How I converted a Cobra Command Stellar Stiletto into a Chaos Marine Flyer.
Cockpit:
I started by digging up enough bits to make the 2 pilots. The front pilot is flying the vehicle, while the rear pilot is kinda fused in there, more like a servitor
The front controls are comprised of bits from a AMT/Ertl Batman Batboat kit, so is the seat. The side walls are made from sheet styrene with assorted details and controls. I added some tubing and some green stuff to the rear pilot to show how he is fused into the vehicle.
I decided to use part of the original canopy as "trim" for the new cockpit. I simply sawed off what I didn't want, sanded smooth, then added rivets. I built up the canopy with styrene shapes and some bits. I embedded magnets in the rear of the canopy so it could open, and a magnet in the front bottom area so it stays locked down.
Body Details:
Over all I needed to add rivets in the right areas to accentuate the design as well as add that 40k feel. Extra piping and bitz details were added to the engine side greeble areas on the top and bottom.
I sealed off the big open hole in the back of the tail fin with sheet styrene, added a few random pipes I found and tubing from a chaos defiler
Landing Gear:
I used 2 Tau landing gear. Clipped the pistons and glued the bottom pads to the underside of the hull as if the gear was retracted.
Auto-cannon:
I made this from the barrel of a predator auto-cannon and 1 half of a twin linked bolter; housing built from sheet styrene. I cut a section out of the top right of the stiletto, then simply placed the housing in there and trimmed to fit
Twin Linked Las:
I'm not exactly sure where I got this las from, but it ended up in my bits box. I trimmed the outer housing from the bolter turret housing on the top of a land raider and used brown stuff to fill the gaps.
Bombs:
Technically this vehicle has 8 bombs. I decided to make 2 bombs and use the lower fuel tank shape of the stiletto as a housing for the bomb deployment device. I cut two rectangular holes in the backs of the tanks, created 2 compartments out of sheet styrene and misc bits. Cleaned up the outer housing with styrene and made what looks like retracted doors.
The bombs themselves are Baneblade shells with tail fins from old Imperial Guard Smart Missiles. I created the bomb holding claws by thinly slicing Styrene rod and trimming where needed to make the right looking half-circle claw shapes.
Front Nose:
I replaced the rubber nose cone with left over plastic nose cone from some long forgotten jet model I had laying around in my bits box. I detailed the engines with joint plates from an Imperial Sentinel, random tubes, some plastic rod, and added a few rivets in the right areas.
Wings:
I measured the existing wings, made a template in adobe Illustrator, created a chaos trim overlay to compliment it. I them printed the pieces out, spray mounted them to sheet plastic, cut, then peeled the paper off, glued with styrene weld, sanded smooth, drilled holes and added rivets, then attached them to the model.
Rear engine:
In my bits box I found a turbo exhaust from an AMT/Ertl Batman Batboat kit. Too bad I only had 1 of them, but not to worry, I'll make a quick RTV Rubber mold and cast it in resin. I then added some spoilers with sheet styrene.
Base:
The base is produced by DragonForge.
I really love this jet idea and your work on it! It matches well with the notion of the Slaaneshi need for sensory overload - I can imagine the pilots getting a rush from the eye-searing paint job, the sheer speed of the craft, and the ear-piercing whine of its engines.
ReplyDeleteI like it so much, I've scrounged up a couple of Stilettos from eBay to make my own versions. They came at a premium price (ouch...my credit card...), but I realize that very little GI Joe-related merchandise comes cheap. When there's a demand from collectors (for mint-in-box, of course, or even used single pieces to complete an incomplete action figure or a vehicle), sellers will ask for (relatively speaking) big bucks.
Ah, well, I don't mind too much. I love finding choice vehicles that can be revamped into cool, unique pieces for Apocalypse-level games. If I can find enough large-scale Joe tanks, I want to build an Ordinatus...I have a few Cities of Death kits, a large Armorcast scanner array, and some Estes model rockets already at hand, so getting some gigantic treads and hitching them together pretty much completes 50-60% of the work in itself.
Anyway, enough rambling. Keep up the great work!
Hey, Thanks Sean!
DeleteGlad the Stiletto can be inspiration to other minions of Slaanesh :)
I've received my Stilettos and am eager to start converting them, but want to be sure of the weapons loadout. You mentioned:
ReplyDelete- 8 bombs
- Autocannon
- Twin-linked lascannon
Anything else I might have missed?