Jump to content

Blackadder's Scratchbuilt Thunderhawk


Recommended Posts

  • 5 months later...

A belated thanks for the info;

 

Dawn of the Green Screen:
 
At the behest of one of my readers I have attempted to add a bit of sophistication to my images; namely a 'green screen' so he/they can add a proper background my otherwise tawdry efforts in photography.
 
http://i.imgur.com/Sescs2bl.jpg
 
I still haven't ironed out all the wrinkles (groan!) in the overall background but for a first effort it does the job.
 
http://i.imgur.com/gzjynN3l.jpg
 
To celebrate this new excursion into picture taking I'm resuming work on the Thunderhawk whilst taking an well earned break for work on the Reaver
 
http://i.imgur.com/0Ki6P3yl.jpg
 
Today I will address the spindle shank main landing gear to see if I can beef it up and make it retractable.
 
That and finish up the little bit of exterior detail left to do.
  • 3 weeks later...
Volcano Cannon Elevation Boot

 

It's the little things you forget that bite you on the arse every time.

 

I built the Volcano Cannon and the housing quite some time ago and beefed up the trunnion yesterday, slipped the ole cannon onto the shaft and "Lo!" there's a ruddy great gap behind the cannon that has to be filled or the install will look like crap.

 


http://i.imgur.com/rjIhz4cl.jpg

 

Well I started making the cover/boot and glued it on and then thought, I should share this with my readers because it's a common enough problem and at least this will be my solution for what it's worth.

 

So I affixed a sheet of thin styrene to the breach of the cannon...............

 


http://i.imgur.com/M2Qn12Pl.jpg

 

And slid the barrel onto the elevating plug.............

 


http://i.imgur.com/sMdGCcpl.jpg

 

So now when the cannon is raised the thin sheet of styrene disappears into the turret housing without an unsightly cloth boot.

 


http://i.imgur.com/DRe9XcWl.jpg

 

Now all needs be done is decorate the sheet and install slide tracks and curved races for the sheet to run on.

Boots and Struts

 

Not bad for a days work, thankfully it was too hot to work outside; no Spring this year.

 

Anyway the boot is roughed in just some rivet detail and some bits and panels for under the cannon to add.

 


http://i.imgur.com/9NjUWWol.jpg

 

cannon in the stowed position shows the spine detail of the boot.

 


http://i.imgur.com/EK9LQctl.jpg

 

 

Eye Candy: 

 

Moving on to the landing gear the new strut sleeves give sufficient bulk to the gear and the foot pad leveling cylinder adds enough complexity to stimulate the eye. 

 


http://i.imgur.com/p6eFBpml.jpg

 

The leveling cylinder also stabilizes the foot pad so it can't twist round in the strut sleeve and it provides enough friction to keep the foot pad secure when the model is lifted.

 

The landing gear still looks rather plain, it needs some hydraulic hoses sensor cables and strut reinforcements to perk it up

 

Likewise with the nose gear.....

 


http://i.imgur.com/OWmqyxBl.jpg

 

 

Just a Song Er (a few images )

 

before I start applying paint for this beasty so it can be seen the finishing details and yes I cheated and sprung for a few etched Aquilas. Of course I can make Aquilas but making this many, this size, and all the same size was just beyond even my patience; God I want this painted and out of the queue so badly, I'm so sick of this Thunderhawk project; damn near 6 years on the process.

 

So anyway the Profile:

 


http://i.imgur.com/5VTQnB0l.jpg

 

The Quarter View:

 


http://i.imgur.com/DhMuuayl.jpg

 

Front View: 

 


http://i.imgur.com/7a6zGLsl.jpg

 

 

In attack position:

(Yeah the canards are not glue on due to painting considerations.)


http://i.imgur.com/PNrQPCyl.jpg

 

And a bird's eye view:

 


http://i.imgur.com/jIrLvcYl.jpg

 

And Damn I forgot a rear view................

This thing looks outstanding. as a longtime admirer seeing your efforts to perfect this thing has made me realize that sometimes its ok to buy models. OUtstanding work, no way that I would have the patience to do what you have done. Absolutely incredible work.

My Two Cents:

 

There's nothing wrong with buying models, I've bought many in my time but the cost of models and resin models in particular has skyrocketed over the past few years and something must be done (at least in my case 'cause my kids gotta eat....) to offset the dollar drain. I offered an alternative and try to show what can be done when your budget won't allow dumping thousands of hard earned dollars on miniatures. A good case in point are the incredible Russian 40K forums that specialize in paper craft; producing high quality FW models out of paper. I learned a lot from joining those sites and believe me many of the artists there would put any one of us to shame with their skill at reproducing models indistinguishable for the resin originals. Now FW has offered what I consider a pretty mediocre $2000 dollar Warlord capitalizing on their name and rep. The model is nothing more than an undersized up scaled 'Knight' titan with very little innovation and imagination in it's execution and presentation (cripes couldn't they show it as a side by side with a Reaver and Warhound???? They wouldn't dare because it's too small!!! A minimum of 26 inches by their own formula is the requisite size for a Warlord and theirs computes 3 inches deficient.......). I'm thankful that I built my own Warlord but had they offered a reasonable production Mars Warlord uncompromised in size and grandeur I would have had my order in already. 

