# USS Enterprise NCC-1701-E from Star Trek Nemesis-FINISHED PICS on PAGE 11



## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

So while on vacation this past week I finally decided it was time to build the E.
I've had this model kit for a few decades I think.
Bought it at a Walgreens when they still carried plastic models; that, in itself, tells you how old this kit is.

Anyway, this is the 1/1400 scale Star Trek _Insurrection_ kit but I will be building it as the _Nemesis_ version...

Box Art:

USS Enterprise E - AMT/Ertl Kit by Steve J, on Flickr

Kit Decals. Ship registry, pennants, lifeboats, etc:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Kit Decals by Steve J, on Flickr

I also bought two aftermarket sets of decals some years ago from STModeler and Acreation Models.
First I bought STModeler's then saw Acreation had come out with a set of aztec decals so I bought them too.

First up STModeler:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Decals STModeler by Steve J, on Flickr


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Decals STModeler by Steve J, on Flickr



USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Decals STModeler by Steve J, on Flickr


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Decal Placement Guide by Steve J, on Flickr


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Then we have Acreation...

Instruction guide:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Decals Acreation by Steve J, on Flickr

Decals for the warp nacelles, impulse engine vents, and deflector dish. 
And, of course, lots of escape pods:
USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Decals Acreation by Steve J, on Flickr

Closeup of deflector dish decal: 

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Decals Acreation by Steve J, on Flickr

Closeup of impulse engine vents:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Decals Acreation by Steve J, on Flickr

You get 4 pages of aztecs:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Acreation Aztec Decals by Steve J, on Flickr

Upper saucer:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Acreation Decals Page 1 by Steve J, on Flickr

Lower Saucer:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Acreation Decals Page 2 by Steve J, on Flickr

Secondary hull and struts:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Acreation Decals Page 3 by Steve J, on Flickr

Warp nacelles:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Acreation Decals Page 4 by Steve J, on Flickr


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Decal placement guide:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Acreation Decals Placement Guide by Steve J, on Flickr

Not shown is the Paragrafix brass photo-etch I bought mainly for the 
deflector dish etch but we'll get around to that later on...

So... now to get started on plastic. First I took the parts out of the box. All there and accounted for:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Saucer Sections by Steve J, on Flickr


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-More Parts by Steve J, on Flickr

Just a wee bit of flash:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Flash by Steve J, on Flickr

Like I did with my USS Saratoga, this ship will get the Raytheon Effect treatment...

Using a soft lead pencil I trace the shape of the upper saucer floodlight on the upper saucer exterior hull. 
I'll cut a section of masking tape to the same shape and apply to the inside of the hull for 
the Raytheon Effect:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Floodlight in Pencil by Steve J, on Flickr

I used this CGI image off _Modelermagic.com_ to get the shape of the upper saucer spotlight right:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-CGI by Steve J, on Flickr

Did the same for the lower saucer:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Lower Floodlight in Pencil by Steve J, on Flickr

CGI image:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-CGI by Steve J, on Flickr

Next I applied Tamiya tape for the lower saucer floodlight. This is on the inside of the model:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Raytheon Effect Masking by Steve J, on Flickr

Same for the upper saucer floodlight. Again, this is on the inside of the model:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Raytheon Effect Masking by Steve J, on Flickr


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Holding the upper saucer hull up to the light so it shines thru the plastic allows me to 
check the position of the masking tape on the inside:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Light Test by Steve J, on Flickr

Same for the lower saucer hull:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Light Test by Steve J, on Flickr

With RE masking done I primed the inner saucer halves with Duplicolor grey automotive primer:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Interior Priming by Steve J, on Flickr

Once dry I'll spray with black before a coat of white for even light reflectance.

So that's all for the moment. 
Next time I'll show how I fixed the inaccuracies of the deflector trench using my handy battery 
powered hobby dremel, some styrene sheet and square rod, and AVES Apoxy sculpt. 

Hope everyone out there is safe and sound during this scary time. 
Thankfully, model building is a relatively solitary hobby so I'm able to cope with isolation better than most.


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## aussiemuscle308 (Dec 2, 2014)

looks awesome so far


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## jgoldsack (Apr 26, 2004)

Are those STModeler decals still available? It looks like you got a good copy of the ACreation decals... the last 2 sets I bought were more red than anything, which made them unuseable.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

WOW, Steve!
You really have your work "cut out" for you!
Looking great so far. What's your plan for the nacelles?
-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

JGG1701 said:


> What's your plan for the nacelles?
> -Jim G.G.


Hmmmmmm... Light block first, then a coat of flat white. 
For the Bussards... going to try laying some clear red styrene sheet underneath the clear kit parts. Might look pretty cool. As far as lighting goes... probably use some red LED’s ... think I have some in 2mm OD laying around. Three per Bussard or six per nacelle. 
For the blue nacelles... going to experiment with blue LED strip diffused thru milk jug plastic. 
I also have those Acreation decals which might look great backlit by the blue LED‘s. Might also try cotton balls for diffusion, I’ve heard others say that works too. Now that I have my homemade LED tester sorted out I can start experimenting. This is one of the fun parts.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Hey Steve,
Not telling you to be a copycat but maybe this will inspire you?






Go Extraordinary, Bring your Replicas to Life with Lights and Sound from Starling Technologies.


We provide many flavors of linux, we provide Pc repair, build custom pc's and offer custom led flasher boards, offer many antiques, stamps and more.




www.starling-tech.com




-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Never heard of plasma packs but those Bussards do look great. The glow rods are interesting too. Seems to me you could make them yourself using blue LED’s and an acrylic rod sanded and/or sprayed with flat lacquer to give an even glow. Yes, Starling‘s stuff is inspirational alright. Still I do enjoy coming up with my own effects.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Trekkriffic said:


> Still I do enjoy coming up with my own effects.


I know you do Steve. That's the reason why I follow you on your builds👍.
- Jim G.G.


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## davecfprez (Dec 21, 2005)

Very nice! My FAVORITE !701!
Years ago I purchased a VERY expensive cast model of the E "E" and sent it off to a well known model maker (had his own model making shop) for a professional build. 
"Life" got in the way and we lost touch, and a few years back when I tried to reach out to inquire about the E I never heard back and am very sorry I've lost that kit, and can't ever get it built. 
I will enjoy watching your build! 

