darthsideous
Well-Known Member
Really enjoying the beautiful work you’ve done on this.
PHArchivist
Master Member
Just amazing...!
skiffy
Sr Member
Thanks so much darthsideous, PHArchivist. 
I'm back on this, hoping to get a second video together showcasing the lighting of the APC but first I have to get the wiring to a decent state.
I was wondering if I have enough crew to fully man the APC and it looks like I do, 8 in the back, 2 on the rear pair (Ripley and Burke seats), Gorman at the console, Apone on the front pair and a driver - 13 bodies.
I couldn't think how I could route the lighting wiring under the seats without raising either them or the flooring panel - room is pretty tight in there and I also have to work out where the safety bar wiring goes too.
I found a literal out of the box solution and I'll be adding little clips and a paint job to tidy up where the cabling goes around the wheel hub.
There was a similar routing issue for the headlight wiring which runs over the side door. I wanted to keep the roof section removeable so this is getting worked in around other elements.
The rear lights are wired in on the opposite side and you can see where they emerge behind the wheel (green/white wires). I'm keeping them as close to the hinge as I can to avoid uneccessary wear.
You can just see the wires at the bottom of the back wall but the seating will cover these up - and they'll be painted.
..and here's where we're currently at. I think I'll add mini magnets to all of the interior pieces to hold them in place.
I'm back on this, hoping to get a second video together showcasing the lighting of the APC but first I have to get the wiring to a decent state.
I was wondering if I have enough crew to fully man the APC and it looks like I do, 8 in the back, 2 on the rear pair (Ripley and Burke seats), Gorman at the console, Apone on the front pair and a driver - 13 bodies.
I couldn't think how I could route the lighting wiring under the seats without raising either them or the flooring panel - room is pretty tight in there and I also have to work out where the safety bar wiring goes too.
I found a literal out of the box solution and I'll be adding little clips and a paint job to tidy up where the cabling goes around the wheel hub.
There was a similar routing issue for the headlight wiring which runs over the side door. I wanted to keep the roof section removeable so this is getting worked in around other elements.
The rear lights are wired in on the opposite side and you can see where they emerge behind the wheel (green/white wires). I'm keeping them as close to the hinge as I can to avoid uneccessary wear.
You can just see the wires at the bottom of the back wall but the seating will cover these up - and they'll be painted.
..and here's where we're currently at. I think I'll add mini magnets to all of the interior pieces to hold them in place.
skiffy
Sr Member
'Life gets in the way' - doesn't it always? I've been severely beaten with the work stick of late - no time for hobbies - but those of you who have followed along with me have been very patient so you'll be glad to know I got some more time on this recently.
Firstly I just had to do something about this awful bird's nest of wiring. If I'd planned it properly from the start (and with what I know now) I'd have used an all-purpose 'power rail' running through the interior and tapped off from that where I needed for the individual lights. I'd also have used thinner guage wiring from the start.
Anyhow, I found a solution using GPIO headers from an electronics kit I bought to supplement my meagre knowledge in the subject.
I've soldered all the short sides together and will use the long sides to clip wiring to for modules that need to be removable - like Gorman's console.
These donor connectors are used in testing on breadboards - I'm using just one end to connect to the GPIO headers.
In this next shot you can see the rough wiring plan I worked out.
There was some heat shrink sleeving in the kit I got but it's too wide for these little wires.
I also started working on the paint finish for the overhead details in the console area. They got a coat of chrome and will get a dry-brushed top coat of colour.
The lights from the console (screens and desk) got twisted together, tinned then had the connector for positive and negative soldered on.
A quick test and all OK.
On with the rest of the interior lighting - all bundled together into a single pair of + and - connectors.
Tested and all good.
The whole area got a much needed tidy-up and I reorganised the workspace prioritising the tools I currently use most.
... and that's about it for now. I've wrestled for a long time with the wiring but it's getting done, which has given me enthusiasm to push ahead.
Thanks for looking and see you again hopefully soon.
Firstly I just had to do something about this awful bird's nest of wiring. If I'd planned it properly from the start (and with what I know now) I'd have used an all-purpose 'power rail' running through the interior and tapped off from that where I needed for the individual lights. I'd also have used thinner guage wiring from the start.
Anyhow, I found a solution using GPIO headers from an electronics kit I bought to supplement my meagre knowledge in the subject.
I've soldered all the short sides together and will use the long sides to clip wiring to for modules that need to be removable - like Gorman's console.
These donor connectors are used in testing on breadboards - I'm using just one end to connect to the GPIO headers.
In this next shot you can see the rough wiring plan I worked out.
There was some heat shrink sleeving in the kit I got but it's too wide for these little wires.
