Space Shuttle Launch Pad 39A with Challenger STS-6 (1:144)

• #1700 by llanitedave on 20 Aug, 2019 14:57
• Manfred, when you're done with this the results will be priceless!  I wouldn't be surprised if future scholars use this model as a resource and reference.
• #1701 by roma847 on 20 Aug, 2019 23:05
• Thanks Dave for your great compliment,
  I'm satisfied if my Launch Pad Project will be a tribute for keeping the legacy of the Shuttle Program alive.
  
  
• #1702 by EG on 21 Aug, 2019 05:12
• Manfred.
  
  This will be a tribute to the entire space program!
  
  Your modeling skills are beyond compare!!!
  
  As I follow and watch, I'm lost for words.....
  
  I'm amazed. I couldn't do that in 1/72nd scale much less the scale your working in.
  
  You sir are amazing and have my utmost respect.....
• #1703 by roma847 on 21 Aug, 2019 07:49
• Thanks my true friend for your nice words and the appreciation of my work, which is really no walk in the park when scratching such tiny details on this scale, but I still enjoy it, when I see that the result is pretty close to the original.
  
  
• #1704 by roma847 on 21 Aug, 2019 15:51
• Hello everybody,
  
  but first I've continued with the LH₂ Cable Tray and the associated tiny parts of the transition, which are all in the millimeter range and thus extremely tricky to handle, what only is feasible under the Headset magnifying glass.
  
  In the process, I carefully approached from all sides using my file set and my finest mini-saw (0,1 mm), whereby one must keep an eye on the required dimensions, which is for this bow 1,5 mm x 1,5 mm, which is why one has to measure again and again.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  And since I prefer to work with a little bit of excess, a post-processing is still necessary, which becomes particularly tricky once the part has been sawn off. As a result, an undersize can quickly arise, which is not so good.
  So, choosing the Rectangle profile of 1,5 mm x 3,2 mm was not exactly brilliant and has unnecessarily complicated the whole procedure.
  
  That's why I used a Square profile 1,5 mm x 1,5 mm in the second attempt, which was much "easier" to handle, since the outer dimensions are already fit, and what I could have done better immediately. 
  
  At first I filed the rounding and then sawed off the length of 1,5 mm.
  
  However, care should be taken during the following processing of this mini-piece,
  
  
  
  whereby I held it for filing the inner rounding with my Precision file (Ø 1 mm) in a Cross tweezer and at the same time supported it from below with the finger. 
  
  
  
  And since the test fitting of the bow on the Cable Tray looked good,
  
  
  
  I then glued the bow carefully,
  
  
  
  and something aligned yet, which resulted in a good fit of the bow.
  
  
  
  Then I've cut the Middle plate (part 3) out of a Rectangular profile 1,0 mm x 1,5 mm x 2 mm,
  
  
  
  and glued it onto the bow.
  
  
  
  And after the successful fitting I was able to catch my breath, 
  
  
  
  because this transition fits quite well and there is still enough space for the oblique transition to the Umbilical plate (parts 4/5).
  
  
  
  And with this intermediate result I can be quite happy.
  
  
• #1705 by roma847 on 27 Aug, 2019 13:10
• Hello friends,
  
  here's an image with the three ports under the LH₂ Umbilical Plate that I have to set my sights on.
  
  
  
  The diameter of the GH₂/GO₂ Pressurization Lines is 2'', accordingly Ø 0,35 mm at 1:144, and the diameter of the LH₂ Recirculation Line is 4'' (Ø 0,7 mm). By comparison, the diameter of the LH₂/LO₂ Feedlines is 17" (Ø 3 mm).
  
  At the transition of the GH₂ Press. Line is still missing the oblique transition (Parts 4/5) to the Umbilical Plate, which one can see in this photo of the ET-118 (STS-115),
  
  
  Source: NASA
  which should follow now.
  
  This is a small disc Ø 2 mm x 0,3 mm for Part 5, and the slant for Part 4 is cut of an Evergreen Strip (1 mm x 1,5 mm).
  
  
  
  First of all, I wanted to reinforce and file the slant by side-glued Strips 0,25 mm x 0,7 mm, as the true part widened in a funnel shape towards the top, as one can see on this image, but which would be overkill because of the "size" (see above), which is why I decided not to.
  
