Shaorin Posted April 11, 2011 Posted April 11, 2011 I've used that exact decal sheet on an Excelsior Refit---they're very thin and "stretchy" as decals go, but didn't seem especially fragile. I didn't need blue paint for anywhere but the clear parts for "warp glow" and the edges of the pylons. And yes, by the end, half the ship is covered in decal film. But that's not much different from the current trend of using decals for an aztec pattern, where like 90% of the ship is decaled. (they exist for that kit, if you feel like it) Mine's flat-coated. I would never gloss a Trek ship, unless the gloss itself was applied in an aztec pattern and it was the ST:TMP version of 1701. (since that's how it was) ah yes, excellent work there!! i'll be lucky if i can manage anything like that kind of job on mine, but i'm sure gonna try! yeah, i'll be getting the EXCELSIOR custom decals in the next couple months or so, and lacquering them all in. i used TAMIYA X-13 METALLIC BLUE for all the transparent warp nacelle parts on mine. i painted them from the inside. i also have TAMIYA X-14 SKY BLUE to use for all of the blue detail areas throughout the spaceframe. in a perfect world, i would have loved to have just thrown some money at a professional modeller, and had one of these kits built up like a precision ILM movie prop, but well...
David Hingtgen Posted April 11, 2011 Posted April 11, 2011 Are you going to light it up? Mine has LightSheet deflector and nacelles, bulbs everywhere else. Also, there are many upgrades available for that kit. http://www.dlmparts.com/excelsiorvoyagerds9.html The aft torpedo launcher alone is worth it for the $10 IMHO. It's a drop-in replacement for the kit's part and is 100x better.
derex3592 Posted April 12, 2011 Posted April 12, 2011 Just arrived--fresh off the boat from Australia--This is my dream kit.....it's big --(there's a quarter to give you an idea of it's size), it's detailed, and it's only my 2nd resin kit! I have dreamed about having a good size model of this ship sense the 80's! I hope I can do it justice!!!
505thAirborne Posted April 12, 2011 Posted April 12, 2011 Awesome kit derex!! When your all finished with this ship I'm sure justice will have been served! Keep the pics coming.
neptunesurvey Posted April 13, 2011 Posted April 13, 2011 I have one finished bury somewhere in this thread. Make sure you sand that seem between the halves. It took me about 3 days to remove them.
guncross2 Posted April 20, 2011 Posted April 20, 2011 I havent done any serious work lately due to my new born... 9 months of next to not time for model ' So I have from 9 months ago: Macross Zero, Macross Plus, Macross F, lots of Gundam of diff scale and lots of resin fig from started to sand to online waiting to be painted... 9 months ... BUT, my baby is sooooo cuuuute I dont regret one bit :)
Shaorin Posted April 20, 2011 Posted April 20, 2011 finally broke down and detailed the cockpit of my HCM VF-1J. i intended out the outset to leave it unpainted for the same "retro look" as the TAKA/BANDAI 1/55s, but i decided in the end that the HCM deserves better than that. the toy/model honestly displays SO much better in FIGHTER now. i also ditched the awful HCM "pilot figure" and appropriated one of the pilots from my three 1/72 IMAI/BANDAI VARIABLE TYPE model kits to make a superior pilot figure for the HCM;
Ghost Train Posted April 23, 2011 Posted April 23, 2011 Having screwed up some of the decals on the saucer section, I'm turning my attention to the warp nacelles and engineering hull.
David Hingtgen Posted April 24, 2011 Posted April 24, 2011 Is that the new 1/1000 snap-tight? I have looked everywhere and no shop in this state I think has it. (even the ones that I know have Trekkies working there)
Ghost Train Posted April 24, 2011 Posted April 24, 2011 David, it's the 1/1000 Polar Lights Refit, so I think we're talking about the same one. It's a snap-fit, but a few areas could benefit from a cement + filler treatment, not too noticeable if you don't though. It's a great kit overall!
