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1/15th X-15A-2 model


RetroRocket

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I'm almost finished with the 1/15th X-15A-2 that I'm building for a pilot in Monaco. I finished and sent one in the white World Speed Record config. to the Hermann Oberth Museum in Germany. The one I'm working on right now is the first one I'm building in the blackish inconel finish. I'm also apllying the rivet pattern using silver decals I had printed by JBOT.

 

This model is built using molds I made from the wind tunnel model at Edwards AFB-FTC Museum. The wind tunnel OML has a few areas that are slightly different from the X-15 like the wing root and the chine area in front and behind the wing. I have about 1.5 gb of data including detailed drawings, pics and other reference material that I used to create an accurate CAD model so I could make sure the OML, markings and rivets are correct. The application of the rivet decals is tedious and for the wings and a few other areas I made large decals. This saved time and looks ok. I'm using black primer that I buff out using toothpaste and cotton pads, then coat it with Krylon Matte Finish which seals the decals. On some areas I'll use a technique to give the surface a slight hint of mettalic. All of the panel lines are engraved, the canopy has the correct "blend" into the ogive, which is not correct on all the model kits. The end of the X-15 is a two piece stereolith part that has all the rivets pipes and details. The XLR-99 nozzle has about 196 tiny tiny grooves that pretty much disappear but I paint it to look like a fired engine.

 

I took a few pics but my camera is old so the pics are pretty bad. Once it's done I'm going to have some good pics taken.

 

-JP

 

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Here's the model I just sent to Germany.

 

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Excellent work thus far! I love the X-15, one of those birds which just oozes speed sitting there...

 

Question about the star on the left fuselage, is it supposed to be only a white star, or are there more decals to come there?

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