qaStaH nuq jay’

Gary Dahlström
After cleaning up the 'shop a bit, I cracked open the BoP and started thinking about lighting. I'm going to drive the LEDs with an Arduino Micro which saves a bit of planning, space, and circuit construction. I may drop in a PIR sensor and do something exciting with the lights when someone walks by. I have some knee surgery scheduled for next week, so as long as I can get comfy sitting at the bench I can look forward to a week or two of shop time and not having to work thru a honey-do list. The kit looks ok, a little flash here and there and those beefy sprue joints for the wings and hull will need some work. I've found some decent reference material/photos that will help with the color scheme and LED placement. The green that it is molded in is an assault to the senses, I can almost hear it. After freeing some parts from the sprue, the first step is a bath and a nice coat of black primer. Best to all!

Starbase101
It's not easy being green. Can't even target the engines only.

Gary Dahlström
I lol'd
Youtube Video

Starbase101
Heh, I should have also mentioned their "blending in with so many other ordinary things", but too late to edit now. Good luck on the knee surgery.

Sven Schönyan
I´m in!

playtime 222
Something Happened hahahaha.

JD
Qapla'! nuqDaq 'oH tach'e'? quSDaq ba'lu''a'? Hab SoSlI' Quch!
Hell of a nice shop you have there! I think your cat approves..
But you will have to translate the Klingon to know more.😉

Starbase101
I like the new photo added with your cat. He says, "I hadz 2 play with the small peesez and losed them, sorry."

Roman Modelar
will be watching 🙂

Alec K
Same!

Daniel Klink
hehehe,
put that there and glue this that way.. and i told you not to paint it Black..didn't I? 🙂

Starbase101
The cat's expression suggests all they heard was "bird" when you announced the new kit build. 🙂

Gary Dahlström
I was wondering when the time would come where we start accusing each other of having mothers with smooth foreheads.

Ok, primer coat on the major parts. It's Seymour Auto primer, my go-to choice, and it is excellent. Dries in seconds even in humid conditions has a nice fine consistency, sticks most-excellently to plastic. And as you can see the black is deep. 7 USD for a giant can, enough to cover that 1:200 Titanic you just bought.

As an aside, I don't stage these pics with Oskar in the background. When I'm working on something, he's generally right there in his antique watchmakers chair. He's a good cat, and in seven years has not had any workshop 'incidents'. Loki, on the other hand...

Further, if anyone is wondering what the white sheets are on my bench, they are sections of cheapo Home Depot dropcloths. One side is plastic coated, the other is an absorbent fiber, like a paper towel, handy for cleaning your brush when weathering. I like the white background when working, especially with tiny PE. I also think it gives me a better impression of the color(s) and finish. It also helps to be able to change it frequently and keep the workspace free of stuff like cat hair.

@JD - thanks for the compliment on the 'shop. My wife went out one day for some shopping and came home to two new walls and a door in the basement. I've been lucky enough to work from home for years, so the space functions as my office, shop, and ham shack. Yes, there is a lock on the door, a copy of which the wife does NOT have. 🙂

Going to spend the night planning the build/paint/light sequence, and starting in earnest on the Arduino programming. I have some really nifty micro LEDS that could take this project to good places. As I go through the planning I'll drop some documentation here for anyone who wants to use a similar method to drive illumination. I've always thought that some of the beautiful aircraft pieces I see here would really benefit from some simple navigation lights, or just something subtle in the cockpit to bring out the incredible detail. But, just an opinion.

Alec K
I am looking forward to the LED info. This kit has been in my stash forever, so one day. One day...

Gary Dahlström
I decided today that the Knucklehead Labs R&D facility needs a good cleaning and the decks swabbed before my surgery. The cats have the day off. Maybe when the place is looking good I'll post a tour of my inner sanctum..

I spent some time yesterday thinking through the lighting scheme. You may or may not believe this, but Trekkies have actually posted detailed blueprints of many craft. 😮
On second thought, yeah that's totally believable*.

I'll post pics of the prints and my notes to this albumat some point. For folks like Alec with more than a passing interest, I'll figure a way to drop plans, parts lists, and Arduino sketches to something like GitHub.

Also spent some time dialing in the color scheme, testing out a few combinations. There's a trick I use on occasion to dial in a color: Canva.com has a nifty online color wheel. HTML-color-codes.info has a facility where you can upload a reference photo and pick off the hex color value on any color contained in a pic that you upload. Once I have that hex value i go back to the color wheel and see where that value sits. It give me a good starting point for tinkering with tint, shade and tone. Fun fact: the color wheel was invented by Issac Newton.
Best to All!

*Youtube Video

Gary Dahlström
Put together a basic Arduino sketch to drive the LED effects, the most prominent being the powering up and firing of the torpedo tube. I went back to a Search for Spock clip, and noted that the BoP photon torpedo tube had sort of a spiraling action as it powered up or something. Then Scotty shoots the damn thing before I can see how the effect finishes :|

I'll have to wing it from there. The Klingons later actually get a shot off, but the effects crew went to sleep and just show the torpedo leaving the tube.

The video below shows where I am so far. There will be a lot of static lighting, interior, nav, etc. When movement is detected nearby it will prompt the torpedo effect, which you see at the end of the clip. This mockup is done with 5mm LEDs, just to make it easier. Tonight I'm going to solder up some of the surface-mount LEDs and start working on the nose, getting it all wired and tested. The red ring around the torpedo launcher will need some thinking thru to get them mounted and isolated. Most everything else except the strobe effect nav lights can be powered right from the 3v pin on the arduino, so it's likely that I won't run out of output pins. Bottom line is that I now need to wire up some tiny LEDs and actually get cracking at getting this together.

I'll post a pic of one of the blueprint pages with my notes; if it's legible, I'll post the rest for others to use. I'll also try to remember to take pics as I mount the LEDs.
Best to ALL.