David Hingtgen Posted April 26, 2011 Posted April 26, 2011 I just feel the need to post this: With all the struggles I had trying to get a nice transparent purple VF-25 canopy, Bandai now seems to do a "clear purple" mini-sprue every other month now... (I just came across a post on a Gundam blog where someone was trying to mix clear red and clear blue to get clear purple--and they of course found out that doesn't work, so I was reminded of it again)
derex3592 Posted April 27, 2011 Posted April 27, 2011 Finemolds 1:48 SnowSpeeder finally finished....As this was Finemolds first kit in this scale from what I gathered, it isn't quite as well done as the X-Wing and Tie Fighter. Fit and finish were no where near the later kits. I did what i could but honestly kind of became bored with it about half way through and just kinda wanted it done. Went a little heavy on the weathering but meh...whatever, lol... anyway's here's a few pics..I went with the orange markings instead of gray, which were Luke's speeder. I think the orange is better looking.
Urashiman Posted April 27, 2011 Posted April 27, 2011 Finemolds 1:48 SnowSpeeder finally finished....As this was Finemolds first kit in this scale from what I gathered, it isn't quite as well done as the X-Wing and Tie Fighter. Fit and finish were no where near the later kits. I did what i could but honestly kind of became bored with it about half way through and just kinda wanted it done. Went a little heavy on the weathering but meh...whatever, lol... anyway's here's a few pics..I went with the orange markings instead of gray, which were Luke's speeder. I think the orange is better looking. That actually looks like the AMT/Ertl Snowspeeder. When I was younger I had build 3 of them. But I wasn't really satisfied with them, so I had some fun with them on new years eve
Noyhauser Posted April 28, 2011 Posted April 28, 2011 Finemolds 1:48 SnowSpeeder finally finished....As this was Finemolds first kit in this scale from what I gathered, it isn't quite as well done as the X-Wing and Tie Fighter. Fit and finish were no where near the later kits. I did what i could but honestly kind of became bored with it about half way through and just kinda wanted it done. Went a little heavy on the weathering but meh...whatever, lol... anyway's here's a few pics..I went with the orange markings instead of gray, which were Luke's speeder. I think the orange is better looking. Is there any such thing as a Rebel vehicle that is too heavily weathered? It looks pretty good from my view... did you try using a wash at all? That might help some of the details pop a bit more.
derex3592 Posted April 28, 2011 Posted April 28, 2011 Is there any such thing as a Rebel vehicle that is too heavily weathered? It looks pretty good from my view... did you try using a wash at all? That might help some of the details pop a bit more. I did actually try a wash on the bottom and it didnt turn out terribly well, so I decided not to go with it on the top.
Noyhauser Posted April 28, 2011 Posted April 28, 2011 I did actually try a wash on the bottom and it didnt turn out terribly well, so I decided not to go with it on the top. No worries, it happens to everybody... this week I had a pretty piss poor outing with a model I've been working on for three months... that was a real screw up. What you did here looks far better, regardless.
HWR MKII Posted April 28, 2011 Author Posted April 28, 2011 Mix a drop or 2 of games workshop purple ink into a jar of future. Dip the canopy until the purple s to your satisfaction. I just feel the need to post this: With all the struggles I had trying to get a nice transparent purple VF-25 canopy, Bandai now seems to do a "clear purple" mini-sprue every other month now... (I just came across a post on a Gundam blog where someone was trying to mix clear red and clear blue to get clear purple--and they of course found out that doesn't work, so I was reminded of it again)
David Hingtgen Posted April 29, 2011 Posted April 29, 2011 IIRC they stopped making "ink" a few years ago, and all you can find now is the "wash" which doesn't work the same.
HWR MKII Posted April 29, 2011 Author Posted April 29, 2011 Any other "ink" should work just as well. Heck even food coloring.
Chronocidal Posted April 29, 2011 Posted April 29, 2011 If I recall the discussion from when the VF-25 kits came out, the only thing that wasn't tried was the kitchen sink (as in, hitting the canopy with it, in hopes it would bruise and turn a nice purple. ) That PL Refit Enterprise looks like a beauty, I'll have to pick up one or two at some point, assuming they're still available. I do have the Bandai kit already, but it'd be nice to have one that matches the TV version I've got. Also must agree on the speeder, you can never really weather those too much. Those things were really pretty filthy. I remember the old Ertl kit too, and it was actually one of the better kits they made, as far as I recall. That thing was a whole lot bigger than 1/48 though, probably a little over 1/32.
