Star Destroyer #3

[ringa]

Well, here's what I am working on. As I've stated in another thread, I am not building an exact replica of the ANH Star Destroyer down to the last kit part, so details will differ from the original here and there, though I want this one to be much more accurate than my first two. I am more concerned with accurate proportions––as accurate as I can possibly be, anyway.

Looking at the back of the ship you can see a lot of missing pieces. These I would like to have the accurate parts for whenever I can find them. I'm more concerned with having original parts for what I consider the 'focal points' of the ship.







My first two Star Destroyers have very few original kit parts, but they can be found here if you would like to see them:
http://www.RickIngalsbeStudio.com

[star-art]

C'est magnifique! Looking forward to seeing this in person at WonderFest. . .

[ringa]

(04-06-2011, 02:16 AM)star-art Wrote: C'est magnifique! Looking forward to seeing this in person at WonderFest. . .

Charles my friend! Thanks for the support. It's because of you that I am continuing with this after all these months.

[JAWS]

SNAP! That is beautiful! Damn you just got me so excited all over again. Rick you have so many accurate parts already. I think you need the Aoshima Washington parts on the Bridge face next to the Fujimi Willy parts. I see you substituted with a round parts. If you dont want to buy the kit I will cast it for you. This is great! Thanks for sharing your work & story at the site. A true inspiration.

[ringa]

Thanks for the complements and the offer. I will take you up on that.

This is backwards in progress, but I just dug up these pictures of the model before most of the details were added. I apologize for the photos being a bit grainy. It is dark in my work area, and the shots using flash wash some of the details out.




Here's one of the structures before they were glued, just taped together...

[JAWS]

I also have castings of those Aurora Sea Lab tanks you need for the bottom raer corners of the superstructure.

[ringa]

(04-06-2011, 10:22 AM)omes72 Wrote: I also have castings of those Aurora Sea Lab tanks you need for the bottom raer corners of the superstructure.

Wow! You know more about what I need than I do. Make a list, I'll hold off on painting until all those castings are in place.

Thanks!

[JAWS]

No worries. I like to help & share. I have spent some time Iding this model(my first real ID project). I have also been very fortunate to have had help from others aswell. Charles Adams, Alan Anderson, Julien Ceresa, Wilkster(RPF0, Eric Ckwanwoo & everyone else. I thank them all as will other modelers when the id's are completed(if ever really completed). Thats the mission of this site & I will start development threads for all subjects over time. Not just Star Wars & Battlestar Galactica. I already have moulds of the Sea Lab parts so they will get done over the weekend. I am awaiting my Tamiya Shinano though know it is definately coming. That kit is also used any several other places Rick & not just the Bridgees.

[MonsieurTox]

Awesome Rick ! Third one... you're crazy, really ! It was hard to think you could do better after the 2 first ones...

Jase, if you dont receive your Shinano, I can send you the parts you need to cast them if you want, just let me know !

[ringa]

[quote='MonsieurTox' pid='10632' dateline='1302082982']
Awesome Rick ! Third one... you're crazy, really ! It was hard to think you could do better after the 2 first ones...

Crazy? Perhaps. After I built the first one I vowed I'd never do it again (HA!). Still, I don't think tackling three of these comes close to tackling just one 8 footer! YOU, sir, are AMAZING!!!

[ringa]

An opinion pole:

What do you prefer, the bridge antenna in the upright position a la ANH, or in the down position like ESB? I've been going back and forth about this (or should I say up and down). I generally like the upright position, after all, I did it that way on the first two. I don't have one in the ESB position, but this model is going to be more accurate all around than the others.

What do all of you think?

[star-art]

You know where I stand. This was one of the most obvious and disappointing changes made for ESB in my opinion. I always liked the way it appeared on screen in the first Star Wars film. The ship just looks more menacing that way.

One thing I have grown to dislike, however, is the fact the deflector "globes" (i.e. drawer knobs) are not oriented vertically but sit crooked. This is not really apparent on screen and I think I always assumed they were plumb (i.e. neatly vertical). When I saw it on the model in person, it jumped out to me as a shortcut and thus appeared (to me at least) to be the result of sloppy workmanship. That was one change made for ESB I thought was a good thing and I plan to make it this way on my replica.