I also started working on the paint finish for the overhead details in the console area. They got a coat of chrome and will get a dry-brushed top coat of colour.
The lights from the console (screens and desk) got twisted together, tinned then had the connector for positive and negative soldered on.
A quick test and all OK.
On with the rest of the interior lighting - all bundled together into a single pair of + and - connectors.
Tested and all good.
The whole area got a much needed tidy-up and I reorganised the workspace prioritising the tools I currently use most.
... and that's about it for now. I've wrestled for a long time with the wiring but it's getting done, which has given me enthusiasm to push ahead.
Thanks for looking and see you again hopefully soon.
skiffy
Sr Member
Thanks Joberg, pengbuzz, it's not the fastest build here on the RPF but progress is progress.
I was scanning the shelves at me local model/hobby supplies shop and was overjoyed to see that they'd restocked their tubing - specifically styrene 2.4mm hollow which is exactly what I've used for the tube-light sections on the APC's seating restraints. I've been waiting for this stuff for a long time and couldn't find it anywhere else (unless I was prepared to spend hundreds on a full point-of-sale display).
Anyway, I can now finish the last of the seating elements that was just waiting for that last short piece of tube.
I dug out the 'kit' of parts I already had from storage. I'd made all of the other elements in one big batch. I know I've gone through this earlier in the thread but I needed to remind myself - so here's how it all goes together.
Here's the kit of parts - now complete with the hollow tube.
1/ Two TINY LED's that drive light along the fibre optic strands.
2/ Two short lengths of fibre optic to go inside the tube.
3/ The hollow tube which will be drilled in the centre for the LEDs.
4/ Two tiny magnets that hold the whole thing in the 'up' position - one on the rail, one embedded in the back wall. (I couldn't get these any closer to each other without them snapping together).
5/ The small rail that supports the tummy cushions.
6/ The main vertical spar with pre-sawn bend points. The LED wiring will be fed down this to the tube.
7/ Two tummy cushion sets, each with inner and outer.
8/ Tummy cushion brackets.
9/ Hinge points for the rear wall.
10/ Central hinge tube to take the main vertical spar.
The plastic tweezers are essential for handling the magnets. The only thing missing from this image is a small length of 1mm brass rod for the hinge.
So, I'm aiming to go from this.
..to this.
These little LEDs are pretty powerful.
And the final effect once all of this is done will be..
Another small job I did was to add brass brackets to the practical wiring I hid in the wheel arches (paint's still damp here). With the wheels on very little of this is visible anyway.
I hope to have some time this week to get this seating completed. It's a fiddly job and needs concentration. Wish me luck.
I was scanning the shelves at me local model/hobby supplies shop and was overjoyed to see that they'd restocked their tubing - specifically styrene 2.4mm hollow which is exactly what I've used for the tube-light sections on the APC's seating restraints. I've been waiting for this stuff for a long time and couldn't find it anywhere else (unless I was prepared to spend hundreds on a full point-of-sale display).
Anyway, I can now finish the last of the seating elements that was just waiting for that last short piece of tube.
I dug out the 'kit' of parts I already had from storage. I'd made all of the other elements in one big batch. I know I've gone through this earlier in the thread but I needed to remind myself - so here's how it all goes together.
Here's the kit of parts - now complete with the hollow tube.
1/ Two TINY LED's that drive light along the fibre optic strands.
2/ Two short lengths of fibre optic to go inside the tube.
3/ The hollow tube which will be drilled in the centre for the LEDs.
4/ Two tiny magnets that hold the whole thing in the 'up' position - one on the rail, one embedded in the back wall. (I couldn't get these any closer to each other without them snapping together).
5/ The small rail that supports the tummy cushions.
6/ The main vertical spar with pre-sawn bend points. The LED wiring will be fed down this to the tube.
7/ Two tummy cushion sets, each with inner and outer.
8/ Tummy cushion brackets.
9/ Hinge points for the rear wall.
10/ Central hinge tube to take the main vertical spar.
The plastic tweezers are essential for handling the magnets. The only thing missing from this image is a small length of 1mm brass rod for the hinge.
So, I'm aiming to go from this.
..to this.
These little LEDs are pretty powerful.
And the final effect once all of this is done will be..
Another small job I did was to add brass brackets to the practical wiring I hid in the wheel arches (paint's still damp here). With the wheels on very little of this is visible anyway.
I hope to have some time this week to get this seating completed. It's a fiddly job and needs concentration. Wish me luck.
skiffy
Sr Member
Thanks Joberg - little steps forward every time.
Okay here goes with the last of these seat restraints. No part of this job is easy - it's all really fiddly, especially with my old sausage fingers.
