Starship Modeler Discussion Forums

eeun wrote:I really don't understand the "OOB is Boring" sentiment. If it goes together quickly, then spend more time on finishing. Construction is only half the process.

I understand. OOB essentially means someone else has figured out how it all goes together.

Construction is where the challenges are. Finishes are generally a formulaic set of steps which can be learnt. You can't learn how to construct. Sure you can slap any old ≠♀§#&@(§ together but if you can't visualise and engineer it all mentally, you can't build it.

drill press or a dowel jig. you could make your own jig - i've done it before out of wood and a metal bushing. another idea is to drill part-way into a length of solid plastic tube or wooden rod with a 5mm bit. take the tube out of the vice but leave it on the drill bit. use your drill like a lathe ...

great article. really good. i think i've seen that pattern in the flesh. i thought there was some voodoo magic going on to get those lines ;-) if i may add one extra tip - rather than just your thumb/finger, use a small blob of blu-tack as 'safety' to help hold the template in place. i can't think o...

did you soak the resin parts overnight in dish washing detergent/water, then scrub/rinse under warm water with a tooth brush?

sounds like mold release or natural silicone oil is between your primer and the resin.

if the surface is textured, it's harder to get the mold release out.

Ease-Off oven cleaner?

futch, this isn't a SNAP application. i'm not MAKING strips. i'm ..."extracting" strips out of a larger piece. i understand what you're doing. i would approach with strips and create the tread that way. SNAP ;-) stack and bevel strips to maintain angles. accurate and sharper detail in the...

0.04" thick styrene. i read the title, openend the thread and read .04. .04 is girlie thickness man! i only have to look at .04 and it falls to pieces. :evil: what you need is LEVERAGE sir! i'm doing this with evergreen .06 - lots of sheets - getting clean breaks. if your making lots of small ...

qc wrote:my 2 cents
found that the set of 0-11 was too small (may be able to use it later) ..but sent it back and got the set 0-23 ...(larger number = larger circle) PERFECT.
HTH

ditto, get the 24 pc set.

Mike, that's exactly it. Thanks. Those flush rivets are perfect for the 1/96th scale Civil War ironclad I'm working on. heya - while i still prefer my tool (not biased, just prefer the thicker groove around the rivet), you can grab a cheap beading tool from ebay. here's what i bought: http://futchf...

pressure casting imo. bubbles have more time to escape curing silicone.

1200 grit, 2000 grit, toothpaste then Future.

3. Pour in the rubber as normal so it comes halfway up the side of the part to be cast. won't give you a clean 2-part mold. the rubber will create a meniscus (sp?) around the master which will create bad seams. secondly, you can't "fill" holes in a mold. the oil in the rubber prevents adh...

A bit of theory ... An 8Meg JPEG does not equate to an 8Meg image file when you import it into programs like Photoshop/MSPaint etc. The Windows OS (DC) works with bitmaps so every pixel in the file gets loaded into memory, including a number which represents the pixel colour. The size of the number ...

Kylwell wrote:That was going to be my next suggestion.

same here ;-p

draw a circle on your computer scaled to 2.44". print it out and stick on the part. sand around it. if you can drill through the part, stick the circle on one side, drill through the center, glue a second circle on the reverse side (centered on the drill hole). shape. lastly, you don't need a l...

when i fill these sorts of areas on my masters, i do the following (that will not require sanding); 1) take flat piece of styrene rod (1/4inch wide, .06 thick) and file one end down to resemble a chisel point that angles to one side - ie. the end is not square, but angled slightly. 2) roll up some M...

I'd thought about creating the templates in styrene, I have a template with all the circles I need on it now made of styrene, problem is in my experience it always tends to shave off styrene as you go. Notice the tool I'm using? It is round so it doesn't cut into the template. ditto. start off ligh...

drill a hole in some .01 styrene sheet. tape the sheet to the surface. when the surface is curved, i use Blue Tac to hold the template in place(here in the US it is yellow and called poster tac I think). scribe away. alternatively, i found an eraser masking template is also useful. it is made of sup...

try a 2 piece mold that fills your barrels from the bottom up. ie, think of the letter U. you pour down one side, it fills up the other side forcing air out the top. here 'v' denotes resin going in and '^' denotes air escaping v ^ ||_| if you have a number of pieces to cast, then 'gang' them up in p...

in the old days (on smaller kits), to achieve realistic laser hit, i'd use a magnifying glass/sun to create the damage then hold the kit above a candle and "streak" the area with soot. a wash of clear and you're laser burns rock. clearly not as precise as an airbrush, but good for giggles ...