  
  Source: NASA
  
  But the test fitting looks quite good, I think.
  
  
  
  When glueing such tiny parts, it depends on a precise fit, which is why you have to position them exactly and unshakeably before, what I have done here this way.
  
  
  
  So that the parts do not grow beyond the clear height of the transition (3 mm) due to the bonding, which would happen with normal Revell adhesive, I've glued them with MEK , which is why I've used a Teflon film, so that nothing sticks to the cutting mat.
  
  
  
  And this is the result,
  
  
  
  and this slant could now be glued to the Cable Tray bow, which was again a tricky business.
  
  
  
  
  
  Well, and during the tricky test fitting of this now complete LH₂ Cable Tray, the mishap happened to me as the part slipped out of the tweezers and fell to the floor, whereby unfortunately, the painstaking glued slant is broken off ... ...
  
  So that this does not happen again after the repair, I've glued the plate with MEK onto the underside of the Umbilical Plate and centered it in place with a needle.
  
  
  
  And in this position, I then laid on the 'patched' Cable Tray carefully and glued onto the Crossbeam and under the Umbilical Plate.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  And so it looks like on the front of the Crossbeam, where I still have to scratch the the connection with the horizontal Cable Tray,
  
  
  
  for which I glue first suitable strips in the gap, what from subsequently the lower bow will be sanded. 
  
  
• #1706 by roma847 on 28 Aug, 2019 17:36
• Hello everybody,
  
  sorry, but these images to the scratching the Cable Tray Bow have fallen by the wayside somewhere, so I want to add them here, which is done quickly.
  
  With these two strips I've filled the gap,
  
  
  
  then the supernatant was cut off with the Cutter chisel,
  
  
  
  and thereafter the rounding of the bow was gently sanded.
  
  
  
  And that was it already!
  
  
  
  
  
  And now to the already announced GH₂ Press. Line incl. its TPS cladding, which runs under the leading edge of the Crossbeam, what one can see on this photo of the ET-121 (STS-114) especially well in the zoom,
  
  
  Source: NASA
  
  and also here on this photo.
  
  
  Source: forum.nasaspaceflight.com (DDG40)
  
  On the next photo (left) one can see the end of the TPS cladding with the exit of the Press. Line, whose bottom is rounded. Furthermore, one can see that the Cable Tray initially opens into a flat wider distributor, from whose side still a separate Cable Tray branches off into the Vertical strut in which the cables are routed to the ET/SRB Attachment, as one could already see on the LO₂ Side on the opened Vertical strut. (s. Reply #1678).
  
  On the right image one can see the end of this flat distributor as well as the separate branch in the vertical strut from a different perspective. The only pity is that the slant transition of the Cable Tray to the Umbilical Plate is covered by this cuff.
  
  
  Source: georgesrockets.com (George Gassaway)
  
  
  Source: NASA
  
  For those who love detailing, on this matching photo of Scott Phillips one can see this branch-transition with cables laid open.
  
  
  Source: Scott Phillips
  
  On the following drawing, the arrangement can be seen at this point in cross section. And as one can furthermore see the previously installed Cable Tray is still attached with two holders to the outer LH₂ Feedline Bracket,
  
  
  Source: System Definition Handbook SLWT, Vol. II (Lockheed Martin)
  
  what is also nice to see in this photo and is still on my To-do list ...
  
  
  Source: NASA
  
  And now to the TPS cladding of the GH₂ Press. Line, for which I've glued an Evergreen Strip (0,25 mm x 1,5 mm) with a Semi-circular profile (0,65 mm x 1,5 mm), Which I've drilled off on both ends for the 2'' Press. Line with Ø 0,4 mm, for which I use a German silver round profile (Ø 0,4 mm).
  
  
  
  Here, the TPS cladding is already glued under the Crossbeam and the Press. Line was inserted from the LO₂ Side by way of trial.
  
  
  
  And here the previous ET/Orbiter attachment sits on his place and makes a good impression.
  
  
  
  
  
  Next, I will try to scratch this flat Cable tray distributor and the front mounts, and then as the crowning end of this side the end of the GH₂ Press. Line will be installed.
  
