Zvezda Star Destroyer

[HJK]

Simon,

Nice to hear from you. Yeah, I can understand that you want to divert your thoughts to something else. The SD forced a lot of creativity and patience for a long time up to now. I also had a look to the rpf forum. Quite a number of people there are absolutely crazy experts on spaceship modeling. And some of them have the huge advantage of 3D-printing their parts with their own SLA-printer. They really can do amazing things. To do them by scratch building would need probably weeks instead of hours with the printer. Nevertheless I hope that you can muster the courage to go back to the SD as I really would like to see that thing finished. All the best, take care, Juergen

[Madhatter]

Hi Juergen

Sorry for the late reply - I have been away again until now.

I have often thought of and coming close to buying a 3D printer as I have a 1/72 Razorcrest STL file gifted to me by a friend for use with a Anycubic Photon S, but I just haven't yet pulled the buy trigger. I may wait for the newer Anycubic to come down in price a bit. It has a larger print plate the the Photon S. I just can't recall the model name just now. Mono X comes to mind. Or something like that

It would make detailing so much more precise and I would be able to accomplish shapes so much better than my limit styrene skills can do. It's why I scrapped my DS base plate for a 3D printed tile that I cast copies of.

However, in saying that, there is something to be said for the therapeutic manual construction of details and to be honest - I have zero CAD design skills, so even if I wanted to design my own sidewalls I'd have to outsource that and add considerable expense to what is already a very expensive project

Once I'm done with the Cordoba, I will be coming back to this build to try get it finished

Just while I'm talking about this build, my steel strip and metal brackets arrived whilst I was away and am still up in the air about which way to mount this ship.

I am torn between using the steel plate and then finding a way to create a connection between it and the ship or:

Using a tube which I'd bend to shape and if it crushes, grind it all level etc and then use Milliput to reshape it to a nice curve.

There are benefits to both methods. The plate would by much more stable because the tube method would also require a support stand up front to prevent the ship from just pitching forward.

If I use a tube, I could only use 2 separate power plugs and have less lighting options: one for the engines and the other the superstructure, whereas the plate way, I could choose more lighting combinations.

Using 4 power pins:  one for the main engines, one for the sub-light engines, another one for the superstructure and the last one for the sidewall flood lights. 

The benefits of the tube is mainly aesthetic as I think it would look smarter and less industrial with a curve. Wires would also be easier to hide. The entry point int the ship would also just be a round hole and would require less work to make it happen.

So, a bit of a conundrum really. I would be more than happy to hear anyone's thought's on this. What would you guys do?

Take care and thanks for your enthusiastic support Juergen - I really appreciate it

Si

[Madhatter]

 

Here is where I am with my armature and power connection:

 

 

 

I'm thinking I may rebuild the plug but it works all the same. The bottom bracket will screw into the base for added strength. Once it's all finished, I'll paint it matte black

[HJK]

Hi Simon,

It's a bit difficult for me to judge what's possible for you to produce a mount for the SD. As I don't know firstly the dimensions of the power pins or the plug and secondly the weight and the overall size of the SD it might be the case that I recommend or propose something completely stupid. I second your thought that the tube with a curve would look better especially when it's painted flat black. The outcome depends a bit on the material of the tube, the diameter of the tube and the radius you want to use for the curve. In order to avoid the crushes or wrinkles at the curve you can fill the tube with fine sand (e.g. the sand you use in bird cages) and bend it around something solid which has the diameter you want to achieve. As I understand it you will have a horizontal part of the tube that connects to the SD and a vertical or slightly  tilted part of the tube that will be mounted to the base plate, right? So then again the possible length of the horizontal part of the tube depends of the weight of the SD in order to avoid the pitching of the ship. You can also bend the tube to a bigger curve so that the tube comes back to the front nearly under the SD. So if you place the base plate under the SD you can prevent the whole thing from tipping over. The further back you place the base plate the heavier the plate must be. I hope you can understand my thoughts. In case it's still too foggy just say so and I will make a little sketch to support my words. Hope it helps a bit. Take care, Juergen

[Madhatter]

hey Juergen

Thanks for the helpful suggestion mate! I have tried bending a 1/4" brass tube with a pipe bender but the tube kept crinkling and I suspect that the degree in which I want to bend it maybe too much for it to tolerate. I chose brass for its rigidity but it also doesn't like sharp angles. DUe to size constraints, the curve which you're talking about would make it too large for the space I have allocated to it.

