superjedi
Sr Member
Hi all,
Been a while since I've had time to sit down and work on a model, and a couple of weekends ago I found a Moon Bus kit at my LHS so I snapped it up and started to build it. This is the Moebius Models release of the old Aurora kit, which has become very collectible/expensive since its original release years ago. I had always wanted one but it had long since climbed out of my price range. I picked up this Moebius version for around $44.
There are several aftermarket detail kits for this model, including a resin interior set, a photoetch detail set, and even waterslide decals. But I have a self-imposed hobby budget and didn't want to rack up major $$$ on this one.
This version (as I understand) has corrected a couple of problems with the old Aurora version; namely roof warp, and the addition of 2 new clear windscreen parts. The Aurora kit had large sloping windscreens which conformed to the shape of the nose cone. The shooting miniature featured vertical windscreens which were much smaller. This kit gives you the option to build either way.
It's a nicely engineered model. Everything has been going together smoothly so far. Here are some progress shots.
The interior:
I did a very basic paint job on this. The kit's big roof panel is designed to be removable, but I intend to glue it on, so much of this interior detail won't be very visible through the relatively small windows.
After primer, I sprayed the interior parts with Testors SAC bomber green as an overall base coat. The seats were painted with Tamiya brown, and various colors were used on the "cargo" parts.
The roof was masked and the inside shot with the SAC green as well.
The nose assembly:
Nothing too cosmic here, just some basic flat black with details on the control panel picked out in Floquil bright silver and Testors gloss red.
The landing gear, referred to in the instructions as "walkers" each consist of 14 parts! Very clever design which made painting very simple. Just some Metalizer stainless steel for the base, bright silver on the shock absorbers, and flat black on the central piston.
Forgot to take more progress shots, but she's finished now.
It was a fun build of a rare subject. The kit was nicely manufactured and everything went together well. As I mentioned above, I didn't go hog wild on the interior as I glued the roof in place.
I used Tamiya sprays for the exterior painting; flat white base coat, then masked some panels and shot them in Tamiya insignia white. Finally, I used a blend of flat gull gray/blue gray for the slightly darker panels. The landing gear and exhaust cones were done with Testors metallizer stainless steel (unbuffed.)
I did some minimal pastel weathering on the lower surfaces, using some black and grays. Most noticeable is around the large RCS exhausts on the kit's "shoulder" pods.
After the pastel weathering, but before gluing on the landing gear/nozzles, I sealed everything with some Krylon matte clear.
I'm going to get a little acrylic case to display it in. This is the first 2001 model I've built. Too bad there aren't more mass produced kits. I know there are resin kits out there of other subjects, including that gorgeous Aries, but it's not in my budget range right now. Oh well, maybe someday!
Thanks for looking,
Eric
Been a while since I've had time to sit down and work on a model, and a couple of weekends ago I found a Moon Bus kit at my LHS so I snapped it up and started to build it. This is the Moebius Models release of the old Aurora kit, which has become very collectible/expensive since its original release years ago. I had always wanted one but it had long since climbed out of my price range. I picked up this Moebius version for around $44.
There are several aftermarket detail kits for this model, including a resin interior set, a photoetch detail set, and even waterslide decals. But I have a self-imposed hobby budget and didn't want to rack up major $$$ on this one.
This version (as I understand) has corrected a couple of problems with the old Aurora version; namely roof warp, and the addition of 2 new clear windscreen parts. The Aurora kit had large sloping windscreens which conformed to the shape of the nose cone. The shooting miniature featured vertical windscreens which were much smaller. This kit gives you the option to build either way.
It's a nicely engineered model. Everything has been going together smoothly so far. Here are some progress shots.
The interior:
I did a very basic paint job on this. The kit's big roof panel is designed to be removable, but I intend to glue it on, so much of this interior detail won't be very visible through the relatively small windows.
After primer, I sprayed the interior parts with Testors SAC bomber green as an overall base coat. The seats were painted with Tamiya brown, and various colors were used on the "cargo" parts.
The roof was masked and the inside shot with the SAC green as well.
The nose assembly:
Nothing too cosmic here, just some basic flat black with details on the control panel picked out in Floquil bright silver and Testors gloss red.
The landing gear, referred to in the instructions as "walkers" each consist of 14 parts! Very clever design which made painting very simple. Just some Metalizer stainless steel for the base, bright silver on the shock absorbers, and flat black on the central piston.
Forgot to take more progress shots, but she's finished now.
It was a fun build of a rare subject. The kit was nicely manufactured and everything went together well. As I mentioned above, I didn't go hog wild on the interior as I glued the roof in place.
I used Tamiya sprays for the exterior painting; flat white base coat, then masked some panels and shot them in Tamiya insignia white. Finally, I used a blend of flat gull gray/blue gray for the slightly darker panels. The landing gear and exhaust cones were done with Testors metallizer stainless steel (unbuffed.)
I did some minimal pastel weathering on the lower surfaces, using some black and grays. Most noticeable is around the large RCS exhausts on the kit's "shoulder" pods.
After the pastel weathering, but before gluing on the landing gear/nozzles, I sealed everything with some Krylon matte clear.
I'm going to get a little acrylic case to display it in. This is the first 2001 model I've built. Too bad there aren't more mass produced kits. I know there are resin kits out there of other subjects, including that gorgeous Aries, but it's not in my budget range right now. Oh well, maybe someday!
Thanks for looking,
Eric
