Nigel Heath Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 The CA talc mixture is a good idea where you want to use it as a filler to add some structural strength such as to a filled joint. I was surprised how well it works. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
philp Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 I have done it with baking soda. It acts like accelerant but gives mass. You do have to sand right away as once it sets it is hard as a rock (ask me how I know). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will Vale Posted March 8, 2015 Author Share Posted March 8, 2015 Oh spongy resin, you try me.I gave everything a good coat of Tamiya grey primer (using up odds and ends, it doesn't really matter until the final coat) and let it dry properly. Then rubbed the whole model down with the coarsest grade of Micromesh - I'd guess it's about 600-800 grit in normal sandpaper, although it says 3200 on the back. It certainly cuts the paint down nicely and gives a lovely smooth finish, and tends to reveal sort of proto-pinhole sink marks. Hopefully more primer will deal with those...Then I filled some pinholes with CA and talc, and decided that it was too risky sanding them down so I've done the rest with Tamiya putty, trowelled on neat in some places and thinned with lacquer thinner to brush on in others. It will undoubtably have sunk in the morning so I'll be going over it again.I also used CA to reinforce a couple of faces that were acting soft - where I cut the casting blocks off the surface was tacky when I sanded back down to it, enough to take a fingerprint. I don't *think* it's the resin, it might be a layer of un-cured putty from a few days ago? These are both on the worst part, the one that looks a bit like a spanner. I smeared CA on, then sanded it quite briskly when dry to flatten it off, and finally brushed on thin Tamiya putty to level out any depressions (hopefully) when I sand it again tomorrow. I know this is all a bit repetitive but I think I'm making progress, however slow. I suspect it'll suddenly go quite quick when all the bits are fit for purpose.Little rant: Why is one of the worst parts the central eye and surround at the top front of Gerty? The casting was awful there, lots of pinholes around all this raised plating, which goes over angles so is very hard to get in and sand. Grrr...Picture to follow, then I'm to bed since it's work in the morning.Cheers,Will 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will Vale Posted March 9, 2015 Author Share Posted March 9, 2015 Rinse and repeat: Cleaned up all that filler, sanded out the pivot so the fin tube fits into it easily, fixed various surface problems and drilled out the miscast fasteners. I'll try and fit some rod into those and trim them flush after I get the main parts finished. Looks like not too many holes or other issues left, or maybe I'm getting less fussy in my old age. Fourth coat of primer tomorrow. Is this getting boring? Will Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madmonk Posted March 9, 2015 Share Posted March 9, 2015 Great work and perseverance so far Will. Always thought the design was strange particularly with the emoticon interface. Not quite a Heuy, Dewey or Louie! Cheers, Warren 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will Vale Posted March 10, 2015 Author Share Posted March 10, 2015 I rather like Gerty, there's a bit of character development in the movie such that he feels like a corporate tool at the start, and ends up being something else. All without stopping being a completely emotionless robot - it's pretty clever. So... fourth coat of primer today which I haven't rubbed down yet. I found the missing bit for my proper camera so I've taken some close-ups. I'm sure that most of what I'm doing it improving things, but it still looks pretty bloody awful and I'm not having much luck with the pinholes and divots on sharp features - half the time the filler chips off when I sand it, or I round something off. Maybe I need to try Miliput sculpted wet? I'm also wondering if a Miliput wash would help clean up the grot in the panel lines. This round bit is so annoying - I cleaned up the scribe lines on the top to get an even depth (without making them any wider) and then realised that the verticals don't remotely match. I would have been better off filling them, and may still end up doing that. Sob. This is probably the best bit, although the RHS of the recess is pretty rough since there's not a good way to sand it. It's tempting to switch to a plastic model, but I know if I do that I'll probably never summon up courage to work on it again I think my main issue is that if it was 1/12 scale or something I'd be happy for it to look like this (apart from the pinholes) but in 1/6 scale it should be better, crisper etc. I scratchbuilt a tiny 1/48th scale railway engine which looked cleaner than this robot! Cheers, and sorry for grumbling Will 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Moore Posted March 10, 2015 Share Posted March 10, 2015 (edited) Stick with it Will, you know it will look great in the end. On that round bit with the engraved lines, would it be feasible to skin it with plasticard and re-scribe it or would that throw the dimensions out too much? Andy Edited March 10, 2015 by AndyRM101 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will Vale Posted March 10, 2015 Author Share Posted March 10, 2015 Thanks for the vote of confidence Andy I was thinking I might skin it around, and just fill the grooves on top and be done with it - they're not that obvious on the real