# Romulan Bird-Of-Prey WIP thread



## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*This is my build of the recently reissued TOS Romulan Bird-Of-Prey kit by AMT. 
Back when I built this model as a kid in the 70's it was a quick job of gluing and decaling and not much else; certainly no puttying or sanding and, since it was molded in grey, no painting either! 
Now, after 40 years or so, with vastly improved modelling skills and blueprints (albeit fan-based) to work from, I'm putting a little more effort into making something a bit closer to the studio model. 
So, to sum up what I intend to do with this kit, I'm making the ship about a half inch longer, recontouring the back and sides of the cupola on top, stepping the sides and adding about a 20 degree angle to the rim which will add another 1/4" to the sides, changing the angle of the wings so they are a bit shorter and more forward leaning, and adding the windows and sensor ports. 
I will also be adding illumination which can be turned on or off with a rheostat switch mounted to the stern "disposal chute" I'm going to build under the rear of the fin which will also be remade from scratch.*

*So, without further adieu, here are the pics of my progress as of today:*

*Cupola sides and rear now have flattened and sharper angles using thin sections of Evergreen styrene sheet:* 

















*A trapezoidal section was cut out and a new 1/2" longer piece of .080 Evergreen styrene sheet was heated, bent, and attached to the top rear of the hull:*









*Underside, reinforced seams with styrene strips. 
You can see the original shape of the cupola in this shot. 
Brass tubing was glued to the sides in the rear for strength when extending the hull with .080 Evergreen sheet:*









*A triangular section was cut out from the underside rear of the hull and flipped over before being reattached and extended with .080 Evergreen sheet:*









*Underside showing the seams reinforced with styrene strips.*









*The ship is now 1/2" longer than before and the hull has the correct concavity in the stern. *

*Next up, drilling windows and sensor openings in the cupola and upper hull...then I'll glue styrene strips to build out the rim to the correct angle.*


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## robster94gt (Feb 5, 2009)

Cool stuff. I started working on mine, but am not too thrilled about how it's going to end up looking stock. Looking forward to seeing yours though!
Rob


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## Hunch (Apr 6, 2003)

Looking good, I'll keep an eye on this thread.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Question on windows and sensors*

Question for you Romulan BOP fans. In this picture:



http://www.flickr.com/photos/birdofthegalaxy/3503273160/sizes/l/in/set-72157619514479789/



The windows along the top of the rim are square while the ones lower down (called out as sensors on the blueprints here) are round. The arc of 16 ports on the top of the hull (not on the cupola) appear to be square in the pic even though the blueprints call them sensors. So perhaps not all sensors are round like those on the rim. Now the 9 ports behind the arc on either side of the cupola appear to be round.

Now on the cupola, the 38 ports (at least it appears that is the number according to the blueprints) on the vertical rim are definitely round. 

My question is what about the ports on the slanted section of the cupola? I think they may be square although most models I've seen show these as round. 

Anyone have any opinions on this? 

Round ports aee easier of course but I'd like to get this as accurate as possible for this build.


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## Zombie_61 (Apr 21, 2004)

Difficult to tell from that photo. To me, some look round while others look square, but I can't imagine a good reason for the model builders to mix them up like that. It's unfortunate there's so little "official" reference material available for this ship; even the blueprints you linked to appear to be fan-made.

When I finally get around to building mine, I'm going with round because, as you stated, it's easier. Also, what little reference material that _is_ available (the aforementioned blueprints and other sketches, other build-ups, etc.) shows them to be round as well. But then, I kinda pick and choose which kits I want to build to be 100% accurate, and this isn't one of them. Sorry, I know that doesn't really answer your question...or be helpful in any way, for that matter. I have to say, though, that after viewing this thread I'm thinking about doing more to my kit than I originally intended. :dude:


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## StarshipClass (Aug 13, 2003)

Impressive. You can build planets!

I took one look at this kit and decided to use the engines on my nearly finished altered Playmates' version.

However, your conversion work is top notch, sir! I did pretty much the same thing with the desktop TOS ROM BOP and then my cat stepped on it. It's not a total loss--just have to repair a crack and then run off some decals for it.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Thanks Zombie. Thanks Perfesser.

Looking more closely, I think I'm leaning toward round ports on the slanted sides of the cupola now. I have some 1/16" diameter brass tubing that should work very well for the frames. And I bought an electric mini cutoff saw from Harbor Freight (20% off with my coupon!) which I'm itching to try out. Should speed the process of cutting all those short sections of tubing up considerably. I'll also need to grind the edge of each piece to round it off as they appear in the photos. I imagine the studio model used eyelets for the frames but when I went to Michaels they had nothing smaller than 1/8" eyelets in stock.


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## Zombie_61 (Apr 21, 2004)

Trekkriffic said:


> I imagine the studio model used eyelets for the frames but when I went to Michaels they had nothing smaller than 1/8" eyelets in stock.


Great minds think alike. I thought of using eyelets as well, and found a few places online that sell 1/16" diameter eyelets. Of course, your build is in progress, so waiting for an online order of eyelets to arrive might put a crimp in your plans.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Zombie_61 said:


> Great minds think alike. I thought of using eyelets as well, and found a few places online that sell 1/16" diameter eyelets. Of course, your build is in progress, so waiting for an online order of eyelets to arrive might put a crimp in your plans.


Yeah. I too found online sites that offer 1/16" inner diameter eyelets; however, I'm not much for ordering online as I pay for everything with money orders and I don't like the wait involved. I have a Joann fabric and craft store near me and they show a variety of eyelets in stock on their website. May check them out just in case they have something on the shelf I can use; otherwise, I'll cut the brass tubing I have into sections and round the edge with a file. Time consuming but it can be done.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

PerfesserCoffee said:


> Impressive. You can build planets!



*Yes. Mostly small ones but after a meal of corned beef and cabbage I can build gas giants!*


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## StarshipClass (Aug 13, 2003)

Trekkriffic said:


> *Yes. Mostly small ones but after a meal of corned beef and cabbage I can build gas giants!*


:roll:


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## jheilman (Aug 30, 2001)

mmm, corned beef and cabbage:woohoo:

St. Patrick's Day fare. Can't wait.

And very nice work on the BOP conversion.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

So.... went to Joann fabric today and the smallest eyelets they had were 5/32" so too big for my needs. I did get 50% off on some black felt-like fabric so bought 2 yards for 8 bucks. Should make a nice backdrop for "space" photos. Then stopped at Radio Shack and got a small 20 watt soldering iron with interchangeable tips for 20 bucks and a battery holder for 2 AAA batteries for a buck. This should fit inside the fuselage to power my LED's. Question is, do I even need a resistor if I'm running 3 volts when that's what the LED's need to light?


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## Fozzie (May 25, 2009)

Trekkriffic said:


> Question is, do I even need a resistor if I'm running 3 volts when that's what the LED's need to light?


No, you shouldn't. I'm doing that now. Be careful though. I had no problem lighting a white, blue, and green LED on 3 volts, but I burnt out the red one that I tried to light that way. Apparently it can't handle 3 volts.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

According to this LED series/parallel array wizard here, red LED's only need 2 volts. It recommends a 56 ohm resistor.


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## machgo (Feb 10, 2010)

You should always use a resistor, even if your output matches your input.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

machgo said:


> You should always use a resistor, even if your output matches your input.


I've heard that elsewhere so I guess it's off to Radio Shack or Frys for some low impedance (39 and 56 ohm) 1/4 watt resistors.


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## machgo (Feb 10, 2010)

I would suggest running them in parallel, off a "bus" of known, stable voltage. Then match your resistors to that voltage. You are mixing colors, right? 

OR, you could underpower your whites at 2 volts--they will probably be plenty bright, and they'll last longer...then you could run them in series I would think.

There is a free program called yenka which lets you build circuits and is animated to show you what happens to your electronic bits when powered up--including explosions when you apply too much power.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

machgo said:


> I would suggest running them in parallel, off a "bus" of known, stable voltage. Then match your resistors to that voltage. You are mixing colors, right?



Yes. I'll be wiring in parallel for sure. I'll have one red LED for the plasma torpedo launcher and the rest will be white. Probably one for the windows in the hull and one in each bussard dome. I'll have the bussards and plasma torp LED's tied in to opposite ends of a rheostat switch so turning one way lights the bussards and turning the other lights up the photorp launcher since I figured this ship could only fire its weapon when out of warp. I'll have the LED for the windows wired directly to the battery pack so they will always be on when the switch is on.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*New progress pics from the weekend:*
Cupola and upper hull windows drilled out. The 16 ports in the arc in front of the cupola had to be filed to shape as these windows are square:










More puttying on seams. Oh the joys of sanding:










I installed one window frame in the front window of the cupola as a test. Fit is good. Needs puttying of course:










I traced the shape of the upper hull and hammered finishing nails to duplicate the curvature and bent strip styrene with my heat gun. 
This will be filed and sanded to an angle for the rim after gluing:










Strips installed on rim of upper hull: 

















Turned out I needed two layers of strip (.080 x .250) on the top row with one layer of strip (.080 x .187) below that. I used Gorilla brand Super Glue. Great stuff!



*Next up: Shaping the rim! *


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## mach7 (Mar 25, 2002)

Very nice job so far!

I've been waiting for an update on your build. 

Thanks


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## Shaw (Jan 9, 2005)

This is a great idea for getting that rim geometry. That has always been the one detail I'd want changed on the kit.

Brilliant! :thumbsup:


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## enterprise_fan (May 23, 2004)

I'm not questioning the way you are doing it but wouldn't 4 thin layers, stacked like a set of stairs totaling the same thickness as your 2 thick ones, be easier to sand?


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

enterprise_fan said:


> I'm not questioning the way you are doing it but wouldn't 4 thin layers, stacked like a set of stairs totaling the same thickness as your 2 thick ones, be easier to sand?


Possibly. But more thin layers also means more adhesive. Question is, would more thinner layers of styrene with more CA in between be easier to sand than fewer thicker layers with less CA? CA can be harder to sand than styrene. I did a test using a file and heavy duty sanding stick on one of the back corners this afternoon and, how do I put this, removing slightly more than half of the outermost upper layer material off at an angle so the bottom edge is slightly inboard of the top edge of the lower strip while filing/sanding the lower strip so the lower edge is even with the bottom rim of the upper hull went very well. Making sure the surface is a flat incline with no curvature is easy with the file and rigid sanding stick. I ended up with what looks to be about a 20 degree angle which looks pretty close to the studio model. I'm very pleased with the results so far.
It did take me about 10 minutes to file a couple of inches though so this is a marathon but so are most of my builds ! :jest:


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## StarshipClass (Aug 13, 2003)

It all sands well!

Great job so far--very impressive!


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## KUROK (Feb 2, 2004)

machgo said:


> You should always use a resistor, even if your output matches your input.


I that just a current limiting resistor?


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

I'm probably goingto go with 4 coin batteries instead of the 2 AAA batteries. That will give me 6 volts rather than 3. I've got a fairly clever idea for a pushbuton/rheostat switch combination to turn on the lights and also be able to dim or brighten a couple of separate circuits for the warp bussards and plasma emitter.


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## machgo (Feb 10, 2010)

KUROK said:


> I that just a current limiting resistor?


yes. dirt cheap, and usually included with LEDs when purchased on ebay. I have a ton extra if you need some.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*New Pics !!!*

*New Update with pics!!! 

