Whats Lying on your Workbench MK IV

[pengbuzz]

19 hours ago, Big s said:

the bridge in the movie versus show is a huge size difference. I think the idea in the movie version is to make the overall ship seem bigger by making the head smaller

That's something I've been thinking about: if that is the case, then the movie SDF-1 would be twice as big as the TV version (if the bridge is supposed to be the same scale as the TV version). Yet, according to Macross Mecha Manual, the sizes are as follows:

TV Version:

Length: 1210 meters (3969.816 feet)

Width: 496 meters (1627.3 feet)

Height: 312 meters (1023.62 feet)

Movie Version:

Length: 1200 meters (3937.008 feet)

Width: 600 meters  (1968.5 feet)

I have read somewhere that the command tower for the SDF-1 is about 6 storeys in height (84 feet); if there's any truth to that, then the movie version would be about 3 storeys in height (42 feet) in comparison. Given the space inside the bridge as seen in DYRL, what are you guys thoughts?

[derex3592]

I've always thought the DYRL version was supposed to be larger than the TV version, but then again, it's Macross...LOL

[Bolt]

11 hours ago, Big s said:

Made a bit of progress on the hasegawa regult. Drilled out holes to attach the clear sensors and set them in place

Looks good 👍🏼 

[Bolt]

2 hours ago, pengbuzz said:

That's something I've been thinking about: if that is the case, then the movie SDF-1 would be twice as big as the TV version (if the bridge is supposed to be the same scale as the TV version). Yet, according to Macross Mecha Manual, the sizes are as follows:

TV Version:

Length: 1210 meters (3969.816 feet)

Width: 496 meters (1627.3 feet)

Height: 312 meters (1023.62 feet)

Movie Version:

Length: 1200 meters (3937.008 feet)

Width: 600 meters  (1968.5 feet)

I have read somewhere that the command tower for the SDF-1 is about 6 storeys in height (84 feet); if there's any truth to that, then the movie version would be about 3 storeys in height (42 feet) in comparison. Given the space inside the bridge as seen in DYRL, what are you guys thoughts?

I always assumed they were both similar in size. But with all the details of the movie version, it always looked bigger to me.

[pengbuzz]

43 minutes ago, derex3592 said:

I've always thought the DYRL version was supposed to be larger than the TV version, but then again, it's Macross...LOL

Maybe it shrank in the wash?

[derex3592]

1 hour ago, Bolt said:

Looks good 👍🏼 

This! 

[pengbuzz]

13 hours ago, Big s said:

Made a bit of progress on the hasegawa regult. Drilled out holes to attach the clear sensors and set them in place

Nice job on placing those sensors!

[Big s]

Thanks guys. Those clear pieces luckily weren’t too difficult to put in. For anyone who is working on the kit it was a pretty simple addition. I just used a small pin vice drill with a bit smaller than the actual sensors. Don’t know why Hasegawa molded them in the body in dull blue, but I marked around them with a panel liner, so I would know where the edge was then drilled in. I’m not very good at centering especially over a round surface, so starting with a slightly smaller bit helped. Then I just widened and centered the holes with a needle file to the point where the panel lining was barely visible. Then just used the included clear red sensors and set then in, added a little dab of thin cement on the back side of the armor around the sensors. Then pressed a bit longer lightly with the back of some tweezers while the glue was still wet and they sick in pretty well 

just take your time if you do it on your own kit and drill and file those holes slowly so you don’t make the holes too big otherwise you will need to make some kind of backing for the little sensors. My biggest tip is just relax take your time and listen to some good music while you work.

hasegawa easily could have avoided making the builder do this mod by just leaving the holes open and having a similar attachment like they did on the leg sensors, but oh well

[Big s]

As far as that duel bridge goes, it seems smaller, but I don’t think the Captain ever bumped his head in the movie version like he did in the much bigger looking tv version. Macross scale confuses me so much. 

[arbit]

21 hours ago, Big s said:

Made a bit of progress on the hasegawa regult. Drilled out holes to attach the clear sensors and set them in place

Cool. 

Edited March 10, 2022 by arbit

[pengbuzz]

13 hours ago, Big s said:

As far as that duel bridge goes, it seems smaller, but I don’t think the Captain ever bumped his head in the movie version like he did in the much bigger looking tv version. Macross scale confuses me so much. 

Same here; maybe it's variable, just like the fighters!

UPDATE:

Did some more work on Daedalus and Prometheus:

This time, I'm deliberately using the edge lines created by the tape to an effect here: they will serve as the hull panel lines for the ship. I also have a wider roll of tape that I'm using for things like the flight deck on the Prometheus:

Also, got the "roll bar" done for Daedalus; just need to add bridges to both ships and do the deck detailing on both. At this scale, I may just use paint and a fine pen\ HB grade pencil, rather than carve anything in. Daedalus will have weathering on the flight deck like a regular navy carrier, and will be closer to black-grey than to blue. I want both carriers to be a bit more realistic, and I will be doing each as dioramas: Promethus with a light set-up, and Daedalus with an opening ramp door.

