The Race Into Space GB, October 2018 - July 2019 (Ended)

Modeling Subjects Group Builds
841

That is good advice. Unfortunately, my choice was to live with disappearing panel lines, or scribe. The other option would be to fill them all. In my limited opinion, panel lines are overrated. Model manufactures do a terrible job with them. Even if they are clean and complete… they are generally grossly exaggerated. Again, my opinion.

I have come to the conclusion that building visually accurate models is hard. Lol.

842

I can’t build visually accurate models. I just am happy to finish one. [:)]

Gary

843

Amen brother. So true.

844

Yea! I have paint on it, Tamiya Surface Primer White (decanted). I will let that dry a day or two, then a little wet sanding. After that, a touch up coat, color after that. So, maybe by end of the week I’ll have color on it.

845

Two of the hardest colors, white and yellow .

846

Hey Steve, I want you to know that the Tamiya Liquid Primer doesn’t show though the primer. In other words, it did a great job filling minor imperfections, smoothing filler work, and it’s feathering properties is the real deal. I have used various fillers that seemed properly feathered up until I applied a primer or color coat. Then, the ridges showed. I am really impressed with this stuff. Thought I’d let you know.

847

I bought some Saturday and am eager to give it a try.

848

Bakster> Nice even coat of white! I can understand about “white” primer as I’m using a LOT of it. I think she’ll look great with the orange coat. It should really pop over the white.

My heat has been restored, thank goodness! I didn’t get much done this weekend. Legs have been giving me problems and I’m a bit worried about my circulation. Hate sitting for hours while working, so I’ve tried to stop doing that for long periods. I guess I need a desk I can stand at.

I did manage to sand down the lips on the folding doors so the Service Module sits a bit better on top. I also attached the hi gain antenna to the SM, though I did break off a piece I had scratch-built on the antenna to make it look closer to the real one. Well, I’ll replace that later. At the moment, the folding doors are drying after I glued 3 of them together and taped them in place. I’ll leave one in front loose so the LM can be displayed. With some nice weather this week, I may get the LM painted up. Detail colors are being considered. That’s about it for now. Just thinking about the next steps to complete, as she’s getting closer and closer to finishing.

Gary

Today in Space History:

1959 February 10 - .

  • Wind tunnel tests of Project Mercury configuration models were started. - . Nation: USA. Program: Mercury. Spacecraft: Mercury. By the end of the year, over 70 different models had been tested by facilities at the Air Force’s Arnold Engineering Development Center and the NASA Langley, Ames, and Lewis Research Centers.

1961 February 10 - .

  • Voice message sent by way of the moon - . Nation: USA. Program: Apollo.
  • A voice message was sent from Washington, D.C., to Woomera, Australia, by way of the moon. NASA Deputy Administrator Hugh L. Dryden spoke by telephone to Goldstone, Calif., which “bounced” it to the deep-space instrumentation station at Woomera. The operation was conducted as part of the official opening ceremony of the Australian facility.
849

Sounds good, Steve

850

Thanks, Gary. And glad to hear that you have heat again!

851

Estes Saturn V progress report:

I got some more work done over the weekend and added most of the vacu-formed wraps. These intimidate me ever since I attempted to build a vacu-formed airplane some 35 years ago. But that experience paid off in that I was able to get them cut out in a reasonable scale fashion. These wraps are attached with spray on contact adhesive and I must had gotten a hundred different types and brands suggested to me off the internet. I ended up using Elmers E451 Spray On Adhesive and its an interesting process to say the least. If its let to set over 10 minutes, then it will grab and won’t let go, making it impossible to reposition, and remember, I’m forming it over a round surface and need to have it align to features on a lower wrap. Getting the wraps positioned and stuck down felt like landing on the moon LOL. The soft skinned body tube would flex and go oblonged if too much pressure was applied with pulling the wrap into position, adding to the stress, but overall, they are turning out ok. A lot of filling and blending is going to be needed, all the time worrying about weight and balance.

I still have the lower stage one wraps to put on. I thought these needed to be positioned and attached as I attach the fin farings and fins.

Gary- Yes, the Estes tubes will require filling of the helicals. I thought to wait and do all the filling at once using a combo of putty and filler primers.

Its begining to look like a Saturn V now.

I got the F-1s assembled. I need some help with the actual coloring of these. Some pictures show them silver, some black, some a variation. I’m thinking of painting them like jet exhaust nozzels. Any advice?

