hey guys! I got a riddle for you.

Q: What's orange and silver and has more windows than Bill Gates?

A: The Lost in Space Chariot.

So, I got my grubby mitts on a test shot of the chariot kit so I could figure out a way to help folks paint the fine framework between all of those big windows (like I did with the TARDIS Kit) So, Nornally what I would do is pull out the black vinyl and start measuring. Well I was looking around and noticed some orange vinyl.

What I came up with is either the most brilliant (or most cowardly) idea I've had in a while.

Rather than paint the orange mullions in the inside of the windows, what if I simply made strips and rectangles of the orange vinyl and stuck them to the insides?

the pics below will show what I'm talking about.
(note: the test shot's clear top was not polished, so it's a little cloudy. and the kit robot is standing next to the talking keychain version.)

PS - If you think the instructions are hard, the test shot's parts aren't even numbered.

I was hoping to get my mits on one at Wonderfest. Frank had said if he had an extra one, he would bring it to the show. I looked for him for over 2 hours. He was busy shopping! Anyway, I left very sad. I did buy a bunch of Pods and such though. I wouldn't mind having a foggy chariot as apposed to having none! Looks really good. Quit cheating and use those shaky hands. ha ha ha:hat:

The orange doesn't look like a big deal. The silver frames for the entire body? That's a big deal! Is the molding for the frame raised? IE: like a channel?

here's a closeup of the top part.
The wider frame (orange on the inside..all of his people are orange on the inside...hee) is raised a tiny bit.

the Silver channel on the outside is much thinner, but is more raised.

are we going crazy yet?

The problem I've always had with vinyl strip, pinstriping, etc, is that it never seems to adhere 100% over a long time. Especially if the kit uses the same mold release as on the Seaview's large parts. I'd go with strips of decal, particularly inside. The Chariot kit seems to be missing the double frames inside and out that parallel the ladder up to the roof and I'm going to try to find some colored plastic for the inside and probably just Evergreen strip for the outside, tho how to cement it w/o marring the clear will be a challenge.
Still have a real issue with the orange color. I've never seen a photo of the Chariot with that bright an orange. Both on TV and the 2' miniature seem to be red. Any reference photos of an orange Chariot?

As much as Irwin Allen's shows sported the bright orange on a lot of props, I got no problem believing it was all the same color of orange. The man was "frugal" to say the least.

The vinyl seems to be sticking just fine to the plastic. as long as you don't stretch it when you put it down, it should last you

since I'm presuming that most folks will glue down the top and only use the doors for inside access, the seams won't be visible and the vinyl won't be subject to much wear and tear.

If anyone does go the decal route, I just realized that if you put the color you want over clear (not white) decal paper, the color will be visible from both sides, ie from the outside through the clear plastic ribs of the model. If you use pinstriping tape, the (usually white?) adhesive side of the tape may be visible from the outside around the edges of the frames. The material you're using has the color on both sides. That's great.

This is as dark a red as I've seen in a photo of the 24" miniature. Other photos I have seen it as light as the orange you're using. The sfx footage on the LIS Forever or Anthology or whatever DVD of the full size Chariot looks more red to me.

I like the way Tamiya molds the frames on their bike kits in silver over the clear windows. Other companies have started doing this now. You can get a clear canopy or cowl with the framing molded in one or more colors. I think Bandai started this with their Gundam kits. The new Tamiya Feisler Storch has the clear parts molded into the opaque fusilage sides.

I produce vinyl decals for model kits. CultTVman carries alot of my product. Cutting vinyl squares for the Chariot would not be a problem. Cutting pinstripes wouldn't be a problem either. The squares or rectangles would just stick better to the windows than pinstripes. Pinstripes are too easily stretched and then they don't stick.

It would be easy to produce an orange vinyl decal kit for the Chariot. Once my order comes in.

The kit will include squares, rectangles and pinstripes with a decal placement sheet. I should have one ready sometime in August.:thumbsup:

Hey Lou I'll send you a free decal kit for the idea.:dude:

Bob

Couldn't you mask the windows on the outside, paint the orange on the outside, then paint the silver/aluminum on top of the orange? The orange would then show through the clear on the inside. Just a thought.

