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1/48 Scale LM / CSM (Apollo 12)


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For my first build I will be tackling the Monogram / Revell 1/48 LM and Dragon's 1/48 scale CSM model. I plan on making them in the configuration as Apollo 12. One because Alan Bean is my favorite moon walker and most of the research I'd done in the past for any Apollo builds have been for that flight. So that makes it easier to keep up with details. One day I'd eventually like to have all aspects of that mission modeled from the Saturn V, this build, the landing site itself, redo my Bean figure sculpt and finish it up with a splashdown dio. Time will tell if I actually get that accomplished.

 

Here is a shot of the box tops of the two kits for this build.

 

 

Box Art.jpg

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ok, sorry, didn't get much posted here over the weekend...things and life and such.

 

Here is another shot from my non-starter thread. This is just a crudely modified 1/48 scale German mechanic figure so there will be some life in the model. I've gotten a little bit of the interior detailed just to cover what you can see through the openings, which isn't a whole lot. But I wanted to at least hint at the interior.

 

astron.jpg

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And here is the roughed out interior. I'll likely go with either decals or just printed card stock for the instrument panels. I don't think they need to be raised details as it mostly can't be seen, especially with the 2 figures inside hiding a good part of it. 

 

 

interior small.jpg

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Got a little more done on this. Painted the interior (very rough brush painting) and added some print outs of the instruments from an image i found online. I think this will be good enough for what little can be seen through the windows, especially if I do double panes like the real one. I also started playing with some gold foils to see what might work. I intend to start looking closer at Vincent's build and try to get a better foil technique like he uses. But for now at least it's looking sort of like a thing. 

 

As always comments, critiques and suggestions are very welcome.

 

 

decent stage foil test 1.jpg

interior instruments.jpg

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How are you applying the foil? What adhesive are you using? I ask because it looks like you're smoothing it out onto the surface a little too much.

And some of the 'gold' colour on the Quads of the LM will be more Copper coloured. ... just sayin'

 

And this is gonna be fun for me as I haven't seen a Dragon CSM.

Pete

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Thanks for the input Pete. The foil that's there now is just temporarily glued with plain ol Elmers school glue. I mainly wanted to see if it would fit the bill. It's a thicker foil from chocolate coin wrappers. It was the largest thick foil I could find cheap without writing on it. I may still use it and paint over with clear orange to vary the colors. Werther's caramel has a great color that I used for the 1/72 scale LM but it's hard to get large enough sections because of the writing. I'm going to investigate some more and rely on you guys to point out the error of my ways. :cheers:

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Slow but sure progress. I decided I am going to go with the folded leg set-up. Worse case if I fail is I can buy or print some of Vincent's as replacements and be more accurate anyway. To accommodate I added some small channel pieces along the bottom edge of the decent stage to represent the pivot hinges. I'm also going to try a different approach and built the support structure for the legs on the main body and then carefully cut it all off to make foiling easier. In theory that will help get everything all lined up and ease of foil application. We shall see.

 

 

LM Folding Hinge.jpg

LM Support struts.jpg

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Here is the foil I was playing with. You can see that one of them actually has a darker more bronze color. Unfortunately it was the only one in the package that was like that and I'm not sure WHY it was different. The quest continues. (I do find it pretty cool and coincidental that the candy coins have the Kennedy profile. Seems rather fitting to me.

 

Also here is a pic of the Dragon kit SM main body and in the background the CM. I'd sorta built these a while back but I think I'm going to redo and add details. Pete, you can see that there are nice panel lines on the kit....it looks good, but wrong. As you know, the surface of the CSM was anything but smooth. So I will be referring to your build and follow closely to see how to dress up the surface textures.

 

 

Until next time, comments, critiques and suggestions solicited.

 

Bill

 

LM CSM.jpg

LM foil.jpg

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I agree with John, your figures are excellent! At that size, your proportions and ... just the 'look' of the suit, is top drawer!

 

And the Service Module is smooth. The Dragon SM looks pretty good. The only textures were around the RCS thrusters, bubbled up paint and structural elements. yours looks okay to me-e-e.  :thumbsup:

This image on the Wikipedia site is pretty indicative.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_command_and_service_module

 

And on your LM, to adhere the foil I use Bare Metal Foil Adhesive. You paint it on, let it dry and it's tacky ... therefore fairly easy to remove and readjust. I also apply the foil loosely to try to get that 'billowy' effect. When I do my LM for this build, I'll try to show the process.

Pete

 

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Perhaps smooth isn't the word I should of used, featureless is more apt. The Dragon kit body doesn't have any raised features at all other than the radiator panels. None of the access panels are raised and there is no rivet details represented. That's what I meant. You replicated those features very well in your CSM builds.

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Turning back to some facial work, I added some more details to the front of the ascent stage. The vents are just small plastic rod cut at a sharp angle and filed down. I also decided to maybe run a small LED into the cabin to light it up a little. It's not going to make a huge difference but just make the interior a little bit more visible. Since it may be lit up I'll likely touch up the painting a little so it's not horribly sloppy. I am now looking for some better nozzles for the RCS clusters. The kits are really crude and misshaped.

 

 

 

face lift small.jpg

lighted small.jpg

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2 hours ago, niart17 said:

I am now looking for some better nozzles for the RCS clusters. The kits are really crude and misshaped.

 

I had Michael Key draw up some RCS bells and had them printed at Shapeways. It looks like he still offers them. 

 

https://www.shapeways.com/product/Q98PHNGSH/rcs-engines-1-48-20-sprue

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New Ware's Update set is my 'go to' ... Nice RCS nozzles and PE and Resin ... make the LM 'sing' ...      
I just ordered another set from Tom for my own LM.

 

Hey habu2, you gonna join us here on this Group Build and share your builds with us??   

Pete

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Thanks ApolloMan. Here they are completed just before I buttoned them up and glued the fore section to the aft. Hopefully everything will look ok once I get it wired up and see if the lights still work.

 

Also guys, I have a quick question. I THINK I'm correct but can anyone confirm that when the CSM and LM are docked, there isn't anything visible between the two crafts? AS far I can tell, they should be flush as shown in the image posted below. But since obviously there were no cameras to get that angle, I am not 100% sure, maybe 95%. Anyway, thanks for checking in.

 

 

final checks.jpg

docked.jpg

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I'm pretty sure, like you , that the two vehicles are indeed flush. Once they dock, the CM's docking probe withdraws into the CM pulling the LM flush to the CM.

 

So, the sequence is ... Capture, Retracting and Hard Dock. This video is from Apollo 15 and go to 6:04

 

Pete

 

 

 

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