Worked mostly on shaping the rim of the hull this weekend...*

You can see the rim after filing and sanding on the left and before on the right here. 
I measured the angle of the incline afterwards and it's within a degree or two of 20 degrees. 
Close enough for government work as my dad used to say! :









This shows you how much material was removed:









Using the dremel for rough shaping saved me a few hours. I followed up with a file and sanding stick:









Bow after shaping:









Starboard side after shaping:









Stern after shaping:









I took some .010 sytrene sheet and glued it to the rim with more Gorilla Superglue after shaping. 
Then I brushed on some Mr. Surfacer 500. Looks great!:









I cut out a .010 styrene triangle and glued it to the underside to eliminate having to deal with the seam from the 1/2" extension to the stern. 
Still some sanding and seam filling to do:


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

I blew up the blueprints to 150% of original size so I could judge the correct angle for the wings. 
The model matched the scale of the blueprint perfectly: 

















I placed the port wing on the expanded blueprint along with the upper hull and traced a pencil line along the hull where the cut needs to be made to get the correct forward swept angle with the hull. I also traced a line for the cut where the nacelle attaches. It's amazing how wrong they got this when they made the original molds for this kit:









*Next up: 

Drilling out the rim ports and windows.

Bending some brass bar.

Thanks for reading!

*


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## mach7 (Mar 25, 2002)

Very nice work.:thumbsup: 

Boy the wings are really off, what a surprise!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Got some more work done over the weekend... * 

*Saturday:*

Spent a few hours on the plasma torpedo emitter. 
I decided to install it first before starting on the rim window frames. 
That way, I could use it as a reference point for lining up the windows to either side...

Using the dremel, I hollowed out a recess in the rim so the emitter would sit straight rather than at the angle of the rim:









The emitter was installed and puttied with AVES. 
Two sizes of red plastic rod will be used in the emitter barrels lit with a red LED:









*Sunday:*

My grinding and cutting stations. 
Each window frame is made from 3/32" brass tubing and will have a beveled edge to start with:









My Mini Cut-Off Saw. A real labor saver! 
I placed it in a box to catch the tiny pieces of tubing as the blade tends to send them flying:









After deburring, the sections of tubing are installed in holes drilled thru the rim. 
In the case of square windows ,the drilled holes are filed to a square shape after drilling. 
Time-consuming work for sure. 
After installation, a light pass with the file and a sanding stick removes the edge of the sharp bevel and gives the frames a flat rim around the clear windows.
The frames will be painted to match the hull color:








You can see above where I screwed up on the first 4 lower holes I drilled.  
I drilled them before drilling out and filing the square windows above them nearest the emitter. 
Once I did that I realized the holes underneath were too far to the right.  
So I had to redrill them and fill the original holes with AVES. 










*All told I spent about 7-8 hours installing the emitter and half the window frames on the rim. 
In fact, I didn't quite finish the last 4 square windows on the far starboard edge of the rim near the wing. 
Still need to square them up and cut the brass frames. 

Thanks for reading!*


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## Zombie_61 (Apr 21, 2004)

It's really starting to look like the studio model. Nice work!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*New Pics!!!*

*Update from this past weekend...*

Finshed installing the rim window frames:









Almost done with the frames on the cupola:









Funny but with the frames installed the BOP has a somewhat steampunk look to it. At least to me it does.

I extended the root of the wing halves with .080 styrene sheet:









Styrene sheet was cut and stacked up where the wings will attach to the lower hull then AVES was used to fill in the top gaps leaving a horizontal surface for mounting the brass bar on each side. I bent the bars at 30 degree angles for attaching the wings so they will be strong and set at the correct angle:









Next up... 
1. Finish the rest of the window/sensor frames on the top. 
2. Figure out the wiring scheme.
3. Start work on the warp engines. 

I plan to have the engines light up (when the LED's are on) like this image from the 2006 SOTL calendar:









The engines will be a clear opaque color when unlit. 
That's the plan anyway!


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## Paulbo (Sep 16, 2004)

Looking good, Trek! The window frames look great.

BTW - thanks! I've got the same cutoff saw as you (the Harbour Freight version in brighter colors) and your solution to keep bits from flying around is great. I'm stealing it (oops, I meant "I'm being inspired by it").


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## SJF (Dec 3, 1999)

Great job! I really love the window frames you've got in there.

Sean


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## mach7 (Mar 25, 2002)

Impressive!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

SJF said:


> Great job! I really love the window frames you've got in there.
> 
> Sean


God I'm glad they're almost done! :freak:

I'm thinking of painting the brass frames the hull color then touching them up with a silver gel ink pen after a coat of flat. They have to contrast like they do on the studio model. 

I could see doing another one of these ships with a steampunk theme. Leave the frames unpainted and add some smoke stacks to the cupola. You could do a takeoff on the Merrimac. Or a steamboat. Or a Teddy Roosevelt era space battleship with a big gun! 

Think it'll be awhile for that though. I've had about enough of frames for now.


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## starmanmm (Mar 19, 2000)

Cool build.


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## Styrene Sam (Apr 8, 2011)

Wow! Very, very nice!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Updates from today!*

Finally finished up the wings, that is, almost. I still need to glue the half round to the trailing edges but that will have to wait until I have the bottom half attached to each side of the lower hull afterwhich I'll glue the top half on after test fitting with the upper hull fitted to the lower hull. Once the top and bottom are glued together, I will trim and attach the half round to the trailing edges snugging it up nice and tight to the upper hull. Then I'll set the upper hull aside and laminate some .005 styrene sheet to the wings covering the extensions and elimnating most of the seams. Any gaps will be filled in with AVES and lightly sanded. 

*Anyway, here are the pics from today's work:*

Wings after tip extensions added and more trimming to the trailing edge. I decided the wings were too short after comparing to the blueprints and screen images of the studio model hence the need to extend them about a half inch. Actually 3/8" would have done it but I wanted a little extra for when I attach the warp nacelles. I also reduced the width about 1/4" to allow for the width of the half round tubing for the rounded trailing edges: 









Port wing halves internal showing framework for brass mounting brackets:









Starboard wing halves:









Half round tubing:









Lower hull showing how I ground off the back top edge of each bracket. I did this so the .080 spacer strip I glued to the back edge of the lower wing halves would have clearance:









That's it for today. 
Now I really do need to get back to those last window frames.  

Thanks for reading!


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## starmanmm (Mar 19, 2000)

Enjoying the build!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Working from home has its advantages. Got some work done in the garage at lunch...*

Finally finshed the cupola and upper hull frames! 









Underside of hull showing brass tubing sticking thru. Lots of CA used here. Next will be another coat of black enamel followed by gloss white from a rattle can:









Finished the step on the rim by cutting .005 styrene sheet to fit using a paper template and laminating it to the top of the rim with Ambroid Pro-Weld liquid cement. Just needs a little putty and light sanding now.:









I think I'll attach the lower wing halves to the lower hull next. Two-part epoxy should bond the plastic to the brass brackets nicely I think! 
:thumbsup:


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Love the effort that you are putting in to this!
Looking great!:thumbsup:
-Jim


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Thanks Jim! So yesterday I attached the lower wing halves to the brass brackets with Devcon 5-minute epoxy. Man are they on there solid! I think I'll finish drilling the other 2 holes thru the hull for the plasma torp emitter next and then build the lightbox that goes behind it to house the red LED. Then I'll get seriously into the wiring side of this build.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Trekkriffic said:


> Thanks Jim!
> Then I'll get seriously into the wiring side of this build.


You're welcome.:thumbsup:
Please show pics. of the wiring details!
-Jim


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

So I was told JT Graphics made a set of decals to fit a 1/650 scale vacuuform RBOP kit that's no longer in production. I emailed him asking if he happened to still make them and he replied he actually has them in stock! So I'll be placing an order soon as the kit decals just won't fit now that I've made the wing modifications. This is a big relief as my other option would have been to paint the bird which I could've done but decals are sooooooo much easier.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Sent a $15.00 money order out to JT-Graphics today. Shipping is free in the USA. His decals should fit just right!


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

:thumbsup:
-Jim


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## mikephys (Mar 16, 2005)

This is an amazing build. I've been following the progress, but I just have to stop and make a comment. I really admire your patience, skill and attention to detail. Please keep the pictures coming!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Well I changed my mind on the location of the batteries. I had planned on sealing them inside the hull which would have meant they'd eventually go dead after; hopefully, several years as I would only have the lights on for minutes at a time rather than continuously. I would think that 4 1.5V button type batteries would last a while powering 9 LED's of which at most 5 would be lit at one time. Still the thought that eventually my RBOP woudl go dark kept eating away at me so, after something of a redesign, I think I've found a way to have the batteries mounted internally yet still accesible from the outside. If all goes according to plan with the wiring tests, I'll construct a battery box where one of the rear shuttle hangars would go on either side of the dorsal fin so I can access the batteries thru the hatch on top!


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

If you are planning on using a base , why not put the batteries in your base?
-Jim


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## scifiguy67 (Jan 18, 2011)

JGG1701 said:


> If you are planning on using a base , why not put the batteries in your base?
> -Jim


i agree with you! i never put batteries or circuit board in my models i put them in the box so if something go wrong i don't have to take it apart.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

I've done battery boxes before but for this build I want the battery power to be self contained so no cords hanging off it. The batteries will be accesible though. I finished building the box over the weekend and it works. The pushbutton switch I scavenged off the Dollar Tree booklight works too. The real trick will be mounting inside the hull where there just isn't much clearance between the top and bottom halves. I have a pretty good idea what needs to be done though. As far as pros and cons of mounting the PC board inside the hull, there will be a board but no IC's or chips. I'm only soldering wires and resistors to it and my soldering skills are good so nothing should come loose.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Here's a pic of the battery box and pushbutton switch:

















Test fitting hull top and bottom with attached lower wing halves. The wings are set at a 30 degree angle:

















The interior was sprayed with a second coat of black paint followed by a nice thick coat of white for even light distribution:









These are the decals JT Graphics is sending me. Should work well for this build:









Now to work on opening the upper hull for the battery compartment "hatch".


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## scifiguy67 (Jan 18, 2011)

Trekkriffic said:


> I've done battery boxes before but for this build I want the battery power to be self contained so no cords hanging off it. The batteries will be accesible though. I finished building the box over the weekend and it works. The pushbutton switch I scavenged off the Dollar Tree booklight works too. The real trick will be mounting inside the hull where there just isn't much clearance between the top and bottom halves. I have a pretty good idea what needs to be done though. As far as pros and cons of mounting the PC board inside the hull, there will be a board but no IC's or chips. I'm only soldering wires and resistors to it and my soldering skills are good so nothing should come loose.


understood! great job! the mods you made really make a differecnce can't wait to see it when it's done!


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## mach7 (Mar 25, 2002)

Looking really really nice!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Today's update...*

*Before cutting the opening for the battery compartment hatch I thought I'd first make the fin so I could be sure the hatch was placed in the proper location relative to the fin. *

I plan on shaping the fin so it is wider at the base and tapers towards the top. The fin will also be wider at the front and taper to a sharper edge towards the rear. This will involve a bit of filing and sanding so, with that in mind, I took out my contour guide (used to replicate crown moulding) and placed it on the top rear centerline of the upper hull pressing it down with my fingers until it was seated tightly to the hull. Then I used this as a guide to make the pattern for the brass and styrene sections that would make up the fin:










The brass section will be sandwiched between two identical pieces of .080 styrene sheet and will give me a hard surface to file and sand to as I shape the fin. It also has the tabs for mounting.

