# New ships for my SSC fleet



## cozmo (Nov 29, 2004)

My summertime builds are starting to come together and getting to the point that they look like something.
I had ideas for special purpose vehicles and built the vehicles to do that job. Rather than something that looked neat, my first intention was to make it look like it would work and if it looked neat, so much the better.

The first is at A-2B Devastator(semi-affectionately called the beast by her crews and savior by friendly ground troops). When the SSC, the military arm of the FEDeration, needs to make an assault on a defended planet it needs something to deal with armor, indigenous forces, or protected areas. Bringing in heavy armor of their own takes time and resources that aren't always available. The Devastator is a force multiplier. It can be ferried to the operating theater and launch from orbit then return to the mother ship or land at an unprepared airhead for rearming and fuel. The forward firing rotary cannon and missile launchers can take out enemy armor while remaining out of range. The side firing rotary cannon, and other weapons can lock on ground targets and orbit an area to provide artillery support for ground forces. 

The engines are above the wings for protection and the variable swept wings provide for re-entry, high speed, and low speed flight.

I was going to sacrifice my Martin P6M Seamaster or a C-5B, or an Ekranoplan, but none of them looked close enough to what I wanted. So I added a little bit of Martin Mars and a F-14 and came up with the grandchild of a coupling between an A-10 and an AC-130.



I needed a small atmospheric VTOL transport and first came up the gray one. It was too beefy for what I needed and trimmed it down to the white civilian one.


This is one I have been trying to get right for a long time. Dinosaur bones may explain where man got the idea for dragons, but I have something different in mind. I had almost given up on figuring this one out until I was working on the beast. At one point a witness describes the wings folding and that got me past the point that had been holding me up on the Raider. Now it looks like something a 5th century survivor might mistake for a living creature. And looks much better than my earlier attempts.


At on point, the antagonists primary spacecraft is captured by the FEDeration in an anticlimactic part of a ground and space battle. Due to several agreements, the ship is accepted into the SSC and given a complete refit to become a heavy armed exploration ship.



They all need more work, but are already giving me the inspiration I need for an even larger project.

In case you want to see some of the other ships in the SSC universe:


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## StarshipClass (Aug 13, 2003)

Cool stuff!


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## kdaracal (Jan 24, 2009)

These are great. I really like the private plane. The dragon craft reminds me of some adult anime novels my daughter's into. Can you say more about the SSC universe? I'm not familiar with it. 

I wish they had classes on this stuff. I usually fail any attempt at scratch building.


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## cozmo (Nov 29, 2004)

kdaracal said:


> Can you say more about the SSC universe? I'm not familiar with it.


Sorry, sometimes I forget that not everyone is into this. SSC is short for Strategic Space Command and is what the original Leif Ericson Galactic Cruiser kit put out by AMT was part of. AMT wanted a line of SF kits that they wouldn't have to license and the LE was supposed to be the first of many. Alas, the LE was a commercial failure and none of the other kits were made. I never liked the original story that came with the kit, but have always been intrigued by the Galactic Cruiser and its mission.

A while back, Frank Henriquez, Craig York and I got to speculating about this and a forum was created. Then Winchell Chung came along and things took off. Frank determined the scale of the original kit and I adapted some of my favorite SF craft that didn't really fit into other places and created some other ships that would stylistically (I think so anyway) fit into that universe.

Winchell's page

Frank's page

cozmo's page

another page



A lot more on my take of what the SSC universe is at the last link.



kdaracal said:


> I wish they had classes on this stuff. I usually fail any attempt at scratch building.


It doesn't take classes, just inspiration and perseverance. Just have fun with it.

And thanks.


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## Steve H (Feb 8, 2009)

Quite the interesting repurpose of "Zordar's Dreadnaught" from the second series of Space Battleship Yamato ya got going there! 

I always thought the Bell X-22, a production model that maybe looks more like a Chinook with the 4 ducted fans, would fit well in the SSC concept. 

And Specialty Press has a new book on CONVAIR concept aircraft that is probably perfect fodder. I've always had a sweet spot for CONVAIR craft and thought that the B-36 was a strong influence on the design of Fireball XL-5.

Keep at it!


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## cozmo (Nov 29, 2004)

Steve H said:


> Quite the interesting repurpose of "Zordar's Dreadnaught" from the second series of Space Battleship Yamato ya got going there!


Never saw the show, but I have always liked that spaceship. Or to use it as a starting point anyway.



Steve H said:


> I always thought the Bell X-22, a production model that maybe looks more like a Chinook with the 4 ducted fans, would fit well in the SSC concept.


Macfrank did the Chinook looking ducted fan in in 1/350 scale (I think) and it did look good. I just cannot find the picture any more.



Steve H said:


> And Specialty Press has a new book on CONVAIR concept aircraft that is probably perfect fodder. I've always had a sweet spot for CONVAIR craft and thought that the B-36 was a strong influence on the design of Fireball XL-5.


I have been wanting to build something based on Convair aircraft with the delta wings and futuristic look. They never look right in the drawing stage though. I really like the look of the TF-102 and have ideas for it.

There is something on the bench based on the Convair Skate, but it isn't that far along. And a ship with a parasite/FICON system as well.


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## cozmo (Nov 29, 2004)

Here is how the Convair Skate went from a seaplane concept to an SSC exploration cruiser for planets with a lot of water that needed to be explored.

I always liked this plane and knew it would fit, it just took a while to figure it out. I put the parts into a graphics program and played with them until I found a combination that I like, looked like it would work and had that SSC-ish feel.

When it came time for the physical model, the hull was made a little deeper to hold a larger submarine and the vertical fins were squared off to more closely resemble the Galactic Cruiser.

It started out being the same length as the Galactic Cruiser, but the farther along it got the more it shrank. The drawing looks a lot like an F-4, but not so much for the physical model. I probably didn't make the hull wide enough, but figured there wouldn't be as large a crew as the other Galactic Cruisers have. The reduction in size also cost it its shuttle bay, oh well.

I like this one enough that i may make it in both of the scales I am building the fleet in.


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## cozmo (Nov 29, 2004)

Here is what the Convair inspired one looks like done:

It needs the big caution stripes because when it is in the middle of an ocean, the crew uses the top of the hull to relax out doors.

And a comparison chart for the ships that had drawings.


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## Frank2056 (Mar 23, 2007)

Jay,
I love that giant flying space boat! What did you use to make it, or it is all scratch?


The model I made was a 1/350 scale Bell D-2064 (or at least a slight variation thereof):

With a figure, before the final flat coat.

Another view

With a quarter, for size

In forward flight

Take-off (or landing)

Frank


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## cozmo (Nov 29, 2004)

Balsa and sheet plastic with a few greebles here and there. Part of the goal in this round of building was to not have to go buy anything, just use what was on hand.

That's where actually making plans, for a change, helps out. Even if it is only sketching on paper, it provides a starting point as to what materials will work. And using a little spray glue, the plans can be attached to the material for cutting and shaping.


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