[WIP] Finally building my own SSD

[BrickieB]

Hello SSD-lovers :)

My all time favourite SW model is the SSD. It was my first (AFOL) Lego kit, and this week I bought my second. Why? Because I wanted to make a decent MOC of both.

The idea is to use mainly the parts from these 2 kits to create one (epic) SSD. It has become clear that this will not be 100% possible, but I intend to try anyway.

So this post is to follow up on my progress on the one hand, but also ask feedback / advice from all you SW and Lego experts. It will probably be a slow build as I'm balancing other hobbies, family life, and work. So don't shoot me if an update takes weeks / months.

My first pic is a basic overview of the hull as I have it in LDD now. It has no (sufficient) support structure yet, but I have built the 4 panels in the past and they're pretty sturdy.

My question about this picture is mainly about the dimensions: is it all a bit realistic? I know it looks good - but does it look like the 'real' thing?

Also, are there certain techniques I can use to improve it? For example, I'm not happy with the bottom arcs around the engine bays - any tips on improving these?

I only picked up my second SSD last week, haven't even unpacked it yet. But that should give me enough parts to have about 90-95% of what I need (I assume). I should be able to make the hull, city, and support structure (using liftarms for this, not the SSD parts). The engine bay is till one big blurred area in the moc in my head :)

I'm open for all tips: SSD, building, LDD, ...

Edited January 21, 2014 by Brickdoctor
Title change from 'MOC' to 'WIP'

[Sir Brickalot]

This'll probably take a while! Good luck!

[Brickdoctor]

Interesting idea. It looks too skinny to me, but I suppose that that's a limitation of the parts available to you from those two sets.

I've changed the title from 'MOC' to 'WIP' since this isn't complete yet.

[BrickieB]

...It looks too skinny to me, but I suppose that that's a limitation of the parts available to you from those two sets.

Well that shouldn't be an excuse :) You're absolutely right: it's a lot wider and flatter than the TLG one, but still not wide and flat enough. I will need to fix this.

I've changed the title from 'MOC' to 'WIP' since this isn't complete yet.

Thanks. I noticed my mistake only when it was too late to correct it myself.

[deanorth]

looking good so far, really.

You will have to look closely how the inner structure strength is, it's always a bit hard to handle:)

[Commander Colt]

It looks like you have tried to stick to the angles of the Lego version, I would say that the body needs to widen more and that maybe the tail section could be a bit longer?

Other than that, great start, good luck!

[BrickieB]

First off: sorry about the double post, my internet explorer messed it up and now I can't edit it anymore :(

So, the last few days I have been messing around with the angles of the wings.

Starting from the front angle (the rest of the ship kind of follows that first angle) I have seen where I can get with the parts I have.

The perfect part would be the 2x3 wedge plate (times many). However, the SSD kit comes with 3x12 and 3x6 mainly, and very few 2x3. If I use the 3x6 wedges I would maybe have just enough, but as it increases the wing surface dramatically I won't have enough plates to finish off the rest of the model. So that may become my V 2.0 :)

I might be able to do it if I also shrink the model size by about 30-40%, but I don't want to do that.

First and foremost I want to be able to create a bigger and better SSD with the 2 kits I have. It will not be 100% accurate, but it will look better than TLG one, and will also be a lot bigger (looking at 125-140cm atm).

The wing structure has been slightly modified to be tougher and use less of the essentials pieces for other parts of the ship.

I've also been looking into a cool and sturdy stand for the model. If I manage to complete my ideas and make it sturdy enough, it should become a single mount :) Just need the connection between the stand and the support structure to withstand the weight. More on that later, no doubt.

There is a pic to illustrate my wing-study but I can't upload it right now, i will add it in a few days.

[Lobot]

Hi BrickieB, this sounds like an interesting project and I look forward to seeing your updates.

I purchased the SSD a couple of years ago and it's quite an under-rated set in my opinion, considering that it's trying to represent a ship that's 16+km long! My main issues with it are i) the 'integrated' bridge that is totally pointless, and ii) the very limited palette of parts used to complete the 'city' which makes it look unfairly cheap.

I've also hidden the double-post for you

[BrickieB]

Okay, here's the pic I promised.

Below are some mock-ups:

Top one is the original one I designed

Middle one uses 2x4 plates in the front

Third one uses 3x6 plates

[BrickieB]

Almost a year after my last update, I picked up this project again.

In the mean time, I have actually tested several construction methods to get the angle of the hull plates right, create a sufficiently sturdy center beam, try out several attachment methods for the hullplates, ...

I've been forced to tear it all apart, as I wasn't happy with the results and didn't have time to continue it, or the space to keep it in one piece.

So a few weeks ago I started the build again. I used slightly modified plans for the hull plates, but had the idea of not suspending them from the central construction. They should not be attached to the carrying structure, but rather be a part of that structure.

