-152 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

https://flic.kr/p/28BahBv][/url]Bakagalas-153 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

And this is a glimpse into the inside of my disorganized mind trying to figure stuff out.  Also, I have to write stuff down, or else I'll forget how much to cut!  It happens more often than I care to admit.

https://flic.kr/p/JXjzH6][/url]Bakagalas-154 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

Gamera - Heh heh, beware the Shadows; they sneak into your dreams and plant bad ideas...

OK another quickie update.  I packed out the aft ends of the sponsons with Milliput.  Since you always end up with extra mixed putty, I cut the waste material up to see if they can be used to make bucks to heat smash (I prefer the Japanese term "heat-o puressu") the dozens of little lumps and bumps.  We'll see about that.

https://flic.kr/p/LptDXC][/url]Bakagalas-146 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

I did a quick sand-down this morning and here is where I'm at.  I definitely have to look for my vac-former real soon.

https://flic.kr/p/25NaCyG][/url]Bakagalas-148 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

The lower part of the sponsons extend a little under the fuselage, so flat plate extensions were made.  They will get additional layers to build thickness, and will be sanded to have a gentle curve.  The line where they meet with the sponsons will be more heavily radiused.

https://flic.kr/p/25NaCrs][/url]Bakagalas-150 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

https://flic.kr/p/27sB1T9][/url]Bakagalas-151 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

So maybe two more evenings of work and they will be ready to use.  Now I have to hurry up and finish making the engines.

G: Love the idea! Frankly I'm a little loaded down with stuff right now but hopefully in the future. 

Gamera - I dove into the internet for a peek at the Centauri Vorchan and noted it kind of looked Kingon/Romulan in shape.  Tell you what, let's do an informal group build!  I'll do Kosh's transport, and we can bounce problem solutions back and forth.  

Duster - Nah, I'm more like Wiley E. Coyote.  I identify with his methods (and results).  I don't really have plans.  You see the mob has plans.  Comissioner Gordon has plans.  I'm like a dog chasing cars - I wouldn't know what to do if I caught one!  Now where's the Joker emoji when  need it?

LonCray - Good to know.  Maybe I'll check it out if I get back to Columbus!

Okie dokie, some progress:

https://flic.kr/p/25JACQh][/url]Bakagalas-141 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

I now have both sponsons rough sanded, and am now in the process of refining them and the fuselage cutouts for proper fit.

https://flic.kr/p/LnQfGj][/url]Bakagalas-143 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

Oops, forgot about the ends of the sponsons.  They got framed up and are ready for filling with epoxy putty.

https://flic.kr/p/2791DGZ][/url]Bakagalas-144 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

But there is a problem - the left fuselage cutout was over-cut 30 years ago and at the time, I didn't know how to fix it. 

https://flic.kr/p/LnQf83][/url]Bakagalas-145 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

A simple fix, really.  Just trim a bit of sheet plastic to match the cut edge, glue in, and carefully trim to the correct shape using a fresh blade.  And go slowly; it's no fun doing this stuff twice!

Hobbyland in Columbus is 7 miles straight north up High Street from the Convention Center.  206 Graceland Blvd.  Maybe a half hour drive with big city traffic.  

Real G

https://flic.kr/p/276FvKr][/url]Bakagalas-140 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

So the plan... um, I forgot what number plan I'm on now _{^{is to vac form a shell using the sponsons.  The wheels will have an independent frame to align them, and some bulkheads will be made to support the sponson shell.  And that's the plan, Ripley}} 

Plan #'s are the bane of Real Creative Thinkers, we have just too many more worthy things to occupy our massive intellects,    

                                                 Sometimes,

                                                         I think,

                                                            well you know

Oh cool, honest to gosh if I didn't the different sorts of materials I'd swear she were a commercially available kit.

As to scratchbuilding I'd thought about trying the Centari Vorchan, it's pretty angular and slab-sided so I figured it would be easier than some of the others.

I'm a big, fat liar!

Work on the sponsons is going well, so here are some progress pics.  I tried inking the sponson framing with permanent marker.  I figured that the color contrast would make it easier to gauge progress during sanding, and it did.  To spread the color around, I used alcohol as a thinner and brushed it into the nooks and crannies where the felt tip of the pen would not reach.

https://flic.kr/p/25FeTG1][/url]Bakagalas-137 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

The spaces were packed with Milliput two-part epoxy putty and left to cure overnight.  Here is a pic of the old sponsons with balsa wood sides, and the new ones with the Milliput.  The one in the foreground has been rough sanded.  Sanding Milliput takes patience, elbow grease, and lots of soapy water!  The sanding slurry sticks to everything.

https://flic.kr/p/276FsBx][/url]Bakagalas-139 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

And test fitted to the fuselage, just for fun.

https://flic.kr/p/276FvKr][/url]Bakagalas-140 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

So the plan... um, I forgot what number plan I'm on now, is to vac form a shell using the sponsons.  The wheels will have an independent frame to align them, and some bulkheads will be made to support the sponson shell.  And that's the plan, Ripley.

