I have a confession to make: the idea wasn’t mine. I live quite on the margins of the modeling world and I’m rather unfamiliar with the countless trends and variations within this hobby. I simply design and build based on my own interests. And I usually build from scratch, always relying on kitbashing and trashbashing techniques.

Until the day a sci-fi enthusiast and scratch-built spaceship maker contacted me and proposed the idea. And here comes my second confession: at first, it didn’t make much sense to me. But his enthusiasm and obvious persistence gradually led me to start browsing through the thousands of parts I have stored for my own projects. Piece by piece, I began collecting some interesting ones—some old, some new—and ideas for new things started to emerge. Carlos, the enthusiast, managed to pass on his excitement to me, so I put other projects aside, and got to work.

The concept and objective were clear: to develop a set of fairly standard parts that could help other modelers detail their own creations, primarily spaceships.

Starting from the initial idea, I began shaping the concept of a small set made up of two panels that could be cast as a single piece. Following the recommendations of my spiritual guide for this project, the pieces needed to have a flat side and be suitable for detailing the hull of his spaceship. My limited experience was mostly with mechas and robots, so I needed to do a bit of prior research (wisely helped by Carlos) to develop some ideas. But once the machine starts moving, it takes on a life of its own. I began by taking parts from my own models, kitbashing from my own work. A kids construction set and a few model pieces that happened to be on my workbench at the time did the rest. I really enjoy using everyday objects, but I always need to apply my own modifications so my models don’t end up looking like just a bunch of stuff glued together. With each piece I built and added to the set, new ideas and possibilities emerged.

Of course, I couldn't help but use this project to develop new building techniques as I faced new challenges. In the end, many parts were left on the drawing board, opening the door to similar future projects.

The set consists of 54 different parts, some of them duplicated to offer modelers more possibilities, making a total of 80 pieces. All the parts are arranged on 4 flat-backed panels of 12 ×12 cm, allowing each panel to be cast as a single piece in polyurethane resin.

In keeping with my usual approach and style, everything is modelled by hand, although this time I allowed myself the liberty of including an HSM logo and an identifying letter on each panel, both 3D printed.

The base panel is quite thin, and although it could be broken by hand to remove the parts, I strongly recommend using proper tools (saws and blades) to avoid unexpected breaks that might damage the pieces.

Since this is a resin kit, we must use the appropriate tools. The pieces are easy to cut and sand, allowing for multiple combination possibilities. The most recommended glue is cyanoacrylate. Any modeling paint will yield good results, but I always recommend a thorough wash and primer beforehand.