K2Pete Posted December 21, 2010 Share Posted December 21, 2010 Those "U" shapes on the back of the OMS pods Mike, are they there just as locators for the OMS engine bells? If so, you may wanna mark the positions. And you could save yourself some sanding because when you paint the back part black, you probably won't even notice 'em. Or just sand 'em down and leave 25% of the thickness to act as a guide for the engine bells. ( plus, if you're gonna display it as a vertical stack, nobody's gonna try to see underneath to see the back of the OMS pods ... I'm just sayin' ) And on the aft OMS pod, where the RCS thrusters are, there are 2 little thrusters on each pod ... just FYI You're doing a lot of work on such a little kit Mike. Nice work so far! Pete Quote Link to post Share on other sites
crowe-t Posted December 21, 2010 Author Share Posted December 21, 2010 The "U" shapes do appear to be locators for the OMS engine bells. As you can see I accidentally hit one of the "U" shapes with the razor saw when I was shortening the rear of the pod. I'll make a mark in the center so I know where to locate the engine bells. The "U" shapes will be easy to remove with a sanding stick. The main part of the Revell orbiter that's most inaccurate is the OMS pods. If Revell would fix the shape of the pods it would be a much more accurate shuttle. The RCS units at the rear of the pods are actually fairly accurate in shape except they are way too angled in when applied out of box. I just had to correct the angle on these with some thin styrene. When I was comparing them to images of the Discovery from STS-133 I noticed there should be 2 thrusters on the rear. Maybe earlier shuttles had the single thruster but it could be another detail Revell simplified. I'll use some 1mm rod I have to make those 2 thrusters. Pete, Thanks for the encouraging words. I'm sure though that others have done far more on this kit then I'm doing. As I'm putting it together I'm finding things that aren't right. The rear of the OMS pods had way too much angle and went past the drag chute compartment. I'm sure without a drag chute compartment it wouldn't be as noticeable. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Jay Chladek Posted December 21, 2010 Share Posted December 21, 2010 Very good work thus far. You've certainly been taking this one further then I have on shuttles, but at the same time you are revealing many of the subtle flaws that the Revell kit has compared to the Airfix one (which has a few quirks of its own). The work done to the SRBs and the OMS pods are excellent! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
crowe-t Posted December 22, 2010 Author Share Posted December 22, 2010 (edited) Thanks Jay! The work you and Pete have accomplished on your builds has been an inspiration to me. My original intention was to build an Airfix stack. A member on ARC gave me this Revell stack and the ET halves were glued together. I started removing the bands from the ET to see how it would come out and I was pleasantly surprised by the difference. A few details later and I was committed to finishing this one. The kit's orbiter had also been partially assembled so I picked up another orbiter on E-bay for this build. The orbiter is an early 'Columbia' release. I'm making modifications as I go along. I hadn't really planned all that I did. After the drag chute compartment was added the angle of the OMS pods became more apparent to me so I decided to attempt to fix that. One of the things on the SRB's I won't be changing is the upper connection points. The connections are a bit higher then they should be but the styrene v-groove sheet is already installed on the inter-tank and I didn't want to ruin that. I just added an angled piece under the connections on each side to mimic the look on an actual stack. The parts where the SRB skirts get bolted down to the MLP aren't 100% correct in shape either but I'll leave those alone. I'm going to add some fine details to the skirts and leave the rest. All in all I like the Revell stack. It just takes a bit more work to fix some of Revell's subtle flaws. A few of the changes I made won't be an issue with the Airfix stack. I'll try and get some more pictures posted soon. Edited December 22, 2010 by crowe-t Quote Link to post Share on other sites
crowe-t Posted January 3, 2011 Author Share Posted January 3, 2011 I added some bands to the SRB's. These bands only appear on the left SRB while viewing from the front and the rear. I'll sand them down so they aren't as obvious. I changed the shape of the small square(w/ 4 dots) and added some raised details. My kit doesn't have the feedline that runs from the liquid oxygen tank so I have to make one. I'm using a .125 inch(3.2mm) styrene rod to make one. Instead of bending the line at the bottom where it attaches to the orbiter I'm making the bend out of a few pieces and will file it to shape and trim the excess when the glue sets. I'm just getting back to this after a hiatus during the holidays. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
crowe-t Posted January 11, 2011 Author Share Posted January 11, 2011 Well I finally attached the wings to the orbiter. Here are some of the orbiter taped to the stack. I'll hopefully get the orbiter completed soon and some paint on the ET. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Astrazoic Posted January 13, 2011 Share Posted January 13, 2011 Nice work there. I'm so glad to see all the wonderful care and attention models of the Shuttle are getting around here! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
