Jump to content

My Final LM ... maybe ...


Recommended Posts

Yeah, I figured ... I DO keep my verbiage to the absolute minimum but ... no harm, no foul!

 

The Aluminum sheet I got from a local small job printer. Once the sheet is used to print business cards, or envelopes and gets exposed to light and inks, they get tossed. So I had had some printing done and asked if they had any sheets lying around ... they did and I got 4 sheets and I've had 'em for about 12 years, using 'em up slowly.

 

And the Eyes, well, close work is getting a little more difficult. I've had 17 needles in one Eye and 3 in the other every 3 or 4 months ... it sure is FUN though!

What a nifty experience!   :whistle:

 

 

Pete  🇨🇦

Link to post
Share on other sites

Thanx a lot Randy ... your models demonstrate a LOT of thought and skill and I appreciate your words! ...

Now, bust out that old LM and get going!    :cheers:    ( how can I increase the size of these emojis? like, to 64 points? )

 

 

Starting to add Foil to the Descent Stage. Yeah, the image is outta focus ... but you get the idea. It's a pretty tedious part of the build ... 

Just using household Aluminum foil, and some Foil Adhesive on the back, just cut out and apply. The tool is an old Letraset burnisher I've had for over 40 years ... anybody remember Letraset? It's Dry-Transfer Lettering which isn't made any more except maybe Archer Transfers ...

 

image.thumb.jpeg.415ce392bd56021529b33277464d91c3.jpeg

 

 

The Primary struts above, and this one is the Secondary struts ...

 

image.thumb.jpeg.60f85bf8fe727e77e33a2f5c34f524f2.jpeg

 

 

This is the Foil adhesive and the Descent stage is just about done. I used to apply the Black sections separately but this time I tried applying the foil and THEN painting the various sections ... it DID save an hour or two of fiddling around.

 

image.thumb.jpeg.32afb321dc851c4a15603a9d26d8fbf9.jpeg

 

image.thumb.jpeg.9e43d1359694491f431139ff847ecf97.jpeg

 

 

The guide I use for the Black Inconel patterns are from Paul Fjeld's LM site.

This Apollo 10 LM had very little remarkable Black and Gold Kapton patterns ..

 

image.thumb.jpeg.5fcbf6785908f24f0501f50902908f4c.jpeg

 

 

The 2 decals are from Rick Sternbach's LM set. The Black paint is a mixture of Grey and Flat Black enamel, so it's more of a very Dark Grey than Black. The Gold tape is from a Chocolate bar wrapper I've had for many, many years ...  ;^ D

Also, the downlocks had to be made and I also used the PE from New Ware. 

 

And ... it's DONE. On the Post-it note are the 4 Landing probes ... which were bent Piano Wire.

And on this LM, no Plume Deflectors were used, at least from what I can tell from the very few photos I've seen ...

 

image.thumb.jpeg.34ecbc7f9bafa283424d5666fc13470f.jpeg

 

image.thumb.jpeg.5ff37c3da53475c9fb74145616251d53.jpeg

 

image.thumb.jpeg.82f64cc617abeeb5dcf333a274a61f21.jpeg

 

image.thumb.jpeg.2e2d794bdd90d117981d9406d04ff083.jpeg

 

And now back to the Ascent Stage ... 

 

Thanx for having a look / see Gents!

Pete

 

Edited by K2Pete
There was an extra image
Link to post
Share on other sites

Looking really good, Pete : ) I'm part of your fanbase, too : )   Makes me want to break out my LM, as well -- probably the 1/32 -- my only problem is where to find 1/32 decals, especially the flags.    Maybe if I build only the ascent stage I could scratch that off the list of things to worry about.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Truly a wonderful, and amazing build. About 6 months ago, I re-discovered my 1968-ish Revell stacks plus one LM and thought I'd do the two stacks as "accurate" Block I's and my more modern Monogram anniversary kits as Apollos 9, 10, and 11. I'm working from the inside out, tho'. I stupidly decided that you can see a lot through those little windows, so I reduced a paper model of the LM interior that I'd downloaded years ago to 1/48ish (perfect 1/48 doesn't quite fit inside the Revell kits) and am slowly losing my mind with the microscopic details. It's kinda fun, tho'. The paper model was from Uhu's site. Not sure if the site exists anymore, at least for downloading, as people kept stealing his work, printing it, and selling it on auction sites. His model is of Apollo 15, I think, so I had to design some changes for an H-series LM. Some of the parts, as you can see, are very, very small in 1/48. And I think there were some differences in the mid and aft cabins between missions. 

 

Started in September but haven't worked on this since Christmas. The last two months I switched over to the computer, learned Illustrator, and drafted the etch I'll use on my Block 1 stacks. Finished the drafting on Tuesday, and now I really, really need a break.

