Newbie Building A Proton

That was a nice bit of technique sharing you just gave. I thank you. it is the best that this forum has, and it came from you great job!

[Bane]

I thank you for your kind words.

I now have a new problem.
According to the instructions, I am now supposed to take this thin strip of paper and glue it exactly 31mm down this tube to act as a lip for this ring to rest on.

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What??!?

The depth is fairly critical. Too deep and the tank top that is going on the ring will just look wrong. Too shallow and it will interfere with Stage 3. This is not a real problem. Marking where it needs to go is fairly easy. The problem is how do get this thin, wiggly strip into place, nice and even, before the glue starts to grab it hard and leaving me with an unholy mess.

I could glue the strip around the edge of the ring so it would go in as a single unit, but that would make the diameter too large and even if it went in it would probably make an unsightly bulge.

I know that this isn't a new problem and that the Master Craftsmen of this forum probably have a variety of solutions for it.

I don't know what they are.

Time for some hasty improvisation......I mean....um....A Well Thought Out Plan.

Take my Tube Making Contraptoin, now know as my Multitasking Frabjous Thingie (MFT) and insert the remainder of the sign I used to create the MFT, rolled up, to act as a base for the ring to rest on. much as it is supposed to rest on the paper strip.

Insert the ring and tighten MFT to act as a form.

Insert strip and glue to disk.

A word of caution, I would usually have placed a bit of wax paper between the MFT and what I was glueing. In my haste, I did not in this case and worried constantly about a bit of glue causing some thing unfortunate to happen.

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The strip and ring are now a single unit, with the strip in position to act as a base.

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Glue is placed in tube and the unit is easily pushed into place.

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By the way, a set of rubber washers that you can nest together mak an excellent pusher of any required diameter. The black stuff is a roll of velcro I used as a stop during the push.

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Onward.....er......Continuing with 2nd Stage

[arkon]

bane...i got to say for a "newbie" you got some great "tool making skills" that are quite impressive and a really great lookin rocket so far!

[Bane]

Thanks arkon.

Since I never seem to have gotten around to it. Here are the parts for Steps 5&6.

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And here's the finish of the 2nd Stage.


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Onward to 3rd Stage

[Bane]

3rd Stage
Step 1

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Best seam I've done yet. If I'd managed to cut off more of the black lines, it would be dang near invisible.

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Impressive! The first stages are awesome!

[Bane]

Thanks Zathros.

Maybe you can talk the Minbari controlling the Great Machine into sending me some help with whats in the last picture in this post.

3rd Stage
Steps 2-5

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Cones?? 1, at best, 2mm wide cones??
Itsy bitsy strips of paper to be rolled up into platforms for the cones to sit on??

Oh my aching head. Maybe I can hook a magnifying glass to my magnifying glass.

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Onward to Steps 6-8

I would do those last cones in really thin paper! Stiffen them up with Gap filling Crazy glue! It does look good though!

[sjsquirrel]

Originally Posted by Bane

Thanks Zathros.


Cones?? 1, at best, 2mm wide cones??
Itsy bitsy strips of paper to be rolled up into platforms for the cones to sit on??

Oh my aching head. Maybe I can hook a magnifying glass to my magnifying glass.

Attachment 106889

Onward to Steps 6-8

I know the feeling. Below is a picture I did for my MO-65 ship build. The tiny cone for the end of the gun barrel was about the same size you're dealing with. I had printed it on 100 lb card. To make the cone I rubbed the back of the paper with my fingernail to delaminate the paper and thin it out. Then I used two pins the work it into shape. There's another picture in the original post.

Make sure you have some spare copies printed. If you drop one they're almost impossible to find (trust me, I Know!).

[Bane]

Thanks for the advice guys.

At the moment I'm taking a short break from the build because.....

I Am Irritated.

For the most part I am pleased with the build. Sure, I didn't expect it to be perfect. I knew there would be plenty of room for improvement. I am a newbie after all, says so right there in the title. I have actually managed to improve in some areas during the course of the build and contribute some new, I hope, technique. So the things I see wrong with the model really don't bother me.

Except for one thing.

Conduits. I can't remember how well the conduits or pipeing that run along the outside of the model show up in the pictures, but believe me, to my eyes they just purely suck.

Time to build a new widget.

I've already tested one prototype, but it had two primary failings.

1. It was overly complicated.
2. It completely failed to do the job I set it. (dirty, ungrateful pile of BLEEEEP)

Now I'm working on a new idea.

I'll keep you updated.

[Bane]

Well, after 2 or 3 days trying to come up with a conduit making gizmo, I still don't have anything I like.

Time to move it to the Problems To Work On In The Future column and get back to the build.

3rd Stage
Steps 6-8

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I still like forming these internal pieces into a single unit and just sloting it into place.

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Onward to the homestretch.

[Bane]

Breeze M/Shroud
Steps 1-6

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Onward to Steps 7&8

[Bane]

Breeze M/Shroud
Steps 7&8

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STEPS 9-13

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Onward To Final Step

[Bane]

Breeze M/Shroud
Step 14

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FINISHED

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That was fun.

Worked through the build a lot faster than I thought I would. Probably because I let my enthusiasm keep me up much too late at night.

I also have the Pad, Adjusting Arm, and Transporter for this Proton. When I build them, I guess the logical place to post pics, unless otherwise advised by the Moderators, would be on this thread.

Before I do them, however, I think I'll try my hand at something else for a bit.

See Ya.

[sjsquirrel]

Congratulations Bane. It looks great. All your hard work has really paid off.

I look forward to seeing what you do next, and to seeing the luanch pad and other items you mention join this proton in the future.

Steve