# Replicas Unlimited 23 inch Eagle



## colhero (May 18, 2006)

I decided to tackle the Replicas Unlimited 23 inch Eagle. There are several reviews out there but most were done for the earlier release of this kit. It was somewhat retooled in the past years and the later release has some improvements. The newer reviews state that the overall accuracy and molding quality are much better. The spine also is in 2 pieces without rods unlike the original release.

This is my first resin kit - though I have 2 other kits, both Orion shuttles - the Stargazer 17 inch and another 30" from somewhere... But I can see major quality differences between them - the RU Eagle is far superior. Each piece looks as good as plastic-molded, very clean and sharp. The pieces are straight enough and fit well together. Several size support rods are included. 

Of course there are still some pits, etc, but cleanup is quite reasonable. Theres a good amount of sharp detail and overall I would say the kit is fairly accurate. I would definitely rate it a 9/10 and highly recommend it.

The only issues are the sparse instructions (that were made for the previous release) and the fact that the pods will require your own ideas to mount them. The kit is molded so that a single support rod holds both pods on each module. There is nothing molded to help secure them further or preventing them from rotating on the rod. Easy fix by adding smaller rods or tabs.

I have decided during the course of my recent builds of the Enterprise Refit/A and the Jupiter 2 that it's easier to finish the subassemblies and paint them before full assembly. Here's a couple shots of my progress:


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## Maritain (Jan 16, 2008)

Looks good so far, can't wait to see how you do on the rest. I have the kit too, so I'll be interested to see how you do. How do you like the spine overall? I am assuming you're using the one straight out of the box since you didn't mention scratching building one. Something that would be nice, but a lot of work. 

Anyways good luck with the rest, nice job!


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## KUROK (Feb 2, 2004)

I've been considering getting the new-tool version of this kit.
This thread may push me that way!


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## colhero (May 18, 2006)

Finished the forward and rear modules, spine and pod. They will be glued and screwed together to form the load-bearing superstructure. The spine is not strong enough so the modules and pod will have to be fastened together, then the spine will just be glued on top.

So far this kit is fairly simple - easy to assemble and paint. And since I'm going with a used, utility look, painting does not have to be sharp and clean. I added a lot of grimey wash over all of the parts, then dabbed a bit of semi-gloss hear and there to give it the look of "used to be new" metal.

As well as this kit was designed and tooled, I now believe that a styrene kit would be easier to work with. Resin is definitely harder to cut and shape with an exacto, and too easy to over-sand. Ensuring proper fitment is required constantly before the parts are assembled. 

The cage and spine frames are a bit too thick for studio accuracy and theres not much that can be done about that. The Pod windows are a bit small so I just cut thin clear styrene, painted them black, glued them over the window sections, then used white pin stripe tape for the window frames. 

Next will be the engine section - this will be a pain since the framework needs to be created by hand. The frame pieces are provided, but nothing to ensure that the frame will come out straight. Either have to make a jig or have really good patience and eyeball alignment.


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## ViperRecon (Aug 3, 2010)

Nice! I need to break one of mine out and start it - I have two (split spine version that still came with springs for the landing gear). It may not be 100% accurate, but it's way better than the MPC repop I have on the bench causing me headaches right now, and far less work than cleaning up a Warp kit (though both of those are a better size for my available display space)... 

Mark in Okinawa


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## Maritain (Jan 16, 2008)

Man that looks great.


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## Xenodyssey (Aug 27, 2008)

Looks very good so far.


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## colhero (May 18, 2006)

What I decided to do for the engine section was to paint the pieces first, add decals then pin the tanks to the module and glue the main frame to the tanks. This way the main sections are aligned before trying to build the inner framework. Building the inner framework first would most likely lead to major fitment /alignment issues. And painting/detailing would definitely be more difficult after assembly. 

I added some detail piping on the tanks using some wire rod wrapped in tape then mounted to the tanks via drilled holes. I made the decals and printed them on matte sticker paper (since I dont have a laser printer). The small black details and red stripes were drawn on with permanent marker. Then sprayed dullcote over to seal the details.

