Stratospheremodels Posted December 18, 2008 Share Posted December 18, 2008 (edited) These are the master parts for an all NEW version of my giant vacform Tropical Fish Cruiser sci-fi model kit. The new version will now have All RESIN FINS. My kit which i have been producing since 1998 have gone through two major overhauls and upgrades. The first one was a complete redesign of the large lower ribs on the main fuselage of the Tropical Fish Cruiser, they were beefed up and accurized to match the actual design, and i made the change a few years ago. Now this is the 2nd large overhaul, and it includes redesigning the whole set of lower and upper fins and replacing them with all resin fins. While i was at it, i decided to completely redo the lower fins upper half and add a curve to them, to make them even more accurate. This is the end result and those parts will now be a standard part of the kit and will replace the older vacform parts. (this one is actually my own personal all fiberglass one-of-a-kind version, but this is just to show you the shape of the model, which is the same for the vacform model kit. The flat shaped fiberglass lower fins you see for this one were the old design, the new curved fins will now replace these for both the all fiberglass model one-of-a-kind shown here as well as for the vacuum-formed production kit). Stephane. Stratosphere Models. email: stratospheremodels@yahoo.fr website: http://www.picturetrail.com/stratospheremodels Edited January 19, 2012 by Stratospheremodels Quote Link to post Share on other sites
HOLMES Posted December 19, 2008 Share Posted December 19, 2008 IMPRESSIVE bit of work there Stephane. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Stratospheremodels Posted December 20, 2008 Author Share Posted December 20, 2008 IMPRESSIVE bit of work there Stephane. Hi ! Thank you Holmes ! I will post more pictures to show the complete piece of work and the evolution of the new parts, which are still a work-in-progress. Stephane. Stratosphere Models. email: stratospheremodels@yahoo.fr website: http://www.picturetrail.com/stratospheremodels Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Stratospheremodels Posted December 20, 2008 Author Share Posted December 20, 2008 (edited) I still have to add the spindle shapes to it on which the antennas are installed as well as smooth the leading edges. The parts that include windows will be cast in transparent resin ! That way it will be very easy for people to light the model without having to use expensive and voltage-sensitive Lightsheet or complicated fiber optics. All you will need will be a few LEDs installed near the top of the fin to light up the model The NEW version with all resin fins and transparent parts will be 499.00$US. Stephane. Stratosphere Models. email: stratospheremodels@yahoo.fr website: http://www.picturetrail.com/stratospheremodels Edited December 22, 2008 by Stratospheremodels Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Stratospheremodels Posted December 22, 2008 Author Share Posted December 22, 2008 (edited) This is the older fin master parts for the new resin fins version of the kit. Those parts will now be replaced by the new curved fins i have shown in the pictures above. The top fin lower halves (top of the photo) will also be replaced by two new super-accurized parts that will be a little bit higher and a little bit shorter in lenght. They will also be cast in transparent resin. Stephane. Stratosphere Models. email: stratospheremodels@yahoo.fr website: http://www.picturetrail.com/stratospheremodels Edited December 22, 2008 by Stratospheremodels Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Stratospheremodels Posted March 4, 2009 Author Share Posted March 4, 2009 (edited) I am back with more work-in-progress pictures for the giant Tropical Fish Cruiser NEW version with all resin fins. There were a few corrections to make to the shape of one of the lower fins master parts when i originally stacked the thick vacformed plastic sheets. Here are the corrections, shown before. And after. Now i have to polish the part. Stephane. Stratosphere Models. email: stratospheremodels@yahoo.fr website: http://www.picturetrail.com/stratospheremodels Edited March 4, 2009 by Stratospheremodels Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Stratospheremodels Posted July 14, 2009 Author Share Posted July 14, 2009 (edited) Here is the newest update for the new Cruiser project ! This is a picture of the mold box for the lower fins, ready to be poured. More pictures will be coming soon Stephane. Stratosphere Models. email: stratospheremodels@yahoo.fr website: http://www.picturetrail.com/stratospheremodels Edited July 23, 2009 by Stratospheremodels Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Stratospheremodels Posted July 23, 2009 Author Share Posted July 23, 2009 (edited) The first mold for the new all resin fins is complete. The two lower fins halves will be cast from this mold. More molds are coming. Stephane. Stratosphere Models. email: stratospheremodels@yahoo.fr website: http://www.picturetrail.com/stratospheremodels Edited August 4, 2009 by Stratospheremodels Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Stratospheremodels Posted August 4, 2009 Author Share Posted August 4, 2009 (edited) 2nd mold, fresh from yesterday, this one is for the top fin upper half. I also redesigned part of the upper fin, making it a little smaller and shorter. More molds are coming soon. Stephane. Stratosphere Models. email: stratospheremodels@yahoo.fr website: http://www.picturetrail.com/stratospheremodels Edited August 6, 2009 by Stratospheremodels Quote Link to post Share on other sites
