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

• #920 by Ronpur50 on 22 Apr, 2016 00:31
• You just continue to astound me!!!
• #921 by roma847 on 22 Apr, 2016 06:00
• Thanks Ron for your continued interest.
  Sometimes it's really hard to stay calm and to keep one's nerve ...
  
  But it goes on and on ...
  
  
• #922 by roma847 on 22 Apr, 2016 21:02
• Hello everybody,
  
  today the other three flange tubes should get their handles, which I have bent this time under a steel rule with suitable thickness (1.3 mm) that yielded uniform grip widths what mattered to me. 
  
  
  
  The insertion of the handles was not less stressful than the first time, but now this tinkering is finally managed and I feel relieved.
  
  
  
  And here's the trying on of the flanges on the front, but still not glued and therefore lying. 
  
  
  
  Tomorrow I will then glue the flanges on both sides, and then there is finally seeing a few still images. 
  
  
• #923 by roma847 on 23 Apr, 2016 21:04
• Hello everybody,
  let's go to the A-1 final.
  
  After I had filled the spaces between the screw with wood glue, the flanges were finally glued, first on the front,
  
  
  
  and they glue now really tightly, as one can see here,
  
  
  
  and then on the back.
  
  
  
  And here the A-1 is standing now in all its glory, and if you do not know, you can hardly believe that it consists of more than 100 parts.
  
  
  
  
  
  And one thing I have not previously noticed. While the two upper flanges of the MLP-2 are at the same height, the lower flange on the back is sitting slightly lower than that on the front side.
  
  
  Source: NASA
  
  And so now there are already a bird-couple, on the left side the A-1 and right the B-1, which has nearly 40 parts.
  
  
  
  Then already a nice weekend.
  
  
• #924 by the_other_Doug on 23 Apr, 2016 21:49
• Amazing.  Just amazing. 
• #925 by roma847 on 25 Apr, 2016 22:04
• Thanks Doug.
  
  Hello everybody,
  
  and it goes on with the Rainbird A-2, which stands at the rear end of the Blast deck. However, in contrast to the front central Rainbird A-1 he has no Revision flanges, oh how that's nice ... but instead at the back this tube here, which is standing at MLP-2 outside the quadratic indentation,
  
  
  Source: NASA-Google Street View
  
  and what is laterally angled in the lower part, as you can see in the picture below.
  
  
  Source: NASA
  
  And these are again the necessary parts are already prepared, except for the profiles at the top and this tube. This is the lower tube (Ø 7.9 mm) with the conical midsection and the upper tube (Ø 6.3 mm), the finished cover, and the two screws belts, the lower one is quasi only a half belt, because this flange is mounted directly on the floor just like the other two Birds (B-3 and B-4) within the Blast deck. 
  
  
  
  Otherwise, this is again the same mounting procedure, but this time I first glued the cover because this can be handled more easily without the screws belts.
  
  
  
  And then the upper belt was glued gradually, as usual.
   
  
  
  
  
  The lower flange with the screws sits in the recess flush at the pipe end, as one can see in this picture.
  
  
  Source: NASA
  
  And just the same the lower screws belt was glued.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Now missing only the cover strips, which were now glued, first the upper strip (0.1 mm x 0.8 mm),
  
  
  
  and then the lower one (0,1 mm x 0,4 mm).
  
  
  
  
  
  That should it be for today, the profiles follow tomorrow. 
  
  
• #926 by Davp99 on 26 Apr, 2016 15:18
• I'm wondering what the pipe is for at the rear of Rain Bird A2 ?
• #927 by roma847 on 26 Apr, 2016 17:25
• Hi Dave,
  that's a good question, which I have already asked me.
  Sorry, I don't know it either.
  
  
• #928 by roma847 on 26 Apr, 2016 21:43
• Hi there,
  
  then let's come to the A-2 finale with the profiles and the mysterious pipe.
  
  Here, the two angled profiles with the recesses.
  
  
  
  The difficulty in the bonding is really only the exact vertical orientation beside the opening. Therefore I glue always the upper end of the angle with a droplet Revell Glue under the cover and then the alignment may still be corrected a bit. Then I fasten this position with tape,
  
  
  
  and then I glue the profile on both sides with MEK.
  
  
  
  And then again follow the two rear T-beams, initially the two webs,
  
  
  
  and then the two flanges.
  
  
  
  Now, the supernatants of the H-profile yet straightened.
  
  
  
  
  
  Now is missing only the rear tube. This should be in my estimation about a 5'' pipe, what would correspond about 0.8 mm  (1:160). 
  
  So forth with the drill and the corresponding rod, 
  
  
  
  which has to be bent repeatedly.
  
  
  
  
  
  That's it for now with the A-2.
  
