# My Polar Lights Big Enterprise from the TV series



## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Never thought I'd do this one, but in the middle of this pandemic I pulled the financial trigger and here I am.
Wasn't gonna light it, but then I stopped being stupid. Got the PL lighting kit too.
Been taking it slow. 
My life has been building up to this... I was six when I started watching it, was almost a teen when I started making AMT models of it (so many- getting the struts & nacelles straight was all too challenging. It involved tons of Scotch tape... ).
Half a Century later I'm doing it again.
I want to do it with a tiny twist. It has to look like a mix of the Enterprise I grew up with on TV, the 11' filming miniature, and a realistic in-person spaceship. 
I can do that.
Probably. We'll see.
Technical: no frost on windows to invite interesting hot spots at certain angles. Tamiya AS-11 as hull colour. Aztek Dummy window & registration masks (not a fan of decals).














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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Yahoo! Finally building your grail kit! Good man! I’m looking forward to watching you as you go on this great journey. 
Tell me... will you be filling in the gridlines?


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Trekkriffic said:


> Yahoo! Finally building your grail kit! Good man! I’m looking forward to watching you as you go on this great journey.
> Tell me... will you be filling in the gridlines?


No grid lines in this version. If there were I might not have even thought about doing it. Painting this beast will be the biggest challenge though. That's where my fun begins.


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Decided not to frost but to 'blur' the windows. Sprayed the lacquer into a cap to make it liquid then brushed it on. Yeah, subtle difference But I'll see it.


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Spent the rest of today sanding the unseemly strut & nacelle seams. When you switch from 150 to 400 sandpaper and aren't pressing that hard you know you're basically done.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Chrisisall said:


> Decided not to frost but to 'blur' the windows. Sprayed the lacquer into a cap to make it liquid then brushed it on. Yeah, subtle difference But I'll see it.


Did you get the "shadowcasters" for the windows?


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Trekkriffic said:


> Did you get the "shadowcasters" for the windows?


No, have you used them on yours?


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Mark will finish his before I finish mine. He's done this before.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Chrisisall said:


> No, have you used them on yours?


Yes. I added them to the observation gallery above the back wall of the shuttlebay and behind a few of the external window ports. I think I have quite a few leftover if you think you want to give them a try. They truly add a sense of scale to the ship. I can mail some to you if you want them.


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Trekkriffic said:


> Yes. I added them to the observation gallery above the back wall of the shuttlebay and behind a few of the external window ports. I think I have quite a few leftover if you think you want to give them a try. They truly add a sense of scale to the ship. I can mail some to you if you want them.


Yeah, if you could send me like 5 I'd use 'em!
Meanwhile I'm finding all sorts of little areas to do extra light blocking on, including along the seams. Perks of going slowly...


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Chrisisall said:


> Yeah, if you could send me like 5 I'd use 'em!
> Meanwhile I'm finding all sorts of little areas to do extra light blocking on, including along the seams. Perks of going slowly...
> View attachment 308688


OK. I got your PM with your address and I’ll mail them to you Chris. Not sure if I need your last name or not though.

Steve


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Trekkriffic said:


> OK. I got your PM with your address and I’ll mail them to you Chris. Not sure if I need your last name or not though.
> 
> Steve


Chrisisall will do, Steve! LOL! Small town. Post lady will smile. 
Gosh, this will take more time. I'm only doing this once. Doing tests on hull colour. Tamiya as-11 was my first choice, but it looks a little dark. Ordered as-16 to see if a light overspray will get it to where I want it (basically I want a fully well lit filming miniature with weathering). Hull colour is absolutely key for me...


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## RossW (Jan 12, 2000)

Chrisisall said:


> Chrisisall will do, Steve! LOL! Small town. Post lady will smile.
> Gosh, this will take more time. I'm only doing this once. Doing tests on hull colour. Tamiya as-11 was my first choice, but it looks a little dark. Ordered as-16 to see if a light overspray will get it to where I want it (basically I want a fully well lit filming miniature with weathering). Hull colour is absolutely key for me...