I guess that means my eventual model will be more of a "hybrid" than a true recreation of the original. Then again, the original as filmed no longer exists anyway. Numerous changes were made to the model between the first and second films. Some details fell off (or were yanked off), they butchered the tractor array, they added all kinds of scribing on top that wasn't originally there, and the entire starboard side of the main superstructure was detailed with parts that were never on the original (such as railgun bits). It seems they didn't really try to match the details on the port side from what I can tell. So, it's almost like looking at two different models when you see the port side vs the starboard side.

All this is why I think I have no desire to recreate the ILM model as it appears today. Instead, I'll be going for more of an "idealized" version that mimics what I thought I was seeing on screen way back when I watched the first film. Heck, this might even include the color which was more of a light beige than a light grey.

[JAWS]

Im building with it up. ANH all the way. That movie changed my life & got me through.
Im beginning to believe the Starboardside of the original Devestator was barely detailed at all if at all.
In the few rear Starboardside shots ther is. There are no parts on the starboardside to be seen.

[star-art]

Check the Chronicles for a great photo of the top of the model taken back in 76/77. You can tell it's in final form because it appears to be on stage for filming complete with wires and a bluescreen pylon mount. The top side of the model is detailed only in the front and on the port side for the most part. That's because this area would be seen on camera while the rest would not. The top of the hull and superstructure "roof" are smooth (no scribing at all) and one prominent insert panel on the top hull in front of the superstructure isn't even finished.

My favorite scene in the movie is where it's flying toward the camera (used four times in total with the last instance flopped). Imagine what can be seen in that shot and what is hidden. The portions of the top side of the model that can't be seen in that shot are likely not detailed at all.

[ringa]

I agree totally with Charles on this. I've seen pictures of the Star Destroyer on set for filming. You can just see a portion of the starboard side... no detailing! When Star Wars was being filmed, they just built what they needed. They didn't have the budget or time to waist on a model that was not going to be used much after the opening scene, and only called for shots from the bottom and port sides.

Anyway, there were details on that model that are no longer there, and weren't for ESB. We want to know what one particular part was on the face of the bridge. It was suggested by Julien on another thread to try parts of the Akagi deck. So I did. I don't believe it is exactly what was used, but I like how it looks if nothing else turns up. Oh, and don't worry, it is not glued on (yet). What do you think?

[MonsieurTox]

That's obviously not the right part, but it does the trick IMHO !!

If I ever come across the right part while lookking through my kits, I'll let you know !

[JAWS]

I agree with the above statements.
Rick that part looks good & does the trick.
It really looks like the Devestator with those aditions.
Dont secure it to well so we can change when we find the right part
Ive cast the Sea Lab tanks that go on the outer structure walls on each side.
I will cast the White Road Boss part you have the little Bismark steps on at the rear & the Peterbilt parts that go on each side of the head/neck aswell as the circular pieces for the face & the Vanguard pieces for the face.
I'll try to have them all done by the end of the weekend.
I have 2 Shinanos in the mail aswell as a bundle more so might have to wait another week or so for those.

Charles I have done some for you also & will of the other parts I do.

[ringa]

That looks great, Jason, very clean casting. I'm looking forward to 'upgrading' my build. Thank you so much!

Last night I was doing some studying on the antenna in the upright position. There is only one known photo of it in the upright position from behind. I was looking at it to see what was behind holding it up. At first glance it didn't seem that hard to figure out, even though it is partially hidden. Then I tried to cut some plastic rods to mimic what I was seeing. That's when I realized there is more to it than meets the eye.

The pending decisions: 1) Do I wait for a better photo to turn up, which might never happen? 2) Do I build something that just looks right, but could be way off? 3) Or do I just glue it back down as I had it?

I'll explore option 2 before I do anything else.

[star-art]

Option 2. Without any clear photos, who will know the difference? It's better to have a finished model that's not perfect than a perfect model that's not finished. I should make that my sig line. . .

Thanks, Jase!

[JAWS]

Ok there is 'supposed' to be a Fujimi 1/76 BMW R75 Motorad frame/parts under there. There also seem to be two frames used for the mounts on the sides.

[star-art]

. . .

[JAWS]

Charles that picture is scanned from the Chronicles & cropped.

[star-art]

Oops! My bad. . . These aren't the droids you're looking for. Move along! Move along. . . LOL

[JAWS]

Hhahaha.
Nice save Charles.
Lol!

