# U.S.S. KONGO - a 1966 AMT Star Trek 18"er rebuild.



## MadCap Romanian (Oct 29, 2005)

Hi everyone!

These are the componients I recieved from my good friend Warp Core Breach over the 2012 Christmas Holidays. I am going to do my best to rebuild this ship using componients from the junk bin. It will be named and numbered using the Franz Joseph Tech Manual ~ U.S.S. KONGO NCC-1710.



















The Primary Hull was "Glue-Bombed" together sometime in the 1960's and was basicly a nightmare of Testor's Glue. Luckily, whoever glued it assembled the saucer in the right configuration.










This is the underside of the saucer. Note the broken area where the neck attached to the saucer.










The original depressions were filled in with red spot putty sometime in the past by someone I never met. You can tell this pressing is from 1966 because the depressions are "Off Center". Later ships are better alligned.










The entire Bridge and B/C decks were different in 1966. Note the side "Pins" on the bridge, the green dome and the hole in the center of the Bridge Floor. This is for a light. Also, the Turbo Elevator Shaft connects to the Bridge, something that wasn't duplicated on the second re-tooling. 

The B/C deck shape is also sloped back more than the newer versions.










A shadowy view of the Bridge. Note that Elevator Shaft.










Back in 1966, they use to give you the extended rings for the Navagational Deflector. This piece was also designed to rotate as an on/off "Switch" for the interior lights. However, since this is a glue bomb, there's no way this thing is going to rotate!










The entire secondary hull. The neck mounting point is still in good shape, however, the Klingon who put the large disruptor shot into the engine mounting point should get an award for accurate shooting!


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## MadCap Romanian (Oct 29, 2005)

The engines. 

The one with the pylon still attached is actually in pretty good shape. Sadly, the mounting location has been sheared off. 

The second engine has had all it's outer details removed, like the pylon and the squares at the back.










All the intercoolers are glued on backwards. I am thinking of replacing these engines with a 1983 kit.

Now...some initial progress : 










The bridge with the green dome removed. It broke on me as I was taking it out.










The three depressions after a bit of sanding. Unfortunatly, I had to sand off the windows and the rings. The rings were already dammaged though.










The saucer after I sanded out all that excess glue and used my own red filler. It actually sanded down pretty well. You wouldn't even know that it was a glue bomb.










A few more areas that needed putty. There were gaps and sink marks from this original mold.

Notice the cross hatching on the Impulse Engines. Another tell tale that this is a 1966 AMT kit.










After sanding out the original red fill, I discovered many sink holes from the putty not being applied enough. So I added in some more of my own.


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## MGagen (Dec 18, 2001)

I'm not sure about all of the parts, but the bottom of the secondary hull is not the original issue. You can see that the slot for the original style stand has been filled it and the pin hole in the bottom deflector bracket is evidence of the later cradle-style stand.

The engines, too, are later vintage. You can tell by the inaccurate decals (from the post-technical manual release where you could "build the entire fleet") as well as the rear engine spheres.

This is by way of saying: Don't worry about it being a rare first issue. Just have at it!

I look forward to seeing what you can make of it.

M.


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## MadCap Romanian (Oct 29, 2005)

Well, like I say...it's a parts box junker. It won't be "Pure" 1966, but more of a hybred between 1966 and 1983, let's say. All i know is that I'm headed for a lot of work.


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## WarpCore Breach (Apr 27, 2005)

Exactly what I would have done, had I actually DONE the work.... 

Oh, and the putty on the lower saucer depressions was done by me. I never got around to mentioning that when you inspected the kit.


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## Captain April (May 1, 2004)

Just to pick some nits, a 1966 vintage kit would have the battery tray and snap connectors in the secondary hull and the extension on the back of the deflector base (the whole thing was, essentially, the on/off switch), plus the surviving decals are from the "build the whole fleet" sheet, so while there's still a lot from the original molding (the nacelle struts appear to be of the tab & loop version), I'd put this one closer to the early 1970's, like '72 or so.

You've got a good kit to play with there.


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## jheilman (Aug 30, 2001)

I'll add that the details of this kit look exactly like the first couple I built in 1974-1975.


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## irishtrek (Sep 17, 2005)

Some one in another thread on here had mentioned that the secondary hull on the '66 kits was a bit longer and the top pieces of this one look to be a tad bit longer than the bottom of the secondary hull.


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## MadCap Romanian (Oct 29, 2005)

Guys : 

This is a "Parts Bin Special". It is a 1966-1974 vintage model~for simplicity's sake, I'm dubbing it a "1966", hoping that you guys would get the meaning behind my words. This is the pressings they had "Back in the day" before they replaced the Aluminum mold with the newly retooled 1975 steel mold version that we all know and love from our childhoods. 