So with that in mind I started with the bottom plates and used them as a base for my center beam. From there, I added technic bricks and built the beam towards the front. After attaching it I filled out the 'bottom' city first.

Here is a global first view, Batman for scale. I can't get the perfect angles with the plates I have so I'm just keeping it at this. It's not too bad, considering the fact that the plates are at a much more flat angle than the standard 10221.

The top hull plates rely on gravity to keep them on. I have a really simple system of a few bricks to keep them in place. This way I can reduce the weight to move it by removing the plates, it makes repairs easier, and I'm never going to display this any other way than horizontally on its stands, so it makes sense to keep it like this.

The front attachment with some interesting bits:

- The hinge system I use to keep the attachment low profile yet sturdy

- The attachment of the front plates to the central beam

This is the backbone that connects the center beam to the bottom plate.

... And here is the LDD for that construction.

The bottom construction. The lower city needs to be slightly redesigned, and a few of the rear wedges are the wrong colour. And obviously, it needs the engine area, too.

Something else that's probably in its final form: the stand. I have 2 of these, they're really simple: there are 2 1x1 holes in the central construction, these stands fit into those and that's it. I will be able to know for certain these are strong enough when the SSD is ready, now they only support about half the weight they should be able to support. I don't see why they wouldn't be able to support 2 or 3 times this weight though.

So far I am still true to my goal, I have used nothing but the parts from my 2 SSDs. I only took 50 3L technic pins from my stash to be able to prototype some other ideas, I don't know if I will be needing these in the end. I will be able to finish a lot of the construction without adding too many pieces, but I am lacking technic beams at this time, so they will be added. I will also be using liftarms to reinforce the bottom hullplates. And a few parts are available in the wrong colour, so they will be replaced by (mostly) LBG ones.

Problems? Sure, plenty. But I'm still working on them. If you have suggestions, don't hesitate to post them below.

1. at the very tip, the hull plates aren't tight enough. I'm hoping they will become better when the plates have their full support and rigidity, but if not I need to find some solution. A rubber band will do nicely but doesn't look too good.

2. The center beam probably isn't sturdy enough for the entire construction. I will only know this when everything is attached: the motor parts will provide some more support, but also a lot of weight.

3. The way I attached the lower hull plates isn't 100% straight, there's a bit of a twist in it. I probably won't be able to correct it, so I can only hope it's not too noticeable. If I can't live with it I will need to get back to the drawing board :)

I welcome your thoughts, ideas, suggestions, so fire away!

[Bob De Quatre]

Looks pretty good. Makes me thinks of the one I designed. What is the length in stud?

[markus1984]

Yes, i think also that you make an great job!

The WIP`s from the SSD looks really good and more better than the orgininal UCS!

Waiting for the next updates.

markus

[Fire spray 31]

Nicely done. Can't wait to see the final.

[BrickieB]

Looks pretty good. Makes me thinks of the one I designed. What is the length in stud?

Thanks! I'm at 183 at the moment.

[FRGCWRU]

-Edited-

Edited May 27, 2022 by FRGCWRU

[BrickieB]

Thanks for your interest in my project.

I've been very busy with various other things, so I haven't been able to set up everything to continue work on this project, but I hope I will soon be able to do so. This build is getting so big that I need to find a suitable workplace such as the dining table or something - my wife does not appreciate that. :)

I'm still fully intending to complete the project, but it will be a MOC, I won't be making any plans for it. Unless it turns out to be spectacularly good in the end :)

I bought my first SSD at full price, since I just had to have it. The second one came along at a very good deal (30% off) so I picked that up for this project. It was also convenient to me because I lacked the massive amount of plates needed to make the hull. This seemed like an easy way to get an assortment of bricks quickly. If, as you say, you don't have a lot of lego yet (mainly large plates and small pieces to do the greebles on top / bottom) it makes sense to buy a second set. If you're familiar with bricklink and just want to mod the original, I would recommend buying the missing parts that way.

Also, I'm not a great builder - by far :) So don't aim to duplicate my masterpiece, as that may just turn out to be more of a masterpile (of bricks). I'm just seeing where I can get by using only the bricks in the 2 sets. However, it has become clear to me that I will need to add some more bricks to make it work (like 1x16 technic bricks). I fear 'just' 2x 10221 will not be enough.

I would not part out a UCS set to feed other, similar sets - but that's just me. I also don't think the Slave 1 has a lot of pieces you'd need for the SSD, so I'd keep it together.

Hope this helps, and good luck with your MOC. Obviously I will post any progress here. And if you have any further questions, feel free to ask!

[FRGCWRU]

-Edited-

Edited May 27, 2022 by FRGCWRU

[BrickieB]

The original model uses a flat base, combined with technic bricks to create a rigid structure. If you want to have a slanted bottom of the ship you will lose this rigid structure. This will need to be fixed with a better Technic construction. Combine that with a 'slightly' larger model and you will need more additional technic than your Slave can offer. That's why I'd leave the slave alone.