 

So thought I'd see what was new here, and what a treat! Welcome back! You are an amazing builder and such an inspiration!! I've pdf'd every one of your threads so far, and will follow this one with particular interest. Thank you so much for so generously sharing your obvious passion!  Take care!

IMG_5263.jpg

IMG_5219.jpg

Edited by SpacecraftGuy
Confused memory.
Link to post
Share on other sites

SpacecraftGuy, it's nice to see you here! And I'm glad you enjoy my threads and are getting some good info from 'em! That's why I post 'em ... 

 

And for you, start you own thread, to show US your build! It's great to share and to LEARN from others' suggestions and I find it a motivator too. When I don't feel like working on the model, the forum beckons with a gentle ... "Where ARE you-u-u-u?" 

 

Here's 2 other modellers that are better than me, take a look at their models ... man, they're good!

Vincent Meens is a SUPERB builder and he's on this forum too ... if you haven't checked him out, you should! He has a lot of 3D offerings too for the Apollo era.

 

 

Another builder, Ricardo Salame, has done a lovely Apollo 16 LM with the Interior. He has deleted his images from his threads but, he has it in the ARC Gallery. You may get some tips from his work too ...

http://www.arcair.com/Gal15/14801-14900/gal14842-LM-Salame/00.shtm

 

Yours are coming along nicely but, I don't know how you guys can fit so much detail into that tiny interior space ... but Ricardo proves it can be done and done very WELL!

 

On Vincent's site, he has the interior details but for a 1/32 LM, it might be worth taking a peek and using that as a guide for yours!

And don't be shy, we'd LOVE to see how you progress ... and once I get my Scanning Electron Microscope up and running, maybe I'll try an Interior in 1/48 too!  ;^ D

 

Pete

 

Link to post
Share on other sites

Hi, K2Pete! I'm a very slow builder, sanding and glueing only in the coldest two or three months of the Alberta winter. So a build thread from me would amount to a semi-annual post at best. Case in point: when I started building a 1/24 LM, I started searching  and discovered that a fellow named Vincent Meens was building one, too. Mine was just very slightly ahead of his progress-wise. Well, he's been finished and moved on to a couple of other projects over the decades? since then, and mine... well, it's not had a whole lot done on it lately. 

 

Not wanting to hijack your thread, I'm just going to post a couple of links that I hope don't turn out to be photos here. This one is of the current state of my 1968 SM. I'd converted it in the 80s to have a SIM bay. Now I'm unconverting it, which involves considerable breakage of the very brittle plastic. EasyOff has stripped most of the paint after this photo was taken. 

 

 https://imgur.com/umMP9Ud

 

And these are the state of the 1/24 LM. Still. Most of the interior parts have been roughed up but not yet installed. Left it trying to figure out how to make the fwd circuit breaker panels. I think a 3D printer is in my future. The photo of the etch netting was my very first attempt at making etch. After dozens of other batches, for some reason this first one remains the best etch I've produced. Beginners luck? Also the first time I discovered that hot acid fumes will also lightly etch every bit of metal in the garage, despite every door being wide open. 

 

https://imgur.com/MT8GlXA

https://imgur.com/ypdHxPs

https://imgur.com/54O8vl1

https://imgur.com/ljcpyiR

 

And now, back into lurk-only mode.

Thanks, again!

 

Link to post
Share on other sites
  • 3 weeks later...
  • 8 months later...

Back to this Shelf Queen build ... this one has been giving me the "stink-eye" too ... it'll be good to git 'er dunn!  ;^ D

 

Ricardo, I have to disagree with you ... here's a reference image showing the thin secondary struts. I'll assume the thicker shock absorber parts were left off for weight savings or because it wasn't gonna land on the Moon ...

 

image.jpeg.de629e25602098ed692b74ac9e66f7a5.jpeg

 

 

I wanna skin the Ascent Stage in thicker Aluminum sheet as the Apollo 10 was skinned like this too.

I'll use either the Lasagna Pan or the used Printing Plate ...

 

image.thumb.jpeg.c2fcae2bb23a640e565d149b48ed8214.jpeg

 

This is the colour and texture I'm looking for ...

 

image.jpeg.60bf605e0575cf3deaf95e9549cbe205.jpeg

 

 

I'll also use M Meens patterns as a guide ... Vincent's model is very accurate whereas this model kit was based on the LM prototype and the facets/panels are incorrect. But'll make a compromise in their shapes and dimensions.

Nobody will be the wiser! ... just keep this between you and me!   ;^ D

 

image.thumb.jpeg.02268b5fe0a0fc9770fcbf3b8fab9ee5.jpeg

 

 

I'll test some household Aluminum Foil and tape just to see how it adheres ... hm-m-m, the tape shows through but the bond is adequate.

