bianfuxia Posted March 19, 2021 Share Posted March 19, 2021 (edited) Hey all, I am going to have a shot at this: I may try to paint it or decorate it to look more like this (image is public domain via wiki): The telescope was designed to find "exoplanets" - planets orbiting a star other than the sun. The telescope is now defunct because it used up all the fuel for the thrusters used to point it at the stars being stuided , but when it operated between 2009 and 2018, it observed more than half a million stars and discovered 2,662 planets. I don't know and haven't worked out what scale this is. It's quite small, so I am hopeful it's roughly 1/144 scale to go with some of my other space models. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kepler_space_telescope Edited July 11, 2021 by bianfuxia 13 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CliffB Posted March 19, 2021 Share Posted March 19, 2021 Excellent! It's great that this GB is generating so many unusual subjects. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mjwomack Posted March 19, 2021 Share Posted March 19, 2021 That is considerably smaller, and correspondingly fiddlier, than I had imagined. Good luck. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TonyW Posted March 19, 2021 Share Posted March 19, 2021 Some nice looking space type backgrounds here: https://wallpaper-mania.com/background/space-wallpapers/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bianfuxia Posted March 23, 2021 Author Share Posted March 23, 2021 I made a start on this today, with some initial trepidation as I studied the "assembly flow chart": I had to use this big knife to get the pieces off but they do snip out nicely. It's well designed, too. Each join (the equivalent of where a part is connected to the sprue) is indicated by a triangular tab, so it's easy to identify where to cut. The pic below shows the first piece I removed. The tabs you see sticking out of it are not the attachment points, but the folding tabs you use when assembling the parts. This was easier than I had expected. I used the handle of my little drill as a smooth, circular shape to help curve this piece. I am sure I could have done a better job but it's not so bad. You can see if you look closely how the tabs and the slots work - line the parts up, get the slots in, and then either fold them or twist them to lock it in place. The instructions suggest twist or fold in different spots. Above: another example of the tab joins. So I worked on this for maybe 40 minutes and I got to where it's at in the pics below. The Vallejo bottle is for size comparison. I'd say I am a third of the way through already. The next step is the base unit which has a lot of smaller pieces - various instrument packages - attached to it. They seem a little more finicky and I will have to try them in the next few days. But so far, so fun! I enjoyed and I do have to say it's very well designed. The parts fit nicely where they are supposed to and it's easy to build if you're patient and you use good magnification (or you have great eyesight...) 13 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TonyW Posted March 23, 2021 Share Posted March 23, 2021 That looks beautiful. I love the shine. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bianfuxia Posted March 23, 2021 Author Share Posted March 23, 2021 2 hours ago, TonyW said: That looks beautiful. I love the shine. yeah it's cool hey? It would be a shame to paint it, I think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mjwomack Posted March 23, 2021 Share Posted March 23, 2021 Minuscule! but as intricate as it is immaculate. I can't see anything wrong with the cylindrical roll you put on it; amazed what you can do with a lump of tin. No idea if it's accurate, but it certainly looks the part and with very plausible detailing engraved on it. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bianfuxia Posted March 26, 2021 Author Share Posted March 26, 2021 I made a little further progress today, on this part of the "assembly flow chart" (seriously I wish all kit instructions were called that): According to a diagram on wikipedia, those three boxes at right are "photometer electronics". The bigger one at left might be a battery, I think. The one to the right of that, so the second from the left, is a "solid state recorder". Even in 2021, more than 25 years since I first used the internet, it still amazes me when I can find out that stuff in a few seconds. Construction wise, this is easy. The parts are nicely made, they fit, and they are easy to attach. At least for this Model Earth kit, I feel like it is a very good basis for a pretty nice model. 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SleeperService Posted March 28, 2021 Share Posted March 28, 2021 Very nice work so far and a very interesting build too. IIRC they were at Telford a few years back and their party trick was bouncing an Eiffel Tower off the concrete floor possibly not so good for this. The detailing is amazing. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bianfuxia Posted March 28, 2021 Author Share Posted March 28, 2021 2 hours ago, SleeperService said: Very nice work so far and a very interesting build too. IIRC they were at Telford a few years back and their party trick was bouncing an Eiffel Tower off the concrete floor possibly not so good for this. The detailing is amazing. It's really very good isn't it! They have such a wide range of stuff, too. Some of it I'm not so interested in, but there's a good range of space stuff including a colour model of one of the Mars rovers (the bigger one from a few years back). I kinda wish I'd bought more in the US (everything there is so much cheaper than here). But you have to draw the line somewhere! