My job has slowed some allowing me more time to work on this. So, you might get sick of my updates. I am trying to push this along.

Using styrene, I filled in the floor boards below the dash. You may notice gaps at the extreme corners. More on that with the next image.

The rail holes are filled in and smoothed. The remaining gaps are covered by the terrain scanner, also, they are there to seat it. The sprue goo worked well. I applied a final layer of CA to seal it, and to fill any remaining imperfections.

This is yet another nice thing about sprue goo. You can apply it along joins, and fill larger holes like in the corners that I mentioned. This does two things. It fills the gaps and once paint is applied, no light leaks. Secondly, it adds considerable strength to the construction.

The beauty is the ease of it. It flows on and often it gives the appearance that it was molded that way. Btw. I learned another trick with it. Once applied, you can smooth the gloppyness by brushing on Tamiya Extra Thin. Using the supplied brush you can work it into the shape you want. Just keep adding extra thin until the goo relents. That will eventually give you the molded that way look. This is the underside of the pan so I don't really care how it looks. No extra care applied here.

That is all for today. I think I will try finding a sci-fi to watch. And I am sure I will unintentionally doze off during it. Never fails. 

Later.

CapnMac82

Side note, got my ride repaired

Astute observers will note it's no longer gold pearl metalic, but anthracite metallic (very much like, if darker than the Chariot).  It's also eleven years younger, too.

 

And, the million dollar question. Is the color in your image accurate? Or is it skewed by lighting, camera, or other. Hehe. 

Just kidding. That joke was for the benifit of PhoenixG.

The anthracite metalic does look close to the Chariot. You have good taste in color and brand! I drive a Ford too. Enjoy it, Sir.

Side note, got my ride repaired

Astute observers will note it's no longer gold pearl metalic, but anthracite metallic (very much like, if darker than the Chariot).  It's also eleven years younger, too.

Well, so much for prewashing. I found various problems that need attention. Things like sink marks, mold lines, and a few gaping joins. I spent a few hours cleaning things up.

You will notice a few things in the image below:

1. Top of the terrain scanner had the gaps I mentioned. I used CA to fill them. Not shown in the image, I sanded the CA smooth and they look good. I love using CA for things like this. It is super fast, and it feathers easily. Unlike point 2, not so fast. 

2. Notice the openings below the scanner. Apparently, the kit is designed so that you can move the scanner along those openings. I found no evidence of that option on the 1:1. Second to that, in my opinion, it looks bad with those gaping holes. So, I am filling them.

I pressed round styrene into those openings as a prefiller. In the image you can see them on the left, the right is not done yet. I then smeared spruegoo over those and currently, it is curing. This is never a fast process with the stuff. I expect some shrinkage too. Don't  tell George Costanza. 

3. Notice the floorboard openings just under the dash. Not sure why they didn't close those up, but I need to fabricate something.

So, the tub requires more work before paint. And that is fine because I can still paint other parts.

The floorpan, terrain scanner, and the transmission box are ready for washing and then paint. 

That is all for now.

CapnMac82

Both of those lok smashing

 

It is time to ID what needs painting and what can wait. Then, it is wash, mask, and paint. Hopefully, I begin this weekend. After that, time to make graphics for decals. I need to make decals before the snow flies. The sealer is super stinky and I don't want to spray that in the house. Seriously toxic smelling. 

Both of those lok smashing

Decisions made.

Starting left to right, base layers are: white, grey, silver. I am going with door number 2. It gives me the red/orange I am looking for. The top layer is MRP International Orange.

Starting left to right the base layers are white, white, and silver. The top layers are Haze Grey, Dark Camouflage Grey, and Gunship Grey.

If you'd asked me what I was leaning towards before todays test I would have said, Gunship Grey. Before all that, I would have said Dark Camouflage Grey. 

As you know, I reviewed a bunch of images. In my opinion, none of them are definitive. Screencaps of the show are woefully unreliable. Heck... one of them has the Jupiter 2 looking tan. Can I trust the same image where the Chariot looks silver? Nope.

This leaves the 1:1 images. The builder states accuracy was at the forefront of the build, right down to the switches. I'd imagine then that something as important as color had been heavily researched. I must go on that assumption. But, reviewing 1:1 images has me wanting as well. Virtually... every image have marked differences in hue. Various light sources and an improperly calibrated camera can account for this. That said, from my experience, and in terms of color temperature, cameras balance easier to sunlight. And this is why I chose the two images below for my reference photos.