Youtube Video

Dave Flitton
Watching

Starbase101
Cool idea using a motion sensor for the torpedo instead of a push-button. I too remember a "spiral" effect of the torpedo launch powering up. Few people do it animated that way, and often just settle for a "burst" flash. It's been a while since I've seen the movie, but maybe Generations shows the full shot when they learn the Enterprise-D's shield modulation?

Gary Dahlström
Advice I would fully expect from someone with ur username! THIS is why I'm here.

Spanjaard
i am certainly in too 🙂

Gary Dahlström
The internet is indeed a boundless arena of information: all i had to do was Google "Enterprise-D's shield modulation" and I found the precise scene. The answer is 257.4 MHz. But sadly, not torpedo power-up effect. Thrilling scene though, especially when Troi "takes the helm."😉

Starbase101
"Light burst, you tiny little light burst, you precious little light burst," badumbumbum, "where...are...you?" Time for artistic license.

Gary Dahlström
I looked behind the box of surface mount LEDs I have and I found a stash of pre-wired units I had from a previous project. I cut a 1cm circle of styrene, drilled it out ( i added a fifth LED in the center), a little foil tape and then wired it to the breadboard. Let me know what you all think.
These LEDs are bright! I may lens them a bit when I epoxy them to the mount, but yeah, I think the desired effect will be achieved.
Youtube Video

Gary Dahlström
I'm also keeping my camera handy and taking frequent pics of installation - will post at some point.

JD
Love the videos, this is exactly what I want to learn..more please!

Starbase101
Just curious, why a big Arduino instead of simply a digital circuit? Just easier to program?

Gary Dahlström
@ Starbase - The short answer is yes. I'm not using the full-size Arduino, but the 'micro' version; it's pretty small, about 40mm x 15mm. If I used standard (i.e., non-surface mount) components I couldn't design a smaller circuit board and getting that torpedo effect with a timer chip IC would take a lot more design effort and ultimately time. It also makes this type of project accessible to folks without mad soldering skillz. These little boards are about 13 bucks at a popular online retailer. They also make a 'nano' version, which I think is even a bit smaller. I'll take a pic of just the board for reference. This brings up a good point: do I install the Arduino in the hull of the model, or run all those wires down thru the mount and install it in the base. The former solution sounds like a good idea, but putting the microcontroller in the base allows me to reprogram or replace the board should the need arise.

@JD - I'm doing what I can to document every step; when the project is complete I'll find a way to make all the materials accessible.

Today I hope to paint the nose and get that subassembly on it's way to completion, and start working on the phasers at the end of the wings. Right now I have to run to home depot and pick up some nice fresh epoxy, and then I gotta log in and do some of the work I get paid for. Knee surgery tomorrow, and then with any luck I can put in some serious building time in the days that follow.

In other news, i had an idea re: the B9 robot project. Bluetooth speaker. In the back of my mind I can use one output channel to drive a 2" speaker, and the other channel to drive what I'm calling the voice LED. Could be cool, and maybe a way to realize my dream of having the B9 tell dirty jokes. I already ordered the glass dome and PE parts for that kit. The electronics I already have in my stash.

Skål!

Starbase101
I don't know if you're aware of Lou's channel on YouTube (Aztek Dummy) but he's got a video showing one of the many Big Dawg products that a lot of people are using to add sound to their models. Youtube Video

Gary Dahlström
LOL, here i was thinking i had an original idea. I don't want to get off topic in this thread, but I was looking for something a little more functional than 5 canned phrases. I figured with bluetooth i could play a more varied soundtrack, including music. This was a fun look inside at the kit though, as i've promised not to open the box til the BoP is finished. Some good tips on the build, but his vocal LED should be red, no? And that seam on the dome is hideous, making me glad i dropped the cash on the glass one. I'll soon start an album with an unboxing and parts list. Really trying not to get distracted.

Just finished the first base coat on the BoP nose, and started to epoxy the torpedo LEDs in place. check back later tonight for a progress report.

Starbase101
That was just his first build of the B-9 when the glass dome wasn't yet available. I don't even think he used the Paragrafix photoetch on this build. I just threw it out there as a cheaper alternative than bluetooth. Big Dawg has sound boards with up to 10 different sounds and they're very inexpensive.

I haven't looked at the BoP parts in awhile (it's buried in my stash) but if there's an inconspicuous place for a removeable access panel then you could have access to the board inside the hull. You can easily hold the panel in place with tiny magnets. I do see from your parts photos that I'll need to be replacing the wing cannons with plastic or metal tubes for my build (and then I can also thread fiber optic through them). If you use "flickering" LEDs for the engines it will have a random pulsating effect (the multiple LEDs will flicker at different times, so all-together you get an even flickering glow). You build is coming along well.

Gary Dahlström
I was thinking with the wing cannons, I can merely epoxy up a tiny LED right on the end and run the wires externally to the first joint; there is a convenient opening already there and if done right they will just look like another detail. With the LEDs for the engines, good idea! I do have a few unoccupied pins that I can create that effect. If you look at my pirate ghost ship build, the deck lighting flickers as though it were being light by oils squeezed from the Souls of the Damned. It's driven in the program (sketch) by the analog pins and a volatile random variable that dictates the brightness.

As far as internally placing the board: I usually do a stress test on the board & sub-assemblies to make sure nothing gets too hot or a diode burns out prematurely due to voltage or a manufacturing defect. On the pirate ship i had to used the mega arduino; and it does get pretty warm driving 60 or so diodes. The board does need a little air, otherwise a heat sink might need to be installed. I do like having the option of easily swapping out the board just in case. Since I'll be fabricating a stouter base (the kit supplied one is a bit cheesy) I figure putting in there is the path of least resistance.

