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V.I.N.Cent "The Black Hole"


JMorgan

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Hello all,

 

I've begun work on my vintage, 1979 model of V.I.N.Cent from the movie "The Black Hole". I built this kit back in 1979 when the movie came out. I was 7 at the time. I've decided to build it OOB to replicate how I built it way back. Of course, I'll clean up seams, paint, etc. Here are a couple of starter pictures:

 

BoxTop.jpg

 

Parts.jpg

 

-Jesse

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I built all those kits. Wasn't it great when a movie studio did the merchandising in time for the model to come out when the movie came out?

 

Too bad the movie flopped. I've heard they are considering a remake which could only be better.

Looking forward to seeing the finished kit.

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I built all those kits. Wasn't it great when a movie studio did the merchandising in time for the model to come out when the movie came out?

 

Too bad the movie flopped. I've heard they are considering a remake which could only be better.

Looking forward to seeing the finished kit.

 

Oh, I hear ya. I was part of the "Early Bird Campaign" from Star Wars in 1977.

 

I've seen Maximillion on Ebay a few times. I've seen the Cygnus only once. I heard they made a couple test shots of STAR. I bet those are hard to come by.

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Ok guys. I finally got moving on this kit. So far, I've de-chromed the chrome pieces I'll be using by soaking them in Purple Power. Next, I started putting the head together. That's were I noticed "fit" will be an issue. It's normal in these old kits so I'm not complaining. One issue I noticed was how the head went together. There is supposed be some mesh vents on each side. Well, the seam to glue the head piece together goes right through the vents. Impossible to clean up. I decided to open the vents and replace them with some mesh. The mesh is a little too large and I probably should of set it at angle. Oh well. See the picture:

 

Venthole.jpg

 

The next thing I noticed was the base is very warped. I don't think trying to heat and reshape it will work. I do want to use the base though since it helps add to that '70s look. I think I'll try making a false edge around the bottom to hide that gap. If you look at the picture below, you'll see the shadow around the base:

 

Base.jpg

 

My next concern is the decals. I don't know if they'll hold up or crack to pieces once they hit the water. I scanned in the decals just in case they are ruined.

 

Hopefully, my next post will show the head painted up with eye decals in place. We shall see....

 

-Jesse

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Thanks, Mark. Yeah, I thought about the spraying gloss coat over the decals before using them. I saw another build regarding the same model and the builder said the decals were fine.

 

Unfortunately, the mesh didn't work and looked lousy when painted. I've decided to completely rebuild the area using strip styrene and some mesh from an old tank model. I'll post pictures before painting. I think it will look a lot better than the above pictures.

 

-Jesse

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Looks good. This was the only one of the kits I didn't build, but bought on eBay several years ago. I still have Maximillian that I built around the age of 14 or 15.

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Too bad the movie flopped.

 

It flopped IMHO, because the marketing was a lie. I realize studios make different trailers for different age groups, but what they showed us was as misleading as it gets. I can't remember what movie I came to see (may have been Close Encounters of the Third Kind) , but the BH trailer indicated beyond the shadow of any doubt that it was a "serious" movie. The "cutesy" Vincent wasn't even shown, nor any of the other stuff that defined it as a kid's movie. They instead concentrated the trailer I saw on the adults (for the crowd in attendance of course) on the adults and shots of the high tech effects (for the time) of the movie. I remember seeing Maximilian as an obvious bad guy in the film but that's about it. It was a LOOONG time back ('77, '78?)! If they (Disney) would have been honest about the type of movie it really was, I think it would have done much better at the box office. I remember how dissapointed and angry I was when I saw it realizing how mislead we were.

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Ok guys. I reworked the vents and I think they turned out much better. I'm hoping to put the decals on this week and finish off his head. The decals have yellowed a little (I think) so I have them up in a window exposed to sunlight. I did this once before on another model and it worked great.

 

NewVent.jpg

 

Thanks,

Jesse

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Ok guys. I reworked the vents and I think they turned out much better. I'm hoping to put the decals on this week and finish off his head. The decals have yellowed a little (I think) so I have them up in a window exposed to sunlight. I did this once before on another model and it worked great.

 

Thanks,

Jesse

 

I often wondered if a black (ultra violet) light would work on yellowed decals. Isn't the ultra violet light from the sun what fades the yellow away? If so, one could get results much faster since you can do it rain, clouds, or dark.

 

Just curious.

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Jesse,

- I'm really enjoying watching your progress here. I have this kit and Max also. IMHO your first "vents" were not bad, but these definitely look better. Also, in this last pic, the clear top isn't sitting too straight. If that's just a slip-up in the pic, no sweat, But if it's a fit problem, thought that you might like to take a closer look at it before your start painting. Please, keep the update pics coming, they are very inspirational.

 

Rusty,

- As a matter of fact, about 10 years ago, I used a "Black Light" (fluorescent tube type) fixed in the roof of a wood cabinet with closing doors and the decals laying on the next shelf about a foot away from it. They were Tamiya decals and it took about two weeks, but it worked! On that first attempt, I monitored the setup constantly, to make sure there was no "over-heating" issues. That light generated a fair amount of heat. I have kept the setup ready on hand for other decals ever since.

Edited by Weedeater
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Rusty,

- As a matter of fact, I have used a "Black Light" (fluorescent tube type) fixed in the roof of a wood cabinet with closing doors and the decals laying on the next shelf about a foot away from it. They were Tamiya decals and it took about two weeks, but it worked! I keep the setup ready on hand for other decals with the same problem.

 

That's good to know because I have never tried it. Good information now that I know it really works. Taping decals to a window in the winter can be risky with the potential of condensation.

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Ok, the window thing didn't work this time. No big deal though. I'm a little hestitate about trying anything else though. I mean, it's not like I can replace the decals if I screw up.

 

That clear dome surely it's sitting straight. I think it's the tabs around the bottom. I'm going to file them off and see what happens. I know the top of his head is flat. In fact, I had to add some shims and do a lot of sanding, but I did get his head flat. On last thing, the clear parts are all foggy. I dipped the dome into a cup a Future and let it dry overnight. That worked great; 100% improvement. If I remember, I'll do a "Before and After" picture on the next clear part.

 

-Jesse

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Looking good. Always loved the robots in this show.

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Well, what I thought would happen, happened. The decals are trash. I tried to put the eyes on yesterday. As soon as I lifted the decal out of the water, this brownish, gooing stuff came off. I think it was the adhesive. The decal curled up and won't lay down on the model. I started to become dejected but....I thought I would try a search on "V.I.N.Cent Decals". Sure enough, I found a company that made a replacement set. The company is Federation Models. The decal set was $12. Not too bad. I ordered them yesterday and USPS says they should be here by Friday. Perfect. So, I stripped down his head using Purple Power and repainted it. I'll let you know how the decals work when I get the new set.

 

-Jesse

 

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Love the build, I always wanted the models from the movie. I like the movie and see it more as an adult/teen film. I hope Round 2 reissues these kits as the Ebay prices are getting pretty high for these kits. Good job on the build!

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