Jump to content

Launch 14 - Cooper's Rocket


Recommended Posts

  Marylin's been on my work bench for almost 20 years.  A photo from 1957.  I got this card when I was dating my wife.  I'm not sure if Marylin knew anything about the space program, but maybe there was something going on there.  I've herd rumors...........

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, RichO said:

  Marylin's been on my work bench for almost 20 years.  A photo from 1957.  I got this card when I was dating my wife.  I'm not sure if Marylin knew anything about the space program, but maybe there was something going on there.  I've herd rumors...........

Ah, I see. When I first noticed her I was viewing on a smallish screen and thought she was a 3D bust in the background that you were working on, hence the 'conquest' comment. I hadn't looked carefully enough. Now that I have, I can see she's printed on a card. I think I read somewhere that just before she died she was threatening to give a press conference about how JFK had told her he'd seen a crashed UFO at a secret US airbase.

 

Anyway, back to the rocket and launchpad...it's great to see it materialising Rich...

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Timmas said:

just before she died she was threatening to give a press conference about how JFK had told her he'd seen a crashed UFO at a secret US airbase.

A quote from Miss Monroe found its way onto the cover of a refill pad of my favoured brand in the 80s (along with others from more obvious academic luminaries - one to each pad)  If memory serves the gist was:

"One day I'm going to marry the President of the United States.  That'll [show? teach?] them."

 

I think that's a better candidate for Famous (nearly) Last Words.

Edited by Chillidragon
  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hey All,

 

  So I think I came up with a pleasing solution for the side rails.  I did run into a brief hangup, things were thought through, and sorted.  I'll show what I came up with.

 

  Looking at the photo below, the side rails (with the two guys in blue hats) lines up nicely with the work surface of the carrier.

 

Mercury-Atlas--'Mercury binder; Atlas 88D; Pad 14; prelaunch; 9-13-61

 

  You get a general idea of what the thing looks like.  I have several photos to work with, however none of the photos show the entire stretch of rail.

 

  In the photo below you can see where the rail ends and the approximate height of the rails, compared to the stairs.

 

Aerial view of launchpad with Mercury-Atlas 9 rocket
 
It's all very small in the photo, but I think I have a solution.
 
  To start the build these days is to find scrap parts from the kit first.  Serious bashing and scratching at the same time.
 
Ud24Qk.jpg
 
NM3PAO.jpg
 
6mIeTb.jpg
 
  Now all this gets turned into the side rails that I need.
 
0T1suP.jpg
 
Once I got the basic shape of the rail, I decided to test fit to see if everything worked out ok...
 
hOOwxx.jpg
 
Nope!
 
  I had built the side access stairs to reflect the stairs on the outside of the carrier.  As you can see, the inside stairs will run into the side rails.  Off with the inside stairs.  I'll see if I can find a photo of the inside surface of the carrier to resolve this issue.
 
  Still the build continues.  Once I checked my clearances,  I could proceed to the side rails once again.
 
KW4htz.jpg
 
Scratching the rails was not so hard to do, just a bit of thought and time and a few photos.
 
The photo below shows how the side rail is all supported by concrete blocks...
 
Atlas Negative Collection Image
 
  I have not built the concrete blocks at this time.  I need to work on the spacing a bit more.  You can see what I came up with for the rail system.  I think that when this is all painted and installed with the ground, this might actually look good.  We'll see.
 
6QkMiR.jpg
 
weTzkp.jpg
 
More with the devil as the build continues......Later All

 

 

 

 

  • Like 4
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks Manfred.

 

  Hey Everyone,

 

  I have finished with the construction of the second side rail.  I built the two rails the same way, so nothing new here.  Just a couple of photos.

 

Support Columns...

 

ecVhd2.jpg

 

QWgiCo.jpg

 

Iu3Rau.jpg

 

STo2Yk.jpg

 

  If you remember the reason for building the side rails at this time was, that back in post #89 I had stated that the support tyle needed to be re-cut so it would support the side rails.  That's were I'm at in the build at the moment.  Back at post #89.

 

  Now that I have my side rails established, I can re-cut my support tyle and get the base ready for the mounting.  You can see that I have a ways to go to get the tyles stuck down.

 

UlixJO.jpg

 

I have a bit of re-cutting to do, then all this gets rolled hard to get everything stuck down real good.  I have a plan to "grout" the tyles after I get all this good and tight.

 

I'll be back when I get this all stuck down good.  Later............

 

 

  • Like 6
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm not sure if the posting above has worked or not.  I can't see my own photos.  I'll try again if you guys can't see anything.  Let me know.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I can see the photos when I wright the post.  They just don't appear when I post the post.  I'll work on this some more.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hey All,

 

  I have reloaded my photos.  If you can't see them, then there is something up, I have no control over.  I hope this works!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hey Guys,

 

  I hope the posting works out ok today.  We'll see.

 

I have secured the tyles down to the support ground.  this was not a hard operation to do. Just a bit with the time, I had to clean up the edges of each piece before I pressed them down permenantly.

 

  I have re-cut the main support tyle, that supports the launch pad and ramp,and side rails, and slightly rearranged the tyles to better fit the composition.

 

The original support tyle was just a straight 6 inch strip.  You can see that the replacement tyle has been contoured to better match the model base.  This will now support the side rails along with the launch pad and ramp as a single unit.

 

r5UgVg.jpg

 

Below, you can see the support tyle missing,  LOL                           ( My wife's work station over there).

