After doing a little bit of work on the Protostar body tube, I am now turning attention back to finishing up the launch lugs.
The first order of business is to apply some CWF to the lug stand-offs.
After sanding the stand-offs smooth, its time to apply some rivet detail.
The original plan was to use sections of Avery paper with the rivets punched in, but I opted instead for the technique of carefully applying some precision-controlled drops of white glue to form the rivet heads. I had to practice for a while on some scrap paper to get blobs of consistent size and shape.
Once the 'rivet' heads are completely dry, the launch lug assembly can be painted.
Regular old brush-on acrylic model paint will be used here. A fine flat tipped artist's paint brush is employed for this step.
First, the lugs. Some nice 'Steampunk' brass works here.
Once dry, the lugs are masked off and the lug 'collars' and standoffs get a coat of flat aluminum acrylic paint. Care is taken not to get any paint onto the bottom gluing surfaces.
Here are the completed launch lugs. These will get glued on to the model after the main body tube is painted.