OK, I know you guys are waiting for this and also some of you have asked me regarding the delay. I will explain this to you all and I hope you will understand the situation:
The main problem now is sourcing the obsolete LEDs which is crucial for the four Landing Bays. Since they’re hard to find, I need to consider using the modern square SMD LEDs which is abundant. I was told by the local PCB manufacturer that if I were to use the modern SMD LEDs, the cost of making the boards are very high and they’re not sure if they could even make holes that small. And if I followed their recommendation of using rounded holes, it would be cheap but soldering the modern LEDs would be unreliable if the boards were flexed.
As for the actual progress, once the other Landing Bay mock up is done (due to the LEDs too) its going to be prototypes and then I start piecing them all together into the main controller board which I am trying to cram into the head instead of creating two more boards. Right now, the PCB count for the Kit is 9 and I am trying not to make it 10.
I have more or less found one supplier that has some limited amount but I can only talk to them if I have some $$$ in the region of 4-figures. As time is of the essence, I have to come up with Plan B since there are no other financial options even with the one ‘promised’ to me earlier in the year. Its not easy to save up cash every month as I planned due to other Family commitments but them’s the breaks. And with my Day-job getting more and more demanding, the only thing I can do at home now is to eat dinner, get my emails and crawl to sleep.
I am now going to push the Viper Boards in the hopes that they sell enough for me to get those LEDs and redesign the board slightly. As the Vipers are back with me, I have ordered a TOS pilot (because mine was still not sent back, so I am considering it lost) from Starship Modeler and also, bought some Moebius Vipers for their pilots. I just hope no one complains about the lack of painting in the instruction manuals because I seriously do not have funds to commission them and yes, my modeling skills still suck.
The boards are ready for the first batch and also once I have finalise the manuals, my other side would finalise the draft manual and also contact John of Starship Modeler.
Yeah, this is getting too long in the tooth and I have a few more projects planned, which as usual, will be delayed.
So, that is what’s happening to me at the moment and once again, I have to apologise for all this mess.
