The NASA model building thread

[Bubbinski]

Looks very nice, hoping to see the finished product!

I've gotten started on a 1/72nd scale Monogram shuttle with ET/SRB stack that I scored a few years ago from my IPMS chapter.....I'm going to take it to the IPMS Nationals in Phoenix. 

Here's the box and cockpit:

[Mark Dave]

My model of shuttle Atlantis.

Cool model Bubbinski. IMO I wish that Monogram kit was available again of both the Monogram shuttle with ET and SRBs as I was now thinking of building a model of the Endeavour stack for STS-134. I have Discovery's stack showing the pre-Columbia disaster look with the foam ramps (yet to be added) and Atlantis as she looked on STS-125.

[nethegauner]

Looks very nice, hoping to see the finished product!

I hope to deliver soon. The halves are joined now, the main engines are installed -- so are the OMS pods. One mjor bravery test is still coming up: re-creating a realistic underside, i.e. heavyly used tiles etc. That's gonna be fun!

I've gotten started on a 1/72nd scale Monogram shuttle with ET/SRB stack that I scored a few years ago from my IPMS chapter.....I'm going to take it to the IPMS Nationals in Phoenix. 

Wow! Astronauts in launch & landing suits -- nice!

Well. For me, "Hans" and "Thomas" will do fine -- but nonetheless, I like those orange guys!

[Bubbinski]

Thanks MarkD and nethegauner.  Here's a pic of the cockpit in the fuselage.

[mtakala24]

It seems that Lego will be revisiting the Space Shuttle this June or thereabouts:

[Mark Dave]

What model will that Monogram orbiter represent Bubbinski?

I also wonder if there will be a 1/72 scale model of the Buran shuttle? Here's a reference  on Buran someone posted http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buran_program and http://www.buran-energia.com/bourane-buran/bourane-consti.php It looks somewhat easy to modify the Monogram model to look like Buran, just a few areas to change.

[Bubbinski]

My 1/72 mega stack will be STS-125 Atlantis.

Edited to add:  Mark I think an outfit called AModel does a couple of 1/72 Buran kits, one on a Bison bomber and another with jet engines.  They're pretty expensive and I doubt I'd get one.

[Lowflight]

FYI....I just scored a model I have wanted to build since a kid. I bought the kit from the 80's that is 1/72 scale of the shuttle orbiter (old paint scheme with worm design which is my favorite and not the abomination the meatball scheme has been) and the Operations Center Space Station theoretical scheme. I am starting on the Orbiter this week.

[Bubbinski]

It's been a few weeks now since I started my 1/72 shuttle stack and here's a couple of pics.  I've now gotten all the major items assembled (orbiter/ET/SRB's) with the ET and SRB parts covered in primer.  This thing's a real putty monster!

[dougie69]

My 1/72 mega stack will be STS-125 Atlantis.

Edited to add:  Mark I think an outfit called AModel does a couple of 1/72 Buran kits, one on a Bison bomber and another with jet engines.  They're pretty expensive and I doubt I'd get one.

I too have been wanting to get an AModel BTS-02 Buran for years but at over US$200 it was hard to justify when converted to Aussie dollars.

I recently stumbled across a review by www.cybermodeler.com who got one from www.hobbyterra.com. They are selling the kit for US$145 plus postage to Australia. At that price I jumped on it straight away.

It arrived much quicker than expected, in good condition and complete.

Now I just have to build it.

[JMS]

Thought you guys would get a kick out of this spectacular build:
http://www.arcforums.com/forums/air/index.php?showtopic=198071&st=0

[nethegauner]

This thing's a real putty monster!

It sure looks like so. How huge it is! Gosh ...

Have been tinkering with all those decals on my 1:72 meanwhile. They look great -- but they are so tiny. And so many. Can't wait to finally get to the bottom. That's gonna be a dry-brush fest.

[SpaceDust]

I need help in locating a place to purchase a truss for the Launch Umbilical
Tower model that I'm building in 1:96 scale. It is the truss like the one below
circled in yellow. It can be in either ABS or Styrene plastic. I have checked
the Plastruct catalog/website and several other places on the internet, but I'm not able
to find one like the truss pictured. Can anyone help me out? Thanks.

[JayP]

I need help in locating a place to purchase a truss for the Launch Umbilical
Tower model that I'm building in 1:96 scale. It is the truss like the one below
circled in yellow. It can be in either ABS or Styrene plastic. I have checked
the Plastruct catalog/website and several other places on the internet, but I'm not able
to find one like the truss pictured. Can anyone help me out? Thanks.

 Those trusses are not a standard design but are made up from various different structural shapes. You can find a drawng of it here:
http://www.savethelut.org/blanchette/75M-05120/75M-05120-%23%2060.pdf

[SpaceDust]

I need help in locating a place to purchase a truss for the Launch Umbilical
Tower model that I'm building in 1:96 scale. It is the truss like the one below
circled in yellow. It can be in either ABS or Styrene plastic. I have checked
the Plastruct catalog/website and several other places on the internet, but I'm not able
to find one like the truss pictured. Can anyone help me out? Thanks.

