Part 2 “Star Wars” Legion Speeder Bikes by Luciano Rodriguez

I received the second part of Luciano ‘s fantastic Star Wars legion Speeder bike Build. Today he goes over the updates to the build he completed in the Part 1. I hope you enjoy as much as I do and again thank you Luciano for allowing me to show your work.

After seeing the parts lets see what we can do with this kit. Obviously, the whole set would benefit of a bit of refining by modeller´s side. Assembly 08> The nose fins are thinned down with the aid of a sharp modelling knife and a set of plastic files. The parts were reduced to half of the original thickness but even so the fins still look a bit too thick but that was the most I could get without replacing those by new ones made of styrene. Hopefully that will not be that noticeable on the finished model.
Assembly 09> At the rear, the solid engine nozzles need to be drilled out.


Assembly 10> Some work is required in the under surface. A styrene strip is added to complete the shape absent in the kit. Needless to say this work does not aim any true accuracy compared with the original design of the bike, but somewhat compensates its simplification.
Assembly 11> Finally the solid laser gun and intake turbine also need to be drilled, just to improve theirs look. I am not adding any other detail to the bikes however there is a big room for improvements for those interested in a closer resemblance to the original subject.
Assembly 12> The figures also need some attention. Heads were my major concern as they suffered of heavy deformations. I decided to rework one of the plastic heads and make a resin replacement head for the two bikers. In the image you can see the original plastic head above and the resin replacement one bellow.
Assembly 13> As mentioned earlier the figures are produced in a mix of polystyrene related to traditional green army bucket toy soldiers. Fortunately the plastic is hard enough to some basic refining. It can be reworked with fine files, sanding paper and sponges and sharp blades.
Assembly 14> One of the big advantages of polystyrene becomes one of the main drawbacks for the modeller as the plastic surface does not react to any liquid glue or thinned in order to smooth the surfaces or assembly the parts. All parts were bond with CA cement and the shoulder joints were filled with epoxy putty.


Assembly 15> The good thing of having replacement heads is I could changed the position of the helmets in the two figures. The images show clearly all seam lines could be removed successfully and detail definition was not much affected in the process.


Assembly 16> The figures themselves feature very nice poses and are very well sculpted and are worth the work, in my humble opinion.
Assembly 17> As for the first scout I turned his head a bit compared with the original figure. I think that will give me some advantage – combined with some inclination to the bike- when it comes to place it in a decorated base.
Assembly 18> Although in those images the riders are unglued still, notice the fit has been improved by reworking the inner side of the legs in order to get a more natural seated look.
Assembly 19> And here they fly full throttle heading the paint booth. . .

More to follow soon.