Shado Mobile Builds

[badsimmonds]

Hi Dan
You are too kind, you flatter me. Any good opinions on my efforts are very much appreciated. I wish it was more accurate but as I've said many times I am not Mr 100% Hubbard (m02) I enjoy scratchbuilding and only buy plastic kits when I need the parts but I always take shortcuts and compromise. Of all the models I've built in my life the Mobile is my shared favourite with my SS Hood's Desert Jeep. Thanks again.

[techno]

No Problem. Ever thought of Scratch Building the RTL2 from the Thunderbirds Episode 'The cham cham'? Stay Cool! Dan

[badsimmonds]

I've been busy with the mobile and I've been re-vamping my full size R2D2 at the same time so its time for an update.
After sticking the blue masking tape on the body I sanded the entire model one more time and checked for any defects. I then wiped over the model with a 'tack' rag to remove all traces of dust etc. I use these rags for everything round the house and can't praise them enough to really clean surfaces for painting.
I know there has been a lot of discussion on these forums about the colour of the mobiles and the general opinion is Ford Artic Blue. Well as this colour is not easily available if at all these days it was recommended to me by Martin Bower to try Ford Glacier Blue. As like everyone else I've never seen a 'real' mobile I went ahead and sprayed the entire model this colour.
Once dried it looked a little too blue for me so I very very lightly sprayed silver over the blue just to tone it down. The silver I used was Moondust silver simply because I had some lying around. I must say I like the finish colour. At one time I was thinking of painting the model a silvery grey as to me anyway thats what it looks like on my telly.
Once dried I started to draw panels on the body. In the past I used pen but this time I used pencil which I found much more easy and just as good. Some people who have a very steady hand will score the lines with a knife but I couldn't take the chance on that as I knew I would make a hash of it.
The white tape is self adhesive car body tape as is the red stripe above the cabin. The hole in the roof is for the radar dish.

[badsimmonds]

For some reason the pictures didn't load so here we try again.

[badsimmonds]

I thought I'd keep on going here with even more pics.
The panels were applied using pencil drawn round various bits of plasti card which is great for bending round curves. For the 'number plates' I just used my label maker which was using white vinyl tape and then cut it down to a more proper size. The originals were I believe from yet another kit but these are just as good. I did however had to buy the decals for the circular yellow sign on the rear, I alway call this an 'Interflora Sign' when I first saw it thats what it reminded me off. The same decals I used for various bits round the body and are difficult to see in photos.
At this time I dirtied down the entire model using an air brush, concentrating a lot round the rear and the wheels. Years ago like most people I used to use black spray paint which was ok for somethings but it did have a tendancy to be a bit spotty, air brushing is much more refined.
As the painting was now complete it was time for the windows. The side windows were cut from thin acrylic while the two front ones were twice as thick. The reason for this was I had to curve the outer edges to match the cabin. Although they were acrylic it was a simple matter to sand down the edge roughly then use finer sandpaper to get a smooth surface. Of course this makes the plastic opaque but this can be overcome by using brasso to get a very smooth surface and it shines up nicely. Sometimes the rest of the window can get marked but a brief wipe with brasso and then a polish with furniture polish it all becomes clear again. It does work and is just as good as preformed windows.
One thing I forgot to mention was front the detail under the chassis, again a lot of kit parts are normally used which I did not have so I made it up as this is an area that is never really seen very clearly, well thats my excuse.
The headlamps were made from the bases of the Airfix footbridge, the centre was removed and a central support added.
As you can see I have a basic cabin interior in place. The seats were made from strips of shaped plasticard glued onto thin acrylic and then sanded down to create a curve. They are only fixed in place with double sided tape so I can remove them if I wish. The interior is something I'm not too concerned with as long as theres something in there!

[badsimmonds]

This will probably be the last update on this project as its as finished as it will ever be.
The one thing I haven't gone into detail about is the radar dish, considering this a control mobile I better rectify that.
As usual I used acrylic domes, first try I used those squirrel baffles you see in garden centres but I soon found out the diameter was too big for the dish, I then remembered I had some 6" acrylic domes for an aborted Orac. They turned out to be about right so after working out the shape and masking off the cutting areas I started to cut. I used a fine tooth saw and took it slowwly and gently as acrylic can at times crack etc, but if your careful it works out a treat. The cutting doesn't have to be perfect as I use an electric sander to get it to the correct shape. Lots of sanding and fine tuning and I end up with hopefully looks like the radar dish. Some people say an acrylic dish can break easily, well in my experience its as strong as any other material used for this part, in fact the support pylon would break first if I tried.
The base was also acrylic covered in the usual detail with the main support.
I know certain kits are used for this area but I had decided I had spent enough money on kits so I was just going to use what I already had, in the end its looks close enough. I was originally going to motorize this but decided just to have it loose for manual rotation if required, after all it was going to spend its life on a shelf.
It turned out the dish was the easiest part to make and it was soon finished and primed. It can turn 360' and it can tilt a little bit, I changed the tilting bit a few times till I was satisfied.
The one piece of detail I DID NEED was of course the part on the dish itself.
Thankfully Colin at Scale Model technologies in Canada came to the rescue again and actually sent me an orignial part from the 'Everything is Go' kit
Once that was in place it was just a matter to spray it and then dirty down the entire model using an airbrush concentrating on the wheels, back and underside.
And thats that, it might not be the best in the world but I'm amazed I was able to achieve this as I always thought this model was beyond me.
It took about 12 weeks which was very quick for me, I think this is because I love the 'real' mobiles so I really enjoyed constructing this one.
I hope someone found this build interesting and for those who looked at this thread many thanks.

[badsimmonds]

Hear are the very final pictures of my mobile complete.
I had to use the garden as it was all I could manage but it doesn't look too bad.
Many thanks

[techno]

You did a Superb Job! Thanks for posting Such Superb Work! Dan

[badsimmonds]

Many thanks for that, I never thought I would ever own a studio scale mobile so I'm very happy with the results.
It was the third model I've built during the past year after having a 15 year break.
Currently I'm just finishing re-vamping my full size r2, once thats done I'm going to redo my MEV. As it was the first model I constructed last year I was a bit rusty so I've decided to repaint and change the back end after seeing the original prop of the Cpt Scarlet mev on these pages.
After that well I keep changing my mind and my wife just shakes her head as if to say where are you going to keep that. I must admit I've run out of room as I have a number of items all round the house.
I think I will build the VTOL aircraft from the UFO episode 'Ordeal' as I really like the little craft.
Good luck with future projects.

[badsimmonds]

I was going through my Mobile build file and found I had some graphics going spare so if anyone is building a studio scale mobile they might be useful.
I have two sets (one for each side) of the words SHADO CONTROL in euro style bold extended, one set the letters are 8mm high and the other set is 10mm high.
They are white self adhesive vinyl and only takes seconds to apply, they were made by my local graphics shop who do all my models.
If anyone's interested please get in touch.
badsimmonds