Are you only looking at spray cans? I mixed up a whack of tests using Tamiya acrylic paints and this one looks good to me (less green than the studio miniature; trying to get it like I see it on the screen)


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

RossW said:


> Are you only looking at spray cans? I mixed up a whack of tests using Tamiya acrylic paints and this one looks good to me (less green than the studio miniature; trying to get it like I see it on the screen)
> View attachment 308694


Yeah, spray cans only. I have no airbrush.


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## mach7 (Mar 25, 2002)

I have the shadow casters, and have used a few on mine. 
The Paragrafix PE set has some figures also.










I used some on my bridge:









What lighting will you use?
I sprang for the R2 kit and have had issues with it. I've been slowly working on it for years and I'll be amazed if it all works in the end.


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

mach7 said:


> I have the shadow casters, and have used a few on mine.
> The Paragrafix PE set has some figures also.
> 
> 
> ...


I have the Polar Lights lighting kit I got from a dude that lost interest in doing it. I'm working on this slowly as well- if this kit doesn't work there is always TenaControls. I was looking to get off lightly in terms of dollars. What were your issues with it, btw?


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## mach7 (Mar 25, 2002)

I could not get the connectors to be reliable. After many attempts I ended up scrapping all the quick connectors in the primary hull and the neck. I ended up soldering all of then. NOT fun! They all worked the last time I tested them 2 years ago. I'm almost done with the primary hull, I'm just working on a shim for the impulse engines.

For what it's worth, the consensus back a few years ago was Tamiya AS-2 IJN light gray was the closest spray can on the market. I think it was just missing a bit of green?

This is with the color:


















Just note that the rust ring is in the wrong place in the 1st photo.


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Dry fitting the bay doors. This is easy to frack up. Lots of attention will be needed here when I eventually glue it in...


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Mach7,

I heard about that issue with those lighting kit strip connectors from others back when I was building my big E kit. I just soldered all the contacts from the git go. Didn’t want to experience the pain John Payne felt when half his saucer lights went out after he’d sealed his up.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

I used a custom mix on my build. Tried to approximate ACE Hardware Shady Cove but a little lighter. Here’s my upper saucer after weathering next to a photo of the 11 footer...


Saucer Weathering - Comparison by Steve J, on Flickr


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## alpink (Aug 22, 2010)

not being well up on all the facts, .....
what is the "rust ring" ?
wouldn't star ships be constructed of something more exotic than steel.
perspiring minds want to know.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

alpink said:


> not being well up on all the facts, .....
> what is the "rust ring" ?
> wouldn't star ships be constructed of something more exotic than steel.
> perspiring minds want to know.


It's a partial rust colored ring on the upper saucer located between the NCC-1701 ship's registry and the front rim.
Theories as to its origin abound but the most likely answer is... nicotine stains left by the fingertips of the stage hands from when they grabbed the saucer to move the model around. They all smoked heavily back in the 60's.


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## mach7 (Mar 25, 2002)

It's just some of the weathering. No one is sure why but it's there. It can only be seen in a few shots, but can be seen on the 11 ft filming model.


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## mach7 (Mar 25, 2002)

You can see it here, sort of.


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Trekkriffic said:


> Mach7,
> I heard about that issue with those lighting kit strip connectors from others back when I was building my big E kit. I just soldered all the contacts from the git go. Didn’t want to experience the pain John Payne felt when half his saucer lights went out after he’d sealed his up.


Originally when I pulled the trigger on buying this kit I was intending not to light it up- but then I found that the PL lighting kit requited no soldering, and that's WHY I decided to go for it. 
I lit up & made talk a Masudaya LIS Robot for a client once & I had to teach myself how to solder to do it with all the resistors & crap... my least favourite job ever, even though it came out nice in the end. 
If I close this up and some set of lights stops working, I'll tear it open the port side, fix it, and turn it into an exact replica of the 11 footer with that side all no windows & big fake wires on it! LOL!


