Lead Adventure Forum
Miniatures Adventure => Future Wars => Topic started by: 6milPhil on March 12, 2013, 02:47:00 PM
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I've been wandering around the ethernet looking at dropships, most of the ones on offer seemed a little small so I started looking more at converting a toy and on seeing someone recommend the Avengers Quinjet from some film I've not seen thought I'd go and have a look in Argos, lo and behold they've reduced the price from £25 to £15 and my local branch had one left which I grabbed before some child was made happy with it.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/avengers-quinjet.jpg?w=440)
It comes with an Iron Man toy which I immediately passed onto Captain Stinky, so the first thing I had to do was the obvious...
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc03982-001.jpg?w=440)
That done it was time to tart up the components. The first pieces were the rear wing section, having removed some unfeatured yellow lumps I noticed how the wing top suffered from mould pull and the rotor was really visible so I slapped on some liquid green stuff. There's not a lot of difference this will make even when sanded, it's limited by the softness of the plastic, but I'd rather slightly rough wing to rotor detail.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc03983-001.jpg?w=660)
Next up I hacked off the landing gear. Here it is next to a figure, and it looks to me more like a wheel from a Mini Cooper than something which might hold a Dropship up. It also made the craft sit very low on the table... what were the designers thinking... this isn't a toy!
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc03984-001.jpg?w=660)
So I hacked together a landing leg which fits the need a little better, I'll cast three of these.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc03985-001.jpg?w=660)
Meanwhile on the main body I decided to lock the cockpit in the up position which as you can't get deep into the toy has to be done at the join via the top. I've put both superglue and UHU down this crack in a boots and braces approach.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc03986-001.jpg?w=440)
While on the bottom of the cockpit the wheel well has to be filled. I want the landing legs I built to be quite high, I like the idea of being able to get figures underneath the craft if possible, it gives a suggestion of scale.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc03987-001.jpg?w=440)
On the side there's a retracable hook in which to clip your Iron Man toy, I've hacked this off and glued the remaining internal stalk in place.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc03989-001.jpg?w=660)
This leaves the outer piece of this side with a hole.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc03990-001.jpg?w=440)
So I knocked together a shutter to fill it, watching out to maintain the clearance so the piece it's going onto will still fit.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc03992-001.jpg?w=660)
This side piece also needs re-enforcing to hold the new landing legs. Starting with some plasticard.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc03994-001.jpg?w=660)
And then filled it with milliput to make it stronger.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc03995-001.jpg?w=440)
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GRRRRRRR >:( Here in Portugal is still costs 60€!
Can't wait to see what you're going to do with it ;)
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Excellent!!
Please show us more!
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So I hacked together a landing leg
As you do...
Do You Want To Know More?
Yarp! Excellent.
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I had quite a productive weekend with this, so here's an update
These are part of the wings, with the green stuff sanded down to cover the mould pull.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc04003-001.jpg?w=660)
First cast of the new landing legs, quite acceptable.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc04004-001.jpg?w=660)
Next was fixing the wings, there's three options: up, down and kind of straight. To limit the footprint and to allow figure movement under the wings I went for up.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc04005-001.jpg?w=440)
They were superglued in place and the gaps around the hinges filled.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc04006-001.jpg?w=440)
Next onto the paint on the rear wing sections, sadly Vallejo bright colours are a real struggle to get a constant colour the red needed three coats, while the yellow needed six. To get the lines straight I cut very gentle grooves into the wing, which really helped.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc04007-001.jpg?w=392)
Next some paint onto the main wing section.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc04008-001.jpg?w=440)
Getting enthusiastic I stopped taking photos for a while, mainly due to the mindless enthusiasm you get when you reach top speed. Here's one with several of the pieces painted and washed. I was looking through my inks, uming and ahing and found an unopened pot of Devlan Mud by some outfit called Games Workshop, so I thought I'd give that a try.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc04009-001.jpg?w=660)
Next was a tricky bit, the canopy around the windows. This is one piece you can't dismantle which is a pain both for the canopy and the cockpit detail.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc04015-001.jpg?w=618)
Next the cockpit, which has this huge seat in it. There's a similar one in the rear interior. I want to disguise both, the rear one was easiest because you can't really see it, so a simple piece of plasticard was glued in.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc04016-001.jpg?w=389)
I found the shape for the interior by fitting a small piece of paper into the cockpit and gradually trimming it until I had a reasonable fit. I then used this to cut a piece of plasticard, which I then detailed.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc04018-001.jpg?w=440)
It's not a perfect fit, but it will work once painted. I've leaving the seat of the chair as it won't be visible once a pilot is in there.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc04019-001.jpg?w=656)
Got the basic paint on a pair of the landing legs.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc04020-001.jpg?w=660)
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Thanks so much, as well!