crowe-t Posted February 12, 2011 Author Share Posted February 12, 2011 Nice work there. I'm so glad to see all the wonderful care and attention models of the Shuttle are getting around here! Thanks for the kind words! I've been following your work on the Buran and it's coming along great. Here's a small update: The rear of the OMS pods is missing the round, angled, base for the thrusters. I started by sanding off the 'U' shaped raised details. I used 2 of the kit's wheels to make the base for the thrusters. The kit's location and length of the body flap is incorrect. I added 2.5 mm of spacers to extend the length and added some 1.5 mm styrene to the sides. I used the 1/144 drawings from Space In Miniature #3(SIM #3) as well as photographs for reference. When this was done I matched it to an Airfix kit and it's the same length. Airfix seems to have done a better job on the details on the rear of the shuttle, but that's no surprise. Another issue I encountered were bite marks in the rudder. Some putty/sanding and the problem is fixed. Here's the culprit. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
K2Pete Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 Well done Mike! Good catch on those OMS shapes! I didn't even realize they were missing!! And you seem to be having fun doing the scratchbuilding! How did you get the bevel on the port side OMS shape? Didja stick it in a drill and sand 'em? They look terrific! So does the body flap! ... and just what is it with white plastic and pets? Does it smell like food ... look like food ... ?? Pete Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Jay Chladek Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 (edited) Bite marks?! LOL! Gotta love cats, but sometimes they can find some rather interesting ways to add to our workload. Using the kit's wheels to make new OMS mounts is ingenious! I think we've created a monster Pete! Edited February 13, 2011 by Jay Chladek Quote Link to post Share on other sites
crowe-t Posted February 13, 2011 Author Share Posted February 13, 2011 (edited) Pete & Jay, Thanks a bunch for all the nice things you are saying. You guys have been a great source of knowledge and inspiration to me. I just have to pick up the pace a bit. I'm getting there and am now down to the small details. Pete, I used a sanding stick to make the bevels on the OMS(wheels) shapes. They aren't perfect but get the job done. I also filed down where the SSME's attach as much as I could. I did glue some extra styrene on the backside but I don't want to break through. Once I attach the payload doors the shuttle will be ready for paint. I'll be using the Revell's MLP but will add some details, mainly the Tail Service Masts. I think it will make a nice display base. Here is my other 'angel' checking out an Airfix shuttle. Edited February 13, 2011 by crowe-t Quote Link to post Share on other sites
C-130CrewChief Posted February 14, 2011 Share Posted February 14, 2011 Your kitties have NO SHAME! What cats do though? I never thought of cats as chewers, but my girl Nikki loves the taste of propeller! Your build is coming along great! Curt Quote Link to post Share on other sites
crowe-t Posted February 17, 2011 Author Share Posted February 17, 2011 Thanks Curt, The cats sure do keep things interesting! I worked on the LOX feed line. I scratch built it from 3.2 mm rod and added the bands with .5 mm strips. Also some work on the orbiter cradle. The ET is now ready for paint. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Speedster Posted February 23, 2011 Share Posted February 23, 2011 Wow great work. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
crowe-t Posted February 23, 2011 Author Share Posted February 23, 2011 Thanks Speedster! I primed the ET and it all looks good for paint. I installed the payload bay piece and it helped strengthen and straighten the sides of the orbiter(thanks Pete for the advice). The orbiter is an older kit and the sides were warped a bit. I'll attach the payload bay doors tomorrow and the shuttle will be good to go. I'm just waiting for a friend to send me the file for the cockpit window(s) decal so I can make templates using masking tape for the windows. Then I can start priming and painting the shuttle. The SRB's are basically complete with a few small details I have to add but that shouldn't take too long. I'll post pictures soon. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
crowe-t Posted February 25, 2011 Author Share Posted February 25, 2011 (edited) Here's a small update. I added some styrene inside the payload bay to support the doors. Here are some pictures with the payload doors glued in place. I was having some fun today while watching NASA TV's coverage of STS-133. (The Astronauts are settling into the shuttle in the background). I painted the forward bulkhead charcoal gray(Aircraft Interior black w/white added) since there is no actual interior in this kit. I also painted the walls inside light gray. I used a brush to give it a quick coat of paint since this won't really be seen. I added the 2 RCS thrusters on the ends of the OMS pods. I used 2 mm rod and drilled out holes in each one. Edited February 25, 2011 by crowe-t Quote Link to post Share on other sites