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

I glued in the bay door assembly (cut down a bit to fit of course, with the parts from the PL lighting kit) to the starboard side, then dry fit & taped the secondary hull together to make sure it's positioned properly when final assembly comes.


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Just a personal note here: last time I made any kit bigger than the PL 1/1000 was the AMT kit in the 70's... more than once. My GOD this kit is brilliant! No plastic curved hook to anchor the pylon nonsense here! No endless scotch taping to align the nacelles!!! THIS is engineering.
Sorry, my inner 15 year old needed to express.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Chrisisall said:


> Just a personal note here: last time I made any kit bigger than the PL 1/1000 was the AMT kit in the 70's... more than once. My GOD this kit is brilliant! No plastic curved hook to anchor the pylon nonsense here! No endless scotch taping to align the nacelles!!! THIS is engineering.
> Sorry, my inner 15 year old needed to express.


You mean you didn’t like the old clip and stirrup pylon attachment system? I’m SHOCKED! 😳The first time I built the 18 inch kit I was 10.
Of course I squirted a ton of styrene cement all over the clip hoping that would make it stronger when all it did was soften the plastic and make the nacelles droop even more! 🤬
I didn’t care too much though, I was just so happy! 
I had the ENTERPRISE!!!


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Trekkriffic said:


> Of course I squirted a ton of styrene cement all over the clip hoping that would make it stronger


You have no idea how that makes me feel like less of an idiot for what I did back then too.


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## Milton Fox Racing (May 27, 2014)

Chrisisall said:


> You have no idea how that makes me feel like less of an idiot for what I did back then too.


Raises hand in the been there - done that - theory of more glue has to be better!


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## mach7 (Mar 25, 2002)

Chrisisall said:


> Just a personal note here: last time I made any kit bigger than the PL 1/1000 was the AMT kit in the 70's... more than once. My GOD this kit is brilliant! No plastic curved hook to anchor the pylon nonsense here! No endless scotch taping to align the nacelles!!! THIS is engineering.
> Sorry, my inner 15 year old needed to express.


Yup, Jamie over at R2 did a great job on this kit and the new eagle kits. Overall they are VERY well engineered.


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Discovered flash I did not remove on a clear piece that was preventing a tighter fit to the rear of the secondary hull, and removed it. More perks of going slowly.


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

All through this process I was trying to decide 'filming miniature' or 'remastered look' or 'original FX appearance on TV'.... I think this image is what I'll go for.


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## mach7 (Mar 25, 2002)

So the appearance on TV from "The Trouble with Tribbles". 

As luck would have it, the filming model was restored in 2017 to the condition/color/setup as seen during the filming of this show by the Smithsonian.

I used to get down to DC for work and have many photo's of the restored Enterprise on display. I would be happy to share them with you if you want.


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

mach7 said:


> So the appearance on TV from "The Trouble with Tribbles".
> 
> As luck would have it, the filming model was restored in 2017 to the condition/color/setup as seen during the filming of this show by the Smithsonian.
> 
> I used to get down to DC for work and have many photo's of the restored Enterprise on display. I would be happy to share them with you if you want.


Yes, PLEASE!


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## mach7 (Mar 25, 2002)

I can post them here, email them to you, or send you a flash drive. I have about 100.
They were all taken with my iPhone.


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

mach7 said:


> I can post them here, email them to you, or send you a flash drive. I have about 100.
> They were all taken with my iPhone.


100! Well, I'm sure I'm not the only one who'd find them fascinating- how about the best ones on here? Or I could message you my email...


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## mach7 (Mar 25, 2002)

Ok!

Are there any areas of the ship you are particularly interested?


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## mach7 (Mar 25, 2002)




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## mach7 (Mar 25, 2002)




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## mach7 (Mar 25, 2002)

The right hand nacelle, with the painted on details.


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## mach7 (Mar 25, 2002)




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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

WOW!!!


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## mach7 (Mar 25, 2002)

The recent restoration was very well done! 
Everything about this ship is perfect, such a timeless design. Nothing before or since has matched it.

