madmanmoe64
Well-Known Member
Always well worth the effort building a nice sturdy jig, well executed. 
Fallout Mini Nuke - My First Prop Attempt (Pic Heavy)
- Thread starter TopSnipe
- Start date
TopSnipe
New Member
:confusedStabilizer Ring
I realized this morning after looking over several of my reference images that the screws I installed yesterday were in the wrong location:facepalm! They were supposed to be below the parting line not above. I also think that they were a bit too small as well. I removed the old screws, patched them with the first of 2-3 passes of glazing putty, and then relocated them using slightly shorter #12 brass straight-slot screws. I like the new look and location much better. :cool
I also spent some time today trying to determine the best way to create a perfect circle for the stabilizer ring. There were several different versions (read failed attempts) none of which I was satisfied with. :confused
My original idea was to cut a standard 18” x 24” For Rent/Sale sign into 2” wide strips, wrap one around the fins to get the correct dimension and then lay on more layers until the whole thing was approx. ¼”thick. While this might have seemed a stroke of genius, the strips are just barely long enough to wrap around the outer diameter of the fins and clamping became a nightmare! The CA glue I used caused the styrene to become brittle and I ended up with several nasty cracks and an out-of-round piece!
Second attempt was again with the styrene, but this time I attached two pieces together to form a longer strip, thinking that I’d be able to get the ends of the 1st layer to butt up against each other and continue on around with the second layer at the same time; still no joy. The piece ended up still being out of round and the styrene failed with an even bigger series of cracks. I was so frustrated that I ‘round filed’ (trash canned) the whole mess and forgot to take pictures.:angry
After taking Momma out for a good lunch, I decided to try using the Apoxie Sculpt that came in the mail the other day. I cut out a template using one of the few styrene strips I had left and then started laying on a thin (~1/8”) layer of Apoxie. My thinking was that since it was epoxy based, I’d be able to let it start setting up and, before it became too rigid; wrap it around the fins to establish the proper diameter. This worked after a fashion. Apoxie, I learned, doesn’t set up as quickly as, say, 5-minute epoxies do! The end result was that I was able to wrap the ring around the fins and clamp the ends together. The little clamp I was using just didn’t have enough oomph to hold everything together (it slipped 3-4 times) so I had to keep trying to reform the Apoxie and reposition the clamp. Finally, I used one of my ratcheting band clamps from the woodshop and prayed that the stuff had set up enough so that I didn’t end up gluing the strap down as well. Turns out the timing was about right but this attempt nearly failed as well, due to operator error! I just could help trying to make the ring as nearly perfect as I could while it was still easy to work with.
Once the Apoxie reached a fairly rigid state, I decided to spray on the first primer coat. This coat shows even more uneven areas than I thought I had! I may be able to start final shaping and detailing on the stabilizer ring tomorrow.
As always, comments, suggestions, and useful criticisms are always welcome.
I realized this morning after looking over several of my reference images that the screws I installed yesterday were in the wrong location:facepalm! They were supposed to be below the parting line not above. I also think that they were a bit too small as well. I removed the old screws, patched them with the first of 2-3 passes of glazing putty, and then relocated them using slightly shorter #12 brass straight-slot screws. I like the new look and location much better. :cool
I also spent some time today trying to determine the best way to create a perfect circle for the stabilizer ring. There were several different versions (read failed attempts) none of which I was satisfied with. :confused
Second attempt was again with the styrene, but this time I attached two pieces together to form a longer strip, thinking that I’d be able to get the ends of the 1st layer to butt up against each other and continue on around with the second layer at the same time; still no joy. The piece ended up still being out of round and the styrene failed with an even bigger series of cracks. I was so frustrated that I ‘round filed’ (trash canned) the whole mess and forgot to take pictures.:angry
After taking Momma out for a good lunch, I decided to try using the Apoxie Sculpt that came in the mail the other day. I cut out a template using one of the few styrene strips I had left and then started laying on a thin (~1/8”) layer of Apoxie. My thinking was that since it was epoxy based, I’d be able to let it start setting up and, before it became too rigid; wrap it around the fins to establish the proper diameter. This worked after a fashion. Apoxie, I learned, doesn’t set up as quickly as, say, 5-minute epoxies do! The end result was that I was able to wrap the ring around the fins and clamp the ends together. The little clamp I was using just didn’t have enough oomph to hold everything together (it slipped 3-4 times) so I had to keep trying to reform the Apoxie and reposition the clamp. Finally, I used one of my ratcheting band clamps from the woodshop and prayed that the stuff had set up enough so that I didn’t end up gluing the strap down as well. Turns out the timing was about right but this attempt nearly failed as well, due to operator error! I just could help trying to make the ring as nearly perfect as I could while it was still easy to work with.
Once the Apoxie reached a fairly rigid state, I decided to spray on the first primer coat. This coat shows even more uneven areas than I thought I had! I may be able to start final shaping and detailing on the stabilizer ring tomorrow.
As always, comments, suggestions, and useful criticisms are always welcome.
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OptimusWang
New Member
I have to ask, did you scale up the size of the fins/bottom ring as a stylistic choice? Yours are nearly twice the size they should be in relation to the rest of the model. See here:
The ring is roughly the same width as the main section, and fins are maybe 60% smaller than what you have now. The build itself looks great so far, I'm just wondering what led to the proportions changing.
The ring is roughly the same width as the main section, and fins are maybe 60% smaller than what you have now. The build itself looks great so far, I'm just wondering what led to the proportions changing.
madmanmoe64
Well-Known Member
Can't you just use your lathe to create a solid MDF buck? You can then form styrene of whatever you wanted around that, you could even leave the ring on the buck and put it back on the lathe for sanding. I would put cling film or something around the buck first. Although if you did have trouble getting it off, it doesn't matter if you destroy the MDF to do it.
I think your stabiliser ring is oversized, it should be roughly the same diameter as the body of the nuke, and the fins need some repositioning.
Also, I think your nosepiece should be a little less "pointy", and without the step.
Apart from that though, I'm liking the general shape of it a lot.
Also, I think your nosepiece should be a little less "pointy", and without the step.
Apart from that though, I'm liking the general shape of it a lot.
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