I do appreciate your interest in this build! If it results in you diving into the stash and lighting a model, my job is done. I'll tossed up a pic of the wired up launcher so you get an idea of how tiny these LEDs are.

Daniel Klink
I am really sorry Gary but like in real life the cats are the stars in your pics...🙂

Starbase101
There are only a small handful of kits in my stash that will not be getting any lighting (either because too small, or the subject doesn't have lighting). Putting the board(s) in a base is often the safest place for heat dissipitation and maintenance, but then means all the wiring needs to be routed through to the model....and then also you can't easily run through the house "flying" your spaceship with its lights on. 🙂

Gary Dahlström
I'm painfully aware that I'm an also-ran, but I'll do anything for a click. As you can see, Loki can get comfortable on any surface. He has a PhD in Comfort.

Gary Dahlström
Got the launcher wired up, 10 LEDs, 20 leads. I have a bit of a light leak from the surrounding reds, not sure if I'm going to seal those up or leave them to illuminate the tube when not firing; or I may instead light the center yellow led in the launcher on start and then turn it off during the initial firing sequence. I'm hoping when i attach the nose and drillout the tiny slits surrounding the tube that I'll get some nice red color there. There are also two windows on that part that i hope to illuminate with orange diodes. The kit comes with a lens which is balanced in place on the video. I think from the direct front the effect is what I was going for.

There are some white nav lights in the background. The default for these is the strobe effect, but because of the limitations of the arduino board i'll either have to get clever to keep them strobing thru the firing cycle, or do as i have in the video, just turn em on (or off).

Going under the knife in an hour, not sure if I'll be alert enough to work this when i get home but have the next few days to stuff all this in the nose and maybe get that attached to the lower hull. I'll have to fit a common ground rail somewhere in the lower hull to conserve wire space in the down-tube, so, something else to ponder while under anesthesia. Best To All!

Youtube Video

Alec K
Nice progress 👍. Good luck with the surgery.

Gary Dahlström
Thanks Alec - everything went swimmingly well, surgeon was pleased.

Right now, high as a kite on pain meds, so no bench-time tonight; I considered a little masking but I don't want to wake up with regrets.

I have a scalemates usage question. How does one send a PM? Do you post it to someone's wall and mark as private? (This site is the closest I get to any form of 'social media'.)

Starbase101
You click on a username (from anywhere on the site) and you're taken to their profile page, defaulted to their Wall tab. There you can "Post a message", and any messages posted to a user's wall are automatically private.

Spanjaard
just check that the "private"is selected, if you do not want everybody to see the message😉
hope all well with the operation, after the pain killers are wearing out....

Nathan Dempsey
Interesting project Gary. That lighting is going to look great. I've always wanted to do this to a Star Trek Runabout.

Gary Dahlström
Started drilling out the holes for windows and test the interior lighting scheme. It'll take some doing getting them looking tidy with a needle file. My other option is to drill out the entire rectangle and then add a bit of spare photoetch or styrene to replace the window "sash" in the middle. It looks like 2x 3mm orange LEDs will do nicely in the nose.

I may hobble off to the hobby store to look at some color options. I'd like to get the nose painted and lit today and see if i like the color scheme. I'm not above ELOing the thing and starting over with new colors. I really want to avoid a bright green. I'm switching over to acrylics and retiring my enamels, so I have a new palette to get familiar with. For the base green I'm using a combination of Tamiya cockpit green and yellow green, with a touch of NATO black.
Cheers.

Starbase101
Doesn't Tamiya make a day-glo fluorescent green? 🙂

Gary Dahlström
I've been looking at their online paint chips, but I'll just have to go to my local hobby guy and see what he has on the shelves, open the bottle and take it out into the sunshine. But first, a siesta. I still have a wicked hangover from anesthesia.

Starbase101
(you do realize fluorescent green was a jest towards your avoiding a bright green.....)

Gary Dahlström
(chuckles) aw man, that went right over my head! I'm blaming the drugs.

Gary Dahlström
Managed to tame the input leads and tacked it into the nose. After fussing about the color scheme, i decided to go with the colors I had already mixed up. There is a minor spot that needs a little putty or modeling paste, and I drilled out a wee bit of the red ring at the bottom. In some of the movie clips that the red illumination stops about halfway up. I can more easily get there using the bezel as a lens as opposed to trying to drill all the way thru. I also think that the red is fine to backlight the windows. The orange LEDs I have are not much different in color and saves me from having to install more diodes and leads. The camera flares the light a bit from straight on; IRL you can better see the lights chase each other. I may rest on my laurels for the evening and epoxy it in tomorrow.
Youtube Video

Gary Dahlström
I meant to ask for opinions: should I seal the light leak between the red and yellow to leave the tube dark when not firing, or let it stand with the red glow filtering thru? The path of least resistance beckons.

Starbase101
Looking cool. Sometimes the red ring looks lit and other times not so much, but in both cases the ring is definately pure red, memory-alpha.fandom...Klingon_Bird-of-Prey (scroll down to Tactical Systems)

Where do you get those motion sensors from?

Gary Dahlström
I have a stash of Seeed Studios stuff from days when I tinkered with autonomous robotics. I'm sure you can get them in bulk for a buck apiece at a certain online retailer. Search for "PIR sensor". They come in 3 and four pin flavors IIRC. The one I'm using is a 3-pin.

Gary Dahlström
I misspoke. That particular PIR sensor is a Parallax - #555-28027

Gary Dahlström
After a conversation with Starbase101 i realized that since I'll be putting the Arduino in the base i shouldn't limit myself to the micro version and can use an Arduino Uno. I get a few more analog pins and I don't need a microscope to see the pin labels. I'm hoping to paint the lower hull tonight; that's low hanging fruit since I think there are only 2 nav lights on that assembly and gives me a chance to install a common ground rail. For the base, I'm thinking of finding a second-hand globe and cutting the top off at about 40 degrees north latitude and using that as the base. I also just looked at my basement ceiling and noticed the hemispherical frosted glass light covers. That might be cool too.
I'll post pics of any progress this weekend and I'll also post an unboxing of the B9 kit and related goodies.
Wishing all a fun Friday nite.

