Starship Modeler Discussion Forums

El - Light Sheet Has a few issues you need to understand and factor in a model build, and as most things there are goo and bad to consider: The good: It is thin, flexible, and ca be cut to length of shape. It runs cool so you don't really need to worry about it melting your models. The bad: It can b...

My question is, how do you seperate and wire them for specific use? I know to cut at specific spots so as not to destroy the lights, but each segment is set up for red, green and blue. Most led strip connectors i’ve seen are set up for single light tyoe leds. See the cut pads marked Comm +, R,G,B t...

side glow fiber optics anyone? https://thefiberopticstore.com/solid-core-side-glow/ Funny you mentioned side glow fiber optics. I just made a neon sign for a building out of fiber optics, I used regular fiber but used an Exacto #11 blade to scrape the outside cladding off the fiber side facing out....

EL wire is high voltage, it can be cut to length, and isn't very bright. El wire is simply a copper wire coated with phosphorus with a thin wire wrapped around it, clad with a plastic cover to protect it from the elements. It is the wire version of light sheet or as they are called electro luminance...

I've used the fluorescent/glow-in-the-dark lacquers by Gaia Notes. I believe it is the UV-reflective element of the paint that forms very hard clumps on the bottom of the bottles which need to be stirred very well in order for the paints to work properly. They glow in the dark, but they aren't like...

Simple solution...go to the local theater supply house and pick up a sheet of neutral density theater gel. From Lee Filters web page: http://lowel.tiffen.com/edu/light_controls/gels.html Neutral Density (ND). Grey in appearance, they reduce the output of a light in progressive steps from 1/2 of a le...

Gallery Glass is also sold under the Martha Stewart brand name.

What I want to do is have a model with a rather flat underside be magnetically attached to a base, so that the power will transfer through the plastic without contacting metal points. A switch can turn it on and off, and the model can still be removable from its base. I think user Ultron was tellin...

I use it to custom color white LEDs.

Go to your local dollar store and look for the electronic candles with the color changing base. The material used to make the candle is great for defusing the led light. Place a strip over the leds, then if needed put a strip over the engine openings, You will find for the dollar you get a nice larg...

I use the eye of larger carpet needles to make those type of windows.
Simply heat the eye in a candle flame and push it through the plastic.
Sand the area around the window and your good to go.

We used WD-40 to remove stickers.

It's fast and removes most all paper stickers and the glue from them.

You got what I call pre-cuts. If you got them from a theater supply store ask them for a swatch book for Rosco or Lee Filters ( both are made by Rosco), or for the brand you got. The book gives you usually a 1 in. x 4 in. sample of every color made in that line as well as specialty gels that will cu...

It depends on the type of gel. Real gel material which can still be found if you look hard enough is akin to dried Jello and over time it fades. It also dries and becomes brittle in time. Most "gel" are made with a polyester base or in some cases Mylar so you should be able to use regular ...

To cut the time a vacuum pump would take you could use a portable air tank to replace the pump to the vac chamber. Theaters used the takns from old water heaters to power their vacuum formers so it should work here as well. Simply draw a vacuum in the tank then close the valve. Attach the tank to th...

I have also been searching for this. It would be really useful to be able to cut a strip for a nacelle and wire it straight into the same 6v supply I use for the rest of the model without needing an inverter. I am still using LEDs and still unable to produce a really uniform glow with straws, styre...

I was just checking out the fiber optic store and saw it. Would PVC tubing give a similar result? http://www.thefiberopticstore.com/purchase/SCSG/SGS-Fiber.htm No. The tube would be about as effective as sticking an led in the end of a straw-bright at the led with the light falling off rapidly the ...

My understanding is side lit fiber requires higher power LED's like Luxeon Star. I'm told they do need to be heat sunk for heat dissipation. If so, probably not the best for the interior of a model... True if your lighting long lengths or using the fiber to replace neon tube in signs. For short mod...

I think he is talking about the side lighting fiber optics. If so you would need to have a light source at each end of the fiber to get it bright enough to use as a light (it would be better than a straw with a led at each end). You could round the end and get light shining out the end but the side ...

Cheap hairspray!

If you don't like the look it washes off with water, you can also use it to seal the weathering done with pastels, and remove magic marker from most surfaces.

If you get the purple Aussie can stuff ( the ones with the Kangaroo in the comercial) it even has a nice grape scent.

You could try using a dental burr as a file .

The hero prop used a small lumiglass display kinda like the ones you see at Spencer Gifts or outside dance clubs, not a transparency. The one Redshirt used with his vox kit was a photoshop of the real disks displays. That is what was given to VoodoFx to use in their kit. You can Google "plasma ...

Ok, new question...These have a flat top to them, which when shone directly on stuff, they give off a dark spot, and a bright ring. I'm assuming it's because they're not dome shaped. Dose the flat top have a cone shape in it? If so the led uses the cone to reflect light out the sides of the led. Yo...

I don't know... The original prop probably used this very same disk, because they wouldn't build something like that just for the props. They'd buy the disk from a retailer and adapt into their prop. The disk has a circuit board and a battery holder, as well as a casing/bezel, right? What if you di...

the anwswer is yes. It's called the Carvewright. Another question I can't find an answer to: Will these machines work with other mediums other than wood? Will they work with soft stone, plastic or resin? The Carveright and the Craftsman are both Carveright machines with Sears not paying for updated...

IThis would be ideal for say... spotlights on a certian refit, or any interior lighting applicatin. The one thing that always bothered me about lighting with white LEDs, was that it always looked like you were lighting with white LEDs. Studio models, and real aircraft, ships, etc... almost always h...

It's a little late but... I use carpet needles stuch in dowl rods to do the holes. Push the needles into the dowl point first leaving the eye uncovered. Heat the needle over a candle until just hot enough to melt the plastic and press through the kit where the window is needed. Finish with sand pape...