They are some of the reasons why I have gone for the steel strips. The brackets I have for it have threads in them which means I can literally bolt it together which will more than adequately hold the weight of the model

The ship itself is a total of 63cm long and I'd say roughly 25cm high (TBH, I haven't measured the height - it's just a ball park figure)

Its already pretty hefty without all the fiber and electrical gear so once it's all done, I reckon it'll be around ~3-4 kgs (again just a guess - I really don't know but that's the figure I'm working with)

So that's mainly why I'm concentrating my efforts into the strips. It's just stronger than a tube and even less likely to make the ship wobble when someone so much as looks at it. To make it look a little better, I guess I could sheath the entire stand with styrene sheet. I could even make it more interesting with some raised plates. However, not to get too far ahead of myself, I don't really want the stand to be an item of attention and it will be black, and any extra detail would be lost, making it a waste of time.

 

[HJK]

Hi Simon,

Yes, you're right. The combination of a length of more than 600 mm and a weight of about 4 kilograms on a 1/4" tube is more than likely to wobble when moving and turning the stand to have a look at it. And even using a pipe bender you sometimes can't avoid the crinkling without filling the tube with sand, especially if you want it to be a curve with a small diameter. So all in all it's presumably better to use the steel strip. OK, what about using a styrene plate fixed to the front of the base plate of the stand? It will cover the stand and you can put on a picture of the black space with lots of stars on it. Only the horizontal strip protrudes the styrene plate and you can hide all the other parts of the stand. Does all this make any sense to you or is it complete nonsense? Maybe I'm thinking in a completely different direction? If that's the case just tell me to keep my mouth shut, I hope you know what I mean, don't you? Anyway, keep up your gorgeous work. Take care, Juergen

[Madhatter]

no, it makes perfect sense and it's a really good suggestion - so thank you The only draw back I see to it is that it would put it in a frame of sorts and would only be at it's best orientation when viewed from the front. It would also restrict viewing of the right side of the ship.

Maybe I should only have detailed one side and saved myself a heap of time and styrene 

On a side note, I have redesigned the plug and will try to make it this weekend but I want to finish the Cordoba first before fully committing myself again to the SD. I now have a super clear idea on how this is all going to work and now I just have to make it happen

Thanks again Juergen for you enthusiasm on this project - it is motivation for me to get on with it!

Si

 

[HJK]

Simon,

You're right. My suggestion would be best from only one orientation, so forget about it. It seems I have to think things to the end before suggesting them.

In the end you probably can't completely hide the whole stand and to honest that's not a disaster. I'm really curious what idea you will come up with. I'll keep my fingers crossed that all comes out to your satisfaction. Take care, Juergen

[David G.]

Hello Simon,

I'm glad to see that you're still chipping away at this one, I admire your patience and dedication.

It seems to me that constructing the mounting armature would be a significant step toward completion. I'm sure that there is still much more to do but having the mount and base well in progress must be a good feeling.

Regards.

David G.

[Madhatter]

Thanks mate!  Still a long way to go yet but yes, making the armature has been an important step to get sorted. I am yet to rebuild the plug but I know how its going to go, so I'll start that up again once I am done with my distraction piece

[mustang1989]

Looking forward to more Simon. 