I still need to get other stuff done as well on the rest of the ship: the thighs and lower legs need some lengthening, the engines need detailing, and a bout a bajillion other things.

Stay tuned folks...

[Big s]

That sdf-1 looks like it’s coming along 

[pengbuzz]

4 hours ago, Big s said:

That sdf-1 looks like it’s coming along 

Thanks!

On that note: was doing some work on Daedalus about an hour ago, when I put too much pressure on the xacto knife and sliced the front door off the carrier by accident.

(I also managed to put a slice into my left thumb as well. O.o )

Well, that said: can anyone guess how I'm going to rectify this situation?

Here's a hint:

[Thom]

12 minutes ago, pengbuzz said:

Thanks!

On that note: was doing some work on Daedalus about an hour ago, when I put too much pressure on the xacto knife and sliced the front door off the carrier by accident.

(I also managed to put a slice into my left thumb as well. O.o )

Well, that said: can anyone guess how I'm going to rectify this situation?

Here's a hint:

With tried and true Pengbuzz ingenuity! Except for that one hit by a Zentradi saber beam, those carriers are looking great! I'm of the notion that you could do the whole thing out of cardboard and tape!

As always, impressive!

[Knight26]

1:18 scale 3D printed Splicer-5000 based on my 1:48 scale kit, definitely some lessons learned for the future.

[Thom]

@Knight26 Wow, nice looking plane!

[derex3592]

Got off work a little early today and BEHOLD! There's a lot more holes in this unsinkable ship now! Never used a hot knife before.... $12 off Amazon... Works pretty good! Now the LEDs in the hull will shine up through at least a couple of the decks..... I hope... I'm following Ben from the Midwest Model Shop YouTubes channel build off his 1/200 scale Titanic. He did the same thing... Granted his holes look a lot more even than mine.. LOL 

[pengbuzz]

7 hours ago, derex3592 said:

Got off work a little early today and BEHOLD! There's a lot more holes in this unsinkable ship now! Never used a hot knife before.... $12 off Amazon... Works pretty good! Now the LEDs in the hull will shine up through at least a couple of the decks..... I hope... I'm following Ben from the Midwest Model Shop YouTubes channel build off his 1/200 scale Titanic. He did the same thing... Granted his holes look a lot more even than mine.. LOL 

Nice!! Hot knives are a real blessing when it comes to removing plastic without a ton of plastic dust/ shavings and a royal mess! Just be careful with your fingers around them; not fun if one comes in contact with the blade!

As for the "holes being even": as long as they aren't directly visible, I don't think that's going to matter, Derex. Looks like it should work well enough for letting the light through the deck for your purposes on this model. On that note, I had a question about your lighting on this: are you going to leave the port holes/ windows "open", or will you be using some time of paper/ other material to diffuse the light?

[derex3592]

I did think about that... As far as this model is concerned I will not be doing any diffusion in the port holes, at this scale that would be another whoooole level of pain and agony and I'm not willing to take the time to do it.  I DO have a pile of other kits that I am going to be over a year behind on because of this build that I got myself into.  As the LED strip is in the bottom of the hull shining up there really isn't any hot spots you can see from outside the ship like you can with the Bandai Star Destroyer, so I think it'll be fine. 

[pengbuzz]

43 minutes ago, derex3592 said:

I did think about that... As far as this model is concerned I will not be doing any diffusion in the port holes, at this scale that would be another whoooole level of pain and agony and I'm not willing to take the time to do it.  I DO have a pile of other kits that I am going to be over a year behind on because of this build that I got myself into.  As the LED strip is in the bottom of the hull shining up there really isn't any hot spots you can see from outside the ship like you can with the Bandai Star Destroyer, so I think it'll be fine. 

Ah, gotcha; that makes a difference (and a lot of sense!). Why make more work for yourself that isn't necessary, right?

Overall, your build looks really good; I'm loving the deck paneling you did!

[Big s]

I’ve never been the type to add lights to a kit, but I do like seeing others do it

[electric indigo]

Space stuff ahead.

[arbit]

7 hours ago, electric indigo said:

Space stuff ahead.

80s anime space stuff... with a capital J.

[Big s]

Could always use some space stuff 

[pengbuzz]

4 hours ago, Big s said:

Could always use some space stuff 

Space... that's what I took up in school! 😆

[MechTech]

I'm just catching up on two pages of threads! Lots of stuff guys!

@Big s Great looking pod build! What size drill did you use for the clear red sensors. I might steal your idea - if that's OK.