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bianfuxia Posted April 7, 2021 Author Share Posted April 7, 2021 Seems like forever since I worked on this but it's only been less than a fortnight. Last night I was on a very late and long call - the kind where you really just have to listen out for your name in case you're called on but with nothing to actually do - so I set it up near my desk and I finished the entire instrument bus (as I guess it's called?). Pretty pleased with how this thing is turning out! 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CliffB Posted April 7, 2021 Share Posted April 7, 2021 It looks like that reflector could do some serious damage if left in direct sunlight! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bianfuxia Posted April 7, 2021 Author Share Posted April 7, 2021 Later that day I fried an egg with it...:) 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mjwomack Posted April 30, 2021 Share Posted April 30, 2021 Will this be entering orbit soon? I've been really enjoying it, even if I'm not going to go and buy one because it looks way too delicate for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bianfuxia Posted April 30, 2021 Author Share Posted April 30, 2021 4 hours ago, Mjwomack said: Will this be entering orbit soon? I've been really enjoying it, even if I'm not going to go and buy one because it looks way too delicate for me. Yes, it's just on the far side of the sun so you can't see it. But it will swing back around before long.... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bianfuxia Posted May 1, 2021 Author Share Posted May 1, 2021 I finished this one up tonight. First, the long strip with all the instruments and powerpacks on it had to be shaped into a hexagon: With that done, there were only two pieces left! When I first tried to join the two elements, I realized I'd neglected this important diagram on the "assembly flow chart". Note the little pointy hand icon: The hexagon has a slot on each side for the instrument bus, but four of the six are double slots so you can also attach the main telescope too. You have to align it properly so the double slots are in the right spot - I didn't do that when I added that large flat panel thing on the back of the telescope. So it all had to come off which was a bit tricky. Then I finally added the two main elements together: ...and realized I had put it on one panel mis-aligned - that dish is meant to be on the side, not on the rear quarter. So all that came off, too! 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bianfuxia Posted May 1, 2021 Author Share Posted May 1, 2021 (edited) And finally, it was done: Edited May 1, 2021 by bianfuxia 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray S Posted May 1, 2021 Share Posted May 1, 2021 That is incredible! The detail in that etch is fabulous, and I am in awe of your bending/folding skills. Great work! Ray 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bootneck Posted May 1, 2021 Share Posted May 1, 2021 According to my math, that equates to approx. 1:76 scale and a very nice model. Mike 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdrianMF Posted May 1, 2021 Share Posted May 1, 2021 That is lovely. As an acute sufferer from etchophobia, I salute you! Regards, Adrian 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bianfuxia Posted May 1, 2021 Author Share Posted May 1, 2021 8 hours ago, bootneck said: According to my math, that equates to approx. 1:76 scale and a very nice model. Mike thanks for working that out for me! And thanks all of you for the compliment - now that I finally did one of these I will try the other two I have. They're good fun and I can recommend them as a nice change from the usual! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bianfuxia Posted May 3, 2021 Author Share Posted May 3, 2021 So this morning I decided I could do more with this kit. First up, here it is in scale, thanks to Mike ( @bootneck)! That's a 1/76 Airfix astronaut. Anyway I realized that I should have factored this gold foil in from the beginning, but I just cut off a piece about the right length and wrapped it around the telescope following the artist impression from the wikipedia article I linked back at the very top. There is just a tiny amount of glue holding it together at the back. With a super sharp knife I then carefully trimmed it along the line of the telescope opening. To avoid ripping the foil, you need to almost swipe the knife through, making it a bit like scissors - the knife is one part of the scissors and the metal of the model is the other. The foil is then basically being cut by scissors. It was quick and neat (probably doesn't hold up to super close examination). Using my finger I squashed the foil up against that rectangular panel, and then used the sharp knife to trim off that bit leaving the foil behind. Ideally I'd have installed that silver thing over the foil but there was no way I wanted to, or even could, dismantle everything again! Then I started the slow but strangely relaxing task of individually painting all the etched solar panel cells using Tamiya Metallic Blue and a really fine brush. I've done one of the four panels so far. You can see a few spots where I made a mess but I think it will look ok when it's done. 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mjwomack Posted May 3, 2021 Share Posted May 3, 2021 1 hour ago, bianfuxia said: That's a 1/76 Airfix astronaut When I saw that Mike ( @bootneck) had done the maths, I immediately thought, so that's why Airfix re-issued the astronauts! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bootneck Posted May 3, 2021 Share Posted May 3, 2021 And a payload for the 1:72 scale Shuttle 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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