1/48 Studio Scale TIE Bomber

[nicholassagan]

I wrapped up a few things for Wonderfest early and had some extra time and building energy. This project has been on my mind for a while now so it was time to dig in. Not only will I have it done for WF, I’ll be entering it in 2 other online contests as well!!

In this first stage all the parts were scrubbed and then carefully trimmed and sanded to remove and little bits and pieces of stuff. Thankfully there was a minimum of cleanup (but there are just sooo many parts!) This is a beautifully mastered and produced kit…really makes me feel like a studio modeler!! Some extra additions to my build include a cockpit sourced from the AMT TIE Fighter kit, a scratch built “behind the glass” panel thing, a Polar Lights dome stand and “full” compliment of lights.

More posts will be coming throughout the day because I really burned through the progress on this bad boy over the past couple days. I mean...I'll be priming tonight!!!

 

[JohnSimmons]

Good to see it getting built mate

 

[nicholassagan]

Man, it's practically already BUILT!! I think I just threw it in a bag with glue and shook it up....

 

[JohnSimmons]

It goes together very well

 

[nicholassagan]

Assembly progress! Cockpit done, all the major pieces and the wing details! I made ONE not so major mistake and mounted the center block the tall way instead of the long way so a little bit of extra scratch building was needed to fill out the space. The main support beam was routed along the backside to make a path for the wiring and a small block was cut out to accommodate the cockpit. The engine caps were also drilled out for the LEDs. There was one spot on the bottom edge of one wing that was a little thin and needed some culling…but I think if I keep it on the bottom it’ll be fine.

 

[JohnSimmons]

Sweet, I think I did the same with the LEDs through the hole no heat shrink in between lol!

 

[nicholassagan]

Stay tuned John...I have 4 more posts drafted. One of which shows styrene splints between the leads!!

 

[JohnSimmons]

Bah!!! Why didn't I think of that!

 

[nicholassagan]

Electronics!!! So I ran an overnight test of battery life and found that with 8 red LEDs the batteries drained in about 8 hours. I also realized that I didn’t need FOUR in the cockpit so I just used one as a floodlight on the ceiling. The power should stay brighter longer now. The holes for the engine LED leads also had the potential to create a short so I put some plastic splints in there to make sure there’s no accidental contact. The AAA battery box will also be accessible via the pilot pod engine cap, held in place via magnets. The drill went a little overboard so a touch of putty was needed on the back end.

 

[nicholassagan]

Whoops! Forgot a post in there. This comes before the electronics section

More assembly progress. You can see I added some extra detailing around the center block using extra parts from the kit. I LOVE THIS KIT!!!!

 

[JohnSimmons]

Awesome!

 

[Dark Kyp]

yeah! Nice job done so far!

Can't wait to see it ended!
The Tie pilot is great, I have to find one! 8)

 

[nicholassagan]

Where was I? Oh yeah. Now comes the time for some extra detailing. Something about the spirit of studio scale building hit me and I added some bits and pieces to the exterior (including some leftover Fine Molds X-Wing parts!!). The interior cockpit panel was also a combination of scratch parts and a modified AMT TIE Interceptor panel. Looks about right.

 

[nicholassagan]

And lastly for today:

Some of the last touches before priming: wing panels painted and masked and the dome stand installed. The model-side socket is glued in place and makes a decent extra detail. The dome base is painted with Light Gunmetal and got a heavy clear coat. She looks pretty good so far!!

 

[Quaralane]

Definitely looking good.
Nice fast build going, too

 

[JohnSimmons]

So is going to be ready for WF Nick?

 

[nicholassagan]

Yes John. It will. Seriously a shake-n-bake....but more importantly.....

PAAAAAAAAAINT!!!!!!!! Well, before that happened I had to clean up the engine cap and add the canopy cowling.

Then mask the cockpit and engine LEDs.

THEN prime.

THEN preshade.

The painting process was a bit of fun. It’s the first time I’ve ever decanted a rattle can, thinned down and used through my airbrush (I used Tamiya’s Haze Gray of course). I now see the appeal of spraying enamels with an airbrush. It goes down thin and like butter. So clean and even….

But hark! While the Haze Gray has the cool blue tone we all love on the Bomber, it was too dark for my taste. I went over and highlighted each panel with a light spraying of Tamiya’s Sky Gray (XF-19). It was thin to not cover up too much of the Haze Gray. The overall effect I think is a perfect blend because that blue undertone is still there AND it shows off the pre- and post-shading nicely. This one will barely need any weathering!! ((sorry if the coloration isn’t clear enough in this pics, I was rushed this morning and didn’t want to setup the photo booth))

 

[Dark Kyp]

Niiiiiiice!

 

[Quaralane]

Fabulous work, Nick

 

[Grendels]

Well done Nick!!

A tip for the future. If you are worried about wires shorting, just coat them with five minute epoxy. It is an insulator and it will hold the wires in place along with the LED's. So it takes care of two things at once.