Whats Lying on your Workbench MK IV

[505thAirborne]

18 minutes ago, pengbuzz said:

Or you could just use peroxide on them (and sunlight)...

@pengbuzz I thought about it but that one will be repainted as a Mac 7 VF-11C. 

 

Just arrived this morning, this is the other VF-11B I ordered, she's virtually paint & scratch issue free & no yellowing. 

Definitely needs the legs repaired and a new antenna. I found some other spare parts online so eventually this one will be good as new. 

 

 

[Urashiman]

10 hours ago, electric indigo said:

Hmm, going by the lineart, the curve of the canopy should be less steep. Did you put a pilot in there for dimensions?

http://www.macross2.net/m3/macrossga/vf-9/vf-9-fighter-schematics.gif

okay, redoing it again. Canopy on the list as well hahahahah

I think it got so bulky because I was putting in a true to scale pilot figure.

The nose and canopy were done based on super bad quality line art. I got way better stuff now.

6 hours ago, arbit said:

Man, it must be tough to fix your 3d model. Do you have to redo the whole part?

the plane is cut up in different parts, so if I want to fix a part, I usually have to do it from scratch. Especially if I already did the panel lines. Adjusting something with baked in panel lines is the horror. Usually it is easier going from the backup model without the panel lines and then redo the panel lines.

@MechTech Thanks and jep, see the above

[Thom]

4 hours ago, MechTech said:

@pengbuzz Ahhh, the good ole' days! My son was complaining about a lot of the anime being on paid platforms so not a lot to see. I gave him the ole speech (grandpa voice), "back in my day we didn't have much anime and we liked it!"

@arbit Now you're just showing off putting them together😁

@505thAirborne It looks like you have your work cut out with all the yellowed spots - even on the gray plastic!

@Urashiman You're model is looking good. I think EI may be right about the windshield angle.

At LONG last, a "simple" model that was supposed to be built for a January contest is finally DONE! It's also not so simple anymore either.😉

To encourage you guys not give up on what you're building (or life), here's a breakdown and a tally of how many times I had to redo stuff:

The propeller blades were attempted as solid metal for strength and simplicity. That failed so I had to redo them in steel. Then solder them on to brass discs to fit into the hubs. My plan to blue them with acid failed as the steel had some tin it. So they had to be coated with a Sharpie marker and painted flat to seal them.

The propeller hubs were machined several times for several reasons - of course - why not.

The canopy had to be redone twice. The first one got bad crazes in it due to bad plastic. In fact, this one has some, but they're staying now! The canopy fit horribly from stock so it took several fillings and sanding to get it relatively smooth. Use the natural rubber masking compounds, they're great and get into all the tiny corners.

The bottom shell casing "name plate" had to be decalled and coated four times for various reasons. At least its smooth now. Then four times to glue it to the base cleanly with silicone rubber.

Somebody said the hole in the spinner would look cool with a cannon in it. I agreed. One Saturday, two drill bits later and several wasted pieces, the tiny 3/16" long part was done!

I'll spare you all the details of the two gear boxes. That's tooooo long of a story...

So, having a problem with a project? - DON'T GIVE UP!

And now, here she is, the Mk 25 Turbo Spitfire Lioness - completed. Thanks for checking in guys! - MT

 

 

 

Great work on the Spitfire! Way to overcome.

[Urashiman]

@electric indigo Adjusted the nose and canopy. Does this look better? Let me hear your thoughts

This time I joined the nose and the head piece into one mesh and will put the seperation as a baked panel line later on. I think it will give the model a smoother look in the end.

First render: The old (new one from yesterday) nose
Second render: The new one from today, no panel lines yet.

[electric indigo]

I did a quick & dirty check in PS - you nailed the nose, but the canopy could be even less steep (no idea if this would leave too little room for the pilot, though). Also, if you raise the lower frame of the canopy, it would look sleaker.