The kit is designed to "pin" the tanks to the module using wire rod, but drilling the tiny holes is precarious since theres not a lot of meat on the sections to be drilled. I drilled holes in the aft ends of the tanks and in the main frame so that the nozzles can be screwed in, thus binding the nozzles, frame and tanks.


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## Fozzie (May 25, 2009)

Love the Eagle! So nice to see someone building one. It's coming out great! :thumbsup:


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## dlogix (Aug 22, 2005)

Also nice to see that they corrected the detail pattern on the Pod access door. The first version of the kit had that detail debossed (down), rather than embossed (up) as it is now. Nice correction to the pod window frames as well, it makes a big difference!


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## colhero (May 18, 2006)

Thanks for the kind words gents!

Got the rest of the engine framing done. Had to manually measure, cut, align each strut and hold in place while the superglue dried. I have a good eye for straight lines so that helped but the job is a challenge.


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## colhero (May 18, 2006)

Got the ball tanks on, then glued the modules, pod and spine together. The ball tanks again had to be manually positioned and held in place till the superglue dried, which again, compromises alignment. But it's straight enough.


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## Fozzie (May 25, 2009)

This is coming together very nicely!


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## colhero (May 18, 2006)

The landing pods came with pre-drilled holes for the included support rod to bind to the modules, but the pre-drilled holes in the modules and pods are either over or undersized for the support rod. 

I ditched the included rod and am using a 1/4" dowel instead. The pre-drilled holes in the landing pod were too small and will need to be re-drilled. I dabbed some wet paint on the dowel and used that to mark the correct hole locations. The holes that are not aligned have been filled with CA glue. Then the new holes will be drilled. 

The kit does not include anything to prevent the pods from rotating on the support rod, so I will need to add smaller rods or tabs. I dont understand the kit design decision here. The previous version of this kit had large mounting tabs molded with the pods - I would have preferred that since they could have been shaped for proper fit.

I also drilled holes on the inside walls of the passenger pod and used screws to further bind the pod and modules. Then I drilled holes to allow for an LED from the pod to the nosecone.


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## karr1981 (Feb 5, 2011)

Hi Guys, if anyone is interested in aluminium engine bells for this kit please drop me a pm for info

Thanks,

Chris
____________________
www.scifihardware.com
www.modelkitworld.com


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## sapper36 (Jul 4, 2008)

Chris - PMed about bells


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## robiwon (Oct 20, 2006)

Hi there. I'm working on the same kit. Did you ever finish yours?


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## colhero (May 18, 2006)

robiwon said:


> Hi there. I'm working on the same kit. Did you ever finish yours?


Hi Robiwan, yes I did finish it. here is a link to another forum I posted on:
http://scifimodelaction.com/sfmaforum/index.php?topic=4974.msg66324#msg66324

Good luck with your build!


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## robiwon (Oct 20, 2006)

She came out looking great. I see mine is an older version with tabs on the pods and one piece spine. The engine plumbing is going to be a daunting task. I'll make my own tubes and such as the kit parts are really bad and need a lot of clean up. The main support tubes will be easy, plumbing those darn balls is where I'm lost. Not sure where they go too.

Again great build!!!


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## KUROK (Feb 2, 2004)

robiwon said:


> plumbing those darn balls is where I'm lost. Not sure where they go too.


:freak:


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## BWolfe (Sep 24, 2013)

robiwon said:


> She came out looking great. I see mine is an older version with tabs on the pods and one piece spine. The engine plumbing is going to be a daunting task. I'll make my own tubes and such as the kit parts are really bad and need a lot of clean up. The main support tubes will be easy, plumbing those darn balls is where I'm lost. Not sure where they go too.
> 
> Again great build!!!


Here is an album of photos of the restoration of the 44 inch Eagle 1 by David M Sisson, lots of detail pictures from during and after the restoration, you should find what you need there.

http://www.smallartworks.ca/Articles/Restoration/Restore1.html

Apparently Eagle 1 was modified at some point and the engine plumbing altered to add freon jets to the main engines, this recreation below is what the original plumbing configuration looked like.


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## robiwon (Oct 20, 2006)

Thanks. I think I have it figured out now!


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