Slots are cut into the upper hull matching the tabs on the brass piece:










The fit is very good IIDSSM; certainly close enough for government work as my dad used to say:










Using Gorilla brand Super Glue, I laminate the styrene pieces to the brass piece in the middle:










Again, the test fit is very good:


















Once I get done with the filing and sanding to final shape I will cover the fin with .005 styrene sheet prior to gluing it onto the hull.

*Next Up:

Cutting the opening for the battery compartment and a matching opening for the twin shuttle bay on the other side of the fin. 
I think I will go ahead and build out the other hangar bay too. 
Anyone got any good references or ideas for what an original series Romulan shuttle would look like ?* 

*Thanks for following along! *:thumbsup:


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Thanks for the update!!!
We really do need a "jaw dropping smiley" here.
Man your B.O.P. is looking great! I hope when I start on mine it will at least turn out half as good as yours.:thumbsup:
-Jim


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Thanks Jim! I appreciate the compliment although I hope yours turns out better than half as good as mine.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Found these details on a drawing from the LCARS Blueprints site. Not much detail but it's one person's concept of a shuttle:

Side and front views:









Top view:










It has a fin and what appear to be nozzles but no wings!??? Probably because it's a pretty tight fit in the hangar bay as it is. No room for wings.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*New Pics!!!*

*Update on this week's progress...*

Dymo label tape is used as a guide for cutting out the battery box hatch in the upper hull with a scribing tool:









The battery box is installed:

















Underside with outer aluminum tube of "disposal chute" installed. The brass tube above is press-fit into a rheostat switch and will turn inside the outer tube:









The rheostat tube inserted and wired up:









Disposal Chute under tailfin. The hollow brass tube turns in two directions to activate the warp bussard lights on one circuit and the plasma torpedo emittter and impulse engine lights on the other circuit:









Wiring diagrams:

















Gotta go but I have a few more closeups of the wiring diagrams to post up...


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Proud to see the extra work being done to this!
Keep up the good work!:thumbsup:
-Jim


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## CaptBillD (Apr 29, 2011)

Trekkriffic, I am really enjoying your build of this Wah Chang classic. This is a great project. Are you going to paint it a light gray or try for a brushed aluminum-look finish (screen accurate IMHO, but since there's no definite reference, JUST an opinion)?

One idea that occurred to me re: the shuttle in the hangar deck blueprint- why not folding wings like on carrier aircraft?

Looking forward to more pics!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Thanks for the kind words guys! *

Here are the rest of the wiring diagrams:









A brass rod inside the disposal chute will actuate a pushbutton switch providing power to all the circuits. A spring will push back on the rod when not depressed. A pencil or something similar will need to be inserted into the "chute" to turn on the lights. The chute will also act as the insertion point for a brass support rod mounted in the display base still to be constructed.

Closeup of the emitter assembly:









Warp Nacelles:








The impulse engines are in the rear of each nacelle and will be made from transparent red acrylic rods bundled together and lit by a red 3mm LED. I may or may not add a diffuser.

That's all for now!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

CaptBillD said:


> Trekkriffic, I am really enjoying your build of this Wah Chang classic. This is a great project. Are you going to paint it a light gray or try for a brushed aluminum-look finish (screen accurate IMHO, but since there's no definite reference, JUST an opinion)?
> 
> One idea that occurred to me re: the shuttle in the hangar deck blueprint- why not folding wings like on carrier aircraft?
> 
> Looking forward to more pics!


The ship will probably be light gray on top and a slightly lighter grey underneath. I may apply a transparent pearl overcoat to impart a slightly more metallic look to it. The nacelles will have metal aluminum nozzles and the brass window frames will be painted with Testors aluminum enamel as will the plasma emitter. The overall finish will be flat matte.

I like the idea of folding wings for the shuttle. I'll have to do a drawing with some ideas and post it for everyone's opinions.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

JGG1701 said:


> Proud to see the extra work being done to this!
> Keep up the good work!:thumbsup:
> -Jim



Thanks Jim! I appreciate all the comments!

Steve


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## starmanmm (Mar 19, 2000)

Nice.

Noticed what looked like metal flat stock between the two halves of the tail fin... did I miss a step?


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

starmanmm said:


> Nice.
> 
> Noticed what looked like metal flat stock between the two halves of the tail fin... did I miss a step?


Go back to post #58 on page 4. The fin is made of 3 layers, the middle layer is brass. I'll be shaping the outer styrene layers and wanted a hard middle layer to sand and file to.


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## starmanmm (Mar 19, 2000)

:freak: Don't know how I missed that.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Updates on work completed last week and over the weekend:*

Hangar bay doors framed with .040 quarter round strip and sanded. The opening for the port door looks to need a little flat strip added to the bottom edge where I see a gap in the pic.









Sensor bumps added using scrap sprue turned on my dremel:









Right and front walls of the hangar bay. The right side has roll up doors to the shuttle maintenance shop. The front wall features the entry doors. Need to finish the other two walls and the floor:









Pushbutton switch installed and wired up:

















Light box for mounting behind forward plasma torpedo emitter. The inside is lined with white reflective tape:

















Continued...


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Upper fin is filed/sanded to shape and laminated with thin styrene sheet. Then AVES is used to putty the front and back edges:

















I really need to clean up my workbench!

*Anyway, thanks for reading along. More to come... :wave:*


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Great work as always!:thumbsup:
Can't wait to see this baby lit up!
-Jim


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## Tiberious (Nov 20, 2001)

Amazing! Very very impressive work and attention to detail! Thank you for sharing your project with us!

Tib


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## machgo (Feb 10, 2010)

Excellent! Great follow along project! Thanks for posting your work!


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## Fozzie (May 25, 2009)

Really enjoying this build...marveling at the work. Thank you for letting us share the ride. Keep posting! :thumbsup:


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Thanks guys! Should have some pics of the shuttle next!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Well no shuttle pics yet but I have some pics of the hangar...just have to finish one wall and the floor. *

*Three walls glued together so far. The tops of the right and front walls especially are sloped to fit the concave curvature of the hull above them. The floor of the bay will be level horizontally.*

















*Front Wall. A rectangular green LED is mounted vertically on the right side. My predominant colors for the bay are green and grey.*









*Rear wall. The red button is the refueling port. It also operates a pushbutton switch which will be wired to the green LED in the front wall.*









*Right wall. The rollup door provides access to the shuttle maintenance shop.*









*Unfinished left wall. I used very fine mesh PE to make the air pressurization duct vents.* 









*Just to give you an idea of scale, each long wall is about 1.25" (about 67' in the "real world") long by about 3/8" high (RW about 20'). 
The short walls are about 1/2" wide (RW about 27'). A 6 foot tall Romulan crewman would be about 7/64" tall at 1/650 scale.*

*Continued...*


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## mach7 (Mar 25, 2002)

Ingenious!

Great work. I love the details you are putting into the bay.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Too cool! 
-Jim


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Thanks Guys!* 

*Here are a few more pics of the plasma emitter light box after installation.*

*Inside:*









*Red acrylic rods inserted into emitter:*









*A lot of wiring left to do.*









*Comments welcome. I'm especially interested in any ideas for the 3 man shuttle craft itself now that the bay is almost done. I have decided it will have folding wings but that's about all so far. * :wave:


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## starmanmm (Mar 19, 2000)

If what you are asking as for a shape for this shuttle... shape it after some sort of bird.... hawk/sparrow... something along those lines.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

starmanmm said:


> If what you are asking as for a shape for this shuttle... shape it after some sort of bird.... hawk/sparrow... something along those lines.


Interesting. Thanks a lot! I've got a few good ideas now. 

Someone over on the Tholian Web forum posted this link to a fan designed BOP shuttle:
http://www.scifi-meshes.com/forums/showthread.php?76547-Star-Trek-TOS-Romulan-Shuttlecraft

This is more weaponized than what I'm after but I like the concept:
http://www.scifi-meshes.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=85335&d=1285508593
http://www.scifi-meshes.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=85336&d=1285508593


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Fascinating!
-Jim


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Happy Memorial Day weekend everyone... here are the latest updates...*

So yesterday I took the plunge and decided it was high time to clean up the old workbench. Whoever said that, no matter what size your workbench is, you will still perform all of your work within a 6 inch square area, was profound in my opinion:









Here's a test fitting using 2 sets of JT Graphics decals. This shows the Sci-Fi Miniatures 1/650 decals for the wings and body and the tail of the AMT 1/650 set. This worked pretty well but I will still need to make some modifications to the length (they need to be about 1/4" shorter) and width at the tip (they need to have about 1/4" added front and back) of the wings for the decals to fit properly. This will be done once I finish the wiring and seal up the hull. 









Fiber optic floodlights for the floor of the hangar bay. 1/16" OD aluminum tubing was used with 4 fibers for each light. The fibers were left protruding about 1/32" from the end of the aluminum tubing which was then carefully heated so the fibers melted. As they did so they shrank back even with the mouth of the tube making perfect little floodlights!









*Finished hangar bay pics...*

Right wall showing maintenance shop rollup door. 









Left wall showing air pressurization ducts.









Front wall showing entrance.









Rear wall showing refueling station.









Floor of bay. The landing marker is made from strips of white reflective tape.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Pics of the hangar bay installed into the upper hull.

































Once I'm done with the wiring I'll install the floodlights. I did test out the pushbutton switch mounted in the back wall (the red "refueling port" is the button) tying it in to the green LED in the front wall and it lit just like I'd planned it! It's so nice to have a day where everything comes out right! :thumbsup:

That's all for now folks! Again, have a great Memorial Day and remember to say a prayer in memory of the veterans who gave up so much in service to their country.


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## starmanmm (Mar 19, 2000)

Looking great.... could you give us a close up of the floods.... not too sure what you did there.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

starmanmm said:


> Looking great.... could you give us a close up of the floods.... not too sure what you did there.


Sure thing. This is as close as I could get without a macro lens. I used a magnifier and a flashlight to show it lit up:










Looking head on into the can:









Today I finished most of the internal wiring except for the warp nacelles. The wire leads are in place though:


















I'll post more pics tomorrow. Stay tuned!


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## slingshot392 (Nov 27, 2008)

Just...WOW :thumbsup:

And prayer said...


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## starmanmm (Mar 19, 2000)

Thanks for posting a close up... now... is that tape wrapped around the FO or something else?


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

That'sScotch brand Magic tape starmanmm.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Here are some more pics of the wiring. Everything runs off a parralel circuit of 6 volts DC supplied by the 4 batteries. Each LED has a resistor; the white ones use a 150 ohm x 1/4W resistor and the colored ones use 220 ohm x 1/4W resistors.*


































*The silver canister at the top is the light source for my floodlights. Inside is a blue LED.:*









Continued...


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*I used the semi-opaque center spools from three empty Crest Glide dental floss containers to make what I can only call "lampshades" around the LEDs. They help the LEDs glow brighter and spread the glow evenly in more directions. Hopefully, these pics will help demonstrate that:*

*Lit up!*

















*You can just see the blue light inside the floodlight canister in this image:*









*The plasma emitter lit up:*









*Light test with the lower hull in place but not glued yet. The gloss white paint of the lower hull really spreads the glow of the lights around the interior:*









*Next step is inserting almost 100 acrylic rods into the window/sensor frames. I'm debating whether to make the square windows clear and the round sensors yellow to differentiaite them. With the bluish white light from the LEDs they would have a slight greenish tint. Anyone have any opinions on that?

