yvesvidal

Super nice Kevin.

Yves

With the rear spine completed, it is now time, of course, to start working on the front spine: 

The forward rod is put in place in the central module and inserted all the way into the brass tube. Fitting is perfect and very tight. Then, the PODs holder modules are placed and carefully glued. Finally the forward spine is removed from the Central module and the rear section left aside. It is simply not practical to work on the entire vessel as it is far too long and too fragile.

It is then time to start assembling the anchor of the living spaces, the main sphere and unique landmark of this vessel: 

And this is where we stand: 

The whole vessel is starting to come together: it is really long and so skinny...

Seeing a picture of Discovery or watching the movie is one thing. Holding that skeleton of model is another.... It is quite unique.

The electrical wires are driven through the spine and the positive side of the circuit will be connected to the second side holder. The holder is a 3 mm special brass nut designed to be inserted with pressure into wood or plastic. It will then be glued and secured to the front anchor of the living space. 

Yellow and green wires will be sent to the sphere for the main deck lights. The rear of the sphere is also receiving a piece of that brass tube to make the alignment of the sphere perfect with the spine and to prevent any sagging. The sphere is going to be heavy with the PE decks and lights. Besides, it is a massive piece of polystyrene.

Here is what it will look like: 

For the time being, I want to be able to dissociate the sphere from the spine. This is done to work more easily on the background and holder and to allow me more flexibility with the inside building and painting of the sphere. Again, I am using my miniature rare earth magnets and their terrific sticking power to secure the rear section of the sphere with the spine: 

That section (below) will be tied to the spine, whereas the section (above) is the rear section of the sphere.

Yves

The rear section is now complete. I am quite happy with the white veil, as it remains subtle and allows some of the grayish color underneath to reveal the many details of the pods and propulsion unit: 

The thrusters are also painted and the inside of the egress ports has been painted flat black:

Hmmm... I may have to do very small touch-ups with white on the nozzles....

Yves

Working on the paint of the propulsion block and on the exhaust of the thrusters. All the pods are painted German Grey as a sub-layer in preparation for the white veil. By the way, if you do not have an airbrush, please don't buy this kit. Impossible to paint otherwise. 

First veil has been applied. There are significant gaps between the exhaust bulkheads and the enclosure and I am using some white glue to fill up the tiny cracks. It is quite surprising to find issues, as this kit is very well put together. Some tests of the thrusters: 

The egress ports will be painted black.

In the middle of space, far from Earth....

Yves 

I just finished the 20 some Pods that are attached on the rear spine. Now, some paint, a white wash and that part of the vessel should be finished.

Yves

I can almost picture myself, during one of my former incarnations, walking around that cloister while reciting an endless litany of "Pater Noster".

Great job.

Yves

Small but beautiful collection.

Yves

46 minutes ago, RGL said:

 this is why PE is really unbeatable 

PE and a seasoned artist and expert at PE.

Yves

Le Saint Philippe at the scale of 1/48..... WOW !!!! Major endeavor.

I will be following.

Yves

For a first attempt, it is lovely. Fantastic job.

Yves

I am working on the cargo pods of the rear spine. Assembly of the A (long) and B (medium) types has been completed and installed: 

It is important to be very methodical with these Pods as parts can be easily mixed up.

Yves

So, Christian, what is the next project on your list? Another vessel designed by Chuck P. or something else?

Yves

17 minutes ago, popeye the sailor said:

does this include decals?   if not....have you looked at decals for Star Trek,  or Star wars models........perhaps something along these lines could give it more exterior detailing.

Popeye,

No decals on this kit as the original prop from the movie did not have any. 

For more exterior "contrast", the AZTEC set provides some masks that add "camouflage like" patterns to the vessel. I am not a big fan of these and like the Stanley Kubrick's purist lines of the Discovery. I will paint some panels as in the movie, but will stop there. No weathering either, as there is no air, and very little dust to attach to this kind of machine in Space.

Yves

Superbe realisation Christian. Bonne Annee et bonne sante a vous.

Yves

Very Roman looking. Beautiful.

This will be a heavy diorama, when completed.

Yves

Propulsion block more or less completed. The only things remaining to be done are the exhaust plates with the PE grills.