  
  
  
  
  And so would we have nevertheless already a dashing threesome. 
  
  
  
  And therefore now still missing the Birds B-2, B-3 und B-4.
  
  
• #929 by Davp99 on 27 Apr, 2016 12:49
• So Cool.......... Herr Doctor Scratch 
• #930 by Oersted on 27 Apr, 2016 16:04
• I hope the finished model will find a fitting home where lots of people can see it in all its glory! - Thinking http://speyer.technik-museum.de/en/ or some place like that...
• #931 by roma847 on 28 Apr, 2016 10:12
• Quote from: Davp99 on 27 Apr, 2016 12:49

  So Cool.......... Herr Doctor Scratch 
  

  
  Thanks Sir for your nice compliment.
  
  
• #932 by roma847 on 28 Apr, 2016 10:17
• Quote from: Oersted on 27 Apr, 2016 16:04

  I hope the finished model will find a fitting home where lots of people can see it in all its glory! - Thinking http://speyer.technik-museum.de/en/ or some place like that...
  

  
  Thanks for your nice comment.
  Yeah, I hope so, and every year we will have an Open House.
  
  
• #933 by roma847 on 02 May, 2016 17:33
• Hello everybody,
  
  Meanwhile it was going on further with the last three slender Rainbirds.
  
  These are (except for the upper profiles) the necessary parts for it, from right to left for the birds B-2, and the two birds B-3 and B-4, which are standing on the Blast Deck.
  
  
  
  After I had glued the covers, it went on with the cartridge belts. First was the bird B-2, in the picture on the left, to the right is the ready built B-1.
  
  
  
  And this is a great moment because now only the last belt is missing, which is to be glued on top of the B-4. 
  
  
  
  And that would be it, now missing still five cover strips and the upper profiles.
  
  
  
  And so this tricky subproject of the Rainbirds with a total of more than 300 parts is now coming to an end, and it's indeed high time.
  
  
• #934 by roma847 on 04 May, 2016 22:08
• Hello everybody,
  
  and with the cover strips it went on. They are as well as the strips for angle profiles and T-beams all hand cut, unfortunately not by Evergreen.
  
  And this is the fifth and last cover strip, here on B-4.
  
  
  
  And so now to the profiles, and there was as next the Rainbird B-2, whose profiles correspond to those of B-1, which also reach to the upper screws belt.
  
  
  Source: NASA
  
  Here the B-2 is already completed, with angular and T-profiles.
  
  
  
  
  
  The same arrangement of the profiles is used on B-3, which is standing on the Blast Deck, here first the angular profiles.
  
  
  
  And now follows the B-4, whose profiles are shorter on all three MLPs than that of the other birds, for whatever reason, as you can see here in the picture with Andrew Scheer.
  
  
  Source: flickr.com (Andrew Scheer)
  
  What must be, must be.
  
  
  
  And here are the two Birds B3 (right) and B-4 (left), in which only missing the rear T-beams,
  
  
  
  which tomorrow form the crowning conclusion of this chapter. 
  
  
• #935 by roma847 on 05 May, 2016 23:25
• Hello everyboy,
  
  welcome for the Rainbird Finale.
  
  Now follow the missing T-beams of the last two Birds B-3 and B-4.
  
  Next in line was the B-3, for which the webs were glued in a proven way first,
  
  
  
  and then on it the flanges.
  
  
  
  Then the same procedure on bird B4, as usual.
  
  
  
  That with the shorter profiles of this bird I had already explained. 
  
  
  
  Now only the protruding H-beams have to be straightened.
  
  
  And so the nice flock of birds is now finally complete.
  
  
  
  
  
  And barely fledged, the birds want to swarm out already. 
  
  And in celebration of this milestone, I have now got the MLP out of the cupboard to see how the rainbirds would fit. And I'm very satisfied and mean that they fit quite well.
  
  
  
  Only the recesses in the Blast Deck have to be adapted, since they are a bit too small, especially for the A-2. And with paint finish all things will surely yet look a bit better.
  
  
  
  That's it for today, and this Milestone of course calls for a celebration!
  
  In this sense, Cheers!
  
  
• #936 by Ronpur50 on 06 May, 2016 04:28
• Well done!
• #937 by Bubbinski on 06 May, 2016 18:47
• Nice looking launch pad!  Like the little details on it, and looking forward to seeing the finished pad
• #938 by roma847 on 06 May, 2016 20:13
• Thanks Guys for watching,
  
  yep the sight of the MLP with all these tiny details gives me again and again fresh impetus to hold on tight to my dream and new energy for struggling till the end.
  
  
• #939 by Darren_Hensley on 06 May, 2016 23:13
• "The End is Near" however is anything "really" finished? Great work, I love scratch building even if it's replication, it still requires creativity, and that is a great driving force.