So the foil is too thin ... but I may use if elsewhere on this Ascent Stage.

 

image.thumb.jpeg.be61265b6c2a0ca26f01dc471d38c8cd.jpeg

 

 

I also tried my Foil Adhesive which I've used many times before for the thin Foil ... but I like to try different methods which may-y-y give better results.

 

image.thumb.jpeg.9da30b0cf9bfa6ed5bb795f6310d481b.jpeg

 

 

So I decided on the Lasagna Pan Aluminum ... it's easier to cut and just thick enough  that I think it'll work.

I've numbered the facets and am mapping the model's facet onto the Aluminum sheet and cutting them out. There will be over 70 separate facets / panels ... and I'm leaning toward using tape to adhere 'em all.

 

image.thumb.jpeg.65e97c31613a8c9752deb86577963885.jpeg

 

Let me wish you all a very Merry Christmas and let's hope 2023 turns out better than this last year ... fingers crossed!

 

Till next postings!

Pete

Edited by K2Pete
Link to post
Share on other sites

I've been having so-o-o much fun with this, I just had to share. Plus, we're in the middle of a Wind Storm / Blizzard and there's nothing else to do. I'm near Buffalo NY and we get about the same weather as they do ... 

 

I've been numbering the facet panels and cutting them out. To get the dimensions, I just use a pair of dividers and measure a side and transfer it to the Aluminum sheet ...

 

image.thumb.jpeg.624a322ee74950fc7f6367f0ff2b9e59.jpeg

 

The initial tape down ...

 

image.thumb.jpeg.251b7a6bf925365aeb48cc680a441514.jpeg

 

image.thumb.jpeg.30831d84b9249f7023a258679fef6a4e.jpeg

 

I'm holding panel #4 and on the model you can see a Black strip ... that's the tape, plus the back of the #4 panel is taped as well ...

 

image.thumb.jpeg.6a8db32b8406a47397cc0a16070e5883.jpeg

 

 

... how they look so far ... and those little RCS bells, there are fewer and fewer of them still attached ...  ;^ D

 

image.thumb.jpeg.79f57059a04fd89ce0fe79f6ab87d1d8.jpeg

 

 

This double sided tape is applied to both the model and the Aluminum sheet ...

 

image.thumb.jpeg.c4b18adec22cad09b9e09e77bcaf10a6.jpeg

 

 

The top plate ... I get the overall dimensions , then trim to get it to fit

 

image.thumb.jpeg.c1c332144724c468191dcc4327c68b92.jpeg

 

 

This panel is Aluminum foil, the household stuff. The resulting look is the same as the Thicker Aluminum Pan stuff ...

 

image.thumb.jpeg.7cb5de5d49235ea657db09be584f6409.jpeg

 

Let's see if all these images get posted ...

 

Link to post
Share on other sites

On the larger panels, I put a few strips of tape on the Aluminum ... this is the Thicker Aluminum

 

image.thumb.jpeg.f9e4f87276dfbcd419c0de86ebda1d5b.jpeg

 

 

... and it's down

 

image.thumb.jpeg.6c70c0673826e3752a25a9c5dfb2cc7d.jpeg

 

 

Port Side so far ...

 

image.thumb.jpeg.70699a13df73bfd69cbaaa586752ad2f.jpeg

 

 

I'm using the same type of tape M Meens used, but it's not holding as well on my Aluminum. The panel near the top left, with the diagonal line scribed on it, is pulling up ... 

 

image.thumb.jpeg.f21a4ebbc273d0665ac9865b81b96789.jpeg

 

And there are a few panels pulling up. Vincent Meens taped down paper whereas this metal must have a little tension on 'em causing the tape to fail. But, nothing a little drop of CA glue won't solve ... we'll hafta wait and see ... and notice more RCS bells missing ... there's a lotta manhandling of the model doing this.

 

image.thumb.jpeg.903a5f25ee2be5fe9db86ac9e944aac7.jpeg

 

 

Looking at the Aft section, upside down, I'm not gonna apply foil down here, but will scribe a few lines denoting panel lines. The guide tape is triple layered masking tape and I'll just paint these panels.

 

image.thumb.jpeg.5ea042fdd0af2c666c147591da804421.jpeg

 

So far, this technique is something I would not recommend. The panels don't fit perfectly, but I'm okay with it. This won't get entered into a contest, by itself, but could as part of a Collection.

This is Apollo 10 and it will complete my collection of Lunar Modules ... which is the goal of this build.

 

I'm getting down to the short strokes now, should be done by the New Year!

 

Have a very Merry Christmas Gents! 

 

Pete

Edited by K2Pete
auto correct error ... sheesh!
Link to post
Share on other sites

CJ ... the Paint, Model Master Enamel, does pull off of Aluminum Foil, the Household stuff. Didn't Prime it, I just brushed on the paint. 

