Jamie's 1:8 Scale 66' edition TARDIS Prop Model

Started by jamiebate, Jun 22, 2017, 06:18 pm

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jamiebate

Last night I assembled the four sides into the base and weighted it down to allow the glue to dry and fix it solid. I then added the front and back pieces as well as today adding the rest of the strips, so the posts are well on there way to completion. Trying the quadrant in the gaps it isn't much smaller than them, so I may sand it slightly as I'm aware the early prop-quadrant was set into the gap more than on other props. I also collected the signage from the printers. I'll need to sand down the tops of the posts to get them flat before the roof is eventually fixed in place. Also you'll notice I printed a variety of door signs with different shades of beige to judge which looked best in the flesh.
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jamiebate

I decided to add the diagonal sills on the rear windows. I made these by sanding a piece of the triangular strip that I used for the edge of the base, down to less than half the size. I think they ought to be ever so slightly smaller but I don't want to lose the effect entirely. 19758322_1810960262253897_1188045331_n.jpg

jamiebate

I've decided that the quadrant I have is too large, so I've sent off for the slightly smaller stuff. In the meantime I started adding pieces that wouldn't come into contact with it. The bits that look like signboxes are the bits that sit behind them - with the recesses cut to allow me to layer in the pieces that'll make up the signage, a piece of plastic on top of a printed piece on acetate. The roof is just sat in place and isn't sunken to the proper level as the top is still uneven until the quadrant is on and I can sand it all evenly.19756197_1811267198889870_1532704012_n.jpg19622696_1811267405556516_520618918_n.jpg19832585_1811267222223201_1673149278_n.jpg19692574_1811267328889857_541371202_n.jpg

jamiebate

You'll also notice I have managed to preserve the gaps between the posts and the top strips on the sides, I was very careful not to let these be invisible by things moving around.

tony farrell

Jul 04, 2017, 12:01 pm #19 Last Edit: Jul 04, 2017, 12:02 pm by Tony Farrell
A lovely little build Jamie!

Since you're obviously trying to incorporate as many of the idiosyncrasies that existed in the prop by this stage in its evolution - the broken divider, the uneven base, the locating bars, etc., I thought this picture (courtesy of Richard Bignell) might help; it clearly shows the hinges on the lamp's housing, the slightly flattened lamp 'dome' and even the eye hooks (which were presumably used for storage/transportation), you can even see that the timbers above the sign-boxes were newer (presumably these were replaced in the 1966 refit):

Ab Snow 19.jpg

If you open the picture in a new tab and use the 'magnifying glass', you'll be able to see it at full size.

I hope this is of some use.

T

jamiebate

I'm certainly going to give these things some consideration. I'm already thinking of how I'm gonna do the little bolts on the side elevation posts as well as the two door knobs on the back doors. I tried opening that image in a new tab but it didn't get much bigger than the one I can see here, is that right or was it meant to be bigger still? I appreciate having access to this too! it's one I've never seen in full before  :)

tony farrell

Jul 04, 2017, 03:49 pm #21 Last Edit: Jul 04, 2017, 03:52 pm by Tony Farrell
The other versions of the picture I've seen have the background people 'photo-shopped' out and are at a much lower resolution.

At full size, the picture is 1920 by 1937 pixels and is too big to fit my PC's screen. Perhaps the forum's software has reduced it in size?

Give me a message if you want the picture and I'll e-mail it to you in its original format.

T

Scarfwearer

The limit is 1000 pixels in a build diary, and 2000 pixels in the reference section.


jamiebate

I decided this afternoon that buying more quadrant that'd be marginally smaller at an individual cost per-strip was silly, so I gave the stuff I already had a light sanding to get a suggestion of depth to them beyond the strips they sit next to. I then sanded down the tops of the posts to meet the top of the roof and the result is satisfyingly smooth and flat. Here you can see the top of the posts looking like the top of posts for once!

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The roof then sat snugly into place and the effect was exactly right - a smooth finish and no evidence that the piece the roof sits on is a seperate one that fits in. The tops of the posts wouldn't have been perfect in any case but I wanted to get the even look as though they'd been sawn off. I then turned my attention to the roof. I was disappointed that assembling my second roof attempt had seen the diagonal edges sloping down despite the support pieces I'd put underneath. I wasn't going to rest with a dodgy roof ruining the rest of the model. I measured how tall the actual vertical edge should be (2 inches being the general consensus) and set about sanding down the panels to get a flat finish and in the process bring the vertical edge down to 6.35mm. I spent around an hour outside with the sandpaper attached to various blocks and strips and towards the end changed to a slightly finer grade. I eventually broke through the layers of the plywood and have a much better and *almost* flat finish. The difference is tiny, although there is a slight 'bowing' slope, the incline seems to be less than a milimetre in depth. You can see where I've gone through the redder ply of wood on each corner to get an even finish. These red marks actually helped me see what I was doing and I was able to keep track of progress.

