The Escape Pod Project

Hmmm. So photobucket officially sucks now. That's too bad.

Yup, look, I understand it's a free service and I don't have a problem with pop up ads or even them asking me to pay, but this is obviously a ploy to hold people that use the service for Etsy, Ebay and other commerce sites for ransom. Like I said before, $400 per year to "unlock" is ridiculous!

I just spent about an hour pulling down the relatively few linked photos in this thread and using the RPF's direct upload so the pix will be here forever. I've got dozens of build threads here and elsewhere going back more than ten years. Oy!
 
Yup, look, I understand it's a free service and I don't have a problem with pop up ads or even them asking me to pay, but this is obviously a ploy to hold people that use the service for Etsy, Ebay and other commerce sites for ransom. Like I said before, $400 per year to "unlock" is ridiculous!

I just spent about an hour pulling down the relatively few linked photos in this thread and using the RPF's direct upload so the pix will be here forever. I've got dozens of build threads here and elsewhere going back more than ten years. Oy!

Same thing just happened to me. Sux as just finished a thread in general modeling of a sea mine fireplace i just built with heaps of pics now all gone.
 
For the model mount I used a tube with a 5/8" inner diameter. This allows the use of a 5/8" rod as the display stand. This was also a size we commonly used "back in the day" for model mounts as it allowed the use of standard stage grip equipment, which is based around a 5/8" diameter pin or pipe, to hold models for construction, painting and filming. I have a variety of grip equipment that proves helpful now as a model stand.
 

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Dave,

When you cast these nozzles, do you "Roto-Cast" them, or just "Pressure-Cast" them? The reason I ask is: they look flawless, and I can't achieve the same results when I do the circular Payhauler nozzles with a similar two-part mold, so wondering if it's the lack of a roto-casting setup, or just the lack of 30 years experience in the industry and 2 Emmy's under my belt. Even "overpouring" the resin and putting them under 60psi, I can't get them "filled" and "bubble-free" very consistently. What am I doing wrong?

Cheers,

SK
 
For the model mount I used a tube with a 5/8" inner diameter. This allows the use of a 5/8" rod as the display stand. This was also a size we commonly used "back in the day" for model mounts as it allowed the use of standard stage grip equipment, which is based around a 5/8" diameter pin or pipe, to hold models for construction, painting and filming. I have a variety of grip equipment that proves helpful now as a model stand.

Is there a place us laymen can go to into like Burbank and pick up stands like this? I would love to put some of my builds on professional stands.
 
Dave,

When you cast these nozzles, do you "Roto-Cast" them, or just "Pressure-Cast" them? The reason I ask is: they look flawless, and I can't achieve the same results when I do the circular Payhauler nozzles with a similar two-part mold, so wondering if it's the lack of a roto-casting setup, or just the lack of 30 years experience in the industry

They're not roto cast, just pressure cast in a two part mold. There's no big secret but I guess years of pouring resin creates a bit of an instinct as to what works and what doesn't. That's not to sound flippant, I'm really not sure what the trick is. One thing is to make sure not to mix too much air into the resin and I do over fill a bit, though not a lot. Since I only needed four castings I did not set up the mold with a fill channel and sprues like I did with the shrouds. Basically I pour the resin into the female side of the mold, then lower the male core side of the mold in displacing the extract resin. Then into the pressure tank. Every mold is different and has different quirks. The first couple of castings had bad bubbles around the rim until I got the hang of this mold.

- - - Updated - - -

Is there a place us laymen can go to into like Burbank and pick up stands like this? I would love to put some of my builds on professional stands.


Yes, Filmtools is a good place, although they are a little pricey. Norm's is another good place, most of my stands are from them, cheaper prices, I think they are up in San Fernando now. Matthews and Mole Richardson in Hollywood are good, but a bit expensive.
 
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Thanks guys! Ive been asking this info from another member for months. But I guess that was his little secret.

Great looking Escape Pod. Its been a while since a good one rolled off the RPF production floor.
 
Looking very good Dave...eager to see the painting process and how much wear and tear you'll put on that one:)
 
American makes the best grip gear to actually use on set. Not cheap.

Modern is also an interesting option. Though they don't make C-stands, they make a lot of other stuff and will do custom work very inexpensively. They sell directly to the public over the phone with a CC at 25% off their list price. Don't need to set up an account.

But for stand purposes pretty much anything will do. The world is awash in C-stands, so keep an eye on local sales outlets for used gear. That vintage look is cool anyway. The pads on old grip heads can bet replaced. A good idea if they are well-worn and supporting a precious model.

And always remember the clock-wise rule for grip heads: knuckle towards you. Weight to the right. This means the weight tightens the head if it moves. You don't want the weight pulling counter-clockwise and loosening the head. That results in sadness ;-)
 
Working on the final detailing last weekend. As I was pouring a mold in the adjacent room I heard the unmistakable thud of what had to be a model impacting the floor. Sure enough, I had left the Escape Pod just lying on my workbench and as soon as I walked away, it had rolled off and fallen to the concrete floor! :eek

Fortunately the damage was minor, only one really smashed up detail. The few other dents are now authentic "weathering"!

Broken Part.jpg
 
Royal - the only progress recently on this project has been drawing laying out the styrene plating patterns and acquiring kit parts. The Y-Wing Project has been taking all my time in the Shop.

Pro Mod - Here is a full scale drawing of the hull shapes based on the shells that were formed in the buckets. Hope this helps. Although it would be pretty expensive, if you want to cover the cost I'll ship you some 5 quart buckets...

NOTE - THIS DRAWING IS BASED ON CONTEMPORARY 5 QUART BUCKETS WHICH ARE MOST LIKELY NOT THE SAME SIZE AND PROPORTION AS THOSE USED ON THE ORIGINAL MODEL.

Hey Dave, Pod is looking sweet ! I wanted to ask if you know how much you would have to scale up your drawing to match the studio model. Maybe a percentage upscale ? Do we know if you can still get the original buckets ? Thanks,

Joe

P.S. Found the buckets !
Oops, deleted the ebay listing. It's not a rare kit, but read another post that said there was a rule about linking to auctions, my bad ;-)
 
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It's not just a matter of scaling, the proportions of the 1970's vintage KFC buckets are different than contemporary 5 quart paint buckets. As near was I can tell they are wider and possibly shorter. So the taper angle is likely to be different as well. Also I laid out all my panels and detail based on trying to get them to visually match the original but on a slightly different shape. What this all means is that to lay out patterns for a "screen accurate" Pod would mean basically starting from scratch. Sorry.
 
Hey no worries. I found a couple of photos of the vintage bucket. They even laid a ruler across the bucket. Unfortunately the one for the vertical axis is leaning, so probably only a best guess from that pic. No diameter for the bottom of the bucket. Too much to hope for I guess ;-)

s-l1600.jpg

s-l1600 (1).jpg
 

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