Dave


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## Milton Fox Racing (May 27, 2014)

Sorry for your loss of the kit. Are they available on the 2ndary market still (or even more expensive now?) How about as a built kit?

👂


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Update... 

Finished the trench off with some brushed on Mister Surfacer:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Backside of Deflector Trench by Steve J, on Flickr


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Finished Deflector Trench by Steve J, on Flickr

Using a pinvise I drilled and filed out these slots in the ventral saucer indent. This represents the auxiliary deflector array according to an LCARS schematic I found online:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Aux Deflector Ports by Steve J, on Flickr

You always need to go at these ports from outside and in with this relatively thick plastic. So cleanup is a big thing when I drill my ports:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Aux Deflector Ports from Inside by Steve J, on Flickr

I gave the aux deflector array a few coats of thick primer to smooth over any imperfections during drilling and filing:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Mister Surfacer by Steve J, on Flickr

Not bad. I'll do a little more work to make the slots more uniform before final hull coats:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Aux Deflector Array Light Test by Steve J, on Flickr

Removed Tamiya tape and sanded clean the upper saucer floodlight shape for the Raytheon Effect:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Demasking Upper Saucer REffect by Steve J, on Flickr

Once you put a bright cool white LED at the root of the flood inside it will shine thru for a very nice effect from outside I think:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Floodlight Effect After Demasking by Steve J, on Flickr

Removed mask from inside lower saucer:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Demasking Lower Saucer REffect by Steve J, on Flickr

Later on I realized I needed to include the small triangular areas even though they catch less light than the areas I had already made. You can see where they are missing in this image. Pie slices. So I went back and sanded the areas inside the hull to close the arc of illumination from the flood:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Floodlight Effect After Demasking by Steve J, on Flickr

After sanding off the trench shoulder triangles to complete the arc of illumination (the trench on the outside is a hump on the inside) I like the effect much better than before:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Lower Saucer REffect Test by Steve J, on Flickr

More to come with fun with aluminum tubing and power jacks/plugs. 
Also more light blocking and white coats! 

Stay tuned my fellow inmates!


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## SJF (Dec 3, 1999)

Looking good.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Outstanding!
-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

New update...

I'll use an aluminum tube for the display base with a plastic tubing insert (had to modify a larger diameter plastic tube hence the slice and section removed). 
It will slide into the aluminum tube almost flush leaving a tiny air gap where the back end of the Size K DC power plug slides down into it. 
The styrene tube is glued in with CA to help insulate the metal aluminum tube from the soldered positive and negative leads of the plug. 
It's also better to glue the metal power plug into a plastic sleeve to avoid metal to metal contact: 


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Display Rod Parts by Steve J, on Flickr

Now that I know it will fit l will shove it down further into the aluminum display tube before gluing with Plastic Surgery glue:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Insulating Sleeve Fitting by Steve J, on Flickr

Just a test fit with the Size K power plug. 
Once the white sleeve is slipped inside and glued into the tube it will make for a very sturdy connection point for the base:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Power Plug by Steve J, on Flickr

Next I did a little work on the DC power jack inside the secondary hull...

I sliced off the end of the kit provided lower hull stand tube mount to accommodate a size K power jack. 


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Internal Mount for Power Jack by Steve J, on Flickr

Test fit slipping the power plug up from underneath into the power jack. 
I had to glue on a thin styrene washer to shim it for a snugger fit:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Test Fit with Power Jack by Steve J, on Flickr

That went pretty well. Next I went back and primed the secondary hull halves:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Secondary Hull Internal Priming by Steve J, on Flickr

I use these for the light blocking and reflectance layers on the inner surface of the model:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Primers and Paint by Steve J, on Flickr

Krylon flat white primer layed on directly over the Krylon satin black (black layer not shown here). 
Only took a couple of coats:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Saucer Halves Sprayed White Inside by Steve J, on Flickr

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Krylon Flat White Primer by Steve J, on Flickr


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

As I started masking the nacelle halves for priming I did a test fit and realized I would need to remove the plastic on top of the grey nacelle halves for lighting.
Dumb ol' me thought the top of the nacelles were open for lighting already. Doh!
So I cut off the clear nacelle cover part from the clear sprue using a PE razor saw after which I sanded off any remaining sprue stub.
I learned a long time ago not to use sprue cutters on brittle clear plastic parts.
Now I can fit the clear cover in place on the top of nacelle and trace where the outer rim of the clear part is onto the gray plastic using a mechanical pencil. 
Then I'll know where to cut:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Clear Parts Prep by Steve J, on Flickr

The nacelle "cover" or whatever you call it that glows blue is fit to the nacelle.
A nice fit:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Test Fit Clear Part by Steve J, on Flickr

A soft art pencil followed by a fine tipped mechanical pencil make a tracing around the edge of the clear cover onto the grey nacelle plastic.
Now I know to keep my material removal about 1/32" inside the mark leaving enough for the clear part to glue to:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Pencil Tracing by Steve J, on Flickr

So next update I will be showing how the nacelles turned out after removing the pencil defined areas using either a hobby saw or most probably my dremel using a grinder bit.

As always, stay safe and happy modeling!


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## edge10 (Oct 19, 2013)

Raytheon effect and Krylon paints, FTW.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

New update... 

Took about 10 minutes to put things back where they belonged on what had become a cluttered workbench, 
an old drafting table. 
Then I got out my Dremel with the grinder. It would soon be messy again, 
covered by small bits of styrene popcorn peeling off the plastic from the hot grinder bit:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Bench Decluttering by Steve J, on Flickr

The inner, darker pencil line is as far as I want to go. Just in case the line were to smudge I also went around and poked little holes using a pointy dental tool along the pencil line. 
I initially thought to drill a hundred holes and cut the piece out with a saw but opted instead to hog out the tops of the nacelles using the grinder:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Grinder Guide by Steve J, on Flickr

The line I want to end up with. I'll grind down close to it but leave enough to easily file and sand to the final contour:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- The Grinder by Steve J, on Flickr

Plastic Popcorn. Not bad grinding IIDSSM. By the fourth nacelle half I could get one ground down close in under 15 minutes:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Plastic Popcorn by Steve J, on Flickr

