Building the Jupiter 2 by Jim Piszar part 3

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Here are the rebuilt seats. I used plastic sheet to build up the sides and to make the headrests. Also seen in this photograph is the raised panel on the wall. Again I cut this panel out of sheet plastic using Ron Gross’ box art as a reference and painting it prior to gluing in place. NOTE: I think I blew it on the color of the floor, but as we all know, the Jupiter’s interior colors are subject to interpretation.

This is a picture of the communications wall. Although not clearly visible in this shot, I made a viewer out of scrap tree material from the kit. Also, my kit was one of the first runs and had the upside down main hatch. I followed the direction from Polar Lights web site to correct this along with cutting the window out of the hatch. The unfinished port hole can be seen in this picture and I am still in the process of relocating it.

To have easy access to the lighting batteries, I did not glue detail #26, Ladder Wall, in place allowing it to be lifted out of place.

The last time I removed det. #26, I found something surprising. GALACTIC GRAFFITI !

Here now is the Jupiter 2. Jim continued to make changes after completing the model. Many of these changes are reflected in these new photos of the interior. Click to see larger photos.

This picture shows the extended astogator. The navigational equipment in the dome is actually the top of the antenna. I cut the small Jupiter 2 off of the detail that was supplied with the kit and glued it in place on top of the antenna.

I finally painted the astrogator again using Model Masters Interior Buff. I also added a cap to the lower section so the antenna could not be seen. Other additions include a directional indicator inside the bubble and a new control panel handle. Also note in this picture that I added panels along the tops of each interior wall so you cannot see behind them.

This picture shows the astrogator control panel. This was made with a simple block of plastic. After sanding one edge off at a 45 deg. angle, I glued it under the astrogator disk.

Using a second J2 kit, I decided to build another elevator cage, this time adding the control column. This detail is 6 layers of sheet plastic, each trimmed to an approximate shape, then laminated together. I then used a small file, sandpaper and an x-acto blade to get the column to the final configuration seen here.

For the new cage, I decided that it would be easier not to remove and replace the back panel. I simply painted the existing elevator section with Model Masters Interior Buff giving the it a much cleaner look.

This picture highlights the cabin pressure controls. Using the episode “Wild Adventure” I rebuilt this control panel making it a bit more authentic than my first attempt. I also repainted the three fire bottles using a bit more care.

This picture shows the new backlit inertial guidance system. I lit the bead by drilling a small hole in the panel behind it and mounting a light on the other side. The light shines through the hole and illuminates the bead

Next is part 4