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PracticalBuilding Serenity

JohnThunderJohnThunder0 Posts: 0Member
edited February 2011 in Work in Progress #1
Getting a touch of cabin fever during the winter monsoon, so I decided to start a new model of Serenity. Materials are mostly cardboard, card stock, and paper, with the odd bit of junk thrown in on the details. I start with the paper model by Jorge Garcia Serrato and modify according to materials available and pix from the movie and TV series.

First step for me is to print out the pattern pieces on plain paper and glue them on to cardboard. In this case the cardboard is the rigid back from an artistA’s drawing tablet a little over 1/16" thick. There are a couple issues with the thicker cardboards. When folding pieces it is necessary to score the fold lines else youA’ll get a really crummy fold. I use the back of a utility knife blade for this. Also, thicker cardboards change the dimensions of pattern pieces, so you have to figure that in as you go.

This brings me to the next step: mudding. I like using Plastic Wood, which is sawdust mixed with glue. If you want to make your own mud, talcum powder and ElmerA’s glue works pretty well. Just mix it in small batches as required. Mudding helps to straighten lines and planes as the cardboard distorts from glueing and other manipulations.

Once the mud has dried you can sand it back to get the contours you want or need. I made a sanding stick from an old emery board (large) with strips of various grit sandpaper super-glued on. When it clogs up from the mud itA’s fairly easy to replace the sandpaper.

Pictured is SerenityA’s cargo bay, mudded, then sanded, re-mudded and sanded, and ready for the attaching of the landing gear pods. I should note here that I prefer super glue for main construction since it sets up way quicker than ElmerA’s or other wood glues. I do use ElmerA’s for adding paper details as I go.
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Post edited by JohnThunder on
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  • JohnThunderJohnThunder0 Posts: 0Member
    While I'm on here.... can somebody tell me what the green alien head next to my post icon means?
  • MephMeph331 Posts: 0Member
    Looks like a good start. I'm curious to see it grow.

    btw, that green alien thingy means it's a thread in which you've posted. ;)
  • JohnThunderJohnThunder0 Posts: 0Member
    Had some issues with de-lamination in the 20+ year old cardboard, but nothing clamps & superglue didnA’t fix. Because of the thickness of the cardboard I had to split the cargo bay roof and add some length.

    After attaching the landing gear pods I discovered that the cargo bay wasnA’t quite squared up. OOPS. Had to add a shim to the left rear corner and re-mud to get it square so the tail section will be straight. Same for the right front corner so the neck will fall in line. Turns out I need a little more mud on the bottom too so sheA’ll sit level.

    The wings are always a hassle. Too thin of material and theyA’ll droop over time due to the weight of the engines. Too thick and getting them folded up becomes a chore. The 1/16th stuff IA’m using was borderline too thick, but IA’m making it work.

    IA’ve found that adding a wing spar through the cargo bay helps both with accurate location of the wings and rigidity. It looks short, but I have to leave room inside the wings for the engine pivot pins. Inside the wings are additional bit of cardboard for structural strength, and the mud in the engine pivot cutouts helps as well.

    I should note here that IA’m only adding gross detailing at this point, like the cowls and reinforcing struts on the pods. Fine detailing on this section wonA’t come until the head/neck assembly and galley dome are installed.
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  • JohnThunderJohnThunder0 Posts: 0Member
    Finally! Multiple issues with the cargo bay out of square (still) and cardboard delaminating but the head/neck assembly is attached. Lots of mud and sanding ahead before I make the galley dome.

    Don't mind the circus stripes on the pattern pieces, my printer is just about toast.
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  • [Deleted User][Deleted User]2 Posts: 3Member
    It's definitely starting to take shape - that distinctive head is a major factor, of course.

    And as far as cabin fever goes, this isn't nearly the craziest thing to build a Serenity model out of. There's this... :D
  • JohnThunderJohnThunder0 Posts: 0Member
    Due to calculation errors on the thicker cardboard I was forced to fit the head/neck assembly a few degrees low. It gives me the A“correctA” height above ground on the chin but caused other fitting errors. Nothing I canA’t work with, but I wish IA’d done a better job.

