Jupiter II flies again

[RC-modeler 3]

After the new "Lost in Space" series came out, I guess that I started having fond memory's of my child hood and decided to go create a toy I never had back then.  If you are looking at the photo and wondering, yes, it is floating in mid air.  The magnetic levitation system does work nicely. Unfortunately this all the higher it can fly, so making orbit is going to be a bit tricky.

 

The model is 8" in diameter, made on my Ultimaker II+ using Matter Hacker build silver PLA and IC3D natural PLA. I built the CAD model using an old version of Pro-E.

 

When I first started this project I was amazed that there is not a single correct geometry for the original Jupiter II.  My model is based on the special effects models that had compound curvature on the main part of the upper hull, making it look like a part of a sphere.  The full scale set model, however, had straight sided walls, as though it were part of a cone.  I guess that the set model was just plywood wrapped around forms and the compound curvature was just to much.

 

I have debated on painting the model to hide the seams and the printing artifacts.  It is puttied, sanded smooth and polished.  The putty I came up with is kind of interesting.  I used 15 minute epoxy with milled fiber added and some silver paint.  I worried if the paint would actual dry encased in the epoxy, but it did.  After sanding the entire assembled model and polishing it the seams look acceptable, sort of like a full scale manufacturing seam, not that there was such a thing visible on the TV show.

 

Fun blast from the past.

 

Steven

[Kurt Plagge 11]

Fantastic! I loved that show too as a kid. Nice job on the recreation and the magnetic levitation.