And this is why I am going with door #2, Dark Camouflaged Grey.

Much ado about nothing but doing a little research can go a long way towards the fun and realism of the build.

Right or wrong... it's my best guess for color.

PS: Each time I use MRP lacquer I am blown away. What a joy to spray with. Take out the toxicity of lacquer, it becomes the perfect paint to airbrush with. 

Hey Capn... interesting about 2001. 

I just watched Crack in the World on Tubi. Tubi is not bad. It is Ad supported but the commercials are limited, and very tolerable. Check them out, it's free. 

I hope to start spraying some test spoons today, or tomorrow the latest. 

The rampant reuse of props is whyKubrick demanded all the 2001 models be broken up after filming ended.

Allegedly, Irwin Allen had similar restrictions--just not within their own productions.  Which is why there were a bunch of re-used props in Voyage To The Bottom of The Sea.

What always struck me was LIS reusing "creatures" with only marginally changed features.

Been watching Andromeda of late.  Season 4 is a real dud, which has meant that Season 5 is actually much better.  But, that may be from how the entire Season Premise involves "breaking canon" and rebuilding things.  Which is an interesting bit of drama.  Imagine if the JJ Abrams/Kelvin Star Trek had kept the original cast.

Btw. I thought I should check on our interstellar friend from another build.

Here on Earth hundreds of years have elapsed, in doggy time, he's tripping like it's only yesterday.

Gamera

'Trek' had the same issue. On receiving the most fan mail by far Nimoy decided he was the star of the show and demanded the same pay and screen time as The Shat or he was going to leave. Well, since Nimoy would barge into Roddenberry's office without notice constantly Gene had his secretary type up a memo of 'List of replacement actors to play Spock if Leonard Nimoy leaves the show' and leave it on his desk where Nimoy was sure to see it. After that Nimoy shut up during the rest of the run of the series. 

At least till the movies. To return after Spocks death for the third and fourth movie Nimoy demanded to direct. Fortunatly he turned out to be a competent director. On 'Generations' the first Next Generation movie Nimoy demanded to be given as much screen time and as many lines as The Shat. Since the movie was about Kirk and Picard there wasn't any room to work that much of Spock in there and the studio told Nimoy 'No'. Then considering DeForrest Kelley's health issues they ultimately decided to just have James Doohan and Walter Koenig on with The Shat. Probably the best decision in the end- they were two of the easier actors to work with. 

On 'The A-Team' Mr. T. pulled the same stunt. There they handed around a memo of replacement actors including Issac Hayes and William 'The Fridge' Perry. Mr. T shut up after that. I guess it's pretty common for some actors to get a little too big for their britches. 

 

The reused props is funny. I'd noticed some in the background but not the Jupiter II in that scene. Funny, I'd watched 'Fantastic Voyage' again recently and didn't notice the snorkel being used is a piece of mining equipment on 'LiS' until it was pointed out. But still 'Trek' did the same thing all the time. Even 'ST:TNG' did it all the time. 

 

Interesting stuff, Gam. I did not know all that. But I tell ya, in my opinion, Spock deserved the money. 

Gamera

Oh, and I have a video for you guys....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=taG94Ze_trA

 

Looks like Clapper's family have been up to lot of mischief over history... 

Now you did it, Gam. Clapper hears his name and he shows up chiding for food.

'Trek' had the same issue. On receiving the most fan mail by far Nimoy decided he was the star of the show and demanded the same pay and screen time as The Shat or he was going to leave. Well, since Nimoy would barge into Roddenberry's office without notice constantly Gene had his secretary type up a memo of 'List of replacement actors to play Spock if Leonard Nimoy leaves the show' and leave it on his desk where Nimoy was sure to see it. After that Nimoy shut up during the rest of the run of the series. 

At least till the movies. To return after Spocks death for the third and fourth movie Nimoy demanded to direct. Fortunatly he turned out to be a competent director. On 'Generations' the first Next Generation movie Nimoy demanded to be given as much screen time and as many lines as The Shat. Since the movie was about Kirk and Picard there wasn't any room to work that much of Spock in there and the studio told Nimoy 'No'. Then considering DeForrest Kelley's health issues they ultimately decided to just have James Doohan and Walter Koenig on with The Shat. Probably the best decision in the end- they were two of the easier actors to work with. 

