I wanted to add a front grill to the speeder, but was having trouble finding a decent mesh material. I finally figured out that I could make a really convincing ‘screen’ with polyclay. I rolled some Sculpy out until it was paper thin, and then carefully rolled the knurled handle of my Exacto knife across the surface. The handle left a uniform diamond pattern in the clay which looked just like screen! I baked the clay, cut it to shape, glued it to the speeder and framed it out with some styrene strips. Now the engine won’t overheat!
I decided to paint the speeder with automotive primer as I liked the neutral colour, and I didn’t have any other colours available. Once dry, I sculpted some cushions for the speeder, pressing Pete into the clay to ensure he would sit level. I baked the cushions, gave them a quick coat of paint, and attached them with CA.
I weathered the speeder with some charcoal and real dirt, and fixed everything with some Testors Dullcoat.
I’m happy with the results, but have no illusions about what I’ve created. This is not a finescale model; there are no control devices, rivets, and the detailing is crude. I am still looking for something to represent the headlamp, and I need to figure out what I’m going to do with the rapido couplers. That being said, I’m starting to think of this project as a characture more then a model, so I think the design is a good fit for that standard.
My next challenge is to make some rolling stock…
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