1/100 TOS Enterprise Mega Build

[thokamous]

wow just wow

[Neptune]

Fascinating!

[Ekuth]

Thanks for the link, Vermin King. Couldn't find any shuttle though?

Actually, I missed the posts on the mini-fleet ships previous in the thread, but on re-reading last night found the link for Rawen's work. The shuttle from the pack, reduced about 25% is a good fit... however, after building an appropriately sized shuttle, I noticed that the chairs are far too big to be in scale, so...

Chairs need to be downsized, and the kitchen area redone.

Kitchen area? Ooooooh, that's right. That's in tonight's posting. Forgot.

So, without further delay:

[Ekuth]

Deck 23: Cargo/Storage

While I've posted shots of this area before, I haven't shown the finished product. So, shall we?

Cargo/Cargo Transporter Machinery, Aft Starboard View:
More greebling here to make things "pop". You can also notice (and will thorughout the deck) the colored shading technique I'm using. The TOS color palate is... well... rather unique, shall we say? Thus, like with the Galactica build, I am altering things to suit my own aesthetic tastes rather than adhering to time consuming accuracy. Versimilatude builds much quicker...



Cargo Storage/Transporter/Turbolift, Mid Starboard View:
You can see I've cleaned up the trouble spots in this area quite neatly. I'm pleased with the results. The turbolift portions of each deck are being kept open for later wiring/lighting installation.



Cargo Storage/Ladder Access, Mid Starboard View:
More detail and shading work. I wanted to give depth and texture without having to resort to ridiculous levels of greebling; one of the things I want to carry over while building this model is the 'feel' of the blueprints themselves- which are real works of art.



Close Up- Cargo Transporter Pad, Console and Chair:
Hey, I figured I'd give the poor Cargo Transporter Chief somewhere to rest his dogs. I mean geez, you'd think they'd give the poor guy an anti-fatigue mat or something...



Same as above, wide angle:



So that's Deck 23, Cargo and Storage in all it's glory. Pity the cadet that gets stuck down here in the bowels of the ship... alone with the Rigellian Bilge Rats...

Gah! I just noticed I forgot to do the ladders! *makes mental to-do note*

Just when you think you're done with a section...

Alright, moving on upwards.

[Ekuth]

Deck 22: Fabrication (In Progress)

I thought I'd take a few "in progress" shots to show you how much things can change throughout building even a single deck. Blame my nit-picky nature, I guess.

Foredeck, Mid Center View:
From left to right, top to bottom: Emergency Transport Room 1, Waste Reclamation Machinery (mid top), Kitchen Area (mid bottom), Emergency Transport Room 2.



Emergency Transport Room 1, Port Side:
Basic roughing of details at this point. Transport pads are paper punch circles! Yes, the pad area *is* actually red. I've got screenshots to prove it.



Emergency Transport Room 2, Starboard Side:
Here you can see the actual surface of the tranporter console; hand drawn pixel by pixel in Paint. These actually have a hood, but in the interests of my sanity, I made it part of the design.



Waste Reclamation Machinery:
Maybe that's why this area is bordered by a double turbolift and two emergency transporter rooms... Note this is just the white foam board and details hand-drawn with a fine tip sharpie. I gave it a few greebles for more depth, but again wanted more of a suggestion of massive machinery than to actually model it all out. If I don't, I'll never finish.



Again, this was all "in progress" work. Now on to the (more) finished version:

[Ekuth]

Deck 22: Fabrication

Finally, things start to get more interesting. Getting the curve on the transport pad areas was a PITA, let me tell you... but, on with the pics:

Cargo Storage/Metallic and Non-Metallic Fabrication, Aft Starboard View:
They must carry a crapload of cargo, you know? Man alive. Inside our area in the back there is the Metallic and Non-Mettalic Fabrication machinery. The colors came out... slightly... more 'cartoonish' than I wanted, but not enough to change... yet. In the middle right of the pic you can see the turbolift and two heads already shown in a previous post. So there you have it, if you need a bathroom on the lower decks, you gotta make your way to Deck 22, aft. Appropriate, that.



Cargo Storage (along sides)/Organic and Non-Organic Fabrication, Mid Starboard View:
The more I think about exactly how you would fabricate organic and non-organic materials, the less I want to know about how this area works. Sounds like Apeture Labs stuff to me... Again, I'm taking liberties with the greebling in this area, but as long as it looks "trekish" and vauge in function I'm happy.



Emergency Transport Rooms One and Two/Kitchen/Turbolifts/Waste Reclamation Machinery, Fore Starboard View:
You can see there's been some changes in detailing here since the "in progress" post above.



Closer view of above:
Better angle so you can see the detail/greebling. Not satisfied with the look of the transporter pads, I had to draw- by hand- with a sharpie- the circles on the pads. My eyes still hurt.



Close view of above, flip side view:
You can see here that I have to really beef up the inside of the turbolift walls- because they're one of the main things that will support the levels above. They may also have to take a steel rod once I reach the saucer section... we'll see.



Emergency Transporter Room One, Port Side:
Another shot of the console and pad area. Again, all those damn tiny circles... I hate myself. Some people cut themselves, some build giant starships... some people cut themselves while building giant starships.

No, I'm fine!

Really...

Why do you still look worried?



Emergency Transporter Room Two, Starboard Side/Waste Reclamation Machinery:
More of above. You can see I've kept the colors of the reclamation machinery fairly simple and utilitarian.



"Hobby" Kitchen and Dining Room:
One of the interesting things about the blueprints is the little booklet it comes with describing the purpose and useage of the various areas. This one is intended for those crew members who prefer to cook their own meals rather than replicate them (or trust the Chef). While the blueprints call for TWO tables on the right... at this scale it ain't gonna happen.



Closer view of the Organic/In-Organic Fabrication area:
Again, trying to maintain a functional, 'trekish', spartan look.



Well, faithful thread watchers, that catches you up to date for this go-round.

I shall return anon with another installment of insanity for your vicarious pleasure.

[thokamous]

wow you sir are an inspiration... you have truely taken this to the next level

[legal01]

Two questions...... how many decks are there altogether and second how do I get my hands on a copy of the blue prints?

Fantastic work so far!

[Rhaven Blaack]

This is turning into an ABSOLUTELY MONUMENTAL build.
You are doing a PHENAMIANL job on this project, my friend.
As I am following this thread, I am remembering all of the fun times I had watching Star Trek (TOS) with my mother.

Keep up the GREAT WORK!!!

[Ekuth]

Originally Posted by legal01

Two questions...... how many decks are there altogether and second how do I get my hands on a copy of the blue prints?

Fantastic work so far!

Thank you for the compliments, as to the questions:

24 decks (unless you count the 'bilge' area, which is not shown on the blueprints) in total. I'm working from the bottom up.

Getting a copy of the blue prints is going to be tougher... they were produced by the FASA gaming company in 1983 and are out of print. Ebay would be your best bet, but they are available online (NOT AT THE PROPER SIZE) at:

Star Trek LCARS Blueprint Database - Star Trek Blueprints: Enterprise 15mm FASA Deck Plans

As I said, the link shows the blueprints, but even *if* you downloaded the pics, you'd have to have an original set to compare size against and then they'd have to be printed commercially (most likely).

I was fortunate enough to find these and the D7 battlecruiser in 1985 at a flea market.

A quick search on Ebay only turned up one listing, opening bid is $75.00. I have never, in all my travels, seen another set for sale. Ironically, I still have the roleplaying game the blueprints were intended for... somewhere...