Ret

Following with interest - I have this kit as well and look forward to seeing where you go with it. The Shuttle section is not a bad little kit - but of course the external tank and SRBs are all one piece which is a bit of a challenge. Looks good so far, Ret

Pete - I'll see what I can do with closeups. Some detail is crisp and others - like in the cockpit, not so much - bit of a mixed bag, but as someone once said, "good from afar..." Habu2 - yes, it seems Dragon like to also release both pre built and kit versions of all their space stuff. I recently saw their Apollo series in pre built form. They are decent enough for what they are, and I've built a number of their Apollo kits - well detailed, but gosh - they always seem to be just off with some things. 😉

This is the starboard side - the non see through side with filled in the extra "hatch and star trackers". The kit has some nice tile decals but only the markings for Discovery. Of course this is incorrect, as Discovery was the first Orbiter with TPS thermal blankets. Oh well, onwards.... you can see the spacelab off to the side which will be added soon.

Progress shots as I'm close to being done now.

Ok - so I'm new to starting a topic. Anyways I've begun building this kit as a see through. The Dragon model has good fit and as usual for this manufacturer they do some really nice thing with details and then add confounding design flaws (such as adding a second crew hatch on the left side.

Dragon model build for Space Shuttle group build - the kit is 1/144 scale and packs a lot into that size - much more than the old Revell or Airfix kits.

and so it begins... test fit - Dragon 1/144 shuttle - fit seems good.

Well Pete, I'll see what I can come up with but I am game. I have a Dragon see thru shuttle I'd like to tackle - don't know what it will turn out like but "let's ride". -Ret

I've used them on a Revell 1/72 Shuttle and don't remember them wrinkling. I seem to recall that they are fairly robust - so they can be smoothed out as you go with a damp napkin or such. I think it took a lot to actually tear them. I laid down some micro set before applying - that seemed to work ok. Best of luck, Ret

Following with interest - beautiful work!

Wow - really nice builds David - thanks for sharing! Look forward to seeing what else you have, Cheers- Ret

Really amazing work - thanks for sharing the build progress - fascinating to watch and learn! -Ret

The solution you've used for the LM ascent stage panels is very effective - the thickness of the plasticard seems to look just right. The plasticard holds the wrinkles nicely and I like how you are able to do the riveting. Undoubtedly time consuming, but very realistic result. Look forward to seeing the finished model. Are the panels scaled as per the diagram or have you slightly oversized them? Looks like fidely work. Thanks for sharing - Ret

Wow - those LM interiors are something! Are you trying to rebuild the LM as well? I'd be interested in hearing about your work on the LM interiors. And yes, K2Pete's work is amazing and inspiring - I've certainly referenced his work many times in my own builds. Ricardo has also done some amazing work as well with his Apollo 16 Orion build - which I think you can find on this site and others. There are some really wonderful and helpful folks in the community!

I think it's always difficult to match pieces in scale - but it looks like you've got a good thing going there. I'm thinking that the difficulty lies in the fact that most of the Kapton didn't cover a surface so much as cover a open space on some of the LM descent quads. Looking good!