Beginning The Journey

Beginning the Journey

Some opening thoughts before we get this project started.

Build Order

Rather than most of the build diaries I've seen so far, this one will not follow the subscription order as they are received from DeAgostini.  I purchased the full kit all at once, so I'll be free to assemble the model in any order I choose and won't have to take breaks while I wait for the next subscription installment to arrive.  As I begin, I'm primarily interested in getting the external model done.  Once I've got something that can be displayed, I'll go back and work on the internal components of the model.  As a result, some of my assembly won't be permanent.  I'll try to keep you updated on what work is permanent and what can be reversed or corrected later on.

Which Falcon Am I Making

The goal of a lot of the folks I've seen building this model are to get as close to an absolute copy of the 32" ILM filming model as they possibly can.  This makes sense given that DeAgostini based the kit on the 32" model since there was so much available for this model from the old Master Replica folks.  I'm taking a bit different approach.  Am I trying to recreate the Falcon from Star Wars, Empire, Jedi or the new sequels?  Am I trying to recreate the filming models or the full sized constructs used for live action scenes?  Am I trying to recreate the various interior sets used in filming the movies?  Simply put, I'm trying to make the best model I can of the Millennium Falcon that I've seen on the movie screens and TV screens more times than I can count for the last 40 years.  I don't have a clear definitive image in my head of the 32" model, the 5 foot model, the Star Wars version, the Empire version or the newer digital models.  What I do have is an amalgamated memory of all these ships which mush together as the "Millennium Falcon" in my mind.  So the exact greeble (that's the spelling I found in Wikipedia), the exact color or the exact light doesn't really matter as long as the big picture looks like the Falcon and none of the smaller details scream out an inconsistency.  So I'll be using a variety of source material, aftermarket parts and purely imagined things to make my Franken-Falcon look as cool as it possibly can.  Enough droning on that topic.

Easter Eggs

After that long rant about authenticity of any particular feature, I'm reserving the right to add in some funny bits here and there to amuse myself.  I'll make these fit in with the overall big picture so they don't distract the view, so subtlety will be the word for the day when I'm doing these things.

 Lighting and Electrical - I think extra lighting is what will really make this model pop.  The lights that DeAgostini supplied are great, but there's a ton of room to expand.  I plan on using a combination of direct LED lighting as well as fiber optic illumination.  I've never done either of these, so it should be an adventure.  I have a rudimentary understanding of electronics, but it's been 30 years since I took my intro to electrical circuits back in college.  I'm hoping I'll be able to power all of the additional lighting off of the circuit board provided by DeAgostini.  Not only do I want to avoid adding an additional power source, but I'd like to have the new lighting tied into the remote control system.

Experience

I built plastic model kits as a kid, but never anything this complex (i.e. expensive) or to the detail level I'm hoping to achieve.  I have had quite a bit of experience painting gaming miniatures, so I'm not to worried about detailed painting.  Weathering is my biggest worry and I've been scouring the web for guidance.

Feedback

I'm more than open to your comments, questions and suggestions.  I may even be soliciting advice at times (hopefully there will be enough people reading this to be helpful).

Modding

I've got some plans for mods that I'd like to make, but what I plan and what I actually do are two different things.  I'm not going to go overboard on 3rd party mods, but some are too good and too convenient to pass up.

I suppose that's enough rambling until we get some actual plastic and metal delivered.