1/144 Apex Soyuz Rocket Conversion Update 4

I finally got back to work on the Soyuz model after a bit of a delay. I began by applying primer to the second stage/spacecraft section. I used Tamiya Gray primer. After that cured I masked off everything except the lower section of the second stage and painted that area Vallejo Clear Orange. After a day of cure I applied a light coat of Matte Clear to protect the paint. Then masked off for the main part of the second stage. Here I used a can of Testors Euro I Gray. The shade is slightly darker that I would have liked but it is close. After a couple of days, I then masked for the shroud/escape tower section. Here I sprayed some Tamiya Gloss White. I also sprayed the grid fins with Tamiya White primer. I then painted the escape tower nozzles with Vallejo German Red Brown.

Meanwhile, in between all the work being done to the second stage, I primed the core stage and boosters. I then masked everything except the bottom section and painted that Vallejo Clear Orange. After that paint dried for a day or so, I masked for the silver sections. I started by spraying Alclad II Gloss Black base. When that was dry I sprayed on Alclad II Chrome.

I then masked off the orange/chrome sections and sprayed it with the Testors Euro I Gray. I also painted the small pneumatic rams that are attached to the bottom of the grid fins with Vallejo Silver.

When the grid fins dried I glued them to the spacecraft shroud. During this time I was also working on the decals for this rocket. I decided that I would model the Soyuz TMA-16M flight. This was the flight that Scott Kelly flew on to begin his full year on the ISS. Here is a picture of the spacecraft shroud with some samples cut from regular paper to check for size. It took a few iterations before I got all the decals to the sizes that looked correct.

I also took some time to add four small pins to the top of the interstage grid to position the second stage properly and also provide some extra points for glue to adhere the two stages together.

Well that’s it for this update. Work continues. I should have another update soon.

Thanks for looking.