Bradley25mm Posted November 23, 2023 Report Share Posted November 23, 2023 A few months ago, I was approached by Col. Arnie Franklin (retired) about restoring a Space Shuttle for a museum. The model was built by Rockwell International (The builders of the actual Space Shuttles). They were given as a gift to NASA. NASA in turn, transferred them to the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum. The one I’m currently working on was on public display at the Johnson Space Center. Rather than just paint it, I’ve decided to tile it, and apply the thermal blanket material (Athletic Tape) Christopher Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bradley25mm Posted November 23, 2023 Author Report Share Posted November 23, 2023 The completed engine bells, and finished vertical stabilizer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jmarc Posted November 23, 2023 Report Share Posted November 23, 2023 WOW,WOW,WOW..that is quite a project !... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Deliduka Posted November 25, 2023 Report Share Posted November 25, 2023 Amazing work! That is a fantastic service you are doing for them! Stunning skills too! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomDougherty Posted November 26, 2023 Report Share Posted November 26, 2023 Great job, so far, Chris. If you need any photos of one of the shuttles (Discovery), I have 24 Mix photos of a walk around. I have distance shots, but the closeups may be the most valuable to you. Here are some samples: 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jmarc Posted November 29, 2023 Report Share Posted November 29, 2023 GGGGGGGGGGGGGreat details pics you got there ! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bradley25mm Posted November 30, 2023 Author Report Share Posted November 30, 2023 Thanks a lot guys for the comments. One of the most important tools that the Mongoose and I have been using, is my laser level. Once we were able to level the shuttle up, we were able to plot where things needed to go. My friend, Myles Marcovitch, was a huge help in up scaling the decals to 1/15th scale. He would print the upscaled images on paper. We then cut those images out and tape them on the shuttle where they need to be located. My other friend, Harry Fogerty, pre-scored all the Evergreen sheets to replicate all the tiles. He used his cricket cutter. This was also a huge help as we do not have to individually cut each tile. We have several different sizes that we are using. Around curves, we modify tiles that we already have cut. Lucky for us, the top and sides of the Atlantis are about 90% thermal heat blankets. I was able to replicate those using athletic tape, coatex with woodland, scenics, white glue, and then painted. It’s been a tremendous amount of fun to be able to work with these guys. It’s definitely been a collective effort from the get go. The mongoose is going to travel down here from Cincinnati next Saturday so we can put in all the thrusters. (Brass and plastic tubing). Thanks for having a look. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jmarc Posted November 30, 2023 Report Share Posted November 30, 2023 CCCCCCCCCCCool and dusty ..lol.! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bradley25mm Posted December 16, 2023 Author Report Share Posted December 16, 2023 Chris and I have made some progress on the shuttle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jmarc Posted December 18, 2023 Report Share Posted December 18, 2023 NNNNNNNNNNNNeat ! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bradley25mm Posted December 21, 2023 Author Report Share Posted December 21, 2023 The bottom is now complete. I wrapped the tiles around as much as I could. Tomorrow, I will clean up the glue spots, then blow the entire bottom of the shuttle off to get any dust out of the cracks before it’s primered. It will then be flipped over in the cradle so that we can start tiling the top. My buddy Chris, from Ohio, is driving down for the day to give me a hand. Thanks for having a look. Chris. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jmarc Posted December 21, 2023 Report Share Posted December 21, 2023 NNNNNNNNNNNNNice 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Deliduka Posted December 24, 2023 Report Share Posted December 24, 2023 That is unbelievable! Way to go man, you're doing a masterful job! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bradley25mm Posted December 27, 2023 Author Report Share Posted December 27, 2023 So today, we tackled replacing the original hinges. They were large and very bulky. Chris wanted to make sure that this one glaring eyesore was fixed. Piano hinges were the best option. We move on to getting ready for thruster installation. Thanks for having a look. Christopher Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Deliduka Posted December 27, 2023 Report Share Posted December 27, 2023 Awesome! Man that looks like so much fun to work on! I sure would enjoy it! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jmarc Posted December 30, 2023 Report Share Posted December 30, 2023 NNNNNNNNNNNEAT ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bradley25mm Posted January 11 Author Report Share Posted January 11 Good afternoon fellow modeler’s I’ve finally made some much needed progress. All of the tiling from the nose of the orbiter to the beginning of the cargo bay is complete. I’ve got a few small areas that need to be puttied prior to primer. Every place that you see purple tape is where the thermal blanket material will go. (athletic tape.) All of the thruster nozzles have been cut. The next step is to make a cone out of very thin plastic and put it in the end of each thruster. The company that is making all the graphics for this project has come up with a very good idea. For the windows, an image of the inside of the shuttle (Crew members, and cockpit), will be laminated on the back piece of plexiglass. This plexiglass will then be installed on the inside of the shuttle. Thanks very much for having a look. Christopher Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jmarc Posted January 11 Report Share Posted January 11 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bradley25mm Posted January 19 Author Report Share Posted January 19 The thrusters have been mounted on the top and sides of the nose. The interior cargo bay doors originally had some type of heavy foil glued on each one. Today, I stripped it off, sanded everything smooth, and glued .015 sheet styrene in its place. Next I move on to applying the athletic tape to the white sections of the nose. Thanks for having a look. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jmarc Posted January 20 Report Share Posted January 20 More,more ,more ...great work ..keep them coming never anought ! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bradley25mm Posted January 25 Author Report Share Posted January 25 I’ve been fortunate enough to make some pretty decent progress the past few days. Everything from the nose of the shuttle to the beginning of the payload bay has been covered with either plastic squares, or athletic tape that will simulate the thermal blanket shields. I drilled shallow holes around each window frame. Painted all the holes white this morning. When they dry, I will take the bolt heads and glue them in the center of each one. Thanks for having a look. Christopher Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jmarc Posted January 27 Report Share Posted January 27 AIE,AIE,AIE ...Keep it up ! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bradley25mm Posted February 2 Author Report Share Posted February 2 Made a lot of progress the past two weeks. Working myself around the shuttle to the other side. Everything on one side of the shuttle is either covered with plastic, sheeting or athletic tape. To knock down the fuzz on the athletic tape, it was coded with Woodland scenic spray on glue. After this dries , it can be sanded the 400 grit sandpaper. It easily knocks off any roof stuff, or standing fibers. After that, it will get one more coat of straight, seen it glue not cup with water. Thanks so much for having a look. Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jmarc Posted February 3 Report Share Posted February 3 wow,wow,wow ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bradley25mm Posted March 9 Author Report Share Posted March 9 Getting ready to paint. The vertical stabilizer and beaver tail have been permanently attached. Currently working on the payload bay doors. Thanks for having a look Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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