Yet another Fine Molds 1/72 Falcon build

M

mancini

New Member
Well, how do I start a thread that's:
  1. my first post on the RPF
  2. another FM Falcon :rolleyes
  3. my first model after a long 25 year pause.

First of all let me thank all of you on his forum that have inspired me with your creativity, level of care, and attention to detail. I can't go any further with this post without thanking Alaneye, vixr, astroboy, Scratchy, JMChladek, Fett_Ish, and other people throughout the globe, insane enough to try and tackle this model :). Without you I'd already be ordering a new Falcon from Japan because my first model would have been chucked in the dumpster :lol.

To enhance the model and make it as awesome as possible I have ordered several custom kits:
  • PE grille detail set with resin fans
  • clear engine nozzles
  • PE detail set from Acreation
  • Scratchy's custom resin dish
  • custom decals from JBOT

I also plan to light my Falcon in two modes (parked / in flight) and make the model convertible to accommodate that.

My goal is to also make some adjustments to the model so that it matches the original ILM models fairly closely but I take the liberty to choose whether I like a certain detail more on the 32-incher or the 5-footer. Some details I have chosen to omit altogether ...

I have started with the model sometime in April and have been hacking at it ever since. I'm taking my time and don't want to rush anything and of course I don't have as much time as I would have liked :unsure.

I don't have that many in-process images for the past few months but I don't think they are too important since I have been following some of you very closely :lol. I'll start uploading the current status of my model and try and keep updating my progress...
 
Some current photos...

Well here are a few images with my current status.

Like many people here I started with the escape pods or whatever the heck they are:

To begin with I changed the lines on the pod's ring and repaired the original cast with putty. My first attempt at scratching into a styrene model and working with putty - vary scary. Then I added a lot of styrene greebles according to reference images from the original models. I also decided to drill 32 small holes to the front side to add some more detail (surprisingly it's still noticeable after priming it :)).

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485739_4876150308342_1164015070_n.jpg

After a coat of primer ... I was expecting worse :)

Here's the current status. One of the pods is finished and ready to be painted and I just recently decided to modify the ramp, so I had to saw a bit off of the right pod. And there's still some work with putty/sandpaper to be done on it and also a few greebles missing.
427848_4876441755628_658464676_n.jpg

Hope to finish the other pod soon as I have succumbed to my typical problem when working on a large project. Started doing too many things at the same time so at one stage I had dozens of various parts of the Falcon in progress. It was a mess :facepalm.
 
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Next up - the landing gears ...

For the landing gears everything was fairly straightforward so far. I used the PE tray thingies and just put everything together according to the manual. You can see metal rings glued on top so I can snap the gears into place with magnets.

314104_4876152068386_852501920_n.jpg

And here are the magnets:
302294_4876147708277_1358189840_n.jpg

But I plan to add two customisations. One, to add the tubing hanging from the gear wells that was visible on the set models. I have already drilled several holes (as accurately as I could figure out from the few shots from ESB) to these parts:

561772_4876825485221_1944524849_n.jpg

The second customisation is still to be decided as it would be a crapload of work ... you guessed it - the folded bay doors. Now why didn't FM add these to the model is beyond me :facepalm.
 
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to break the grey image streak :)

Here's my first shot at painting the tiny figures. Leia is still missing as I haven't drilled a hole in her but yet :lol. Chewie only has one dark layer painted so he still needs to lighten up a bit and 3PO will get a clear gloss coat. I have already drilled holes in his eyes (poor 3PO) and plan to light them with fibres. I'm fairly satisfied with the result as the figures will be barely visible in the cockpit anyway.

580343_4876300112087_1977389577_n.jpg
 
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Top hull

The top hull has the most parts and took me quite a long time to finish. The 500 or so original parts from the kit were ok, but the 200 or so custom parts were a pain :sick. Also I kept slashing the hull with my X-ACTO knife when I was replacing the wiring with T-shaped styrene rods or brass tubing. There's also a lot of extra detailing in the circular/rectangular greeble hole things.

Here's the stern with the custom resin fans (using the Dremel to make the correct holes for them was surprisingly without issues) and about 50 custom greebles added. I decided to remove 3 of the end flap things to make painting the panels easier.

556278_4876150988359_334543369_n.jpg

Here's a shot of the complete hull with some of the wires replaced. I ended up with replacing most of the wiring but I didn't bother where I felt I could get away with it.

603744_4876536557998_1534171949_n.jpg
 
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various images

I have started hacking at the cockpit section with my Dremel so that I can install the custom PE grille and I am still hoping to create the two round red lights below the grille at a later stage...
552682_4876150588349_126521876_n.jpg

Currently I'm trying to decide between the two cockpits (the FM original and the PE custom) and I'll probably use parts from both as each one has its strengths/weaknesses. I'll keep you posted...
 
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The ramp ... OMG

This weekend I have embarked on a suicidal mission ... to upgrade the ramp so that it resembles the 1/1 sized set model. We all know that this is not exactly possible on the 32-incher or with the 5-footer because there's no room below the hatch. So that's why the folks at FM decided to cheat a little and came up with a bad compromise (in my view at least).