I think there are at least two, if not more, Quinjet's floating around, with corresponding price difference. I remember scoping them out for conversion, but figured I'd wait for closeout/discard to thrift store bottom feeding prices.
Definitely opaque the cockpit, though, cover with armor panels, leaving small pilot windows, and simply drybrush those with gem highlights
You're a better man than I. :D
Doug
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Nice work on it Phil, it'll be quite a monster when finished. What kind of troop comparment does it have/will have?
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I'm not sure what I'll do with the canopy windows yet, paint very likely but I'll not be adding anything to it.
Hang on a mo' I'll take a photo or two.
Couldn't resist a side shot of the main hull. Bear in mind this is just the basic weathering, there's more to come after the decals.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc04021-001.jpg?w=660)
This is the back of the craft, and I've ramped the brightness to vaguely show the interior...
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc04022-001.jpg?w=660)
... and here with the ramp, the ramp is a tricky bit as it clips in the hinge to open and close so has some flexibility to it. It'll be the last piece I do, and then I'll add a more detailed ramp way, and paint it.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc04023-001.jpg?w=330)
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I've got one of these I've been balking at starting on. Great work so far. I'm really looking forward to the finished product.
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How many troopers that hold should hold, side shot at least show the thing to be quite large.
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20 maybe?
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20 maybe?
More than plenty then!
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Yep, I'm really only going for around 8-12 and possibly a combat bot thing... which reminds me... any suggestions for a suitable range for those?
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Can't wait to see the final results....looks awesome to date. Nice set of step by step photos. You have a lot of talent!! Thanks for sharing.
Regards,
Hitman
8)
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Glad you like it, many thanks to Pocoloco for sending me some decals. Should have a couple of photos up later today.
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Yep, I'm really only going for around 8-12 and possibly a combat bot thing... which reminds me... any suggestions for a suitable range for those?
What size/style/bipedal or tracked etc... ????
Mule gun platforms go Black cat or ground zero games 15mm. Lovejoy has a range of hard sci fi troopers that have both large droid and small gun platform sculpts. For bipedal warbots I'd suggest you look at pig iron miniatures.
Cheers
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Looking for something bipedal and quite short, say around 40mm. Thanks for the recommendations.
Some small progress, apologies for the rushed photos. I bashed together a seat for the pilots...
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc04028-001.jpg?w=660)
... which fits them well.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc04029-001.jpg?w=660)
Undercoated and ready to piant.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc04031-001.jpg?w=660)
A rough layout of the pieces to show the overall feel of the beast.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc04030-001.jpg?w=440)
There's a figure top right to show scale, and the three landing feet bottom left.
Do You Want To Know More?
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Looks nice phil. Toying with the idea of one to convert into a pelican dropship from Halo. :D
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Looks nice phil. Toying with the idea of one to convert into a pelican dropship from Halo. :D
DO it!
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Looks nice phil. Toying with the idea of one to convert into a pelican dropship from Halo. :D
Well at £15 it's win/win isn't it?
Got a little further, namely painting the crew, and the cockpit - the latter being a bit awkward because it's attached to the bulk of the body. Being an equal opportunities gamer there's one white and one black crew, however as a reflection of the inequality inherent in the system the black guy is lower rank... :?
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc04033-001.jpg?w=443)
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/dsc04034-001.jpg?w=396)
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I like it!
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Great work, I do want to know more!
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Looking mighty fine! 8) No sign of the decals yet? :?
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Lovely work that man...
More pics please!
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Looking mighty fine! 8) No sign of the decals yet? :?
Yep, applied a few but it's complicated in how I put it together. Didn't I pm you to say thanks? If not thanks. :D I imagine I must have pm'ed the wrong person... whoops. ::)
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A quality build mate
8)
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That's some very cool stuff- It's going to be a big model when it is finished.