Gary Dahlström
Decided that I needed to breadboard everything out. Started with nose, nav, interior, and engine LEDs. Added a pulse effect to the engine lights, top right, the effect you only see briefly when the lights first go out. I halted the strobe effect on the white nav lights, the blinking threatened seizure in some folks, and i find it fatiguing. The strobe effect was also gumming up the programming. Interior orange lights to the lower right. I have to hook those red nose lights up to a pin, they're just on the 3v rail right now. Added a photoresistor so i don't need to turn it on when it gets dark. I'll drop another video after I wired up the wing LEDs
Youtube Video

Gary Dahlström
Stayed up late and hammered out the programming. Now that I have all the pin assignments I can get back to the plastic parts. Paint and nav lights to the lower hull later today.

Quick video of the breadboard layout. added a cannon effect for the wingtips which fires after the torpedo sequence. The flashlight was being used to look at the photocell values in bright light. The threshold may still need to be tweaked.
Youtube Video

Gary Dahlström
In case anyone is wondering, the cats are banned from the 'shop when tiny wires are in play. They're spending Caturday in the solarium.

Starbase101
What's in the background of pic 15 (upper-right) that looks like a photoetch fret? Curious to know what details you're adding and if I might want to get the same photoetch set....

Gary Dahlström
Needed a break from making tiny holes...

Installed the lower hull nav lights and the nose assembly. the octopus of wires* juuuust fits thru the neck. There's still plenty of detailing to do and finish drilling out the red LED ring. On the upper hull, drilling out the 'portholes' for the interior lights. I'm using my dremel micro chuck with a #80 bit. To start i used that flexible attachment thingy and a foot pedal to drill out three holes in each porthole dimple. Then I use the micro chuck like a pin vise and work out a bit more plastic. Finally I shape the edges with a #11 blade and some needle files. On the sides I just cut a rectangle and replaced the middle 'sash' with some .5mm styrene. It's quiet, tidy work. There's only one opening I'm not happy terribly with.

So far I don't see a problem isolating and fitting all the LEDs & a common ground inside. Most of the interior is to be lined with sticky aluminum tape, which seals up little light leaks and is much more reflective than silver paint. I'm going to upgrade the support post, and I think I have a nifty idea for a display base.

I'm really itchy to start the wings. I may work down a few more portholes and start messing with the wing phaser cannon LEDs. Not sure if I should go with red or green for those phasers. The wire routing is going to be tricky there and at the wing root.

Best to All!

* for wiring, I peel the outer coating off some Cat5 cable, and there are 4 pairs of 28g stranded wire in there. Stranded wire makes for better routing.

Gary Dahlström
@Starbase - I have some leftover PE from an old Tamiya Williams F1 kit; there are lot's of Klingon-like bits I can creatively apply to the hull.

Gary Dahlström
...and back to tiny holes. I was working on the upper hull and was subconsciously nagging myself about that damn red ring around the torpedo tube. I just didn't like using the transparent part as a lens to illuminate the lower half only. I always tell my kids, if you don't like the way something is coming along, don't be afraid to start over; the results are always better than before. I ripped out the torpedo LED assembly and dremel-shaved the outer edge of part #7 to properly expose the surrounding divots that represented the ring openings. Then, back to it with the micro chuck and a #11 blade. Tacked the torpedo assembly back in. An early test with a button cell revealed that the whole ring is now nicely illuminated. I'm going to repackage the wire bundle so it fits a little less snugly thru the neck.

I'll post a pic when things are tidier and I apply a touch of epoxy. Not sure if I'm going to hit the openings with a bit of Krystal Klear.

The porthole cutting in the upper hull worked out nicely and I placed one of the red LEDs for the wing cannon. Pic in album. The latter looks pretty good and the wires will add a touch of detail. Routing them thru the wing and the root at the hull looks like it should not be too much of a challenge.

Best to all, and have been enjoying the work of others in my newsfeed. Will find a little time to comment directly. SO much nice work out there.

Gary Dahlström
QaghmeylIjtIchID, yIyoH.

Gary Dahlström
OK, Oskar just showed up to see how things are progressing. Like that inscrutable boss who comes over to your desk and you're not sure if he's happy with you or not.
That feeling lingers after he walks away.

Gary Dahlström
The upper hull is wired up and tested. I just have to cut & install a styrene bulkhead in the nose to seal the light between the lower and upper hull sections. Some pics show a non-strobing navigation light on the side of the hull just forward of the wing root. I may opt to install those before I seal the hull up. The port side wing cannon is wired up and sealed; the wires presented a bit of a problem but that was solved by removing a bit of interior plastic from an panel. I'll have to get creative with those wires where that cannon meets the wing tip. Time permitting I'll get that upper hull painted today and start getting the wings wired up.

Picked up what I needed to make a really nifty illuminated base.

Cheers.

Gary Dahlström
Got the wings wired up and epoxied. Might get the base coat on them today. Then a full test of the board before starting to get all the sub-assemblies together.

JD
As you can see, we're all, pretty speechless here Gary 😳

Gary Dahlström
LOL'd hard at that one.

Gary Dahlström
Dropped a pic of the internal wing wiring.

Alec K
Yeah, this is an intense build. I may need to get a degree in electronics engineering to do mine... 😄

Daniel Klink
That is really amazing stuff you show here.
I am very impressed by all that detailed electronical stuff and how you fit all that stuff into a plastic kit..👍
I even forgot just about the cats...🙂

Gary Dahlström
Thanks guys, much appreciated. It's not that technically challenging - they're just LEDs. Based on the amazing work i see here, not beyond the talents of anyone. Programming the Arduino is probably the most technical detail, and I'm willing to help write a sketch (program) for anyone tackling a similar project.