crowe-t Posted March 1, 2011 Author Share Posted March 1, 2011 (edited) I added the triangular side panels to the sides of the OMS pods. I scribed the sections into the payload bay doors using the drawings in the book Space In Miniature #3(SIM #3) and various Shuttle pictures as reference. I'm slowly chipping away at this. The windows need to be polished and the orbiter will be basically ready for paint. Edited March 1, 2011 by crowe-t Quote Link to post Share on other sites
K2Pete Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 Nice job, Mike! I'm gonna hafta crack open my 1/144 and accurize it using this thread as reference! I didn't realize so much was missing from the kit! When you scribed those panel lines into the Payload Bay doors, what did you use to guide the 'scriber'? Tape ... flexible ruler ... freehand? Are ya gonna use the kit's engine bells and just fix 'em up? I can't wait to see some paint on this one ... keep chippin' away Mike, you're doing great!! Pete Quote Link to post Share on other sites
crowe-t Posted March 1, 2011 Author Share Posted March 1, 2011 (edited) Pete, You are way too kind but I do appreciate it! :D If you only knew of half the mistakes I made and had to fix along the way. ;) I used DYMO embossing tape as a guide for scribing. I find it easier to use on curved parts then a ruler. I have a set of the Real Space Models(RSM) engine bells for this. From what I can see of the three 1/144 stack kits(Airfix, Minicraft, Revell), the Revell's SSME's are the worst. They are missing details but even with all that added they would never look acceptable. I wish RSM made replacement OMS pods for the Revell shuttle. The funny thing is there really isn't much in the way of after market parts for Space Shuttle kits. Resin engine bells and the SILTS camara, which is no longer made, are all I could find. If I knew anything about resin casting I would have cast a few sets of the OMS pods for future Revell builds. Edited March 1, 2011 by crowe-t Quote Link to post Share on other sites
crowe-t Posted March 1, 2011 Author Share Posted March 1, 2011 I finished scribing the payload bay doors. I didn't scribe the center line all the way to the rudder and the lines on the side of the orbiter all the way to the OMS pods. I don't know how I missed that but I was working on this late last night and must have been sleep deprived. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
crowe-t Posted March 2, 2011 Author Share Posted March 2, 2011 The windows are now polished. They look better in person then in these pictures. It's hard to photograph clear plastic. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Jay Chladek Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 Looking very good. Thats the thing about doing 1/144 shuttle stacks, you have to slog your way to make them really accurate. This is shaping up to be a nice looking model. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mriccio Posted March 4, 2011 Share Posted March 4, 2011 Thank you for the posts, I am trying to gather up the courage to attempt this, and your reports are providing encouragement. You are doing a formidable job... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
crowe-t Posted March 4, 2011 Author Share Posted March 4, 2011 (edited) Thanks again Jay for the encouraging words! mriccio, Thank you for the nice comments! BTW, what kit will you be building? The Revell, Airfix, Minicraft? Please post pictures when you get started. I was able to finish adding the details on the SRB's & ET. At this point I think anything more will look out of scale. I scratch built the Aft Separation Motor Modules(I think that's what these parts are called. :D ) out of 2 mm & 1.2 mm rods and 2 mm half rod. The Revell kit's parts are all wrong. Maybe they are based on an earlier design?! Most likely just another incorrect detail. Here is a picture of an SRB that shows what these parts should look like. Here are some added details to the AFT Skirt. This kit didn't have the spike at the top of the ET so I added it. Since I got this kit without the original box I'm not sure if the spike was broken off or not part of the kit. I applied some raised bands on the forward skirts on the SRB's. I simplified these bands but at this small scale I feel they get the job done. I'll try to get some primer on these parts when the weather warms up a bit. I was able to get a light coat of primer on the ET a few days ago but it was getting windy so I had to stop. I'm priming the parts outside but will paint the parts inside with an airbrush. Edited March 4, 2011 by crowe-t Quote Link to post Share on other sites
K2Pete Posted March 4, 2011 Share Posted March 4, 2011 Out-frikkin-standing Mike! I was gonna say, that after looking at the photo of the SRB skirt, and seeing the semi-circular shape on the top of one rocket, that Oh, Mike, you missed it ... then I looked at your scratch built one ... and son of a beach, you got THAT right too!! I love the thin plastic details you've placed on the skirt and the 'spike' too. Way ta go Mike! This is just great! Pete Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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