Lon Cray - Glad to help!  Is the hobby shop in Columbus close to the convention center?  The last time I was there, me and a friend strolled around town just to see what there was to see.  They had a really nice graphic arts store on the main drag.

Gamera - Wow, you have twice as many aloha shirts as I do!  I also like the ships from B5, especially the weird ones, like the Shadows crab-things and the Vorlon stuff.  I was disappointed when Monogram only did the B5 station and the Starfury.  Years ago I collected some orthogonal views from the internet of several ships with the thought of making them.  Out of the lot, I think Kosh's transport is the one I'd like to build.  But how to get that crazy fluoresent kaleidoscope effect inside the "petals"?

I'm still banging away at the landing gear sponsons - update will follow on Monday.

Thanks Real G!  I appreciate the information.  First thing I do before any trip is figure out if there's going to be any model stores in the area or on the route and if I'm going to have time to visit them.  When I drive to Gen Con in Indianapolis each year (but not this year), I make sure to spend a night in Columbus Ohio so I can go to Hobbyland there.  All the good brick and mortar places near me are gone, so hobby stores on vacations are a bonus!

G, yeah there's a few things I can't find kits for. Someday I might attempt to scratchbuild something from Babylon 5 or FarScape. You are inspiring me to try! 

And lol, I've got about twenty Aloha shirts but I've never been to Hawaii. And recently I picked up all eight seasons of Magnum P.I. and am watching them in order. One day I gotta fly out to visit you guys in paradise!!! 

LonCray,

The most well-stocked hobby shops are The Hobby Company and Animeya, both in Pearl City and in the same building.  Hobby Co. has the "normal" stuff like planes, tanks, some ships, cars, R/C, and crafts.  Animeya is all Gundam stuff, but they have a lot of Gunze hobby supplies like paint, glues, etc.  There are also some other small shops that carry Gundam kits and Japanese chochkies like Mini-Q in Mililani and Pearl City.

Weller's Hobbycraft in Kailua is the last brick and mortar hobby shop on the island.  Their selection is a lot smaller than Hobby Co., but they have some old US sci-fi kits that are long OOP.

Hobbietat is first and foremost a fishing supply and R/C store, and their paint selection reflects this.  I like them because I can get consumable supplies from them and are conveniently close to where I live.

HTH

Funny enough, I'm going to visit your fair city in a few weeks and I've reserved a day for looking for hobby shops - I'll put Hobbietat on the list!  

Gamera - Well to be honest this project was borne out of an almost maniacal desire to have a kit of this beast.  So it's not about any skills, it's all about an uncontrollable obsession that drives me.  No, no, no wait... it's passion.  Yeah, that's it.  Passion.    But you can feel the passion too - just find something you absolutely love, and build a model of it.  If you love it, you will find a way!  And yeah, I also have a butt-load of unbuilt kits waiting on the shelves.  And closets.  And under the bed...

Nino - Thanks for the kind words.  And no worries, my LHS carries a good stock, AND 1) they re-order regularly, 2) they will special order, and 3) the special orders come in a week or two because of 1).  Oh I forgot to mention that it is located in Honolulu.  Sorry. 

OK gotta do a free plug - it is Hobbietat, located in Palolo Valley, mere blocks away from my house.  If you check out their website, they make absolutely no mention of plastic models and supplies despite carrying some scale kits, Gundams, and cars.  I guess it is because they started out as a deep water fishing supply store that branched out to R/C planes and cars, and only very recently plastic kits.  Their Plastruct strip/rod/tube selection is pretty good because according to the owners Butch and Paula, the architectural students from the university go there to buy supplies for their projects.  Lucky me - no other LHS has their selection.

So no update for today, as I'm still working on those landing gear sponsons.  Like Wiley E. Coyote, I am concocting a convoluted plan to get them built.  I think I'll need a large rocket, some rope, a wooden crate, and bird seed.

Real G

[/url]Bakagalas-133 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

The "ribs" and "longerons" are nothing but straight plastic strip ....

 

 Beautiful work and some real pain-staking construction.  It's apparent I will need to order some Evergreen plastic before it is all sold out...

That's so cool G!

I'm making metal notes, someday ah someday I'll try something like this! But right now I've got about a zillion kits in boxes I need to be working on- and I'm wasting time on the internet as usual...

