admiralcag Posted March 17, 2019 Share Posted March 17, 2019 My first entry here... It was a Secret Santa gift from a friend and graffitied by Colin Cantwell. I have been waiting on the light kit to start. It only took 3 months to arrive O_o. I started by annealing the photoetch. I figured since I was doing this, I would get the etch for my refit knocked out as well. Next, I soaked the etch overnight in white vinegar. While waiting on that, I started gluing subassemblies. Next steps - I need to paint the interior white and decide if I want to sand down the window areas on the bulb to allow the photoetch to sit flush. Vern Quote Link to post Share on other sites
phantom Posted March 17, 2019 Share Posted March 17, 2019 (edited) Your going to love building this kit. I had zero issues whatso-ever! Oh, I did NOT sand anything down. The light blocking of the raised areas worked like a charm. Edited March 17, 2019 by phantom Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Hajo L. Posted March 17, 2019 Share Posted March 17, 2019 What´s the idea behind the special treatment of the PE-parts? HAJO Quote Link to post Share on other sites
admiralcag Posted March 18, 2019 Author Share Posted March 18, 2019 Annealing removes the springiness of the brass. The vinegar etches the brass to help it take paint. Yesterday's work - I sanded down the window parts around the bulb in an attempt to make the etch sit more flush. Glued in place. I still need to open them up more. More subassemblies, Quote Link to post Share on other sites
admiralcag Posted March 25, 2019 Author Share Posted March 25, 2019 More work. Starting with the hangar deck light box. Hangar deck parts complete. I am wanting to paint before I install the clear parts. The top of the rear hull just barely fits in the paint booth! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
phantom Posted March 26, 2019 Share Posted March 26, 2019 Yeah, its a BIG kit! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
southwestforests Posted April 1, 2019 Share Posted April 1, 2019 (edited) On 3/17/2019 at 9:45 AM, admiralcag said: It was a Secret Santa gift from a friend and graffitied by Colin Cantwell. Ahh, yes, there is a significant though subtle difference between graffiti artists and artist's graffiti. 😎 Edited April 1, 2019 by southwestforests misspelling, there is a subtle though significant difference between though and through. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
admiralcag Posted April 1, 2019 Author Share Posted April 1, 2019 3 hours ago, southwestforests said: Ahh, yes, there is a significant though subtle difference between graffiti artists and artist's graffiti. 😎 Yes, there is. An acquaintance got Bill George to autograph a Star Wars kit. I wonder what I can get Rick Sternbach to sign when I see him in a couple of weeks... All the parts are glued on to the lower hull. I tried to test fit it with the upper hull, but it fought hard. After a little bit of research, I found the pins needed to be chamfered. Problem solved. One of the things I did was add sheet plastic to a couple of parts because the LEDs in the light kit were undersized. Apparently, that problem has been fixed. I had to undo a little work, but not too much. I opened up the windows on the bulb and started enlarging them, checking them against the photoetch to make sure they are large enough. Vern Quote Link to post Share on other sites
phantom Posted April 7, 2019 Share Posted April 7, 2019 Nice fitting kit eh? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
admiralcag Posted April 9, 2019 Author Share Posted April 9, 2019 For the most part, yes. I did have problem test fitting the rear hull. I did some research on it and found chamfering the pins would help. It did. Now working on making sure the windows on the bulb pe line up with the openings. Tedious work. Vern Quote Link to post Share on other sites
admiralcag Posted May 20, 2019 Author Share Posted May 20, 2019 Finally got a bunch of photos for posting! I have declared victory on the bulb windows! Masking off the mating areas so I can paint the interior flat white. I thought I had taken some after photos. I will get those later. Engine lights. This is one of the things I had been grinding my gears over. Do I coat the outside with flat white then flat black? I did a test and found it transmitted light well already, so I put it in as-is. I did epoxy the LED in, so I may have to work really hard if it ever fails. I scuffed up the front on the hangar deck structure to diffuse the lights. It does have some hot spots, so I may stuff some fiber fill in there to diffuse those some more. Side radiators assembled. They are just set in place right now. I am hoping I have kicked the build loose. Vern Quote Link to post Share on other sites
admiralcag Posted May 28, 2019 Author Share Posted May 28, 2019 More work done. I finished coating the interiors with flat white. This one, in addition to the white to reflect, I have sprayed Tamiya Fine Gray primer as a base for Alclad gunmetal. The interior of the torpedo tubes, the light blocking parts, and the impulse grilles will get that. I hope the Tamiya will bite the brass. I wanted to make sure the reactor vent (?) could be masked off from the outside when I painted the whole assembly, so I started with the buff and NATO black there first. It may have been a mistake, but live and learn. Rear lights are epoxied in. The radiators on and powered up. Needs a lot of clean up... I am going to have to eradicate light leaks as I go. For some reason, not all of the pictures I am taking are ending up my phone's gallery. I will have to investigate. One last thing... Last month, Rick Sternbach signed my model box. I may try to seek out other model builders who had nothing to do with the studio miniature to sign the box. Just 'cause... Vern Quote Link to post Share on other sites
admiralcag Posted July 13, 2019 Author Share Posted July 13, 2019 I finally got going on painting this beast. I am making so many rookie mistakes on this one. While priming the hangar/reactor assembly, I stuck my thumb in fresh primer. I am also making mistakes on the order that I put down color coats to ease masking. More on that in a bit. I really wish Polar Lights would go back to regular painting guides. I am struggling to pick out the right shades from the illustrations on the box. Also, the box doesn't show everything. I am going to have to ask Polar Lights for replacement parts. The photo etch, which I really wanted to use, is just not working out. Laying down Tamiya NATO Black - Unfortunately, the NATO needs to go farther forward. Also, the grill near the top needs to be buff and it would have been easier to start masking that instead of around it in black. Same story on the rear hull. I started with the buff/dark iron mix, but I should have started with the buff and the NATO black. Mario Suarez did a great walk through at All Scale Trek and I should heed it more. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
phantom Posted July 13, 2019 Share Posted July 13, 2019 Would not worry about exact to much. I have seen 4 different paint jobs of this kit (mine included) and they all looked good when done. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
admiralcag Posted August 19, 2019 Author Share Posted August 19, 2019 I thought I had already posted here that I decided to go in a different direction on the windows on the bulb. No matter what I did, I could not get the holes on the photoetch to line up with the enlarged holes in the plastic. This required me to request parts. After sending a request and a check, and several emails, I am still waiting on replacements. Round2 has been very quick in responding, just not accurate. I also managed to step on the bridge dome, breaking the really small piece on top. Flickr is not cooperating at the moment. Otherwise, I would share photos of my progress. Vern Quote Link to post Share on other sites
southwestforests Posted August 19, 2019 Share Posted August 19, 2019 Aw man, it's just one of those frustrating periods in modeling. They happen at times and there seems to be no way to make them not happen. Hopefully, repair and recovery will come without too much work and with little further trauma. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
admiralcag Posted August 20, 2019 Author Share Posted August 20, 2019 Parts arrived yesterday! Yay! Vern Quote Link to post Share on other sites
phantom Posted August 31, 2019 Share Posted August 31, 2019 Keep at it and keep posting your photos. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
southwestforests Posted August 31, 2019 Share Posted August 31, 2019 Indeed; I still want to see how this build goes. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
admiralcag Posted September 1, 2019 Author Share Posted September 1, 2019 Can do. I screwed up the resin beanie cap getting it ready for the new detail part and am taking to some friends if they are willing to make a deal. I still need to post the pictures. Vern Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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