As I travelled last week I built this thing in my head over and over, each time getting more detailed than the last. When it came time to actually begin doing the work I knew pretty much what I wanted. The file was created entirely in EnRoute. The program works equally well no matter what the scale. The bulk of it was vectors although I did throw a bitmap texture on the bulkhead behind the seat. The cone piece was sliced to fit inside the 1" material. I carefully left spots for the LED lighting modules which I ordered today.
The pieces were roughed out of 30 lb Precision Board with a 3/8" ball nose bit on the MultiCam, then followed with a fine pass and my 1/8" ball nose bit. The files were relatively small and went very quickly.
Before I cleaned the edges I test fit everything. I knew it was accurate, but I wanted to see if the ideas which I had in my head proved practical in real life. Things were coming together pretty quickly and looking like I had dreamed them.
Once the edges were cleaned up and the dust blown off I glued everything up with a quick set epoxy. Then it was time for the moment of truth... would it all fit inside the glass bowl? I needn't have worried for everything fit perfectly - just as I had planned. Model making has never been so much fun!
Now it's time to craft and install all the detail as well as paint the inner pieces. With the LED's on the way I should have just enough time to get it finished before the next step. Stay tuned...
-dan