thing. Will Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter Rose Posted March 10, 2015 Share Posted March 10, 2015 Cool build Will, I'm a massive Moon fan! Great start will be following with interest 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whitestar12chris Posted March 10, 2015 Share Posted March 10, 2015 Keep going Will, this is an interesting project, stick with it. Don't mind the grumbling, do the same myself. My build is hardly straight forward either throwing up problems as I build, so I can sympaphise, lets both stick with it, it will be worth it in the end. All the best Chris 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigel Heath Posted March 11, 2015 Share Posted March 11, 2015 I cleaned up the scribe lines on the top to get an even depth (without making them any wider) and then realised that the verticals don't remotely match. I would have been better off filling them, and may still end up doing that. Sob. I think you have to fill and rescribe the lines on this area. Just steadily tackle the porosity, there are not too many of them left now by the looks. Good luck. Cheers, Nigel 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will Vale Posted March 11, 2015 Author Share Posted March 11, 2015 Thanks folks, I did indeed fill the slots on the sides and top, sanded it all down and have just added some more filler (they were quite deep and Tamiya putty shrinks). I've been over it all with my magnifier on and filled more pinholes and other issues. I also inspected the detail castings a bit more. They're ropey in places but can probably be cleaned up or used as-is where it's not obvious that a bubble is "wrong" per se. I might be better off making a new mug though, and the fluorescent tubes need to be ditched and replaced with something better. And of course I need to make new "cartridges" to replace the ones I removed - some of them are OK but two are a mess and it'd be easier to get them to match if I make my own. Getting a clean result on the top section is my biggest issue - it's very hard to get in and sand it, and I need to be careful with e.g. files since they could scrape. I might have to make a couple of specially-shaped sanding blocks with plastic backing. Cheers, Will Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will Vale Posted March 12, 2015 Author Share Posted March 12, 2015 Fortified by a couple of stiff gins I went and did some more sanding wearing the magnifier to hopefully avoid suprises. Filled a few more pinholes, cleaned up some more edges (and probably opened some pinholes in the process) and nearly got the big voids at the bottom of one part filled up. I also re-puttied the top ring and sanded it back but it doesn't feel quite level - shrinkage again? Primer the fifth tomorrow to see what I've got. In more exciting news I ordered a pile of electronical bits and will be off to Modelcrafts tomorrow to get some telescopic brass tube to run through the fin and provide a stable bearing for Gerty to rotate on. I'm thinking I'll probably have to have two microcontrollers - one in the base doing the heavy lifting, and a little one inside Gerty for the lights and faces. I don't think I can fit enough wires down the tube (even using the metal as a common ground) to do it all otherwise. Cheers, Will Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Knikki Posted March 12, 2015 Share Posted March 12, 2015 Looks good Will and salute you for persevering with this. If your going to try and use Milliput then I would score the are you are going to fill just to give the putty something to grip, the good thing about Milliput is you can use water, and lots of it, to fill most things. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will Vale Posted March 14, 2015 Author Share Posted March 14, 2015 Thanks for the tips, that might be a reason not to use Miliput since the less surface damage I do the less likely I am to go through a bubble! The tacky spot on the top of the solid block (definitely the thickest part) is still tacky, but less so. Not sure what to do about that - maybe I can sand it out and fill/seal it with CA. I don't think it can be undried filler since that always crusts over quickly to leave a dry surface. Maybe I can leave it and hope it doesn't come through the paint? As a break from working on the surfaces, I got some telescopic K&S tube and looked at how things will fit together for making Gerty rotate. My plan was to fit an outer sleeve in the fin and through the body, and have an inner tube through this as the pivot, with wires running down that. Unfortunately the holes drilled through the fin were done from both ends and didn't quite match up or hit the centre of the circular bit, so I think I'm going to throw that out and make a new one from styrene. It was one of the less good castings so no great loss. I've also filed a couple of mm of part of the body so I could slide the "clamp" (the piece with the ring on top and bevelled front) to line its hole up with the body's hole. I think I can feed the wiring through without needing the back panel off so I can probably join those parts and make good before proceeding much further. It means masking around a fiddly edge but that's all. Currently thinking about how best to anchor the inner tube which turns with the body, and have it support the weight (not inconsiderable). I could add some tape strips to get a friction fit with the sleeving tube, or try gluing it, but I really would prefer gluing the outer tube to the body, and having the inner tube drive via a pin engaging a notch or hole in the outer tube. That would give a good connection and the weight