The sanding stick made quick work of the somewhat rougher surface left behind by the grinder. An exacto knife edge run along the cutout also helped to smoothen it further:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Sanding Stick by Steve J, on Flickr

These sticks are spring loaded to accommodate different grit sanding belts. If your belt gets worn out or gunked up just squeeze the stick and rotate the belt to a fresh patch. Unsqueeze and continue sanding:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- The Detail Sander by Steve J, on Flickr

Looking at the inside of the clear part against the now open nacelle top it appears I got it right. 
No gaps from removing too much plastic. Should glue together well:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Nacelle Cover Test Fit Inside by Steve J, on Flickr

A nice even edge all around. The pencil does not steer you wrong:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Nacelle Cover Test Fit Outside by Steve J, on Flickr

I am very pleased with how the grinding and sanding went. Only took an hour. I have a nice smooth edge to glue the clear covers to. Plenty of room now for LED lighting:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Mating Halves Open by Steve J, on Flickr

This should look great when lit. I have about three or four different ways I might light the engines. I have an Acreation deal for the blue lighting effect I'm seriously considering laying on the clear part. I think it would look great. Another option is to use the Paragrafix photo-etch warp grills. I remember them being a pain in the ass to attach on my USS Saratoga. The PE would require I sand off the molded lines from the clear kit part too. Ugh!:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Final Test Fit Clear cover by Steve J, on Flickr

More to come with exciting stuff like... 



Sorting out the nacelle strut wiring channels!

Stay tuned and stay safe!


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Great work Steve!
Plenty of patience that you have there.
-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Finished drilling and carving for the nacelle strut wiring...

I drilled these holes from the inside for wires to pass thru up into the nacelle struts:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Holes for Nacelle Strut Wires by Steve J, on Flickr

The holes match up to channels I carved out of the lower nacelle strut half:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Holes Outside by Steve J, on Flickr

Using a triangle, a mechanical pencil, a scriber, and my battery powered hobby dremel with a fine grinder 
bit I dug out channels in the trailing edge of the two lower nacelle strut halves:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Making Wiring Channels by Steve J, on Flickr

I initially had planned to put the channels further to the right in this photo where the tab fits into the hull, 
you can see how far I got before realizing the plastic was too thin because of the recessed vents (?) 
present on the other side of the part. 
The plastic was thicker along the training edge and I didn't have to deal with carving and possibly weakening the tab:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Wiring Slots by Steve J, on Flickr

Back to the nacelles...

Various stages of priming and light blocking the interior nacelle halves and the lower half of each nacelle strut:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Various Stages by Steve J, on Flickr

Krylon Satin Black is sprayed inside each nacelle half. 
Hopefully it doesn't get under the masking tape:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Nacelle Light Blocking by Steve J, on Flickr

So that brings us up to date on this build. Looking forward to getting my flasher/strobe board from Tenacontrols. Hopefully I'll get it later this week or early next. 
In the meantime I can work on the rest of the lights. 

Stay safe and try to restrict any "treks" outside.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Sorry for the long delay between posts but I've been spending a lot of time working on the nacelle lighting. I finally got them sorted out though and glued together. Unfortunately, my camera and work laptop aren't communicating. My company has clamped down on any use of the USB port (the one I plug the camera into) for anything other than company approved uses so all of the in-progress photos on my old Canon DSLR are not able to download, possibly until I get a new camera with wi-fi access and/or I get my own laptop.
So I'm relegated to uploading photos taken on my iPad to Flickr! I took this photo this morning though so you guys can see how the lighting effect looks...


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Nacelle Lit by Steve J, on Flickr

Three amber/red LEDs light the bussards which were painted on the inside with Tamiya transparent red acrylic. I used cotton to act as a diffuser around the LEDs. The top of the nacelles are lit by hi-density blue LED strip beneath a strip of translucent milk jug plastic which acts as a diffuser giving the nacelles a nice even glow. I still have to attach the clear kit part on the top of the nacelles but I may want to attach the photo-etch brass grills first.
The camera washes out the colors to some extent; to the naked eye the colors are more intensely blue and orangish red. 
There will be two flashers on the aft end of each nacelle (top and bottom) which will be lit by fiber optic strands fed by a single cool white LED mounted inside. You can see a separate set of wires in the photo, the pair nearest the trailing edge of the pylon. They will flash once I solder the wires to the Tenacontrols flasher board which I will mount in the saucer.

More to come as I start drilling out some, not all, of the windows on the rest of the ship.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Looks great Steve!
Be nice to see a video 👍
-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

JGG1701 said:


> Looks great Steve!
> Be nice to see a video 👍
> -Jim G.G.


Thanks Jim! Once I get the flasher board installed I'll try and post a video so you can see the strobes and running lights in action.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Trekkriffic said:


> Thanks Jim! Once I get the flasher board installed I'll try and post a video so you can see the strobes and running lights in action.


Looking forward to it sir .
-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Did some work on the quantum torpedo port...

A slot was drilled and filed out previously for the quantum torpedo launch port which is just above the Captain’s yacht in the underside of the saucer. The port will glow blue thanks to a transparent blue styrene part leftover from the 1/350 TOS Enterprise light kit. The part was glued in behind the opening with epoxy. It will be lit with a 2mm LED:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Quantum Torpedo Port by Steve J, on Flickr

I glued the K size power jack into the secondary hull with epoxy. Later I’ll pack some AVES Apoxy Sculpt in around it for added strength:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Power Jack Installed by Steve J, on Flickr

The inboard and outboard pylon halves were glued together with Testors tube glue for both pylons:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Pylon Inboard Half Attached by Steve J, on Flickr

After spraying with adhesion promoter followed by Krylon Grey primer I will attach the upper nacelle grill halves using metal foil adhesive which is basically a tacky white glue. This water based glue will not craze clear plastic parts. I had already painted the raised center strip with Krylon white primer over Krylon flat black for light blocking down the middle of the clear covers:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Nacelle Grill PE by Steve J, on Flickr

Took about two hours to finish gluing and cleaning up the brass nacelle grills with isopropyl alcohol on a cotton swab. The metal foil adhesive makes a sticky mess and there’s no way to avoid getting it on the painted side of the grills while you work to separate and space the grills while burnishing them down:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Nacelle Grill PE Installed by Steve J, on Flickr

More to come. Think I’ll work on the impulse engines next.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Finished cleanup this morning and did a light test with the warp nacelle grill covers in place. Not bad IIDSSM. Think I’ll call the nacelle lighting a success:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Nacelle Light Test with Grills by Steve J, on Flickr


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Not to shabby Steve.  
-Jim G.G.


