SPACE IN MINIATURE

This is an Eagle Transporter from the television series "Space:1999". It started as a 1/72 WARP kit. Modifications were made to make it more closely resemble a studio miniature. The command module, engine assembly, landing pads and passenger module were modified and made removable.

The command module and engine assemblies were made removable by removing the outer ring from the kit's service module cage assemblies, which were not intended to be removed, piecing them back together and soldering to assure sturdier joints. Before soldering, the ring pieces were mated back to the cage assemblies and drilled to assure proper fit and alignment. They are now held in place with straight pins, making the assembly removable.

The engine assembly was constructed using the same method as the command module and extra piping added for authenticity. The engine bells from the kit were modified by removing the stock inserts in the bells, which weren't very accurate. I made recasts of the modified bell and crafted a new insert so that the new inserts matched the studio version's. The bells were then covered in bare metal foil to imitate the original turned aluminum versions and painted to match.

The landing pods, in addition to being made removable, were also made to function with the construction of spring-loaded landing assemblies. The kit resin is very brittle, so like the engine bells, I recast the landing pads for strength to allow the ship to be handled. The landing pad main tubes and hinges were hand crafted from brass; straight pins were used for bolts.Springs were from ball point pens. Several detail pieces were added to the pods, again for authenticity.

The passenger module is also removable with the addition of #00-90 screws with the #00-90 nuts mounted on the inside of the passenger module. The top of the module is drilled to access the nuts. Clips were added to the service modules and drilled to match the holes in the top of the passenger module for the #00-90 brass screws. The landing pads for the passenger module are also functional and spring loaded and the hinges hand crafted in the same fashion as the main pads, again for added realism. I used the stock kit landing pads here since they were more sturdy than the main landing pads. I read several reviews of this kit and was concerned about the strength of the overall assembly, so all the metal parts of the kit are soldered.

The paint job was airbrushed using Testors' Flat Header White as a base, with several different weathering techniques for that "just back from the moon" look. As a finishing touch, I made all the decals using the commercially available "do it yourself" decals sheets. All markings, stripes and details were made using the paintbrush feature on a PC then sized appropriately, printed and applied. I did, however, use the original "ALPHA" logos that came with the kit.

The finished kit came out well and I ended up with an Eagle that matches the studio miniature pretty closely.

Image: View from overhead

Image: Front view

Image: Details of the removable sections