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Revell 1/144 Launch Tower and Shuttle (04911)
Topic Started: Apr 28 2014, 09:08 PM (7,650 Views)
DH764
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The Mighty Fin
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This is easily the biggest project Ive ever took on and one I thought I would never get chance to build as it was commanding prices that were , to pardon the pun , sky high !
There is potentially a lot of modelling pleasure time in the huge box and it is crammed full of plastic although there is apparently one sprue missing from the kits ...there should be two sprue No12's..... Revell are aware of this and will send the missing sprue out to anyone needing it :thumb:

I may need a bigger bench !

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As I am awiating the missing sprue I started by building the Main fuel tank and boosters .....fit is quite good , Ill probably need to smooth the joins but nothing drastic .
Could not resist temporarily putting the boosters on :D

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Boosters are fully built but the main tank needs the Shuttle support arms and other bits adding.

Andy
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Mark M
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Mark M
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Rather you than me akthougg it will be a hell of a build when done
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Eric2020
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I think the tools for this project are about to enter! :bow: looking forward to see its progress :clap:
Edited by Eric2020, Apr 29 2014, 07:09 PM.
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jacksdad64
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Aikidoka
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:thumb: I'm going to sit back and enjoy this one.
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DH764
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The Mighty Fin
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Very brief update...

Ive built the Crawler pad which is made up of 5 parts for the base sides and the top part where the boosters will sit.
There are also 8 tracks to add but I left these off as it would be easier to paint them separately .
There are also two support arms that I believe are not factually correct but are probably necessary to hold the weight of the Shuttle on the boosters.
Ive checked some photos and there are two similar looking structures on the pad.....See here
I found that aligning the pad sides to the right angle grids on the cutting mat , then applying liquid poly , helped alignment.

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And once again I just couldnt resist a taste of things to come....I used Discovery from the 747 SCA build I did .

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Andy
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Mark M
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Mark M
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cool
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Johni044
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John
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Now that's a drop tank.

One impresive piece of kit. Good luck with the build, looking great thus far :thumb:
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DH764
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The Mighty Fin
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Prime time :)
I used Vallejo Grey primer to give the top colours something to grip on to.
A bit awkward painting something this shape and size...had to do it in segments.

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Ill leave overnight to dry fully.

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When I add the White to the side booster rockets Im hoping the Grey primer will show through as a sort of pre shade.
Just realised that Ive forgot to prime the caterpillar tracks.....doh !

Andy
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Tonkameister
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Looking good...you're going to need a new house extension to keep this in once it's built.
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jacksdad64
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Aikidoka
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How are you finding the fit of the parts.

Steve
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DH764
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The Mighty Fin
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Sorry Steve ...just noticed your question mate :)
The boosters and the main tank went together with no filler required...just sanded the seam lines on one side of the boosters ....the other join is cleverly hidden by raised detail.
Same goes for the launch pad ...just a sand down of the join areas.....a little bit of putty was needed in one corner though.
Now speaking of the launch pad ......
Remember I said about the "supports" that where not the real item ??
Sprue Number 17 , no mention anywhere on the instruction diagrams....honestly sometimes Revell instructions cause more confusion than construction !

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Those are the real items that are on the launch pad ....mentioned in the original releases instructions but not this issue :shrug:

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Dont know the reason why these parts have been replaced in this latest release.
Another difference in the box contents between this and the original is that the launch pad now has caterpillar tracks where the original just sat on four legs which are the other parts on sprue 17.

The tracks have an unsightly seam line running through them but this is easily cleaned up using a scalpel blade.

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Ive now started the Shuttle. Ive recently built this as part of the 747 SCA kit so I knew what to expect....quick build but lots of filler and sanding :yes:
I think the main problem is that this is better designed to be shown with the cargo bay doors open .....a dry fit shows what is needed if you want them in the closed position .....filler....lots of filler !