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## Milton Fox Racing (May 27, 2014)

That would make for a nice lookin wall sconce, too.


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## htmagic (Mar 7, 2017)

Trekkriffic,

It's been quite some time but I wandered back to this site. I saw your build and am impressed. I know you did LED lighting for the nacelles, but take a look at this LED neon strip. You can cut it and solder it and I think there is enough in one item for both nacelles and then some. The beauty is, it is already diffused.
Flexible Silicone Neon-Like LED Strip - 1 Meter
I see DigiKey has them in stock.
Good luck and keep us posted with your build!
May the FORCE be with you and have a magical day!

MagicBill


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## alpink (Aug 22, 2010)

I'm impressed with the detail your are creating on this build.
thank you for sharing


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

htmagic said:


> Trekkriffic,
> 
> It's been quite some time but I wandered back to this site. I saw your build and am impressed. I know you did LED lighting for the nacelles, but take a look at this LED neon strip. You can cut it and solder it and I think there is enough in one item for both nacelles and then some. The beauty is, it is already diffused.
> Flexible Silicone Neon-Like LED Strip - 1 Meter
> ...


Thanks Bill. The high-density LED strip I used actually does have a layer of silicone rubber laid atop the LEDs for diffusion. I'm not sure if the neon strip you mention can be cut to the same 6 inch length as the strip, although, I agree, it is an elegant solution for eliminating LED hot spots. 
Steve


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Update...

I had been debating whether or not to open up the window ports or just rely on gloss white paint to give the illusion of lit windows. Then I thought about how cool those low light shots of the E looked with all those rows of lit up window ports so I finally decided to just go ahead and bite the bullet...

Using a pinvise and a fine pointed round file I commenced drilling out the saucer windows. Some of them will not be drilled out so I can paint them black later on. This took me about 6 hours and I am probably about only half finished with the upper saucer:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Drilling Out the Saucer Window Ports by Steve J, on Flickr

The windows show up well when backlit. Still have a few hundred more to drill out:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Saucer Windows by Steve J, on Flickr

After drilling for What seemed like hours on end I took a break to work on the impulse engines and shuttle control room part...

This is one of the two impulse engine vents. I sanded off the raised detail on the clear kit part and glued the PE grills in place with metal foil adhesive per the PE instructions. Then I used the aftermarket decal, putting it on the inside face of the clear part. It will be lit by a red LED:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- impulse Engine Vent by Steve J, on Flickr

I removed a section of the saucer shuttle bay control room face and glued in a rectangular piece of clear styrene. The PE window frame will be glued on over the clear styrene with metal foil adhesive. Then I will use styrene strip to frame around the PE frame as the windows appear to be recessed from what I see in images of the external bay. The windows will be lit by ambient light inside the saucer:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Saucer Shuttle Bay Control Room by Steve J, on Flickr

OK... well... back to drilling windows. Hope to be done with them by July.

Steve


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## Milton Fox Racing (May 27, 2014)

Well beyound my patience and now endurance!  But more power to you they look awesome!


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Awesome Steve 👍
You'll probably have no finger prints left by the time you're done.
-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

JGG1701 said:


> Awesome Steve 👍
> You'll probably have no finger prints left by the time you're done.
> -Jim G.G.


🤣 I think you’re right Jim.


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## htmagic (Mar 7, 2017)

Trekkriffic said:


> Thanks Bill. The high-density LED strip I used actually does have a layer of silicone rubber laid atop the LEDs for diffusion. I'm not sure if the neon strip you mention can be cut to the same 6 inch length as the strip, although, I agree, it is an elegant solution for eliminating LED hot spots.
> Steve


Steve,

You can cut it but they suggest you seal the end that is cut. 
They do have caps but when they get used up, I'd use a dab of clear silicone caulk at the end.
May the FORCE be with you and have a magical day!

MagicBill


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Took a break from drilling out windows on the E to see if I could cast the phaser strips for the nacelle pylons using Silly Putty and Envirotex jewelry resin. 
I found two phaser strips on the aft end of the upper saucer that were the right length for making copies of. Breaking off a small chunk of Silly Putty I pressed it down over the strip on the model and carefully peeled it away. It made a perfect negative in the putty. I made a total of eight molds even though I would only need two strips for each pylon; I figured I could then pick the best four to use in case some didn’t turn out as well:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Casting Phaser Strips by Steve J, on Flickr

The resin dried overnight and I was able to peel it off the Silly Putty with no problems. 
I’d never tried this casting method before and am quite pleased with the results. 
Some flash to clean up first then I'll prime them:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Nacelle Pylon Phaser Strip with Flash by Steve J, on Flickr

Each nacelle pylon has one phaser strip top and bottom along the trailing edge. Only the Nemesis E version has them on the pylons. This saved me a lot of time having to make them from scratch using styrene plastic. It would have been challenging to make them all exactly alike going that route so I’m extremely happy with how well the Envirotex casting method worked:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Resin Cast Phaser Strip Test Fit by Steve J, on Flickr

Now back to drilling out windows. I'm about 3/4 of the way done of the upper saucer.


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## alpink (Aug 22, 2010)

Silly Putty!
who would have guessed.
sometimes I need to make resin stuff in a jiffy and that sounds like a perfectly feasible plan.
thank you for the tip.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

I finally finished drilling out the upper saucer. Good grief there were a lot of windows:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Upper Saucer Windows by Steve J, on Flickr

Moving on...