    With the neck angle wrong the dome was way too high. To fix that I cut the top out of the dome, filled the cavity with paper toweling, and slopped several heavy coats of mud on it. After much A“mud on, mud offA” and cutting/sanding itA’s pretty close.

    Next up was adding the remaining structural details, such as the wing root extensions and the tubular structures that bracket the back of the neck. At the rear of the cargo bay IA’ve added a mating structure out of mud for the tail assembly. On the paper model the grav rotor base (infirmary/rec deck area) sticks up past the bay and just looks like an unfinished area. Thanks to QMXA’s Serenity Blueprints and multitudinous pics of their artisanA’s replica I figured out how that should join to the domeA’s rear and itA’ll look much better.

    A few more slight adjustments here & there and I can begin the fine detailing.
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  • JohnThunderJohnThunder0 Posts: 0Member
    The devil's in the details, as they say. I seriously need to redesign this thing and build 'em bigger. The small details are getting to be too much for old eyes & shaky hands.
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  • homerpalooza67homerpalooza67228 Posts: 1,891Member
    nice progress. although im not sure why it looks like its gift-wrapped, lol (is that for detailing, ah la "paint by number"?)
  • JohnThunderJohnThunder0 Posts: 0Member
    The different colors help me keep track of where I'm at. Sometimes the difference in heights of various bits is pretty small, so if I'm pasting one plate on top of another, like on the galley dome, it helps if the base plate is one color with a contrasting one on top. Also, I get bored cutting all the various bits out of one color, so the circus clown "paint job" is what I end up with during the build. After detailing comes a primer coat so all the strange colors go away.
  • JohnThunderJohnThunder0 Posts: 0Member
    :sigh: The primer reveals every flaw that the clown camouflage hid. Places where the cardboard went "fuzzy", places where the superglue went "spiky" as it dried, corners of plates not quite tacked down, etc. But, it IS a great deal easier on the eyes now.:)

    I need to go all over it, fix what flaws I can, re-prime those spots if needed, then add the solar panels, windscreen, and probe mounts on either side of the chin.
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  • JohnThunderJohnThunder0 Posts: 0Member
    Since this model ainA’t one of my best I decided to experiment with some techniques. HereA’s what I came up with for solar panels.

    Take a CD or DVD and cut about 3/8" out of the rim with a knife. This causes the two layers to delaminate, giving you a clear layer (tinted purple) and a layer with shiny aluminum after you pop them apart.

    The layers can be cut with scissors, but are kinda floppy in large sections so they need to be mounted flat or backed up with cardboard. Also, cyanoacrylate glue (superglue) eats the purple coating and can screw up the shiny aluminum. I should have checked to see what other glues might work without screwing up the pretty.
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  • JohnThunderJohnThunder0 Posts: 0Member
    Not happy with the paint and almost re-primed to start over. But, onwards anyway. The engines are leftovers from a previous build.
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  • JohnThunderJohnThunder0 Posts: 0Member
    The third major assembly is the tail. JorgeA’s pattern actually works pretty well here, but I only use it as a base to hang mud on when it comes to the reactor cone. This time I got smart and made a snap gauge out of cardboard to get the coneA’s curvature pretty close to correct.

    This is another section that can drive you nuts with detailing. All those little feed pipes for the reactor took me most of a day to bend and fit.
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  • JohnThunderJohnThunder0 Posts: 0Member
    The screen around the reactor section worked much better than embossing the cardboard with the grate design. When I wrapped that section during construction on the previous model the embossed design pushed back out in several places and it really wasnA’t deep enough to begin with.