[JAWS]

Rick heres another part for the face your missing
Theres more coming

[ringa]

(04-11-2011, 08:36 PM)omes72 Wrote: Rick heres another part for the face your missing
Theres more coming

Wow, Jason, this is great! I can't wait to upgrade.

[JAWS]

My pleasure mate.
The two small Vanguard piece came out ok but one of the bits broke when removeing it from the mould...

[JAWS]

Rick here are the castings I did.
The Vanguard parts are bugger to do as their so small the little antenna things snap off when pulling out the mould
My fault as I did a short cut on the moulds. Ive learnt that lesson before & learnt it again. There are no short cuts when moulding parts
Anyway with these parts all you need is the La Seine parts for the bridge face(Rectagle parts at top of face & cranes at bottom) & its accurate. Again I have that kit in transit so if you want the parts you'll have to wait until I get it to do them Also in the La Sein kit are the square parts those White Road Boss hydrolics sit on top of

[ringa]

Fantastic, Jason! Keep 'em coming. I just hope the parts I glued on in their stead will come off. I stuck them on back in 2008 when I was convinced I'd never find the original pieces. I'm really looking forward to the Shinano pieces and the La Seine parts. At least I haven't glued anything in those spots yet (mostly).

Do you happen to know what these parts are?

[JAWS]

They are all from the AMT 1/25 Kenworth W-925.

[ringa]

(04-14-2011, 01:19 PM)omes72 Wrote: They are all from the AMT 1/25 Kenworth W-925.

I don't see those parts on the kit scans page of the Kenworth. Can you point them out to me?

[JAWS]

Thats weird. Its definately in the Kenworth W-925 'Movin On' kit. Maybe Phil didn't scan the whole kit. I have scans I will try & post tonight.

[star-art]

Don't buy the "Movin' On" kit. It's full of chromed parts, many of which are needed for studio-scale projects and thus must be stripped of their finish before using them. Because of the chrome parts, and the fact this kit is a collector's item, it is very expensive.

There are at least two other versions of this same kit from AMT -- the W-925 and the Alaskan Hauler. The best kit for our needs, IMO, is the Alaskan Hauler. It has the exact same parts in it, but very little chrome, making the parts more useful. Many of the parts that are chromed in the Movin' On version are plain styrene in the Alaskan Hauler.

[ringa]

On my way home from work yesterday, I past by a new hobby store and decided to check it out. They had very little in models, and what they had were almost exclusively Revell. They had one AMT kit - the 1/25 Kenworth W-925 for $19.99, so I bought it. It does have the parts that are missing from the kit scans page here. I'm still trying to find the part that is pointed out in blue on the photo I posted.

[MonsieurTox]

I'm not an ANH ISD expert but it looks like your blue part is not from a truck but from a small scale aircraft (landing gear)... Of course ANH experts will give you the true answer about it !

[ringa]

Thanks, Julien. I have some aircraft scrap pieces in a box. Maybe I can get lucky and find the little buggers.

I have to laugh about asking the 'ANH experts.' Here I've built 2 and a half Star Destroyers, one for a movie, one for a museum exhibit and now one for me ... AND I'M STILL NOT AN EXPERT!

[MonsieurTox]

(04-16-2011, 12:02 AM)ringa Wrote: Thanks, Julien. I have some aircraft scrap pieces in a box. Maybe I can get lucky and find the little buggers.

I have to laugh about asking the 'ANH experts.' Here I've built 2 and a half Star Destroyers, one for a movie, one for a museum exhibit and now one for me ... AND I'M STILL NOT AN EXPERT!

Don't get me wrong Rick, you're an expert ! I was meaning those who knows the ANH donors, those are very tricky, I wish I had this knowledge !!

[ringa]

(04-16-2011, 01:16 AM)MonsieurTox Wrote:

(04-16-2011, 12:02 AM)ringa Wrote: Thanks, Julien. I have some aircraft scrap pieces in a box. Maybe I can get lucky and find the little buggers.

I have to laugh about asking the 'ANH experts.' Here I've built 2 and a half Star Destroyers, one for a movie, one for a museum exhibit and now one for me ... AND I'M STILL NOT AN EXPERT!

Don't get me wrong Rick, you're an expert ! I was meaning those who knows the ANH donors, those are very tricky, I wish I had this knowledge !!

No worries, I know that's what you meant. I really meant that I don't consider myself an expert. I wish I had that knowledge too.