Making good progress on the lower saucer. A few more to go before moving on to the secondary hull halves:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Lower Saucer Windows by Steve J, on Flickr

I think I’m getting the hang of window drilling at this point:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Lower Saucer Window Light Test by Steve J, on Flickr

I use a pinvise and a micro drill bit (70, 71, or 72 works well) to drill thru the plastic. Thankfully the kit has the window ports molded into the hull or it would be a nightmare to get the openings all straight and uniform in shape. A pointed round file is used for final shaping and debris cleanup. Any windows that don’t quite come up to snuff after shaping are filled in using my syringe and Perfect Plastic Putty, a water-based white filler putty. They will become dark windows at some point:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Window Drilling Tools by Steve J, on Flickr

The saucer shuttle bay control room window piece was glued to the saucer using Testors model cement. I’m thinking now of lighting the windows with a small LED now. The LED would also light a pair of fiber optic strands for external floods underneath and to either side of the control room in front of the shuttle bay doors:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Shuttle Bay Control Room Glued by Steve J, on Flickr 

The brass PE doors were primed and glued to the clear kit part after sanding smooth. Something I also discovered - two tiny holes in the photo-etch piece for feeding .030” fiber optic strands from inside the model for the floodlights that illuminate the doors underneath the control room windows as seen in Nemesis. Just shows that Paul at Paragrafix thinks of everything:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Shuttle Bay Rollup Doors by Steve J, on Flickr

Next up... Drilling secondary hull windows and fiber optics.


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## Milton Fox Racing (May 27, 2014)

Incredible work!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

For those interested in the window drilling process I made a short video describing my technique:


Window Drilling 101 by Steve J, on Flickr


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Your dedication to perfection is amazing. And the silly putty trick was very cool.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Finished the starboard half of the secondary hull. Just need to do the port side and I’ll be done with drilling windows!


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Starboard Secondary Hull Windows by Steve J, on Flickr


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## alpink (Aug 22, 2010)

the time and craftsmanship you are putting into this will make it invaluable when completed.
I think it will be impossible to compute the cost of the hours put in or the detailing involved.
this is certainly a love of hobby quest.


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## Dr. Brad (Oct 5, 1999)

This is quite the build! Can't wait to see the final product!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

alpink said:


> the time and craftsmanship you are putting into this will make it invaluable when completed.
> I think it will be impossible to compute the cost of the hours put in or the detailing involved.
> this is certainly a love of hobby quest.


Thank you for such high praise. As far as attempting to put a dollar value on the hours spent on this build... let’s just say if I were building this for a client they would probably never be able to justify the price to their wife!😄


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Dr. Brad said:


> Can't wait to see the final product!


Neither can I !


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Trekkriffic said:


> Thank you for such high praise. As far as attempting to put a dollar value on the hours spent on this build... let’s just say if I were building this for a client they would probably never be able to justify the price to their wife!😄


Ain't that the truth.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

So yesterday I got ambitious and decided to tackle two things at once - the three docking ports on the aft end of the lowest of the three “bridge” decks and the aft facing dual torpedo launcher located atop the aft end of the same deck...

Using the decal sheet I took some measurements to help determine the length I needed to make the torpedo launcher. It’s going to be smaller than I imagined in my mind which is often the case: 


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Decal Measurements by Steve J, on Flickr

Drawing from the few images available online I made a few sketches. This launcher is unique to the Nemesis version of the ship and the kit does not include it so I’ll use styrene rectangular rod and U-channel to make the main body and the two tiny photorp tubes respectively:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Aft Saucer Dual Photorp Launcher Sketches and Sizing by Steve J, on Flickr

Changing gears after spending over an hour just figuring out the right width of the launcher (yeah, I’m anal that way) I turned my attention to the docking ports. The kit has three barely visible round indents indicating where the ports are located on the hull. Unfortunately, the kit is designed so the hatches would sit flush not extending out from the hull on three short access tubes. So...

I ended up finding a 5/64” diameter wood dowel that fit the photo-etch hatches perfectly. The wood dowel will fit the height of the sides and rear of the lowest bridge deck better than the styrene tubing I had planned to use. The PE hatches will be glued to the wood dowel pieces using 5 minute epoxy:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Photo Etch Docking Port Hatches by Steve J, on Flickr

Because the sides of the bridge deck are slightly slanted and the docking ports need to be vertical I decided to drill holes and insert a short length of the wood dowel into each hole:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Hole Drilling for Wood Dowels by Steve J, on Flickr

After inserting the dowels into the holes I dolloped some epoxy on the inside to glue them in place. Some divots left by the drill bit were filled with Perfect Plastic Putty:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Wood Dowels by Steve J, on Flickr

After a little puttying and sanding I painted the dowels with Mister Surfacer 1000:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Docking Ports Primed by Steve J, on Flickr

Having sorted the docking port tubes I went back to the photorp launcher which, after another hour or so of eye straining work, I brushed with Mister Surfacer and dry fitted above what I abbreviatedly refer to as “the lowest bridge superstructure aft observation deck“. Catchy isn’t it? I feel satisfied that the launcher’s shape and dimensions are very close to what Is shown in the CGI images. Some cleanup will be needed before I spray prime it and apply the finishIng coats to the hull: 


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Test Fit Aft Saucer Photorp Launcher by Steve J, on Flickr

You wouldn’t think this all took about 3 hours would you? It did of course. As I’ve grown older I tend to spend a lot more time measuring and test fitting than I did in my more impatient youth; usually, I don’t mind saying, with much better results. 

Thanks for reading. Think I’ll spend some time on the saucer shuttle bay window frames and doors next. Have to bend some fiber...


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## alpink (Aug 22, 2010)

attention to such minute detail sets this build apart.
this is like the old time (really old time) movie episodes that advised to come back next week!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

After gluing the photo-etch window frames in place over the clear plastic insert I used styrene rectangular rod to frame the windows so they will be recessed. All glued with CA. After the glue cures I’ll add another thinner strip to the bottom piece of the frame before filing and sanding to a more slanted contour. Then some puttying to fill in any gaps:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Shuttle Bay Window Framing by Steve J, on Flickr


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

I’m toying with the idea of adding a floor behind the windows with some basic consoles; maybe even some silhouettes of crewmen standing behind them, like this scene from First Contact:



https://www.ex-astris-scientia.org/articles/sovereign/sovereign-shuttlebay-firstcontact.jpg



Or this scene from Insurrection:



https://www.ex-astris-scientia.org/articles/sovereign/sovereign-shuttlebay-insurrection.jpg



They’d be backlit so wouldn’t need anything too elaborate to give the impression of an occupied control room.
Another idea would be to just paint the shapes on a piece of translucent plastic lit from behind, like the Shadowcasters I used for my big TOS Enterprise model.
Or... perhaps a combination of consoles in the foreground nearest the windows with silhouettes in the background.
Anyway you’re talking about some very fine miniature work.
Hah! This could be fun. 😸


