Katrina Kaif!
Written by Burl on January 25th, 2012Rosetta’s Martian flyby
Written by Burl on January 24th, 2012
When the Rosetta explorer spacecraft transited Mars in 2007, it took several pictures of the red planet, but the European Space Agency has been sitting on them. They were finally released this week. Click on the above image for a bigger version. Just in time to wonder where Helium is, or where Dejah Thoris is hanging out!
Sunday Matinee: Flyboy
Written by Burl on January 22nd, 2012Friday Funnies: Who can it be?
Written by Burl on January 20th, 2012
You never know what might turn up when you clean house. I found a small notebook I kept while on a art-class tour of European museums. This is a sketch I made in 1972 of one of the teachers. He’s pretty much the same today …
Home Repair: Motioning That Table
Written by Burl on January 17th, 2012
The time has come to construct a workbench to build stuff on. I’m using standard Formica countertops in a marble pattern, so my eyeballs will get a workout trying to find small parts — and naturally, the pattern I chose from Lowes, they decided never to restock again — and then I decided that the little lip shelf on the top needed to be deeper and more robust. The answer was to dado an edge from a treated 2X4, then glue it to the back of the countertop. Above, that’s what’s going on with all the clamps. (Look in the background and you might make out the pencil line on the wall that indicates the table height. I chose 29 inches. That unpainted portion of the wall is where the floor tiles were leaning while they were installed. That whole wall needs a second coat anyway.
The top edge of the countertop is protected by painters tape. After the glue dries and the clamps are removed, the slot between countertop and dado is filled with wood putty (love that ACE Hardware stuff) given a couple of days to dry and then rough-sanded level. Then, the entire top of the 2X4 is given a glaze of wood putty to cover any problems. When that dried, the whole thing was carefully sanded with an orbital sander until the blue paper tape appeared. That was the signal to stop sanding. Below, the tape is being pulled off to reveal the neat seam. Next step is to reapply tape and paint with primer, while the countertop supports are jimmied together and bolted to the wall studs.
And your eyes aren’t fooling you. The original tape was green, the second tape is blue.
CellPhoto: Clean, Lube, Adjust
Written by Burl on January 16th, 2012
I guess service stations are offering full-feature services these days.
Sunday Matinee: LAX Approach
Written by Burl on January 15th, 2012Sunday Matinee: Night at the Bookstore
Written by Burl on January 8th, 2012CellPhoto: Half-Sized Double Issue
Written by Burl on January 6th, 2012
I’m unsure, but … does this mean that this issue is normal-sized?
Monday Modeleer: Shaving the Arizona
Written by Burl on January 2nd, 2012
I’m whacking on the 1/350 Banner kit of USS Arizona, but I want it to be in the mid-’20s configuration with the turreted flying-off platforms. That means major modifications. The grunt work right now means removing the torpedo-protection bulges on the hull. After backing them up with thick white styrene, and slathering epoxy putty over that for strength, I used an industrial band saw to cut down the sides. Here’s the horrific damage right after. Now, lots of wood-rasp for rough shaping and then sanding and puttying to make it pretty. We’ll see!
