by David Nielsen

Background

The S.S.N Titan is a refueling ship in the service of the Sol System Navy’s fifth fleet. It can service ships while underway with its pair of rear mounted pivoting refueling arms. Though its role is purely support, the Titan is lightly armed with a dorsal mounted laser turret and bow mounted torpedo tubes.

The Model

I have been wanting to build a scratchbuilt model for some time, and this contest gave me the perfect excuse. The idea for this design came simply from drinking too much bottled water. The bottles just looked kind of like something a fuel hauler might use, and the idea was born. Unfortunately, this idea came out kicking and screaming for the first half of the build. Note to self - must have a plan next time.

Three water bottles had their ends cut off and were joined and filled with that expanding foam stuff (fun, but messy). Wooden dowels were cut and joined to create the beams that run the length of the fuel tank. The main body was shaped out of pieces of Styrofoam, covered with modeling paste to get a more exact shape and to give the glue something to stick to. I learned the hard way that cyanoacrylate glue melts Styrofoam. The body was then covered with sheet styrene, panels and ping-pong balls were added. The stern of the ship and the dorsal platform (where the turret sits) were made from balsa wood laminated with sheet styrene. The engines where made from PVC pipe with lots of sanding and small bits of sheet styrene added. I created a stencil to spray the numbers on the top/sides, and used rub-off letters for the ship’s name. The photographs were taken in a darkened room, with a sheet of black velvet covering the stand and background. I then used my old crappy digital camera tripod mounted with some slaved flashes for lighting.

Materials

The following materials gave their lives during the making of this model: Styrofoam, balsa wood, sheet styrene (‘For Sale’ signs), 3 water bottles, wooden dowels, brass and plastic tubes, electrical wire, 1.5 ping pong balls, PVC tubes and caps (engines), detergent cap (rear of tank), contact lens case (under radar dish), contact lens solution cover (turret), water bottle cap (turret base), toaster oven spacer thingies, deodorant cover (radar dish), Testor’s glue caps (inside of engines), lots ‘o pins, a couple of miscellaneous parts from a cheap railroad station kit (bow antennae mounts and lower vent) and an old plastic model stand (torpedo launcher housing), and one of those little plastic things that keeps the bread bag closed (cut in half created 2 hooks to hold the refueling arms in place).

Image: Top/front view

Image: Right/rear view

Image: Details

Image: Top/rear view