I wonder if you could make the panel lines with a V-shaped cross section? This would give a more scale-adequate appearance. But I have no idea how this affects printing.

[Urashiman]

3 hours ago, electric indigo said:

I did a quick & dirty check in PS - you nailed the nose, but the canopy could be even less steep (no idea if this would leave too little room for the pilot, though). Also, if you raise the lower frame of the canopy, it would look sleaker.

I wonder if you could make the panel lines with a V-shaped cross section? This would give a more scale-adequate appearance. But I have no idea how this affects printing.

well, it might be due to perspective but the canopy aligns with line art. The render is not orthographic, but has perspective and is slightly tilted from up to down as well.

only the nose needs a bit more tweaking here and there.

Edit: forgot about the panel line thing. What do you mean with a V-shaped cross section?

I think I understood what you mean, but the model is not going to be 1:1 scale, but specifically designed for 1/72. I did some test prints for panel lines with a friend, and doing them like an edged U has given the best results so far.

Edited August 21, 2022 by Urashiman

[derex3592]

Yesterday I finally tackled my first photoetch railing with multiple bends on a fairly small part without much room to tape the railing onto the part for gluing. Not perfect, but not bad for my first try. I'm sure it'll get easier...LOOOL.  That one part took me over two hours to get right.  Got the stern attached and the ship is actually starting to look like a ship!  One more main deck to go and then the fun part can actually start!  Had a great Bday in the middle of the week with my first ever actual Tamiya model kit! Can't wait to build the Space Shuttle! 

 

Edited August 21, 2022 by derex3592

[pengbuzz]

4 hours ago, derex3592 said:

Yesterday I finally tackled my first photoetch railing with multiple bends on a fairly small part without much room to tape the railing onto the part for gluing. Not perfect, but not bad for my first try. I'm sure it'll get easier...LOOOL.  That one part took me over two hours to get right.  Got the stern attached and the ship is actually starting to look like a ship!  One more main deck to go and then the fun part can actually start!  Had a great Bday in the middle of the week with my first ever actual Tamiya model kit! Can't wait to build the Space Shuttle! 

 

Happy b-day derek! Your ship is looking ship-shape (pun intended! ), and I can see why you're eager to build that shuttle!

[Thom]

6 hours ago, derex3592 said:

Yesterday I finally tackled my first photoetch railing with multiple bends on a fairly small part without much room to tape the railing onto the part for gluing. Not perfect, but not bad for my first try. I'm sure it'll get easier...LOOOL.  That one part took me over two hours to get right.  Got the stern attached and the ship is actually starting to look like a ship!  One more main deck to go and then the fun part can actually start!  Had a great Bday in the middle of the week with my first ever actual Tamiya model kit! Can't wait to build the Space Shuttle! 

 

Indeed, Happy B-Day! And nice on the railing. Looking good.

[pengbuzz]

Guess what I'm working on right now folks?

Hint:

Spoiler

 

Edited August 22, 2022 by pengbuzz

[Urashiman]

5 hours ago, pengbuzz said:

Guess what I'm working on right now folks?

Hint:

  Reveal hidden contents

 

A 1:1 VF-1 made from duct tape and cardboard?

[pengbuzz]

37 minutes ago, Urashiman said:

A 1:1 VF-1 made from duct tape and cardboard?

I wish.

 

[Thom]

8 hours ago, pengbuzz said:

Guess what I'm working on right now folks?

Hint:

  Reveal hidden contents

 

I'm stumped!

[electric indigo]

On 8/21/2022 at 1:15 PM, Urashiman said:

well, it might be due to perspective but the canopy aligns with line art. The render is not orthographic, but has perspective and is slightly tilted from up to down as well.

only the nose needs a bit more tweaking here and there.

Edit: forgot about the panel line thing. What do you mean with a V-shaped cross section?

I think I understood what you mean, but the model is not going to be 1:1 scale, but specifically designed for 1/72. I did some test prints for panel lines with a friend, and doing them like an edged U has given the best results so far.