greg8365 Posted August 6, 2009 Share Posted August 6, 2009 Stephane, Looks fantastic!! I am looking so forward to adding this model to my B5 collection. I will keep checking back for updates. Greg Quote Link to post Share on other sites
MarkW Posted August 7, 2009 Share Posted August 7, 2009 Any chance you'll sell the updated fins or bottom ribbed section separately for those of us with the original? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Stratospheremodels Posted August 8, 2009 Author Share Posted August 8, 2009 Any chance you'll sell the updated fins or bottom ribbed section separately for those of us with the original? Hi Mark, no problem ! I will definitely do an "Update Kit Package" version for those who already have the all vacform kit. Anyone who wants it, just contact me, and i will get that done. Stephane. Stratosphere Models email: stratospheremodels@yahoo.fr website: http://www.picturetrail.com/stratospheremodels Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Stratospheremodels Posted January 17, 2010 Author Share Posted January 17, 2010 (edited) More work-in-progress pics for the lower fins. More pictures coming this week. Stratosphere Models email: stratospheremodels@yahoo.fr website: http://www.picturetrail.com/stratospheremodels Edited January 22, 2010 by Stratospheremodels Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Stratospheremodels Posted January 27, 2010 Author Share Posted January 27, 2010 (edited) The lower fins are almost complete, i modified a little both fins to fit the lower spindles in place. I will post the new pictures tomorrow. Oh, and i also decided to add some additional new resin parts to this new version of the Cruiser. Stephane. Stratosphere Models. Website: Picturetrail.com/stratospheremodels Edited January 28, 2010 by Stratospheremodels Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Stratospheremodels Posted January 29, 2010 Author Share Posted January 29, 2010 (edited) Sorry about that slight delay, one snow storm later, here we go: I decided to update the masts for the lower fins and now i am offering them with the kit as ALL NEW RESIN PARTS also !! So that`s 4 new extra resin parts that will go with the kit !! (along with the 7 new large resin fin parts that i had announced earlier last year). There are also lots of new details on the new mast parts and the parts they replace will make it much much easier to build the kit (i designed the new parts so they just fit nicely over the spindle shapes of the lower fins, making alignment a breeze). The lower fin parts, after slight modification to fit the smaller spindle shapes: The lower fin parts are now almost complete, i now only have to scribe the windows and to spray a little more filler on one side and that`s it. I have decided to keep the 'steps' on the side of the lower fins as separate vacuum-formed parts, to keep the weight of the parts down and also because the vacform parts were already fine in terms of detail and easy to manufacture. Stephane Stratosphere Models Website: Picturetrail.com/stratospheremodels Edited January 29, 2010 by Stratospheremodels Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Stratospheremodels Posted July 31, 2010 Author Share Posted July 31, 2010 (edited) First castings for the NEW resin fins. Clean new parts ! These new parts are now in production. 2 more large size resin parts coming (almost ready, a final little layer of spray filler to make them nice, all joints are already filled, new pictures are coming) will be the upper part of the lower fins, plus 4 smaller new masts resin parts. Almost done. Now i only got to make the final mold for the upper fin half and make the final master from that mold (which will be made from the original tooling i was using for vacforming, an improved version of it). Stephane. Stratosphere Models. Email: stratospheremodels@yahoo.fr http://www.picturetrail.com/stratospheremodels Edited August 3, 2010 by Stratospheremodels Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Stratospheremodels Posted April 28, 2011 Author Share Posted April 28, 2011 (edited) I've been very busy making up for lost time when i was ill a few times last winter. The mold boxes for the next step in the making of the new resin fins for the giant cruiser kit are almost ready (i ran out of cyano glue last night, i'm on my way to buy more after this). I will be making the next 2 large molds for the upper part of the lower fins in the coming week. More pictures are coming soon. Stephane Stratosphere Models Website: http://picturetrail.com/stratospheremodels Email: stratospheremodelsy@yahoo.fr Edited May 5, 2011 by Stratospheremodels Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Stratospheremodels Posted May 5, 2011 Author Share Posted May 5, 2011 (edited) Nice BIG new mold : This is mold number 3. Pics of BIG mold number 4 are coming tomorrow (demolding tonight). I will soon start to cast the transparent parts. Getting the small molds done this week. Stephane. Stratosphere Models. Email: stratospheremodels@yahoo.fr http://www.picturetrail.com/stratospheremodels Edited May 5, 2011 by Stratospheremodels Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Stratospheremodels Posted May 