Comments and suggestions welcome!*


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

slingshot392 said:


> Just...WOW :thumbsup:
> 
> And prayer said...


Not quite sure what you mean by saying a prayer but thanks for the comment anyway! :thumbsup:


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Did a little testing with the clear acrylic rod at lunch and am glad to report 3 superbrite white LEDs is enough to light the windows. The acrylic rod really picks up the light quite well without being too bright. No "beaconing" with this baby's windows! Of course, the gloss white enamel I used on the interior really helps bounce the light around too; I actually went back and painted over some of the wiring with gloss white. I'm pretty happy so far with how this is turning out!


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## starmanmm (Mar 19, 2000)

Wonderful work... but I was wondering... not seeing it in person... would it work as well not to insert the acrylic rods into the windows? For it looks like the windows light up well enough w/o it... judging from the pics.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

starmanmm said:


> Wonderful work... but I was wondering... not seeing it in person... would it work as well not to insert the acrylic rods into the windows? For it looks like the windows light up well enough w/o it... judging from the pics.


It probably would work without acrylic in the upward facing windows but the windows on the sides of the cupola and rim of the hull need a little more to light up properly; the cupola windows less so but definitely the ones on the front of the ship. The acrylic rod acts like a light tube and gives a consistent even glow; also the act of sanding the ends of the rods diffuses the glow and eliminates "beaconing" or "hot spots" where the light is excessively bright when looking thru the window directly into the light source. Once I get a few rods installed in the rim I'll take a few photos of them adjacent to open windows so you can see the difference.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Semi-epic fail to report I'm afraid... 

Found an issue with the watch batteries I was using. Apparently they don't have enough juice to power all the LED's I have in my design; the 3 white LED's that light the windows seem fine until I push the button to light the hangar bay, plasma torp emitter and the floodlights at which point they go dim. And that's without having wired up the 4 LEDs for the nacelles. Should've done a test I suppose before installing all this stuff in the hull but... oh well... live and learn. I'll have to abandon the internal battery idea and go with an external box with 4 C cells. That should have plenty of milliamperage to power the LED's. Just gotta figure out where to mount the power jack in the ship. I don't want it in the center underside so I may just redo the disposal chute so a size K DC power plug can fit into it and plug into a size K jack behind the bays. That mean removing a lot of plastic and redoing some of the wiring. Arrrrrghhhh! 
I'm just a little disappointed in myself at this point...


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## machgo (Feb 10, 2010)

I hate when that happens to me (often).

Your battery box only has 2 poles, right? What if your plug went through the battery box cover with a connector for the plug on the inside of the cover, connected to the poles? I'm assuming your power supply has interchangeable tips. See lousy attached sketch.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

machgo said:


> I hate when that happens to me (often).
> 
> Your battery box only has 2 poles, right? What if your plug went through the battery box cover with a connector for the plug on the inside of the cover, connected to the poles? I'm assuming your power supply has interchangeable tips. See lousy attached sketch.


That's a thought but then I'd have a hole in the hatch where the power plugs in and a cord draped over the back of the ship. One of the reasons I wanted the batteries internal was so I could photograph the model against a green screen or black backdrop suspended with fishing line with no power cord showing. That's out the window now. With an external power source I don't need the main pushbutton switch inside the ship that you actuate thru the hollow disposal tube so, at this point, I'm thinking about installing the power jack in the rear of the ship where it woudl be least noticeable, probably where the disposal chute is. The rheostat switch doesn't work anyway (Did I mention that?) which was part of the reason for the chute in the first place. Figure I'll cut the tube just inside the rear of the ship and glue the power jack right there. Then I'll run new leads from the power jack and splice them into the points where the battery wires attach to the circuits; call it a bypass operation. I will still have the pushbuttoin switch in the shuttle bay of course so the rest of the wiring will be as is.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

I wonder if it would be possible to splice the leads from the power jack into the circuit without removing the battery leads? Would this work or would the external current cause the batteries to overheat or explode? What would that do to the voltage in the circuits? Would it add another 6 volts making it a 12 volt circuit ?


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## machgo (Feb 10, 2010)

I completely forgot the battery access door was topside when I posted before. :freak:


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

machgo said:


> I completely forgot the battery access door was topside when I posted before. :freak:


No worries. I wish one of the electronics whizzes here could answer my questions about having external and internal batteries on the same circuits though.

Update: I went ahead and posted my questions over in the Model Lighting forum too.


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## slingshot392 (Nov 27, 2008)

Trekkriffic said:


> Not quite sure what you mean by saying a prayer but thanks for the comment anyway! :thumbsup:


For this part of your post from a couple days ago 

_That's all for now folks! Again, have a great Memorial Day and remember to say a prayer in memory of the veterans who gave up so much in service to their country._


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

slingshot392 said:


> For this part of your post from a couple days ago
> 
> _That's all for now folks! Again, have a great Memorial Day and remember to say a prayer in memory of the veterans who gave up so much in service to their country._


Oh gosh I'm getting obtuse in my old age. Thanks for the prayer slingshot. My atrophied brain thought you had said a prayer for the success of my build! Doh!


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## machgo (Feb 10, 2010)

What you are suggesting sounds like you'd be running the power supply and batteries in parallel, not in series. I think this means you would not add up the voltages.

Your batteries, as they are in the battery pack, are in series. The voltage adds up 4 X 1.5 volts. 

Why do you want the batteries in the circuit also? And not just run everything on the power supply?


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Hi machgo,

The two sets of batteries each add up to 6 volts in series but will be run in parallel on separate circuits so the maximum voltage is 6 volts in my system. 
The external battery pack will use 4 C cells which I purchased today which I loaded into a battery box left over from a previous build. 
Why go with internal batteries you ask? Simple. I want the luxury of photographing and/or zooming it around the room with the lights on untethered to a power supply cord. 
I plan on suspending it with fishing line and reproducing some of the shots seen in the original _Balance of Terror _episode. 
I have a starfield bakdrop that should do the trick;I also have my own version of a greenscreen made from foam core panels. 
Today I actually completed most of the rewiring adding a DC power jack where the disposal chute tube used to be and installing a SPDT slide switch to switch between power sources. I had to do some thinking on where to place the slide switch as if it is too obvious externally my ship will turn into a toy which is NOT my goal. 
So I carved a slot to the left of the disposal chute in the stern midway between the chute and the side of the ship. 
Then I installed the switch with two tiny phillips head screws. 
Eventually I'll fashion a rectangular hatch cover to disguise the slot and make a matching faux hatch cover for the other side restoring the symmetry. 
I'd like the cover to be hinged but that may be a bit tricky as 'll need to fashion the hinge from scratch. 
I'll take some pics tomorrow and post them.

:thumbsup:


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*OK folks here's the latest pics after I revamped the wiring scheme to allow for either internal or external power...*

But first, a pic of the primed tail fin prior to installation:



















There is a taper front to back:










Light test prior to the wiring redo. 










Emitter lit as originally installed. Not very bright.










Emitter after swapping out the red LED for a high brightness white one and adding dual light tubes fed off the ship's central white LED. Much better!
You can also see one of the sensor ports with yellow acrylic rod inserted. It glows green! Nice IIDSSM!










Cont'd...


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Revised wiring. The rheostat switch didn't work as planned so I had no qualms about removing the rotating tube assembly . I also no longer needed the main pushbutton switch as the slide switch turns the lights on and off for each circuit now. It took me about 4 hours to rip out the old wiring and parts and install the new DC jack and slide switch. Now I have the luxury of running lights internally powered "off the cord" for short periods or "on the cord" for longer periods!



















I redid the plasma emitter using a high brightness white LED. I also ran two light tubes of acrylic rod from the center white LED to the back of the emitter. That way when the main emitter LED is off (it's on the same circuit as the hangar bay lights which operate on a switch inside the hangar bay) the two outer lights on the emitter will glow faintly. 


















Tailfin installed. Needs puttying.



















cont'd...


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

I added a "tractor beam emitter" to the floor of the hangar bay as it was somewhat dim. Lights up real nice now!





































Sorry, Looks like I forgot to clean up a few curly mscraps of flooring left over from my drill for these shots. 

Here it is with hangar doors in place.











All hangar bay lights except the spotlights operate on their own circuit using the red pushbutton switch/refueling port on the rear wall. 
The spots will tie in with fiber running to the central LED and will be on when the other hangar lights are off.

*That's all for now. 

Next up is priming the upper hull and inserting the acrylic window rods. 

Thanks for following along.* :thumbsup:


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Holy Shinola!
That is looking good!:thumbsup:
-Jim


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*After some careful consideration I decided last night that the "tractor beam emitter" looked more like a shaved off LED than an emitter. I also thought it was too glaringly bright which washed out the glow from my green LED in the forward wall. So I decided one final refinement was necessary before I could call the shuttle bay done. *

Using the same PE screen I'd used for the air vents and round nozzles I'd bought off the SSM store years ago...









I trimmed the PE to the same diameter as my flattened LED and drilled out the center of a round nozzle to form a bezel which I painted steel color then placed over the LED and secured with Krystal Klear adhesive:









When turned, on the glare is gone and the ambient lighting is just about perfect:









And I have my green glow back!









Oh and I also puttied around the base of the tailfin.

*Next up...

Priming the upper hull and installing the acrylic rods.
*


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## machgo (Feb 10, 2010)

That's a very cool look for the tractor beam!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Thanks machgo!

*Here are some pics of the assembly I made of the fiber spotlights for the hangar bay:*










I used a short piece of clear sprue and drilled a small hole in the center. Then I glued in the fiber optic bundles with 5-minute epoxy. 
The plug fits into the shroud surrounding the cental whte LED. 

Here are some lit pics with the plug in place:


















*Here are some preliminary sketches of the scout ship I call a Peregrine which will be housed in the hangar bay:*


























The model will be about 3/8" wide (with wings folded), 3/4" long, and 3/8" tall when finished. I wanted a birdlike look in this concept. 
I like this design but it may be a little too complex; however, when compared to the design of the mother ship. 
Alternatively, I could just leave the hangar bay empty and say the scout is cloaked! 

*Comments/suggestions welcome!*:thumbsup:


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## Fozzie (May 25, 2009)

Nice design for the scout ship...!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Thanks Fozzie. It's a good starting point but needs some more tweaking after some input I've gotten over on the RPG forum. The next iteration will involve combining this with Matt Jefferies oiriginal shuttle design. Currenty, it lacks a certain sleekness and the bird element is a little too pronounced I think.

Here's a pic of MJ's original shuttle concept that was never used because it was deemed too expensive to make by the show's producers:










I also don't think it looks enough like a falcon; more like a swallow now that I think of it!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Here's something I started on graph paper and decided to just go ahead and draw it out on styrene to true size. Here's the top view:










I think this looks pretty close to what I envision the Peregrine to look like. The cigar shaped main fuselage has two large triangular windows with hatches behind. A flat angled rim runs round it that tapers on the underside. There is a dorsal fin that comes down between the windows narrowing to a flattened tip (perhaps where a retractable disruptor weapon sits). She uses a newly developed matter/antimatter drive (thanks to recently captured Federation documents) giving her great range for her size. Warp 7 capable, she representsa an advance prototype 3-man scout; in essence she echoes the design of her mothership which was rumored to be at least party based on captured Federation technology. Too bad the matter/antimatter drive couldn't have been adapted for the big ship in time for it's mission of terror across the Neutral Zone. Things almost certainly would have turned out differently.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Looks promising.
-Jim


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

JGG1701 said:


> Looks promising.
> -Jim


Thanks! Hmmmmmm...I think the warp nacelles are a little too large.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Fresh pics from last night...*

Upper hull primed. A few spots to putty but it's amazingly smooth. Gave it a good rub down with 70% rubbing alcohol to clean her up first. Did some micro scraping with the edge of my #11 blade and used these really thin sanding sticks for tight areas around the hangar bay hatches. Anyway...



