Rogue

I produce vinyl decals for model kits. CultTVman carries alot of my product. Cutting vinyl squares for the Chariot would not be a problem. Cutting pinstripes wouldn't be a problem either. The squares or rectangles would just stick better to the windows than pinstripes. Pinstripes are too easily stretched and then they don't stick.

It would be easy to produce an orange vinyl decal kit for the Chariot. Once my order comes in.

The kit will include squares, rectangles and pinstripes with a decal placement sheet. I should have one ready sometime in August.:thumbsup:

Hey Lou I'll send you a free decal kit for the idea.:dude:

Bob


Hey Bob,
Small world, huh?
Steve carries my line of vinyl templates, too.

whoda thunk?
Lou (Aztek Dummy)

Leave it to you Lou to find a solution to a problem. I'm going to have to pick up a set of those Chariot vinyl strips when they're available.

I'm a big fan of your vinyl templates, having used them on several Star Trek models. I also picked up a couple of sets of your Viper templates to use on a new Viper kit and to repaint my old Viper from the 80's.

Couldn't you mask the windows on the outside, paint the orange on the outside, then paint the silver/aluminum on top of the orange? The orange would then show through the clear on the inside. Just a thought.

Rogue

Rogue,
Yes you certainly could, but the kit is molded in such a way that the framework appears as a indented detail on the inside of the "bubble"

those lines are much easier to follow than they would be looking thru from the outside.

If you saw, you'd know and you will , so there:)

Painting aside, the size of the robot looks just right, about 3 1/4 inches, scale height of 6ft6in, or maybe a little less.

Are you going to send Bob a free decal to reciprocate?

Hey Bob,
Small world, huh?
Steve carries my line of vinyl templates, too.

whoda thunk?
Lou (Aztek Dummy)

Lou,
So there? Ok, if you say so. :)

Hey Bob,
Small world, huh?
Steve carries my line of vinyl templates, too.

whoda thunk?
Lou (Aztek Dummy)

Hey Now I know who you are.;) I've seen your top notch work up close. 2 guys who cut vinyl and re-sell to Steve.:freak:

I have a small sign shop that I've been working out of for over 15 years now. Do you have a shop or work for one?

Bob

Bob,
I make signs as part of my day job, but it's not strictly a sign shop.

I do freelance and have a plotter at home as well

Keep us up to date. The frames are a challenge, to say the least.

Hey Bob; our Chariots are enroute from Tacoma, so with a little luck you'll have your kits in a week or so.
Tom

success

here's a couple more pics

So will this be available soon ;)

Pretty nice Lou.This is what I call a great paint job on a very challenging kit.:thumbsup:

OK, I'm ready for them. Where do I send money??

very cool

Hey Bob; our Chariots are enroute from Tacoma, so with a little luck you'll have your kits in a week or so.
Tom


Thanks for the update Tom.:dude:

That means by August 20th I'll have the NEW Chariot vinyl decal sets ready to ship.:woohoo:I'll keep everyone updated on these. I'll have them and I'm sure CultTVman will too.;)



Great work there Lou! Can't wait to get mine.

Bob

Very nice work!. Looks really great, far cleaner and more precise than anyone could paint it. Is that a crack in the roof behind the bubble? If so, how careful do you have to be when working with this kit, with rubbing down the vinyl? And can the vinyl be top coated with a different color if we want something a bit different?

^^Starseeker,
the bubble is cracked. It came that way to me. I can't complain, it was free.
It also wan't polished, so it has a bit of cloudyness to it. such is the nature of prototype/test shots.

Also all of the parts were cast in black, yuck.

the vinyl went down pretty easily and I think they will stay for a good long time without any top coating. If you must, I suppose you could spray on a light coat of Future. I'd be afraid of using a dul or gloss coat because of what it might do to the clear plastic.

If you have a scrap to try it out on, I'd do that first.

I'm ready to purchase a set :) How much will they sell for?

first I'll have to attack the outer silver framework (which will more likely be the traditional paint mask I'm used to making) then once thats all put together with packaging and instructions...then I'll know how much to charge.

I do expect to have that sorted out this week

Please put me down for 2 sets, for my kits too!!!:)
Looks really good:thumbsup:, I will be watching @ Steve's and on this thread for the release date!!;)
:woohoo:
Ron

Holly deleted :thumbsup:

So will this be available soon ;)

I wouldn't let the moderator see your language. http://www.hobbytalk.com/bbs1/announcement.php?f=275&a=227

Holy Cow would better.