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The fuselage halves are a fairly decent fit , remember to paint the cockpit area black before adding the front bulkhead (and the cockpit transparency !).
I placed some very thin plastic card along all the seams to stop them popping apart ( a lesson learned from the 747 SCA build ).

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I also found that by adding a plastic card spacer between the cargo bay sides and the side of the fuselage walls made for a more flush fitting of the closed cargo bay doors.

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Adding some thin plastic card along one of the cargo bay door edges is a must do job .....this will give more support to the join when cemented together.

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The filling begins .....

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The wings , which went together with no real problems , where also added along with the rear booster bulges....again a bit of filler was needed here and there..... :grins:

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I know I cant resist can I .....I was pleasantly surprised at the very positive fit of the Shuttle to the support arms on the tank......I used the Astronaut figure to give a sense of scale .

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A bit more sanding than normal is needed for this kit but it is actually a good representation of the Shuttle orbiter .....im quite curious how it compares to Airfixs offering ??

More soon .

Andy

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jacksdad64
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Aikidoka
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Looking good Andy.
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DH764
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The Mighty Fin
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Ive started to paint the boosters...Vallejo White ....photos soon.

I then started the main course ....stage 1 of the Launch Tower build
And once more a bit of confusion regards the instructions :slap:
The 4 Tower sides are all labelled as part number 1 on the sprue diagram but one is marked as part No2 in stage one of the instructions....I only noticed this AFTER gluing a pair of part number 1 together....thankfully just a mis-print but how many times are we seeing silly mistakes like this in Revell instruction sheets :( .....a word in the ear of Quality Control is required as its one of those seemingly little gripes that damages a company's reputation. Sorry if I sound very negative but I think Revells instruction sheets need a serious overhaul as they can be confusing , very cramped and quite unclear in cases .....take a look to the Red Box brigade and their sheets for an idea of what they should look like.
OK ...rant over and back to modelling.

The Tower builds up very quickly with surprising ease . I just applied glue along the edges of parts 1 and "2" (sic) and then pressed together.....once again the grid on my cutting mat was used to keep things at 90 degrees. Next thing added were the platform levels , eleven in all.
I found it useful to mark off the number of the part on the instruction sheet I had glued to avoid any mix up of the very similar looking parts (13 to 18).
NOTE .....make sure all the platforms are added to the Tower in the way shown ...ie the opening to the front .
When all the platforms are added the third side of the Tower is added and again the fit was very good . ( I did a dry fit of the fourth side just for curiosity and it literally click fitted into place :clap: )
Heres what I had after around 45 minutes work.

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Thats a 6 inch ruler alongside for scale.
More soon. :)

Andy
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jacksdad64
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Aikidoka
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Not very big, is it? :whistle:
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DH764
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The Mighty Fin
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Im still looking for a place to put it when finished :grins:

Andy
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Johni044
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John
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Looking great Andy. Can you imagine the fun Derek Meddings would have had with it ;)

Wholeheartedly agree with your comments on the instructions, come on peeps, you make outstanding kits that are great value, give us the opportunity to build them without getting frustrated.

Does it come with storks? Not seen a launch without some flying in the foreground.
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DH764
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The Mighty Fin
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Agree with both observations mate ...instructions and Storks/Pelicans :D

Andy
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DH764
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The Mighty Fin
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Back to the bench now Im fit again !

Part of stage 5 completed and stage 6.
The parts fit together very well to make up the gantry structure at the top of the Tower.

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Airbrushed Vallejo Model Air White onto the boosters and then using the recommended paint mixes on the painting guide I completed the main Fuel tank.

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While I had the brush loaded with white I gave the shuttle a few light coats ......and then put my "orange " finger marks on it :slap:

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Out with the airbrush again tomorrow .

Andy
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jacksdad64
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Aikidoka
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:thumb: good to see this back on.

The 'missing' sprue will be on its way to you this week.
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DH764
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The Mighty Fin
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Cheers Steve :thumb:

Andy
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