On 'The A-Team' Mr. T. pulled the same stunt. There they handed around a memo of replacement actors including Issac Hayes and William 'The Fridge' Perry. Mr. T shut up after that. I guess it's pretty common for some actors to get a little too big for their britches. 

The reused props is funny. I'd noticed some in the background but not the Jupiter II in that scene. Funny, I'd watched 'Fantastic Voyage' again recently and didn't notice the snorkel being used is a piece of mining equipment on 'LiS' until it was pointed out. But still 'Trek' did the same thing all the time. Even 'ST:TNG' did it all the time. 

Gamera

The part about the actor playing the Robot leaving the bottom off so he could walk around was pretty awesome. And the fact that there are a few scenes where you can see his shoes sticking out is hilaroius. 

And Harris getting in a tiff with Caradine is priceless. I love John Carradine as an actor but I've heard several people call him a grumpy old grouch that didn't get along with anyone. 

 

It was also notable that Harris was writing script and he was sure to make his roles bigger than the rest. 

The videos talk too about how they recycled props from episode to episode, even from other movies like Fatastic Voyage. The killer was when the Jupiter 2 model was used in a set as part of some mumbo jumbo electronic gizmo. Truly, pathetic. As a kid we used say, hey, they are using this or that again. 

Thanks for the video Bakster, I watched Season 1, 2, and 3 up to the episode I'm on now. 

The part about the actor playing the Robot leaving the bottom off so he could walk around was pretty awesome. And the fact that there are a few scenes where you can see his shoes sticking out is hilaroius. 

And Harris getting in a tiff with Caradine is priceless. I love John Carradine as an actor but I've heard several people call him a grumpy old grouch that didn't get along with anyone. 

Anyway LiS is fun, in a generally bat-guano insane sort of way. It makes my head hurt a little. But then it was the '60s so the people who wrote the show were probably on drugs.....

Well said.

Oh, and I have a video for you guys....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=taG94Ze_trA

Looks like Clapper's family have been up to lot of mischief over history... 

Hmm, what Timmy has posted looks pretty close to how the Chariot looks to me. 

And thanks, will give your video link a look! 

Anyway LiS is fun, in a generally bat-guano insane sort of way. It makes my head hurt a little. But then it was the '60s so the people who wrote the show were probably on drugs.....

'Kidnapped in Space'

The episode where we find out Smith isn't a medical doctor had an alien spacecraft sending out an SOS looking for a surgeon to operate on the brain of their sick captain. Smith offers to do the operation after the aliens offer a considerable sum of money. 

I love how it never friggin' occurs to Smith that NOT BEING A SURGEON HE'S PROBABLY GOING TO KILL THE ALIEN CAPTAIN AND THEN THEY AIN'T GONNA BE REAL HAPPY WITH HIM!!!!

Sign, anyway they find out the aliens are really androids and their captain is a mainframe computer. So WHY THE HECK DID THEY ASK FOR A DOCTOR INSTEAD OF AN ENGINEER!?!?!?! 

Anyway spoiler but being a computer himself the Robot operates on the captain and gets him back to full operating ability. So everyone is happy and the Robot is once again the hero. 

'Space Destructors' 

Smith, Will, and the Robot find a machine that makes androids. Smith makes an army of Smith robots to take over the galaxy. The androids are stunt-men wearing Johnathan Harris rubber masks. Which is as insane as it sounds. Once again they have to provide an excuse for Smith being an all around jerk and almost getting everyone killed. 

'Collision of Planets' 

A gang of hippy bikers harrass the Robinsons. Smith after breathing a mysterious green gas becomes 'Smith: The Strongest Man in the Universe!' Harris gets an awful green wig and they stuff the chest and arms of his sweater to give him bodybuilder proportions. Also they have him scream out his lines. Not surprisingly super-Smith is as usual useless and Professor Robinson has to outwit the hippy bikers. 

That's the most insane deranged episodes. The others from season 3 were much more bland and dull. But I'll give it to the show, when they decided to go bonkers they went totally bonkers, no half-way about it...  

littletimmy

Have you looked at Testors Gunmetal buffing metalizer?

