Revell 1/48th Scale The Apollo Model

[GAF]

I haven't posted anything here in quite a while, but decided I'd go ahead with this restoration I've finished recently.

 

This is “The Apollo” model kit from Revell, copyright 1969. This particular kit is about 50 years old, and has been traveling around with me in a cardboard box for about that length of time. I decided to dig it out and restore it for the 50th anniversary of the first moon landing (and for the “Race Into Space GB” that I am running). Unfortunately, over the years I had managed to lose a few parts to the model: the Launch Escape Tower and the lower section of the Lunar Module Storage Area. This meant I had to reconstruct these from scratch using plastic sheet, rods, matte board and a wooden dowel. I think I got pretty close to the originals, with perhaps a bit more external detail. Due to missing some internal parts for the Service Module, I skipped over having the external door open to show the equipment bay as on the original, but it was not something I would miss. I did have the internals for the Command Module and gave it a nice upgrade in appearance, including modifying the astronaut helmets into more of a Block 1 spacesuit configuration. The base was made out of matte board and a styrofoam square, painted to resemble the launch pad and crawler.

If you're interested, the complete build can be found in the “Race Into Space Group Build”.  The Race Into Space GB

Thanks!

 

The Command Module before assembly.  Hard to see the interior once she's buttoned up!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Silvering on the decals is a problem I haven't solved with this one, as the MicroSol tends to destroy these homemade decals.  😞

 

Thanks for looking!

Gary

[Eric Mc]

That looks really nice. A fitting tribute - not just to the actual mission - but to the state of the art of plastic model making 50 years ago.

 

Virtually all the Apollo spacecraft models issued "in period" were based on earlier versions of the designs rather than the versions actually used on the missions. You can tell that the radiator pattern on the Service Module is much more like that on the Block 1 spacecraft rather than the Block 2.

[GAF]

Eric,

Thanks!  I agree that this model is not accurate.  I hardly can name any model from that period that is accurate.  😁  Still, just for nostalgia purposes (and for testing my skills at scratch-building), it was a great build!

 

Gary 

Edited May 13, 2019 by GAF

[Gimme Shelter]

A really nice and well build piece of classic Revell plastic - top marks to you

[saturnapollo]

A very nice job on an old kit.

 

Keith

Edited May 16, 2019 by saturnapollo

[GAF]

Gimme Shelter, Saturnapollo -

 

Thank you!  Classic is right.  Almost as old as the moon landing itself!  😀

 

Gary

[Getting Old]

Nicely made, well done 

[GAF]

On 6/2/2019 at 4:51 PM, Getting Old said:

Nicely made, well done 

It's about as well as can be expected!  The kit was incomplete and the pieces not all straight after 50 years.

Still, for nostalgia purposes, it's a good 'un.  😀

[SleeperService]

It's good to see one of these built up so nicely. The Lunar Module shows how rapidly the design was evolving right up until the last minute.

 

Many years ago I went to a talk by Alan Bean and he commented that what surprised him was that 30+ years later nobody had been back to the Moon since.