[Madhatter]

hey everyone

Dusting this one off to show that I have actually started back on this yet again.
Have begun the fun task of detailing the side walls, starting off with the front. This is pretty much where I left off in the last update but I am now more advanced along. Although it may not look it, a heap of small details have been added to the lips of the 2 hull halves. Whilst they don't look like much on their own, when you add the rest of it together, it fills the spaces nicely.

I'm almost done for the front with only the right side front panel left to do which won't take long. Then naturally I'll make my way down the sides. I also have to add details to the under sides of the top half of the ship which I missed the first time round. I thought i was done detailing the top bit but alas, no

Enough words, here's some pics:

I'm often asked for a size reference.Maybe this may help:

Anyway, that's all I have for now but I'll update once I'm fully finished the trenches.

Thanks for stopping by and for those who are actually still following this - you get an extra thanks for your enduring patience with me while I fumble my way through this

Till next time!

Si

[David G.]

A keen eye and steady hand you must have Si!

I'm glad to see this one back on the bench and.... in the home stretch maybe?

David G.

[Madhatter]

thanks David. Maybe a bit too early yet to say but I am going to try get as much done as I can before I need another break

So, I finally got round to finishing off the spot lights up front and thought I'd do a dry fit /light test, and thought I would share my happy results

Yes, I probably should have gone with cool white, but I prefer the look of the warmer white.

Well, that's it but feel free to share your thoughts - good or bad.

As always, thanks for looking

Si

[HJK]

Hi Simon,

Good to see you back at the bench. Your idea to give us a size reference is great. It helps all the more to grasp how tiny the parts are you are putting together. I personally also like the warm white of the lights. It's not that glaring like the bluish ones. They also remind me of the Alien movies. In the not so well illuminated areas of the ship there always was the danger of the beast lurking around the corner. Anyway, keep up your gorgeous work. Take care and stay negative mate. Juergen

[David G.]

Wow! I thought this thing was about a meter long, in the photo it looks to be only about half that size.

That really does change my mental proportioning of all the work you've added to this.

Oh, and the lighting looks great too. I agree with your choice on the warm white, it's a little more agreeable to human eyes.

David G.

 

[mustang1989]

It's good to see another update on this Simon as I look forward to every one of 'em. Nice choice on the softer lighting.

[Madhatter]

thanks guys

Sorry the late reply - I have been a bit sick for the past couple of days and haven't been at the bench but I shall be working on it tonight.

Love the Alien reference there Juergen. One of my all time favourite movies!

[Madhatter]

Hi everyone

Thought I would update this while I have some spare time.

Work continues on the sidewalls with only one wall left on the starboard side and only 2.5 left to do on the other

I am pretty happy with how its coming along.

 

 

 

I haven't quite finished the one above but I'm pretty much there

I'll post another update when I have finished the whole side

thanks as always for looking

Si

[Madhatter]

I had the top on briefly tonight whilst I was marking out where the next load of floodlights were going to go and I added the roof etc just to see how its looking. I am really happy with how it's looking! (just do what I do and look past the current gaps )

 

 

I thought it's looking pretty frickin' cool myself. I just took those 3 pics just then as I thought it looked good enough to share. Never mind the extraordinary orange wall behind. I try to forget it myself

thanks again

Si

 

Edited May 4, 2021 by Madhatter

[afx]

Very cool indeed.

[David G.]

I can honestly say that I don't think I've ever seen so much small detail added to a model.

Do you have any concerns about getting the paint to cover in all the nooks and crannies?

David G.

[Madhatter]

thanks guys

Yeah, I am more concerned about the paint hiding the details rather than getting into the tight spaces. That part is easy - a wash would take care of that. A lot of this detail is really small and thin , so it's more likely that I will loose detail to paint layers.

I will have to use super thin paint to cover this. Going to be interesting for sure when that time comes as painting is not my strong suit at any time!

[mustang1989]

This thing just keeps getting better and better every time I see it.

[Madhatter]

Thanks Joe - appreciate it mate