 

mFnP2V.jpg

 

Now it was time to secure all the little tyles to the base.  I used my old brayer roller from print making days to roll the tyles down tight.

 

fAcQ4y.jpg

 

You can also see that I have lined the tyles with a bead of white glue along the edge.  All the edges that are not touching the removable tyle get a secure bead to lock these outer edge pieces into place.

 

mBtQbU.jpg

 

Once the tyles were secured, I started with the surface prep...

 

I gave this a light coat of acrylic paint with (I hope) not to much water.  If you have worked with masonite before, you know it soaks water like a sponge unless you seal the surface first.

 

Qi7xLs.jpg

 

One thing I have to do before I paint the ground is figure a way to get the ground up to the level of the tyles.

 

JZfBlB.jpg

 

I have a 2mm difference to fill.  I'm not going to fill all the empty space with 2mm of something.  I have a sort of putty/grout/foam material, that is originally intended for repairing holes in the wall.

 

This is some really creamy stuff.  I plan on using this as a filler along the edges of the tyles to get a slight slope from the tyle surface to the ground.  But only about 1cm or 2 wide.  This will go around all the edges that are not touching the removable tyle.

 

uZsifL.jpg

 

That's the report to date.  I have the tyles secured, and I am now starting with the ground and getting the ground to blend with the tyles,  ( Oh lord I hope this works).

 

I'll be back to show you guys, success or fail.  Later All..........

 

 

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

Hey Bar,  The nearest name I can find for this product sounds more like a generic term, "spackle".  I found at the local hardware store.  The product name is "Fast'N Final".  Not much help there.  It is really nice to work with tho..........

 

 Hey All,

 

  So the "grouting" of the tyles went great.  This creamy foam spackle stuff is much like a whipped butter.  I just filled the spaces between he tyles and damp clothed the surface untill clean.  Messy! 

 

Before........

 

9nbKWL.jpg

 

After.........

 

b3R235.jpg

 

The photos don't really relay the feeling of unity and continuity, but it looks better in person.

 

After I let all this set over night, it was time for the transition border between the tyles and the ground.

 

JRolI6.jpg

 

You can see (barely) how I have tested the slope of the angle to see if this spackle would hold it's shape and grout between the tyles.  This mini test went great.  I did the test before I grouted the small tyles.

 

And here, the spackle boarder is a bit wider the 1 or 2 mm. It work good for now. after this drys, I may add some more in spots, but everything is in order for the moment.

 

NT8UkT.jpg

 

GjU7it.jpg

 

All this gets to dry for a day or so,  in the meantime I'll get back to the build.

 

Later All.......

 

 

  • Like 6
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi All,

 

  A quick report for today.  I have reached a mini milestone.  I have finished with the building of the base, or sub-base, depending on how you see it.

 

  I have come to the point that all dio builders love. It is now time to start adding the ground elements and the points of interest.

 

 I have fully painted the ground and sealed the surface of the masonite for adding the ground elements and textures.  

 

9DbGKI.jpg

 

With the painting of the ground I get a nice even unity that is bringing this composition together.

 

 I have also finished the base of the model kit.  The scratch work I have done has been united with the Revell kit to make a single unit.  

 

  I had to blend all this together at this time...

 

aAxwLT.jpg

 

Getting this into a single unit means I can now move on to other parts if the build...

 

7W0HON.jpg

 

You can see I have bashed a part of another kit to make the extension that I needed to finish the ramp.

 

Finally!  A single unit...

 

DnDsEO.jpg

 

Now that I have the two bases ready to be joined, I get to start working all over this build at the same time.  I certainly have the rest of the launch base to finish, and towers to build and vehicles to make.......

 

WUlyJT.jpg

 

I'll keep working on the launch base area for now.  I have several stairways to add and more piping...

 

Be back later...........

 

 

  • Like 7
Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

Hey,

 

  A quick note for today.  

 

  So I'm guessing I'm not the only one to do this.  I got so into building the stairways I needed, that I forgot to check the references for this mini build.  I'm working on the stairway on the front side of the ramp block.  

 

  The red circle shows were the mid landing should be above the roll up door. 

 

UraROn.jpg

 

The build shows that I missed the mark.  I was just sending this to paint, and thought I would take a photo for the post, and saw the mistake.

 

  I had inverted the stairs.  

 

VbBAjk.jpg

 

I had assembled the stairway with the long stretch of stairs at the top.  This needed to be the opposite.

 

Bh1HeE.jpg

 

So I cut it all apart, and reassembled it properly this time...

 

OlahMJ.jpg

 

 

 

zOGVpl.jpg

 

That's more like it.  I just thought I would show how not paying attention can lead to a day and a half of work.

 

I'll be back with more stairs.........

 

 

  • Like 8
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Rich,

 

sorry, but I think that your stairs course is not quite correct, if you compare it with the real ramp. :rolleyes:

 

That's why I've marked in this image the trailing edge of the stairs that runs in front of the wall and the pipes. The half landing of the stair must be further to the left next to the door and therefore a bit higher. :coolio:      

 

2C0Bjj.jpg


And that's why I think that it should similar look as I have marked it in your image. 

 

zAWsiP.jpg

 

 What do you think about? :hmmm:

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Tough call on the stairs @roma847 - I think you are right, but I could definitely live with them as Rich has them.  The fine line between accurate scale model & good represenation of the subject

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...