First Ever Official RPF Group Build - IT HAS BEGUN...

[jedimaster]

Cool...I'm in.

 

[Jeff Herne]

I have an X-15A-1 I'm sitting here staring at...that ok?

J

 

[Gigatron]

I have an X-15A-1 I'm sitting here staring at...that ok?

J

I built the -2, so the -1 is A-OK by me :cool

-Fred

 

[PHArchivist]

Well believe it or not I decided to move forward on my project!

Remember I was building the 1:18 Glamorous Glennis, and shelved it because I misapplied some decals, and was focusing on my Death Star.

I decided to screw it with the decals, accept it, and move forward.

All I have to do is install the wings, paint the canopy frame, and she's done.

Then the toughest part - deciding whether to weather!

 

[Gigatron]

Good for you, Rob

I know that, sometimes, a setback, can mean the difference between finishing or shelving a build. When it come to modeling, I'm a "near" perfectionist (I know I'll never be able to eliminate every seam line or ejector pin mark) and when something goes awry, you just want to throw the whole thing in the trash.

If you go way back in this thread, you'll see that that's exactly what happened with my X-15. The paintjob got way out of hand and I had to trash the whole thing, salvaging some small parts that I didn't want to rebuild.

As for weathering, I don't know how much dirt collects at mach 1 :lol. I just did a little weathering in the flaps, just to show some detail.

-Fred

 

[PHArchivist]

Here's the image that tells me I should do some weathering...

 

[PHArchivist]

Got the wings on today! BIG model...

 

[Gigatron]

Can't wait to see some pics, Rob :cool

-Fred

 

[PHArchivist]

Can't wait to see some pics, Rob :cool

-Fred

Need to get some up!

Left to do:
--USAF insignia decals on wings
--Mask and paint canopy
--Weather, if I choose to

Here is my thought on weather (and please give me your feedback, one and all)...

I'm thinking about dusting the nose, and leading edges of the wings with Clear Flat. Concept is that these areas may be more abraded due to dust and debris of flight. Then I'm thinking about duplicating the streaking on the port wing.

Think I'm on the right track

 

[slave1pilot]

Ya know Rob, They have the X-1E up here at Edwards
You should come up and take a look

 

[Gigatron]

I like the idea of the flat on the nose and leading edges, but don't forget the leading edge of the vertical stabilizer and elevators. Just try not to make the flat in a uniform pattern along the leading edge. Airflow would probably drag those particles along the depth of the wing, so a little of a streaking effect, would look pretty damn cool.

I really wonder what caused that streaking on the port wing. It almost looks like a cordite burn, but the X-1 doesn't have any guns. Maybe it's from the mothership, like an exhaust stain.


The X-1E looks like a much more fun bird to build, mostly because it lacks the greenhouse canopy, which is no fun to mask. This canopy looks more like the one found on the X-15.

-Fred

 

[PHArchivist]

I really wonder what caused that streaking on the port wing. It almost looks like a cordite burn, but the X-1 doesn't have any guns. Maybe it's from the mothership, like an exhaust stain.

-Fred

I've wondered that too.

Its consistent in that you see it in every print of that image, but inconsistent in that in each print of that same image, its starkness varies.

In some shots the streak is lighter; in others its darker.

 

[Gigatron]

I'd chalk that up to the development process. I'm guessing that depending on how long a photo was bathed in the developing chemicals, it created differences in the contrast aspect. Maybe the longer it sat in the bath, the starker the contrast became.

If you have multiple images, what I would do, is compare the starkness of the stain, to the relative starkness of another area, like the black square on the fuselage or maybe the seperation between the wings and aelerons.

If you can say "ok, in this photo, I know this square is supposed to be black, and the stain is X shades lighter.". "Now, in this photo, the square is supposed to be black, but it is X shades lighter than in the previous photo. Is the stain relatively lighter, in comparison?".

-Fred

 

[PHArchivist]

Finishered off today, sans weathering...

She's a beaut! Looks just like the current rendition in the "Smith".

 

[Gigatron]

Looking forward to some pics, Rob :cool.

So, are you going to suspend it from the ceiling, like the one at the Smith ?

-Fred

 

[samster27]

Hi, I have just joined the forum and after many weeks of LURKING, would like to throw my hat into the ring and have a bash at building the 1/32nd Special Hobby X-15A2 if thats OK with you guys.

 

[Gigatron]

Have at it, sam. Just be sure to post plenty of pictures :cool.

-Fred

 

[samster27]

OK so I bought the kit and the Hypersonic book as reference, have started too, but the missus has fallen down stairs fracturing her wrist and shoulder so it looks as though I will not be building for the competition as will have to do everything until xmas and will have little time to do this justice. Apologies all round.

Will post though when I can build it in the new year. Good luck to all entrants.

 

[Gigatron]

Hey Sam,

Sorry to hear about your wife.

As far as the build is concerned, no worries, this isn't a competition, just a bunch of modelers with a common interest :cool. So, when you get to it, you get to it - we'll still be here .

-Fred

 

[Galane]

Very nice models, all of you! One thing for LEM models, in the Apollo 13 movie and/or HBO's From the Earth to the Moon series, they used the wrappers from Rolo candy for the gold Mylar insulating film on the models.