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One hell of a lot of sanding and the pitched roof is now extremely soft. When it's 100% locked in and ready I'll paint on some wood glue to solidify the surface somewhat.

lofiscifi

Really nice work. This is going to look fantastic when it's all painted up.

jamiebate

Jul 05, 2017, 12:40 am #25 Last Edit: Jul 05, 2017, 12:44 am by jamiebate
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I went ahead and made some locating bars for the side elevations. I've given them that slight bevel on the top as well as had them jutt out further than the posts. I've also attached the left hand elevation sign-box backing, strips and central divider as I was waiting for the locating bars to be sorted first. I'm still kind of in the dark as to what 'locating bar' refers to, unless I'm being really dumb, I'd have just said planks of wood?. Slight niggle as the left hand signbox backing and divider piece has been attached slightly too high on the left side, however I suppose this could contribute to one of the idiosyncrasies of the prop often appearing with pieces not properly attached and at least later on this signbox was known to be occasionally wonky so I shouldn't probably be too peeved about it. I also attached the tiny clover-leaf stoppers which were traced off of Scarfwearer's plans for them. These fit onto the lowest strip but hang over onto two little tabs at the bottom and also a deliberate couple of curves cut out of the second strip. Next will be cutting up the signage and preparing it before putting it into the recesses and attaching the sign-boxes semi-painted. Then I'll do some more weathering with the wood glue, get the finished effect before I get the roof locked in and we get towards the painting stage.

galacticprobe

Jul 05, 2017, 07:17 am #26 Last Edit: Jul 05, 2017, 07:18 am by galacticprobe
Quote from: Tony Farrell on Jul 04, 2017, 12:01 pm
...I thought this picture (courtesy of Richard Bignell) might help; it clearly shows the hinges on the lamp's housing...


I wish I had your eyes, Tony! That was some amazing spotting of those hinges on the lamp housing base. (This does make one wonder how they could have forgotten the lamp in some of those Classic stories if it was attached with hinges... unless they unscrewed the hinges to remove the lamp, or those were - what are they called again? - slip hinges? (I think Crispin used them on his new build's doors.)

Many thanks to Mr. Bignell for the image, and of course the same to you, Tony, for posting it!

Dino.
"What's wrong with being childish?! I like being childish." -3rd Doctor, "Terror of the Autons"

Scarfwearer

Jul 05, 2017, 08:32 am #27 Last Edit: Jul 05, 2017, 08:54 am by Scarfwearer
I think Tony called them locating bars because they were presumably attached permanently to the base and would have been there to ensure the walls were positioned (located) correctly.

I was wondering why the locating bars were shorter than they should be. It occurred to me that they are shorter by about the same amount as the box is rectangular (meaning the difference between its width and depth). That being the case, having them short would allow it to be assembled on the still square base with the overhang either at the front, or the back or divided between them.
Indeed, in the Seeds of Death it was at the back. Of course the base could have just been on backwards...
seedsofdeath-base.jpg

jamiebate

Jul 05, 2017, 04:25 pm #28 Last Edit: Jul 05, 2017, 04:32 pm by jamiebate
Interesting stuff guys. In that case mine mightn't be in the right place in relation to the rest of it with regards its position on the base.
I started working on the door sign today, beginning with painting the frame area in preparation for the sign piece to fit in. I then tried a few weathering techniques on the printed signs with some brown paint and some light dry brushing. On the one pictured - a second attempt using a version with a slightly off-white tan coloured background, I first applied a coat of wood adhesive and let it dry. I then added some light dusting in a vaguely similar way to how it appears in the clear shot of the original at the end of The War Machines. I've then given it another coat of wood adhesive and have it sitting to dry. I sat it into the gap in the door to show how it will look eventually. My thinking is that the wood glue will dry solid and tough (not rubbery so as to scratch off). So I'll leave this piece for 24 hours before I revisit it.

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The next shot gives you a look in the light at the finish and texture of the glue which is PVA based.

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Also the sign itself will sit deeper than the frame by a tiny bit (like the real thing), this photo was just to show how it might look.

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My concern is that the two layers of wood glue might be too thick to dry hard and that I might have been better doing the brown weathering onto the paper rather than in between coats of the former. I'm only picky about these sorts of things!

russellsuthern

Coming along great!
keep up the good work.
Love the texturing.

Russell