852

Gary: She’s coming along great! And good to hear you’ve got your heat back!

Bakster: Whoa, looks great! I agree the white should make the orange ‘pop’.

Scott: Wow, that looks great! Maybe paint the nozzels dark steel and drybrush with aluminum or other lighter metallic to bring out the details?

853

Scott, I would go with the color on the pad at liftoff. I believe NASA painted them black for the museum. I think Gam has the right idea.

854

It is looking fantastic, Scott. Definately looking like a Saturn V.

855

Thanks guys, I will go with a steel base and then wash with aluminum and silver and see how that turns out.

856

Scottrc> That’s looking very good! It is coming together. I asked about the tubing because I was going to suggest wrapping the tubes in a thin metallic paper that you can find at Hobby Lobby. That way you have only one seam to fill and hide. Not sure about the construction, so I’m shooting in the dark with that one. I had planned on building a 1/96th scale SV sometime using the old Revell 1/96th Apollo model, so that was what I was planning on using.

As for the F-1s, I’m not sure about the insides, but the outside of the engines on the launch pads were actually covered by a “thermal batting”. You can see some of that in this blog.

http://up-ship.com/blog/?p=304

The insides were probably steel, dark gray color. You can find some images of the F-1s online to show what the interior colors were.

Hope that will help.

Gary

857

Thanks Gary for the reference of the ready for launch of the F1s.

858

Scottrc> You’re welcome. Most people don’t know the engines were not bare on liftoff.

Progress Report:

I’ve printed out an image of the control panels for the Command Module as work continues on the interior. This will look a whole lot better than any attempt by me to paint all those small knobs and dials.

Also, the LM is getting its black thermal paint on the lower stage. The top is awaiting another coat of white, then I’ll finish painting up the black around the windows and attach the antennas.

Other small things ongoing, but nothing near completion yet. It’s down to finishing up small items. I intend to paint the landing legs silver, but am considering covering them with aluminum foil. I think it would look better, but is it worth the effort? We’ll see.

Mission Director (GAF)

Today in Space History:

1961 February 12 - . 00:34 GMT - . Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: Baikonur LC1. LV Family: R-7. Launch Vehicle: Molniya 8K78.

  • Venera 1 - . Payload: 1VA s/n 2, Venera 1 (Sputnik 8, AMS). Mass: 644 kg (1,419 lb). Nation: Russia. Related Persons: Korolev. Agency: RVSN. Program: Venera. Class: Venus. Type: Venus probe. Spacecraft Bus: 1MV. Spacecraft: Venera 1VA. USAF Sat Cat: 80 . COSPAR: 1961-Gamma-1.
  • Venera 1 was the first spacecraft to fly by Venus. The 6424 kg assembly was launched first into a 229 x 282 km parking orbit, then boosted toward Venus by the restartable Molniya upper stage. On 19 February, 7 days after launch, at a distance of about two million km from Earth, contact with the spacecraft was lost. On May 19 and 20, 1961, Venera 1 passed within 100,000 km of Venus and entered a heliocentric orbit. This failure resulted in only the following objectives being met: checking of methods of setting space objects on an interplanetary course; checking of extra-long-range communications with and control of the space station; more accurate calculation of the dimension of the solar system; a number of physical investigations in space.

1963 February 12 - . Launch Vehicle: Saturn V.

  • Marion Power Shovel selected to build the Saturn V crawler-transport - . Nation: USA. Program: Apollo.
  • NASA selected the Marion Power Shovel Company to design and build the crawler-transport, a device to haul the Apollo space vehicle (Saturn V, complete with spacecraft and associated launch equipment) from the Vertical Assembly Building to the Merritt Island, Fla., launch pad, a distance of about 5.6 kilometers (3.5 miles). The crawler would be 39.6 meters (130 feet) long, 35 meters (115 feet) wide, and 6 meters (20 feet) high, and would weight 2.5 million kilograms (5.5 million pounds). NASA planned to buy two crawlers at a cost of $4 to 5 million each. Formal negotiations began on February 20 and the contract was signed on March 29.
859

Gary, I like your idea to print them. I can appreciate why you are.

Looking good.

860

Scott: Sorry, I had no idea about the thermal batting… [:(DD]

Gary: She’s coming right along. [Y]