@Photogirl Your SDF-1 came out great! Nice-n-clean finish! I can't undo what Pengbuzz said about the end of the Beetlejuice movie with the shrunken head!😄

@pengbuzz Your SDF-1 mods are looking good!!! I'm glad you decided to make the Daedalus with all the "goodies" on it. All of that effort, I would go the distance on that too. By the way, happy birthday Sunday (according to the last page)!

@derex3592 Your ship is looking great! Some reflective shiny foils may help with directing the light around too. That Testors window maker works great too in case you want to go that far.

What a coincidence! Here's some more "Capital J" stuff:

This Harpy was a fun build! I didn't put a lot into it. The canopy gave me issues. The black paint I used did this - with the window completely cleaned. Something must have gone wrong with the paint. It orange-peeled by melting the plastic like this! I had to sand it down, remask and paint. The canopy is awesome! Nice color and it has grooves around the frame that your X-acto can easily follow. The cockpit is great with a HUD and decals to go on it to simulate it. The BEST part - the canopy AND cockpit can go in last. Nice-n-easy!

I DID NOT paint this. The colors are as molded with only minor trim painting on the engine parts. I panel lined it (Gundam marker-they're cool), weathered it and put a matt coat on it. This is how it came out:

 

Then on to the "Turbo-fire" (that I might call the "Battle Axe" as a step up from "Spitfire" 😁 Here's the plane with modified tail and plane wings.

And then a little wing work...

And nearly done with the "body-work" for the mod. The exhaust is stainless steel tube that was "squashed" a bit to make it streamlined. I'm going to try heating it up for that heated exhaust look. The white is Milliput that thankfully I decided to crack open. Its starting to go off, so it needs to be used up.

That's it for now. Thanks for checking in everyone! - MT

 

[pengbuzz]

1 hour ago, MechTech said:

I'm just catching up on two pages of threads! Lots of stuff guys!

@Big s Great looking pod build! What size drill did you use for the clear red sensors. I might steal your idea - if that's OK.

@Photogirl Your SDF-1 came out great! Nice-n-clean finish! I can't undo what Pengbuzz said about the end of the Beetlejuice movie with the shrunken head!😄

@pengbuzz Your SDF-1 mods are looking good!!! I'm glad you decided to make the Daedalus with all the "goodies" on it. All of that effort, I would go the distance on that too. By the way, happy birthday Sunday (according to the last page)!

@derex3592 Your ship is looking great! Some reflective shiny foils may help with directing the light around too. That Testors window maker works great too in case you want to go that far.

What a coincidence! Here's some more "Capital J" stuff:

This Harpy was a fun build! I didn't put a lot into it. The canopy gave me issues. The black paint I used did this - with the window completely cleaned. Something must have gone wrong with the paint. It orange-peeled by melting the plastic like this! I had to sand it down, remask and paint. The canopy is awesome! Nice color and it has grooves around the frame that your X-acto can easily follow. The cockpit is great with a HUD and decals to go on it to simulate it. The BEST part - the canopy AND cockpit can go in last. Nice-n-easy!

I DID NOT paint this. The colors are as molded with only minor trim painting on the engine parts. I panel lined it (Gundam marker-they're cool), weathered it and put a matt coat on it. This is how it came out:

 

Then on to the "Turbo-fire" (that I might call the "Battle Axe" as a step up from "Spitfire" 😁 Here's the plane with modified tail and plane wings.

And then a little wing work...

And nearly done with the "body-work" for the mod. The exhaust is stainless steel tube that was "squashed" a bit to make it streamlined. I'm going to try heating it up for that heated exhaust look. The white is Milliput that thankfully I decided to crack open. Its starting to go off, so it needs to be used up.

That's it for now. Thanks for checking in everyone! - MT

 

That spitfire's looking good MT! And thanks for the happy b-day!

BTW: check the black paint you used to see if it has xylene in it; I had Rustoleum (the old stuff before the painter's touch line) do that to a carrier model I was working on! O.o

[Gabe Q]

@MechTech Your Crusher Joe fighter looks amazing! I refuse to believe you didn't paint that. It looks really well done with just that matt coat. Keep up the great work!

[Big s]

3 hours ago, MechTech said:

I'm just catching up on two pages of threads! Lots of stuff guys!

@Big s Great looking pod build! What size drill did you use for the clear red sensors. I might steal your idea - if that's OK.

@Photogirl Your SDF-1 came out great! Nice-n-clean finish! I can't undo what Pengbuzz said about the end of the Beetlejuice movie with the shrunken head!😄

@pengbuzz Your SDF-1 mods are looking good!!! I'm glad you decided to make the Daedalus with all the "goodies" on it. All of that effort, I would go the distance on that too. By the way, happy birthday Sunday (according to the last page)!