Scout ship starting to take shape. Thanks to a few parts cannibalized from a kharma bomb Jason Abbadon dropped on me some years ago. 
Thanks so much Jason! 
I owe you... something?



















Definitely more Romulan looking than the "Swallow" or "Owl" . I like "Owl". My first design strikes me as not so much a fighter as a transport. 
Ya know...it almost looks like something the Federation might have built if they'd captured some Romulan plans. A Fed shuttle with a beak! 

By comparison, the "Peregrine" is less birdlike, more bird-esque. Not to be confused with burlesque of course. The wings will fold up. There'll be a weapon of some type on the prow. And a fin, maybe two. Not sure about ligths yet but fiber might come into play.

Felt like I was in the "zone" yesterday.:thumbsup:

Comments welcome.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Well it appears warp nacelles on the wingtips is out of the picture for this one. I did a mock up in the hangar bay with the wings folded in the upright position as they have to be to fit in the bay and it's just too tall with the nacelles. So I set the wings with the nacelles attached off to the side for a possible future shuttle and went with two "wings" I cut off a resin part. These were the right shape and the plastic is nice and thin and will make for great wingtips. I'm thinking I could actually mount the warp engines underneath the shuttle since I have more room to play with on the underside with having to clear the tractor beam emitter and all. 
Hmmmmmm... If I have enough space on top after doing the underside of the ship with landing gear, I might add some long, thin weapons pods to the wingtips.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

So I have been mulling over using the name Falcon instead of Peregrine. Mostly because it sounds more menacing than Peregrine. 
Also because, as someone pointed out on another forum, the Feds already have a scout class ship they call the Peregrine although it was never seen on screen. 

So anyway, I was in a reverie last night thinking how "Balance of Terror" might have turned out if the Romulans had actually had this little ship...

Romulan Commander:
"Centurion! Prepare to launch the Falcon when we clear the comet's tail."

Imagine Kirk's surprise when he appears to be engaged with two intruders where only one existed before. 

Anyway, I've decided I'm going to base the rest of the design on a combination of Federation and Romulan technologies. 
This is based on the notion that the Romulans had actually stolen Federation data and used it in the design of the BOP and the shuttle. 
So it will have the same nacelle design as the mother ship only mounted below on forward curved pylons resembling the grasping talons of a falcon. 
The underside of the bow will match the curve of the top but then go concave with a sharp keel between the warp engines in a graceful curve to the upward slanted stern where it makes a diamond shape. Here there is a refueling port (a mounting hole for an aluminum rod). 
The fin will start at the nose along the downward slant of the rim giving me a suggestion of a beak based on the intersection of the fin and rim. 
The back of the fin will be angled to match the fin of the big ship. 
On the bow will be an upward angled flat spot with an open port 
in the center for a retractable phaser cannon.

I really need to draw this out but it's pretty clear in my mind now.
Birdesque rather than birdlike. 

So what do you guys think about calling this the Falcon class scout ship?


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*So after input from a modeller over on the RPF I've decided to call this little ship the Talon. 
It's actually classed as a fighter. 
Anyway, here are some pics...*










Drawings...









Romulan Commander: "Still experimental Decius. Dare I use them."


























Funny but this view makes me think of Mothra LOL!

I may have to change the shape of the windows to narrrower slits rather than triangluar slots. Would also look more menacing. Yep slits it is!
I may even go with a loading ramp for the rear support leg. 

Comments anyone?


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## starlord (Mar 30, 2011)

This the old model of the RBOP is it not? I have one of the newer type and it was not
done before I went into the hospital. When I came hope I fount the model had been taken from my bilding box and parts are missing. This is not like the one you have, this is new the one from STNG time, warbirds. Rifht now I don'y have a way to get it done, I only have the lower part the top part but the engines were dumped so all I have is about 60%
of it.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Trekkriffic said:


> Comments anyone?


Really haven't got much to say except that you are *REALLY* doing a terrific job on this!
-Jim


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

starlord said:


> This the old model of the RBOP is it not? I have one of the newer type and it was not
> done before I went into the hospital. When I came hope I fount the model had been taken from my bilding box and parts are missing. This is not like the one you have, this is new the one from STNG time, warbirds. Rifht now I don'y have a way to get it done, I only have the lower part the top part but the engines were dumped so all I have is about 60%
> of it.


Is it this one?


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

JGG1701 said:


> Really haven't got much to say except that you are *REALLY* doing a terrific job on this!
> -Jim


Thanks! Means a lot coming from you sir.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Making some progress on the Talon:*


























I've got the lower fuselage in place along with the warp struts. 
I also puttied the stern and attached a phaser housing to the front. I'll mount the phaser barrel inside it. 
I also turned the warp nacelle bussards using clear acrylic rod. I have two tiny aluminum nozzles all ready to go once I have the engines glued to the struts; I'm waiting to be sure they are rotated the right direction as they have a 20 degree rear slant to them like those on the big ship. 
I'm talking something not much bigger than the head of a pin after all. 
The upper fin was cut out in 5 mil styrene sheet. 
I may use that as a template to make it out of brass.

Anyway, sorry I don't have more to show right now. 
This thing keeps evolving as I go along but it's pretty faithful to the drawing right now. 
I'm thinking of having the struts be mounted a little further back towards the rear of the nacelles at the moment.

*Thanks for any and all comments! *


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

*Pretty neat , pretty neat!!!* :thumbsup:
-Jim


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

:thumbsup:*Got a lot done within a very small area the past few days.

Work done on the Talon...*

Brass fin!










Fin and engines attached and a little Mr Surfacer 500 later...


















Test fit. 











"The Romulan Commander marveled at the size of the new Talon fighter which stood before him. 

The new ship literally filled the bay. 

To be sure he had expected the new matter/antimatter drive and phaser cannon to require a larger spaceframe than was common for a 3-man scout, still, the sight of this odd blend of Federatioln and Romulan was disquieting to him. 
Romulan lives had been lost to bring Federation plans to the Empire and the Talon (and to a lesser extent his new flag ship) owed its mixed birth to Federation, as much as Romulan, parents..."










Hey who said My Favorite Martian?


More to come as the Talon continues to evolve!


Version II next... I add a talon!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Here are the latest pics. *

I wasn't happy with the overall height (it barely fit inside the hangar) the so I carefully sawed off the warp pylons at hull level and filed about 1/32" off the support struts. I also added a beak/talon to the bow. This is what I referred to as version II:

Shortened warp pylons. I cut the heads off sewing pins for the landing pads. I haven't added the rear nozzles yet:









More "raptorish" bow:









































Funny , this wasn't planned but from this underneath angle I'm reminded of a bird sitting on a branch.



















Now for some more sanding and reattaching the warp engines!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

An undercoat of Testors steel enamel was airbrushed onto the upper hull. Once the acrylic windows are installed I'll mask all around the frames so they will stay this color after I spray the overall grey basecoat on.



















Since this photo was taken I've inserted yellow acrylic rod in all the round sensor ports. The square windows have a clear round rod inserted in them followed by a few drops of Microscale Krystal Klear to fill out the frame. Turned out very nice and they really light up well!


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Gotta tell ya, this is one fine thread that I love keeping up with!
Great work as always.:thumbsup:
-Jim


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*New pics from this past weekends activities...*

*On the Talon...*

I redid the window frames going with round ones instead (hearkening back to my original Peregrine design) and came up with a way to light them:

















Phaser also lights up:









The secret lies under the photo-etch screen. A clear red acrylic rod under the screen picks up any light from underneath and transmits it to a hollow inside the head of the Talon into which I drilled window and phaser emitter holes from the top and front. 

















*More to come...*


















Thanks for any comments! :thumbsup:


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*On the big ship...*

Finished up all the acrylic rods in the windows and sensor ports. The square windows were filled with clear round rod then 3-4 drops of CA followed by 1-2 drops of _Future_. 

The round sensor ports use yellowish rods that glow green. They were press fit into the openings to window rim depth and glued with CA from behind:









Inside upper hull. 









The multifaceted silver button in the center under the central LED splits the light up over the entire interior like a mirror ball. First time I'd ever tried using a button from the craft store for that:









Lit up inside:

















Outside lit up:

























Cont'd...


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Will mask windows with Tamiya tape using a nail set to punch out tape for the round ports. 
Then I'll hit her with another undercoat of silver Tamiya lacquer. 
The exterior is still primarily steel although I've done some more sanding on it. 
I'm sure there'll be more sanding once I've glued the upper and lower hulls together this weekend...

















*Next up...

Installiing magnets under the hangar bay floor and regluing the warp engines onto the Talon! *


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Too cool!:thumbsup:
-Jim


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

I've started a new thread dealing strictly with the construction of the Talon so moving forward please go here to follow its progress :

http://www.hobbytalk.com/bbs1/showthread.php?t=331855

I will continue posting all pics related to the BOP itself in this thread.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Updates from last night's progress...*
Magnets glued into bottom of hangar bay with CA. 
These should work well with the pinheads that constitute the front landing pads on the Talon. 
The plastic spacer in the middle held them apart while the glue dried. 
Looks like a plumber's nightmare doesn't it?










Here you can see the fiber bundles for the spotlights connecting to the light source in the center...










The spotlights in the bay...hmmmm... looks like one of my green sensor rods is sticking out from its bezel in the cupola. 
Have to poke it back down and add a drop of glue to fix that...









*That's it for now.
Thanks for reading!*


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Work completed over the past few days while on vacation...would have gotten more done but had to go 25 miles back and forth to the medical clinic Thursday and Friday with my wife...*

First I had to tidy up the workbench. 
Here are some post cleanup pics. Doesn't everyone just love workbench pics? 

Left side. My files and tweezers:









Right side. All my dental tools and pics:









My plastic rolling drawer chest from Walmart. Contains supplies and paints mostly. 
Ahah! That's where I left my glasses! I'm nearesighted so I don't wear them much while modeling:









Anyway, back to the build...

Upper and lower hulls glued together. 
Lots of shimming and filling done. More to do along with sanding:









Wing roots were a biotch but got'em filled with epoxy putty. I also added a half round styrene strip to the trailing edge:









The stern. Aluminum strip was cut, folded, and glued with CA to protect each corner as I figure the corners are most likely to suffer the most abuse. 
Lots of puttying and sanding ahead:









*That's all for now. Gotta get back to puttying and sanding I love them so...*


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Time for an update from this past weekend...*

I attached the lower nacelle halves with CA using brass tubing to assist with alignment. The brass tubing was inserted in holes drilled thru the lower nacelles into the wingtips. Then I filled any gaps with Evergreen strip and AVES apoxy putty before filing and sanding:

















Nice and level:









You may have noticed the slanted nozzle halves on the rear of the nacelles were cut off. They will be replaced with sections of aluminum tubing.

