SPAM Review- Revell 1/24 Gemini Spacecraft complete 8/26

[Thomas_M]

Maybe you are doing another one later?

[Stikpusher]

I just might Thomas, looking at the interior, there is a lot of room for improvement and scratchbuilding...

Well today I finally had some time to get in some un interrupted work at the bench here. So I started with the very mundane. Filling the seams on the Astronaut figures. Squadron white putty is seen here doing that task. I will let it dry overnite and sand it up tomorrow



Now as I said previously the instruction sheet color call outs appear to based off of a NASA illustrution and not off any of the preserved actual Gemini Spacecraft. So I am using this walk around of the National Air & Space Museum as my primary reference source.

http://www.cybermodeler.com/space/gemin ... alk1.shtml

Now based upon those photos, I am gonna go with Light Gull Gray on the interior base color with the ejections seats (YES, Gemini had actual ejection seats rather than an escape tower type system as on Mercury and Apollo) in Dark Gull Gray.

the rear bulkhead and sidewalls






inner faces of the crew hatches



center console, instrument panel, and overhead console



and finally, just in case, I also got the areas of the nose cone, inner capsule surfaces, etc, that just might be visible when the capsule is all put together and the hatches are opened. And with that work went the last of my Gunze Aqueous semi gloss Light Gull Gray, which is sadly no longer available at any shops here in the USA



Tomorrow I will do detail painting, washes, etc. and get the Instrument panel decals on hopefully.

[Thomas_M]

...Gunze Aqueous semi gloss Light Gull Gray, which is sadly no longer available at any shops here in the USA...

Wha... What?? Serious???
What about this? Has this colour or the whole line been discontinued in the States?

[Stikpusher]

The whole Aqueous line is no longer imported into the USA due to labeling issues. ("Do not drink" and that sort of stupidity). Their Mr Color line is now avaialbe here, but I really dont care for that stuff. It hand brushes pretty poorly in my experience and you can esentially use only their thinner for thining and clean up. And their thinner is not economical. So once I have used up all the Gunze paint products that I currently have, it will be good bye Gunze for me. Which is sad, because their Aqueous line was really good stuff.

[Thomas_M]

I am sure Gunze will take care of this labelling nonsense soon. We had some kind of this crap here in Germany, too.

[Stikpusher]

No, it has been several years now. From what I have heard from a couple of well informed shop owners and IPMS folks is that Gunze will not. They redid the labels on their Mr.Color line instead. Tamiya was similarly held up at the same time for the same reason. I swear that this "nanny state" stuff is out of control.

[Thomas_M]

Want me to send some over?

[LyleW]

Wonder if it is available in China?

[Stikpusher]

Of course it's available in China... anything endangered,poached, pirated, or that can harm you in any possible way is avaialble in China...
So yesterday and today I have been working on detail painting and washes in the cockpit.
Cabin doors/hatches



Overhead & center consoles and Instrument Panel



cockpit rear bulkhead, ejection seats, and sidewalls



and finally, the Astronaut figures. The instructions would have you paint them in one of the earlier type suits used for Mercury and pre flight publicity photos. But the actual Gemini flights were flown in a white suits of a few types that eveolved during the course of the program. I mixed up a custom off white shade for the suit using Humbrol paints 17 parts Flat White to 4 parts Ivory, based off of image searches.
pre flight publicity photo with aluminized finish suit



G-3C suit worn on actual flight



and my work on them so far



I am still working on them, but looking at the decal sheet, the decals have the nametapes for the Gemini 3 crew, Grissom and Young, so now I have to fine tune my (needs improvement) face painting skills for those two gentlemen...



seated in their seats...





then of course I had to do a test fit of all the major pieces...



and of course I really have to wonder if Jim Hesnon got his inspiration from Gemini....

"....PIGS IN SPACE.....!!!"





Stay tuned for more...

[Thomas_M]

"Pigs in space!" Haha!!! That´s "Schweine im Weltall" in German, a sound bite I make use of whenever something goes wrong...