@derex3592 Your ship is looking great! Some reflective shiny foils may help with directing the light around too. That Testors window maker works great too in case you want to go that far.

What a coincidence! Here's some more "Capital J" stuff:

This Harpy was a fun build! I didn't put a lot into it. The canopy gave me issues. The black paint I used did this - with the window completely cleaned. Something must have gone wrong with the paint. It orange-peeled by melting the plastic like this! I had to sand it down, remask and paint. The canopy is awesome! Nice color and it has grooves around the frame that your X-acto can easily follow. The cockpit is great with a HUD and decals to go on it to simulate it. The BEST part - the canopy AND cockpit can go in last. Nice-n-easy!

I DID NOT paint this. The colors are as molded with only minor trim painting on the engine parts. I panel lined it (Gundam marker-they're cool), weathered it and put a matt coat on it. This is how it came out:

 

Then on to the "Turbo-fire" (that I might call the "Battle Axe" as a step up from "Spitfire" 😁 Here's the plane with modified tail and plane wings.

And then a little wing work...

And nearly done with the "body-work" for the mod. The exhaust is stainless steel tube that was "squashed" a bit to make it streamlined. I'm going to try heating it up for that heated exhaust look. The white is Milliput that thankfully I decided to crack open. Its starting to go off, so it needs to be used up.

That's it for now. Thanks for checking in everyone! - MT

 

Nice job rescuing that canopy. 

Mad far as the drill bit, I was using a small pin vice drill with a drill bit that was smaller than the sensor size. I don’t know the exact size, I just went with something smaller because I knew since there were no markings on the back side I had to try to keep even while drilling the rounded dome. I panel lined the outside edge so I would be sure not to go to to far to the sides. After drilling the holes I used a medium needle file to adjust the size and centering. Just make sure not to move too fast so a bit of plastic will be left to hold the clear pieces in place. As long as you do that , you can just put the sensor in to the spot and oddly enough they kinda stay in place on their own until you can put some clear glue on. I held the part upside down and used a bit of thin cement around the edges on the under side of the armor and lightly pressed pressed with the backing of sone tweezers for a couple seconds to set them in place.

 I don’t mind anyone using my ideas if it helps them and honestly these sensors didn’t take much work to set in. I know some builders really like led lighting and for those, there is actually a lot of space to do that with. Even the leg sensors could probably be lit up as well. I just used a bit of alclad on the backs for a bit of shine on mine though 

[pengbuzz]

10 hours ago, MechTech said:

@Photogirl Your SDF-1 came out great! Nice-n-clean finish! I can't undo what Pengbuzz said about the end of the Beetlejuice movie with the shrunken head!😄

Er... that was Derex:

  

On 3/8/2022 at 1:21 PM, derex3592 said:

Is it just me or can anyone else just NOT help seeing the head shrinking scene in Beetlejuice when you look at this???.....

I know better than to insult a lady's handiwork, especially when her work makes mine look like a thrift-store find!!!

[electric indigo]

@MechTech That's a fine looking Harpy, even moreso since it was achived from the unpainted plastic!

I have Norma's ride in limbo since I can't decide between a shiny new Ferrari look or a filthy space pirate post-soviet junkyard style.

Speaking of space pirates – let's crush some:

[arbit]

@MechTech Nice oldies-but-goodies spaceship.  That's a nice result with the green parts, given that it's without painting, I would not have guessed. As for the white parts, how would they look with a bit of color modulation, maybe a quick layer with a white oil paint?

And the mods on the wing for the second plane look really clean. Seems like very challenging handicraft to pull that off.

[arbit]

2 hours ago, electric indigo said:

I have Norma's ride in limbo since I can't decide between a shiny new Ferrari look or a filthy space pirate post-soviet junkyard style.

Maybe something in between. 

[Thom]

@MechTech Great recovery on the canopy. That Harpy is looking great.

But that Turbospit is looking sweet! Once again, that blender on the nose is just awesome! Same with the wings and the exhaust.

@electric indigo Real cool looking Cordoba!

Edited March 14, 2022 by Thom

[MechTech]

@pengbuzz Thank you! You may be right about the paint solvent. It was nearly empty so it got tossed just to be sure! Thanks for the catch on the SDF-1 too. Ha ha

@Gabe Q Thank you!

@Big s Thank you! I figured that's what you did. Since they're round, maybe I can drill the hole with the correct bit/file and then use a round Dremmel bit in a handvice to help make a good fit for them.

@electric indigo Thank you! The paint is looking good on the Cordoba! Every time I see that name, I have to think of this (and the Corinthian Leather):

@arbit Thank you! Good idea for the white. I was thinking of doing that for the Ingram model too. It would help break up the solid color.

@Thom Thank you! Someone in my model club showed me the opening for "Skycrawlers" and said my plane reminded him of that. I have to agree. The props look like their designs. - MT