A new day, a new delivery. I had been eagerly awaiting the next set of magazines from Fanhome after the amazing end to our last one. My nine-year-old daughter (Ember) and I had attached the mandibles to the Millennium Falcon and started getting all the wiring sorted. Everything was coming together in a huge, full-of-detail way. And of course it should be, we are down to nine installments left until this epic project – that has taken us three years to complete – is complete. There’s a part of me that cannot believe it is coming to an end, another part that does not want to see it end and a whole other side of me that wants to see what this model looks like when we finally cross that finish line.
This installment doesn’t contain that finish line, but it does come with the next five magazines that we need to carry on this journey. I looked through the box and certain parts just jumped out instantly to me – the airlocks. These are big and easy to spot; it sent a chill down my spine just seeing them; it really was all coming together. Before I got myself too excited, it was time to prepare for the installment we were actually going to do.
Fishing out the magazine, I had a brief look through in case there was anything I needed to sort before Ember and I sat down to work on the Falcon. A lot needed doing in the early stages: Ember was younger and could do less, there was also painting work that I needed to do so we could concentrate on the building. In these later stages, I’ve not really had to do anything – I don’t imagine I will before the end now. However, old habits die hard and at least this way, I’m prepared for what I will be doing with my daughter. I also used to check whether to do two installments at once, as some of the issues seemed very short. As we’ve gotten closer to the end, I’ve refrained from doing this. The short snappy magazines allow Ember and I a chance to slow down and actually it makes for a far more enjoyable experience. It also means the project lasts a little longer!
In this issue, we were adding the side frames. Surely, surely, there was only one reason to start prepping these – to add the top half of the Falcon on? I was hoping so, I had been fooled before by the order the project does things in, but perhaps, maybe, we would be adding the top of the Falcon on in the next installment or so. Before I got ahead of myself, I began actually checking carefully what would need doing. Ember loves attaching screws and has gotten as good as me. She would love this. Not only that but there would be points where the screwdriver needed angling (the magazine warns you about this) which would help to further enhance her skills. Once this was done, we would be adding an access corridor (which we had constructed many moons ago) before extending some wiring. Talk about a big issue with lots of different things to do; perfect! And, right at the end of the instructions? Nestled in the corner of the page? Instructions saying that the wiring would need to be removed before adding the top of the hull next issue! NEXT ISSUE! Oh, I was ready to get this magazine done and dusted so we could move onto finally fitting the top of this ship to the bottom.
Filled with excitement, Ember and I sat down to get to work. We started off by fitting the seven side frames. This was fairly straightforward, although explaining to Ember not to tighten them was rather humorous, she wanted to make sure they were firm and in place. We got to frame four – the one that fits between the two mandibles. This one needed the screwdriver angled, the one I thought would be a good lesson to help Ember improve her skills further. I was wrong. It was tough, so much so I had to jump in and even I struggled. There are times with this project that I question the order of doing things. This job would have been much easier without the mandibles in place, I would have added these side frames first, then the mandibles. After much perseverance, we got there and Ember was able to take over and finish the side frames.
Then it was the two internal supports. The second of the two fitted fine, but the first presented us with a slight problem. The hull plate that it attaches to isn’t completely stable. I checked all the other plates on the lower hull, and it is the only one with some slack. This meant trying to attach the support was a nightmare as it really does need some force. I ended up having to use a second screwdriver to hold the plate up from underneath while putting in the screws. I got there but it was tough going. Either we had done something wrong goodness knows how many issues ago, or this is a weak point in the design.
Then it was the turn of adding the access corridor and where my frustration levels started rising even higher. This was all glueing and Ember was more than happy to let me do this part while she started working on the final bit. You glue the hold and corridors into place but then you add the access hatch. I was thinking this would be easy, it is anything but. The fit is extremely tight, and the pieces don’t actually fit together like a jigsaw. The bottom of the access corridor doesn’t have the same grooves as the top, which means it won’t fit flush like the top part will. Then you must add the flange to the gun well, which has already been covered partly by the corridor and needs a good shove. I didn’t even bother glaring the access corridor into place. It is that tightly held, it doesn’t need it. The magazine says it will all align but there are gaps in it. I’m sure when it is all complete and the angle of viewing, these won’t even be noticeable and to be honest I don’t imagine we’ll be looking at it internally, so it isn’t too much of a problem, but it will give you a headache!
Finally, Ember had already figured out about extending the write for the power pack. After such hardship, I was able to sit back while she quickly extended this. We were done. It had not been an easy installment and there were bits with the internal workings that I wasn’t happy with. It’s not as flush as I would personally like. I’ve tried moving it and had it crumbled into a million pieces, which was maybe life’s way of saying, leave it alone. While tough, I’m excited for what is to come. For all the annoyances of this magazine, I can’t wait to get the top on. While we’re finishing, Ember asks me if we can go straight onto the next magazine, oh heck…
