Do we really need another BSG Shuttle GAL 356?

[Troy Downen]

First, my thanks to Phil for those photos and the great discussion. It's not definitive, I know, but maybe it also means that no-one can really argue with my final paint color choices as long as they're close! Anyone else following the Smithsonian restoration of the Star Trek USS Enterprise? Kind of intimidating to paint a model when the Smithsonian has posted expert matches from the original filming miniature!

Back on GAL 356, not much of an update, I’m afraid. The first coat of primer went down and several hours of sanding with 320 wet/dry sandpaper yields an ugly shuttle, but smooth as a baby’s bottom!



There are still a couple of hours of cleaning up in between the various raised panels and looking for “junk” to tidy up. The photo below shows a couple of typical things: resin bumps due to bubbles in the molds (easy to clean up with a micro file and sanding sticks) and pock marks in the resin that might need to be filled (or left unfilled and painted to appear as damage from space debris - or maybe Cylons?).



For resin models I’ll soak the parts in a degreaser and also scrub them in warm soap and water. But sometimes it’s tough to get all of the mold release agent off the resin, so I prime with a lacquer-based automotive scratch-fill primer to both reveal spots that still have release agent (it tends to repel the primer) and for the usual reasons of finding imperfections. After a good sanding with 320 grit wet/dry sandpaper I’ll wipe the entire model with alcohol and a lint-free rag (rubbing alcohol ,not drinking alcohol!) and re-prime. Another a few hours with 600 grit sandpaper, more cleanup with alcohol, and one more layer of primer. At this point I’ll go over the model one last time with 800 grit sandpaper and it will be ready for greeblies.