Backdated Constellation Class...

Eric Ardros

Prop Mountie
Uh, what happened to my thread/post? All I see are your guys replies, I don't see the original text and links I posted here? Guess I'll have to write it all again.
 

Eric Ardros

Prop Mountie
Okay, we're going to try this a second time, since my first attempt to post this doesn't seem to have worked.

So, here again is a project I originally started on back in April of 2006, which was meant to be built in conjunction with a friend's similar build. That ended up falling through, so it kind of got forgotten for a while and sat collecting dust for six years.

FYI, the first seven pics linked to show it as it was for more than half a decade.

The project picked up new momentum in May of 2012, as I decided to build the first one as a gift for a friend's birthday that was coming up in the following month. Given the limited spare time I had to work on it, I wasn't able to finish it for his birthday, so it instead became a joint Birthday/Christmas gift last year.

I cannibalized two 1/1000 Polar Lights TOS Enterprise kits for the saucer top and bottom, deflector array and four warp nacelles. Everything else was scratch-built by me out of 1/16" sheet styrene, cut to shape from 1:1 scale technical drawings I made myself.

Anyway, here is a (long) series of pics showing my progress throughout the entire project. Enjoy:

+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 01
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 02

The first two pics show the group work I began on this scratch-build, whereas the next five pics show each sub-assembly separately:

+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 03
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 04
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 05
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 06
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 07

+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 08
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 09
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 10
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 11

+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 12
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 13

+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 14

+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 15
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 16
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 17
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 18
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 19
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 20

+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 21
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 22

+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 23

+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 24
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 25
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 26
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 27
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 28
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 29

+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 30
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 31
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 32
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 33
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 34

+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 35
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 36
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 37
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- pic 38
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 39

I decided to do with the Second Pilot decals for the top of the saucer, as I found without the extra detail the top of the model looked very bland with all that grey and nothing to break it up. Now it's far more eye-catching imho, and I knew my friend would like it all the more because of the added detail.

As for the windows on the side of the new primary hull, that was pretty much an afterthought as all throughout the build process it hadn't dawned on me that I should have some windows there, lol.

The challenge I faced with that was, whereas the decals on both the top and bottom of the saucer were pre-determined according to the placement instructions included with the stock kit, I had no such guideline for the window layout on the sides of the hull, which I simply had to wing it and hope they'd come out looking okay.

I pretty much took all of the different window decals available on the sheet, both production and pilot, and then figured out what configuration would look best. I think I succeeded fairly well in that respect :)

+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 40
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 41
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 42
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 43
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 44
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 45
+ TOS-era Constellation Class Starship -- Pic 46

For the base, I repurposed the stock one that came with the kit, and added a 1/4" thick layer of Sintra (PVC) board to the bottom so that it could properly support the model's size, shape and weight.

I then Xacto knifed and sanded the PVC to shape, puttied and smoothed over the seam between the original base and PVC, primered it and coloured it to match the TOS-era command insignia. Looks pretty good, imho.

When I finally presented him with this last Christmas, he was floored at what I'd done up for him, and he got a real kick out of seeing that I'd christened the ship with his last name and year of birth as its registry number, lol. The whole time we were hanging out, he kept on talking about it, so I think I did good with that gift of choice :D

I pray to gawd I don't have to post this whole thing a third time :p lol
 

spaceagent-9

Right Hand Man and Confidant
Moderator
excellent! such hard work and a great payoff! i also give gifts of the person's name and birth year, really great to see this. thanks!
 

Rhaven Blaack

!!!THE MAN BEHIND THE CURTAIN!!!
Staff member
Administrator
Moderator
That was a GREAT gift idea! The fact that you kitbashed and scratch built it is AMAZING!
The build thread was quite informative.
The final product looks FANTASTIC!
 

Eric Ardros

Prop Mountie
I see them, Heck of a nice photo essay.

[...]

zathros:)
excellent! such hard work and a great payoff! i also give gifts of the person's name and birth year, really great to see this. thanks!
That was a GREAT gift idea! The fact that you kitbashed and scratch built it is AMAZING!
The build thread was quite informative.
The final product looks FANTASTIC!

Thanks, guys! It took a lot of effort (I'd been out of straight-up model building for about 15 years before I did this), but it was also a lot of fun and it made for a very unique gift for my friend.

I opted to go with a non-canon TOS design as I'd seen others in the hobby making their own TOS-style starships based on later designs as seen in ST:II-VI.

I've seen a couple TOS builds of the Miranda Class (aka U.S.S. Reliant) in 1/1000, for example, and so thought it would be kewl to try my hand at a similarly inspired build.

I was first introduced to TNG, as that's what I grew up watching, and ever since I first saw Picard's first command, the U.S.S. Stargazer (a Constellation Class starship), I liked the design.

So, when I finally decided to build a TOS-style starship, that was the first one that came to mind for me. Now I just have to build myself one in 1/1000 scale, lol.

Was even thinking of molding/casting it to make kits of it, as I think there would be at least a few other folks who be interested in it.

I've also been working on technical drawings to do a build in 1/350 scale, using parts from two Polar Lights 1/350 TOS Enterprise kits (still have to get them).

I think it would be kewl to have both the 1/1000 and 1/350 builds sitting side by side in my prop room :) Thing is, I don't know where I'd put them (only have so much room to work with), lol.
 
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