PapaSmurf630 Posted August 27, 2009 Author Share Posted August 27, 2009 Here are two pictures of the 99% finished IP sections... ...The second image shows the switches better and also shows the way the instruments go behind the face of the IP. Their exposed rear sections will have cables going into the top of the tub. A selection of reference pictures (once again courtesy of HarSIG) to show the areas I've modelled vs. real life. Another image of the roughly lined up panels. I guess this is how the pilots would view them. This image showcases the lovely reflection created by the acetate. This image shows the comparison between drawing and its physical, 3D counterpart. The picture demonstrates how staying close to the drawing allowed me to get much more precise measurements and cuts. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
PapaSmurf630 Posted August 27, 2009 Author Share Posted August 27, 2009 Here they are roughly blue tacked into the cockpit tub. The drawing is also there to show how much there is left to go and to hold the middle section upright for the photographs. Finally, a picture of my hand and the cockpit to get an idea of the scale. In conclusion, I'm rather pleased with how the IP has started to develop. I still have a long way to go but I think the path I have chosen in developing and creating the area has been the right one with rather crisp results. However, I've learned a lot whilst creating the lower area and these improvements can be put into work with the top area of the IP and the HUD. I have much to look forward to as progress in this area is quick with results that are immediately visible. I'll see you again in 8 months! :( Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Kostucha Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 Your work is just amazing! An absolute joy to look through and see the progress! Thanks! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
D_IcarUS_ Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 WHOOOWWWWWWWWWWWWWW..... Amazing work!!! Trully amazing!!! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
theseeker Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 Outstanding work! Thanks for sharing your methods. Rocky Quote Link to post Share on other sites
dragan_mig31 Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 this is sick.great work...... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
geedubelyer Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 Very impressive Jake Thanks for the tip regarding the switches. They certainly look most convincing. The whole lot comes together superbly. I just hope it does n't take you so long before your next update...... Excellent stuff. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Kostucha Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 I keep looking at the work on the panels, especially the final product with the green lens... great work, simply great work. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Qian Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 Now that is SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO IMPRESSIVE Jake!!!!!!!!!!!! One of the sickest large scale projects I've ever seen! Keep up the good work chap! Will be looking forward to seeing more progress soon! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Fabster Posted August 28, 2009 Share Posted August 28, 2009 (edited) OH--MY--GOODNESS..... Jake, I feel embarrassed to say I never saw this project of yours before and I am soooo amazed how GOOD it is!!! I have to say this must be one of the best, if not the greatest interior I have seen in years. Truly inspirational. I have now bookmarked it and I will carefully study each one of your steps for sure. I will be happy if the cockpit in my current scratch project looks half as good as yours when done, Master! :blink: Very sincerely, FAB Edited August 28, 2009 by Fabster Quote Link to post Share on other sites
PapaSmurf630 Posted September 7, 2009 Author Share Posted September 7, 2009 Hello chaps, Firstly thank you Kostucha (keep up the great work on that Stuka!), D Icarus, theseeker, dragan_mig31, Guy, Qian and Fabster for your lovely comments. Fabster your scratchbuilding project is simply marvellous and I really cannot wait to see where you go with it. I'm really enjoying putting together this section of the cockpit and it's even better knowing you're enjoying seeing my progress. Right then, I wouldn't want to keep Geedub waiting between updates! Lets get on with it... You'll remember in my last picture update, I had the upper IP roughed out in card. This was holding up the middle area of the lower IP. This area is what I have been working on for the last week or two. However, before I got down to the fun job of constructing the radar display and MFD (Multi Function Display) I had to wrestle the upper IP into the kit instrument shroud. Despite taking a lot of time test fitting the basic shape of the IP before I started detailing, it seems it was still not perfect... ...The large gap to the left of the IP needed filling and there was another smaller one on the other side. First of all, I thinned down the kit IP shroud to an inch of its life. It's very thin (almost transparent!) This not only makes the thickness more to scale, it should also give me more surface area to work with on the IP (much needed space!) The IP shroud is then covered in cling film... ...and some car body filler mixed... ...before being applied generously to the outer edge of the IP. The whole lot is then placed in the appropriate position in the cockpit... ...and the IP shroud pushed down on top. The filler is then left to harden (about 30 minutes) before the IP shroud is removed. The cling film should prevent the car body filler sticking to the shroud and should be quite easy to remove (providing the filler has had time to cure). The IP should now follow the exact contours of the inner surface of the IP shroud. All it needs now is neatening up. Here the filler has been sanded back flush with the surface of the IP. I then proceeded to fill any holes and scuffs with standard Tamiya filler until a nice smooth surface was achieved. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
PapaSmurf630 Posted September 7, 2009 Author Share Posted September 7, 2009 As I was waiting for filler to dry on this section, I was simultaneously working on the radar and multi function displays. In this picture you can see the basic parts that make up each display. The ones on the IP and to the left are the final outcome. The two on the right were prototypes used to experiment with different thickness of plastic and how to apply clear acetate to the thin, coke can metal frame using super glue. The two on the left are masked off and ready for black paint. The actual displays on the real thing sit at a very slight angle pointing in towards each other and the pilot. I wanted to try and replicate this subtlety using plastic wedges. Here you can see them. They are painted black as they will also serve as the backing for the displays. This sits behind a green tinted piece of acetate which then sits behind the metal frame and plasticard body. It's a very similar build process as the PWR display earlier on in the thread. It's also worth noting that the display at the top, despite getting to that stage of completion, frosted over due to super glue but was also very rough looking. I had to bin it and start over. I