Personally, I'm for keeping my UCS models together, the normal models are parted out. Buying a second SSD is a great way to get loads of LBG parts - that's why I did it, too. However, as you say, the greebling on the standard model is pretty much the same around the model. So you will get very similar greebles. You will be able to get better results with other parts, which are not included with the SSD (binoculars, tools, wheels, phones, ... ). You will mainly get a lot of 1x1's w/ clip, for example.

As for LDD: I suggest you try it. There's a thread on these forums with loads of LDD files for the original models, just start there and pull them apart / modify them. You'll gradually get better at using the software - it's not that hard.

[FRGCWRU]

-Edited-

Edited May 27, 2022 by FRGCWRU

[BrickieB]

All I'm saying is that, with the standard greebles, you'll probably always get a pretty similar effect in detailing, making it pretty monotonous. That being said, I'm also going to try using the standard greebles for mine - at least initially.

If you build the model using the flat base and just size it up to like 120-140% I'm pretty confident you'll be able to do it with 2 SSDs. The only problem you might encounter is that the standard engines will be too small in comparison to the rest of the model, so you might need to add some bigger engines.

The slanted bottom needs more technic (ideally, but other bricks would do, too) to keep rigidity. The flat bottom in the standard model is like 2 or 3 layers of plates with a technic structure on top. This layered design makes a very stiff & sturdy base, and the bottom layer supports itself. If you make it slanted, you not only lose the extra rigidity of the flat bottom, but you need to suspend extra weight from the main technic structure as the (bottom) hullplates need to hang from it as well - without adding to the sturdiness of the whole. If that makes sense :)

Also, to make the dimensions fit, the model needs to be a lot flatter than the TLG one. So you lose space for stacking bricks for the support structure. It's all a bit of a puzzle :)

So far I have used some extra technic parts, but I'm not sure I will need them in the end. Other than that I'm counting on needing extra 1x16 technic bricks, some LBG wedge plates, bigger engines and probably some more small bits here and there.

[FRGCWRU]

-Edited-

Edited May 27, 2022 by FRGCWRU

[BrickieB]

Yes, you will save bricks because the ship needs to be more shallow, but you could use the space to make a more sturdy support structure. So now it's more of a challenge to fit the structure into the hull.

The jagged edge around the top city is needed to get the dimensions right. If you don't do this OR use a different size wedge (the right ine does not exist for my dimensions of ship) you will have a city that's too small in comparison to the rest of the ship. I will try to get the greebles to cover up this edge.

Bottom line on the 2nd SSD: if you just want to add more detail to the greebling: just order the parts. If you also want to increase the size of the model: get the second UCS set. You'll also get an extra manual (you can probably sell that seperately), minifigs, stickers, ... On top of a heap of parts.

Sidenote: I started construction on my model again today, hopefully I will have some new pics to post in a few days. I moved a support stand more to the back, started the engine bay and figured out a way to get the city in the way I want. I also measured it: total length is just 148cm at this time. Stay tuned...

[FRGCWRU]

-Edited-

Edited May 27, 2022 by FRGCWRU

[BrickieB]

So here are my progress-pics I promised.

First, a global overview. I finished the base of where my city will be.

Here's a (sort of) top down pic to see the dimensions of the ship. It's not 100% perfect but still a whole lot better than the Lego one.

Opened up. The top halves of the hull rest on the bottom halves. But the city base is also a seperate part. There are multiple reasons: my frame is 3 bricks wide, but it's sort of annoying to build on a surface that's shifted half a stud. It's also easier to build the city when it's not connected to the rest of the ship. It reduces weight and vulnerability of the ship, makes repairs easier, and allows me to flip the ship upside down to work on the engine area. So lots of advantages!

Another view...

The rear end of the ship. As you can see it's sagging a little in the middle, I'm still going to fix that.

Another view of the rear. The mounting spots for the engine bay are in place, but the engine bay is not built yet.

Here is a more detailed pic of the sagging middle. I will be able to fix this by adding material to the wings, but I needed to wait until I knew what plates I would have left after building the rest of the ship. So when the rough enginebay work is done I will be able to reinforce these parts. Hopefully this will also tighten up the nose section.

One of the advantages of my detachable hull / city: easy access to the bottom of the ship. One of my stands is bright red: I used parts that are not part of the SSD kits, and this way it's easy to recognize them. For the final model these will be black.

Another bottom-up view of the hull. The rear support used to be in the middle of the plates, but I had to move it to the back because the weight of the engines would be too much for the frame, bending or tipping the model.

Edited August 25, 2015 by BrickieB

[FRGCWRU]

-Edited-

Edited May 27, 2022 by FRGCWRU