specr0101 Posted February 3, 2007 Share Posted February 3, 2007 I thought I'd ask... Does any one have a original Tanmen vacuum form cast for the canopy and has the ability to make a copy for me? The two canopies that I have are in terrible shape. The form is warped and unusable. I'd be willing to pay for them... On another note, has anyone completed a Catseye? There seems to be an absence of pictures of built ones. Are they that rare? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gabe Q Posted February 3, 2007 Share Posted February 3, 2007 I thought I'd ask... Does any one have a original Tanmen vacuum form cast for the canopy and has the ability to make a copy for me? The two canopies that I have are in terrible shape. The form is warped and unusable. I'd be willing to pay for them... On another note, has anyone completed a Catseye? There seems to be an absence of pictures of built ones. Are they that rare? I'm sorry but I can't help you with the canopy. As far as why you don't see built ones... I think they're so rare no one wants to build theirs and ruin the value. I have one and I really want to build it but I'm scared I'll mess it up. I don't think my skills are at the level I want them to be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HWR MKII Posted February 4, 2007 Share Posted February 4, 2007 Give me one ill build it. Its only worth alot to those who know what it is. Either way though ill build it. Johns stuff is limited release too yeti build it. And his stuff is way better than tanmens Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
big F Posted February 4, 2007 Share Posted February 4, 2007 Give me one ill build it. Its only worth alot to those who know what it is. Either way though ill build it. Johns stuff is limited release too yeti build it. And his stuff is way better than tanmens TRUE !! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
specr0101 Posted February 5, 2007 Author Share Posted February 5, 2007 (edited) How's this so far? Edited February 5, 2007 by specr0101 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HWR MKII Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 Very nice. Actually one of the better ones i have seen. Might want to resize the pic though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grayson72 Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 Wow that looks fantastic, thanks for sharing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gabe Q Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 That is spectacular. I don't mind the hi-res pic at all. It shows all the beautiful detail. I have just been inspired to get off my ass and build one of my kits. Great work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
specr0101 Posted February 6, 2007 Author Share Posted February 6, 2007 Thanks for the kind comments! That was my first resin model. The fit was poor, parts were warped, and voids were everywhere! It took me about a month of build time. Sand, fill, sand, prime, fill, sand, etc... After that kit, I look forward to my 1/72 Hasegawa's! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
big F Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 Thanks for the kind comments! That was my first resin model. The fit was poor, parts were warped, and voids were everywhere! It took me about a month of build time. Sand, fill, sand, prime, fill, sand, etc... After that kit, I look forward to my 1/72 Hasegawa's! Should be a breeze compared to that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gabe Q Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 That was my first resin model. The fit was poor, parts were warped, and voids were everywhere! It took me about a month of build time. Sand, fill, sand, prime, fill, sand, etc... After that kit, I look forward to my 1/72 Hasegawa's! That's kind of discouraging news. I have my Cat's Eye kit next in my build queue. I guess it's gonna be a big pain to put together. It looks worth it though. If mine comes out half as good as yours, I'll be happy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nightmareB4macross Posted February 7, 2007 Share Posted February 7, 2007 I thought I'd ask... Does any one have a original Tanmen vacuum form cast for the canopy and has the ability to make a copy for me? The two canopies that I have are in terrible shape. The form is warped and unusable. I'd be willing to pay for them... On another note, has anyone completed a Catseye? There seems to be an absence of pictures of built ones. Are they that rare? Do you have the small resin plugs needed to re-create the canopy? They were the small plugs located inside the vacuform sheet that came with the Tanmen kit. If you have those, I can help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
specr0101 Posted February 7, 2007 Author Share Posted February 7, 2007 I have the resin plugs(canopy cast) but they are warped and I did try to rework them to some extent but the canopies I formed from them do not come close to fitting. I was considering making a new set of canopies from plaster and trying again with the vacuum-form machine. How about clear resin or epoxy? Does anyone have ideas on how to form a canopy from other materials? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nightmareB4macross Posted February 7, 2007 Share Posted February 7, 2007 I have the resin plugs(canopy cast) but they are warped and I did try to rework them to some extent but the canopies I formed from them do not come close to fitting. I was considering making a new set of canopies from plaster and trying again with the vacuum-form machine. How about clear resin or epoxy? Does anyone have ideas on how to form a canopy from other materials? The plugs are warped?? Were they re-cast this way? You're best canopy for this type would be vacum formed. Clear resin would have to be a bit thick so it could be polished crystal clear, without warping or breaking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
specr0101 Posted February 8, 2007 Author Share Posted February 8, 2007 Yep, it's a recast... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grayson72 Posted February 8, 2007 Share Posted February 8, 2007 Do you have vac forming equipment? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
azrhino Posted February 8, 2007 Share Posted February 8, 2007 Yep, it's a recast... You must have gotten a nice copy. The RADOME on mine is deformed, and I am still trying to figure out how to make a new one. As for the canopy, are the vacuformed copies total crap? If not, there is a product called Durham's Rock Hard Water Putty that you can use to make new masters. You mix it up per directions, pour it into the vacuformed canopy, and let it dry. When it dries, it shrinks just a bit so you can pop it out without destroying the canopy. You can then fix any defects in the plug and use it as a new master. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grayson72 Posted February 8, 2007 Share Posted February 8, 2007 I was asking about the vac forming cuz I have two originals and they might still have the canopy forms in them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
azrhino Posted February 8, 2007 Share Posted February 8, 2007 I was asking about the vac forming cuz I have two originals and they might still have the canopy forms in them. Even better! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valkyrie Posted February 9, 2007 Share Posted February 9, 2007 If someone wants to loan me a set of the original resin vacform molds, I'd be able to make some replacement canopies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
specr0101 Posted February 9, 2007 Author Share Posted February 9, 2007 Grayson, I have a friend who is a dentist and has a vacuum form machine he uses for patients. I was at his office using the Squadron brand thermoform sheets. It sucks down fine, but the molds are terrible. If you can let me borrow them, I could make a couple extra sets for you and pay for shipping both ways. Or you can have Valkyrie make the extra sets for everyone. That is fine too. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
specr0101 Posted February 9, 2007 Author Share Posted February 9, 2007 Azrhino, Actually my recast was terrible. I sanded and filled quite a bit. I even had to bend a few parts in hot water to get a workable shape. My best advice, use the dremel and be very careful! You will make better progress than handsanding. I got copy from Ebay awhile back. It was the only catseye I could find. The landing gear was casted in resin but is missing a set of wheels and a front strut. The wing, fuselage, and radome were warped. Decals were sourced from Hasegawa extras. Believe me, it took alot of effort to appear that way in the pic. Good luck with yours! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grayson72 Posted February 9, 2007 Share Posted February 9, 2007 I'll look and see what I have, if I can find them I'll send them to you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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