The big question was, will all those wires fit thru that skinny neck? This was the make/break part of the project and I had to assemble some parts to the upper hull to make a test fit. After a quiet moment to myself I matched them up. The answer is yes, they fit - just barely. The two hull halves met cleanly without too much negotiation. Some shortcomings of the kit will require a little modeling paste or putty, but I'm happy.

Wired up the engine unit, will post a pic of that later. Stuffing the rest of the wires into the aft of the hull will be 10 lbs of sh*t in a 5lb bag, but it'll work. Looking forward to getting the wings painted and glued up to the upper hull.

I should log in and do some work. Cheers to all.

Gary Dahlström
Will also post a cat pic later for Daniel. I reconfigured my 'shop and added a 4th bench; the cats are still dealing emotionally with the change, but I had to maximize my use of natural light.

Gary Dahlström
That left side window used to be off-limits. Each cat now has a perch to observe yonder bird feeder. Happy cats.

Alec K
Lol, my man cave is off limits to our cats.

Gary Dahlström
the phrase "off-limits" does not exist in the feline lexicon. They party in there while u sleep.
[img1]

Starbase101
They just want to help with whatever it is you're trying to work on....
Youtube Video

Gary Dahlström
Just doing a quick color & gap check on the wings; one more coat should do. Then a light clear coating and on to the feathery undersides. Starting to look like a BoP now. Much of the wiring is successfully routed, and I just need to put a header plugs on the upper hull wires to quick connect the navigation lights and common ground to the wires in the lower hull just before sealing it up. The cannon wires pass straight thru to the base. It's been a while since a full board check, so I may plug in all the sub-assemblies tonight and make sure everything still lights.

I turned back to the bench and Loki was keeping the bird company. Image to follow...

Torsten
How😎 is this, great show 🙂

Nathan Dempsey
Coming along nicely.

Daniel Klink
Most impressive really Gary... In early days you could have been part of the special effect Crews that manufactured the Models for the movies...
Nice cat pic again. Hope she does not sudenly faces a mouse in her dreams 🙂

Gary Dahlström
In Micro-Mask We Trust. Fingers crossed.

Gary Dahlström
Wings are coming along, the ventral side is done; only a dozen or so more panels to paint in on the dorsal side and some minor work on the cannons. Feeling good about the colors, I figure I can balance any minor inconsistencies with a light coat of smoke.

Will probably get back to a bit of wire management tonight, and detail in the torpedo launcher. I'm considering replacing the torpedo tube that lies under the nose with a brass tube. I'll have to solder a 1 cm coil around it; soldering brass can be iffy. I'll experiment a bit but in the end I may be happy to go with the stock part.

Most of the wires that will travel through the down-tube have been passed thru the existing opening. I have just enough room to pass the remaining wire for the cannons thru. Not having to modify the existing hole makes mounting a bit more straightforward.

Best to all.

Gary Dahlström
..and yes, that is a slick new Tankraft mat!🙂

Stephan H.
Awesome project and double-cat-approved! Nice one. May the force be you😉

Gary Dahlström
Anxious moments ahead. Getting everything connected for an overnight test; gotta slow the pace to be sure that I have everything labeled and plugged in to the right pin. Cats are temporarily banned from the 'shop. No drinkin' tonight. If everything lights on the first try I'll link a video.

JD
The man has his priorities straight! Modeling is serious and dangerous business. People and cats could get hurt, what with knives and solder flying all over the place and all the heavy equipment around! Don't want to make a mistake while under the influence! 😛

Gary Dahlström
This I didn't expect...fully functional on the first try. I figured for sure somewhere there would be some noise on a pin or a voltage dropout, but no.
I have a few decisions to make about pinout and whether or not I want the interior lights on all the time. Gonna let it run overnight to make sure nothing burns out or the software gums up, but yeah - real effin' pleased!

Youtube Video

JD
Holy crap! I nearly spilled my drink! I raise my glass to you Gary!

Gary Dahlström
Thanks JD - *clink*
When I tackle these projects I try to think tactically. I was originally going to stall final assembly until I got some other fine details done on the subs. Now I'm thinking I should package this up, and do the detailing and weathering on the fully assembled model. I did end up making a brass torpedo tube with a nice coil made out of some green enameled wire. The whole hull just begs for some shading and scratch parts.

But I'm at the point where I want to go back to classic modeling skills and stop storing this project in a half-dozen plastic boxes. The downside is I have to fashion a temporary base. Things to ponder over a couple Scotches while I watch those nav lights strobe.
Cheers

JD
I'm so glad you decided to show your creative process. I love to see the evolution, the problem solving, the thinking step by step. The live show. It's way more exiting than just showing a final product. It brings me into the build, and I enjoy the ride.😎
Moreover it makes me want to try harder! skál!

Gary Dahlström
Thanks JD. When this is done I'm going to assemble my notes and pics and put together a primer on some of the techniques and materials used in hopes that it may be useful for someone like you who wants to replicate the project or one of their own design. I actually want to expand the future scope of my own builds and incorporate one of the new raspberry pi units. But for simplicity & cost the Arduino is still the best choice.

I discovered one mistake that I made with the wiring: I'm using a 1/8" audio jack for power and dumbass me wired the jack & plug in reverse. I should be happy if that's the only error.

If work is not too busy today I'm going to start mounting the wings to the upper hull and take care of a few things like adding some canopy glue in the portholes as well as some exterior "plumbing" details. Once I get the thing down to two major assemblies I'll step back and work out the final assembly process.

The cats have been readmitted to the 'shop. I need the supervision.😉

Gary Dahlström
Starting to look like a Bird now. Drilled the holes in the hull and fed the wires for the wings thru, and then delicately epoxied the wings in place. They look nice and even, nothing to do now but have a sandwich and watch the epoxy cure.