Well I found some inspiration on one japanese forum and this is my attempt at it.

Part of the hull has been sawed off and I have started to create the visible parts of the inside of the Falcon:
545385_4876149308317_1152063219_n.jpg

This is how I plan to build the ramp...
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And if all goes well, at least the closed ramp will look ok.
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I'll be more then happy for any criticism/suggestions as this really is all very new to me and every step of the build is a learning experience.

Thanks
 
Hotdamn, that looks great! I've just finished mine and looking at threads like this makes me realize how much I missed. I never had the nerve to start fiddling with the landing ramp, now I really wish I did. But, like you, I'm just returning to modeling after a looong pause, trained with an Y-Wing first before starting with the Falcon, though.

Looking forward to seeing where you take this. I'm also interested in what the lighting arrangement will be like. You are going to light it fully, landing bays in park mode and cockpit consoles etc?

Very interesting.

Cheers,
Vesa
 
Jaitea said:
Looking great so far, are you going to light it?

J
Click to expand...

Hell yeah I'm going to light it :)

Avanaut said:
Hotdamn, that looks great! I've just finished mine and looking at threads like this makes me realize how much I missed. I never had the nerve to start fiddling with the landing ramp, now I really wish I did. But, like you, I'm just returning to modeling after a looong pause, trained with an Y-Wing first before starting with the Falcon, though.

Looking forward to seeing where you take this. I'm also interested in what the lighting arrangement will be like. You are going to light it fully, landing bays in park mode and cockpit consoles etc?

Very interesting.

Cheers,
Vesa
Click to expand...

Me too :) ... but fully lit is the plan + I want it to be convertible landed / in flight
 
A big surprise for me was that cyanoacrylate glue, superglue, is not to be used with optic fiber. At least in my case it made the fiber brittle and it broke really easily. I guess this is common knowlege among experienced builders, but I found it out after fitting all the fiber first and then securing it with superglue... :p

With lighting, I'm interested in seeing how far you're going to take it, will the cannon pits be lit, how are you going to conceal switches, the power source, you know, details like that. From the looks of this thing now, I'm sure it'll be worth waiting for.

Keep up the good work!
 
This is a most promising start. Thanks for mentioning me as inspiration (presumably for my paintwork and weathering). But I think your model already has the potential to blow mine out of the water with the work I am seeing thus far. Incredible stuff!
 
Avanaut said:
A big surprise for me was that cyanoacrylate glue, superglue, is not to be used with optic fiber. At least in my case it made the fiber brittle and it broke really easily. I guess this is common knowlege among experienced builders, but I found it out after fitting all the fiber first and then securing it with superglue... :p

With lighting, I'm interested in seeing how far you're going to take it, will the cannon pits be lit, how are you going to conceal switches, the power source, you know, details like that. From the looks of this thing now, I'm sure it'll be worth waiting for.

Keep up the good work!
Click to expand...

Well I didn't know that either. What glue is recommended for the fibers?
 
I found hotglue to be good for securing the fibers (from The Fiber Optic Store). Hotglue is a bit elastic when cold and it has no solvent chemicals in it, so it's gentle to the fibers. It's a bit too hot for fibers straight from the gun, though, I placed a little dab on a toothpick, let it cool down for a few seconds and the applied it inside the Falcon where the fibers penetrate the hull. Worked for me.

I trust there are several methods to securing the fibers, this is just something I came up with myself, not knowing of anything better.
 
I think CA glue might work fine for fibres, but I would go with a gel type so it is less likely to soak into the fibres very far (dribble on some kicker to help inert it faster). Hot glue is indeed elastic, but I would be worried about damaging the plastic since Japanese styrenes tend to have a slightly lower melting point than some others I've used. Given where some of the fibres need to go, I would be a bit worried about what kind of damage a hot glue tip could do if placed in the wrong area.

Epoxy glue would probably work fine since it is slightly elastic, yet it doesn't seem to distort plastic.
 
JMChladek said:
I think CA glue might work fine for fibres, but I would go with a gel type so it is less likely to soak into the fibres very far (dribble on some kicker to help inert it faster). Hot glue is indeed elastic, but I would be worried about damaging the plastic since Japanese styrenes tend to have a slightly lower melting point than some others I've used. Given where some of the fibres need to go, I would be a bit worried about what kind of damage a hot glue tip could do if placed in the wrong area.

Epoxy glue would probably work fine since it is slightly elastic, yet it doesn't seem to distort plastic.
Click to expand...

CA (cyanoacrylate) glue attacked the brand of fiber I used causing it to go brittle and snap in the root. It wasn't gel type, though, but I'd make sure by testing thoroughly first.

Hot glue is indeed hotter than styrene's melting point and I wouldn't recommend using it straight from the gun, when all hot it will damage the fibers, too. I just thought it might be good way to go since, unlike many other glues, it comes off, too if necessary. I sure worked on my Falcon under the great tradition of "trial and error", and this was a lifesaver for me. :D

I just hoped mentioning this might be a good idea while you're proceeding with your great Falcon, Mancini.

Cheers!
 
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