Life-Size Shuttlecraft Help

[Bradester]

Yes! That's the look I do believe Im going for now. I decided this morning that as much fun as a classic Galileo design would be, I dont want to risk having cardboard nacelles and for them to fall apart because I dont know how to protect them correctly.

However, my shuttle will still be named Galileo, and will be of a Shuttle Type BG as those are my initials :-)

 

[NCC-1701-B]

You could still make the classic Galileo, but use drainage tubing for the nacelles, but being 16 i have no idea of the cost of these things. Or may i suggest Sheet plastic with circular framing inside? A classic shuttle would be amazing, and i think more recognisable for people.

 

[Captain Robert April]

That's actually not a bad idea about using the drainage pipe.

 

[Bradester]

You could still make the classic Galileo, but use drainage tubing for the nacelles, but being 16 i have no idea of the cost of these things. Or may i suggest Sheet plastic with circular framing inside? A classic shuttle would be amazing, and i think more recognisable for people.

All the drain pipe I can find around here isnt big enough. Given the size of the shuttle, it's going to have to be 24" to look right.

The cement forming tubes that are available, that are plastic and 24", I cannot afford. I can afford the cardboard though, but I dont know how good that polyurethane stuff would really keep it water tight.

 

[NCC-1701-B]

I would suggest using some wood, make the 24" circles with crossbeams in a similar way to your frame, then use something like balsa wood for the skin. I will have a think and let you know if there is any other way to do it

 

[Bradester]

I would suggest using some wood, make the 24" circles with crossbeams in a similar way to your frame, then use something like balsa wood for the skin. I will have a think and let you know if there is any other way to do it

Balsa wood will just fall apart much like the cardboard. Since this is a Halloween prop that little kids and adult will be walking thru, and it will be dark outside, I have to keep it as safe as possible. I also have to keep in mind what the engines would do if a person/kid stood on them thinking they were solid enough to support weight.

Keep thinking though. It's ideas like this that I need help with.

 

[Bradester]

The only local store that can order the 24" corrugated plastic pipe just gave me a quote of $550 for 24 feet of it, which would work for 2 nacelles. 18" pipe, which I dont want to use that small of, would cost around $370-$400.

That being too expensive by itself, I would still have to buy sheet plastic to cover the outside for a nice smooth surface.

I fear classic Galileo just might be too expensive to build.

 

[NCC-1701-B]

hmm, how about plain old timber? Just make, say a 20 sided round shape, and put the planks of wood along it, it wont be perfect, but it would definitely be steady and strong

 

[largo]

is there a scrapyard where you could get a bunch of 55gal drums on the cheap?
they should be about 2ft diam and 3ft long.

 

[Bradester]

hmm, how about plain old timber? Just make, say a 20 sided round shape, and put the planks of wood along it, it wont be perfect, but it would definitely be steady and strong

Good idea, but I would want them to be round-round.

 

[Bradester]

So Im getting the idea that you guys want me to make the Classic Galileo now, even though the nose wont be right and ubber expensive?

Or make the Classic Galileo body shape, newly designed like the shuttles that escaped the USS Kelvin?

Or make my own personal small mass-transport shuttle design that looks like the Burger King toy, whiich would be the cheapest and fastest to get done so I can work on interior and lighting? I seem to like this idea better given $ and time.

 

[NCC-1701-B]

I suppose, you could try the movie galileo but that might be too hard from what you have at the moment. I say combine the best bits of each idea to see what is cheapest and quickest

 

[S'kai]

The story of the Burning Man Shuttlecraft Galileo is here. Major dedication.

 

[Gepard]

Re the nacelles, why not get the cardboard tubes and coat them with a couple layers of marine varnish? It's waterproof by design.

 

[Captain Robert April]

^ There ya go..

 

[Bradester]

Re the nacelles, why not get the cardboard tubes and coat them with a couple layers of marine varnish? It's waterproof by design.

Hmmm... thats a good idea too. But, the research I just did concludes that cardboard is not a good medium as it will just suck the varnish in like a big sponge and not provide any protection. A couple sites also say that the marine varnish makes paint not stick well, to which my stuff will be painted and even have decals applied.

If I were rich, I'd just buy the plastic cement tubes; but I cant afford them since I want to finish the interior of the shuttle. I think Im going to go with the plan of making a smaller version of the mass-transport / Burger King shuttle and name it Galileo.

 

[Gepard]

But, the research I just did concludes that cardboard is not a good medium as it will just suck the varnish in like a big sponge and not provide any protection.

I wonder how many coats it would take to cover it, then. If you could do enough to totally infuse the cardboard with varnish, you'd have something sort of like fiberglass for not much money.

A couple sites also say that the marine varnish makes paint not stick well, to which my stuff will be painted and even have decals applied.

Prime it with Krylon Fusion paint, maybe? That stuff sticks to just about anything rigid.

 

[Bradester]

Hmmmm... I dont know. I even thought about 24" metal duct work like that is used for a heating system, but it would be even more spendy than the plastic cement tubes and drain pipes. I've even looked on Craigslist.

I'll think about it more today but by this afternoon if I can't think of a quick, cheap and sturdy round nacelle, I'm going to do my own design a small version of a new mass-transport shuttle just so I can get the thing done.

 

[Bradester]

Well now my mind wont let me stop thinking about the nacelles. What I have come up with is a way to build and install Burger King "wings" instead of classic nacelles, in a way where I could alter them to support classic nacelles if we can think of a cheap and sturdy method to match Classic Galileo.

Im going to build the body and interior to where everything could be altered to either be a Classic Galileo or Burger King shuttle, so we can spend as much time thinking as possible on 24" tubes. Least thats the plan for now, incase I change my mind again :-P

 

[Gepard]

Buy a small amount of cardboard and some marine varnish and do some tests. See if it will work or not. (That's what I'd do. Not that I've ever built a shuttlecraft, of course.)