If we are friends of the rings, then you might say we are a fellowship, of sorts. But you are unquestionably Lord of the Rings! 
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Thanks Mark for your nice compliment. 
Hello everybody,
after all the clamping rings have been installed now, the question now arises about the further procedure with regard to painting (airbrush) of the ring lines, about which I have been tinkering for a while. 
I am not quite sure whether I should glue the supports before painting (possibly with MEK?), or whether I paint all the supports and the ring lines first separately 
and then glue the supports … 
Here is once more an elder image with all the supports, but still without clamping rings.
With the clamping rings, the interspaces there will inevitably become even narrower. 
To glue the supports previously and then completely paint the whole skeleton with all the supports would certainly be the less expensive method. However, I have doubts whether one reaches with the Airbrush jet into the small interstices between the sickle holders and clamping rings, or whether they could possibly clogged, which of course should not happen. 
For this I have here a macro image of the place conditions between the ring line and the supports, whereby the distances between the sickle holders are about 1,5 mm, between which the clamping rings (0,5 mm) sit, whereby one should not be deceived by the real proportion.
Otherwise, I would have to airbrush the supports separately, possibly only from above, and the ring line with the clamping rings at least at the bottom, then gluing the supports and airbrushing once more all together …
So all in all a pretty tricky decision to a guaranteed stressful procedure, that I must meet now, which is why I am curious what you mean, or what you would advise me … 
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I shouldn’t have the temerity to offer advice to a master such as you, but if it is worth considering:
- Pre-shade all recessed areas (including supports) with black or dark grey
- Paint everything with supports off
- Clean the gluing surfaces and attach the supports
- Re-paint
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Thanks Mark for your good-intentioned tips.
But I’m going to glue all Pipe supports onto both SSWS Ring lines, which then will completely be airbrushed. Then both ring lines will be inserted into the SRB Blast Chambers, and then all supports will be glued to the MLP with MEK, which I’ve tried and, amazingly, it works. 
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Hello everybody,
and because we have dealt with breakages, of which I had to complain already some at the ring line outlets, without damage the last action with the clamping rings unfortunately had not ended.
On closer inspection, I have noticed unfortunately that the small nipples on the outer two 6’’ outlets behind the TSMs after the felt 100.000 twists and turns when clamping the ring lines must have been broken, 
which I had not noticed so far.
That is why, for a change, cosmetic operations were announced today, because something like that bothers me, even though it would hardly be noticed by somebody else’s. 
These OPs are, however, rather delicate, since the outlets are only thin round bars (Ø 1 mm), into which still thinner rods (0,3 mm) have been glued as nipples. That is why I have first carefully sanded off the remaining stumps and then still more cautiously drilled small holes with Ø 0,3 mm, but for which I first had to think on a clever clamping condition of the ring line for a stable support. 
Seek and you shall find, and here the nipple rod is already glued again with a little overhang, which now only needs to be shortened accordingly, what but also does not so easily go out of cupped hands.
For the cutting off the overhangs then a different support had to be found and to be newly clamped again,
so that the rod also has a stable support and can not break off.
But that worked out well,
as one can see here.
And the same OP then synonymous still at the other ring line, as before. 
And so the damages have been remedied again.
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another great in-depth update to add to the collection … the precise detailed work never lets up. Very nice indeed.
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Thanks John,
well, this is meanwhile my claim that drives me forward.
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It is never boring to see your work Manfred. Every detail is very well executed. Beautiful and marvelous!
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Thanks Mike, my true friend,
meanwhile it has become a passion and acts like a drug.
Hello everybody,
in the last few days I have finally brought myself to start with the gluing of the Pipe Supports under the ring line behind the LOX-TSM, for which the already announced removal of the rear SRB Supports was necessary.
Since I can carry out the gluing of the supports only step by step, in order to be able to check their seat, I have to remove the ring line now and then, and because I did not want to risk anything, I have removed the disruptive rear SRB Supports.
For gluing of the pipe supports, the ring line was then introduced again and its exact seat fixed with the spacers. After that, I tried as a first variant the gluing with MEK and have initially positioned and aligned only three supports under the ring line, as well as dabbed the contact points of the sickle holders on the outer side carefully with a fine brush with MEK, which should be sufficient for a first hold.
And as one can see in this image, that was actually already sufficient. 
Since in the bracket-holder I can reach now the remaining contact places of the sickle holders from all sides, I can now also glue them completely.
And so it can then gradually go on with the next supports.
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Hi all together,
for the gluing of the next Pipe Supports I used again my approved bracket in the mini vise, which is best suited for this.
With this I have much more freedom of movement for the assembly and can adjust the position of the ring line so that the already attached three Supports lay flat on the support block and I can push the next supports below the line by slightly raising and arbitrarily align.
Then I also modified the gluing technique, whereby I carefully dab the normal Revell plastic glue onto the sickle holders with a acupuncture needle, then push the support under the raised ring line and then lower it. This allows for even smaller position corrections until the support sits in the right place. After that, the ring line is still weighted down, so that it can be fixed firmly on the spot.
Then I can then take the mini vice with clamped ring line in the hand and stabilize the sickle holders also still from inside and outside with MEK, which should give them the final hold. 
And this technique I have here exercised with the two Supports behind the corner bow, which also worked great.
And in the same way it went on down the straight line.
And now they hang in rank and file and look .
Then came the three flatter supports sitting on the Blast Shield, which I have glued with inserted ring line.
And finally, I have glued the small support under the 16’’ rejuvenation behind the LOX-TSM, which has only one sickle holder.
So I want to let it go for today.
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Excellent scratch work!
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A great update showing this superb build. 
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Thanks Venelin and John,
that’s why the show should go on too.
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Hello everybody,
today I want only present a few pics about the gluing of the six Pipe Supports on the inside of the ring line behind the LOX-TSM, which took place in the same way.
And tomorrow it will go on with the gluing of the first six triangular supports (left) at the outlets of this ring line,
which hopefully will work similarly well.
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