Looking forward to see the text prints! 👍

[pengbuzz]

5 hours ago, Thom said:

I'm stumped!

rofl!!

[sh9000]

Nice work @derex3592 and Happy Belated Birthday!

[electric indigo]

More work done on the Su-25

[derex3592]

@electric indigo That's looking really nice!!! 

I'm EVER so pissed ---THIS is what happens at the tail end of a Sunday afternoon when you're in a rush and tired and that silly ONE last part you are trying to put on isn't fitting so you get your REALLY GOOD, "THEY ARE ONLY FOR TAKING PARTS OFF THE SPRUE AND TRIMMING NUBS" cutters out and go in to try to fix your problem on old 70's plastic...

Now those were my Dispiae's, I'd had them about a year and I really liked them.  Barbotos Rex talked me into them after his 20 cutters review video.  First pair of single blade high end cutters.  Now you reaeeeaally can't find them anywhere for what I paid about a year back, other than evilbay with shipping from Deep Dark China.com, so no....

They say a fool and his money are soon parted, well....this happened, so we'll see....

 

[Thom]

@electric indigo Great camouflage work!

[pengbuzz]

4 hours ago, derex3592 said:

@electric indigo That's looking really nice!!! 

I'm EVER so pissed ---THIS is what happens at the tail end of a Sunday afternoon when you're in a rush and tired and that silly ONE last part you are trying to put on isn't fitting so you get your REALLY GOOD, "THEY ARE ONLY FOR TAKING PARTS OFF THE SPRUE AND TRIMMING NUBS" cutters out and go in to try to fix your problem on old 70's plastic...

Now those were my Dispiae's, I'd had them about a year and I really liked them.  Barbotos Rex talked me into them after his 20 cutters review video.  First pair of single blade high end cutters.  Now you reaeeeaally can't find them anywhere for what I paid about a year back, other than evilbay with shipping from Deep Dark China.com, so no....

They say a fool and his money are soon parted, well....this happened, so we'll see....

 

Man, that sucks! Is there anything you can do to fix them?

 

[Urashiman]

On 8/22/2022 at 10:35 PM, electric indigo said:

Looking forward to see the text prints! 👍

If you are expecting a VF-9 test print, I don't have one. The test print is just a small rounded block, with panel lines and holes with varying hull thickness.

[pengbuzz]

Okay...a few shots before I do a full post on this one later this morning:

 

And yeah: it was a royal pain to cut, glue and file a clear piece of plastic into place on the Captain's quarters:

Don't go away!... Space Battleship Yamato/ StarBlazers  will be right back after these important pengbuzz messages...

[pengbuzz]

Sorry for the delay folks: had to deal with an idiot "maintenance man", then I scalded my left hand with boiling water while making dinner. 😱

As promised, pics-

 

Moved the front turret a bit forward:

 

Cut and redid the bow and inlet the launch bays:

 

Front gun deck redone; I filled in the "inset/ stepped section" just in front of the second turret and "swooped" it up as seen in most of the other versions::

 

Put a faux wood finish on the stand and rebuilt it from "side plug in" to a cradle to hold the ship:

 

At this point, I was unhappy with the aft section of the Yamato; I ended up cutting off 75 percent of it and filling it in/ building it up with heavy styrene place and hot melt glue.:

 

I added masking tape to finish the hull section and smooth it out: I also added a new rear deck to the part just under the big turret, and added extended sections along the sides.

Not to mention: fabricating and installing new secondary engine nacelles and ventral strakes:

 

Where the project stands so far:

Cut, inset and filed/ polished a clear piece of styrene for the Captain's quarters:

 

While it was my original intention to build the first version of the Yamato, my plan now is to build an idealized one with the features I like the best from the varying versions.

Special thanks and shout out to @Thom for sending me this kit!

Stay tuned folks...

