Starship Modeler Discussion Forums

I was stunned when John passed away; I am personally pleased that you had saved those pages. Thank you! He was one of the best at taking a difficult subject and making it easy to grasp. I found a memorial on him on a blog: John Selvia passed away suddenly at the young age of 45. John is probably kno...

Also, consider looking over the how-to items, like Zog's on plastic sheet methods:
http://www.starshipmodeler.com/tech/cj_scribe.htm

Wilco Models sent me details on how he did the painting on his gun models: Post subject: Super-Secret Finishing Method for Distressed-Metal Appearance: 1. Spray-paint the pistol body flat black (the cheap 94-cent WAL-MART stuff works fine). Let dry overnight. 2. Get a tube of Antique Gold colored Ru...

It varies - as a rough average, two weeks with no new messages means the auto-prune will zap a topic.

If you have already read the various tutorials on building with foam, then all I can add is 'get going' and just start. The biggest benefit to using foam is that it is inexpensive (cheap!) and that translates into plenty of practice material. I'm currently working on a catamaran carrier project that...

Not a thingamabob ?

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.p ... g-a-ma-bob

I also 'stickied' the thread, since it has the rules/guidelines for the challenge.

... Question...any ideas as to the ideal urban camo ? A sign advertising the local Hooters? :D Wait, wait, that would *draw* the eye, not help evade notice. If I were in a cynical mood, I could suggest some things... What you want is something that everybody sees in any city but never really notice...

Kylwell wrote:Spray on Vinyl vs Mr. Surfacer spray, on vinyl...

That's what I read it as... was I wrong again?

Pull out your spare ME-109, Tiger tank, P-51 - or Kazon Torpedo - that you are never *ever* going to build straight-out-of-the-box, and hit it with the spray on vinyl.

Then, report back to us and deliver the results. I'd like to know, too!

According to some of the auto modelers news (they LOVE this stuff): "Apparently the old supplier quit making it, so Tamiya had to change manufacturers, now the new manufacturer has a slightly different formula, so guess what, this formula has to be certified by the paint police in California, b...

blakeh1 wrote: Is that the Tamiya smoke paint that has the little chunks in it? I know that is kind of transparent, maybe strain it first?

I've only purchased a few bottles of the Tamiya Smoke over a decade, but I never had chunks in it.

Questions... -how big is the item? -what color are you planning: smoked tint, green-tint, yellow-tint? -are you brush painting the color or airbrushing? There are several colors of stain-glass dyes that can be used to tint clear styrene. Tamiya makes a great 'smoke' color that airbrushes very nicely...

Sweet!

I have always been fascinated with the lesser known river-only ironclads of the Civil War, both Confederate and Union. Nice work!

The costume / prop makers over on the RPF boards often work with foam in quantities *waaay* bigger than most of us will ever tackle, and some of their work is awe inspiring: http://volpinprops.blogspot.com/2009/09/big-daddy-bioshock.html I've not tried these yet, but when I eventually do try, I'll p...

I'm the 'other' Joe, but here's what I would do: Start with a large rectangular sheet of your material (styrene, metal) for the barrel brackets. Draw the circles for the barrels to fit through. Draw larger circles around those to become the actual brackets. Drill all the holes. Then, cut the circles...

Where do you get the Hex nut sets? I couldn't locate a (current!) manufacturer with a quick Google. Finding round punch sets is fairly easy. Hex, not so much. Be prepared to spend real money, or, lots of time -- which as we all get older is VERY expensive! There also is the do-it-yourself technique...

If you scroll 2/3 down this linked page, there are some nice images of what you describe wanting: http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/180/301577.page Also, bring up Google, type in 'silicone mold pour sprue' and click search. Then hit the Images button, and you'll see many examples of wh...

PetarB did an awesome job of making a custom canopy, detailed here:

http://www.macrossworld.com/mwf/index.p ... opic=28650

Nice job!


And that's speaking as someone who has done one...

http://www.starshipmodeler.info/contest6/scratch_19.htm

There is no easy 'sure-fire' answer for that. One huge point: surface preparation of the model. Translation: wash that spaceship! Mold-release, even for styrene kits, and your own skin oil/fingers will detract from a showroom finish. So, clean before applying the primer coat! After that, well, a num...

If you are looking for negative data... no, I haven't tried it. I'm still using Testor's Acryl Dull Coat because I like it.

Try Google Images:

http://reference.findtarget.com/search/ ... 23Starbug/

And there was the Corgi toy:

http://www.corgitoycars.com/corgi-model ... -red-dwarf

I have not encountered that issue with Testors Dullcote before - but I can come up with a quick checklist: - how thickly was the enamel applied? - how long did you let the enamel dry? - Testors Dullcote really should applied in quick, misting coats. I have heard that if it is applied too thickly, it...

Any data on what psi to shoot it with, or approximate distances to the model? I have a few models in the build pipeline that are almost ready to be painted, and I'm also planning to give Alclad a try.

Here in the States, Aves putty, MagicSculpt, A+B Putty are preferable to Milliput. They all have super-shelf-life longevity compared to Milliput. And they are usually cheaper to buy when comparing volume. Just my opinion... shared by many others, though. :8) Ah, almost forgot. Consistent quality of ...

I will say that I'm 5' 10" and that no matter how good a friend Kylwell is, he ain't gluing no model parts on me!

When it comes to pointy lawn-darts, this one is definitely in the All Time Top 5:

http://www.fantastic-plastic.com/ITCF-108RAPIERPAGE.htm

With a wee bit cockpit revision, say, like the style of an F-102 or F-106, it'd make a great zero-length launch Fifties-era UFO interceptor.

Do you have a Joanne's Fabrics, Michaels, or Hobby Lobby in your area? Look for some "quilting thimbles". They can make very cool looking engines: http://www.quiltknit.com/assets/images/notions/12149-151_thumbnail.jpg http://www.customthimbles.com/wp-content/gallery/thimbles/thimble_0.jpg

... and the Pilgrim Observer which is supposed to be re-released has about 4. I'm fairly certain that there are only 3 of them, and they are molded solid - not open, and rather small as well: http://www.round2models.com/models/mpc/pilgrim-observer/mpc713-04 Look closely, and you'll see that the bla...