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Revell 1:144 Virgin Galactic "Space Ship Two and White Knight Two"


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Current wip is the Revell 1:144 Virgin Galactic "Space Ship Two and White Knight Two" which I happened to purchase at hobbycraft when i went in for a bigger cutting mat.

Obligatory box shot:

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Obligatory sprue shot:

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Expect more photies soon as I have some parts built already! :popcorn:

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  • 2 weeks later...

A bit of a delayed update. Anyway, some progress has been made:

Space Ship Two put together and awaiting priming, gloss white then decals & kristal klear for glazing.

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Dry fitting the fuselage sections of White Knight Two

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Building bulkhead for ballast weight (deluxe materials liquid gravity secured with thin C/A)

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Ballast applied. Handy things herb scales!

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Coming along nicely now!

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Getting a bit frustrated with the kit at the moment. I'm not used to working at such a small scale!

Major problems airbrushing the Tamiya X2 gloss white acrylic - for some reason it clogged my airbrush (harder & steenbeck ultra with 0.2mm needle and nozzle), and is a rather rough finish :-(

I have stripped airbrush down for a thorough clean, and will try spraying again using the larger 0.4mm needle and nozzle.

Looking forward to getting this model finished, as I have found it rather fiddly

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Build on hold at the moment till I get airbrushing issues figured out. Seems that white is a difficult colour to apply!

May end up getting Halfords Gloss Appliance white rattle can!

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  • 3 weeks later...

Looks good so far though. For paint I really like Tamiya gloss white in a rattle can - you can decant it if you prefer to airbrush and it works very well through my H&S with 0.2mm nozzle.

White primer helps too since you won't need as much coverage from the gloss.

HTH,

Will

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  • 1 month later...

After a long break, a bit of an update.

Managed to get a nice gloss finish on Space Ship Two using Revel Aquacolor gloss white thinned with water, and a drop of flow improver and retarder. The 0.4mm nozzle of my airbrush helped!

SpaceShipTwoPaintedTop.jpg

SpaceShipTwoPaintedBottom.jpg

I've also managed to get White Knight two painted - just needing to let it cure for a day or so, then I'll get it pledged up!

Added a couple of coats of pledge multi surface wax, and I'm now starting to apply decals using microset and microsol.

BottomDecalResized.jpg

Amazing stuff microset & microsol - quite impressed how it sucked the big "Virgin" decal down on the base!

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Cheers for the replies. yes, the big decals were tricky! I think using the microset and microsol helped a heck of a lot! as the decals have bedded down nicely.

Anyway a bit more work done.

I've filled in the gap between the black decals on the winglet edge:

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Doesn't look too bad from a distance, shame the supplied decals didn't meet in the middle to avoid having to do this.

I've also had a go at using Micrscale "Micro Kristal Klear" to do the glazing:

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It's the first time i've used this stuff, hopefully the windows won't be too concave when the dry? At least they will be flush with the edge of the window frame, and also avoided the issue of fitting the glazing then trying to fill the gaps between the body shell halves!

Not sure if you need to go over the Kristal Klear with a gloss coat to seal it in?

Looking forward to getting this finished now! Just White Knight 2 to get gloss coated, then on with the decals!

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You may need to apply another layer of Krystal Kleer once this one dries. Sometimes if the edges of the opening are thick it will dry concave, but another layer sorts that out. Applying a clear coat will protect it against atmospheric moisture which can turn it milky on damp days.

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What a nice kit. Thought about getting one myself. I actually like working in this scale. Paints expensive. You save money going this route. Think I'll take the plunge and make the purchase. Nice work.

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Build on hold at the moment till I get airbrushing issues figured out. Seems that white is a difficult colour to apply!

May end up getting Halfords Gloss Appliance white rattle can!

I'm no expert. and my method may have a hidden flaw, but my solution has been, especially with white and in a small scale, to paint flat white over a light colored primer, and then use a clear coat to gloss it. Is that primitive. I would love for someone to let me know if there is a difference in overall look and finish quality, than starting off with gloss paint.

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You may need to apply another layer of Krystal Kleer once this one dries. Sometimes if the edges of the opening are thick it will dry concave, but another layer sorts that out. Applying a clear coat will protect it against atmospheric moisture which can turn it milky on damp days.

Thanks for the tip here - I've suffered saggy thin Krystal Kleer windows before and never dared add a 2nd coat

That's another good modelling tip picked up from the forum today :goodjob:

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Thanks for the tip here - I've suffered saggy thin Krystal Kleer windows before and never dared add a 2nd coat

That's another good modelling tip picked up from the forum today :goodjob:

I will definitely use his advice. I have suffered the same problem before.

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Good tip that to add a second coat of Krysal Klear.

I did that last night, and the windows look a lot better now!

Kit almost finished, just final gloss coat to do to seal the decals, tidy up the stand, then fit Space Ship Two to White Knight Two, then glue the paired craft to the stand! :popcorn:

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I also find setting the model in a position such that gravity allows the Kristal Klear to dry without sagging inwards works as well. I use something like a "Helping Hands" or a Lego jig to hold the model for the time it takes for the Klear to soliidify. In a model such as an airliner or Spaceship 2, you would have to do each side separately.

Decades ago I was building the Airfix 2001 Orion space shuttle and tried to accelerate the drying of Kristal Klear using a hairdryer. DON'T. All I did was melt and buckle the fuselage.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I'm sorry, I can't do the whole "he" thing. I lack the necessary attributes.

I am the one who should be sorry. I obviously was not paying attention to my sources. Please accept my apology.

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  • 2 weeks later...

At long last the Virgin Galactic "Space Ship Two and White Knight Two" is finished!

My first and last foray into 1:144 kit building. Too fiddly for my liking.

A fun and interesting build, a nice change from my usual subjects.

Finished_IMGP1110.jpg

Completed build gallery here:

http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/234988771-revell-1144-virgin-galactic-space-ship-two-and-white-knight-two/

:thumbsup2:

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