Monogram 1/32nd Apollo CSM

This is a classic in spacecraft modeling, though most serious spacecraft modelers seem to be less than enthusiastic about the transparent panels and the gold-plated CM exterior. I like the see-through panels, though I concede that comparing the model to photographs reveals that the kit's interior detail leaves a lot to be desired. One of the most annoying aspects of the CM interior in particular is the way Monogram chose to put most of the "detail" on self-adhesive stickers. And that leads me to the main modification I made to the kit.

The top photograph shows it best - this is RealSpace Models' Apollo CM interior detail set, which consists primarily (but not exclusively) of the instrument panel. It's a vast improvement over the old Monogram sticker, though inserting and trimming the forest of switches almost drove me to strong drink. No, who am I kidding, it DID drive me to strong drink. But it's work well spent, even though the finished detail set is almost invisible from most viewing angles.

The middle photo shows the other modification I made. The kit supplies three spacesuited crewmen who are very nice from the helmet seal down, but awful from there up. Their heads are simple globular blobs, no doubt meant to show that they are wearing their bubbletop helmets, but I never figured out how to paint such things realistically. Instead I sawed off their bubbleheads and fixed up the resulting carnage with epoxy putty, then borrowed three heads from an Airfix 1/32nd Multi-Pose US Infantry set and worked them over with sandpaper and putty until they looked like they were wearing the proper Apollo headgear. Then I attached said heads to the figures, adjusting their angles so none of them were quite looking in the same direction. In the middle photo you can just barely make out a blurry head.

One will also note that the SM is missing several RCS thrusters, and the heavy coating of "space dust" on the high-gain antenna. The model has been in storage a couple of times and has been knocked off a shelf by a cat at least once, and it's accumulated its fair share of minor damage.

If I were to redo this kit, I would do the things I did before (use RealSpace Models' interior detail kit and replace the bubbleheads with Multi-Pose heads) but I would add several more things to the list. First, I would drill out the CM RCS thruster ports and replace them with tubing of some sort. This would be a lot of work, but it would look better than red-and-black decals. Second, I would strip the CM skin and cover it with strips of Bare-Metal Foil. Third, I would seek to tone down the beefiness of the high-gain antenna, perhaps by using photoetched parts. And fourth, I think I would skip the transparent panel on the SM, either that or add extensively to the SM's interior detail. As it is, it looks almost disturbingly empty aside from the huge brown hydrazine tank.