MechTech

The finished kit has a nice "presence" to it. VF-1 in da house! - MT

Excellent work on the hanger! Great use of foam board and styrene too! This is a project that would look cool with a printed background on it too for detail. Over all it's looking great! - MT

Thanks for all the posts guys! I'll just have to drool on my keyboard and dream - MT

More "Supah"quality work! - MT

The things people can make with paper these days. Maybe my next build will be in paper! - MT

Don't forget good ole' Pinesol! You can safely soak it overnight. I've used it on plastic and actual aircraft parts. I think they really meant "solvent" in Pinesol. - MT

Check a local craft store. They are used in all kinds of home made crafts. Are you in the states or elsewhere? I might be able to help you if Big F can't. - MT

Whatever you use, test the paint in an area not normally visible. Even isopropyl alcohol will start eating into some paints. Have fun! - MT

Thanks guys. I can sell them separately or as a set. You guessed right rotorhead, I prefer transparent parts for simulated glass. The part is small enough that I believe I can just cast it in clear epoxy. It will only take a few drops! Some bad news, my allowance had to go to "real life" needs so I will be about another month behind in casting. What I will be working on is the M299 Sugarfoot after the crane truck is done. I forgot to add. The crane truck will have the crane OR the bucket parts for you to put on there. Easy choice. Giant dimes sold separately I'll post pictures as I can make updates. - MT

Sorry for the delay, every time I tried to get on MW the server was so slow it seemed to lock up. Baxojayz - I can still take orders, I don't even have the casting stuff on order yet Nuts! Ahiachris fugured out my serving tray trick! I'm still trying to work on a price, but here's the Crane Truck in progress: I started with a massive chunk of Evergreen #415 .250" x .750" (6.3mm x 19.0 mm) It's a HUGE strip of styrene in 2 foot long lengths. Then I machined it down making passes through my drill press with a Dremmel bit on it to keep the thickness uniform. Then I made several more passes through the drill press with various bits to shape the chassis as you see. I only used files and one glued insert to clean it up. The wheels were spares machined on a Dremmel then covered with Evergreen .020" thick V-Groove sheeting. I cut against the grain at 45 degrees to make the treads. I had to do this twice since the treads oppose each other. Progress photos on the main chassis parts. There is still a lot of work to do on this part: And what progress I have done on the cab section. It's not totally cannon because I put windshield wipers on it : That's it for now. It's taken a week to get this far. The cab is version 3 I tried to do thin window frames and make the cab hollow because I hate "fake glass", but it was too thin and would not have casted well. That's it for now - MT

That looks beautiful! It puts the styrene kits to shame!!! That really needs to cast. - MT

I don't even have a 1/48 scale model kit, but this is REALLY tempting! The details are great and the "respect" for the VF-1 long over due! - MT

UPDATE 31 JANUARY 2010 - ANOTHER Year I've taken a side trip and am pursuing another part of the Daedalus build for a short while, the stuff going inside of it that I still need for detailing the interior. The thread can be found here: http://www.macrossworld.com/mwf/index.php?showtopic=31945 I've put the vehicles in a separate thread because I'm selling extra castings for the vehicles. As soon as I complete the ground vehicles, it's back to the ship itself! Until then... - MT

Looking great EVERYONE! We need to keep this post alive with everything from old school pistons to nuclear turbines I've missed out on a few of these earlier thanks to access problems. - MT

Hey everyone. I'm back from vacation and will have to wait a couple weeks to to purchase molding supplies for the ground support vehicles. In the mean time, I'm building the crane truck and "jeep". I'll post pictures as I make progress. I'll probably be selling extras of those as well. Remember this all still counts as credit towards building the Daedalus - MT

Nice idea! Just add some paint and you'll be good to go! - MT

That does look cool. The white custom markings would be a pain! Then again, use white decal paper and print the black onto it... - MT

Oh yeah, grab ALL the sleep you can get! Those first few months can be rough - MT

Looking great! Keep us posted. - MT

I know this guy named AcroRay who's a glutton for punishment Seriously, I think it will turn out great. If you want to use solvent glue, you WILL have to sand down the edges to NAKED plastic (just tape/glue some sandpaper to a flat surface). It may be easier than scraping. Then clean the edges with isopropyl alcohol. In the old days they would take the sprues and put them into a tank and fling actual chrome plate onto them. Of course the chrome beaded the glue. If they've used the same technique, the chrome should have bonded well to the plastic and super glue will hold it all together. Just rough up the joints. Test some sprue to be sure. Chrome is what put me off car models for life If the super glue works, then just prep the surfaces with rubbing (isopropyl) alcohol. Chrome and superglue make great permanent fingerprints! If you take a chromed plastic surface that has a tint to it (usually gold plastic) or the green in your case, a solvent will take that off so be careful if you like the green tint. Testing on sprue is your friend in this case too. My hat off to you, chrome is a challenge, but looks great. Tamiya's chrome paint pens are a close match to cover up sprue marks on chrome. Have fun and keep us posted! The other option is strip it naked with Cola like was done before - MT

Thanks for the updates on this. I'm learning a lot about the "dream machine" I may have someday. - MT

To agree with Thom, it's pride of "ownership" if YOU make it! - MT

Thanks for sharing! I'm tempted to pull my kit out and try it. - MT

Sprue marks are an unfortunate part of life. Bandai has taken steps to make theirs easier to remove on some newer kits, but those are styrene. If your toy is made with ABS, that is even tougher to clean up. I have the 1/200 Nichimo Yamato Battleship. It is ALL ABS and a MAJOR pain to sand and clean up compared to styrene. If you have any spare accessory sprue pieces, heat up a section with a lighter and smell it. Petroleum smelling is styrene and kinda pine smelling is ABS. I use the edge of a steady flame (the blue part) and put it near the whitened area. It causes the plastic to flow back together and clear up the blemish (if only acne was that easy) That method takes some practice, patience and being VERY CAREFUL. Method two involves covering the blemishes with some "dirt" or oil marks (paint). I use this on transforming models since paint on them scratches off. Just my two cents. - MT

Just some props for EXO, I got a chance to see the real Party Set up close and they look great complete with the 80's "big hair" The soda amchine IS a classic! EXO, Brookhurst Hobbies had both the Fujimi Navy carrier ground crew sets and the Air Force ground crews as of last week (I made one last run up there). - MT