Let's Build Greeblie Pack #12 - A Skyhopper Group Build

Blitzkreig

Blitzkreig

Well-Known Member
RPF PREMIUM MEMBER
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I've been enjoying my build of the Masterpiece Models Skyhopper (Greeblie Pack #12) and thought it might be fun to talk and discuss with others on the same journey.

First a quick shout out to Jason Eaton and John Geigle. Thank you both!

For those that haven't heard. Masterpiece Models has released a studio scale kit of the T-16 Skyhopper (Greeblie Pack #12). Its reasonably priced and has pieces cast from original model donor parts. I believe the model above is the kit master built by Jason Eaton.

I'll be posting photos of my build as we go along and would love to see others jump in with thoughts, comments, and photos of their builds. Let's discuss paint, adhesives, decals, mounts, weathering, donor parts and anything else related. Please post your progress pics and let's get building!

My kit arrived fairly quickly in about a week. Everything was packed with peanuts and in good shape.

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I also purchased the Studio Scale Decal Set #2 from Roboterkampf on Etsy. This set has decals for the Hopper along with other ships and helmets. The Skyhopper kit does not come with any decals.

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Over a couple days I cleaned all the cast parts using an Exacto and a sanding stick. The cast pieces are amazingly nice and detailed. The flash was very thin and easy to remove. Afterward all parts were washed with dish soap.

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I wanted to switch out the resin stand that came with the kit to something closer to the original. So, I went on a hunt to some local Thrift stores and was able to find an old lamp and a shade that had some usable parts. The lamp cost $1.00 and the shade $ .50. Most of the parts on the brass stand above came from the lamp. The spider I cut out of the shade below and the little balls are Westinghouse Lighting pullchain balls 70660 from Amazon ($2.49). Jason had mentioned that there might be a machined stand available on the Roboterkampf store sometime in the future. So, this will be ok until then or until we can locate a hex shaped fitting for the spider.

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Continuing on. I used a scribe to lightly smooth out the panel lines. They were a little rough from the cutting process. Be careful not to scour all the way through the acrylic as the lines are close on both sides. Also, the leading edge of the main vertical wing/stabilizer (part A1) is lightly beveled. So, I sanded this and the rest of the surfaces with 2000 and then 5000 grit paper.

Moving on to construction. I've been using Weld-On 3 to assemble the acrylic pieces of the main fuselage. It works great but be sure to wear gloves and a respirator, Its nasty stuff. Also 1-2-3 blocks were very handy for keeping the parts square during assembly.

Quick tip: Apply Weld-On to both pieces being bonded to soften the surfaces and help make a strong bond.

The kit comes with a DVD instruction manual, but you can also download a Pdf from Masterpiece Models HERE.

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Update10/16/22: There was an update to the instruction manual clarifying the correct layout for the lower bay area. Download it from Masterpiece Models HERE. The image below shows the correct layout.

Assembly Note: Before gluing the A11 pieces down. You may want to trim them back a little. Thus, giving you the correct spacing to add T27 and T28 later on. You need about 27mm from the front lip back to A11 (see below).

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Studio Model
 
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Thanks for the great post!I 'm supposed to be getting my kit today. The stand is the part that really sells the model but at the same time if it even suggests the original it will be fine. What are your plans for the chrome parts? I plan on spraying them with a Molotow pen refill. Also are you doing the "broken ski" version?
 
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Thanks for starting this thread - somehow I had missed the actual release/roll out of the kit over at Masterpiece Models. I purchased mine yesterday. I had actually started collecting a lot of the original donor kits for this model already so I may put a few original parts into mine where it might improve things (like chrome parts, especially).

Dan
 
bcgd said:
Thanks for the great post!I 'm supposed to be getting my kit today. The stand is the part that really sells the model but at the same time if it even suggests the original it will be fine. What are your plans for the chrome parts? I plan on spraying them with a Molotow pen refill. Also are you doing the "broken ski" version?
Click to expand...
Congrats on getting a kit. I agree on the stand. If it gives the over all impression and feel, your good. I think If you're looking to build it as a replica. It's worth the effort to try and find some parts to make a similar stand to the original.
Not sure yet on the chrome parts. I may just use a rattle can of chrome silver. The original kit parts had that distinctive artificial chrome look. You know what i mean. I've heard Molotow can give an excellent finish. Haven't tried it yet.
I'll be going full skis. Going over all for that new showroom look. I did buy 2 kits with the idea of making a heavily weathered model too.
Thanks, be sure and share some build photos along the way.
 
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3DImpact said:
Thanks for starting this thread - somehow I had missed the actual release/roll out of the kit over at Masterpiece Models. I purchased mine yesterday. I had actually started collecting a lot of the original donor kits for this model already so I may put a few original parts into mine where it might improve things (like chrome parts, especially).

Dan
Click to expand...
Thanks, grats on getting a kit. Ya this one has been on my list for a while too. I hadn't sprung on any donor kits yet though. I did have a Transtar in my cart at one time but never pulled the trigger. Wish I had now. It would be nice to have the chrome parts. Looking forward to your build.
 
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Moving along I glued the wing arm supports together (A9 and A10). Went with 5-minute epoxy on the stand retaining nuts. I wanted more thread for the stand to secure to, so added a second nut using the metal one from my donor lamp. I chose not to glue in the threaded post as I'd like the stand to be removable. This assembly was then glued to the bottom of the ship using Weld-On.

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Assembly Note: Before attaching the Crusader body (B1). You may want to use a piece of scarp styrene to glue over the turret hole. Thus, giving you a mounting surface for B8 later on (see photos below).

I also cut out the hole for the stand post. It was centered about 18mm from the rear of the body.

Quick tip: After roughing out the hole. Use the threaded metal post from your stand to file out a perfectly round opening. It works great.

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A little progress today. I decided to go ahead and paint the lower fuselage bay before adding the Greeblies. It's a little tough to get in there with the paint. Maybe leave off part A2 till after its painted? I did wait on part A14. Went with some paint I had on hand which was Tamiya White. It looks like the paint used on the studio model is just a flat white. If someone has better info on this, please share.

Also worked on the side panels. Cleaning up the panel lines and sanding in the leading-edge bevel. As well as the bevel where the panel joins the wing. The Studio model doesn't quit have full bevels for smooth joints. But I think I'm going to try and get them as tight as possible. I guess you need to decide how accurate you want to be here. I put together a simple jig on my sander for this.

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