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Photon

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Posts posted by Photon

    Anti-Gravity / Mag-Lev Racer

    in Work In Progress - SF & RealSpace

    Posted · Edited by Photon

    A quick update...I've mainly been working on integrating the two sides. The symmetry isn't perfect, but I think its good enough.

     

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    I also built up these two inlet/ tank things and got them attached. 

     

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    That's it for now. Hopefully, I'll have more to share soon. Thanks for checking in.

    • Like 14

    Anti-Gravity / Mag-Lev Racer

    in Work In Progress - SF & RealSpace

    Posted · Edited by Photon

    Thanks, Pete. Yeah, I’m starting to fill in the side pod attachments. I’m using an epoxy putty/clay. The attachments will have similar thickness as the rest of the pod and hopefully flow organically into the body. I have some outrigger/ stabilizer type projections for the front of the body.but  I still haven’t got that area totally sorted yet.

    I may add a fin or two on the bottom. I have a box of miscellaneous plane bits at the ready.

    I will finish it for sure. I may delay starting the contest until this is wrapped up…at least the building part. I may hold off on painting until the weather warms up a bit. I’m also planning on dialing back my contest entry this year so I have more time to build other stuff.

    • Like 1

    Anti-Gravity / Mag-Lev Racer

    in Work In Progress - SF & RealSpace

    Posted · Edited by Photon

    I've been slowly making some progress on this and I finally have enough to warrant an update. 

    The orange piece pictured below is a frame from an unidentified car model. I want to keep the cockpit mostly open, but like the idea of a protective cage of some sort. This was the best thing I could come up with, given the parts I have to hand. I like the sloping shape, so I 'll try to make it work. The alternative is scratch building something, which honestly isn't very appealing at the moment.

     

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    I wanted to have an absurdly huge engine in the rear. I didn't have the right kit parts to really achieve what I was imagining, so I resorted to a hybrid of 3D printing and kit bashing. The two bulbous exhausts are from a couple of novelty pens that I've been saving for a while. the central cylindrical tank is a Gundam option part. the rest were designed and printed to integrate the kit parts. 

     

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    Then I continued to add model parts and wires, including an entire motorcycle engine.

     

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    I got some primer on it and deemed it good enough.

     

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    I glued up the two helicopters and sealed up the windows and hatches with some putty, having first glued in a styrene sheet from the inside. I also added some tapered bumps from an airplane kit (?) and blended them in with some putty to vary the shape a bit.  Some mechanical bits were added to either side to suggest some airbrakes, or some such.

     

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    The side pods were attached using aluminum wire so I could adjust the "pose" and get them symmetric. Then covered in epoxy to fix in place.

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    Now I'm entering the 'Epoxy Putty Hell' portion of the build, whereby I attempt to blend them into the main body. 

    The annual mecha building contest that I've been participating in the last few years starts up again on Feb 1st, so I'm rushing a bit to get this in a good place before I inevitably put it in a box for the next six months. oh well...

     

    Thanks for looking in.

    Pete

    • Like 11

    Anti-Gravity / Mag-Lev Racer

    in Work In Progress - SF & RealSpace

    Posted

    Thanks for the pic, Pete. its very cool. I did try a Yakult bottle, but its a bit big for the space where I'd like to put it.  I think I'm going to have to bash something together from odds and ends.

    Yes, I think using parts from vastly different scales can often lead to very interesting results (as long as the parts aren't too recognizable.)

    • Like 1

    Anti-Gravity / Mag-Lev Racer

    in Work In Progress - SF & RealSpace

    Posted

    I started a new kitbash. After building only robots and mechs the last couple years, I’m itching to build some vehicles. This time, a sort of hover racer, stylistically landing somewhere between ye olde video game Wipeout and the Ma.K universe.

     

    I started with this 1/24 scale Fujimi figure. I modified his arms to go from holding a steering wheel to holding joysticks by his side. This was done by inserting an aluminum armature wire, bending the arms into position, then filling the gaps with some putty. This, unfortunately, caused some distortion to his already weirdly proportioned body. I’m not to bothered by this, but yes, he looks a bit weird.

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    From there I started to build up a cockpit of sorts. The chair is from an old muscle car kit. The chair control arms are suspension leaf springs from the same kit.

