Vendetta Conversion/Scratchbuild (2)

So it begins.  This is the first (or technically second, i suppose) of what may turn out to be a reasonably lengthy series of posts detailing exactly how I built my pair of Vendettas.  Yes, I have indeed virtually finished the second one.  If you have no idea what I am talking about, or just want to remind yourself of the end result, you can see the completed first one here.

I should note that I learned an awful lot when I made my first Vendetta, so the construction process was a little different this time, but its come out looking almost identical, which is gratifying. I never expect anyone to build one the same (though I'd be honoured of course, lol), but if anyone wants measurements, or more detailed instructions on how any part of the process, feel free to comment or email. 

So, onward.  Today, I'll be taking about the hull.

My Vendetta design does not have a pressurised cabin, and has more in common with modern helicopters that planes.  Because of this, it has extra windows for the crew to shoot and disembark from (though obviously this has no effect outside Apocalypse).  to make the extra windows I sawed each of the hull side sections from the Valkyrie kit into three pieces as shown, and then cut out the middle section of the central panel to be in line with the other door.  I might add that the first time i did this i was bricking it.  if i got it wrong or it just didn't work, that was a lot of wasted money.   

Luckily, it did work, and after a bit of filing, the four pieces fitted back together tolerably well.  However, the contact area was so small that the glue wouldn't hold them together steadily so i was forced to glue them straight onto the bottom of the hull.  Please don't forget the rear ramp like i almost did both times!

To make absolutely sure the thing would fit together later i let it dry overnight with the roof sitting in place and elastic bands holding the whole lot tightly.  (ignore the stuff stuck to the roof, I'll get to that in another post)

It should end up looking like this.  Note the white plasticard girder section.  As well as a little detailing, this helps hide the roughness of the cut at the top of the doorway. 

Now for the undercarriage/nose lascannon housing.  I sawed the two cockpit side sections of the Valkyrie kit as shown.  My saw is pretty blunt and this was a bit of a pain.  The two bottom pieces were then glued to the bottom of the cockpit section of the Valkyrie kit, just as they would be if you were building the real model.

When i made the first one i reallied near the end that I'd screwed up.  There was no room to put the flying base attachment! This meant i had to shoehorn in this adaptation.  I sawed the flying base attachment as shown and glued it to the rear of the lascannon housing.  It doesn't exactly look pretty, but its hidden well by the landing gear. 

Finally, i sawed the barrels of two old lascannons and glued them in place with the help of some 1.5mm plasticard. 

I realise today's post hasn't been very exciting, but i hope you guys enjoy watching this come together as much as i enjoyed building it.  Next time I'll be showing how the cockpit section was constructed entirely from plasticard.  spoiler: it didn't get any damn easier the second time round...