ST Enterprise Xindi Rifle Build

[TymerDC]

Hello Everyone,

This is a project I've been working on for some time and now its coming to light. Some friends and I have obtained a Screen-Used Xindi Stunt Rifle and with the owners permission we are in the process of making our own for our collections. The pictures below are EXAMPLES of what it looks like and not the one we have obtained since one of the stipulations of using this prop is not to post pics of it on the internet and we respect the owners wishes.

 

[TymerDC]

So far the molds are done and the results are pictured below. They turned out extremely nice.

 

[Lichtbringer]

To make nice molds from such simple parts is easy.


The done castings gonna be much more interesting.

 

[TymerDC]

This is the first rifle out of the molds. No flaws and aside from the small seam line..it will require very little clean-up. Right now I'm doing a static build but will visit doing a hollow cast later once we figure out the problems with the main body since its a bit complicated. I also want to find out just how this lighted on the hero version. Maybe someone here has seen one up close. I've looked at the DVD and I'm sure only the triangle and 2 long selector "buttons" on the top lite up. I've seen one episode where you can see a "countdown" display for self destruct but I'm sure that was a CG display added.
We decided to cast them in black good high quality resin. We felt the black would work better after painting should the rifle get scratched and you wouldn't see any white under the paint...it would just looked battle used.

 

[TymerDC]

Updates will be slow since this is just a side project. We also have a very good painter to help us get the Iridescent Bug look to the rifle just right and I will post the process at a later date once we all have all ours built, primed and ready for painting. Some modifications will have to be done too like the "emitter" on the front of the rifle has to be removed and white acrylic added. I also felt leaving it gave me a pattern to use to get it accurate.

 

[TymerDC]

Its easy for a real experienced mold maker. Molding this was very time consuming and we wanted a good clean cast with as tiny a seam as we could get to reduce the work in cleanup...I think we achieved that.

To make nice molds from such simple parts is easy.


The done castings gonna be much more interesting.

 

[Lichtbringer]

Regarding your above question - i would say your best bet would have been to ask Kev, but as you have not been very nice with him i assume that door is completly shut. Sorry.

 

[TymerDC]

We are not turning this into a thread about him...please keep your posts on subject...thank you. I also have avenues to eventually see a hero weapon eventually when time allows. I'm sure other RFPers here have seen one also and are welcome to share if they want.

It looks nice.

Regarding your above question - i would say your best bet would have been to ask Kev, but as you have not been very nice with him i assume that door is completly shut. Sorry.

 

[Lichtbringer]

Well, you asked - i answered to give you requested infos. Thanks for being so kind in your reply.

I didn´t say he´s the only one, just that he might have been your best bet. No need to thank me for providing you that info, but also no need to get paranoid.

 

[SteveNeill]

Great freaking job Dennis!!!

 

[TymerDC]

well the turkey buzz has subsided enough for me to stand and do a little work on my Rifle. Thought I'd start with the head piece, wet sanding the seams as pictured below with the help of my little daughter holding it so I can take the picture just to illustrate.

 

[TymerDC]

Next after sanding I took a square flat exacto knife and used it to chisel out a some small beads of resin left in the "V" cut where the mold seams are.

 

[TymerDC]

Wanting to keep the resin black I mixed some black color into the glazing putty before applying it to the seams to darken it as much as I could. The Exacto Knife I used as a chisel also makes a great tiny putty knife. I could have sanded away all seams but opted to instead sand down the seams nearly gone then use putty to finish. This in my opinion minimizes taking too much material off and keeping the prop as accurate as possible to the shape of the Screen Prop.

 

[TymerDC]

The putty I mixed looks like dark chocolate but after wet sanding its nearly unnoticeable. Some of the discoloration is just water still on the resin. More to come later

 

[TymerDC]

Decided to now fit the headpiece to the main body so it sits square and straight. Out of the mold it was a little loose and due to some flaws on the Screen prop which was cloned to our molds. The Headpiece slides onto the Rifle but where it rests against the main body makes it lean a little to one side. So the next step is to square up this area on the main body. As you can see the headpiece was already square with just a little sanding on the seams.

 

[TymerDC]

First is to get the materials I'll need which is some Fiber Strand Body Filler, plastic wrap, painters tape, a medium note pad, ice cream sticks, Black Dye.

 

[TymerDC]

I then roughened up the area I was going to add material so it would bond better.

 

[TymerDC]

Next I prepared the headpiece by using plastic wrap to protect the area I didn't want body filler to bond to. As you can see I'm using the headpiece as a pattern to square up the base it rests against on the rifle body.

 

[TymerDC]

I then mixed up some body filler and dyed it black. The put a glob of it on the area of the main body pictured.

 

[TymerDC]

Working quickly I then slide the headpiece onto the main body slowly while keeping it straight til it rested against the base. The excess filler will squeeze out and if done right the square end of the headpiece will mirror to the main body base where it rests against. I then held it there till the Filler started to harden up.