In the meantime, I have sprayed the sub-base using Tamiya German Grey: 

Hopefully, this color will provide some depth and delineate the various panels, when spraying the light gray and white on top.

Yves 

Moving along with the completion of the propulsion block. Lots of parts, but the fitting is exceptional. This kit is very well engineered.

This is the anchor which will be used to hold the model from the rear and to feed the negative side of 12 VDC. It is a 3 mm special nut. I will try to show a picture of the part, later on.

Yves

Thank you for the very clear explanations about your technique. This craft looks stupendous. Those French have a way to decorate their planes that is quite unorthodox. Blame it on the sun and blue sky of Provence.....

Yves

The thrusters are almost complete. Inside each one of them, there is a flickering yellow LED. After trying these LEDs on my bench, I realize that the current drawn by each one of them, varies constantly because of the flickering. Therefore, they cannot be serialized or daisy chained. They operate at around 3 volts, under 10 mA each. Since the whole enchilada will be powered with a source of 12 Volts DC, it is necessary to drop about 10 Volts in a resistor. 1 KOhms is perfect for that purpose.

First, the lower shell of the rockets are glued on the rear bulkhead: 

The main rod is being opened in three places: Ground wire, Plus wire and the two tiny wires leading to the central LED. The holes are done with a round file, then semi-round and finally a bit of 2 mm, to provide a less sharp opening for the wires.

The rear bulkhead has been reworked: pins on each side, have been shortened and drilled to allow wires to go through. The inside of the thrusters is painted black, to simulate the intense heat and combustion taking place in them.

Wiring is neatly arranged, as much as possible. None of the plastic parts are glued yet....the wires are holding everything together.

The lug on the top of the picture (right side of the engine block) will be the negative side of the holder. The green wire brings the - to the front module, through the rod. The yellow wire feeds the rear engine block with the + side, coming from the holder that will be located near the front sphere or living quarters of Discovery. Verification of the diodes: 

It flickers well and provides a sense of these atomic reactors being ignited by HAL 9000, to complete his precious mission....with or without anybody alive....

Yves

Could you elaborate on how you did that treatment?

Thanks

Yves

4 hours ago, hof00 said:

How long is Discovery?

Close to 42 inches at that scale.

Yves

This paint job is superb. We all know how glossy paints can be difficult to spray correctly and regularly.

Yves

Moving "rearward", with the atomic engine thrusters and the rear spine: 

The rear rod/tube needs to be cut off exactly 11 mm, to rest on the internal rib of the central thruster. inside that long spine, we will have to pass two wires for the various lights as will be explained later on. You could avoid cutting it and it will be alright. In my case, an LED and its wiring will be installed to the right of the tube, in that little cavity. This will simulate the reactors firing to propel the vessel during its long journey to Jupiter.

The picture below shows the antennae unit (left), the four rear bay holders and the atomic engines block (before gluing).

The rear tube is now glued to the antennae unit (coupler) with Cyanoacrylate glue. Don't put too much glue, be sure about what you do or use a slow curing glue. I had just enough time to push it to the mark on the rod, before the glue took over... It was a close call.

Below picture shows after gluing: 

Perfect alignment must be obtained to have an antennae vertical with the engine block. I used a small bubble level as well as my eyes for making sure it is correctly aligned: 

There is a tiny bit of rotational flexibility in the spine but not much actually. Finally, a coat of Vallejo primer is applied on the rear spine: 

Yves

3 hours ago, VTHokiEE said:

Darn, I just started comparing the contents to another kit (on eBay) and it would seem that this kit is far from complete... if I can't find an inexpensive second kit for the missing pieces this build may not get off the ground.

Keep in mind that these kits never includes trucks and couplers. I have built a few of them, and they are not that easy, especially to render the metallic aspect of the car, with wooden parts.

Yves

2 hours ago, Katuna said:

Wait, I just realized this is still on MSW. Does a "space ship" constitute a ship? Curious minds want to know.

Katuna,

I thought about placing it in the Ship Model Kits section.... after all, it is a space Vessel, very comparable to a submarine. But then, I wanted to be a good citizen on this forum and not risk the wrath of the Forum police. 

In the meantime, I count on you for picking up the pace on the Trumpeter Submarine build and keeping our audience entertained with underwater topics..... 😉

Yves