  
• #1707 by roma847 on 05 Sep, 2019 00:26
• Hello everybody,
  
  let's go on with this crazy Cable Tray stuff, most of the details of this LH₂ Umbilical with the corresponding Cable Tray are done, but at looking closely, I've still noticed a few inconsistencies.
  
  But first to those missing details, which are relatively clear, like this lateral branch from the Cable Tray Distributor as well as the following arcuate transition into the Vertical Strut. This lateral branch is relatively easy and quick to lay, as it has the same dimensions (0,6 mm x 1 mm) as the Cable tray running in front of the Crossbeam.
  
  
  Source: georgesrockets.com (George Gassaway)     Quelle: NASA
  
  But then comes with the narrow bow (red circles) into the TPS cladding of the vertical strut the trickier part. Although this is similar to the bow of the cable channel at the transition to the Umbilical plate and was filed again from the solid, for which I've used a Rectangular profile (1 mm x 1,5 mm), but this bow had to be significantly narrower, so the handling was even more difficult this time.
  
  
  
  To fit in the narrow gap in front of the vertical strut, this bow was allowed to be only 1,5 mm wide, as can be seen here. And so the fumbling when glueing this stub was pretty stressful again ...
  
  
  
  After several test fittings and patiently step-by-step sanding of the part, the mounting did succeed. 
  
  Afterwards I've extended the TPS cladding (Newware) like on the other side at the upper end and finally glued this small upper mount,
  
  
  
  
  
  whereupon I had to take a breather first. 
  
  And once in the exercise, it went on with the two tiny Cable Tray mounts behind the Crossbeam, which can be seen here.
  
  
  Source: NASA
  
  For the parts sitting on the cable channel (0,5 mm x 0,5 mm), which reach to the outer LH₂ Feedline Bracket, I had to stick together two Strips 0,25 mm x 0,5 mm  because I currently have no strip 0,5 mm x 0,5 mm in stock.
  
  
  
  Since these stubs had some overhang, I had to remove it subsequently, which turned out to be an extremely difficult task, as there is hardly enough room left for handling at this bizarre structure and the breakage risk was very high on top of that.
  
  
  
  So only gentle and careful sanding remained as the only solution left which then worked reasonably well. Then I glued the lateral holders (0,25 mm x 0,5 mm), the supernatant of which was separated from below with a narrow razor blade,
  
  
  
  
  
  whereupon everything was still carefully sanded with a narrow self-made grinding stick (500 grit).
  
  
  
  
  
  And then it went on with the cover of the Cable Tray Distributor, which was shown in the first picture (left, below the circled branch). For this purpose, the cable channel received lateral strips of an Evergreen strip (0,25 mm x 1 mm) and a cover made of 0,1 mm Styrene, the shape of which I had to modify a bit due to the space available, as one can see here.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Finally, the missing claddings were glued at both Vertical Struts,
  
  
  
  
  
  whereby next, the mounting of the transition of the GH₂ Press. Line will follow.
  
  
• #1708 by EG on 05 Sep, 2019 00:59
• Simply amazing, parts smaller than I can see much less make.....
  
  +1!!!!
• #1709 by roma847 on 05 Sep, 2019 07:16
• Thanks EG for your nice compliment,
  
  that's right, and therefore I have to put on my headset magnifying glass to be able to measure, scratch and assemble these crazy tiny parts.
  BTW, sometimes these things also jump away and fall to the floor, or have completely disappeared. Then the fun stops ...
  
  
• #1710 by roma847 on 06 Sep, 2019 13:33
• Hello everybody,
  
  okay, then I want to dabble as a pipe bender with the GH₂ Press. Line -  The proof is in the pudding.
  
  Therefore, I have put together the matching pictures once more, on which one can see the course of the line well.
  
  On the following photo (left) it looked for me at first as if the line behind the pipe joint slightly obliquely go up, which is not true, because the kink goes namely down, as shown in the photo (right) able to see. 
  
  
  Source: georgesrockets.com (George Gassaway)     Source: NASA
  
  As already mentioned, the pipe should have a diameter of 0,4 mm (2'').
  
  For the first test bending I have used Copper wire (Ø 0,4 mm) because it is bendable nicely and certainly some corrections will be needed until the shape of the line is adjusted, I think.  
  