David Hingtgen Posted April 29, 2011 Posted April 29, 2011 HWR--sorry, but I must ask--have you personally tried making transparent *purple*? All the standard methods for "colored clear" don't work for purple. Future? Food coloring? Mixing red and blue? Nope. Purple is a different beast. Red/blue/green/yellow are no problem. But clear PURPLE? Many many posts here at MW trying to find a good solution to the problem of Alto's canopy. I honestly think I spent more money on various purple "things" than the kit itself cost. If it's a purple paint/dye/ink/tint sold in the USA, I bought it and tried mixing it with various things for that canopy.
ahiachris Posted April 29, 2011 Posted April 29, 2011 (edited) HWR--sorry, but I must ask--have you personally tried making transparent *purple*? All the standard methods for "colored clears" don't work. Future? Food coloring? Mixing red and blue? Nope. Purple is a different beast. Red/blue/green/yellow are no problem. But clear PURPLE? Many many posts here at MW trying to find a good solution to the problem of Alto's canopy. For clear purple had anyone tried spraying a layer of clear red on top of a layer of clear blue? When I was building something of gold color, I usually spray a clear coat of clear yellow on top of a layer of silver paint. Then I'd spray another coat of clear orange on top of these two coats of paint. The end result is very encouraging. Of course several trials had to be made before a good effect can be achieve. Edited April 29, 2011 by ahiachris
David Hingtgen Posted April 29, 2011 Posted April 29, 2011 Clear red is usually orange-red. That's why it doesn't work with blue well. Orange+blue=brown.
thegunny Posted April 29, 2011 Posted April 29, 2011 (edited) Clear red is usually orange-red. That's why it doesn't work with blue well. Orange+blue=brown. Gunze clear red & clear purple. approx 50/50 mix. Looks purple to me Top pic is painted side bottom pic is unpainted side. It's a bit uneven because it's brushed on. Edited April 29, 2011 by thegunny
Kylwell Posted April 30, 2011 Posted April 30, 2011 Or go to the art store & get some purple ink http://www.dickblick.com/products/iwata-com-art-airbrush-colors/
David Hingtgen Posted April 30, 2011 Posted April 30, 2011 Gunze clear red & clear purple. approx 50/50 mix. Looks purple to me Top pic is painted side bottom pic is unpainted side. It's a bit uneven because it's brushed on. I have never seen/heard of clear purple paint. Gunze makes it? Is it Mr Color or Mr Hobby?
Grayson72 Posted April 30, 2011 Posted April 30, 2011 Just arrived--fresh off the boat from Australia--This is my dream kit.....it's big --(there's a quarter to give you an idea of it's size), it's detailed, and it's only my 2nd resin kit! I have dreamed about having a good size model of this ship sense the 80's! I hope I can do it justice!!! Did anyone ever figure out the approximate scale for that kit was?
neptunesurvey Posted April 30, 2011 Posted April 30, 2011 Did anyone ever figure out the approximate scale for that kit was? I did the math once and came out with around 1/8666. I would call it more 1/9000.
David Hingtgen Posted April 30, 2011 Posted April 30, 2011 Either way, Gunze's clears obviously behave/mix differently than Tamiya's, Testors', Vallejo's, etc.
Jefuemon Posted May 2, 2011 Posted May 2, 2011 The paint is done! Very cool! I'm planning on doing mine in a cammo pattern as well, once I get around to building it. I'm thinking of trying Vietnam War era tiger stripe cammo, but we'll have to wait and see how well I can pull that off.
HWR MKII Posted May 2, 2011 Author Posted May 2, 2011 (edited) Dave yes i have tried it on my own VF-25 build. Its on these forums somewhere. In a permanently stalled state at the moment. My results were pretty good. I used GW purple ink in future for my attempt so i know that works. Edited May 2, 2011 by HWR MKII
David Hingtgen Posted May 3, 2011 Posted May 3, 2011 Yes, I believe I saw your build, which is why I tried mixing up some using Citadel's purple wash on your suggestion---and I learned that their purple wash isn't the same as their purple ink, and the ink is no longer available. And food color had about the worst result of all, trying to make purple. Red/orange/yellow/green work fine as food color+future, but not red+blue.
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