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Yep, applied a few but it's complicated in how I put it together. Didn't I pm you to say thanks? If not thanks. :D I imagine I must have pm'ed the wrong person... whoops. ::)
Good to hear those arrived, I was already going to blame Itella (Finnish postal service) and Royal Mail for a joint failure :D
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As a result of this thread, I have gone and bought one of these Quinjets. Once it arrives, I hope I can make it look a fraction as good as the one shown here. Mine will be for Grymn (space Dwarfs) so the cockpit should be fun (I may be able to sit a pair of pilots side by side...
Thanks for the inspiration... I was in two minds about the Quinjet until I followed this thread :)
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Only some small progress with this as my beaker floodeth upeth in getting things sorted for Salute 2013.
Got the canopy done, I liked the original colour of the toy canopy so stuck with yellow, it's the first thing of this kind I've ever done and it looks better than this photo, that's the alibi I'm sticking to.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/dsc04046-001.jpg?w=512)
Tricky bit of getting the legs on was next which I just about managed, setting the rear two first and the front one last.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/dsc04048-001.jpg?w=660)
Expecting superglue to hold these in place for even a couple of games is foolish I think, so I filled the cavities with milliput and painted them. This part won't be seen so a rough job was fine enough.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/dsc04051-001.jpg?w=588)
Then onto a wobbly shelf until Salute is over. I am suffering delay on this as I wait for some decals from Fighting Pirannha to turn up.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/dsc04052-001.jpg?w=660)
Do you want to wait three weeks to know more?
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Looking great Phil 8)
Are you thinking about giving the canopy a gloss varnish to give it a real sheen?
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Are you thinking about giving the canopy a gloss varnish to give it a real sheen?
Aye, after all the decals, putting it back togetherm weathering and final matt varnish I'll give it a yellow ink wash and a coat of gloss.
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What decals did you order? Generic ones?
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Yeah generic general WARNING and the like. I'll let you know if they're any good once they turn up. I'm still after some numbers though.
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It's looking great Phil! Too bad we have to wait after the Salute... especially since many of us can't attend the event in the first place... so you kind of need to progress this now before the Salute, right? :D
What kind of (size and colours) numbers are you after? I still got plenty of decals left.
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I like this very much! Cracking work 8)
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What kind of (size and colours) numbers are you after? I still got plenty of decals left.
Half inch high numbers prefrably in white is the main thing I'm looking for, any number but two or four of them. I have been to a few sites which specialise in decals but unless you know exactly which version of which type of aircraft it seems impossible to find.
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Will check the pile and see what I have along those lines. Will get back to you if I have something fitting.
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Warlord Games have these, no idea how big they are though: http://www.warlordgames.com/store/bolt-action/bolt-action-armoury/bolt-action-german-turret-numbers-white-decal-sheet.html
When looking for decals, I found this shop: http://www.fantasyprintshop.co.uk/
If you type 'numbers' into the search, then a few show up. Never ordered anything, so no idea how good the decals are or even how reliable the shop is.
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Great work, Phil!
:-*
You have done a cracking job on the conversion.
Love the new cockpit area.
It looks like it was intended to be that way.
8)
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Lovely work on this project so far. It's a shame we have to wait for more updates :( but great things are worth waiting for.
As an aside, this is a great resource thread for converting the Quinjet and it has enabled me to plan what I want to do while mine wings its way to me.
Thank you for posting the WIP bits and the different views... very handy :)
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Coolio
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Lovely work on this project so far. It's a shame we have to wait for more updates :( but great things are worth waiting for.
As an aside, this is a great resource thread for converting the Quinjet and it has enabled me to plan what I want to do while mine wings its way to me.
Thank you for posting the WIP bits and the different views... very handy :)
Well limps slowly to you on one engine... ;)
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Glad you're enjoying it, thought folk might be doing similar so it's worth sharing not least because there are a couple of problems which will become apparent as I put it together. Mainly the slightly softer plastic on the top engine and vertical fins, and the back door. But you'll see that as it happens.
Thanks for all the help on decals, I'm picking some up from the fantasy print shop, not a bad price for the white numbers I found, some appear incredibly expensive. Oh hang no I'm not, they have a minimum order of £6 which including postage I pass but before I do not... ho hum.
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I can probabley help with decals too... just pm me if you're still struggling.
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Going to indicate any sort of point defense weapons? Just a thought ::)
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Perhaps... although I do enjoy some fatal flaw.
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I saw some photos of Salute with a quinjet being used as a 15mm dropship (I think it was at the Hammer's Slammers table) and I have some photos of another one being used in a Infinity game.