7, 2011 Author Share Posted May 7, 2011 (edited) Here we go, 2 NEW additional BIG molds are now ready !! I will make the molds for the remaining small parts this weekend. And i have a SPECIAL OFFER for ALL my PREVIOUS CUSTOMERS who bought the all vacform version of my Tropical Fish Cruiser, aka Sharlin. FOR THE NEXT 30 DAYS i am offering the 5 NEW large RESIN FINS (including 2 TRANSPARENT RESIN FINS making it easy for you to light them with LEDs !) PLUS 6 NEW SMALLER RESIN PARTS for the price of 198.00 $ US !! (Total price for the NEW version of the kit with all vac parts and new resin parts is normally 498.00 $ US). After 30 days regular price for the NEW RESIN FINS SET will be 325.00 $. So its a BIG DISCOUNT and i am making it available to thank my previous customers for their support. The molds for the NEW RESIN parts are ready for immediate production. Stephane Stratosphere Models Website: http://www.picturetrail.com/stratospheremodels Email: stratospheremodels@yahoo.fr Stephane Stratosphere Models Website: http://www.picturetrail.com/stratospheremodels Email: stratospheremodels@yahoo.fr Edited May 12, 2011 by Stratospheremodels Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Stratospheremodels Posted May 12, 2011 Author Share Posted May 12, 2011 (edited) Please read my previous post above for a NEW SPECIAL OFFER for ALL my PREVIOUS CUSTOMERS who bought the all vacform version of my Tropical Fish Cruiser, aka Sharlin, where FOR THE NEXT 30 DAYS you can get my NEW large RESIN FINS SET for ONLY 198.00 $ US !! (Total price for the NEW version of the kit with all vac parts and new resin parts is normally 498.00 $ US). Stephane Stratosphere Models Website: http://www.picturetrail.com/stratospheremodels Email: stratospheremodels@yahoo.fr Edited May 12, 2011 by Stratospheremodels Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Stratospheremodels Posted September 21, 2011 Author Share Posted September 21, 2011 OK guys, I will soon start casting the large size transparent parts. That plus a lot of other things this month of September. I am booked solid with things to finish and new molds to pour between now and the end of October as i am wrapping several of the new projects at the same time. Pics will be posted soon. Stephane. Stratosphere Models. Email: stratospheremodels@yahoo.fr Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Stratospheremodels Posted September 29, 2011 Author Share Posted September 29, 2011 (edited) Here we go, as promised, and the end result could not have been better. The parts look like glass. In total i could not find more than 2 tiny air bubbles in the castings, and still, those were located under two overhangs, so all in all i am very happy with the end result. Project is nearing completion, by the end of October. Still 2 more master parts to finish and their molds and it's a wrap. More castings are coming. Stephane. Stratosphere Models. Email: stratospheremodels@yahoo.fr Website: http://www.picturetrail.com/stratospheremodels Edited October 4, 2011 by Stratospheremodels Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Stratospheremodels Posted October 20, 2011 Author Share Posted October 20, 2011 (edited) Here are 5 pairs of fins out of 6 that were made last week. That step is now complete. Only 2 more molds to make. Stephane. Stratosphere Models. Email: stratospheremodels@yahoo.fr Website: http://www.picturetrail.com/stratospheremodels Edited October 21, 2011 by Stratospheremodels Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Stratospheremodels Posted November 2, 2011 Author Share Posted November 2, 2011 (edited) Here's the harvest of yesterday evening. 26 sheets of vacformed parts (and that's just a few compared to the small parts that i already had made earlier and have in stock). The count of small parts is now complete for all 6 Giant Cruiser kits. I now have only 32 large sheets to vacform to complete the count for the large parts for the 6 kits. After that, finishing the masters and molds and castings for the 2 last large resin parts. Stephane Stratosphere Models. Email: stratospheremodels@yahoo.fr Website: http://wwww.picturetrail.com/stratospheremodels Edited March 16, 2012 by Stratospheremodels Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Stratospheremodels Posted November 14, 2011 Author Share Posted November 14, 2011 (edited) Here's the harvest from last night, half of the largest parts are now complete: Luckily the attrition rate was not too high, only 33% of the material used ended up in the garbage. The ones shown below are the good ones. I still have 24 large vacformed parts to make and all the vac parts for the 6 kits will be complete. I just went to purchase 2 additional 4 feet large sheets of plastic 45 mins ago so i can complete the last parts. I should be able to mail the first 2 kits by the end of this week. The 4 last kits will require the all resin fins sets: still 2 molds to make for the 2 final large fin parts (these will be skin molds, meaning more time consuming to make than usual, plus backing plates (material as yet undecided), that wiall be followed by the purchase of a final small batch of transparent resin, and then casting of the last upper fin new parts. Stephane Stratosphere Models. Website: http://www.picturetrail.com/stratospheremodels Edited March 16, 2012 by Stratospheremodels Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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