I tried to post the most relevant photo's.


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

mach7 said:


> The recent restoration was very well done!
> Everything about this ship is perfect, such a timeless design. Nothing before or since has matched it.
> 
> I tried to post the most relevant photo's.


THANKS! I was not aware of the painted details of the right nacelle. Makes sense though...


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Mebs. My Wife got word yesterday that her job will be permanently performed from home for the foreseeable future, so all her office stuff has to be here. Which means my hobby room had to be vacated today to make space for it, and I moved my modeling operations to the family room. Luckily I am so far along with this- less small parts to move...


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## subtoair (Feb 19, 2012)

Saw your Enterprise build,and it looks just fantastic! It is great to see someone that puts a lot of care and work into a project. I am leaning a lot from your pictures from assembly to paint. Really inspiration by your work which help to keep me going on my 22 inch Enterprise. Your pictures of the real 11 foot model has really helped me a lot in the detailing of my model. Want to see more progress pictures of you ship as you build. Keep up the great work!!


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

subtoair said:


> Your pictures of the real 11 foot model has really helped me a lot in the detailing of my model.


They were courtesy of *mach7*. Just to give credit where credit is due is all.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Well Chris at least you HAD A hobby room. My ”hobby room” is in the garage!


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Trekkriffic said:


> Well Chris at least you HAD A hobby room. My ”hobby room” is in the garage!


I'd love a garage...


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## RossW (Jan 12, 2000)

I’m in a basement where I can’t stand up straight, so yeah I’d like a garage too ....


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

I wish I had a basement... but only if I could stand up straight.


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## Milton Fox Racing (May 27, 2014)

If had a basement it would become an indoor pool...


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Paint tests proceeding. Tamaya as-11 was nice, but a bit dark. As-16 was lighter but a bit too light, and both lack a slight hint of blue.... I have as-18 coming to test. I'm thinking I'll end up using 11 as a base, a light coat of 18 for the tint, and a light dusting of 16 to lighten it up & add depth & scale.... man, I can never do things the easy way.


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## alpink (Aug 22, 2010)

hey !!!! that's what Tina Turner said!


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

alpink said:


> hey !!!! that's what Tina Turner said!


LOL, aren't you banned?  haha


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## alpink (Aug 22, 2010)

time and time again


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## edge10 (Oct 19, 2013)

Milton Fox Racing said:


> If had a basement it would become an indoor pool...


Sounds like you are in Florida too.


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## Milton Fox Racing (May 27, 2014)

Not old enough to get in yet!


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## gene1138 (Aug 25, 2011)

Chrisisall said:


> Paint tests proceeding. Tamaya as-11 was nice, but a bit dark. As-16 was lighter but a bit too light, and both lack a slight hint of blue.... I have as-18 coming to test. I'm thinking I'll end up using 11 as a base, a light coat of 18 for the tint, and a light dusting of 16 to lighten it up & add depth & scale.... man, I can never do things the easy way.


I'm coming to a similar conclusion. I just tried as-18 and think it might be the closet to my eye to the paint chip I made from Gary Kerr's formula. It's a little darker but not as dark as as-11. AS-11 seemed way too dark. I think I may decant as-18 and add a little white to lighten and spray with an airbrush. I might give as-32 a try as well before committing.

Will say who ever does the paint matching at Tamiya for the can tops needs to be fired.  Not even close.

It's a real shame Model Master killed off their enamel line.


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

gene1138 said:


> Will say who ever does the paint matching at Tamiya for the can tops needs to be fired.  Not even close.


LOL, yeah.
From what I can tell (colours on monitors & phones are never very accurate either), as-32 is good, but still on the slightly dark side for me. Right colour though... makes me more sure that my formula above will work. Seven days until I get the rattler...


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Chrisisall said:


> LOL, yeah.
> From what I can tell (colours on monitors & phones are never very accurate either), as-32 is good, but still on the slightly dark side for me. Right colour though... makes me more sure that my formula above will work. Seven days until I get the rattler...