went through about 5-6 iterations of these displays before I was happy with the quality of the cuts and paint finish! Detailing of the displays commenced after they were stuck down to their wedges and trimmed. The middle one in this image has started having its selection buttons stuck down. The buttons are stuck with PVA glue as it gives you a little longer to adjust them. The display to the bottom right is another failed attempt but the picture demonstrates the different tones you get from the displays when looking at them from altering angles. Two pictures of the finished displays... The wedges that tilt the displays in are not extremely visible and their effects are very subtle. Also notice the difference in colours looking from different angles. I really think this adds much more depth to each display, something that probably isn't very well illustrated in the pictures. A picture of the real IP displays... I then moved onto the panel below the left display. There is a very small bar on this panel and I wanted to replicate it. A neat trick for straightening out bent wire: place it under a ruler... ...and roll it backwards and forwards. This creates a straight length which you can then bend and cut. The finished panel complete with detail. This panel alone contains twenty different parts! Try counting them all! The inkjet printer I am using isn't brilliant so crispness of colour and line isn't amazing. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
PapaSmurf630 Posted September 7, 2009 Author Share Posted September 7, 2009 (edited) Back to the main body of the IP... We left it earlier looking like this... As much as I would have loved to leave it and start sticking bits on, it just wouldn't do. Throughout the construction of this cockpit I've tried to model different areas how the cockpit would be put together. This started first with the side panel instruments being created and painted separately and now it means trying to create the frame of the IP on which the different instruments are bolted on. On close inspection of reference photos I found that the lower area to the left of the IP looked as if it could be separated from the rest of the IP frame by removing certain bolts etc. I tried to replicate this. The whole area was removed and raised detail was added in the form of a metal frame and green putty (from Games Workshop...it's not great. A bit like sculpting with chewing gum!) Two grooves were scribed into the surface of the IP so the two reverse 'L' shapes have runners to follow. They form another frame separating the different areas of the IP ( MFD, HUD projector, Radar display) Here is a photo of the main sections and panels of the IP before assembly and further detailing... One of my reference pictures from earlier, just to remind you of the 1/1 item: Edited September 7, 2009 by PapaSmurf630 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
PapaSmurf630 Posted September 7, 2009 Author Share Posted September 7, 2009 Finally, the finished, fully detailed instrument panel. Notice how vibrant the displays look when in full light. Next up a range of pictures from different angles showing the IP in the cockpit... ...and a comparison to the real deal: You may be able to notice the the orange flags I put into the large dials in the middle section of the IP. These were sorely missing in the last update but have now been added. Another area which needed a bit more effort was the artificial horizon. Despite my best attempts at trying to replicate the convex shape of the instrument behind the dial glass, I simply didn't have the space within the already completed IP so had to settle with putting a ring of card around the rolling section to add a little bit more relief (this isn't really noticeable in the low quality photos) I really think the orange warning(?) flags really liven the whole area up though. Big thanks to Geedubulyer for pointing this out for me! A picture of the IP without left side wall. The large space in between the main displays is occupied by the HUD projector, up front control panel and video recorder. This will be focused on hopefully in the next update along with the instrument shroud. Finally, to round this huge update off, a picture of the finished IP with the initial line drawing... ...and a comparison shot of the kit IP with my scratch built effort... In conclusion I'm rather happy with how it turned out. Some areas could probably do with being scrapped and restarted due to scruffiness (and low printer resolution) but overall I'm satisfied with the result. Like I said in previous posts, I doubt I'd been able to do this without having a good line drawing to go from. It's allowed me to be as accurate as possible. Having said that, the final assembly of the parts was still a very tight squeeze! Tighter than I wanted and involved shaving a sliver of plastic off a couple of the instruments to get a good fit. The IP shroud is still a worry as getting a good fit with the IP seems to be more about the alignment of Jupiter with Neptune rather than the amount of test fitting and filling I do. It just wont sit perfect! Never mind, this will all be dealt with in the next updates. Hope you've enjoyed watching and reading chaps, feel free to comment and criticise! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
JMan Posted September 7, 2009 Share Posted September 7, 2009 WOW, this is some awesome scratchbuilding! Can wait to see more! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
PapaSmurf630 Posted September 8, 2009 Author Share Posted September 8, 2009 Thanks Jman, glad you're enjoying it. The kit IP is going to take more work than I had imagined. And I don't know how to get my head around the HUD projector... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
31Tiger Posted September 12, 2009 Share Posted September 12, 2009 Simply amazing, excellent work! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Marcel111 Posted September 14, 2009 Share Posted September 14, 2009 Great work on the instrument panel! You realy made it come alive! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
janman Posted September 14, 2009 Share Posted September 14, 2009 Your cockpit looks marvellous! Exteremely well detailed! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ColdSteel Posted September 30, 2009 Share Posted September 30, 2009 Great modeling skills. My hats off for ya pal Quote Link to post Share on other sites
TimEarls Posted September 30, 2009 Share Posted September 30, 2009 (edited) Wow!! How did I miss this?! I have an old Monogram 1/32 Harrier GR1 that contains NO detail whatsoever and desperately needs scratchbuilding. Definitely going to be following this build!! Brilliant! Edited September 30, 2009 by TimEarls Quote Link to post Share on other sites
infideon Posted September 30, 2009 Share Posted September 30, 2009 :jaw-dropping: :thumbsup: superb! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
theseeker Posted September 30, 2009 Share Posted September 30, 2009 The IP is outstanding! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
dragan_mig31 Posted September 30, 2009 Share Posted September 30, 2009 :jaw-dropping: :thumbsup: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
JMan Posted September 30, 2009 Share Posted September 30, 2009 Any news or updates on this beauty?? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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