Sweating the Details!

One thing that needs to be figured out early on is the level of detail that you want to show. The first thing that comes to mind on this project is "Should I make separable stages? Or should I just glue everything together?" For this incarnation, I chose the former. Which then leads to the next question: "How am I going to make the engines and their thrust structures?" One option is to use some of the original kit pieces. I'd rather not do that since I don't know if they're ever going to release this model again. Since I'm not talented with a lathe [don't own one, don't know how to use one, either], I did the next best thing - I made molds of the original parts and then cast them in resin! If I were building a larger scale version, I would just glue everything together, leaving the detail work just for the S-IC thrust structure and F-1 engines.

S-IVB Sweated Details

Revell original and resin casting of SIVB thrust structure

The photo on the right shows the casting process of the S-IVB thrust structure, while the photo on the left shows the finished product compared with the original part from Revell. Again, notice the heaviness of the stringers compared with the comparable Evergreen wrap. I went through the same process with the forward S-IVB tank.

The J2 engines are next. You'll need to make six of them. Make the molds from the original pieces, fill them with resin, and in no time, you'll have six J2 engines. The third mold in the center picture has parts of the J2 engine detail. The resin copies of the engine in the third picture have yet to be sanded and finished.

The 8 helium tanks on the S-IVB thrust structure (not 10, as depicted on the Revell model), are made out of Fimo modeling clay and sprayed with chrome paint. You might opt to use .25" ball bearings or something similar. You'll need one cluster of 3 tanks, two clusters of two tanks and one single tank.

Notice that the J2 engine is sold resin with a hole drilled to accept a brass or steel rod to use as a support structure. The photo on the far right is the S-IVB fuel tank dome looking down through the SLA.

S-II Sweated Details

The two areas that might not be hidden on the S-II stage are the thrust structure at the aft end and the top of the LH² tank at the fore end. I approached both of these making molds of the original Revell thrust structure and LH² dome parts and then casting them in resin. I then added details from the New Ware kit.

Here's the thrust structure without engines or the heat shield. I mounted the structure on to a piece of .030 styrene sheet cut to size to fit the inside diameter of the S-II tubing. This will be attached to the inside of the S-II stage after sanding, puttying and painting.

The above photo on the left shows that I filled the center engine with resin to accept a brass rod to use as an internal support structure. This rod will slip into a hole in the fuel tank dome of the S-IC stage. The photo on the right shows the top of the S-II tank dome.

S-IC Sweated Details

S-IC Fuel Tank Dome looking down through the interstage

It appears that the largest stage was the easiest to detail. The only part that I scratch built was the upper tank dome at the top of the S-IC structure. Once again, I made of mold of the Revell part then attached it to a piece of styrene the diameter of the inside of the tube. Of course, this part would not be needed if you choose to build this without separable stages. New Ware's fin fairing supports are very delicate, so it took a light touch to get them into their proper positions. CA and accelerator were necessary for attaching these parts.

I had hoped to make a mold of the F-1 engines, then cast them in resin. Due to the detail work [and my personal lack of expertise], I decided to use the original Revell parts. Hopefully, someone will offer an accurate resin version of the F-1 engines in various scales.

To the left is a view of the F-1 engines and thrust structure. The center engine has been filled with resin. A hole was drilled into the resin to accept a steel rod to support the entire model. If you look closely, you'll also see holes drilled in the right and left engines. Rods will be passed through here to lessen the likelihood of the model tipping over.

Here's a close-up view of the fin fairing support structure. This is made from photoetched brass from the New Ware kit. This is one of the most delicate parts of the entire model.

Painting

I chose to use Badger acrylics for the very first time. Since I only needed to spray two colors [black and white], I wanted to try a paint that touted the fact that it doesn't need thinning. Engine Black and Reefer White were my choices. They worked like a charm! I could even cover up some of the spillover black paint with a couple of coats of white. I liked this a lot.

There are several areas that will need spot colors applied. Some of the umbilical connectors need to be painted a metal color throughout the stack, there are a few red antennas on the S-II stage [differs depending on your source], and the S-IC fin fairings and fins need metal paint or metal foil. These can all be done with a small brush without too many problems. You just need a steady hand.

Give serious thought to doing the entire CSM in foil. You can use the matte aluminum for the SM and the extra bright chrome for the CM [to simulate the mylar strips]. If you choose to use paint, I'd suggest an aluminum metalizer for the SM and chrome for the CM. The radiators will need to be painted white.

Decals

Rick's decal sheets are amazing. All of the itty-bitty 1/96 markings are something to behold. He hasn't missed a detail from the bottom of the S-IC to the top of the stack. My only complaint is that you can't read [rightfully so, mind you!] the SM/CM markings without a strong magnifying glass. This is not a fault of the printing of the decal sheet, it's just the nature of the beast. Unfortunately, I'm quite arthritic, so I left off most of the CSM decals as they were too small for me to use with my fumble-bumble fingers. However, I WILL use them all when I rebuild the 1/32 CSM some time in the future. I did use most of the Saturn V decals on the rest of the launch vehicle.

The New Ware decals are also very good. All of the "major" decals are included [along with markings for several other launch vehicles], so you won't have any problem building the stack. You just won't have the itty-bitty SM/CM/BPC/LES markings, sway markings and some of the very small S-IC markings.

Both sets of decals are very easy to work with. They lay down flat, have no problems with Polly Scale decal softening solution or semi-gloss top coat. I wouldn't hesitate using either of them again.