Doug Cowles Buildup of the
Wilco Models "Icarus" 1/48 scale kit
_______________________

This is Wilco's Icarus built pretty much right out of the box with the exception of some extra detail on the rear bulkhead. I wasn't able to find a lot of definitive or consistent guidance on what this area should look like so I took some liberties and just made it look "sensible" I guess.

I also added panel lines to break up the hull area a bit and give it some character.

Since I wasn't going to have an interior, I blocked the viewports, painted them black and then filled them with clear resin epoxy. This blacks them out but also gives them some depth as well.

The "United States" markings that came with the model I believe are the wrong font and there was only one for the top whereas I saw a drawing that had one on top and one on the bottom which I really liked. I went to the NASA web site (UET Design Guidelines page) and was able to find out that they use Sans Serif or Serif font so I made two decals in this font for the bottom and top of the nose.

I downloaded the ANSA logo and mission patch to add to the stand for some character.

I would picture this model sitting in a place of honor on the ANSA Head Administrator's desk having originally been presented during the press conference announcing the mission but now serving as a memorial to the lost crew of the Icarus.

Thanks for being willing to post my work, it's an honor to be among all the other great modelers on your site. All of their work served as inspiration and guidance and I'm thankful to them.

Best regards,

Doug Cowles