Improper Salute? Put that WAAF on a Charge!

Hello Moonbasers,

do you like Gashapon figures?

Those carefully detailed Japanese figures come inside plastic balls and can build up to quite impressive sizes. They need to fit inside a 50mm ball and I've been toying with the idea of turning some of my puppet film work into collectable figures.

On a Monday night, I go to a local group "Sketch Club" held by a retired Art School tutor. I often draw pictures of toys, but I also work on clay sculptures.

I decided to make a figurine of the central character in my film, as a combination of

"sweater girl" and Spitfire pilot! I've already made a 1/2 scale head with flying gear, so I shrunk it down to 1/5 scale and sculpted a clay body to go with it.

Then life got in the way and the clay figure stood on my 3D scanning stage for weeks. The other day, I decided to look at the scans and discovered I hadn't done any final scans at all!

So with a quick session, I managed to get my figure into the computer and printed out on my 3D printer. The 50mm gashapon size,

is a perfect fit for the Trumpeter 1/25 scale Spitfire kit I'll be using for my VFX.

Last night I was watching the movie Shamrock Spitfire for reference and inspiration. I noticed the RAF salute with the thumb facing downwards, whereas my sculpt is American style.

Luckily I can modify the clay arm, rescan it and print out a King's regulations version!

I'm just having too much fun! For the first time in my life, I'm enjoying the journey as much as the destination.

Happy toy hunting Moonbasers! 

Looey

Oz

Houston, We Don’t Have A Problem

 As reported a few weeks back, Woodsy bought me this lovely LEM model from an antique store. It was simply marked Revell on the base and looking up the Revell Apollo kits, I decided it must be the pair of LEM and CSM, but without the CSM and stand shown here.

A few days later, I recalled a bag of parts I had bought on ebay and the fact that it contained a small Apollo CSM. I dug them out and it looks like the correct scale for the set, even though its hard to tell as the model had been inexpertly assembled some while back.

Its covered in adhesive and the crew module has been glued on incorrectly. Unfortunately, the plastic is really brittle, so theres no way to separate the parts. Still, its nice to have a complete set!

The bag of parts also held a small red Mercury capsule, parts of another and a very damaged Gemini capsule, along with a few other parts. The plastic is fatigued and looks almost water damaged. It may have been immersed in some kind if solution to separate the parts, but it seems to have eroded the plastic too.

In a strange twist of synchronicity, while I was dealing with the Apollo model, I spotted a super rare Spacex II Apollo CSM on ebay too! Missing the small antenna and with Michael Collins loose in the cab, It came home for an absolute song. Ive found a similar style antenna - if a little large - to finish it off.

Its perfectly in scale with my Aoshima LEM kit that I made up in mock Spacex colours too!

On a Rope!

As All Hallows Eve looms ever closer and Monster Base's house band is raising hell in New Jersey, I thought I'd play a few creepy tracks over the next few weeks on MoonBase to get us into the spirit of the dark season.

To kick off here's Rocket from the Crypt with On A Rope from 1996. Yeah!

https://youtu.be/2Ezd9WfXbnI?si=iG4r78BAd1ZGdLYS

Please send in your spooky requests. If you can mix space and monsters then all the better! 

Ring a Ding!

Blimey, I'm a sucker for character and premium rings like the beauty above. 

It's a massive subject and I'm very much the beginner.

I think it started with watching Shazan! As a kid. Remember that?

Naturally most of the ring action was and is Stateside and here's a few tasty joblot morsels I've seen online.

See anything you recognise?

A Manhattan Lobby .....

 ...... Halloweened!

Pics: Terranova47

Have you begun to Halloween up?

Now, Voyager!

When I was a little kid, I was fascinated by model displays in Museums... I always thought it would be the best job in the world. Sadly every time I've had the opportunity to produce something for a Museum display, I've always cone up hard against the fact I'm not as good a modelmaker as I fancy I am.

During my recent trip to Japan, I was in touch with my lifelong pal, Kerrie Dougherty. As BIG Gerry Anderson fans, we managed to leverage that interest into paid employment. I became a film miniature modelmaker and she was head of the Powerhouse Museum Space section. She has since gone on to the Australian Space Agency in Adelaide, but is still keen on displays for public education. A few years ago I made some large models of Australian Space hardware for her Adelaide displays.

Always keen for representations of Australian Space hardware, she asked me to look out for any kits in Japan. I managed to score two Japanese built satellites, an Explorer 1 rocket and a 1/48 scale kit of Voyager. Having enjoyed it's guest appearance in Star Trek The Motion Picture, I was looking forward to putting this kit together...

I have to say it is the fiddliest kit I have EVER made in my life and an expected romp turned into five excruciating hours of wresting with tiny girders and widgets. Amazingly, I didn't drop a single piece on the floor! ( the plasma detector array breaking off doesn't really count!) My hands didn't shake or lose grip, but I did wonder if my eyes were finally failing me!

Painting the long Magnatometer boom was extremely difficult with copper rungs and yellow edges. This wasn't helped by the fact the entire length also twists!

Anyway here are some piccies for your enjoyment. The pics really don't do the fiddly intricate nature of this model justice!

Now I know why, when the Klingons destroyed one in Star Trek 5, the SFX crew just blew up a photograph rather than an actual model!

The finished kit (minus copper paint on the whisker antennas) with Earth display stand Alien Grey figure for scale (no, seriously. Those Japanese have a sense of humour when it comes to whether anyone will play Voyagers Golden record) Hasegawa also included a nice embroidered mission patch as a bonus.

The all important gold disc in all its vacuum metallised glory.

"Hey Moonbasers! It's a Golden Astronaut alien!"

"Triang Space-X missed their chance there..."

Well, back to the kitchen table, I have two more kits to put together before I can deliver the lot!

Have you made a Voyager?

Looey

Oz

M.C."Screechin' Creech"

Introducing the latest member of Monster Base House Band!

I couldn't find a scale drum kit, so Creech is going to keep the beat with his laptop and provide the hook with his turntables!

- BrianF 

Monster Base 

NJ USA

Your Top Five Foods to Take to Titan?

If you were a castaway on Titan and could take your top five foods with you, what would they be readers? You can delve into history, we can provide anything! 

My own Top Titan Five would be:

1. Hot sugared ring donuts from the seaside

2. Sugared pancakes

3. Steak and kidney Suet pudding, chips, peas and gravy from the chippy

4. Roast Chicken and chips

5. Thick plain pork Richmond sausage sandwich on white bread.

A substitute would be a curry. Oh yes!

With these, any drink will do!