Daniel Klink
Art meets science + workmanship and talent wow !

Gary Dahlström
"Is it bad Doc? Will he make it?"

Bird is getting some final header plugs and I'm tweaking the software a bit to dim the red LEDs just under the hull at the wing root. Those are flat red LEDs and they draw a bit more current so I may put them on their own pin, or perhaps delete them entirely and let the interior lights filter thru the red acetate I installed to diffuse the light.

Who wants a drumstick?

JD
Ha'DIbaHDaSop 'e'eDaHechbe'chughyIHoHQo'.
-Do not kill an animal unless you intened to eat it

Gary Dahlström
Apologies for the soundtrack on the video, but this particular recording the Official "Song" of Knucklehead Labs. Everything still working, putting together a gig list prior to closing it up. Tweaked the fade pattern on the engines and judging how diffuse I need to make the rear canopy, and whether or not to put in a little divider in that canopy to better separate the red & yellow light. Busy day at work so I'm just gonna let it blink away and occasionally take the temp of the board. Best to everyone.
Youtube Video

Al
Excellent work! I'm very impressed with your ability to not just master the electronics aspect but to make it all come together in the completed model. I also liked the retro radio and your two cats; perfect workshop environment. One of my cats is a shedder, his "handiwork" is in almost every paint job.

Gary Dahlström
Thanks Al; the cats are indispensable company and worth the trade off for the fur they leave behind. That old RCA Victor is one of the vintage non-working radios I convert to bluetooth. Somewhere I have a video out there of an old Telefunken that used to belong to my wife's dad that I resurrected, complete with the "magic eye" tube that functions as a VU indicator. Those skills will come in handy for my next project.

Tense moments this morning. Closing up the hull. I decided that since I'll be dealing with seams and touch up, I decided that it's best to detail the assembled model. It's dicey, there are a lot of wires in there, but so far I'm satisfied with the fit. It's glued up from the neck to mid-hull; I'm going to cinch down the aft and then let the epoxy kick for the day before aligning and gluing up the nose. At that point I hope it all still works when I plug it back in.

Have a great day everyone!

Gary Dahlström
I think the hull assembly went well...cobbled together a temp mount out of some scrap styrofoam and plugged it in. I have a nasty light leak around the nose which I half-expected, and a few other spots that need attention. Thankfully Squadron green putty is a fair color match which should make touch up easier.

Can anyone tell me if I add a bit of my base color to grey putty will I get an even better initial match? I've never tried adding a little acrylic to putty, and wondering if it will affect the cure. I think I ended up at a good point for this stage of the build; no critical issues with what's now firmly sealed up inside. The engine effects look really nice IRL, but my cell camera just blows out the yellow and that's all you see in pics. I think this evening is a putty session with some old radio shows playing in the background.

Cheers.

Slavo Hazucha
Looking really cool - is it a b'rel, or a k'vort BoP?😉

Can't help with colored putty topic, but looking forwrd to the next moves! 👍

Gary Dahlström
I'm going to have to defer to Starbase101's expertise as to the subspecies of the BoP; a quick Googling provided waaaay too much information.

Adding a little bit of the base color worked out well with the green putty. It handeled & hardened normally and was sandable in 30 min.

It's nice to have a complete assembly in front of me and get back to more conventional modeling tasks.

Gary Dahlström
My paying job interrupted any prolonged bench-time the last few days, but I did mange to detail the clear parts and chase a few spots that needed filling. With any luck this weekend I can finish these touch ups and move on to a bit of space-weathering and possibly mounting to the base next week.

Spanjaard
looking awesome

playtime 222
Nearly done! 😄

Daniel Klink
Hard to believe that this was a scale kit in the beginning...
Marvelous 👍

Gary Dahlström
Thanks guys! I only have a few hours in the evening to get to the detailing; I'm still pinwashing the panel recesses and touching up a few things, taking my time and enjoying the build. It's one of the few projects I have that has no deadline.

I do have to start thinking about mounting it up to the base, which could be technically challenging. I'll post a few pics soon, including one unmounted with the base underneath to get feedback on what you all think of the idea.

Gary Dahlström
So that's my BoP delicately perched on and empty tp roll. It was the easiest way I could get a rough determination of how high off the base I should mount it. That tp roll is 10cm off the base, which is a 20USD led light from home depot. I removed the stock warm white light LED panel and taped in a cheapo led strip. The strip has a little remote so i can vary or sequence colors. I may switch to EL rope, after if figure out if I like the bright spots around the base or if i prefer a even lighting of the base. I may have to choose one color if I go that route. Bear in mind I will be toning down those nav and wing LEDs, so I'm hoping for a more even illumination from the base.

What say you? Good idea, or a waste of 20 bucks?

As it stood 10cm off the base I'm thinking 15-20cm should be perfect. I think I want the wingtips just clear of the top of the dome.

JD
Ok, since you asked, (I apologize in advance) I'm not so sure about that lighted base, it kind of detracts from all that amazing hard work, and is actually pretty distracting and because the ship is lit from beneath, the top seems very dark by contrast. And the colors don't make a whole lot of sense, to me anyway.. Paint it black and drill one million tiny holes to simulate a star field? Or maybe use a toothbrush to flick on some white to simulate stars, or paint it with transparent paint to look like a planet, and it would glow and look very cool.

Gary Dahlström
don't apologize JD, all great suggestions. I like your idea of a starfield, I'm going to think that thru; it would be easy to apply some drops of liquid mask and then paint the interior black. I do agree with you - it's too bright at the base.

