History of Salzo / Captain Cardboard X-Wings?

Aah...

I didn't notice that the clear half pipe was a part, but I'm starting to understand what those 'pill bottle' pieces might have really been.

Where can I send the trophy?! Seriously: you, Tox, Ralphee, Jason, Nwerke, Frank, Moe, and others...are so passionate about this and so good at spotting things. And you guys have built such a library of kits to do it. And have been working on these finds for years. The passion. It's amazing!

Thanks again for sharing!

Yes it is, and it was sanded flat. Each of the Sealab parts in that picture was used on the X-Wing.
 
Since this is a 'history of' thread, I'll add a few, minor, comments to what has been said about my part in all this...

I started my kit by using the ICONS fuselage as a shape reference and built up my fuselage from scratch, using 'Model Plank', which is like Renshape. I was able to make some dimensional corrections using photos I took of Grant McCune's built X-wing. If I recall correctly, I added 3/4" to the length of the dimensions I got from the ICONS fuselage, though it may have been 1/2". Anyway, I got the fuselage shape finished with the best references available at the time.

Randy Cooper joined the effort for a while after I had opened my own shop in L.A. He and I did most of the work, though there were a few other guys who added their efforts during the development period.

I consulted with David Beasley while we were working on BICENTENIAL MAN. (Actually, I think Dave was working on MISSION TO MARS. Both films were done at the same time in the same shop...) Dave is the guy who built the X-wing masters and did most of the work on the hero models. He told me about the pill bottle used as the bottom of the engine intake. Some have said this part is from the Sealab kit. From what I know of how all the X-wing models were built from mostly parts, using very few custom castings, I think it is possible both were used. I don't know why Dave would tell me something I had not asked him about if it weren't true!

As for how many kits I sold, I think it was between 200 and 250.

Scott
 
I always thought it would be fun to build an XWING with all REAL parts.

And NOT paint it.

Now that would be a most extreme build! Playing on that idea. You could paint your resin SS X-Wing to look like it was unpainted.:love
 
Would be great to see all the colors... but if you're going that far than you would have to source vintage kits to make sure the plastic colors were accurate to their 1970s releases. AND you're still going to need more than one Sealab. I don't know if anyone was watching but the most recent complete unassembled one went for a whopping $560. I sent Moebius the link, and encourage everyone here to pester them for a re-release:
http://moebiusmodels.com/contact_us.php
 
Do they have access to the molds? I thought the molds were lost.

I'd been wondering if it would be feasible to take a kit and use it as a master for another injection mold. Someday there won't be any kits left. And it might actually be worth pursuing it this way.

Would be great to see all the colors... but if you're going that far than you would have to source vintage kits to make sure the plastic colors were accurate to their 1970s releases. AND you're still going to need more than one Sealab. I don't know if anyone was watching but the most recent complete unassembled one went for a whopping $560. I sent Moebius the link, and encourage everyone here to pester them for a re-release:
http://moebiusmodels.com/contact_us.php
 
Would be great to see all the colors... but if you're going that far than you would have to source vintage kits to make sure the plastic colors were accurate to their 1970s releases. AND you're still going to need more than one Sealab . . . I sent Moebius the link, and encourage everyone here to pester them for a re-release:
http://moebiusmodels.com/contact_us.php
OK I just pestered Moebius too. We'll have to spread the word though, two emails is not enough.

Regarding building an unpainted hero X-Wing with all original parts - I think at that point you are approaching the limits of "replication". As mentioned, the colors may not be the same, no way to know for sure exactly which parts were used on which bird, some parts not as crisp because of mold wear and/or modification. There comes a point where you simply cannot "go back" in time to that degree of detail.

Imagine turning down a super rare kit on Ebay because the color is molded wrong!
 
Imagine turning down a super rare kit on Ebay because the color is molded wrong!

No need. I've done it and I'm sure others have as well. :cool With a rare exception the great thing about ebay is if you have time, you will find another.

But mainly due to the quality of the parts. As long as the plastic isn't too brittle IMO you're better off with an old release. I know its sounds ridiculous, but I'd rather have a kit that came from the molds early on. The Saturn V defects/tooling changes for example. But at least it always comes in white.
 
Would be great to see all the colors... but if you're going that far than you would have to source vintage kits to make sure the plastic colors were accurate to their 1970s releases. AND you're still going to need more than one Sealab. I don't know if anyone was watching but the most recent complete unassembled one went for a whopping $560. I sent Moebius the link, and encourage everyone here to pester them for a re-release:
http://moebiusmodels.com/contact_us.php

I would also start a thread here on the Hobbytalk forum. There is a seperate Moebius forum there. I would start one there but you guys are much more authoritive on the Sealab kit.
http://www.hobbytalk.com/bbs1/forumdisplay.php?f=275
 
. . . I know its sounds ridiculous, but I'd rather have a kit that came from the molds early on . . .
Not ridiculous, just a lot more work - but work does have its rewards, as these forums have shown.

Then again, you could go nuts and paint the individual greeblies in the colors that you want and then build it! No one will know! :lol

Getting back to the subject: so, aside from the Estes Maxi-Brute, the ICONS X-Wing was the first mainstream attempt at a studio scale X-Wing in the early 90's, then came the CC, right?

Nothing else in-between? We didn't miss anything?
 
Nothing that I know of, Vince...

I know! I know! Necroposting...sorry!! Thought this might be of interest to Scott, though. :) Also thought it was relevant in general, what with Frank's kit shipping now...

How did I miss this entire thread?? Wow, I've been doing that a lot lately, but this was last year...
 
Yes, this is the info I was looking for when I posted in the junkyard. Thanks for the help and the PMs Martyn. I forgot where to find the info, and had saved some history tidbits to my computer, but not this thread.
 
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