On this thicker Aluminum, no problems ...

 

Here I took a scrap piece of this Thicker Pan Aluminum, and brushed on some Gunmetal ...

 

image.thumb.jpeg.4e35f9e3dec0b9cea65f62942cf346de.jpeg

 

 

After it dried, I tried to lift some off with masking tape ... and it didn't ...

 

image.thumb.jpeg.c5a6a93be8ef3f72016b639f12563cc3.jpeg

 

 

... and I bent the Aluminum trying to get the paint to crack or chip and it didn't ... so I have no worries that it'll flake off ... however ...

 

image.thumb.jpeg.ed2bef8a30e0d6db2c1ab8bcf67682b6.jpeg

 

... I've used household Aluminum foil a LOT in my LM builds and earlier on I realized that if I brush on the paint it'll flake off ... but if I AIRBRUSH it on, it doesn't. Why? Don't know-w-w!

 

Hope this helps CJ!

Pete

Link to post
Share on other sites

I painted the panels with Model Master Gunmetal ... I don't use Black as Gunmetal is just a shade lighter. After the paint dries, I brush on a coat of Flat Dull Clear.

 

image.thumb.jpeg.6dffade969a3e9104a4396cacf0f05b2.jpeg

 

 

Attending to all the small details, after applying foil to the S-band Antenna, I applied the thin Gold foil strips ...

 

image.thumb.jpeg.6c82ef546fd87ef5f08496e7071050c4.jpeg

 

 

The Rendezvous target, to the right, still needs to be attached, but the panels are done, RCS bells are re-attached and Painted and I just need to tidy up this Ascent stage

 

image.thumb.jpeg.0768e0baa49558c166cc45d169c8f9dd.jpeg

 

 

The bottom still needs its foil ... and my references show this to be Silver, not Gold foil ... but there are very few photos of this mission.

 

image.jpeg.81eea49ef0ebe684456c33bb54bd497d.jpeg

 

 

... and with it on ...

 

image.thumb.jpeg.2c4d9130a05658f95b407356b825eaf6.jpeg

 

 

 

... aft view ...

 

image.thumb.jpeg.08f2a02933fb69e72f4963a45f34bdbe.jpeg

 

 

Four Landing Probes attached ...

 

image.thumb.jpeg.e0e59a9db2c41c7b1e154307434d8ffa.jpeg

 

 

Front View ... the Vent hoods have been applied ...

 

image.thumb.jpeg.97cac728c2341994f7c21364ba8e9af0.jpeg

 

 

 

And I'm sticking a fork in it ... it's Done!

 

image.thumb.jpeg.73ea5f907f98ce6cd6a553de44b15998.jpeg

 

image.thumb.jpeg.92b341ba8c0bb177c3908ced461a9c6c.jpeg

 

image.thumb.jpeg.1947481368e4a4a254eff6178dae7046.jpeg

 

I'm happy with this LM.

It rounds out my collection and I fi-i-inally got this build off of my workbench after almost a year!  ;^ D

 

I'll post some better pix in the next and last posting.

 

Thanx for taking a peek Gents! ... oh, and Happy New Year!

Pete

 

Edited by K2Pete
Link to post
Share on other sites

Thank You Gentlemen! 

 

Here's a few more pix ... i do like the look of the NMF, Natural Metal Finish.

 

image.thumb.jpeg.9378d52b6f35bdb28512a66f5db8c7b9.jpeg

 

image.thumb.jpeg.20c5d2efe530d1cfe7c03809a718e5d2.jpeg

 

image.thumb.jpeg.952d50491f5b1838674e3d562c7e9b3c.jpeg

 

 

This Apollo 10 LM rounds out my 'collection'

( Ignore the "Energuide" sign, I had to take this on top of my Freezer! )

 

image.thumb.jpeg.2324777ff22519e9eb7532c084dafa85.jpeg

 

image.thumb.jpeg.7b642dc660506d9a914f12151a91b137.jpeg

 

... and only one casualty taking them outta their boxes, Apollo 14's broke into a few pieces ...  this is from the Tamiya 1/70 kit.

I may repair it over the Winter ... the last month or so has been completing Shelf Queens and making repairs anyway!

 

image.thumb.jpeg.bbcb2b7e5b3369f8a464676f1b38ac32.jpeg

 

Thanx for taking a peek and commenting Gents ... I do appreciate 'em!

 

Pete

 

Link to post
Share on other sites
  • 3 months later...

Man that is a nice collection Pete. Sure would make for a grand display at any place. Thank you for sharing your wonderful work.

 

Btw, I tried to send you a message but your pm might be full. Can you contact me? TIA

Link to post
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...