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This pic shows how bright the backlit control panels inside the cockpit are by the "Explosive Bolts" sign
on the door. The backlit control panels
are lit by three 100 mm long miniature fluorescent lights. The same light source offers enough power to give HAL's "eye" on the front of the Pod a nice subtle glow.
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I used 3 mm white LEDs for the headlights that offered enough of a wide-angle light source to 'fill' the headlamp reflectors.
Two brass telescopic rods were used to mount the model and base using epoxy resin.
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I painted the model with satin white enamel paint and used flat black for the accents.
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This photo used the camera flash to give a
better exposure for surface detailing, but underexposed the lighting. I used the textual slide-on decals that came with the kit along with decals from my other kit-bashed projects. The stock decals seemed to work well.
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The headlamp reflectors are painted with silver enamel spray paint. I used red reflective tape cut
up into tiny strips to use for the red accents around the claws. I chose this technique instead of attempting to paint difficult pin stripes.
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I chose to leave the door closed in my display
to show the detail of the door's exterior. I do like the way the door was designed to open and close. I really wish there was another after-market kit to build out a seat and matching human figure to seat inside.
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Probably the most challenging part to work on was the 'foot step' at the bottom of the door. The instructions
require you to build this an the 'shelf' at the front of the Pod from scratch. The
foot step was made up of a rectangle and two triangles that needed to be glued to the Pod's surface without showing seams.
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The silver propulsion exhaust rims around the edge of the disk were hand painted with several coatings of paint.
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I also accurized the stock kit with the raised detail (two circles and a rectangle) near the left edge of the portal.
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Here's an interior close-up featuring the door and signage. Both were stock cutouts that shipped with the kit.
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The backlit control panels are a little overexposed. They do look pretty real in person.
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I used a real piece of thin glass for the portal
window instead of plastic. This resisted scratches and made it easier to clean.
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Here's a look at the left side of the Pod.
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I got the kit before the white metal versions of
the claw arms. The stock claw arms aren't terribly bad. I did spend extra time sanding off the ridges and adding more detail.
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I also accurized the stock kit with the raised detail (two circles and a rectangle) near the left edge of the portal.
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The ridges surrounding the portal window were a little rough from the kit. I used some sandpaper
techniques to smooth out the edges, but it wasn't perfect. Luckily, the ridges look very precise painted black.
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Here's a better look at the custom built 'shelf' or hood that covers the vents in front of the Pod.
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This is a closer look at the 'earmuffs' and claws.
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