Wow, that's a cool color.

littletimmy

Have you looked at Testors Gunmetal buffing metalizer? 

It's the darker gray on my u-Boat.

 

 

Greetings, Tim. No I hadn't. Another possibility to consider. 

How is life? Still working the long hours? 

Have you looked at Testors Gunmetal buffing metalizer? 

It's the darker gray on my u-Boat.

CapnMac82

Ok, I'm pretty sure I mage a reply yesterday, but it's not here today.  Odd, now I'm wondering what I said.  Sigh.

 

Maybe you said, stop yapping Bakster, and start painting! Lol.

No. I doubt you said that but it sounds like something that I might say. Hehe.

Hey... on a side note. We can't let Gamera have all the fun watching LIS silliness. This YouTube video popped up today under recommended. It is not a must see, but to anyone that likes traveling on fun stuff road, then take a gander.

LIS Mistakes and Oditities Season 2

https://youtu.be/d10yrTePhuI?si=1YrAKbmEctzpwWuC

Ok, I'm pretty sure I mage a reply yesterday, but it's not here today.  Odd, now I'm wondering what I said.  Sigh.

Hey Capn, having looked at many chariot images the last day or so, and having just compared gunship gray to dark camo gray that I purchased, I think you nailed it. I think gunship gray is much closer to what I am after. Albeit, maybe too dark, but you made the point to base coat with silver and then add a light coat of gunship gray. In effect, lightening it up some. I am gonna try it.

I ordered a bottle.

Thanks!

Great post, Capn.

I am amazed at how close we are in our thinking. My plan was to have the window framing chrome, the light/blue/gray is very close to what I already purchased. I will play with the color by trying different primer coats. Bottom line is, I expect I will stick with the path already on.

It's representational, you get to pick, not I.  It's a bit like deciding what color the Santa Maria was finished in--there's not a definitive way to pick one.

So very true!

Btw. Did you notice the Jupiter 2 in this image? It looks tan. I am trying to remember if that is how it always looked in the show. I don't think that it did. The image is in stark contrast to the model prop, which is a silver. Another glaring mystery.

Thanks for the feedback, Capn.

Color balance in old tv images is tricky stuff at best.

Recall that Leonard Nimoy, as Spock was given a green skin tone (if not the olive green of an Orion)--but note how little of that "shows" in images online today.

The on-set version, I suspect had chrome window framing, and a body of anodized aluminum.

Using this chart:

I suspect the satin silver finish, as in many lighting situations, that can seem dark or glossy.
Now, from this chart:

A person could be excused for picking the Light Blue/Grey finish.

A primer coat in Testor's silver with the thin coat of Gunship Gray shot over that, could be an anwser.

Maybe.

Perhaps.

It's representational, you get to pick, not I.  It's a bit like deciding what color the Santa Maria was finished in--there's not a definitive way to pick one.

I have to wonder... did the chariot get a revamp over the course of the series? 

I found more images from the time. These first two sure look like the body is metalic silver. Also, in both images, the antenna is silver.

The next images appear to have the sort of metalic gray paint, and the antenna is now black.

As Cary Grant would say, Judy...Judy...Judy.

Or its all just a play of light. Its a mystery. 

And here it almost looks like a metallic silver. I can go on with images, but you get the gist. 

Anyhow, enough with that.

I think about now we need Gamera to provide a LIS episode update. 

I have many images of this replica and I tell ya, the gray looks different in all of them. Again, I think it speaks to poor color balance of the camera. Now, in this image, to me, the gray looks pure.

Capn, based on the images, it sure does look like dayglo orange.

I just don't know how much stock I want to put in that last image. The colors look wonky. Even Robinsons face has a red splotch to it and the gray undercararige has an odd tinge making it a sort of gray.

Below: I posted these before for different reasons but for this purpose, it shows the 1:1 replica and how its colors play out. Notice the gray body. I can't wrap my head around that color. What kind of gray is that? It's not a pure gray. Or is it.

Below: You can see below how light affects the tone. Look at the seatback compared to canopy frame in the shadows. Same with the above. The more light, the more orange. The darker, the more red.

I'm not gonna go too into the weeds with what color I use, but it sure makes for interesting discussion.