    I also started to glue some junk to the figure to make sure he looks suitable futuristic. I need to do a bit more, maybe some hoses etc. 

     

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    I also added a styrene pin to keep the pilot from constantly falling out of his chair...

     

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    Some time ago I had seen someone had built a cool Falke variant using 2 H-21 Shawnee flying banana helicopter fuselages. I thought it looked really cool and filed that idea for later use. Recently, a local shop had a couple 1:72 Italari versions of the kit pretty cheap (17 bucks ea.), so I scooped them up. 

     

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    So that's the basic scheme. Now...how to actually pull it off? 

    After rummaging through the bit boxes, I came up with this arrangement:

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    1:12 Estar Guars Battle Droid and Tamiya motorcycle frame form the basis of the central pod. There's quite a bit of scale variation going on so far, 1:12, 1:24, and 1:72. 

     

    So here's a few shot of where things stand, taken quickly before the tape holding everything together failed.

     

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    I plan to build a big engine for behind the pilot and start working out how to attach the booms. I'm thinking about aluminum armature wire so I can adjust and match the angle and then sculpting some putty over that.

    Ok, that's it for now. over and out.

     

    • Like 9

    Codename: Gerbera (Kitbashed Mecha)

    in Work In Progress - SF & RealSpace

    Posted

    Yes, it has been a while for this one. I recently came across the shoebox that this project had been languishing in and decided it was time.

    So, picking up where I had left off, I started working on the arms. 

     

    I based the arms around some lengths of polystyrene tube that I had to hand. The elbows joints were made by laminating three strips of styrene and whittling them to fit the ID of the tube. Hard to describe, maybe these pics will help:

     

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    For the forearms, I 3D printed some parts in styrene that were designed to fit over the outside of the tubes. I didn't have the computer modeling skills make such a complicated organic shape as depicted in the original drawing, so I modeled them in two halves and then blended between the two different profiles with sandpaper after gluing them to the tube.

     

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    This actually worked out better than I expected.

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    The hands were also designed to be inserted into the inner tube. For these I used a similar technique as the elbows, only from much thinner styrene strips. 

     

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    These were pretty delicate so I put them aside to be glued in at the very end (SPOILER ALERT: I still managed to break a finger off).

     

    Next I turned my attention to the back side of the torso to give some attention to the engine and thrusters. For this, I had very little to go on except for what I could infer from the original drawing. Since this guy has rockets for feet, I assume he is what the Gundam folks call a "Space-Type".  You can see the hint of thrusters on his back, as well. For these I started with a rocket engine from the Lindberg Space Shuttle mentioned earlier in the post. I continued to build up the are with addition bits, until things looked suitably complex.

    For the cowlings that cover the thrusters, once again I fell back onto 3D printing. 

     

     

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    From here it was a matter of filling in the rest of the details from the drawing. For the weird sails on the shoulders, I used some 1:72 helicopter props from a couple of Flying Banana kits from another (yet to be started) project. Here are the main sub-assemblys in primer.

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    And that's it.  Here are some photos of the finished model:

     

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    Thanks for any interest. 

    Best,

    Pete

    • Like 13

    Night Stalker Mech

    in Work In Progress - SF & RealSpace

    Posted · Edited by Photon

    Thanks everyone. I really appreciate it.

     

    I finally got this finished. Here's the last bit of build photos, mostly focusing on the display base.

     

    I was worried about simulating the concrete with paint, but it turned out pretty well. I think the texture of the plaster did most of the heavy lifting.

    i just used a couple of different gray acrylics, then dirty brown oil paint wash. When I showed my wife this photo, she actually though for a moment that I had built a giant structure in the garden.

     

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    I stenciled some yellow graphics an the floor. The chips were done by applying liquid mask with a sponge.

     

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    Then I used some very diluted oil paints to accent the panel lines and make some stains.

     

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    Some additional pipes were made to put under the floor. I made some 3D printed elbows and pipe hangers the would work with some styrene tubes that I had to hand.

     

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    I painted them with a neutral grey acrylic, then a grimy oil wash.

     

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    I also printed a vent grating and blower motor to add some additional detail to the duct. The dust hangers and brackets were made from styrene.

