Starship Modeler Discussion Forums

Another good source for fine wire is a fishing place, like Bass Pro Shops. In the fly-tying section they sell a container with six spools of lead wire from 0.010 to 0.035 in 0.005 increments. Reasonably cheap, and you get quite a bit. Another option is taking apart wiring for the copper wire - heat ...

Grrrr...

Double post..

Yup. I'd seen some color-corrected interior shots, but these were the best, and I liked the color swatches he added. Of course, during the construction of MoonBus #1, I found the information about the map storage bins and how much farther forward they were after I'd glued in the bulkheads and floor!...

Hah! I fooled the universe! I cleverly finished one kit, and now more information has come out so I can do the second kit properly!

Kev

Or Tamiya white putty - super fine grain. It is thinner than the regular grey putty, so you might need to apply and then re-apply, since it shrinks more than the grey. I haven't touched the Squadron stuff in years.

Kev

One thing I've done is to print fine lines onto paper and then glue it to the styrene. Cut along the lines, remove paper and assemble. The repositionable spray adhesive that you can move for a while works best, so you can get it nice and smooth. Using CorelDraw, you can also move the lines so that y...

Can't speak for Blue Hawk, but I got a No-Namo brand set from Big Lots for really cheap. The tool itself was garbage - wobbly and close to no power at all. But (and it's a big but!) what made it worthwhile was all the accessories that came with it: diamond coated bits, carbide bits, cut-off wheels, ...

The best paint for blocking light would be metallic silver/aluminum. Since the particles are actually metal, as opposed to a mineral/artificial pigment, they would block light much more effectively. Airbrushing would be the best. Just remember to check from time to time to make sure you have a thick...

Did you squish the tube a lot before applying? Sounds almost like you're getting the syrupy solvent instead of the putty itself. If it sits on the store shelf for a long time, the green part settles out, leaving the liquid on top. A lot like that nasty yellow water that can shoot out of the mustard ...

speaking of future, Does an almost full bottle of future lose its effectivness at all ? my bottle is 5 years old and has stayed in my cabinet in the house and it still looks good, so i thought i would ask about the age of a bottle of future. Bert I had a bottle for almost a decade. It still worked,...

Do you mean Kristal Klear? It's basically like white glue - you should be able to just pop it off (if it's a window), or soak it in water and rub it off pretty easily. If you mean Kleer, the foreign (to us in the US!) version of Future, then an ammonia based cleaner would do it. Of course, that woul...

Migmaker wrote:Kosutte Gin SUN (Paint)

http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/10011510

Whoah...

Gimme...

More like Tamiya Basic Type modeling putty.

Blue tube, gray putty

Kev

Great story! Where in Norfolk did you find Smooth On products? Are their prices comparable? I much rather make the trip through the tunnel than waiting for it to be delivered! Yeah - what he said! I've gotten the small set of Alumilite from the Hobbytown on Va Beach Blvd, and Denbigh Hobby often ca...

You can get wet n dry at the car parts places in the body work section. They're a variety of grits, usually from 120 or so on up to 1200-1500. Since this is the range I mostly use for model work (220 is about as low as I go on plastic), they work great. The good part is you can super glue them onto ...

Since the paint was Tamiya, it was a solvent-based lacquer. The solvent interacts with the putties and causes some swelling, which then leads to cracks. I've had it happen with primers as well. I agree with using Mr. Surfacer. I'm pretty sure Denbigh Hobby has it. They also have the Tamiya white put...

Yes. It works pretty well. The Future dries and sucks the decal down. Personally I thin it a little with water, about 50/50. This will reduce any edge between the puddle and the surroundings. Definitely no setting/sol solutions - they can interact with the Future and make it clot or worse, solidify ...

It worked out just fine - will post to the gallery when completely done. My only complaint is that two of the three greys are just a teensy bit too close in tint level. The warm and the neutral greys are not different enough unless you look really close. The Tamiya white overcoat gave it a nice smoo...

All the ones I've gotten have been toluene based.

Kev

OK - gave it a test shot in a small area and all looks good!

This will tone down the greys and give the effect I was looking for! Sweet....

Kev
(Orion paint job - shots to follow...)

So I have this model that was primed with Tamiyas white primer. Lovely stuff - smooth, real white, thin. Over that I painted certain areas with MM enamels. These have been allowed to dry for a few days now. I need to tone down the enamels (originally planned that way), and I was wondering if I shoul...

I ended up using medium thickness CA. It did ooze out the sides at times, but I'd get my scalpel and chip it away before it got too hard. The solvent based glues melted the super thin .005, or dried out before it caught the model. Anyway, problem solved, primed and first coat on! Now several man-yea...

Title pretty much covers it. I need to put teeny (often .5 X 3mm) bits of .005 thickness styrene to the surface of a model. The model is styrene, too. I've tested a number of options, but none have been really satisfactory so far. CA - thick, medium and thin - OK on strength, but will grab hold at j...

Or use the Microscale liquid decal film. I used it successfully on some inkjet decals not long ago. I just brushed it on with a wide brush, single coat. the ink didn't run at all. Just make sure it's thoroughly dry before even touching the decal image.

Kev

IIRC, you can dust the part with talcum powder, press it into the clay and get a one-shot mold that way. I'm pretty sure someone used this in an FSM article in the 90's.

Kev

You can go to the FSM site and check the back issues guide. I recall it was mid 90's - ish.

The guide IIRC is in pdf and is searchable.

Kev

Ditto on the train parts! There are detailing kits for rail cars, buildings, factories, chemical plants (I used a lot of these parts in doing the helium plumbing on my 1/12 Mercury: valves, angles, joiners, etc.).

And the styrene is good, too. Use the sheets like clapboard siding for grills.

Kev

Funny thing - that's one of the tips in the latest issue of Fine Scale Modeler.

Kev

Also - the craft stores are likely having sales on Christmas stuff - like the clear styrene spheres you could use to make your own ornaments. I have a 6 inch diameter set that someday, someway will become the front end of the Discovery.

Kev

I've heard that a coat of future will help. As I recall, the frosting was one the inside of a canopy, and the guy used a needle to put some Future in and swirled it around, which took care of the problem. This makes sense, since the "frosting" is more of a powdering of clear cyanoacrylate ...