The other sponson has been framed but not yet shaped.  It happened much quicker than the first one, as the process was now streamlined.

https://flic.kr/p/27hPurb][/url]Bakagalas-134 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

As mentioned, the formers and longerons are just straight pieces of plastic strip; the only element of precision was the use of a "Chopper" to quickly get consistent lengths.

https://flic.kr/p/28p5EsM][/url]Bakagalas-135 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

I have thought about how to best (i.e. easy and lazy) cover the sponsons, and after some thought decided the way to go is to fill the sponsons with epoxy putty and vac form over them.  The contours are just too tight to use the old crinkled plate method.  The sponsons will require inserts on their bottoms to continue the contours underneath, for a vac-form bottom piece to allow thin edges around the wheel openings.

https://flic.kr/p/Lge82q][/url]Bakagalas-136 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

Put your eyes back in their sockets Gamera, here goes another trial and error process:

https://flic.kr/p/28hkuJG][/url]Bakagalas-132 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

https://flic.kr/p/28hkuRL][/url]Bakagalas-133 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

The "ribs" and "longerons" are nothing but straight plastic strip fitted in a grid pattern around the landing gear boxes, then sanded down to form the needed contours.  Not much planning nor precision to do this, and the challenge will be to avoid over-sanding, which I have already done.    "Oopsies" are repaired by simply gluing more strip onto the low areas and sanding to the intended shape.  And then trying to avoid making more mistakes!  Areas with gentle contours will be covered with the usual crinkled sheet plastic, tight radius areas such as the front and back ends will be filled in solid using the SLAM method.  And that's the plan, Ripley.

Okay okay okay, so I'm avoiding vac-forming as much as possible.  But I might have to vac the lower portions of the sponsons to get a thin edge for the wheel cut outs.  Maybe.  Maybe not.  

Oh wow!!! 

I need a pop-eyed emote!!! 

The first engine fairing has been roughed out, and lessons learned will be applied to streamline the construction process for the opposite hand unit as well as the two smaller units.  To fill around the tubing, I stacked strip styrene vertically.  I tried horizontally orienting them at first, but that didn't work out.  This way was much more effective and easier.

https://flic.kr/p/25uMHtY][/url]Bakagalas-123 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

https://flic.kr/p/25uMHgo][/url]Bakagalas-126 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

The rocket exhausts will be made from telescoping tubing.  The construction of the trailing edge may seem overly elaborate, but it is the only way I could think of to cleanly make those engine openings.

https://flic.kr/p/25wzXU3][/url]Bakagalas-127 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

I made a card stock template to work out the size/shape of the small inboard fairings that will support the flaps and test fitted it to the wings along with the engine fairing, to check for proportion and position.  Looks good, construction will proceed.

https://flic.kr/p/25wzXx1][/url]Bakagalas-129 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

In my disorganized brain, I only now realized that the landing gear sponsons were more of a priority than the engines.  Plus there were some "oops" areas that will need fixing where the cut-outs on the fuselage sides were ovesized/lopsided.  I also wanted to redo the spacing of the tyres.  The larger of the two types of resin tyres I sourced also would not fit into the old sponsons, so new ones were started.  Again, I had planned on vac-forming these, but decided to build them up like the wings and engines.

https://flic.kr/p/JFjjhH][/url]Bakagalas-130 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

I'll get back to the engines after the sponsons are complete.

Gamera,

Well time consuming parts is more like it.

I spent last night figuring out how to make one of the engine fairings, by trial and error as per my M.O.  Mostly trial, a little error.  Without going into boring details, here is where it stands as of today:

https://flic.kr/p/L6jC9y][/url]Bakagalas-120 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

https://flic.kr/p/25tfJhE][/url]Bakagalas-122 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

The trailing edges will be filled in by stacking sheet plastic like lumber until all the recesses are filled.  It will then be sanded to a sorta aerodynamic shape.  Telescoping tubing will then be inserted to form the rocket engine exhausts.

When I took this old model out to finish, I mocked my primitive SLAM (Sheet LAMination) technique to form parts, but it looks like I'm using it extensively even now.  It sure beats carving a buck from wood and vac-forming, especially so for one-off or two-off parts.  But the landing gear sponsons and possibly the canopy will require vac-forming, no getting around that.  I'd better go look for it. 

Ohhhhh now you're getting into the really complicated parts!

And nice gunship. Gosh, I haven't seen the movie in years...

The engine fairings got a start last night.  I only got as far as roughing out the core structure due to much measuring and recalculating.

https://flic.kr/p/28cqxCr][/url]Bakagalas-115 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

Some 2mm plastic rod stubs were added to the base plate of the core structure to assist in alignment.  Holes were drilled into the 0.040" base plate to give them some gluing surface area, and the excess on top was trimmed and sanded flush.  Oops, I drilled the holes off-center on the wings!  I can fix that.  I have to stop these careless mistakes, but I did say I was a measure once, cut twice kind of person.  

https://flic.kr/p/28cqxtP][/url]Bakagalas-116 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

https://flic.kr/p/2882G9W][/url]Bakagalas-118 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

The previously made jig assists in getting the fairng to be square all around.  It occurred to me that the holes for the biplane flaps would be easy to mark on the outside of the finished fairings if I made another slider for the jig.  I'll show what I mean when it comes time to mark them.

I wonder what Mito is doing in the back seat of the Gunship?  Giving the Tolmekians the "birdie"?  Aw nuts, now I want a 1/72 Tolmekian Corvette...