Work was begun on the stand. Aluminum tubing was bent in a gentle curve and the power plug was mounted to the tip. It will fit over a shorter piece inserted thru a hole in the wooden base:

















A slot for the power jack was carved in the underside of the base with my dremel. This is where the battery box will plug in:









*That's all for now. 
Next up will be lighting the nacelles!*


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## Model Man (Oct 1, 2007)

Great idea on the back-side tube! That's got me wondering if it could also be done to the front, under the plasma gun (held by magnets), so it could be displayed front or back.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Model Man said:


> Great idea on the back-side tube! That's got me wondering if it could also be done to the front, under the plasma gun (held by magnets), so it could be displayed front or back.


Interesting idea. It would need to be an awfully powerful magnet; this thing is heavy for its size what with the batteries onboard and the brass bits.
I will be able to tilt the model from side to side though. My main concern is the strength of the aluminum to resist bending under the weight. I did a test with the model plugged in and the neck bowed quite a bit initially under the weight. I was able to adjust the bend angle enough so she sits level now. I'm toying with the idea of filling the tube with JB Weld after the wires are soldered to the plug and run down the neck; at least filling the tube up where the curve is. That should give the tube plenty of rigidity I would think. Alternatively, as a last resort, if the tube were still exhibiting a tendency to bend over time, I could install a second tube vertically near the middle of the stand to relieve the stress. Perhaps a clear acrylic rod. 

Anyone with any other ideas please comment.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

WOW!!! 
I'm really liking this!:thumbsup:
-Jim


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Update from two nights ago...*

Making the nozzles for the impulse engines...

Using my mini cutoff saw I cut two pieces of aluminum tubing at a 20 degree angle. 
I had to go slow making several short cuts with the saw as the diameter and thickness of the tubing could easily cause the blade to bind:









Then I cut short lengths of plastic tubing and painted them silver inside and about halfway along the outside:









I inserted the plastic tubing into each nozzle where it will serve as a coupler for joining the nozzle to the back opening of the nacelle:









For the impulse engine "exhaust pipes" I cut short bits of transparent red plastic rod with a larger diameter piece in the middle and smaller diameter pieces clustered around it and glued together with Ambroid Pro Weld. 
Then I sanded the face nice and smooth, wrapped the assembly in aluminum tape for a snug fit, and inserted it into the plastic coupler. 
It has a nice red glow when lit from behind:









*Next up...

Lighting the bussards! *


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*So made a bit more progress on the impulse engine nozzzles and the stand over the weekend...the bussards will be next I promise! *

White LEDs were fitted to the rear of each nozzle using a disc of styrene with the leads protruding out the back:









Impulse engine nozzles glued into lower nacelle halves with CA:. 









Wires soldered to leads:









Let there be light!









Nice IIDSSM! :thumbsup:









(cont'd)


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Moving along...*

The stand was wired and tested with the ship plugged in. I'm very pleased with the stands operation:

























The nacelle, plasma torpedo, and hangar bay lights are tied into the same pushbutton switch located in the rear wall of the hangar bay so they can be operated independent of the wndow/sensor lights.

Here are the bussard domes. The one on the left has multiple coats of Dullcote applied. The one on the right is shown after one coat of Floquil flat finish. I want the domes to be fairly opaque without actually painting them white so Floquil is the way to go:









That's all for now folks. 

*Next up: 

Lighting the bussard domes-at last!*

P.S. I will also post pics of the finished Talon scout ship.

Comments welcome!


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

What can I say but I am in awe of the extra "bells & whistles" that you are putting in to this!
*GREAT WORK!!!*
-Jim


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## Captain April (May 1, 2004)

^ What he said. _*WOW!*_


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## Fozzie (May 25, 2009)

Love the engine effect created with the rods! Very inspired! :thumbsup:


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

JGG1701 said:


> What can I say but I am in awe of the extra "bells & whistles" that you are putting in to this!
> *GREAT WORK!!!*
> -Jim


Thanks Jim. Hard to believe before I started this build my intent was to keep it simple and build it straight OOTB! I guess I just can't help myself.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Captain April said:


> ^ What he said. _*WOW!*_


Thanks Captain!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Fozzie said:


> Love the engine effect created with the rods! Very inspired! :thumbsup:


Yeah that did turn out rather well didn't it? 
Now if I can do as good a job on the bussard lighting I'll really be in business!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*OK. So yesterday made some progress on the bussards. 
I have one assembled and the other in pieces to show the parts....*

The domes have a recessed rim on the inside which I took full advantage of. I cut a disc of thin styrene sheet to match the diameter of the inside edge of the dome. The sheet was so thin I had to cut two discs for each bussard and glue them together to get the right thickness to sit flush with the back edge of the dome. A hole in the center was drilled out to accomodate a short piece of aluminum tubing. The tubing sits almost flush on the side of the disc facing the inside of the dome so when the LED is inserted it sits back far enough to give an even glow without bumping up against the dome:









Here you can see the LED inserted in the metal collar. The Superbrite white LED was dipped in white fluorescent acrylic paint then coated with transparent blue acrylic:









I rigged up a jig to power the LED and lit'er up. I got a nice even blue glow:









I soldered two 30 gauge silicone wire leads to the larger gauge wires inthe nacelle:









The silicone wires is extrememly flexible and will hang out thru the hole in the front of the nacelle where the LED collar will fit thru after soldering. I wanted the wires to bend easily since I'll need to poke them back inside the nacelle at some point. 
I won't install the bussards until after the nacelle halves are glued together and sanding is finished and the ship is primed then I'll attach the bussard assemblies, fill in any gaps around the perimeter with putty, and mask off the domes before painting:









I also did some work on the fighter/scoutship...


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Here are some pics of the Talon fighter after a coat of Tamiya RAF Ocean Grey 2 from a spray can and a good rubbing with Tamiya silver pastel powder followed by a coat of gloss lacquer. *

Still some cleanup to do around the bussards and then I'll pick out some decals to trim for hatches and trim. 
Maybe paint some feathers if I don't go cross-eyed first!:freak:


















































I hope to be done decaling and painting any trim on the fighter in time for my next set of photos.

*Thanks for following along on this build. 
All comments are welcome of course! *


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## Fozzie (May 25, 2009)

That Talon fighter would be impressive even if I didn't know it was so tiny!

This is a great build. Thanks for sharing it with us!


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## mach7 (Mar 25, 2002)

The Talon is very impressive, in part because of it's size! I can't imagine building something that small as a kit, never mind a scratch build.

As always this is a superb build.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Thanks Fozzie.

Thanks mach7.

Yes. I think I'm putting almost as much work into the Talon as I'm putting into the mothership at this stage!

:thumbsup:


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Today's update...*

So yesterday I did some puttying and sanding on the nacelles after gluing on the upper nacelle halves:

















I cut some bits of aluminum tubing and made nuclear missile tubes for each wing:









Picked up a can of this at the LHS. This should take care of any remaining light leaks:









"DRIES IN MINUTES"
I like that! :thumbsup:

And I've got these 3 shades of Tamiya grey to choose from for the final hull colors:









Right now I'm leaning toward Light Ghost Grey for the upper surface and Light Grey for the underside. The Romulans did refer to this as the "Ghost Ship" after all.

Still, I'd be interested in the opinions of the other members here on the best colors for this bird as I'm not 100% committed to these choices.

Anway, more sanding and window masking needed before I reach that stage.

*Thanks for any comments and suggestions!*


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## Fozzie (May 25, 2009)

Not to get off topic, but that 3rd can of Tamiya paint has English wording on it. Does this mean that we might be seeing Tamiya primer in the stores again soon?!!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Interesting. It also says "Packaged in USA". I got this at Hobbytown on sale for 25 off when they were closing shop. Yesterday I asked the owner of my other LHS (the last one open anywhere near me) and he said the primer was still on backorder with no ETA. He thought it would be coming in pretty soon though for what that's worth.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Today's update...*

Spent about 3 hours altogether on the masking and making "hatch" covers for the stern. 

I cut square pieces of tape for the windows using a ruler and my xacto knife using a piece of the square brass window frame tubing 
pressed down hard into the tape on my vinyl work matt as a guide. 

I cut a ton of tiny round holes from Tamiya tape with my smallest nail set tool for the round ports: 









I applied the masking tape with tweezers and a dental pick:









Tamping the pieces down with a microbrush:









After masking, I coated the ports and windows with Future to seal the edges so hopefully no paint leaks underneath. 
Keeping fingers crossed on that. 

I did a bit more sanding and cleaned up the ship's surface with alcohol and a rag before spraying with Mr Surfacer 500 from a spray can:









Unfortunately, I ran out before I could do the underside; guess I'll have to break out the airbrush and mix some up from the bottle to finish the bottom. 
Once that dries I'll do some more wet sanding until it's nice and smooth. 
I've already seen a few spots that need a little more puttying; I'm using a little of what I have left of my grey Tamiya polyester putty at this stage. 
That stuff is great, only wish it was still available. 
I estimate another hour or so of work before I'm ready to hit it with the final finish coats. 

I also made the two rectangular hatch covers for the stern.
The one on the port side will work the slide switch for the lights. 
A piece of brass tubing will be glued to a slot carved in the inside face of the cover:









The slot showing the slide switch:








I glued in two pieces of styrene strip to either side of the opening so I could make the hatch covers narrower and still slide the switch far enough left and right to switch the electrical circuit between the internal batteries to the left or the external battery connection to the right.

The slide switch knob needed to be trimmed with my narrow xacto chissel blade to fit a short piece of smaller brass tubing which I glued to the knob with 5-minute epoxy:









The tubing on the cover will slide over the tubing glued to the slide switch. 

The hatches in place. The starboard hatch is glued on but I won't glue the port cover on permanently until after applying the ship's finishing coats:









Well that's it for now!

*Thanks for reading along. 
Comments welcome as always.*


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## Fozzie (May 25, 2009)

What a project! This entire build has been exciting from start to finish. I'm very impressed with all of it. You have set the bar very high for the rest of us! Thank you for taking the time to snap the photos and share them with us. I've learned so much from following this project. Thanks! :thumbsup:


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Thanks Fozzie! I'm glad you've enjoyed reading about my build on this kit. It's been a lot of work but the end result should be worth it I hope.


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## Fozzie (May 25, 2009)

I am really impressed with the switch that changes the source of power...this is an idea I have toyed around with myself but never seen anyone actually implement. Neat stuff!

The windows look outstanding in that last set of photos. Wow...!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

So today I tried airbrushing some thinned down Mr Surfacer 1000 thru the old Paasche VL airbrush and didn't get very far before it clogged up on me. 
After cleaning the brush twice I finally gave up and broke out my can of Krylon grey indoor/outdoor primer. 
The conditions in my garage were ideal based on what it said on the can and it went on beautifully. No runs, no drips, no errors. :thumbsup:

Here are some primed pics:

















Overall I was very pleased with the finish after this last sanding session; however, I did find some spots on the stern that need further attention. 
It was the one area I hadn't primed with Mr. Surfacer from the last session so I wasn't that surprised really.
There's a tiny blob of AVES putty there on the starboard hatch and the portside stern corner needs puttying and smoothing. 
Also the lower rim needs a little filler under the "disposal tube":









Should be able to lay on some more Tamiya Basic type putty in another 45 minutes or so followed by more sanding and hopefully that should do it and I'll be ready to start the finish coats and move on to the decaling real soon!

*Thanks for following my progress everyone!*


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## machgo (Feb 10, 2010)

I've been really enjoying the build so far!

Out of curiosity, what ratio of thinner to Mr. Surfacer did you use? I've sprayed that stuff through my VL with out issue.....