I know the model isn't 100% completely a '66-'74 vintage, but I'm just happy and proud that I was given one by Warp Core Breach and that I have an opportunity to bring justice to "The remains" of a vintage kit. 

This poor model is a victum of "Mix and Match". Yeah...I knew the engines were of a later date. Don't think that I haven't also extensivly researched the older kits. Being 100% accurate is, unfortunatly, not my main concern here. 

What I want to do, through the miracle of my 30 years of model building skills and experiance, is turn something that "Mom" would have thrown out 40 years ago into something of beauty...to get another 18"er out of the junk heap and back onto the shelf. 

So with that in mind, here's some updated progress pictures. Please try to enjoy them for what they are and don't worry so much about my "Misguided" terminology and kit history.










Had to add some more red putty on this gouge under the saucer. The tear was causing the top rear of the neck to "Fall in".










A picture of the front of the rings. Note the holes and the long injector "Rods" inside the houseing. These have to go!










This is after some sanding and file work. The holes still exist, but the "rods" are gone.










Some red fill to plug the holes.










Someone tried to saw appart the rings. Good thing they never finished! I had to file off the two bumps on the outer housing where the array touched the secondary hull body.










The front navagational deflector array attached to the secondary hull.


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## MadCap Romanian (Oct 29, 2005)

The shuttle bay doors. There was a lot of file work involved here to get the shuttle bay "Chin" into the right shape.










The top of the secondary hull. These holes will be a pain!










The "plugged hole" from the original owner. The "Filler" is cracking and won't offer much support.


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## MadCap Romanian (Oct 29, 2005)

Two more pictures before I call it a night...










A bit of red filler to blend in all the connection points on the secondary hull and the navagational deflector housing. This is the first sanding stage of the putty here, so it's bound to look rough.










And a little bit of red filler on top to hide the saw marks and cut line.:wave:


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## Prowler901 (Jun 27, 2005)

Great work Madcap. She'll certainly proudly sail on your display shelves as she was meant to. :thumbsup:


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## irishtrek (Sep 17, 2005)

Any ideas as to how you plan to deal with the holes on the top of the secondary hull??
Or are you wanting help from the rest of us or are you just showing this pile of mess build???:wave:


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## WarpCore Breach (Apr 27, 2005)

I think he's showing us what a mess the model is. 

MY plan for the model (before I gave it up to MCR) was to chop off the wrecked pylon attachment section and sacrifice a later edition model to graft in a new pylon attachment section and use the donor kit's engines.

The donor kit would get one of the engines from the wrecked kit and become a single-engined model since there would be a perfectly good saucer and dorsal piece left over.

Well, that WAS my plan. Not anymore.


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## Captain April (May 1, 2004)

Captain April said:


> Just to pick some nits, a 1966 vintage kit would have the battery tray and snap connectors in the secondary hull and the extension on the back of the deflector base (the whole thing was, essentially, the on/off switch), plus the surviving decals are from the "build the whole fleet" sheet, so while there's still a lot from the original molding (the nacelle struts appear to be of the tab & loop version), I'd put this one closer to the early 1970's, like '72 or so.
> 
> You've got a good kit to play with there.



Scratch what I said about the engines. Everything there is from the newer molds. Reattaching those will be adventure by themselves, even without all the damage.


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## MadCap Romanian (Oct 29, 2005)

I think I might try gluing a styrene backing plate behind the hole to blank it off and then add some styrene into the gaps. I'll then do some "Body work" and redrill a new hole into the space. 

From there, I think I will try and use my old Jig in a new way...put the fresh, new 1983 engines into the holes, flip the model upside-down into the jig, and build new support boxes using styrene from there.


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## publiusr (Jul 27, 2006)

The AMT models, though not of the 1/350 accuracy--will always have a special place in my heart. My Dad put a nice early version together for me, that a cousin of mine broke all to pieces. I wish I had not have taken it to my grandmother's house that day.


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## Captain April (May 1, 2004)

Shaw might be of some help on this one. He completely changed the attach points for one he built recently.

Personally, I'd recommend some new attachment rigging of some sort, using some pieces of an old wire coat hanger. Plenty of strength, and some adjustability.


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## irishtrek (Sep 17, 2005)

MadCap Romanian said:


> I think I might try gluing a styrene backing plate behind the hole to blank it off and then add some styrene into the gaps. I'll then do some "Body work" and redrill a new hole into the space.
> 
> From there, I think I will try and use my old Jig in a new way...put the fresh, new 1983 engines into the holes, flip the model upside-down into the jig, and build new support boxes using styrene from there.