Too bad you don't have an airbrush. I'd send you a bottle of ACE _Shady Cove_. It's enamel tractor paint. 
Only comes in gloss, is thick as hell, and takes like a week to fully cure.
I had to buy a whole quart of it when I built my 1/1000 TOS E so I have a lot left in the can.
Paul Newitt said it was close to the right color for the classic TOS Enterprise when he did his analysis of various paint brands years ago. Grey with a very slight olive tone:


Shady Cove by Steve J, on Flickr


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Trekriffic, you are a Talosian Enterprise builder's dream come true!😍


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Chrisisall said:


> Trekriffic, you are a Talosian Enterprise builder's dream come true!😍


Hey lemme tellya, them Talosian's really know their tractor paint!
They said it looked reeeeeaaaaaal good on the 1K Connie.
Of course I did lighten it up a bit for scale...

USS Enterprise NCC-1701 by Steve J, on Flickr


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Trekkriffic said:


> USS Enterprise NCC-1701 by Steve J, on Flickr


Steve, this looks amazing, but save your postage- I can't brush this kit. It would make me crazy. I'll get there in my own strange spray way! Thanks SO much though! If I was doing (another) 1/1000 I'd love it!


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Update: pretty happy with as-18 with a dusting of as-16. Ordered as-32 just to test & be sure. Final word on my choice in a few days after I get the 32







.


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Here it is next to the model plastic colour in daylight







. When as- 32 comes I'll see if it's a good addition- if not, this is what I'll go with even though it's a bit low on the olive & blue levels.


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## FlyingBrickyard (Dec 21, 2011)

In years past, I'd eyeballed it to being close to (IIRC) FS36440, but that was just from seeing it in person (almost weekly) in the 1990s and matching from memory, without the benefit of modern research.


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

My quest for hull colour from rattle cans has ended. Tamaya as-32 for the hue, a _very_ light dusting of as-16 to lighten the value a bit.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

I admire all the experimentation you’ve put into your color choices. I think you’ve arrived at your best solution.


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Trekkriffic said:


> I admire all the experimentation you’ve put into your color choices. I think you’ve arrived at your best solution.


Thanks. Patience is not my strong suit, but this is not something I'm likely to do more than once. I*need* to not look back & curse myself that I rushed it. Even if the lighting should fail at some future point in time (hopefully unlikely, but I have a backup plan for that too, just in case), this will still be MY 'perfect' Holy Grail of models.  When my time comes to join the Great Bird Of The Galaxy, I want my Son to look at this giant work of art, and pause to thoughtfully mutter, "Where TF am I gonna put this?"


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## alpink (Aug 22, 2010)

another masterpiece


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

I've also decided that the faint deflector grid lines will be the very last thing I do when painting. If I do them in between hull colour & registration & marking masks, the lines & flat clear coat will just get pulled off in places.


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## Stemplr (Jul 11, 2020)

Chrisisall said:


> My quest for hull colour from rattle cans has ended. Tamaya as-32 for the hue, a _very_ light dusting of as-16 to lighten the value a bit.


Hi . New person here, i have been enjoying following your build. I am also working on the same kit, albeit a little more slowly. FWIW i noticed a Kreylon color the other day at Loewes Gloss Pewter Gray that actually looks pretty close to the hull color to my eyes.


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## Milton Fox Racing (May 27, 2014)

Welcome to the boards @stempir


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## Stemplr (Jul 11, 2020)

Milton Fox Racing said:


> Welcome to the boards @stempir


Thank you


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Stemplr said:


> i noticed a Kreylon color the other day at Loewes Gloss Pewter Gray that actually looks pretty close to the hull color to my eyes.


If it looks good to you that's what matters IMO. We are not making history here. We are making models. Trust your eye. That's what I am doing.


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## alpink (Aug 22, 2010)

what he ^ said


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## Stemplr (Jul 11, 2020)

Couldn't agree more


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