Blaster Pre-Pro #2 Sling Gun build

[tennantlim]

Greetings Hunters. I'm just about to start a build of a deceptively simple blaster that has never graced the silver screens; the PP2 sling gun.

Here are the parts I have gathered over the past couple of months.

The Kaiser Camera Shoulder Stabilizer (black trigger version)

Copitar 30 x 30mm Hand Telescope

Rotring Sec-o-Mat

Housing and front sight from Shapeways based on RafalFett's design

First, I cut the window on the top housing for the Sec-o-Mat arrow.

The telescope had to be shortened and sanded down in the rear end so it could fit into the top housing. The fit is so tight that I have to mask off the attachment end to protect it from paint.

Test fit (my favorite part of every build)

So here's where my ramblings begin as I walk through my thought processes and ask questions. I have done my due diligence to search this forum and the internet for answers, and obviously I haven't been successful. So I'm hoping to initiate discussions here and seek out answers/solutions that can propel this build forward in the right direction.

Pretty self-explanatory, but I'll start from the top.

WHITE: Have these greeblies and the ones on the right face (not pictured) been identified? On the Shapeways print, I may replace the left one with a steel rod and scratchbuild the right one. I'll see about installing a real slotted head screw too.

RED: Presumably the Kaiser brand was painted over as a white stripe and it looks like it's been weathered over. Is this correct?

BLUE: Does anyone know what the 4 characters are? That is almost definitely a white slash in the middle. I also wonder if this was an embossed label.

As I analyzed the reference photos, I'm convinced most parts of the sling gun were painted in shades of grey instead of simply black. The front sight is obviously a light grey. However, I'm also aware that lighting and color casts in the photos can distort our perceptions.

I imported the image with the top view of the housing into Photoshop, sampled the 2 colors to fill the circles, and matched them against the Tamiya paint chart. Here's what I got.

The weather here has been wet and cold so I'm unable to start with primer and paint. So in the meantime, I'm looking forward to responses to my questions/theories above. Cheers!

 

[sutt_hero_rotj]

Always loved this blaster !

 

[Fett 4 Real]

I like those colors you chose... similar to what I would use with MM

 

[tennantlim]

Always loved this blaster !

Me too! This should be an interesting build.

 

[tennantlim]

I like those colors you chose... similar to what I would use with MM

So you're painting candies now?

Have you built one of these before?

 

[Fett 4 Real]

So you're painting candies now?

Have you built one of these before?

I have one for a member on the bench up next!

 

[tennantlim]

The weather hasn't been kind lately, and I had a narrow window to work on these today.

It took more than several coats of primer and rounds of sanding to get the Shapeways prints this smooth.

To replicate the burnt steel barrel, I layered AK Interactive Dark Rust and Flat Black on top of each other in light coats until I got this. However I think I lost too much of the chrome so I may have to return to this.

The Kaiser trigger received a cocktail of Tamiya Orange with a dash of Yellow and a gloss top coat. I masked around the Kaiser logo on the grip and sprayed Tamiya Flat White. Finally, the connecting rod had silver Rub n Buff applied around the centre, and like the barrel, I layered dark rust and flat black at the ends like in the reference photos.

 

[sutt_hero_rotj]

Looking sweeeeet

 

[tennantlim]

Looking sweeeeet

Thanks bud!

 

[tennantlim]

I stripped and repainted the scope (twice!) to get the transitions as close to reference as I could. The chrome should be visible over the full length of the receiver, and the brown/rust fades in right around where the metal tube mates with the front end. There's more weathering to do on this that I'll do when it's fully assembled.

 

[Fatbed]

Awesome work. I love the attention to detail guys on this site have. I'd love to have a sling gun...but I wouldn't be going for accuracy. Just something a custom mando would have

 

[tennantlim]

Due to the dismal weather, all I was able to achieve today was install the Rotring Sec-o-mat arrow into the receiver.

 

[Brokk]

Due to the dismal weather, all I was able to achieve today was install the Rotring Sec-o-mat arrow into the receiver.
View attachment 196920

Loving it so far, you really nailed that orange trigger.

I have to ask, how were you able to work the pre existing Sec o mat down in the print to be able to install the actual part?

 

[tennantlim]

Loving it so far, you really nailed that orange trigger.

I have to ask, how were you able to work the pre existing Sec o mat down in the print to be able to install the actual part?

Thanks man. I just cut the printed arrow out with a cut-off saw on a rotary tool.

 

[Mythos Fenn]

That's what I'm talking about. This is looking great man. Such a unique look.

 

[tennantlim]

Since my last update, I've been taking my time to study the paint job and figure out the order of things. Eventually, I thought "screw it" and just went at it.

I'm fully aware the Rotring arrow should be set into the receiver instead of the way I've done it, so that's on me.

Some of the paint work on the original prop looks iffy to me, so I've decided to take some creative liberties with the way I paint and weather mine. Suffice to say, the end result will look more like an inspired prop than a faithful replica, and I'm ok with that.

 

[Fett 4 Real]

I like it! And the silver looks good on there!

 

[tennantlim]

I like it! And the silver looks good on there!

Thank you for that!

 

[tennantlim]

The trigger on the Kaiser shoulder stabiliser used in the original prop was orange and painted black. In the reference photos, the black paint was worn off to reveal the orange underneath. Since mine came with a black trigger, I had to inverse this by first painting it orange, then weather over with black oil paint to (somewhat) simulate the look in the reference.

 

[Fett 4 Real]

Looks good