  And after a few fittings and slight corrections in narrowest space, the result looked like that, which is nothing to sneeze at, as I think.
  
  
  
  The two drilled holes in the Cable Tray under the Crossbeam, as well as in the Umbilical Plate proved to be advantageous for the mounting of the line, who gave a certain amount of support during threading and correction.
  
  
  
  
  
  Hopefully the Nickel silver wire will let bend a bit more exactly. But for now, I'm already very happy with the result so far.
  
  
• #1711 by roma847 on 07 Sep, 2019 15:53
• Hello friends,
  
  so far so good, but now there are on the GH₂ Press. Line even these four Fittings, which in my estimation should have a diameter about of 1 mm and a width of 0,5 mm.
  
  
  Source: NASA
  And who knows me a little bit, probably suspects that I will try these things at least once. At that at first I thought of my Lead wire Ø 0,4 mm, which I already used for similar things on the SSWS Pipes.
  
  For this I wrapped the lead wire around the Copper wire (Ø 0,4 mm) and then separated this spiral with the Cutter chisel.
  
  
  
  Then I rounded the rings around the copper wire with the tweezers to close the tiny gaps,
  
  
  
  which then look like this.
  
  
  
  The threading of these rings onto the bent line was then a tricky puzzle, but let still carry out. The insertion in contrast was rather difficult because the space for the tweezers for handling is very tight and the rings have partially bent up. 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  But I was not thrilled by this result, however.
  Then the thought of thin insulating tubing came to me, which I have already used successfully for such tiny rings.
  
  
  
  To make as nearly as possible rings with the same width, I put the hose between steel rulers and then separated pieces of 0,5 mm.
  
  
  
  These rings look a bit more like the real fittings, because their sides are straight, and they were also easier to thread up,
  
  
  
  and the result when installed looks in my view also much better than with the Lead wire rings.  Maybe the rings could be still a little bit narrower.
  
  
  
  
  
  The only question is again whether the effort is worthwhile, because one can barely see this GH₂ Press. Line on the upright Shuttle stack later anyway, how some other details also not, even though if the master builder would be more satisfied.
  
  
• #1712 by Starbase101 on 10 Sep, 2019 03:44
• I have not been receiving email notifications again from this site so I came over to take a look and see if there were any updates. Sure enough, you've gone and done another masterpiece of detailing so far with the umbilicals! I am starting to wonder if maybe you are building this at 1:24 and using some sort of voodoo photo editing to show the parts in 1:144 
  
  Some crazy awesome detailing work there, Manfred!!!
• #1713 by roma847 on 10 Sep, 2019 11:04
• Thanks Mike for your nice feedback,
  
  I also did not get any notifications for a while, but that was probably due to my e-mail program (GMX). Via GooglemaiI I received notifications again, and meanwhile via GMX too.
  Well, these Umbilicals are a big challenge on that scale, and one has to be rather crazy already to rise to such a challenge.
  But unfortunately I can't help doing it ... 
  
  
• #1714 by roma847 on 11 Sep, 2019 23:00
• Hello everybody,
  
  today I have made a few more experiments to make these Fitting rings, wherefore I've fished out again my Punch & Die Set (USM).
  
  I first used Styrene (0,5 mm), from which I punched a small disk with Ø 1 mm,
  
  
  
  which then was drilled out with Ø 0,4 mm,
  
  
  
  
  
  and then was threaded onto the Nickel silver wire (Ø 0,4 mm).
  
  
  
  The same procedure I did for comparison with Styrene 0,4 mm, whereto I used a normal Fileback fastener.
  
  
  
  This somewhat narrower disc can be seen to the left of the 0,5 mm disc, and above that the rings made of Insulating hose.
  
  
  
  Due to the uniform thickness, the punched rings would certainly look more even, whereas the rings made of Insulating hose are easier to manufacture and better fit the contours of the Cable Tray and the Feedline. As a result, I'll probably stay with the insulating hose variant.
  
  
• #1715 by Oersted on 12 Sep, 2019 09:40
• Still a long way off, but I look forward to following how your will paint your model. I cannot even image how you will paint it at a level of detail in line with the build process.
• #1716 by roma847 on 12 Sep, 2019 21:41
• That's right, but I hold on tight to my dream ...
  BTW, the larger parts will be painted with Airbrush, the smaller parts with a fine brush.
  