I'm glad to see that we aren't the only ones seeing their conversion potential ;)
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Ahhh, could you post or link those pictures up please?
btw have you finished yours yet? :D
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No progress on mine, it's still boxed, lol.
As for the photos:
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll112/joedever/SALUTE%202013/Salute2013-362_zps764fddba.jpg)
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll112/joedever/SALUTE%202013/Salute2013-363_zpsf7e5782e.jpg)
Taken from: http://s286.photobucket.com/user/joedever/library/SALUTE%202013#/user/joedever/library/SALUTE%202013?sort=2&page=1&_suid=1367423195909039153807398502654
As for the Infinity ones, they are on my pc, I'll post them when I arrive from work.
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Excellent, thanks!
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wow. pretty cool!
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Yeah saw that battletech table. The mech dropship worked so well. Lovely.
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Here are the Infinity photos:
(http://i270.photobucket.com/albums/jj93/predatorpt/Forums/8559898360_90997598b0_b_zps1ff67733.jpg)
(http://i270.photobucket.com/albums/jj93/predatorpt/Forums/8563019394_222af748a1_b_zps4823dabe.jpg)
(http://i270.photobucket.com/albums/jj93/predatorpt/Forums/8563379744_bfd609139e_b_zpse8337e9a.jpg)
(http://i270.photobucket.com/albums/jj93/predatorpt/Forums/8625828940_256e1bf208_b_zps77dba0ff.jpg)
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Ta. Interesting how we've all gone for the wing tips in the up position.
I should have some more photos up tomorrow... :)
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Right onward and upward.... having left this for a month I came back to find a small problem. The part which is the engine pods and dorsal fins actually moves on the toy, so it's made of a softer less rigid plastic. Much of the paint had either cracked or flaked. I cleaned it up, applied a liberal dose of gloss enamel varnish to add rigidity and repainted and dirtied it again. Ho hum. All of the components aside from the wings were then gloss varnished.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/dsc04168.jpg?w=660)
The same is true of another moving part, the ramp at the back. Now I did want a working ramp, but faced with the options; flaking paint, build a new piece, or have it closed, I went for the latter.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/dsc04169.jpg?w=436)
Next up was reattching the wings, gluing the front section with superglue and poly cement.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/dsc04171.jpg?w=660)
The rear wing section is hinged on the wing, which is why I didn't gloss varnish them.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/dsc04173.jpg?w=660)
Once both were on I fixed the rear section in place, again with two glues.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/dsc04172.jpg?w=660)
Also reenforced with a piece of tubing.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/dsc04175.jpg?w=660)
The last piece to fit has tabs either end which need to be removed.
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/dsc04177.jpg?w=660)
Et Voila!
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/dsc04178.jpg?w=660)
That's all off to be matt varnished, and then glossed on the few shiny components, meanwhile I'm trying to work out how to fit this turret under the nose... perhaps I should have considered this a few steps back... ::)
(http://6milphil.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/dsc04170.jpg?w=660)
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Looking great Phil! :o
Did you receive the second batch of decals by now?
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Oh yes, and thank you very much too! :D
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No probs, glad you received them and happy if they were of any use for your project.
Don't remember anymore, have you mentioned what kind of flight stand, if any, you are planning for this?
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Hmm...after seeing all your problems with the paint cracking, I think I'll give the dropship a good bath with varnish before trying to paint it :-X
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...and thanks to the other donator of decals whose name I forget. :o
No flight stand, I think it'd be an accident waiting to happen.
Yep the varnish will effectively dope it, although the top piece will likely have to be fitted to the other top piece first. This does present some problem in which order you might paint pieces... although my paint flaked over a month, if you painted it and put it on and immediately varnished it that might well stop it.
The ramp door did flake slightly almost immediately though... >:( Good thing is I found out about it so you didn't have to. 8)
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Sorry I've not looked at this for awhile; I saw potential immediately, but still impressive to see it used so well.
Heavy condolences on the paint issues. I went back though the pages of post, but am not sure if you did a primer. I've heard that for really tough plastic, automotive is good. On the other hand, I know a lot of folk swear by Fusion.
Doug
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It's been great fun, and the folk who've seen it like it thus far. It'll soon be finished. 8)
Yes there was priming and then painting, it's a basic thing so I didn't mention it. It did only effect the softer plastic, the rest is fine. Predatorpt is doing one soon and he's going to try plastikote.
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Try mini-magnets for attaching/detaching the chin turret to the dropship.
Glue on with epoxy.