Still, Mr. Surfacer, Krylon or whatever--can't beat the results! Looking good, and a lot of neat ideas. Really cool project!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Thanks machgo.

I started off with a 2 to 1 mix of lacquer thinner to Mr Surfacer 1000 which was about the thickness of heavy cream. That was too thick even at 20-25 psi so I cleaned the airbrush and added enough thinner to equate to about a 4 to 1 ratio which was closer to whole milk. But before spraying with that mxture I tried running just some regular paint thinner thru the brush and got nothing even though I could there was air passing thru. So I cleaned the brush again using lacquer thinner and that time I was able to get a very weak amount of Surfacer out the tip but it left a rather grainy looking coat wherever I sprayed. And when I paused for 20-30 seconds to blow off some dust I'd somehow missed in a wing crevice it clogged up and wouldn't spray at all! I figure the mixture had dried in the tip. That's when I threw in the towel and went with the Krylon primer.
So was the mix still too thick ? Should it have been more the consistency of water ? Should I have used regular paint thinner rather than lacquer thinner? 
Thanks for any tips.


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## machgo (Feb 10, 2010)

You want to stick with the synthetic lacquer thinner. Mr. Hobby or Gaia thinners will work fine. I've read both good and bad stories regarding using regular lacquer thinner with the Mr. Hobby brand paints--I only use the (relatively) cheap Walmart house brand lacquer thinner for clean-up. 

I sprayed with a 2-1 ratio--but I don't remember the psi. It wasn't high though. I was using a larger needle, so maybe that was the issue. If I use a finer needle with my other airbrush, I really have to thin it down--to 5-1 or more.

Usually I just slowly add thinner until it sprays nice. But clogging can still be an issue if the paint dries at the tip. If the paint won't flow well at first, I carefully cover the tip/needle with a cloth and blow some air to get bubbles back through the paint supply. This will often dislodge clogs. Then I add more thinner and try again.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Primed and literally hung out to dry...*










*Funny, this one reminds me of the scene at the end of the episode...*


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Did a little detail painting last night on the Talon's wings, nacelles, stern, and tailfin. The round bits of tape were made by pressing a nail set tool into Tamiya tape on my vinyl mat and twirling the tip until the tape was punched thru. Same technique I used for masking the sensor ports.*



















*I'll remove the tape and clean up the scallops with my xacto knife before clear coating and decaling.*


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## BolianAdmiral (Feb 24, 2009)

I'm wondering... will you be sanding down the window rims so that they are flush with the hull?


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

BolianAdmiral said:


> I'm wondering... will you be sanding down the window rims so that they are flush with the hull?


Are you referring to the Talon? If so, no. I'm leaving the raised rims to mimic the sensor ports on the mother ship. BTW those aren't windows on the Talon. They are sensors. The pilot uses a viewscreen inside the ship similar to the helmsmen aboard the big ship.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Looking great as always Trekkriffic!:thumbsup:
-Jim


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## BolianAdmiral (Feb 24, 2009)

Trekkriffic said:


> Are you referring to the Talon? If so, no. I'm leaving the raised rims to mimic the sensor ports on the mother ship. BTW those aren't windows on the Talon. They are sensors. The pilot uses a viewscreen inside the ship similar to the helmsmen aboard the big ship.


I was referring to the mother ship... the BOP.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

BolianAdmiral said:


> I was referring to the mother ship... the BOP.


Well no. That would defeat the whole purpose of making the window frames. I'm going for the look of the original studio model:










Once I get a few more coats of paint on it the frames may seem lower too.


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## starmanmm (Mar 19, 2000)

This is really coming along nicely!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*So sprayed her with Tamiya white Smooth Surface primer this past weekend. 
Figure on attaching the bussard domes next before the basecoats:*









*With the Talon fighter:*

































*More Talon pics:*

























*Thanks for any comments!*


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

This build is absolutely amazing ! I really need to get over to the scifi side of things more often!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*New update...*

*So I finished spraying the base coats top and bottom. I used Tamiya Medium Sea Gray for upper and Tamiya Light Gray for lower surfaces. This was my first time using Tamiya lacquers from rattle cans and I must say I'm very impressed with the finish you get with them. I may decant the light gray and Tamiya white primer and mix them together so I can airbrush an off white coat on the underside towards the rear as in pics of the original studio model the hull almost appears to be white aft of the wing and tail feathers. I'm still debating this as it's also possible the whiteness is merely caused by how the model was lit. I'd be interested in hearing the opinions of the membership on that question. *

*Anyway, I spent most of the past weekend removing little bits of masking tape from each window and sensor port.. Then I carefully cleaned each frame up with my xacto knife and a sandpaper stick so they would be clean for painting the frames by brush. Then I applied more Tamiya masking tape around each frame rim to make it easier to brush on Testors Steel enamel:*










*Here are the square window frames after one coat of Steel:*










*The bussard dome wires were soldered and glued to the front of the nacelles. Any gaps were filled with AVES Apoxy sculpt:*










*The domes light up really nice. The camera overexposes them; in person, they have a gentle blue glow:*









*All lit up on top. Cupola windows are still masked in this shot:*










*I figure another 4-6 hours to finish painting all the window and sensor frames afterwhich it'll be time for decals... FINALLY!!!*

*Thanks for reading! Comments welcome!*

:thumbsup:


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## Vindi (Mar 20, 2009)

To quote Darth Vader...

"Impressive...most impressive"


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Thanks Vindi!


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

This is absolutely incredible, I can't wait to see this finished! I would be real curious to see what a Constitution refit or Excelsior would look like from you.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Well not to get too OT but here's my Excelsior...

Kurt Kuhn did this incredible composite with a green screen image I took of it.










Here's a composite David Shaw did using another green screen image:










I performed a "refit" on it some years ago going without aztecing and using DLM decals and resin parts. 
I won't bore you with the other things I did to accurize it. 
The model has an exceptionally smooth satin finish as I buffed it with model wax. Gives it a very clean, sleek look in my opinion.


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## JediPuju (Oct 12, 2009)

I would agree - wow!
And please feel free to bore me all you like


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

JediPuju said:


> I would agree - wow!
> And please feel free to bore me all you like


Thanks a lot! If you want to see more here's a link to my post on the Excelsior elsewhere in this forum:

http://www.hobbytalk.com/bbs1/showthread.php?t=304680

More pics in my photobucket album:
http://s146.photobucket.com/albums/r259/Trekriffic/Excelsior/


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## Zombie_61 (Apr 21, 2004)

Trekkriffic said:


> Well not to get too OT but here's my Excelsior...I performed a "refit" on it some years ago going without aztecing and using DLM decals and resin parts.


I think all of AMT's Federation starships look far better without the Aztec pattern. At this scale the Aztecing should be _barely_ noticeable, and AMT's/Round 2's Aztec decals are too obvious and heavy-handed. Without them your U.S.S. Excelsior looks clean and well-maintained, as all Federation starships should. Of course, that's merely my opinion.

Back to the main topic, I must admit I was a little concerned when I saw the first photos of the brass window/sensor frames. They looked a little too obvious and bulky, and made the ship appear more "steampunk" than "Star Trek". However, after seeing your warbird with a nice even basecoat I think they're just about spot-on, and in conjunction with your other modifications have gone a long way towards making this highly inaccurate kit look almost exactly like the filming model. Truly nice work! :thumbsup::thumbsup:


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Thanks Zombie. After several coats of Mr Surfacer, Krylon and Tamiya primer, then the final coats of grey Tamiya lacquer, I was glad the frames started out as pronounced as they originally seemed. With all that paint they do not appear nearly so obtrusive and they really appear smaller than before. More like how they appear on the studio model.
After applying Testors steel enamel by hand with a fine tipped nylon brush they are reeeeeeally looking good! 
Sometimes I can get into such a zone with the brush I feel I could paint racing stripes on a flea!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Updates from the weekend...*

* I concluded it was high time to paint the plasma emitter. Here it is masked off with Saran wrap and Tamiya tape :*










*I finally decided to airbrush the rear underside to match this photo of the studio model:*










*So I decanted and mixed Tamiya white Fine Surface Primer with Tamiya Light Grey lacquer to get a light, light grey and airbrushed it on the underside after lightly marking where the edges of the feathers would be with a 2B pencil:*










*Some shots of the ship after painting the emitter and window and sensor port rims with Testors steel enamel and brushing on a coat of Future to seal the deal:*



















*Here's a shot of the studio model for comparison:*










*Overall I have to say I'm pretty happy with the resullts so far...*

:thumbsup:

Next up:

*Sealing with clear Glosscote lacquer and decaling!*


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Update from the past few days...*

With all my vacation days to use up I'm taking a lot of 4 day weekends the last 3 months of the year which is greatly speeding up my modelling. Anyway, I figure the decaling should be done tomorrow and, after drying overnight, I'll give her a shot of Glosscote on Sunday followed by 3-4 coats of flat after that. 

Anyway, I made some copies of JT Graphics excellent decals on the copier at work so I could do some test fitting just in case I have any fit issues. Better to cut and trim the xeroxes first before doing so to the decals I figure.

First I cut out the bird body and wing decals and taped them to the underside. These had better've fit since I'd done test fits previously which led me to shorten the wings to accomodate the decal. So far so good...










The upper fin decal fits too. This was another instance where I'd added some height to the fin by adding strips to the base in the stern to fit the decal:










The upper wing decals were another story. They were about 3/4" too long so I ended up cutting out sections from the tips of each scallop until the xerox copy fit the wing with all 5 scallops retained:










Now it fit!










After trimmming and fitting then using a mix of water and a drop of dishsoap I was able to float all the upper decals into position. Then I gave them a good brushing of Micro SOL followed by a coat of liquid decal film:


















Here are the decals I have left for the underside. All told there are 3 sets of JT Graphics decals shown here! Jeff actually donated 2 of the sets so I could mix and match as needed to fit the customized proportions of my Bird.










*Tomorrow I seal the upper decals with gloss lacquer then I tackle the Bird on the belly! Wish me luck guys!*

:thumbsup:


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## Fozzie (May 25, 2009)

Good luck with the decals! It's going to be great to see this bird finished--but sad as well. It has been a fascinating build to follow.

(This may be the closest existing model to the original filming model. Awesome thought, huh?)


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## machgo (Feb 10, 2010)

Good luck Trekk--this has been a great WIP to follow. But decals is the moment I've been really waiting for! And of course, finished pics with it all lit up


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Thanks Fozzie! Thanks machgo!

Just about ready to lay on the body of the Bird. Have to give the gloss lacquer I sprayed on the upper decals time to dry first. 

I want to take some pics that look like scenes from the episode hanging the model with fishing line. I need to see if I can find some non-glare plexiglass for one of the finished pics I'm planning to take with my space backdrop. Can anyone guess what scene that might be?


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Trekkriffic said:


> Can anyone guess what scene that might be?


" Balance of Terror" :thumbsup:


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

JGG1701 said:


> " Balance of Terror" :thumbsup:


Good guess! 50 Quatloos to Jim!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Today's progress in pictures...*








\





































*Tomorrow I'll seal with Glosscote followed by 2-3 coats of flat lacquer. *


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

*AWESOME!!!*
-Jim


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Thanks Jim but I ended up having to scrape off the right wing decal in the photo after my neighbor came over and said, '"Why are the feathers darker on the right wing than on the left wing?" 

IDIOT!!! I hadn't noticed this until she mentioned it! I had forgotten that decals from different lots are not always exactly the same color! 

