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Thunderbirds are Go! The new Thunderbird 2 and TB4


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Over the Christmas holidays I began work on the Thunderbird 4 in the kit - it is quite a small thing but comprised a dozen or so pieces. Since its designed as a snap-together kit it all went together without too much trouble...

 

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There is a pilot seat but no figure for Gordon. The holes on either side of the outriggers are for the 'arms' that you can pose folder or extended.  You can see the alternative parts here

 

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Since I'm goign to be posting it coming out of the pod on its ramp, the arms would be folded. I used masking fluid over the transparencies so I could spray it a more realistic yellow colour which is a bit more orangy. Then it was a matter of applying another load of decals - at least 20 in all including the fuselage red stripes. There are red stripes on the engines as well but these have to be painted. So finishing it all off with a wash to bring out the details and panel lines, you get this

 

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The gaps appear to be designed as part of the kit I'm not sure I'm all that keen on!

 

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Next job was to finish off the decals on the outside of the pod. here I've closed the door temporarily to put the decals on and then give it a dark green wash to bring out the details

 

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Again there were about 20 odd decals to apply, including the white stripes.

 

So now all is ready for matt varnish...

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Jeez, that pod is beautiful. I was all ready to post a reply regarding the TB4 model, which you've done a lovely job on, and comment on the small decals and details really making it more like a model of a real vehicle, rather than a model of a model, if that makes sense? Obviously the new TB vehicles were designed to be more realistic than their predecessors, and these models do them justice. Then I saw the finished pod, and, wow, just wow. It's spectacular. The weathering on the door is spot on. I do think it could do with a bit more around the sides though.  Is it worth trying to get a water line stain along it too. Not sure how you would achieve it, perhaps someone in the boat/ship section might know? It doesn't need either of these things however, and they might just ruin a spectacular pod.

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It would be possible using a neutral grey wash on the lower part of the sides probably.

 

I think they did an excellent job in the redesign of the vehicles, all of them look much more practical with features such as TB3's moveable pylons which have manipulators on them, TB4 having arms and recovery pods in the lumps on the sides of the main body, to TB5 having a rotating section to emulate gravity. The ingenious way they redesigned the TB2 pods through to be able to build the rescue vehicle they need from parts inside the "module" eliminates one of the problems I often had with the original - how do they know exactly what they need before they get to the Danger Zone? :)

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10 hours ago, Kallisti said:

- how do they know exactly what they need before they get to the Danger Zone? :)

I'm most of the way through the first season, while I build mine, and in their defense this is actually covered... Brains invariably advises Jeff, either that or Scott arrives early enough in TB1 to advise which vehicles TB2 should bring. That said, there seems to be more often than not a new device or gadget being developed that just happens to be exactly what's required for the emergency that coincidentally happens just after they've finished testing it! :) Never fails to make me smile, and that's what matters. They're enjoyable to me now for different reasons than when I was a kid. Good harmless fun, with a pinch of casual discrimination that just wouldn't be ok today. I did have a little chuckle at Lady P being scared of the badly designed remote control mouse camera and ruining all the photos of the equipment. 

Edited by James B
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  • 2 weeks later...

Taken a while to get around to posting these due to real life getting in the way, but here are some photos of TB2 having been decaled and weathered

 

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It is now complete, so I'll post some finished pics soon...

 

 

 

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Really great job. Just the right amount of weathering to reflect the work horse nature of these two. You certainly won me over (well maybe not completely - but that's not a reflection on what you've produced) to liking these new designs.

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