Area 51 Grey Alien

This little guy came with the Bob Lazar Area 51 flying saucer model put out by Testor’s. I’ve seen this kit sold separately from the saucer.

The kit was an easy build - one of those quick weekend projects that you can actually get done in a weekend. Assembly was straightforward. I think there were only about half a dozen styrene pieces. The seams needed lots of filling and sanding. I filled and sanded until I was done including a sanding after the primer was applied. I probably could have done more, but I wanted to paint it.

I used this kit to work on my airbrushing skills. Whereas a year ago, I surely would have tried to work with an dry brush or more likely just left it gray, I approached this kit as an airbrushing lesson.

I mixed three shades of gray and painting from dark to light, built up the color with as fine an airbrushing nozzle as my Aztec airbrush has. I had to work and rework the colors several times, painting shadows after highlights and then cleaning that up with again with more lighter gray. I need more practice but I was ultimately pleased with the final product.

After painting the gray, I hit it with Dullcoat and then painted the eyes black with a gloss sealer for the shine.

Surprisingly, the base of the model was the biggest problem I had. I tried a natural sienna scheme, but it clashed so much with the kit, that I broke it off and started again with a gray scheme. So much for trying to be original.

I was fascinated by Bob Lazar’s story of Area 51 and the alleged saucers and alien contact which inspired this kit. I did a bit of research and would suggest the link below for anyone interested in the subject. I learned, among other things, that unlike the saucer which came with this kit, the alien isn’t based on Lazar’s description. The eyes are all wrong.

Bob Lazar Page