July 01, 2003

Here is a wider view showing what the support looks like from the front.

The top end will act as a support and won't be visible in the Diorama. More about that later...

July 01, 2003

Since a white support is pretty ugly I thought I would cut one out with some leftover Black Foamcore.

If you only have white, you can paint the outer edges grey so that you won't see white edges when the Decals are applied. You will get a much cleaner result this way.

July 01, 2003

I spent about 2 hours making this NEW Decal.

July 01, 2003

I wanted to try and give the look of a Construction Crane or similar type device.

This will soon be placed in the Download Section along with ALL the other Decals I created for the Emperor's Arrival.

July 01, 2003

I printed and cut out the Decals. One for each side of the support.

Like the Docking Bay, I used Full Sheet Sticker Sheets so that I would not have to use any glue.

Just peel off the back and press onto the Foamcore. This is a lot faster and gives you a perfect finish.

July 01, 2003

This is what the Support Beam should look like after you applied the Decals.

July 01, 2003

And here it is back in it's position on the Tie Bomber.

Again, the black area at the top that has no Decals won't be seen, so don't worry about covering it up.

July 01, 2003

Finally for today, a close up of how it all fits into place.

After you print yours, you might have to fiddle a bit with cutting your foamcore to get a really nice and tight fit.

As you can see, there are some slight black gaps, the Decal doesn't completely fit perfectly but close enough :)

July 12, 2003

For the Beam support I cut 4 equal pieces of foamcore 40" wide (the width of a sheet) X 4" Tall.

I painted the outside edges with my Grey Latex Paint so that the edge of the Decals would not expose white foamcore.

I also painted the sides (exposed styrofoam) for a cleaner result.

July 12, 2003

Since my Docking Bay is wider then one sheet of Foamcore, I took 2 pieces, turned them upside down and used a scrap piece of Foamcore to hold them together into ONE long piece.

I forgot to take the photo of this step but think of Lego, and how a brick is placed on the edges of 2 bottom bricks to hold them together.

July 12, 2003

I printed out my Decals for the Girder Beams and cut them out with my Xacto Knife.

July 12, 2003

Here is the finished Beam.

Printing the Decals on Full Sheet (8.5X11) Labels gives a great result. No need for glue, just peel off the protection backing and press onto the Foamcore.

Now repeat these steps to make your Second Beam and we are ready to sandwich them together.

July 12, 2003

Cut some small pieces of Foamcore the same Height as your beams (4 inches). The width doesn't really matter since it's only for support. I cut mine at about 1.5 inches.

July 12, 2003

Using the Hot Glue Gun, I attached my support pieces to the back of one of the Beams.

Space them out aproximately 8 to 10 inches.

No need to be exact. Just make sure to leave enough space for the Tie Bomber Hanger to slide in between the 2 pieces.

July 12, 2003

Once all the pieces were secure and in place, I put some Hot Glue on top of ALL the pieces (NOT in between, ONLY on the supports) and placed the second Beam on top, like when you make a peanut butter sandwhich :)

The Top Beam doesn't have all it's decals on yet (I had run out of ink) sut make sure to place your Decals Side UP. NOT against the Supports.