ZombieHunter26

HAHA! So I finally get around to a few more things on the dio. this time, not so much was done, but I have plenty of pics to show you progress. Also, I have only primed/painted a few pieces, a lot of this is mock up before painting. After I finish this part, it's on to the dry grass, rocks, debris, and dirt. Overview (front)- Rear overview- Rusty crane lift tower and skeleton tree- more past the break...

My sentiments exactly, Peter. This is why I -love- this site. I came here because I used to see my dad on here a lot when I go visit him and my mother- and every time he'd pull up something amazing. Building is in our blood, his dad builds, he builds, I build. And the wonderful thing is, you guys are always on the hunt for new eyecandy to set your gaze upon. Just like us. The sharing of our hard work almost effortlessly across the world from our very own workbenches is made possible through our little community. There's knowledge here too, most of it well worth its metaphorical weight in gold. I have only been here for a short while, but I already feel like I belong here. I even found someone as addicted to rust, gunk, "gizmology"(as he would put it) and just all around awesome-ness as I am- Dr. Cranky. Heck, if it weren't for some of his comments on my posts, (as well as a few of you other guys' comments) I don't think I could enjoy doing the stuff I do as much as I do now. I do it for myself, yes- but I also do it to give you guys an alternate view of the world- how it's viewed through my eyes. Art for art's sake is fine, but with no one to share it with... well, you get the picture. Anywho, before I get all sappy and long-winded, I'll end this by saying thank you to EVERYONE who makes our community here on MCM Forums unique and enjoyable, and here's to another year(and many more to come) of MCM!

Make that one of the only. I've never had the pleasure of a model show either. One day, though!

Withdrawals... so that's that feeling of utter boredom I had today while the forums were down. Let's just say I didn't get much done today between refreshes on the forum screen and smoke breaks.

That it does, Brandon! It's amazing the possibilities that owning a mini-rotary tool can open up for you. I'm still figuring out all the cool things I can do with mine. And great tip, Dave! I don't own a colored sharpie at the moment, but they aren't that expensive to buy in a set. Plus, the odd shine that sharpie ink gives off can help give your "wood" a nice polished sheen to it.

I used some q-tips to clean my ears.... i never thought my supply of plastic rods would be used for hygienic purposes.

it just dawned on me that i should take pictures and step by step this, to give you a visual representation. I'll do that later in the day, once i get home from my dailies.

So my wife was really nice and gt me one of my gifts early this year- A test-rite mini-rotary tool. It's a complete kit, and has all sorts of attachments. Call it a poor-mans-dremel, if you will. Anywho, I was fooling about on my scrap styrene testing out my new toy and found a rather interesting little technique. If you take the sanding belt attachment for your rotary tool parallel to your styrene plank and run it side to side lightly, the attachment will dig "grains" in the plastic. Of course, there will be burs, but you can use the soft metal wire brush attachment to carefully "polish" the burs off. Lay down some basecoat, put a little brown wash over and wipe lightly and voila! Instant believable plastic woodgrain. Better than going out and buying pre-molded stuff, in my book. especially if you have the right tools. Hope this helps someone!

Never a problem, brother. We all find ourselves in times of need. I'm just happy I was able to help Thanks to all my newfound friends here on MCM. Dr. Cranky, '08Seal, Haubenschild, Ranma, Chuck Most, the list goes on. You guys make this forum feel like home. Oh! and thanks to my Dad, 62rebel. If it weren't for his guidance and supplying of signage styrene to me when I run out, none of my work would be possible. Thanks Dad! One more word of thanks to Casey- I appreciate what you're doing for me with the collecting of random parts you'd normally toss out. I can't wait to see what you come up with! It's a big help, seeing as how I rarely ever go out to buy kits. So random bits n pieces are tough to come by these days

Sub-assembly is an important factor before painting. Fortunately, I glue my builds with loctite professional liquid superglue, so it doesn't matter what I prime beforehand. Usually, I build in sections so that i can prime them separately, and apply detail paint where needed. I realize my builds are a bit different than building from a kit, but some of the basic techniques I use are able to be used in just about any type of modelling. Using solvents or tube glue can present a problem in the way I build- which is why i steer away from using them. But in your case, using a mixture (superglue in some parts, solvents or tube glue in others) may help you achieve your paint jobs with a little more ease- and without worry as to where you have painted over being a crucial glue point. Another idea, is you could lightly sand the area needing glued, and do touch-ups with matching paint (either with an airbrush or manual brush). Remember to mask off the sections with painter's tape if you intend to airbrush.

Going though things like this, especially during Xmas, can be very painful. As Rick mentioned, my wife and I are going through a similar situation with my father-in-law. The best thing is to make the best of the time you do have, and to try your best to lessen the grief experienced by providing more pleasant experiences to outweigh the bad. And this is what Rick is trying to do for his wife. I know why he posted this topic. I won't go into details, it's not my place to bring up negativity towards any of my fellow MCM family. But I will say this. Whenever someone is negative towards someone in a position of pain and grief like Rick is at this moment, it does -absolutely- nothing to help alleviate. In fact, sometimes it even makes the situation worse, and makes the situation seem even more hopeless and painful. I leave you with this. It's the holiday season. I don't know Rick from Adam. But he's a fellow hobbyist, and he is going through something very real. I hope that everything gets better for him and Carolyn, I really do. P.S. Thanks to everyone who is being understanding towards Rick's situation. Every little bit helps, and it all adds up. Happy Holidays and Happy Modelling!

A little update on this project- I'm putting the exterior work on the pump house on hold for a bit. I'm going to concentrate on a few other aspects of the build, as well as getting ready for the contest build the Doc is gonna start in january. No worries, the dio is going to be finished soon- just a little later than originally planned.

Thanks! I am going a little slower at the moment because even though I got some more glue and primer, and finally purchased foamboard- I'm running low on styrene. So, in the meantime, I'm using my scraps and random pieces to construct some extra bits of detail here and there. It's a slower process than I'd like it to be, but if I rush it, it won't be half as good complete as it is right now in mid-project. I really hope to be done with this entire piece in a little over a month, with the exception of some touch-ups and minor details. We'll see though. Keep your eyes peeled!

Definitely gonna use this tip. Thanks Doc!

Exposed control panel view- Overall view- I apologize for the poor lighting- I still haven't gotten a new bulb for my worklight. The wife makes a cameo though, so it makes up for it! 'til next time!

Rear view- Power Cable view- Condenser/Compression Chamber view- Still more...

As promised, here's the new pics of the finished plasma cutter cannon. Emitter (front view)- Top Detail- More past the break-

Oh I know I'm trying to talk the wife into driving to wallyworld to pick up another bulb for my work light otherwise, the light source at the workbench is too crappy to get the good detail i put into it.

Thanks! You were so close on that one Doc! It's actually the plastic molding from an old dremel tool, with an old webcam lens inserted into it for the emitter lens. But I can see how it looks like a dishsoap bottle tip. I've actually finished this piece, but I've once again lost my camera. That, and my work light busted last night, so I gotta get a new bulb too. New pics soon!

well, now that I have it finished, I can say that its a plasma cutter "cannon". the flared end is the emitter

ahahaaaaa thats awesome Doc! I have a thing for cyber-industrial/steampunk stuff... which would probably explain my affinity for drybrushing and rust and rivets