Hi Paper Kosmonaut, thanks for the tips and I will try them out. I have admired your models on your blog since I first found them on the Internet. I'm not at your level of modeling, but it gives me a goal to work toward. My
tools are very basic but I am slowly adding to them with the advice from forum modelers. My models are huge compared to Kevin(kwc)'s
More rockets in 1:480. I'm not sure I could build an Atlas D model that small.
In the forum's download section, I found markcable's
Atlas Centaur 10 model and downloaded it. It is a very detailed model and even has a page to print on silver paper in it. I decided to try using the top of LOX pipe and engines from his model. I learned from the Google on-line meetings this is called “kit bashing” a model.
The 1st photo shows the different options I looked at using to make the LOX pipe. I thought that if I only used the silver gift wrapping paper only, I would get a tighter roll for the pipe. I found the silver paper is too thin and the glue distorts it in the rolling process. The left 'pipes' are the more successful attempts at rolling the pipe. The third 'pipe' is a solid copper wire I stripped the insulation off that I would paint with the silver paint. The right 'pipe' is with the label paper attached to the back of the silver paper part. It rolled the best of all the attempts and I used it on the model.
The parts above the 'pipes' are the top part of the LOX pipe from the Atlas Centaur 10 model, copied 4 times, and printed on the label paper. I stick it to the back of the silver paper and cut it out from the label side. This part is very small in 1:240 scale and caused me problems in both cutting and gluing it. It is a good thing I made 4 copies to work with. I found that in the future I will have to color mark the glue tabs as I got disoriented in the folding process.
The last photo shows the LOX pipe with top glued to the Main Tank. The Main Tank Tapered Section is beside it, ready to attach. I will work on the engines next and see how they will fit on the Aft Bulkhead with my addition of the stand parts.