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ERTL's STAP with Battle Droid
from "Star Wars: Episode 1"
This is also a nice kit but there is one major flaw that needs to be rectified – the Droid does not fit the STAP
easily. I assembled the STAP first.
The color suggested by ERTL is Rust. Testor's Rust is too dark and Humbrol's Rust (while closer) is a tad too pink. I used Testor's Military Brown lightened up with 20% Radome Tan and 5% Bright Yellow. There is some seam cleaning and filling needed but nothing major.
The Droid goes together well. Ignore the instructions to glue the arms in position later in the assembly – go ahead and glue the arms to the the pins and allow the arms to hang
free and loose. The arms will reach the handlebars.
I added a custom decal to the backpack using the same logic as used in the movie for the Droid with 1138 on the back.
The legs, however, are a problem. I trimmed around the hip ball joints to increase the spread of the legs (they need to be
wider than the parts as built will allow). I also sawed off the feet and drilled holes in the leg and foot. A piece of sprue here allows the foot to pivot. (See photo)
Glue
the
feet on the foot pads. With the Droid fully assembled (and all joints loose), position the legs on the feet and glue the hands to the handle bars. Once dry, you can position the Droid thanks to the stiff knee and elbow joints. However, you cannot remove the Droid.
I used a wood base for the stand and reinforced the pivot point on the STAP with brass tube.
-- Jim
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