Edited August 27, 2022 by pengbuzz

[Sanity is Optional]

On 8/25/2022 at 2:45 AM, Urashiman said:

If you are expecting a VF-9 test print, I don't have one. The test print is just a small rounded block, with panel lines and holes with varying hull thickness.

If you're really careful, and have the right tools, might be able to trim the second jaw so it doesn't protrude? Would probably still be ruined for cuts near the end of the blade though.

The thin single-blade cutters are very fragile if not used carefully (or even if used on harder plastic).

[Thom]

Ver cool looking @pengbuzz! Those little flares either side of the stern make a big difference.

[pengbuzz]

19 minutes ago, Thom said:

Ver cool looking @pengbuzz! Those little flares either side of the stern make a big difference.

Thanks Thom! I saw those on the 2199 version and thought they'd make a good addition!

[Big s]

1 hour ago, pengbuzz said:

Thanks Thom! I saw those on the 2199 version and thought they'd make a good addition!

Good to see that you’re back in action 

[derex3592]

Upper deck --- ON! 

[nightmareB4macross]

5 hours ago, derex3592 said:

Upper deck --- ON! 

Impressive. Is this scratch built?

[Urashiman]

18 hours ago, Sanity is Optional said:

If you're really careful, and have the right tools, might be able to trim the second jaw so it doesn't protrude? Would probably still be ruined for cuts near the end of the blade though.

The thin single-blade cutters are very fragile if not used carefully (or even if used on harder plastic).

I am confused, you probably wanted to quote someone else

[sh9000]

Very cool @derex3592.

[Thom]

Very nice @derex3592!

[MechTech]

Thank you guys! I was glad to FINALLY get that done. I think I'm breaking my personal record for models built AND finished in a year.

@505thAirborne You need a business card that says "Valk Doctor" on it😁

@Urashiman Your improvements look good and accurate!

@electric indigo Great looking finish on the -25. The panel accents give it a nice feel.

@derex3592 The work on the Titanic is looking great! The windows look real with the lighting. I don't know what it is, but ammo works great for holding parts while gluing. Its too bad about your cutters. The God Hand cutters are the best from what I've seen. I guess they say cut the parts off with some of the sprue, then clean it off with those. I've found the cleanest cuts are actually SLOWLY cutting the parts, not nipping them quickly. That's the weird part.

@pengbuzz Sorry about your hand. You are making some 'UGE changes to that kit! They are vast improvements and looking great! Go crazy, add another gun turret! That stand also adds a richness to it. Classy! - MT

[derex3592]

@nightmareB4macross - No, well, haha, most of it is the 1/350 Minicraft kit designed in the 70's. It's been re-popped over the years with minor changes, this one was after the 1997 Titanic movie as best I can tell.  It doesn't have the upgrades some of the later kits had unfortunately, so I've had to do quite a bit of creative scratch building of some parts to make it look halfway decent.  

@Urashiman I believe @Sanity is Optional was commenting on my broken Dspaie nippers.

@Thom @sh9000 Thanks! 

@MechTech Thanks! Yes, I've found the exact same thing when using the single high end cutters. Make your initial cut a bit away from the part, then go in sloooowly with the good cutters flush up against the part 90 degrees to the way you might first thing to cut it, and it's still not absolutely perfect, but darn close. Nothing 5 seconds with a light grit sanding stick or glass file and a quick buff can't make perfect. I tried this method from  Barbatos Rex (using the God Hands/glass files/nail buffer pad) yesterday just for fun on the two main halves of the Tamiya Space Shuttle and the results were very good! 

Edited August 28, 2022 by derex3592

[Thom]

2 hours ago, MechTech said:

...

@pengbuzz Sorry about your hand. You are making some 'UGE changes to that kit! They are vast improvements and looking great! Go crazy, add another gun turret! That stand also adds a richness to it. Classy! - MT

Great Yamato style? It'll need a few more turrets!