Lenticular ReEntry Vehicle (LRV)

This is another throw back kit from Fantastic Plastic that I dug deep into my stash to pull out. The date on the instructions says 2008!  It's been out of production since 2011, but if you pay attention to the site, older models can come back for a brief engagement at any time. 

The LRV from FP's site:

In the early 1960s, the U.S. Air Force purportedly began development of a modified flying saucer-like airframe for use as a spaceborne nuclear weapons platform.  Dubbed the "Lenticular Re-Entry Vehicle" (LRV).  To be launched atop either a Saturn-like multi-stage rocket or one of the nuclear-powered rockets then under development, the LRV with its crew of four was to be launched into a 300-nautical-mile-high orbit where it would wait in "Fail Safe" mode for several weeks before either launching its nuclear weapons at the Soviet Union/China/North Korea or returning to earth.  Landing would be via controlled re-entry and a glide landing on a dry lake bed.

Although this "Black Budget" project may never have gotten beyond the design stage, there is some physical evidence that prototype vehicles were indeed test-flown in the 1960s.  One such intriguing piece of evidence is a strange "honeycomb" cross-section of an exploded disc recovered near Brisbane, Australia in 1966.

The kit is 1/72 scale is molded in 22 gray resin parts. Certain parts do need a little clear up but nothing that's out of the ordinary.  

The first step was to build the missile bay. Being it's inside means I have to paint it first. 

 After all that I decided I didn't like the option of have the bay open with the shuttle pod half out of the ship, so I did the dumb thing and closed it all in.  Here it is with the shuttle pod.

The closed door is  mostly fits well, but did need a little putty in 2 corners. It also needs a little more sanding to be flush with the ship's surface. But that's for next time. Thanks for looking.