  
• #1717 by roma847 on 16 Sep, 2019 23:29
• Hello everybody,
  
  and today the new GH₂ Press. Line made of Nickel silver wire (Ø 0,4 mm), which is bent even more precisely, whereby it can easier cling to the Cable Tray and around the LH₂ Feedline. Bending the wire was a bit more difficult, as the Nickel silver wire is less ductile than the Copper wire, but after a few tries it went smoothly.
  
  
  
  
  
  And also with the Fittings from insulating hose the line fits well.
  
  When inserting, I always put the long end first in the opening in the Umbilical plate, 
  
  
  
  and then the front end into the in die TPS cladding of the Press. Line.
  
  
  
  This allows me to paint the line separately and then finally insert it.
  
  
  
  After that the LH₂Umbilical is done, I can go on with the LO₂Umbilical on the other side, where again the Cable Tray with the Supports has its turn. 
  
  
• #1718 by roma847 on 21 Sep, 2019 12:33
• Thanks my friends for looking in on me again.
  
  Hello everybody,
  so then let's go to the LO₂ Umbilical, which can be seen from behind especially in the zoom in all its beauty.
  
  
  Source: NASA
  
  Observing from the front, it is noticeable that at the LO₂ Feedline there is still this special Support, which is rather thin and sits directly below the LH₂ Cable Tray on the Crossbeam. Or maybe it's a part of the TPS Cladding of the Umbilical.   
  
  
  Source: forum.nasaspaceflight.com (DDG40)
  
  For the further separate construction of the ET/Orbiter Attachment, I have considered that it would be better to cut off the LO₂ Feedline at this point and to glue the back bow with the LO₂ Umbilical plate between the two Support Brackets and then to glue the thin support onto the front end of the bow. Then the other Support/TPS parts and the LO₂ Cable Tray as well as the end of GO₂ Press. Line will be installed.
  
  The front part of the Feedline is too short anyway and has to be extended up to the Fairing on the Intertank.
  
  And only after the Flour coating process and painting of the ET all lines including the Ice Frost/PAL Ramps as well as the complete ET/Orbiter Attachment will be installed on the tank.
  
  
  
  Before cutting through the Feedline I first had to find out the geometry and the dimensions of the Support-Plate, which was not that easy, because the parts are only temporarily attached. 
  
  
  
  With the measured distance between Feedline and Cable Tray of approx. 2 mm I drew this little sketch,
  
  
  
  which I then transfered to Styrene (0,5 mm),
  
  
  
  then it was punched out with the Chisel-cutter, 
  
  
  
  which then was sanded.
  
  
  
  And this is how the test fitting looks on a Feedline dummy (Ø 3 mm).
  
  
  
  
  
  That's it then again, next follows the separation of the Feedline and the test fitting of the bow. 
  
  
• #1719 by roma847 on 22 Sep, 2019 21:10
• Hello everybody,
  
  the marking of the separation point on the LO₂ Feedline was more difficult than expected due to the limited space conditions, but then I still succeeded. And then I bravely took the saw, and the job was done.
  
  These are the first images after the separation of the Feedline with the realization that the short bow was much harder to handle for testing, which is why I had to think of a new solution. 
  
  And so I came back to my Transparency stencil, which was made for it and only had to be slightly shortened.  This allowed the bow with the stump above the Umbilical plate to be inserted into the large opening of the template and kept relatively stable.
  
  
  
  And by clamping the template in my Mini vise, the bow was easy to see from all sides. 
  
  
  
  I was pleasantly surprised at how well the front of the bow did fit under the Cable Tray, 
  
  
  
  which was visible by placing the paper template.
  
  
  
  But after putting on the 0,5 mm Styrene support plate, the disillusionment came immediately,  because I had not thougt of it that the Cable Tray is also 0,5 mm thick, and the support plate with this then would be flush, but this is not correct because it must sit a little lower.
  
  
  
  Consequently, either a thinner support plate ago, or the plate had to be ground down to about 0,3 mm, which I then have preferred.
  But more on that later.