Modified Estes (Semroc) Mars Lander...

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James Duffy

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In preparation for a session I'll be presenting at Virtual NARCON in a couple of weeks, here's a modified Mars Lander kit that I've just finished.

IMG_5023.jpg

Instead of paint on the lower section, a package of candy wrapper foil was purchased from Amazon and applied with double-sided tape. Plan on attending my session at NARCON to learn more!

James
 
Well done James! Your lander looks GREAT!

Dressed like that that it looks NASA ready.
 
That reminds me, I still have the LM model that came free with our 50th anniversary Saturn V yet to build. I really want that gold mylar look, but paint just won't cut it. I had the idea a while back to use the foil from Rolos candies and glue that to the model, but I wasn't sure how good it would actually look. Seeing your Mars Lander, it's apparent that I was on the right track. Looks like I'll be buying some Rolos after work and maybe I can get that built this weekend!
 
Looks like I'll be buying some Rolos after work and maybe I can get that built this weekend!

Don't allow me to dissuade you from purchasing and consuming your Rolos, as they are delicious. However, the foil is available from Amazon in multi-color variety pack for less than $10:

https://www.amazon.com/Chocolate-Wrappers-Aluminium-Packaging-Decoration/dp/B07H2CC1G4
The foil bits are easy to apply using double sided tape. My presentation at Virtual NARCON in a couple of weeks will feature a brief tutorial on the process:

https://www.accelevents.com/e/NARCON2021
 
Dressed up like that your ML looks like one of the Gemini lunar lander proposals.
 
Dressed up like that your ML looks like one of the Gemini lunar lander proposals.

Yep, that was a major influence.

I also decided to try an alternate nose design, which I'll discuss during the NARCON presentation in a couple of weeks.

IMG_5013.JPG

James
 
That Gemini style capsule looks pretty cool - not sure which version I like better.
 
I just finished a ML myself. Since it was the first one, the only modifications I made were aligned with those in the Jarosch piece in Sport Rocketry. Other than that, it looks like the card art. The gold is a nice touch.
 
That reminds me, I still have the LM model that came free with our 50th anniversary Saturn V yet to build. I really want that gold mylar look, but paint just won't cut it. I had the idea a while back to use the foil from Rolos candies and glue that to the model, but I wasn't sure how good it would actually look. Seeing your Mars Lander, it's apparent that I was on the right track. Looks like I'll be buying some Rolos after work and maybe I can get that built this weekend!

Gold Leaf. I recently got my hands on some. Very thin and tears easy, but looks really good I bet.
 
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