That looks awesome! Beautiful work, sir. I'm so excited to see all these Raptors that I printed out a grey one to build next. I'll have to try the superglue trick on my canopy, and raising the frame is a great idea too. Thanks!
Mike
That is quite an interesting technique that you used on the canopy.
Your Raptor is really coming together beautifully.
It is going to look far better then mine.
Managed to get the glazing process finished last night.
I am very pleased with the result, it looks like glass!!!
Tonight I am going to do the framing of the canopy to finish it off.
That window is so intense I would seriously consider using it as a plug for a clear window. I don't think the model would suffer if you were careful. Some heated Saran Wrap to act as a protective shield, then fiberglass a section that will give you enough to make a vacuum chamber and you could sell those bad boys. The came out incredible, as has the rest of the model!!
Thanks Zathros.
When Revell Fan completes the interior for his Raptor series, I will rebuild the ship (or another version) using a clear canopy.
Somewhere on the forum there was a technique shown for doing this, by making the paper canopy inside out and making a plug. Plastic drinking bottles were used if I remember correctly.
After a few days away, I have managed to get the canopy framed up at last...
I made framing pieces and cut them out and coloured them. I left them over long for trimming to fit.
Starting to go on....
Framing done! Once dry, I am gonna colour them up a bit better, and give the 'glass' another thin coat of Future to clean up any marks left from assembly.
If you filled that canopy with construction foam, you could heat some clear blister pack plastic and drape it right over it and get the shape. Mount he canopy so you can pull the plastic sheet rightly, it will cool very fast, and take the shape. You then trim to fit. You have made a perfect plug, so theoretically, you could use plaster of Paris, press the canopy into it, again filled with construction foam, so it won't collapse. Drill holes after it dries to allow suction tunes to be attached. The box could be constructed so that when you press in the canopy, there is an edge you can tape a flat sheet of clear or smoked plastic, turn on the section, carefully heat with a blow drier, and you will be able to vacu-form a clear plastic canopy, which you could spray from the inside to smoke the glass.
This video below shows the easiest way. It's really easy to do, and you have a plug already made.
Well, ok. When I first started this model there was no interior available..... So no need for a clear canopy.......!
For my feel, with a bit of acrylic coating, it now looks like glass..... but,, depicted with the cockpit interior lights switched off..... !
Maybe the pilots were up to something in the darkness......
Something like the end of a 007 movie ....
DARN - I knew I forgot something! The cockpit interior! Erh... It is on my list but somehow was pushed right at the far bottom-left corner of it... I don't know if I have the time to make it in the near future. If anyone wants to tackle it, go for it. If you need the original CG model, just PM me.