Starship Modeler Discussion Forums

Hi all, I have a flat black model (stealth X-wing) I want to put some decals on, obviously I'll need a glosscote before the decals, but is there any trick to bringing the flat back (as flat as possible)? Or is it a simple matter of spraying dullcote over the gloss and decals? The issue I'm wondering...

Hi all, I recently tried my first 2-part mold. I poured the bottom half, including multiple locating pins. Then I coated the entire piece with mold release, let it sit 24 hours to ensure it was dry, and poured more RTV silicone over it (OOMOO 25). Both pieces are firmly stuck together. I had to cut ...

Hi guys, I need help. Im having a hard time getting the mating surfaces of two pieces of resin absolutely flat. Any tips? I usually go super slow sanding lightly and testfitting often. But for some reason this piece just refuses to play nice. Any tips I can try?

Thanks John.

And Lexus will be fine, she had her tail and her butt shaved. (border collie), and then the rest of her was shaved after we stopped laughing.

So I am moulding a fuselage, and due to an accident, I am out of RTV (oommoo300). about 3/4 of the rubber made it into the mould box, and I am out. If I pick up some more tomorrow, can I simply top up the box, over the cured stuff? Or do I have to start over completely. Its a fairly big part, and th...

Hi Guys, I need a little help with instructions on building a canopy. Are there any online guides or tutorials, or even words of advice. I think its a a case of overthinking something, but I want it to be similar to an x-wing style canopy but sleeker. I just can't seem to come up with the how or eve...

I think the only practical advantage to a turret (in this case) is that it would enable the body to be either entrenched or grounded. That way the body has an additional layer of protection or the energy usage can be reduced.

Just my $0.02.

If you have to feed it, does it still count as a model?

I get home yesterday and go to start on my entry. Do you think I can find it? I had a whole box of GI JOE parts, and in it was the hull from the Cobra Water Mocassin. Now the entire box seems to have vanished...WTF! Luckily I have a fall back idea, but this was my first and favorite plan. What are s...

Just a hunch, but if you can make 70 tonnes of armor hover 5 feet off the ground, you probably already have the recoil problem figured out.

I wonder if I could buy one of those cheap R/C hover crafts and take this one step farther....

I'd love to jump on board with this as well. I've been toying with a design for a while now.

If there's a poll option on this challenge, I'd love to arrange a $20 gift certificate through the SSM store for the tank with the most votes (assuming 1-0 allows it).

Where did you find that pic? It looks like it's from the school of veterinary medicine?

I'm gonna try it.

But JIC Plan B is: Any casters in Canada?

I have to make 4 copies of an engine from a Buck Rogers Starfighter for my XJ and was wondering. Would it be okay to do a one-piece mold poured in from the top (fuselage side of engine), or a 2 piece mold? I've only just cast small 1 piece molds before (TIE engines) and am apprehensive about a 2-pie...

I have to make 4 copies of an engine from a Buck Rogers Starfighter for my XJ and was wondering. Would it be okay to do a one-piece mold poured in from the top (fuselage side of engine), or a 2 piece mold? I've only just cast small 1 piece molds before (TIE engines) and am apprehensive about a 2-pie...

You were 1st on the list to contact actually. One other option I just thought of is simply leave the treads off the halves and simply cut the corrugated styrene to fit and glue it on afterwards. I'm concerned about air bubbles on the face of the upper half if it's a two piece mold.

Hi all, I'm finishing up the treads for my TIE crawler and was wondering. I've made a 2 piece master, one is the inside of the entire side pylons, and the other is the outside. I screwed two pieces of MDF together then cut the shape so that each side would be a mirror of the other. This worked perfe...

Hi all, can the blue insulating foam you buy at home depot be used as a master for resin casting? Will it deform or any other problems? It's a small piece about 2-3 inches across.

I'm working on a part for a super secret 1/24 conversion. Normally I would use kit parts and styrene, but the size prohibits this. I want to use a balsa wood cut to shape and plate with styrene. When I cast it will the styrene stay in place? Alternately, I was gonna use a huge glob of sculpey to for...

I'm working on an RCMP model and would like to light the cherries. Does anyone know where you can buy the kit that strobes the lights? It should be left, left, right, right. I have zero electronics knowledge, so I'd prefer to purchase the completed circuit and simply intall if possible. Or that bein...

I was thinking about this too and came up with solar powered LED yard lights. The little accent lights have a panel (kinda large unfortunately) and 2-AA batteries which charge during the day. If a person could switch the panel for a smaller one, (or put it on the base), it should work. A model that'...

Would this work? Make a slightly larger box to make the mold a little larger on the edges. Prior to cutting the mold in half, drill 3 or 4 small holes all the way through the outside rubber. Cut the mold, and when you go to reuse it, put wooden dowels or brass rods through the holes to align the hal...

My brother is a certified pressure welder and I was looking around his shop the other day and noticed he has some thick wall steel pipe laying around (24" by 60 long). He also has some smaller pipe and lots of flanges for the bolts. Welding it up (on wheels) to any size I want is no problem (24...

Can this be done? I want to wire a sensor in the base for a model which will turn the lights on or off with the room lights, as well I want a master switch which can turn the whole thing on, off or on sensor. I'm curious which parts are needed and if there are any diagrams or tutorials out there?

Go to the aircraft resource center www.aircraftresourcecenter.com and go to tools n tips. There is a good article on making cheap copies from automotive filler (2 part epoxy). It's pretty good and everything is available at a hardware store.

Lonnie

It works great, nice sharp edges, no bleed. It's just hard to see when I started to take it off. I've only used it twice before on canopies with no problem. This is the first time I've used it on a body, but I'm impressed. I think it may just replace my masking tape. Now with the warm water trick, i...

Thanks, worked like a charm!

I put some micro mask on a model jet to mask off some tiger stripes, then sprayed on the color. Now I can't see where the mask was on the jet. Any ideas how to remove it without poking throught the paint with a pin (and wrecking the paint)? I know I know not one of the smartest ideas ever.

I'm up for the freighters or X-wings. Who knows, perhaps with a little convincing onezero could make the next contest for commercial ships or support ships. I've been waiting for the Outrider for a year now (seems longer) and have a trashed Falcon waiting to be rebuilt. Add the Otana and the endless...

Instead of offering a prize why not ask SMT (or anyone else) to donate a $50 credit.

Lonnie