would all be borne by metal. I thought about soldering a peg to the outside of the inner tube, but I don't really want to solder inside the cavity in the resin since I'd probably melt something. The problem with that is that I also want to run wires through the tube, so I need to make sure they're out of the way of the pin. Which means not too many wires! I can save one by using the tube as a common ground, but I don't know how many I need to power and signal the micro, assuming I can get it in there Maybe as few as two (V+ and a signal) but not sure. Cheers, Will Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S5 modeller Posted March 14, 2015 Share Posted March 14, 2015 Nice work so far will, you're a braver man than me tackling this build! Could the tacky patch be caused by some unset resin, possibly from a slightly dodgy mix? Perhapse given a bit of time, it might dry out? Do you think a sprinkling of resin dust or talcum powder might help it dry? Just some thoughts from my addled brain, please feel free to ignore me. Matt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will Vale Posted March 15, 2015 Author Share Posted March 15, 2015 Are resin bubbles sent to try? If not, I know no reason why after I fill, and sand, and prime. I must repeat another time. Perhaps the sixth coat will be good? I hope (though do not think it should). When the third time was not the charm. And sanding brings no inner calm. If not six times then twenty, aye? I'll sand this ______ 'til I die. And as you watch me come undone. Remember: Modelling is fun. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will Vale Posted March 15, 2015 Author Share Posted March 15, 2015 I am totally worried I might jinx this, but I think I'm winning! The primer looks clean enough that once buffed and de-fluffed I can try some paint :thumbsup: I sanded out the tacky patch (only to a quarter of a mm or so) and covered it with CA and talc, sanded back and primed it looks good and I'm hoping there's still a layer of CA there to stop it coming through again: I also (finally!) assembled some pieces. After working out that I didn't need any access through the rear panel that wasn't available through the little hatch, I was able to fit it (thick CA) and then fill the (small) gap with thin CA and talc. Then sanded it all level - or nearly so. The top of this part is still the roughest bit, I'm not sure that I can get it any better so I'm going to stop and hope to hide things with weathering, post-it notes, spare tools etc. The three bubbles will be near-invisible under the "clamp" part which goes on top. The rest looks OK: although the grooves in this dangly bit are horrible. Any suggestions for those? I'll rub the primer down tomorrow and fit the clamp on so I can get the gaps filled. Cheers, Will 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigel Heath Posted March 15, 2015 Share Posted March 15, 2015 although the grooves in this dangly bit are horrible. Any suggestions for those? Razor saw (or other saw with a wide enough blade) across the lot and backfill the higher areas? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trickyrich Posted March 15, 2015 Share Posted March 15, 2015 very nice bubble removal work!!! That's about the only thing I don't like about resin, they are such a pain to remove. I'm not sure by the pictures how deep that groove is mean to be and will it follow the contours, as in will the depth be the same for the raised section and the lower main section? What you could do is, as Nigel mentions, use a razor saw to clean up the groove. Now if the depth needs to be the same along its length, then I would make the groove a bit deeper and then insert a length of plastic strip cut to follow the grooves proper profile. Is a bit time consuming and fiddly (and you have to go through the priming again!) but it will give the groove that nice clean look and remove bubbles! It's really starting to look great, you're doing a lovely job. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Posted March 15, 2015 Share Posted March 15, 2015 It's fighting you every step of the way, isn't it? I wonder if you'd have got anywhere with plating over some of the more accessible panels with thin styrene, and blending the edges in? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete in Lincs Posted March 15, 2015 Share Posted March 15, 2015 The groove. Stretched sprue. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter Rose Posted March 15, 2015 Share Posted March 15, 2015 Oh yeah! Nothing like perserverance to kick a problems bottom! Great work Will 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will Vale Posted March 16, 2015 Author Share Posted March 16, 2015 Thanks folks, I'll try the thing with the saw since I think that might work. I looked at the full-size prop again and I think that the scribe lines (which look like saw cuts) are really a bit too deep, which means I can think about filling them and re-scribing. Maybe. I'm actually quite tempted to sand all the detail off that bottom block and make it good, then do the little plates with styrene sheet. I was never really able to get in between them cleanly when sanding earlier. Will 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter Rose Posted March 16, 2015 Share Posted March 16, 2015 I'm actually quite tempted to sand all the detail off that bottom block and make it good, then do the little plates with styrene sheet. Yeah I think thats your best bet mate, and probably the easiest solution in the long run 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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