 Those trusses are not a standard design but are made up from various different structural shapes. You can find a drawng of it here:
http://www.savethelut.org/blanchette/75M-05120/75M-05120-%23%2060.pdf

Thanks Jay for replying.  Are you telling me that I’m going to have to fabricate this truss on my own, piece by piece?  Not to thrilled about that thought.  Is there any way of piecing already made trusses together and coming up with something close to it?  I don't think Plastruct has anything to do the job.  Got any ideas on how to make this truss?

[JayP]

I need help in locating a place to purchase a truss for the Launch Umbilical
Tower model that I'm building in 1:96 scale. It is the truss like the one below
circled in yellow. It can be in either ABS or Styrene plastic. I have checked
the Plastruct catalog/website and several other places on the internet, but I'm not able
to find one like the truss pictured. Can anyone help me out? Thanks.

 Those trusses are not a standard design but are made up from various different structural shapes. You can find a drawng of it here:
http://www.savethelut.org/blanchette/75M-05120/75M-05120-%23%2060.pdf

Thanks Jay for replying.  Are you telling me that I’m going to have to fabricate this truss on my own, piece by piece?  Not to thrilled about that thought.  Is there any way of piecing already made trusses together and coming up with something close to it?  I don't think Plastruct has anything to do the job.  Got any ideas on how to make this truss?

I don't know if I can help you much with that, I make my models on the computer. I guess it depends on how much detail you want, 1:96 is pretty small. You might try cutting the front and back faces of the complete truss out of a sheet of plastic and then use a couple of thin strips to make the webs of the two main vertical beams.

[dhanners]

Here are some photos of my latest card model, a theoretical mission to a Near Earth Object using an Orion and a crewed version of ESA's ATV (incorporating the ATV's Integrated Cargo Module). Inspiration for the model came from an article I saw last fall discussing LockMart's proposal to use two Orions docked nose-to-nose to visit an asteroid.

The models are 1/48th scale and are based on card models that are designed by Ton Notebook and available for download online. I added quite a bit of detail to both models, however.

To replicate the white insulation blankets that covered Jules Verne for my crewed ESA vehicle, I used toilet paper. Cottonelle bathroom tissue is ridged, so I sprayed a few sheets with a 50-50 mix of water and white glue to stiffen them. That way I could cut it and fold and curve it to shape around the model rocket tubes that I used as the bodies for the spacecraft.

And yeah, I know the solar arrays are out of synch. I just wanted to get some photos up. The issue has been dealt with and now both sets of arrays face the same direction.

I named the ESA vehicle Cousteau after the famed ocean explorer, so this is the Orion/Cousteau NEO Mission I.   

[nethegauner]

I named the ESA vehicle Cousteau after the famed ocean explorer, so this is the Orion/Cousteau NEO Mission I.   

Cool ...

... not the abomination the meatball scheme has been ...

Hmm -- then You will not like what I recently put on my OV-103's left wing (refer tot he attachment) ...



And now, guys, to something completely different: I have also included a shot of the star tracker panel that I attached the star tracker decals to. Imagine my surprise when I noted that the actual position of the shuttle star trackers in what we call reality and in the revised paint and decal scheme does not match the location of the star tracker panel on the Revell model. Strange.

So I was faced with the decision to either give the star trackers the right location and put them where they belong ignoring the panel -- or to attach the decals within the frame of the panel. As I had already incorporated the panel when painting and dry-brushing the part (i.e., actually highlighting it a bit), I decided to attach the decals the way I did. Again, please refer to the attachment.

I am interested in anyone's opinion. How would You have dealt with this?

[Gene DiGennaro]

I need help in locating a place to purchase a truss for the Launch Umbilical
Tower model that I'm building in 1:96 scale. It is the truss like the one below
circled in yellow. It can be in either ABS or Styrene plastic. I have checked
the Plastruct catalog/website and several other places on the internet, but I'm not able
to find one like the truss pictured. Can anyone help me out? Thanks.

 Those trusses are not a standard design but are made up from various different structural shapes. You can find a drawng of it here:
http://www.savethelut.org/blanchette/75M-05120/75M-05120-%23%2060.pdf

Thanks Jay for replying.  Are you telling me that I’m going to have to fabricate this truss on my own, piece by piece?  Not to thrilled about that thought.  Is there any way of piecing already made trusses together and coming up with something close to it?  I don't think Plastruct has anything to do the job.  Got any ideas on how to make this truss?

Make one truss from scratch.  Get some Dow Corning Silastic J two part casting rubber.  (A few years ago I got a free sample from them that would probably last a lifetime at the rate I use it!) Following instructions here:
http://hirstarts.com/moldmake/moldmaking.html
Make a one piece silicone mould of your truss. Now you can cast trusses out of resin and make as many as you want!

[Bubbinski]

How I handle the star trackers: I use a pin vise to drill the holes out at the chosen spots.  For the 1/200 Hase kit I used a hobby knife to do that. 

I'd been flagging a little on my "big beast" but now I'm getting a second wind.  Look for some pics - not now - but in the next week or two!

Edited to add - nice work nethegauner and dhanners.  Like the blanket detail on the ATV - that's an interesting trick I'll need to remember for my own projects.  Also, nethegauner, good work on the tiles on the big shuttle - when do you think it'll be done?

p.s. A capsule on the ATV would be great.  Wonder when the Europeans will get around to doing that for real.  But that's a topic for other threads.