I would recommend first do the one that has no left over pylon base in it and begin by filing the inner rim of the hole, then attach some narrow strip styrene from the back side leaving a hole for the pylon tabs to slip into, which can be reinforced if need be, then do the same with the other half of the hull top and then redo the base of the pylon tabs. Another option for you.:wave:


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## kdaracal (Jan 24, 2009)

Nice work, MadCap. This is a real labor of love. Can't wait to see more. Those little details (ribbed impulse, inaccurate decals) bring back old memories. That terrible green plastic with the light bulbs. Good lord!


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## MadCap Romanian (Oct 29, 2005)

Thanx guys i was actually hoping to keep the green domes, but they cracked to pieces when I tried removing them.


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## Captain April (May 1, 2004)

Yeah, the closeest way to a sure way of getting those off is from the backside, which means opening up the hull.

Minor problem in this case, since it's a mix-and-match kit anyway, and the only difference with the later domes is the milky white color instead of clear green. Just punch out the peg holes and you're off and running.


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## MadCap Romanian (Oct 29, 2005)

Ohhh...Captain April...if you had seen just how glue-bombed that saucer was put together, you would really see that there's no way that hull would have popped appart!

Foggy Domes are in the future of this model!:wave:


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## MadCap Romanian (Oct 29, 2005)

I decided to "Bevel" the edges of the holes for putting filler into. This is an old Auto body Collision Repair trick to make sure that when I do the filler work, that there isn't a hard transition line between the filler and the part.










Added some thin plastic card stock behind the hole. This would be a back-stop for the filler.










The back side of the secondary hull. I had to pop out the "Plug" that was made from a broken warp engine pylon and then use my 1/2 round file to restore the original contours.

The white styrene sheet will be cut to shape and glued over the hole from the back side. 










The hole after some beveling.










Added some styrene "reinforcement" strips to the bottom secondary hull pieces. This will add in some support to the top portions.









The top two portions glued together. Note the filler piece in the holes.


















The inside underneath view. I added in the two styrene panels to cover the holes and put a styrene strip along the seam line for strength.


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## RSN (Jul 29, 2008)

This is giving me some good tips for my second issue kit with the amber engine domes, thanks!!


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## MadCap Romanian (Oct 29, 2005)

The top pieces sitting on the bottom. Not going to glue these until I cut the holes in it.


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## irishtrek (Sep 17, 2005)

Looking good so far. Are going to redo the pylon mounting tabs???


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## Captain April (May 1, 2004)

Popsicle sticks could prove useful in this instance...


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## MadCap Romanian (Oct 29, 2005)

@ Irishtrek - no, they will be the later 1983-current style engines. Therefore I will have to build a "Box" on the inside of the Secondary Hull Top to add support.

@Captain April - That's a really awesome idea, but I preferr plastic to plastic contact.


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## MadCap Romanian (Oct 29, 2005)

Thought I'd bump this up as there are now a few 1966 Enterprise builds on the forum. 

I just wonder how you guys would tackle the warp engine pylon holes on this kit.


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## RSN (Jul 29, 2008)

MadCap Romanian said:


> Thought I'd bump this up as there are now a few 1966 Enterprise builds on the forum.
> 
> I just wonder how you guys would tackle the warp engine pylon holes on this kit.


That is a tough one. On mine, there is more internal structure, for the batteries, so I think mine will be pretty secure.

This may be hard to describe, but after you cut new mounting holes, you might try sliding the engine strut in and glue two pieces of plastic square beams on either side of the tab once it is in position. After you get the angle right, remove the engine and let the blocks dry and set up. Then you will have a large interior gluing surface, much like the later versions of the kit and the tab will be held in place securely.

Hope that made sense?!


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## NTRPRZ (Feb 23, 1999)

I'd definitely add some two-part epoxy putty in there once you get the pylons situated. My Enterprise was finished in 1984 and the engines are rock-solid.


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## irishtrek (Sep 17, 2005)

You could check out evergreen scale models web site and see if the got some recangular tubing that would work. www.evergreenscalemodels.com


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## RSN (Jul 29, 2008)

irishtrek said:


> You could check out evergreen scale models web site and see if the got some recangular tubing that would work. www.evergreenscalemodels.com


Thanks irishtrek, that is exactly what I was trying to describe.


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## irishtrek (Sep 17, 2005)

Yer welcome there RSN!!!


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## StarshipClass (Aug 13, 2003)

NTRPRZ said:


> I'd definitely add some two-part epoxy putty in there once you get the pylons situated. My Enterprise was finished in 1984 and the engines are rock-solid.


Agreed! No better way to do it, IMHO.


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