     

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    Thanks everyone for following along.

    The final photos are in the Ready for Inspection section

     

     

    • Like 8

    Night Stalker Mech

    in Work In Progress - SF & RealSpace

    Posted · Edited by Photon

    Well, its been a while. I've been working on this fairly steadily, but forgot to keep this up to date.

     

    I had several plastic failures in places where I had used some Bandai sprue as rod. The sprue had a diameter of 3mm, so if was a good fit for the application, but over time it just crumbled and fell apart. Unfortunately it was at the connection points of the hip joints, lower legs, and arms. Here's a photo showing the strange porous texture of the sprue at the failure points. 

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    So the repair involved drilling out the sprue and replacing it with some brass rod, and in the case of the hips, aluminum wire, so I could pose the model. Then I used a high tensile strength epoxy made for plastic, to reinforce the hip joints.

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    It stands again.....

     

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    I also added some more detail to the top of the hull, including some pipes bent up from styrene rod.

     

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    The head also got some minor final details added. I don't remember what they were, but trust me, they're there.

     

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    At this point I decided it was time to start painting. I sprayed everything with some grey Tamiya primer from a spray can.

     

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    I then sprayed black over the whole model. Over this I sprayed a swampy, khaki/green mix in a mottled pattern, allowing the opacity to vary which yielded some nice subtle color variation.

     

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    Chips were painted in acrylic with a fine brush and a pin wash was added to help punch some of the details.

     

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    I decided I wanted to change the scale of the model from 1/16 to 1/35, so the figure had to go.

     

    I also decided to build a display base. This was meant to be a stylized industrial setting, but not a diorama. I blocked the shape out with some insulation foam from the hardware store and gave it a coat of plaster to simulate a concrete texture.

     

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    I also built an air duct that would run down the side and under the floor. This was made from plastic card and some 3D printed elbows.

     

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    Finally, I made a weird machine to put under the floor on the opposite side. A sort of pump? 
     

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    I hope to run some additional pipes from this that will be suspended under the floor, somehow. I've also begun building some hangers for the duct work. Because both the foam base and duct are slightly out of square in various ways, this has proven to be a chore.

     

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    The floor was made from foam board sandwiched between 2 thick sheets of plastic card. Some lines were scribed and the whole thing was painted a mottled blue grey over a black under coat. I also added a floor grate that will hopefully line up with the termination of the duct under the floor.

     

    The concrete and floor will now need some weathering. I'll also probably stencil some lines or graphics on the floor. Hopefully I can install the duct okay. Things are slightly wonky. 
     

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    • Like 11

    Night Stalker Mech

    in Work In Progress - SF & RealSpace

    Posted · Edited by Photon
    Spelling

    I added some to details to the arms, which were built up from some 1/12 Tamiya motorcycle parts and Bandai elbow joints. I used styrene tubing to add a little bulk since the forearms were a bit too thin. I will add some more greebles and attachment points for some dangly hoses. For the hands, I started with some SW Battle Droid fingers and made the thumbs and palm from some styrene. The back of the hand is another motorcycle bit.

     

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    I also worked a bit on the engine area. Its starting to approach the levels of absurdity that I was hoping for. A pair of droopy hoses will connect from the light blue pieces and attach to the white tubes on either side. I'll use some ribbed window screen spline for this. It has a small hole down the center that will accept a thin wire to help it hold the pose.

     

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    I expect that I'll continue to add smaller details here and there to the engine. There's a hole on the side of the bottom finned motorcycle motor that will need to be dealt with. 

     

    Here's a look at the overall model. I'm getting close to spraying some primer, but first there are a bunch a little details and small fixes to add. I also have some ambitious ideas for a base.

     

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    Weekend is here so another update may drop soon. Thanks again for any interest.

    • Like 9
    • Thanks 1

    Night Stalker Mech

    in Work In Progress - SF & RealSpace

    Posted · Edited by Photon

    Was going to mention Chief Inspector Harry "Snapper" Organs, but thought it might be better to steer this boat back on course.

     

    Spent the morning making hands. Here it is in Dead Bug Pose. Things are still too flippy-floppy to stand on their own. Hopefully glue will save the day.

     

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    • Like 6
    • Thanks 1
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