[ringa]

I was doing a study on the width of the hull for my build. As a part of that study, I chose one of the head-on reference photos from this site. I brought it into PhotoShop, darkened the background so that it would not distract, duplicated the photo onto a new layer, then flipped it horizontally. I knew this model wasn't entirely symmetrical, but this shows just how much. Wow! This actually works best when you keep the layers on top of one another, then toggle between them. When I did that it looked like the bridge was teetering back and forth, the bridge neck was leaning one way, then the other, the top of the hull appears to slide left and right over the bottom. Try this if you can. I was amazed.

[JAWS]

(04-15-2011, 09:56 PM)MonsieurTox Wrote: I'm not an ANH ISD expert but it looks like your blue part is not from a truck but from a small scale aircraft (landing gear)... Of course ANH experts will give you the true answer about it !

Sorry i didnt xplain which parts were the truck psrts. Havent found the little parts on each side yet. Maybe 1/43 truck if not plane...
Will try & update the maps soon.
Kit list is now at 100 kits.
I will post that soon aswell.

[ringa]

Here's a progress shot of the back with the two truck models parts in place...



I brought down the 2nd of my star destroyers for comparison. This is my 'museum' model, the one that took the place of the real one on a 4 year museum tour. When I built this one in 2004, I still believed the books when they said the original is 3 feet long. So I built it at 3 feet long. 3 feet long, what was I thinking?: It is 75% the size of the original. Number 3 is going to be quite a bit bigger and much more accurate.

[Cylon-Knight]

WOW! A+ WORK!
Thanks for sharing the new pics.

[JAWS]

Rick that looks great. Are you going to change the 2 parts with steps on them for the correct part from the White Road Boss kit?

[ringa]

(04-23-2011, 04:22 PM)omes72 Wrote: Rick that looks great. Are you going to change the 2 parts with steps on them for the correct part from the White Road Boss kit?

I want to change those parts very much. However, I tried to but they won't come off without damaging the roof/overhang that they are glued to. The plastic is so thin it might rip or warp. I might try again if I can come up with a way that won't destroy it. I'm also having the same problem removing the parts on the lower sides where the Sealab 'tanks' are supposed to go.

I'm not too disappointed about this, as I know that when it is all painted with a base coat of white, all parts seem to 'blend' together making it much less noticeable. Besides, I like doing my own thing, like on the sides of the structures. I can't wait to see what they will look like painted.

And, I've been experimenting with a way to mount the antenna in an upright position. It will work, but it will be extremely delicate, easily knocked off if it is bumped even slightly. Looks cool, yet I don't know if I want to do it this way...

---

(04-23-2011, 01:38 PM)Cylon-Knight Wrote: WOW! A+ WORK!
Thanks for sharing the new pics.

Thank you!

[JAWS]

Rick that antenna looks wicked!
I love thst look.
Mate she's looking very sweet.
If you wedge a scalpal or blade unde the pieces you want to remove they should 'pop' off. Its scary. It doesn't matter whether you change the parts or not aslong as your satisfied with what you want to achieve with this build. Its going to be fantastic none the less.

[ringa]

Primed! Though I'm still missing a few more parts, I carefully masked those areas off. Since the antenna is already painted, I left it off until after I hit the model with white tonight.

[dbhs]

Beautiful work. I have a process question for you. Why did you prime it now versus waiting untill all the greeblies and details are added in? I can see the value in seeing it with fresh eyes closer to the final result but at the same time I find it easier to work when you can see the parts clearly.

Just curious here... I'm fascinated with the process of making things as much as the actual making.

[JAWS]

Damn Rick. That is beautiful! Im getting pretty jelpus watching this come together. Accurateparts or not its awsome. The plaque on your model at the exhibition said it all.

[ringa]

Thanks guys! As of now, she is all white! I'll post photos maybe tomorrow, as I want to glue the antenna down when it is dry.

As for painting before all the parts are on, I have that covered (literally). It won't be a problem. The missing parts, which are not many, will still be glued directly to plastic, as I've covered those areas with small bits of masking tape. But the biggest reason is that people are going to see it soon at this stage of progress, so I want it to look its very best. And there is not much more I can do to it before building the hull. The advantage to painting it at this point is that I can reach areas from below that would be difficult if it were attached to a hull.

[ringa]

Here it is painted white with the antenna attached. This time I decided to use Tamiya paints because they go down smooth, preserving every detail. Just 11 more parts to complete this portion of Star Destroyer #3.