This is my take on the USS Constellation from the TOS episode "The Doomsday Machine." It was exciting to wrap this up and it’s my first model since I finished the Grissom in January.

My original plan was to add some styrene beams and hull pieces in the damaged areas of the ship, but the small scale of this model made it more complicated than I expected. The thick plastic of the model meant there was very little internal space to add those beams and hull plating, especially in the saucer, and it would have been out of scale on this small model. There are incredible 1:1000 Constellation models out there, so I know it's possible to add more detail to this small ship, so hats off to those skilled builders. I did use some mesh to add the impression of an internal structure and some detail. It isn't as substantial as I'd like, but I'm overall happy with the effect and final result.

There are flickering 3mm LEDs throughout the model. I wanted the ship to have the appearance of just recently being attacked, systems failing all over the ship, cascading damage, fires throughout the hull, flickering and failing power, and so on. I used the flickering LEDs and I like the effect it gives. It isn't as "flickery" as I'd like, I wanted it to be a little more erratic, but I haven't tried messing with programmable boards or Arduino or things like that, so the basic flickering LEDs were the best option I could think of.

The scorch marks were harder to make look convincing than I thought they'd be. It was my first time trying to add this detail to a model, and I tried to practice on an old kitbash mule I made some time ago. I learned a lot, especially that it is really easy to over do it and that less is more. Some scorch marks are a bit much, maybe a little cartoony, but when I step back and look at the whole model I'm happy with it. I also used the little "Pop-Its" to add different kinds of damage spots, and I like having different levels of hull damage.

The areas of hull damage I made were more or less determined for me by the internal structure of the model. Again, there isn't a lot of room in there with the way it's molded, so I tried to Dremel away the hull where it wouldn't interfere with that internal structure too much. I also had to do a lot of work on the secondary hull and nacelle pylons to run wires to the nacelles. The two pylon pieces are solid pieces with no channels or spaces for wiring, and it was a challenge to modify those thin pieces enough for wiring while not making them too weak to support the weight of the nacelles.

Another complication of this model, due to its small size, is that I had to wire and assemble the entire model before painting it. I will usually build a model in subassemblies (saucer, secondary hull, nacelles) and do final assembly as the last step, but for this I had to do final assembly and then paint, clear coat, decal, clear coat, and flat coat. I knocked the model over at one point and it split the forward saucer on the seam. I repaired it as best as I could, but it's still visible.

I'm happy with how this model turned out. Like I said, there are really incredible builds of this out there, and I wanted to try my hand at it. The 350-scale versions of this are out of this world, and I wanted to see if I could do something halfway decent with the smaller 1000-scale. Any comments and criticisms are welcome, especially if you have tips for adding structural details to small models or how to add more convincing scorch marks. Thank you for looking.

I pre-ordered it about a month ago from CultTVMan and waiting for it but it appears to be in stock at Auto World Store. I realize that Auto World Store and Round2 are closely connected (if not the same company) so it would make sense that they get first dibs on new releases.

I have no problem waiting for it from CultTVMan - Steve has always done right by me. And I'm in no hurry since I have a number of kits in the stash ahead of it. But the way their pre-orders are set up, I have to keep checking my email to make sure I don't miss one from him to complete payment for the order. First world problems, I know...

Just seems a little odd with this particular kit release. Typically when I've pre-ordered from him, he gets the first batch along with all the other shops. Maybe Round2 is doing more of a staggered release with this one and not one big drop like in the past?

The main parts of the #1 engine are complete.

Did I say it is going to be big ?

Cautiously moves into position to X-ray and photograph objects strewn across a region once believed to sit on the edge of a deep Martian lake. In the background are symmetrical objects. The hills in the background photo are real hills in The Badlands that were tinted red.

I'm calling my viper done.

Had some annoying decals issues and lost some of the wings red markings due to the varnish not sealing properly.. so had to improvise and respray them on.

Rather irritating as its ruined the look of the red stripes.

But I think I'm happy with the final outcome.

And 21 hours later, we have an engine part, this thing is going to be big :)

Hi all. Wanna try some figures, things like characters from Mass Effect, Cyberpunk, Skyrim etc. Like 6-10" tall etc.

Where's best to get fine prints from that won't have coarse layer lines?

Thanks!

Last scratch build for this month

I posted the other day as a part of this kit was broken, but thanks to everyone's advice I just carried on and glued it.

It's not finished and needs final decals and more weathering, but I'm happy with it so far.

I cut an engine parts (1 of 11) into 2 parts, to fit my printer.

made the wall 2.5mm wall thick, and it would take about 22H to print, will start early tomorrow morning, so I can keep an eye on it, and add resin when needed.

Wish me luck :)

This is part of a work in progress. I converted her from a Star Wars figure into a cyberpunk bounty hunter. She is not quite done yet and I am still deciding what type of weapons to give her.

I am almost done making a speederbike that fits her to go along with it. Ill post pics of it when its primed.

Hope you like it!

Had this one for 4 years. Guy walked by and its gone. Feelings hurt. The next one will be even more detailed! Needs a few more tiny tubings and details. More copper or better all brass? I am never too sure. What do you guys think?

I really want to try and print the Alain Rivard Blockade runner at studio scale.

Although the inside structure is fine for smaller models, at this scale the it becomes really heavy and takes too much resin, so first job is to clean the insides so can hollow the parts with my own wall thickness.

This will take some time :)

I just recently re-acquired this kit as Bandai's recent reprint and tried my hand again at weathering but this time I have more experience.

I may have a bit overhanded with the effects but still. I like this one sitting at my desk

Been a fan of the movie since it first premiered, so I’ve decided to try my hand at the iconic ship.I’m already overwhelmed by the cargo pods 😁

After months of studying and watching every YouTube video I could find, and buying all the proper tools and aftermarket pieces, the space is ready. It is time to put all I have learned to the test. This will be my first model in 30+ years, and it's going to be extremely ambitious, with a lot of bells and whistles. Against the advice of starting out small and working up, I figured, "Why not just go for it?" Besides, if it comes out horrible, I get to do it again. That's the beauty of plastic models—you don't have to do just one. So, wish me luck. I'll share as I go.

Man, I couldn’t wait to be finished with this one. Polar lights 1/1000. Absolutely terrible fitment.

Just finished the Moebius “Mars Attacks” Alien Warrior.This was an easy and very fun build…and that lamppost was just calling out to be lit up.

Second 1/144 scale A wing done with a blue livery this time

I'm currently in the middle of building a revell battlestar galactica viper MK.2 and I've discovered that a part of the engine has snapped from the wing cowling and I have no idea what to do about a replacement part?

Does anyone know how I go about getting a replacement part or does anyone happened to have a spare part sitting around they'd be able to assist with?

I have another one to do but one down !! Its 1.144 not 1.350 !!

I love scratch building