Spanjaard
i fully agree with JD. star field seems a better idea

Gary Dahlström
lol - i found the brightness buttons on the remote. it looks a lot better turned way down to just pinpoints of light. The bird is back safely on the bench for proper labeling of all the wires, some airbrush touch up, a light coating of smoke, and the final fitting of the clear parts. At that point I'll tone down the exterior lights and decide what to do with the base.

Gary Dahlström
Finally have it up on a ring stand for some cleanup and a light dusting of X-19 before a matte finish. My cell phone hates the white balance, so I took one quick pic for the album.

Wifey REALLY likes the lighted base, so I may have to defer to her preference - she has to live with the results. Truth be told, I have no idea where to put this thing once it's done.

Oskar came down to the 'shop to check on progress. He seems pleased but who can be sure? New pic added for all his fans.

I'm really hoping to wrap this up over the approaching holiday weekend; my next project beckons. This afternoon I may make a field trip to a fine hobby store about an hour away. My credit cards are trembling with fear. I might look to see if they have that Iron Maiden Spitfire.

Best to All.

Slavo Hazucha
Even Commander Kruge came to share look of approval 😄

What more can be added - when everyone is happy, it´s done! A really cool build 👍

Nathan Dempsey
Oskar's look appears to be that of the approving director. Look at the fine work I have inspired my human to achieve.

Gary Dahlström
Brought the bird outside for a little fresh air. Assembly is complete except for a few PE details and a spot or two of touch-up. Time to start thinking about mounting it...

After dark I'll put up a quick video of the illumination in action. Mixing a little bit of paint with 1 min epoxy will let me tone down the brightness of the exterior lights. Then I'll be better able to determine the right level of light in the base. I found a similar light dome in a junk box, so that's fertile ground for experimenting with a starfield.

Cheers!

Nathan Dempsey
The natural light shows off your exterior paint work well.

Daniel Klink
Heartlifing and breathtaking result the outdoor pics shows the real deal perfectly..
Wow 👍

James C
Even without being currently illuminated by the lighting that you've also installed; that looks fantastic! Really impressive paint work! 👍

Gary Dahlström
Thank you for the ego boost😉 When I near the end of most every build I'm convinced that the result just sucks. In this case I think it looks pretty close to my original vision; a veteran BoP looking for it's next victim.

Not within a parsec of Spanjaard's Reaper though - that thing is a miracle in styrene.

Stay tuned - the adventure of mounting it has just begun. I'm painting a prototypical starfield base now for testing/eval tonight. There will also be some busy work installing the sensors and board into the base.

Spanjaard
thanks for the kind words about my sword... but I think I am at flying with impulse engines when you are at warp in this build 🙂

JD
I can only muster a single word at the moment.. Gorgeous!

Alec K
Turned out beautifully Gary 👍

Gary Dahlström
Quick, shakycam walkaround with a lights-out. LEDs look good IRL, but still an order of magnitude brighter on the phone cam. The red lighted ring around the torpedo tube is perfect, but the camera picks up the small bit of light leaking into the tube. I toned down the exterior lights with some acrylic and epoxy and they no longer sear the retina.

I tested out a starfield pattern for the base, but there was more than one problem; each drop of micro-mask needs to be perfectly circular, or you end up with comets and nebulae. Removing said micro-mask is a pain in the ass and needs to be done carefully with a very sharp knife; one slip and you have a meteor. The interior needs at least 3-4 coats of black gloss to prevent light leakage, which could be problematic or a multi-day event for a smooth finish. Finally, the thickness of the glass and the frosting diffuse the light as it passes thru, so you have two "stars" or at least a sharp inner circle surrounded by a hazy halo. Painting the outside is not really an option for a few reasons.

Wifey sez go with the led strip; turned down low it's barely illuminating the surface of the glass. She likes it. Maybe on this one occasion I'll take my wife's advice. I'm wondering if i smoke the glass if it will improve the presentation.

Next time I'll at bust out the good cam and at least consider production value.

Youtube Video

Thanks for the encouragement!

JD
As I said, drill one million tiny holes! 😛 Seriously though, that was a cool experiment. Now I'm wondering what if you thin down the masking fluid, then try flicking it on the exterior with a toothbrush followed up with black topcoat? The mask should rub off easily. I may have to try that myself.

Spanjaard
drilling tiny holes is an option. but you can also use one of those punch and die tools (Punch and Die Set (RP Toolz RP-PD, No)) to get tiny circles from masking tape (masking sheets from Tamiya). perfectly circular, easy to remove them

Gary Dahlström
wow, you guys are thinking this thru! @JD - I did thin the fluid down a bit and tried the flick method as well as placing each dot by hand. Flicking is not ideal, because the surface is curved any drop not hitting the surface square will leave a small trail like a blood spatter at a murder scene. Placing each dot by hand produced a more circular result, but the mask needs to be kept level until it kicks a bit with means I would have to work slowly around the dome. I made a drilling attempt with my trusty dremel and a brand new #80 bit. The problem there is that the bit walks a great deal on both the interior and exterior surface. I stopped there, but I have a feeling that if it worked each hole would take quite some time to perforate the dome, and I'm not so sure that the cheap glass wouldn't start chipping on the way thru or when it neared the opposing surface. I would also need a box of bits because after one or two holes I'm sure I would have to swap it out.

@Spanjarrd - I had the same idea and tried a punch from a Harbor Freight set that I had around. With the 3M blue tape the edges were a little ragged, Tamiya tape performed a bit better. I'm not sure tape is the answer; since I have to apply multiple coats of thick, sticky gloss I'm afraid that when I pull the tape some paint will come with it. Because the glass is frosted, i can't mask and paint the outside - the frosting will result in edges that won't be crisp.

My most recent idea is to paint the interior of the dome and then apply some high-end glow-in-the-dark paint on the exterior. I used this stuff on our bedroom ceiling and it comes in different 'colors' and with a good charge will glow for a couple hours. The advantage here, aside from the minimal time involved, is that it's easier to vary the size of the stars, and make really tiny, in-scale drops. A couple advantages here: in daylight it would just be a black base, and I wouldn't have to have another power cord leading to the base.