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

After adding another layer of styrene rectangular rod around the photo-etch window frames I filed and sanded to a sharper angle resulting in a much more screen accurate look for the face of the shuttle bay observation/ control room. I’m pretty chuffed with how this turned out:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Finished Shuttle Bay Window by Steve J, on Flickr

Still some cleanup to do but she'll look even better with a coat of Mister Surfacer afterward:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Saucer Shuttle Bay Control/Observation Window Mods by Steve J, on Flickr

The forward upper saucer photon torpedo tube is glued into a recess carved into the second level above the main saucer hull directly above what will be the forward saucer fiber optic “spotlight”. I show spotlight in quotes since the actual illumination of the ship’s name and registry will come from the Raytheon Effect internally shining thru the hull plastic. The fiber optic light will just be there to sell the illusion:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Dorsal Saucer Forward Torpedo Tube by Steve J, on Flickr

Think I'll work on the impulse engines next...


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Truly awesome work!
But the word "chuffed", I'm not familiar with.
Lol
-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

JGG1701 said:


> Truly awesome work!
> But the word "chuffed", I'm not familiar with.
> Lol
> -Jim G.G.


adjective *British* Informal.
delighted; pleased; satisfied

Not to be confused with _Chuft_-_Captain_ who was the Kzinti _captain_ of the privateer ship Traitor's Claw,
who led an ambush on the Federation shuttlecraft Copernicus on stardate 4187.3 in 2269:


Chuft-Captain by Steve J, on Flickr

He was _Chuft_ but he was not _chuffed_ when the slaver weapon he attempted to fire self-destructed killing him and his crew.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Trekkriffic said:


> adjective *British* Informal.
> delighted; pleased; satisfied
> 
> Not to be confused with _Chuft_-_Captain_ who was the Kzinti _captain_ of the privateer ship Traitor's Claw,
> ...


Damned good information sir, thank you for sharing.
-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Final modifications...

After closer inspection of Nemesis screen caps (and other online reference material) I realized the upper window framing needed to be about twice as thick as the lower window frame. The easiest way to do this was to sand off the upper “roof” panels and lay on a piece of styrene sheet before adding the panels back using more thin styrene sheet cut to the dimensions of the panels I had just sanded off. I also added a couple of narrow side panels to either side of the window framing that are visible when viewing the control room windows at certain angles off to the side. Afterward I puttied any gaps. Next I’ll give her a coat of Mister Surfacer:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Final Shuttle Observation Room Final Mods by Steve J, on Flickr


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Right next to the TOS Enterprise , the Enterprise E is my favorite!
This extra effort you're putting in this build is fantastic Steve.
Loving these updates.
-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

So I took some time while helping clean the house to let the floor dry and mixed up the paint I’ll use as my main final hull color....

The hull will be primed with Krylon Matte White. Here I’ve mixed up a batch of the enamel finishing coat paint which consists of about 95% MM Flat White and 5% MM Neutral Grey. I say 5% but it may even be less than that; it’s like a chef saying add a “dash” of grey. It”s not pure white but it may be close to Insignia White which I’ve heard has a slight grayish tint to it. I wanted a very light grey white and I think this will work. I want to be careful and not drown out the aztec paneling of which some are a very light grey:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Mixing the Main Final Hull Color by Steve J, on Flickr

My custom mix as compared to flat white. Just a tad grey:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Paint on a Stick by Steve J, on Flickr

Here’s a comparison of my custom final main hull color mix next to the kit plastic. You can see it’s much lighter:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Hull Color Mix Comparison by Steve J, on Flickr

So I think this is pretty close but any comments from you color experts out there would be much appreciated. This ship’s main hull color always seemed to be pretty much a very light grey, almost an off white, from what I could see on screen but I’m open to other opinions about that.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Here’s today’s progress. I’d intended to work on the impulse engines but got sidetracked once again and went back to completing some finishing touches on the nacelles...

Using leftover parts from the 1/350 Enterprise clear lighting kit I made a dome for the front of each nacelle to replace the opaque plastic bump that constituted the magnetic field sensor array. The clear dome is lit by a short length of fiber optic:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Magnetic Field Sensor by Steve J, on Flickr

These panels sit just aft of the bussards on each nacelle just forward of the nacelle grills on either side of the housing for the magnetic field sensor array. The molded kit detailing was inaccurate and soft. These parts, made from thin styrene sheet, are accurate to the CGI image:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- New Nacelle Panels by Steve J, on Flickr

After sanding off the primer, the new panels were attached to the nacelle using Testors tube glue. Afterward, Perfect Plastic Putty was packed in around the edges:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- New Panels Glued in Place by Steve J, on Flickr

The grills butt right up to the new panels with very little gappage:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Test Fit of Nacelle Grill to New Panels by Steve J, on Flickr

The blue nacelle decals that came with the Acreation Decals were applied to the underside of the clear nacelle covers:

[/url
][url=https://flic.kr/p/2jiSiCX]USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Light Test with Aftermarket Blue Nacelle Decals by Steve J, on Flickr

A hole was drilled into the shaft of each clear dome and a short length of curved 50 mil fiber optic strand was glued into the shaft:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- New Magnetic Field Sensor by Steve J, on Flickr

Each dome on each nacelle is lit by a fiber optic strand catching blue light from the blue LED strip under each nacelle cover:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Magnetic Field Sensor Dome Lit by Steve J, on Flickr

That’s all I got done today. Comments welcome as always.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Steve, what can I say except for that you are really outdoing yourself.
This is great!!
-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

JGG1701 said:


> Steve, what can I say except for that you are really outdoing yourself.
> This is great!!
> -Jim G.G.


Thanks Jim. Appreciate the support.