Thank you and so you understand that I have held off on the painting until today so I could upgrade even further that which still needed to be accomplished.........

 

Thunderhawk Exploded View:
 
I was advised gently by a reader that the rear of the vehicle seemed lacking in detail so I poured over the images again and found easily over a hundred rivets and bits I had previously overlooked so it has held up the painting process until today..........
 
Bottom view of basic hull and components:
 
http://i.imgur.com/XsuOMZ4l.jpg
 
The image above shows all the components removed for painting which simplifies the the process plus it makes the model more amendable should I decide to add modifications.
 
Note above that there is easy access to the forward  cargo bay and that the interior walls have yet to be installed so I can wire in the lighting easily. The nose landing gear panel slides out for access to the interior and was such a tight fit I'd forgotten it was removable until this morning.
 
Side view of the basic hull and components:
 
http://i.imgur.com/66PXt7Rl.jpg
 
All the components you see here are held in place with 4 deck screws, slide in pockets, a twelve inch long rig pin to keep the wings from drooping and lots of rare earth magnets. The whole model can be disassembled as you see it at anytime after the construction is completed.

The fun of these projects is in the engineering; once finished they are just sidelined on the shelf. I hate the completion because it just opens another window. I would much prefer they never reach fruition.

 

"Insane" is a good call.............

I was asked what Chapter I was going with; I really like Grey Knights in this colour:

 

http://www.dakkadakka.com/s/i/at/at2/2012/2/13/e909f09c106a1ec2b4873d633def89c4_6825.jpg
 
http://thelordinquisitor.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Thunderhawk_Landing_wip_featureimage.jpg
 
Can these be seen? I often wonder if my links are visible.....
 
Cosmetics?

 

I'm going to try an experiment in colouring the Thunderhawk. I had satisfactory results coating my Warlord with dry pigment dust over flat black which gave an aged and weathered look instantly to the surface and the powder clung to the matte black finish so it does not come off on when handling.

 

To get the finish I want on the Thunderhawk I am going to utilize a similar approach. This time with dry mineral powder cosmetic make up over grey flat primer. I have ordered a cadmium yellow/green cosmetic from Amazon; $5.77 plus free shipping and have painted the hull a flat grey.

 

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51yEU9kqpBL.jpg

 

I'm hoping this technique will give me a thin weathered streaked and mottled appearance visible in the images I posted in the above article. If so it will open an avenue heretofore unexplored (at least by me) in model finishing. 

Done and Yet Not Done:

 

So I painted the prime on the hull after stripping off all the removable parts and I keep finding detail I've missed probably because there was so much scribbling on the parts I confused it with hard detail. I added dozens on new bits of rivets and panels and trim to the hull and  am now working on intensifying the detail on the wing/engine root; a project I had either forgotten or ignored but anyway this morning at 2:30 AM the way to accomplish this detail came to me and it is now 4:00 AM as I write and the preliminary pieces are glued into place ready for the finish of the modification when I reawaken later this morning at a more reasonable hour.

 

Pictures Later:

If that is so it demonstrates the extent of my thickheadedness because I always prime my scratchbuilds grey and I always have to relearn that same lesson; Ha!

 

To make a mistake once is ignorance, to make it repeatedly is plain and simple stupidity.

 

Fortunately the prime is compatible with styrene glue so adding detail does not require scraping off the thin primer coat.

I presume you are cutting a free piece not one already glued to a model(?) You can try a reasonable sharp razor saw if you want to saw all the way through the tubing but the chances of a perfectly straight cut is minimal and too time consuming.

 

http://www.newmodellersshop.co.uk/images/expo_tools/735-44.jpg

 

What I do is make a deep score with a saw or utility knife

http://static.hardwarestore.com/media/product/293639_front200.jpg

 

on the tube to penetrate to the inner surface and then snap the tube with my fingers by bending away from the score. then if the surfaces aren't perfectly true I file or sandpaper until the ends are true.

Another method if you are using "Evergreen" styrene tubing is take advantage of the telescoping capability of that brand of tubing and stick the tube in the next size diameter of a fresh piece of tubing and score around the edge of the sleeved insert. Then slide the inner tube a bit out an snap. That usually gives good results but always check the cut end for squareness with a combination square

 

http://www.daviddarling.info/images/combination_square.jpg

 

to be sure.

Thanks for the tips. I guess much of it comes down to practice, as the more I sand, the more crooked things seem to get :D

I'll keep at it, at maybe look at one of those combination squares for measuring. It seems the less eyaballing and more measuring I do, the better.

In Her Prime:

 

After six years in the making the Thunderhawk is finally in her prime. The end cap tensioners for the flying Laser struts are still drying and I hope the Cadmium pigment arrives tomorrow so with any luck I'll begin colouring her this week 

 


http://i.imgur.com/zbksp2Ul.jpg

 

It's been a long painstaking process to reach this point but the ship has finally grown on me and I perceive a certain charm to the ugly brute after all.

 


http://i.imgur.com/nF9P1YGl.jpg

 

The gun turrets still need a bit of work before painting and I may rebuild them; I haven't decided.

 


http://i.imgur.com/cf5diwPl.jpg

 

And finally the rear view which is often neglected during my picture taking.......

 


http://i.imgur.com/XHrGvRZl.jpg

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.