Great news Lou! I'm sure these will be as good as the other vinyl sets you've put out. Thanks again.

Rob

So I'm working on the outside now.
I put down the black pieces over the outside leaving only the thin strips where the silver goes exposed. (Pic1)

then i sprayed the aluminum color over the whole deal (pic 2)

I'll give it longer than normal before I remove the vinyl for two very important reasons

1) since there is going to be very little paint left when I remove the vinyl, I want to make sure its as dry as it can be. before I remove the peices, I'll scribe the lines with an X-acto knfe to brake the bonds between the paint I want to keep and the paint I want to remove.

B) Since there is only clear plastic under them, I'm not worried about peeling up anything underneath. (well there are those 4 roof sections, but I'm still not that concerned.)

more news as it happens...

That almost looks too easy!!

Whoo-hoooo! Go, Lou! Man if this all works out (and I'm sure it will), I'm not gonna touch my Chariot 'til I can get my mitts on a set of these templates from you.

Were there any color episodes featuring the chariot, or are the first season black and white ones all that exist?

^^ that's a good question. I'm going to comb thru my DVDs to see. I know the first eps were filmed in color (eventho they were broadcast in black and white) so that the effects shots could be recycled later.

I'm going on the words of folks who know better than I and whatever prop stills that show up as the last word on color choices

The Chariot was in color episiodes. Also some of the season B/W stuff was filmed in color and reused later on in color, although it was shown B/W at first.

Hi Guys,

I just joined the Forum and really amazed that you are talking about vinyl and the "old shacky hand", etc. etc.

Hasn't anyone heard of Silicone Mask? It's a thick bluish liquid in a turquoise-blue jar. It can be cut with either water or 70/30 IPA for air brushing or you can just brush it on.

Give it about 30 minutes to dry then just use a X-acto knife to trim it. Peel away what you don't want and spray paint.

The only drawback I've found is that Silicone Mask has a tendancy to stick to painted surfaces. It can a bit tricky to use it for masking a second paint coat.

Dan

Hi,

I just he forum, but I'm really amazed that everyone is talking about vinyl and "the old shacky hand", etc., etc.

Hasn't anyone heard of Lquid Silicone Mask?

I haven't bought a new bottle in about 20 years (I still have more than half a pint on hand), but this stuff is great. It can be cut with either water or 70/30IPA for an air-brush or brush it on straight from the bottle.

Give it about 30 minutes to dry, trim away the excess and you're ready to spray.

No muss, no fuss with tape that might come off or shacky lines from too much coffee.

Dan

Sorry about the 2nd post ... I wasn't sure the first had made it ...

Dan

To answer the question about the Chariot being shot in color ... check out the first episode of the 2nd Season ... Several REALLY good shot of the exterior and interior ...

Yes, I've heard and used silicone masks in many forms. Let's just say, tape would be preferable to painting on a mask freehand for these frames. Cutting the silicone with an xacto will scar the clear styrene. I'm not that careful.

OK Guys,
Here it is. A little sloppy (but that's just me:)) I was rushing on this one just to prove it could be done.
I think I achieved the look I was going for. You can see a silver frame and looking thru, you can see the orange frame on the inside.

Again I bring up the cloudy windows are not my doing. the piece came that way.

enjoy.

I'll write up the instructions this weekend

Again I bring up the cloudy windows are not my doing. the piece came that way.



Airbrush the glass with a couple coats of Future and it will be crystal clear...

Personally I hate liquid masks. They tend to bead up or draw back from the edges on smooth, bare plastic. Getting a sharp edge is hard, and sharp corners really hard. Often when you peel it up you get a ragged edge. I have tried a TON of the stuff ranging from Windsor and Newton to hobby brands. I have some Humbrol Maskol that is my favorite, but I still use it rarely.

Masking the Chariot with Tamiya tape would be easy... it is all straight lines. You can also get Tamiya Tape in a really wide roll as well as thinner widths.

Lou,
Great job as usual. Can't wait for the painting masks!

That's the beauty of vinyl masks - they give you a nice hard line and sharp corners.

Rob

F91,

I guess it's a personel preference ... I'm lousey at tapping or trying to get the vinyl on without getting bubbles in it ...

Dan