Vader's Wingman: 37.5 Percent Studio Scale TIE-Fighter

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Sr Member
Taking a summer break from studio scale stuff and working on something fun and quick, namely building Fine Molds' 1:48 TIE-Fighter into a half-scale replica of Vader's ANH Wingman, just before he was ambushed...

Replicating the actual filming miniature, so I added a nominal representation of the standard internal armature:




The armature doesn't have a purpose other than to be visible in the cockpit. No clear parts in the windows on this build, just like the originals.

Next I airbrushed the wing stars using Tamiya Haze Gray, TS-32, decanted directly from the spray can and cut with Mr Color Leveling Thinner. Notice how incredibly nice the "Koolshade" effect is straight out of the box:



Decided there's no need to paint those panels, except for the very outer edge, which also needs to be Haze Gray so that it blends in with the wing framing once it's all sandwiched together.

One of the cool things about the Tamiya Haze Gray is that you can make your model look like just about any picture of the original miniature by varying the light and exposure. Here's the exact same color applied to the mid-section:



and here's a different shot of the same area:



Look familiar? That's just the first coat. Have a few dings to fix and then hope to finish it off this weekend. More to come...

Special thanks to Gene Kozicki for sharing the pics he took of Richard Edlund's original, and for the color match work he shared with us while working on the eFX project. Thanks Gene!
 
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Re: Vader's Wingman: Half Studio Scale TIE-Fighter

Looks good man . I have two of the BCI kits and the mpc vader I was hoping to get too soon.
 
Re: Vader's Wingman: Half Studio Scale TIE-Fighter

Wow, paint matches perfect! The FM scales are so off, so its hardly half studio scale though.
 
Re: Vader's Wingman: Half Studio Scale TIE-Fighter

Kevin killer work, love the armature, and that Haze grey really does nail the desired effect, really cool to see a Studio scale guru, having fun with a styrene kit.......just nice to see guys having fun i guess and not being so bogged down by it all...superb.

Nazgul, hmm technically, it is half studio, by the scale figures that is, cant be getting to real world dims, thats just silly, but going by the fact the studio TIE uses a 1/24 Harrier pilot....id call it half studio for sure!

lee
 
Re: Vader's Wingman: Half Studio Scale TIE-Fighter

Yeah, agreed on the figures, but FM made the TIE way to small compaired to the figure. Their Slave 1 is the other way around, probably because its based on the Ep II Slave, so the figure is to small. FM dont care about the studio model scales.
 
Re: Vader's Wingman: Half Studio Scale TIE-Fighter

The BCI is closer to half studio scale.

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Re: Vader's Wingman: Half Studio Scale TIE-Fighter

Lee,

The Fine Molds kit is not a 50% scale down, but more like 37.5%. Meant to do this comparison sooner, but started the thread before I had the chance.

so what scale would the fine molds tie fighter be? 1/64?
 
Re: Vader's Wingman: Half Studio Scale TIE-Fighter

Assuming the original studio miniature is 1/24, then yes the "1/48" scale FM TIE is actually 1/64.
 
Re: Vader's Wingman: Half Studio Scale TIE-Fighter

Holy cow, so Finemolds are way off what would be a fabled 1/48, apologies Nazgul....didnt think they would be that far off, but then i guess it all boils down to those who make up these "real" world figures on fantasy aircraft lol.

Kevin it still looks awesome under the shadow of that super sexy Icons, said it before, but that really is a super sexy Icons lol.

lee
 
Re: Vader's Wingman: Half Studio Scale TIE-Fighter

Well, it seemed a bit smallish to me, too. But that's a pretty good difference between 1/48 and 1/64, obviously.

Still, I'm really impressed with the surface details on these things, particularly on the outer ball, arms and wings. They copied the made-up ICONS cockpit panel, though, instead of the studio miniature. But everything else about this kit is sharp and accurate to my eye. And the best thing about this being machined is that the "Koolshade" panels really look like, well, machined Koolshade.

And yeah, Lee, thanks on the ICONS. There's nothing like having the stuff sourced from the original models. You can keep your idealized digital 3-D scans, boys. Analog all the way for me!
 
Re: Vader's Wingman: Half Studio Scale TIE-Fighter

Holy ... That SS TIE is pure beauty... Paint and detail work is perfect! :love

FM makes very nice stuff, no doubt. But the scales are bananas compaired to SS.
 
Re: Vader's Wingman: Half Studio Scale TIE-Fighter

Some good info! The tie looks sweet I will have to remember the Haze Grey for my FM kit..... The studio scale makes it look so puny
 
Great job!

I use the same Tamiya Haze Grey for my Studio scale Tie and it's a very close match to original filiming miniature.

GFollano
 
Thanks guys. GF, your studio scale build thread was definitely one of my primary inspirations for this side project.

Working out a color match for the contrasting gray used on the top hatch of the Edlund TIE. Also found a suitably smallish "Goodyear" decal in one of my 1/20 Tamiya F1 kits that I can use for that area, along with a couple of the supplied FM decals.
 
Awesome job! I like how tou can just catch a peek of the armature mount through the cockpit windows. How much bigger than the 1:72 tie is this kit? I like that this version gives you the option of no glass on the cockpit.

Robert
 
I picked up a couple of these kits for a song at a hobby contest & swap. TIEs are classic but I've never been a huge fan like some of the other ships --- HOWEVER you've made me turn the corner. Can't wait to crack my little guys open and work on them.
Excellent work Kevin - appreciate you sharing.
btw, truly funny how exposure changes everything and the haze gray works for both looks/exposure.
 
I know this is an old post, but I have to say this is a beautiful build of the Fine Molds 1/48 Tie Fighter!

The added armature inside and no cockpit glass makes this one look like the studio model. Excellent job! :thumbsup
 
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