RoR Project 0033 – Light ‘em Up! Anakin’s Starfighter

RoR Project 0033 – Light ‘em Up!

Revell Snap Tite Star Wars™ Anakin’s Jedi Starfighter™

Revell Kit #85-1864

Joining the line of fully-licensed Star Wars™ kits in Revell’s Snap Tite line is a replica of Anakin’s Delta-7B Starfighter.  This kit came fully decorated out of the box (Figure 1). In addition to the features of the Magnaguard Fighter (RoR Review 20100130), this kit has extensive factory-applied weathering.

Figure1

As part of the review of this kit, I thought it would be interesting to take the kit beyond box stock.  A common feature on space sci-fi craft is glow coming from the engines – I wanted to see if I could simulate this with LED lighting.

For those wishing to make this a simple snap-together kit, don’t worry – it fits together well, builds quickly, and all of the modifications I made to the kit are purely optional. 

To begin the lighting process, I obtained a handful of components, shown in Figure 2.  These included tubing, white LEDs, a hobby store jewelry box, terminal strip, two-conductor wire, battery holder with switch, and two AAA batteries.  Searching the internet turned up several inexpensive sources for the components I did not have on hand or could not find locally.

Figure 2

Modifications to the kit started with the cover plates for the engines, parts 13 and 16. Drill out the centers and four corners using a #50 hobby drill bit (a 1/16″ or 1.8mm will do also), as shown in Figure 3.  The snap-together studs had to be removed from inside the engine pieces (parts 11, 12, 14, and 15) as well.  I elected to use a #18 chisel blade, making several diagonal cuts, as shown in Figure 4 but a rotary grinder with a suitable bit would work as well. 

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5 shows the engine halves in various stages.  I first removed the studs as much as possible.  I also cut a notch in parts 12 and 15 to accommodate the wires.  Next, to avoid bleed-through, I painted the interior sides with flat black craft paint.  Finally, to give the engines a blue glow, I painted the rear areas with a light blue over a white undercoat.  R2D2 received similar modifications.

Figure 5

In Figure 6, I modified the fuselage halves (parts 7 and 17) to allow the 5mm LEDs to be placed where I wanted them to be installed.  I opened up the holes in the fuselage using a battery-operated drill.  For lighting, I chose to add a single LED to each engine, as well as one inside R2D2. 

Figure 6

The lighting harness, also visible in Figure 6, consisted of three LEDs wired in parallel.  The 5mm LEDs I chose operate at 3 volts DC, matching my power supply.  Note that LEDs are polar – the two legs are different lengths to denote the + and – terminals.  Make sure to wire all the LEDs the same way, and use wiring with two different colors to keep track of the polarity. 

For wiring, I used 24 AWG speaker wire that I had on hand.  The electrical current draw of three LEDs is rather small, so light-gauge wiring is fine.   I soldered all of my joints and covered them with electrical tape to avoid shorts.

To provide a mount for the Starfighter use some K&S or similar tubing . Epoxy a small piece of 1/8” brass tube through the existing opening in the bottom of part 17, as shown in Figures 7 and 8.  Note that I filled the rest of the opening with epoxy as well. 

Figure 7

Figure 8

The main support is made of 3/16” aluminum tubing.  To add some interest, I bent the tubing into an “S” shape.  These bends were accomplished with a tubing bender.  These inexpensive devices are simple to use and help avoid kinks while bending the tube.  The process and finished product are shown in Figure 9. 

Figure 9

Throughout the process check to make sure that the lights are working properly.  Before putting the fuselage halves together, check to make sure the lighting effect is what you’re after, as shown in Figure 10.  Even with all the modifications, only a small amount of CA (superglue) was required to complete assembly of the Starfighter.

Figure 10

Figure 11 shows the bottom of the base. Remove the hinges and hardware from a hobby store jewelry box, saving the lid.  Drill a 3/16” hole in one end of the lid and mock up the electrical components on the underside of the lid. Use some epoxy to attach the battery box lid and two segments of the European terminal block to the lid.

Figure 11

To complete the base, spray paint the entire assembly with flat black enamel followed by some textured spray paint, as shown in Figure 12.  With a wood base, the finishing options are endless – I simply chose a less time-consuming option.

Figure 12

Slide the Starfighter over the main tube, feeding the wire through the tube and into the base. Connect the wiring from the battery and the Starfighter into the terminal block, completing the project.

Figure 13

Figure 13 shows the finished Starfighter.  Figure 14 shows the lighted engines – just the look I was going for!

Figure 14

Overall, this build took about five hours. Of that, four hours was spent on the lighting. 

Finished Dimensions:
Length:  8″
Wingspan:  4″
Scale:  Approximately 1:39

Pros:
Fully decorated body with markings and weathering; good parts fit; options for gear up (with base) and gear down positions

Cons:
White markings not opaque