Still, I've got some moral support playing on the tablet while I work.
I managed to get the LEDs threaded through the brasswork, got that bent up properly and added the hinge sleeve and brass pin.
Got the LEDs oriented back-to-back and installed in the light tube. That tested OK so I added the fibre optics and sealed the whole thing.
Next up is adding the magnet in the rear panel. Plastic tweezers at the ready.
..added the hinge plates, glued the unit into the frame and this is where I left off for today.
Still to do: add the tummy cushions and the secondary rail, paint and finish.
Okay here goes with the last of these seat restraints. No part of this job is easy - it's all really fiddly, especially with my old sausage fingers.
Still, I've got some moral support playing on the tablet while I work.
I managed to get the LEDs threaded through the brasswork, got that bent up properly and added the hinge sleeve and brass pin.
Got the LEDs oriented back-to-back and installed in the light tube. That tested OK so I added the fibre optics and sealed the whole thing.
Next up is adding the magnet in the rear panel. Plastic tweezers at the ready.
..added the hinge plates, glued the unit into the frame and this is where I left off for today.
Still to do: add the tummy cushions and the secondary rail, paint and finish.
skiffy
Sr Member
More work on the light bars now that I've got the last of them up and working.
In this screenshot you can see (top right) that the light bar is 'capped' at either end and I noted elsehwre in the movie that it doesn't go all the way around too. I presume the Art Department built a tubular metal cage to house the flourescent tubes used for these lights.
I found some thick paint in an older pot - just right for light blocking - started in on the ends.
I used an old sign-writer's trick to paint (hopefully) straight lines on the tubes.
The painter's bridge is made from an old steel rule and a couple of Tamiya paint jars.
Well, it's as straight as it's going to get.
Looks like I'll need another coat once this has dried.
Here's a candid wide shot with flash - trying to look like an on-set continuity polaroid.
..and a couple with lighting and without/with crew. The seat restraint here isn't yet rigged up to the battery box.
In this screenshot you can see (top right) that the light bar is 'capped' at either end and I noted elsehwre in the movie that it doesn't go all the way around too. I presume the Art Department built a tubular metal cage to house the flourescent tubes used for these lights.
I found some thick paint in an older pot - just right for light blocking - started in on the ends.
I used an old sign-writer's trick to paint (hopefully) straight lines on the tubes.
The painter's bridge is made from an old steel rule and a couple of Tamiya paint jars.
Well, it's as straight as it's going to get.
Looks like I'll need another coat once this has dried.
Here's a candid wide shot with flash - trying to look like an on-set continuity polaroid.
..and a couple with lighting and without/with crew. The seat restraint here isn't yet rigged up to the battery box.
skiffy
Sr Member
I had some time and got the APC out and onto the bench today and..
You can see Lt. Gorman's not happy. The rear roof has detatched from the back wall. Without the turret runners to keep those parts together, and with the inner rear wall not being glued yet it's no real surprise - but still disappointing.
Oops. This didn't go smooth, or by the numbers.
This inner wall goes a long way to secure that join but I was nervous about closing in that wiring.
At the moment my APC has a rear hatch for speedy debussing of troops.
I planned to add some strenthening brackets to the join between the rear roof and back wall panels. To allow me to align and glue them in place I put some sellotape over the side walls - I definitely didn't want those getting glued and sticking the roof closed.
Here I've got the brackets on and the glue is drying.
I glued the inner rear panel on too so this is all sealed and strong.
Hopefully I won't get too much grief from Lt. Gorman - maybe a latrine cleaning detail.
I bought a selection of heat-shrink tubing this week too, something I've been meaning to get - to stabilise and strengthen the solder joints. More on that later.
You can see Lt. Gorman's not happy. The rear roof has detatched from the back wall. Without the turret runners to keep those parts together, and with the inner rear wall not being glued yet it's no real surprise - but still disappointing.
Oops. This didn't go smooth, or by the numbers.
This inner wall goes a long way to secure that join but I was nervous about closing in that wiring.
At the moment my APC has a rear hatch for speedy debussing of troops.
I planned to add some strenthening brackets to the join between the rear roof and back wall panels. To allow me to align and glue them in place I put some sellotape over the side walls - I definitely didn't want those getting glued and sticking the roof closed.
Here I've got the brackets on and the glue is drying.
I glued the inner rear panel on too so this is all sealed and strong.
Hopefully I won't get too much grief from Lt. Gorman - maybe a latrine cleaning detail.
I bought a selection of heat-shrink tubing this week too, something I've been meaning to get - to stabilise and strengthen the solder joints. More on that later.