Yesterday I scratched a basic interior for the shuttle bay observation/control room. There are two tiny crewmen seated at the two consoles closest to the windows. The windows themselves are translucent enough that they should show up as dark silhouettes when backlit by the LED yet to be installed. This image was taken after brushing with a coat of Light Sea Grey over a coat of primer. The crewmen have since been painted black while the consoles have been painted with the light grey hull color I mixed up. Overkill perhaps but...that’s just the way I roll:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Shuttle Control Room Interior by Steve J, on Flickr

Next I need to decide if I want to use the holes in the photo-etch shuttle bay doors for the fiber strands, as originally planned, to illuminate them or drill two holes in the floor on each side of my scratched interior. The latter option might work better as the fibers could be bent more easily to point downwards with the holes above and further in front of the doors. Using the holes in the PE the fibers would stick straight out rather than directing the light downward in front of the doors. I could bend the fibers but they would be more easily concealed underneath the control room window overhang.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

The deflector dish photo-etch grills were sprayed with Krylon gloss black lacquer followed by a shot of Testors metallic copper enamel from a spray can. Any holes that got clogged were cleared with the sharp end of an exacto knife:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Deflector Dish Grills by Steve J, on Flickr

This test fit is to help me decide the sequence of joining the secondary and primary hull so as to allow the puttying of the joining of the shuttle bay side walls to the strongback. The Nemesis Enterprise had a smooth transition joint on either side of the shuttle bay doors which I will accomplish using AVES Apoxy Sculpt:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Test Fit Saucer to Secondary Hull by Steve J, on Flickr


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Update... Impulse engines...

Plastic sheet was cut to make the walls to house the red impulse engine LEDS. Adhesive backed foil covers the inside face of the walls:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Impulse Engine LED Compartments by Steve J, on Flickr

It will be cool to see how much brighter the impulse engines glow bouncing light off these mirror-like surfaces:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Foiled Walls of LED compartment by Steve J, on Flickr

A diffuser panel of milk jig plastic will be stacked against the back of the kit clear plastic to eliminate the major hot spot in the center of the engine vent grills the LED would make:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Impulse Engine LED Test Fitting by Steve J, on Flickr

Took this picture with some external illuminatIon from my work lamp:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- impulse Vent Light Test by Steve J, on Flickr

Low light test:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Impulse Engine Exhaust Vent Lit by Steve J, on Flickr

I’ll finish installing the starboard LED then make two foil covered floor panels to glue to what would be the bottom of the compartments and seal in the red glowing LEDs. 

Next up... I finish the shuttle control/observation room and light it.


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## alpink (Aug 22, 2010)

I like the reflector Idea and the milk jug diffuser.
way to go


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Skipping around and did something for the Raytheon Effect lower saucer...

Ventral saucer internal forward floodlight for Raytheon Effect:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Raytheon Effect Lower Saucer by Steve J, on Flickr

3mm diffused cool white flat top wide angle LED is mounted at a slight downward angle about 3/8” above the root of what would be the lower forward floodlight for the ship name and registry. A curved section of white styrene sheet is glued at a downward angle at the front end of the flood zone to bounce light from the LED onto the most forward section of the "flood zone" since light at the root of the beam, closest to the LED, dims the further you get away from it. 

Ventral saucer internal forward floodlight for Raytheon Effect:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Raytheon Effect Lower Saucer Light Test by Steve J, on Flickr

You can see how bright the cool white LED is. I found that, for the light bounce panel, bare white plastic worked better than bright chrome metal foil to Reflect the most light. 

Ventral saucer internal forward floodlight:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Internal Raytheon Effect Lower Saucer LED and Bounce Panel by Steve J, on Flickr

I had to take into account the location of the upper saucer LED and potential bounce panel before I could determine where these lower RE components would be mounted for the lower saucer flood effect. It is important that the LEDs not interfere with each other. 

Ventral saucer external forward floodlight simulated using Raytheon Effect:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Lower Saucer Raytheon Test by Steve J, on Flickr

Ventral saucer external forward floodlight simulated using Raytheon Effect:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Lower Saucer Raytheon Effect in Action by Steve J, on Flickr

I’m pretty satisfied with the brightness level after adding the internal bounce panel at the front end opposite the LED. I think it will actually get a little brighter after I install the upper saucer LED which will hang just above and aft of the lower saucer LED. 

Next I'll do the upper LED floodlight and see if I can run fibers to the forward bow lights from the upper and lower Raytheon Effect LEDs. Then back to finish off the shuttle bay control room and LED lighting. Then need to finish the impulse engine LED installations before sealing up the impulse engine compartments. Then tackle the flasher board and wiring for the flashing lights and the wiring for the always on LEDs. 

So not much more.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

OUTSTANDING!
-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Red LEDS and diffusers were sealed up inside the port and starboard engine compartments using epoxy and adhesive-backed aluminum foil:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Impulse Engine Light Test by Steve J, on Flickr


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Red LEDS and diffusers were sealed up inside the port and starboard engine compartments using epoxy and adhesive-backed aluminum foil:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Impulse Engine Light Test by Steve J, on Flickr

After inserting milk jug plastic diffuser panels between the 3mm red LEDs and the transparent red kit clear parts, I taped thin styrene sheet panels on what would constitute the floors of the impulse engine compartments. The panels were lined with foil on the inside to reflect the red light from the LED:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Imulse Engine Compartment Floors by Steve J, on Flickr

Impulse engine frames painted with Krylon Satin Black lacquer followed by Tamiya Metallic Black lacquer:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Light Test by Steve J, on Flickr

The red LEDs light up well I think:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Low Light Test by Steve J, on Flickr


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Control room was revamped with new smaller “figures”. Does not stand up to close inspection but it doesn’t have to. The crew are actually painted with the grey and dark red of the Nemesis actors; I say painted but it’s more of a suggestion of color. When silhouetted by the cool white LED from behind, you’ll mostly just see shapes. To the right are the fibers that will light the front of the shuttle bay doors. The ends were bent to a right angle by bending them over a heated piece of small diameter brass rod:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Shuttle Bay Control Room by Steve J, on Flickr

Got the control room glued in, then the bay doors then, Then finally got the LED in place to light ’em up... 

