Rocketeer finishes the Saturn Weekender

[Rocketeer]

This morning I finished my latest project. The local hobby shop, the superlative Galaxy Hobby, is having their annual Sci-Fi and Fantasy model contest in a couple weeks, and this year’s theme class is Space Yacht. So after a couple false starts, I dug out a blimp kit and bought a 1952 Chevy kit, and here’s the result.

It has a number of LEDs here and there; the Space Car’s headlights, taillights, dome light, and engine exhausts light up, and so do the Weekender’s interior lights and taillights. Some of the windows in the space-station base light up, too.

Overall view, lit up

Tow vehicle

Saturn Weekender

Base

A peek through the windows

Link to album, with some construction pics

Incidentally, if any of you know the origin of the term “Saturn Weekender”, let me know. I remember it from some sci-fi novel or another, possibly something by Vance (since I read a lot of him), but the exact source eludes me.

[Snowboarder_Bo]

It’s from Bester’s The Stars My Destination.

And your model looks fucking fantastic, as always. The tow vehicle makes it for me.

Again, this totally fucking rocks!

ETA: Wait… you carved that dog yourself?

EATA:

The Saturn Weekender was built like a pleasure yacht; it was ample for four, spacious for two, but not spacious enough for Foyle and Jiz McQueen. Foyle slept in the main cabin; Jiz kept to herself in the stateroom.

[Chronos]

Having the thrusters lit up while Ashley and Astro are outside on the tether gives entirely the wrong impression, I think.

[Snowboarder_Bo]

And, uh, wow… Jiz McQueen is a name that really doesn’t work well in modern times.

[Rocketeer]

@Snowboarder_Bo

It’s from Bester’s The Stars My Destination.

…

ETA: Wait… you carved that dog yourself?

Thanks for the kind words and for the quote source. I’m gonna have to re-read Stars again. Soon.

No, I didn’t carve the dog; I started with a little 1/35 resin figure of a dog, and dressed it in an epoxy-putty spacesuit.

[Rocketeer]

@Chronos

Having the thrusters lit up while Ashley and Astro are outside on the tether gives entirely the wrong impression, I think.

I worried about physics even less than usual on this one

[terentii]

Is that a Bussard collector under the hood of the automobile?

[E-DUB]

Is this the first known instance of someone walking the dog…IN SPACE???

Seriously, great work as always. I expect to hear you’ve taken first prize.

[Snowboarder_Bo]

Rocketeer, have you ever considered trying to get a gig with a practical effects company? Ya know, like making models for movies?

[Isamu]

Another great one! How did you choose that color?

[terentii]

@Isamu

Another great one! How did you choose that color?

Believe it or not, it’s exactly the same shade of blue as the Buick that almost ran me over when I was six or seven.

[Face_Intentionally_Left_Blank]

This is gonna end up on Reddit’s retro-futurism subreddit before long. Beautiful work!

[Son_of_a_Rich]

You should do the rocket from Dancing on the Moon.

[Rocketeer]

@Snowboarder_Bo

Rocketeer, have you ever considered trying to get a gig with a practical effects company? Ya know, like making models for movies?

But, but, but that would be work!

@Isamu

Another great one! How did you choose that color?

I had been building a lot of green stuff lately, so I thought I ought to branch out a little. And when I saw that lovely blue (Tamiya spray can), I knew it was just the ticket. Had I known about the bad associations it carries for terentii, I might have reconsidered

@Son_of_a_Rich

You should do the rocket from Dancing on the Moon.

Yes, that’s a lovely Thirties design; I’ve go a couple pics of it stashed on my computer here, just in case

The other old rocket that might make an interesting model is the Buck Rogers battlecruiser, (and here’s a handy cross-section), designed before they realized that you could put the rocket exhaust at the rear of the rocket and still have it be stable.

[terentii]

@Rocketeer

The other old rocket that might make an interesting model is the Buck Rogers battlecruiser, (and here’s a handy cross-section), designed before they realized that you could put the rocket exhaust at the rear of the rocket and still have it be stable.

I like the “Crew’s quarters.” Apparently, this futuristic battlecruiser has the men sleeping in canvas-sheet bunks stacked about a foot apart, like on WWII troopships.

No bridge, but a “Periscope steering” section amidships. Was this supposed to be an Unterwarpenboot? (The “Gravity section” must have served as an inertia dampener as well.)

[terentii]

Putting the rocket motors on the bow of the ship instead of the stern actually makes a lot of sense: (a) You wouldn’t have to swing the tail around 180 degrees every time you wanted to decelerate, and (b) you wouldn’t have to worry about the ship toppling over while you’re landing it on its tail.

I always wondered how the hell you could keep a ship like the Luna in Destination: Moon balanced enough to set it down like that. Yes, I know about attitude thrusters, but still…

The Apollo LM was squat with widely-spread legs, so the designs just aren’t comparable.

[mbh]

@terentii

I like the “Crew’s quarters.” Apparently, this futuristic battlecruiser has the men sleeping in canvas-sheet bunks stacked about a foot apart, like on WWII troopships.

Those aren’t even bunks. Those are hammocks.

[E-DUB]

Makes sense. When it’s not sleepy-time you can pull the hammocks and use the room for another purpose.

[Chronos]

I always wondered how the hell you could keep a ship like the Luna in Destination: Moon balanced enough to set it down like that. Yes, I know about attitude thrusters, but still…

And yet, SpaceX does it.

[terentii]

@mbh

Those aren’t even bunks. Those are hammocks.

Hammocks stacked like bunks, then.