    Embossing did work pretty well on the reactor vent covers (the swing out doors). I scored along the lines, then used a spoon type modeling tool from my leather-working gear to push the cardboard down. Those have always given me trouble at this scale because the difference in height between the panels and frame is only about 1/32 inch. Wish IA’d thought to use that technique on the wing inserts instead of cutting them out and gluing in a backing plate. Live & learn.
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  • JohnThunderJohnThunder0 Posts: 0Member
    I build the grav rotor by first making a hoop, then wrapping the inner pattern piece around it. Next comes scrap pieces glued to the inner pattern to build up the thickness. At this scale itA’s roughly 1/4". Fitting up the outer grav rotor housing pattern is easy to get cocked, so I split it into 4 pieces.

    Now IA’m ready to mud. That finalizes the shape and adds additional rigidity to the skids.
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  • TralfazTralfaz412 Posts: 846Member
    Hi,
    Are you eyeballing this or are you working from blueprints?

    I've been searching for some Serenity blueprints to build the model in 3D.

    Thanks...
    Al
  • JohnThunderJohnThunder0 Posts: 0Member
    I started with a paper model pattern by Jorge Garcia Serrato, then improved upon the pieces for it by studying pix, screencaps, and blueprints (actually elevation drawings) from QMX.

    http://www.fireflyshipworks.com/category/development/ will take you to QMX's site. Poke around on there and you should be able to find their Serenity Blueprints Reference Pack. Best $35 I ever spent.

    Under the Development category is an article re their Artisan's Replica of Serenity. Lots & lots & LOTS of pictures of the various bits they made for the replica which should also help you out.
  • JohnThunderJohnThunder0 Posts: 0Member
    A lot of work for only mediocre results, so I've slapped some metallic paint on it and am shipping it off to my grandson as a toy. Time to sit down and write out construction notes for my next try, listing all the problem areas as well as what worked well. Better luck next time.
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  • JohnThunderJohnThunder0 Posts: 0Member
    Changed my mind, re-primered, and used it for a paint test Not too awful, the rust technique turned out pretty well.
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  • [Deleted User][Deleted User]2 Posts: 3Member
    Ooh. What size does it work out at?
  • JohnThunderJohnThunder0 Posts: 0Member
    Tip of the nose to the end of the skids is roughly 14 1/2", about the same as the QMX drawings. I've already started the redesign for a bigger one, 1.5X larger, to make it easier to do the details. Might even throw some light effects in it.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User]2 Posts: 3Member
    Wow. I was already looking forward to seeing this one complete, but an even bigger light-up version might make me drool like an idiot.
  • JohnThunderJohnThunder0 Posts: 0Member
    I've already begun the redesign & prototyping of new parts to make assembly easier. The problem I'm running into is that Jorge's pattern is for the original Serenity (TV show) which doesn't exactly match the elevation drawings for that version, neither of which match up exactly with the movie version/QMX drawings/QMX replica.

    As a for instance, the cargo bay on the Jorge/original version is 1/2" longer (at 1.5X scale) than the QMX/movie version. I'm also finding other bits of extra length here & there as I go. Once I figured that out it explained why my models never quite matched up with the drawings in the Reference Pack. I see lots of time using Photoshop in my future.
  • Dr.SleepDr.Sleep0 Posts: 0Member
    Model looks perfect, I canA’t wait to see her bigger sister :D
  • JohnThunderJohnThunder0 Posts: 0Member
    Thanx Doc. I've got a lot of the new bits mocked up on a bare-bones bigger model. Looks like it'll be a lot closer than anything I've done before. Still a few issues to resolve, but I'm liking it so far.

    BTW- You're a Pratchett fan? GOOD MAN!
  • Dr.SleepDr.Sleep0 Posts: 0Member
    Thanks for "Pratchetting" me. Post some pictures of those bits, please. I love to see some old fashioned physical modeling in progress :D
  • JohnThunderJohnThunder0 Posts: 0Member
    Here ya go, Doc. I'm gaining a whole new 'preciation for why QMX took so long to bring out their replica, I keep finding bits that go in/out/complex curve where I'm not expecting them. Then, of course, there's errors in my design work that don't show up until later, like the galley being situated too high because one of my base pieces was wrong. She's a tough ship to get right, but I'm trying.
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