Finally, my only creative concern with a starfield is that the base is more planetary rather than deep space. I'm considering airbrushing the interior with a swirly atmosphere and maybe a polar ice cap and let the base be an innocent planet about to experience a devastating Klingon attack. This is becoming a better idea the more I think about it.

You guys are awesome - your suggestions have at the very least helped me think and experiment thru some options. Happy Friday!

Skål!

Spanjaard
well, the idea of the planet is quite good actually... and i have another idea. paint the inside in black (very thick coat) and then use some sharp object to chip the paint (Dremel may work). once dry, try the light, if any is too big, you can cover it with paint again.
but the planetary surface, could be a better option, anyway.

Gary Dahlström
I'm going to watch some classic clips and see if I can pull off an airbrushed planetary atmosphere primarily in green and some shade of blue. I'm also wondering if I should mount it level or in some slight bank, giving it some life and maybe showing off the underside a bit.

Gary Dahlström
I guess the best choice is the planet Qo'noS, duh.
memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Qo%27noS
I can make that work - I do have some of that glow in the dark paint left too 🤔

Gary Dahlström
Sometimes the obvious sneaks up on you.

JD
I'm going for a similar planet effect on the base for my Enterprise Space seed edition, but it won't be lighted like yours will be. Reference for a base idea | Album by Mithran’dir

Daniel Klink
Jawdropping..👍

Gary Dahlström
Took the better part of an hour to run wires thru the post and test each connection. Used a ring stand as a jig, took another hour fussing over plumb and level. Muttering various oaths to Odin and Thor, I mixed up a batch of epoxy and there she sits - overnight. Trying not to fret over wondering if I used ENOUGH epoxy.

The base is painted, and I'm actually pretty happy with the result. Sometime over the next 48 hours I'll muster the courage to plunk the model into the base and wire it up.

On the upside, it means I have time to open and inventory the B9 Bluetooth project.
Hope everyone is enjoying the weekend.

Nathan Dempsey
Nice to get a shot of your exterior work on the underside.

Gary Dahlström
Looks like my makeshift jig worked well. The epoxy is fully hardened with a solid bond, and the thru rod is still looking plumb & level. The epoxy bead around the post didn't get out of hand, and looks fairly neat. The tolerances for fitting the post, which is a standard lamp post, were extremely tight on both the ID and OD, and I barely fit it in between two hull features that I was able to leave intact.

I'll get it outside tomorrow with a light cube and a decent lens for some final outdoor pics. I have to troubleshoot a minor problem with my power supply, and then another hour should see it mounted on the base and menacing my living room.

Best to all, you are all doing some inspiring work out there.

Gary Dahlström
I was getting the bird outside when I tweaked the post; I didn't gather up all the wires and one of the caught and gave a little lateral pull. Put it back in the jig and applied some reinforcing epoxy. I think it's ok, but I'm not messing with it until tomorrow. Decided to dive into the B9...

Gary Dahlström
If I don't have 100% confidence in the last epoxy bond I have a backup plan: Treehugger mentioned a wall mount in the Voyager build by Cheyne. I could use flexible black conduit or black heatshrink to get the wires aft and make a forked mount that would support the model at each wing root. Once at the wall I could showboat a bit and mount the Arduino in a clear or wooden box, install some HD hard conduit for power.

I'm at the mercy of the epoxy gods, but having any kind of a plan B makes me feel better. I also think mounting it on the wall is a super cool idea - Treeehugger, thanks man!

Gary Dahlström
Said this before, but the epoxy kicked solid, seems strong. This thing goes in the base today/tonite! It's the first day of distance learnin' for my kids so I won't get the hour or two in the am before logging into work. I hope today is a lucky day and there are no issues mounting this up.
At some point I'll assemble my notes and put up a doc of techniques.

Spanjaard
good luck with that (and also with the kids😉 )

Slavo Hazucha
The color & light effect of the drive look really great, or at least 100% in the spirit as I remember them from watching ST... great job! 👍

Alec K
A piece of art for sure. Looking forward to the summary doc 👍

Gary Dahlström
Qapla'!

Getting this into the base was nothing short of neurosurgery. Remarkably, everything still works. All the planning paid off in the end in that I only had to concentrate on pairing the labeled wires. Linked a very short video. After some minor details and I get it off the 'jack' I'll get one more final video and some stills.
Cheers!
Youtube Video

Gary Dahlström
Sorry for the portrait aspect of the video... I just wanted some quick documentation before it fell off the bench or something.😉

Gary Dahlström
To my relief the completed model is actually quite sturdy and has made it's way to safer quarters. Added a few pics but I will probably wait til nightfall to put up a few more and some video.

Alec - the document I hope to produce will be a primer on getting LED projects like this done; I'll use the BoP as an example but keeping an eye toward making the text applicable to any kit.

Alec K
Sounds great - thank you 👍

Gary Dahlström
Just got a good look at the teaser pic i chose; I don't think that Bel-Air stands a chance.

Gary Dahlström
I've been all-consumed by a project at work, and realized I had been remiss in posting a few pics of the finished model. I'll try to put up a video tonight of the LED effects. My poor B9 project sits lonely on my bench; with luck I'll be back to a normal routine tomorrow. I look forward to catching up and seeing what everyone has been working on.
Best to All!

Nathan Dempsey
Some fine work Gary 🙂

Gary Dahlström
Thanks Nathan - it was a technically challenging build. I'm just hoping to be able to forget about work and get my routine back to normal perhaps by spending some time at my bench this evening. Haven't forgotten about assembling my notes in a DIY doc. Cheers!

Slavo Hazucha
Looks really great in plain daylight too! Some well-applied signature Qo´noS weathering 👍