So this bugged the hell out of me so much I went down at about midnight and spent an hour and a half brushing SolvaSet on the right wing to soften it up and scraping it off with an exacto blade! 
This of course caused my cat, Lenny, to get amped up since I was in the garage and he was locked inside the house so he started bawling which woke my wife up from a sound sleep. 

She was a bit PO'd about that  so I'm in the doghouse today... 

P.S. The wing is clean now and I have a leftover wing decal from the same batch as the left wing decal to apply so it should match colorwise. :thumbsup:


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## machgo (Feb 10, 2010)

In your last pic, the decal, and to a lesser degree, the ship, seem to have a subtle metallic look which I think is quite nice. Is that an effect of the photography?

Excellent progress BTW.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

I think it's probably the flash that gives that pic more of a metallic glint machgo. I'm mulling over giving the ship a light rubdown with silver pastel chalk between flat coats for more of a metallic look but haven't decided on that yet. That and maybe some light black carbon scoring around the plasma torpedo emitter. It would be very subtle if I did as this is supposed to be a new ship on her maiden voyage. The "Ghost Ship".


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## Edge (Sep 5, 2003)

Gloriouos Commander!

A really wonderful build that I've been watching for a while now.l


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Trekkriffic said:


> Well not to get too OT but here's my Excelsior...
> 
> Kurt Kuhn did this incredible composite with a green screen image I took of it.
> 
> ...


AWESOME! That is my favorite Trek ship!


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

That's rough with the decal, but otherwise it's looking good!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

harristotle said:


> That's rough with the decal, but otherwise it's looking good!


Thank you sir! All that's left of the old wing decal is the outline. I just need to give it a light sanding now to remove as much of the old adhesive as I can (I already gave it a wipe with alcohol which got 95% of it offf) then shoot it with Glosscote before applying the new decal. Should look even better than before when I'm done.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Trekkriffic said:


> Thank you sir! All that's left of the old wing decal is the outline. I just need to give it a light sanding now to remove as much of the old adhesive as I can (I already gave it a wipe with alcohol which got 95% of it offf) then shoot it with Glosscote before applying the new decal. Should look even better than before when I'm done.


I'm looking forward to seeing the finished product. Your work and attention to detail is absolutely incredible!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Finished reapplying the port wing decal after Glosscoting first. 
Now the color matches the opposite wing!* :thumbsup:










*Tomorrow I'll seal it with Glosscote. 
Then I'll hit the whole ship with 3-4 coats of Dullcote (will do a little weathering with silver and black pastel chalks in between flat coats) afterwhich I'll glue the hatch cover to the battery switch on the stern. 
Then I''ll finish up the base and take some finished photos! 
I'll be doing some in space shots with my starfield backdrop and some green screen pics eventually.

What a most interesting journey this has been!

Stay thirsty my friends!*


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## StarshipClass (Aug 13, 2003)

WOW!  GREAT WORK!!!

Professional looking job from the git-go!

I like the way you paid attention to the window detailing and the shape looks dead on. I think this will look as good as the original in your upcoming pics.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Just to reiterate what I've been saying since I started following this build... awesome!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Took some pics over the weekend of the base with the mirror attached. It's got about 5 coats of lacquer on it. The final coat of Krylon gloss black went on over a coat of Krylon steel. Still need to come up with a nameplate but it's basically done. There is also a small hole for inserting the wire that the Talon fighter attaches to.*










*I carved out this rectangular compartment and glued in some styrene for the back and sides with 5-minute epoxy. Then I glued in some Evergreen angle strips so I could rig a cover to slide shut over it. This is where I will store the hangar bay hatch when I display the model with the hangar bay open. *










*Cover closed:*










*Underside:*










*I stuck on some felt pads that I got at the Dollar Store. You can see the compartment I carved out to the right to store the hangar bay hatch in.*

*This weekend I should finally have some pictures of the finished model up.* :thumbsup:


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

This is one superb project, from the model to the display a complete effort!


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## machgo (Feb 10, 2010)

Slick idea on the base/hatch storage compartment. Very professional. Looking forward to the finished product pics!


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## Shado1980 (Jul 15, 2009)

This is a great build. I've been following it all along. Saw this kit at Hobbytown the other day and was really temped to pick one up. You've shown us that even that clunker can become a work of art.


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## starmanmm (Mar 19, 2000)

Very Cool indeed.


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## MLCrisis32 (Oct 11, 2011)

I just went through this entire thread page by page. That build is incredible and your Excelsior is what I'm striving for whenever I get around to building it :thumbsup:


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## kdaracal (Jan 24, 2009)

This is a really beautiful build, sir! 
I don't always drink alien brew. But when I do, I drink Dos Tranya! 

_*XX* *Stay thirsty, my friend!*_


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Thanks guys for the kind words. 
Final pics are delayed a bit as I finish a second Talon. This one will have wings folded to fit inside the shuttle bay unlike the current one which is shown in the "in flight" mode with wings unfolded. It's already close to halfway done. 
I also am picking up the nameplate for the base from the trophy shop next week. Spent 15 bucks on that but it will really top it off I think.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*Here are some pics I just took a few minutes ago...*

Parts for the second Talon. Still have to make the wings.
Figure on another few hours of work to finish it.










Pics of the upper hull after giving her a good rubdown with Tamiya silver pastel chalk. 
Basically I'd wet my fingertip and dip it in the chalk then rub it over the Dullcoted hull. 
Then I went back over it with a strip of tee shirt rubbing it until most of the chalk was removed. 
This left enough chalk behind to give it a nice metallic sheen...




























Next I'll do the underside. Then I'll seal it and add some weathering with black pastel chalk. 
Maybe a little light scorching here and there but not too much of that as this is supposed to be a relatively new ship. 
Still, I figure those Neutral Zone outposts must have had some small patrol ships on station so she might have taken a few hits on her mission of terror before her fateful encounter with the Enterprise.


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## Lloyd Collins (Sep 25, 2004)

Amazing, awesome, fantastic, and mind blowing! I will be glad to see this completed.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

You and me both Lloyd! 

Update:
For those who may think I've gone too far towards the metallic end of the spectrum, after sealing with another coat of Dullcote, the shininess is really toned down. Still has a slight metallic glint to it but it's pretty subtle; depending on how the light hits it.


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## starmanmm (Mar 19, 2000)

Interesting.... I was unaware that Tamiya had a pastel line. :freak:

I'll have to check that out.

Ok... just looked it up.... did you get the Weathering Master C Set?


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

starmanmm said:


> Interesting.... I was unaware that Tamiya had a pastel line. :freak:
> 
> I'll have to check that out.
> 
> Ok... just looked it up.... did you get the Weathering Master C Set?


Yes. The Master C set. I bought it years ago when I built my 18" Enterprise.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

As always, looking amazing!


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## Lloyd Collins (Sep 25, 2004)

Are you finished yet? It's just a model!:tongue:


Pick...pick...pick...


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

For those still interested, finished pics are posted here:
http://www.hobbytalk.com/bbs1/showthread.php?p=3974987#post3974987

Live long and prosper my friends!


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## starseeker (Feb 1, 2006)

Trekkriffic: I've had this bookmarked for - what -over three years now, as well as your wonderful beauty shots thread: 
http://www.hobbytalk.com/bbs1/showthread.php?t=345082&highlight=bird+of+prey
and I've had my BoPs sitting on my workbench longer than that, and I'm finally getting to them. 
First of all, thanks for this wonderful thread. Great stuff here. 
And, second of all, in the years that have passed now, with the benefit of hindsight, is there anything that you would have done differently with your build? Did the old modeller's curse (as soon as you finish a build, you discover the studio blueprints or long-lost beauty shots of the miniature) strike here? One reason I ask is I've compared the fan-produced blueprints to a reasonably good ortho shot of RELs 1/350 BoP kit and I notice wider wings and much wider nacelles on his kit:
http://s1004.photobucket.com/user/j...jects/BpvsREL_zps9ca908ff.jpg.html?sort=6&o=0
and
http://s1004.photobucket.com/user/j...jects/BpvsREL_zps9ca908ff.jpg.html?sort=6&o=1
But RELs nacelles look quite over-sized and the bps look somewhat undersized. I suppose it's really up to the builder, as no real references exist. 
And, thanks for leaving the photos on your thread! This is a real treasure chest of inspiration and great ideas. Any after-the-fact build hints or other thoughts would be much appreciated.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Hard to believe this build is 3 years old now!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Thanks guys!

Starseeker, 

Glad you find this thread to be such a source of inspiration. As far as after the build thoughts the only thing I might consider doing differently would have been to extend the stern of the ship perhaps another 1/4 to 1/2 an inch or so beyond the half inch I already added. This would have allowed me to go a little wider at the root of the wings which would mean less effort having to modify the raptor wing decals I got from JT Graphics to fit my modified wings. The model is a bit of a compromise between the AMT kit and the smaller Johnny Lightning R B of P toy which I think is proportionally very close to what we saw on screen. Having said that, I am happy with the overall look of my ship. In particular, i like how the lighting of the hull ports and the nacelle exhaust nozzle vents turned out. I also like the darker grey on top with the lighter grey on the bottom with an off white color behind the tail feathers; it gives the ship the look of a shark which fits it's predatory nature.
Replacing the kit nozzles with aluminum tubing was a small but very noticeable improvement and I highly recommend it. The other major mod was adding styrene strip to the rim to give it the step like the studio model as well as the correct angle. 
On another note, I had seen REL's BOP before starting my build but, although i am a great admirer of REL's work, I felt his nacelles were too large in comparison to the rest of the ship. 
So that's about it as far as what I like and what I might do to improve on my Romulan Bird-of-Prey. It was a once in a lifetime build for me; it really took a lot of work to get it to look like it does now and I doubt I'd be crazy enough to build another one from this incredibly inaccurate, albeit beloved, kit.


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## starseeker (Feb 1, 2006)

[QUOTEIt was a once in a lifetime build for me; it really took a lot of work to get it to look like it does now and I doubt I'd be crazy enough to build another one from this incredibly inaccurate, albeit beloved, kit.[/QUOTE]

Oh, great, what am I getting into??? 
But seeing yours and how beautifully it turned out (silk purse/sow's ear, etc.), it can't be helped, I guess. I woke up this am with the idea that I'm going to start another thread and see if I can't get Paragrafix to cheat me out of a vast amount of work you had to do, tho'. 
Thanks, again!


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## starseeker (Feb 1, 2006)

Dismantling/dismembering complete now. Oh, man, pre-led incandescents. Dismayed to see the BM Foil that I was using to reflect light toward the portholes come floating out of the opened hull, all dried out and loose. 
Glad you think RELs nacelles are too big. I was wondering if I was hallucinating. Yes, will extend the hull about .7" - .75" I think. 
Great tips, all of them. Much appreciated.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

starseeker said:


> Dismantling/dismembering complete now. Oh, man, pre-led incandescents. Dismayed to see the BM Foil that I was using to reflect light toward the portholes come floating out of the opened hull, all dried out and loose.
> Glad you think RELs nacelles are too big. I was wondering if I was hallucinating. Yes, will extend the hull about .7" - .75" I think.
> Great tips, all of them. Much appreciated.


If you extend the hull 3/4 inch or so think about extending the cupola another 1/2 inch. Mine could have been a little longer but I had to keep it a little shorter in proportion to the length.


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## starseeker (Feb 1, 2006)

Good point! The cupolas have already been removed.


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