My Moebius Viper Mk 1 finished...

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mcusanelli

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Feb 26, 2008
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Hey guys,
I finished this a while ago, just been too lazy to post it..This is the new Viper Mk 1 in 1/32 scale. I have mixed emotions about this kit, don't get me wrong, it's a beautiful kit well worth having if you're a BSG fan and have to have every Viper kit (like me!) but there are a couple of areas that think aren't 'right'. Mainly, i think the nose is too long, and the nose cap part was noticeably stepped in. That took some sanding to get rid of, and i didn't care for the pilot - He looke too emaciated, and is probably made from a casting of the Revell Viper pilot, although the helmet looked more correct. As with all Mobius kits, the parts were beautifully molded, and the thing really has a 'beefy' tough look IMG_5193.JPG IMG_5188.JPG IMG_5190.JPG it. And the canopy is amazingly crystal clear. Nice cockpit detail too, and you can really see whats in there after it's done! So, I took the resin cast pilot I sculpted for my Buck Rogers Starfighter and converted it into a Colonial pilot, and used the kit helmet, drilled out and added one of my own heads. The figure then got rubber molded so I could use it for other projects. I do this with all the figures I make, it comes in handy! The only other detail I added was the spring detail wrapped around the gun barrels. Everything was painted with Apple Barrel / Folkart / and some tube acrylics. The larger areas are painted using a makeup sponge, the rest with brushes. After it was all done, i airbrushed a coat of Microscale clear flat, and the windows got a coat of Future. Aside from a few nitpics, I do like the way it came out, and I kept the weathering to a minimum, a little faded paint and a wash to pick out the panel lines. Oh, I also added the details in front of the canopy too. IMG_5186.JPG IMG_5192.JPG Enjoy!
 
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It looks AMAZING! You did a FANTASTIC JOB on this project!
Doing a wash coat really made the details and panel lines really POP!
 
Fantastic build! :) Reminds me of one of my projects which is still waiting for completion..! ;)

Yes, you are correct, the Moebius is not the ultimate Viper model (the ultimate one is going to come, and it is going to be made of paper ;) ). The nose is a tad too long and the detailing at the rear are too "straight" and clean. It looks computer-fabricated and sterile. You should get a better rear if you use the Revellogram Y-piece and the Moebius thrusters. The points where the Moebius succeeds are the intakes (no frackin' lip around it!), the figure's helmet and the LANDING GEAR (which has been sorely missed on any of the 1:32 releases).

And yes - THERE CAN'T BE ENOUGH VIPERS!!! ;)
 
Thanks guys! I do like the kit, but you're right, it's not the ultimate Viper, but a nice kit. I have a built Monogram Viper from Revell's re-issue with new clear parts and a new cockpit, (got to post pics of it!) and that one is still my favorite. I love that kit, mainly because i remember as a kid walking into the local hobby store with money my grandma gave me, and finding the Viper and Cylon Raider kits when they first came out. It was summer vacation, and I built them both before the show even came on that year. And yes, I think all of Moebius, and most other manufacturers kits these days are made using computer created masters. The landing gear is a cool extra, and the decal sheet has many options too. I chose to mask and paint the stripes, I just hate decals!
 
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I wish I had the opportunity to get these models when I was a kid. It took me 17.5 years (!) to hunt them down (I finally got the re-issues in the late 1990s, it was quite an endeavour without internet - I had to write something called "a letter" to place an order..! ;) ).

One interesting thing is that the Revellogram Viper and Cylon Raider are true studio models because they were used as background fillers in the show. The wrong detail of the Viper was caused by the fact that the models were released BEFORE the show premiered. The kits were based on early production models which had features that were missing on the final screen-used ones. That explains the missing cockpit interior, too: The Viper kits were based on the most prominent studio model which had no cockpit but windows coloured black. So in retrospect the missing cockpit is no real flaw (albeit it is widely considered to be one). In the early days there was even a hybrid featuring details missing on the studio models but present on the Revellograms.

BTW, the "strange" triangular cover piece at the front of the Cylon Raider model is true to the original, too. There were three or four different plates covering up the mounting point in the nose. Unfortunately the triangular shape cannot be clearly seen in any of the VFX shots in the show, the rectangular one with the "X"-shape and the tube in the middle is much more prominent.

So if you have the Revellogram Viper and Raider models you can easily say (with some proud) that you have a studio model in studio scale in your collection (the same applies to the mpc X-Wing which was used en masse on "Empire" and "Jedi"). :)

Well, and yes, these models were the reason why I have become a "Revell-Fan"..! ;)
 
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This is a beautiful viper. The pilots details and also how you painted the cockpit I like very much.
As I built the same one I consider copying your kind of painting of the cockpit, as in the kit it is made of clear plastic and
it looks much better with your painting.
Thank you for sharing these pics - it will be a reference for painting (at least for me and for my next viper(s)).
 
RF, that's great info on the early kits! I have over the years gotten two additional Revel re-pop Vipers with the new parts, and an original Monogram Raider. I'd like to find the original release with the solid canopy too, it would be fun to have it again.... There is something really special about these kits....I love that the patterns were made by hand by incredibly talented people. Monogram's kits are still my favorite!
RB- Thank you! Hopefully I'll get a chance later to photograph my old Revell viper and post it too!
Starbuck - Thank you, I'm honored you would use my pics as reference! None of the colors are what you would call super accurate, but I do look at pics of other peoples work, and studio model pics when I can find them. My stuff is done for fun, and if the colors look close to what they should, that's good enough for me. Here are a couple of pics I used that might help you too!HeroViper.jpg colonial_viper_1_32_studio_scale_art2models_by_art2models-d50xxob.jpg 74243_1252192341_large.jpg
 
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Hehe, the last pic in the row is a digital model rendered by MOJO who did the VFX of the New Galactica (and one of the people who tried to incorporate as much hardware from the original series). It was a test to show if it was possible to recreate a classic scene with modern CGI. And as you all can see, it is possible. :)

The Battlebuck pics show the original hero filming model with the cockpit interior, the blue-screen one is a fan-made resin cast of the Revellogram model with enhanced detail (scribed panel lines and added plastic bits and pieces here and there). It was available for sale (!) and marketed as being "studio accurate" which undoubtedly was not the case (see the lip on the intakes).

As for the colours, they differ from scene to scene because of the lighting, the number of runs through the optical printer, the copies made from the original negative and colour corrections done in post-processing. In many cases the models were much darker in real life than they appeared on screen. So it is up to the builder if he wants to paint his model screen-accurate or physically accurate. Most prominent example is the green TOS Enterprise, followed by the blue TNG Enterprise. ;)
 
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Wow, you really know your Vipers! I can't believe that pic is not a screen shot - Amazing!
 
This model looks great!! I personally like the long nose. It makes it flow nicer, right or wrong. It looks fantastic!! :)
 
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