This cool white rectangular LED has two holes drilled into it. Two fibers fit into the holes which then extend thru the hull and then thru two holes in the photo-etch shuttle bay doors. The nib end of each fiber then bends at a right angle to shine downwards on the doors. The LED lights the shuttle bay control room thru a slot carved thru the kit hull covered by a diffuser panel:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Upper Saucer Shuttle Bay and Door Fiber LED by Steve J, on Flickr

I’m glad I noticed those two holes Paragrafix provided in the hangar bay door photo-etch for the door floods. 
No mention is made of them in the PE instructions but in stills from Nemesis there are clearly two lights in those locations on opposite sides of the control room overhang:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Shuttle Bay Control Room LED and Door Floodlights Test by Steve J, on Flickr

The crew figures are visible as dark silhouettes in the two centermost of the control room’s triangular windows:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Shuttle Bay Control Room and Door Floods Light Test by Steve J, on Flickr

A look underneath at the fibers running to the main shuttle bay porch lights under the control room overhang:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Porch Light Fiber Optics by Steve J, on Flickr

I epoxied a piece of milk jug plastic to diffuse the light from the LED to the long rows of viewports on each side of the aft docking port. Just for ducks I carved and glued two tiny dark grey plastic figures to the diffuser panel which are barely visible seen thru the translucent plastic panel in this photo:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Milk Jug Plastic and Shuttle Bay LED by Steve J, on Flickr

A little touch up for the doors and around the control room but I’m really pleased with how this area turned out. Much better than what the kit provided I think:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Accurized Main Shuttle Bay by Steve J, on Flickr


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## alpink (Aug 22, 2010)

working out the details nicely!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Update...

Worked on a few things the last few days. 
One involved wiring up the 1.8mm cool white LED for the quantum torpedo port located above the captain’s yacht at the head of the deflector trench. 
Here’s the LED lit and sitting in a puddle of 5 minute epoxy: 


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Light Test by Steve J, on Flickr

Wires were soldered to the LED and taped down with adhesive foil tape: 


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Deflector Trench Wired by Steve J, on Flickr

The LED shines thru a piece of transparent blue plastic signaling the launch of a quantum torpedo:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Quantum Torpedo Port Lit by Steve J, on Flickr

I glued the trench in place in the starboard half of the secondary hull. 
It makes it easy to wire as the power jack is located in this half of the hull: 


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Deflector Trench Glued by Steve J, on Flickr

The other half of the hull test fitted with the trench in place. Not bad at all: :

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Test Fit by Steve J, on Flickr

I should hopefully have the deflector dish mounted and lit this weekend. 

I also put in some work on the aft upper single port photorp launcher that sits atop the shuttle bay. 
First thing I did was dig out the sloping trench the launcher sits in using files and dental scraping tools.
This literally took me two hours to finish but I’m pleased with the result:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Aft Spine Torpedo Trench by Steve J, on Flickr

I’ll save making the single port photorp launcher until after the secondary hull is glued together. 

Next thing was installing the LEDs in the upper saucer...

3 cool white LEDs, 2 red LEDs, I green flasher, I red flasher, and I cool white flasher:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Upper Saucer LED Placement by Steve J, on Flickr

All the internal flashing LEDs are painted with black Tulip paint for light blocking after insertion of 30 mil fiber optic strands. 
So any formation or running lights on the external hull are the ends of fiber optic strands not LEDs. 
Sometimes 1 LED will light up multiple strands of fiber:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Flasher and Fiber by Steve J, on Flickr

The centermost cool white lighthouse style LED had a hole drilled into the cylindrical portion into which a fiber strand was inserted. It was then light blocked with black fabric paint and a strip of sticky foil tape. 
The fiber then feeds thru a hole in a milk jog plastic diffuser panel, then makes a right angle to exit the hull just behind the upper saucer bridge dome.
The LED will be tied into the Tenacontrols flasher board in the lower saucer hull:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Bridge Beacon Flasher by Steve J, on Flickr

The parallel circuit for the steady on LEDs in the lower saucer Is complete. Power will be supplied by a pair of wires coming up from the secondary hull and soldered to the legs of each LED starting with the Raytheon Effect LED in the center of the saucer.


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Lower Saucer Light Test by Steve J, on Flickr

Next thing is to wire up the upper saucer steady-on circuit. 
Then I’ll install the flasher board and wire up those circuits.

Thanks for reading and thanks for any comments!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

The impulse engines, shuttle control room and porch lights, Raytheon effect LED, and bow running lights all light up! These are the steady-on lights only. Still need to wire the flashers to the flasher board:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Upper Saucer Light Test by Steve J, on Flickr

The impulse engines, shuttle control room, et al, look good externally:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Light Test by Steve J, on Flickr

The 30 mil fiber strand works well for running and formation lights in 1/1400 scale:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Bow Running Light by Steve J, on Flickr

A cool white 3mm round top LED illuminates the two stern running lights thru fiber optic strands. It also lights the aft window ports:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Secondary Hull Stern LED by Steve J, on Flickr

Light test:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Light Test by Steve J, on Flickr

Next I’ll work on the deflector dish.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Secondary hull lighting...

It's a twisting mess but it works. The unterminated wires at top left will be used to power the flasher board in the lower primary hull and the steady-on circuits in the saucer. The flasher board in the saucer will terminate to flashing LEDs in the saucer, secondary hull, and nacelles which feed fiber optics exiting to the external hull. The unterminated wires to the right (wrapping around the outer hull) will power the nacelle and bussard collector LED's:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Secondary Hull Lights by Steve J, on Flickr

Thank god for liquid electrical tape:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Secondary Hull Lights by Steve J, on Flickr

Once the black liquid electrical tape dries I'll paint all the black wires with white enamel:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Secondary Hull Lights by Steve J, on Flickr

The deflector trench...

I found a piece of styrene tubing that was the perfect size for the diameter of the deflector part. The plastic reflector came from a Dollar Tree booklight and was something I found in my parts stash:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Secondary Hull Lights by Steve J, on Flickr

In was able to intertwine the wires in such a way that they formed a coiled mass in the center of the hull away from the window ports. It's preferable not to block off windows with wires or wire shadows if possible unless that is your goal:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Secondary Hull Lights by Steve J, on Flickr

Left to right: quantum torpedo LED, amber orange deflector LED, cool white LED strip, cool white diffused flat strongback windows LED, and cool white stern window/stern beacons LED:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Secondary Hull Lights by Steve J, on Flickr

I think I got close to the brightness I wanted out of the quantum torpedo port and deflector dish. Note that once I finished soldering the wires for the steady-on LEDs they seemed to form a corkscrew tangle in the middle of the hull. In this way no wires touch the interior sides and no windows are blocked off. 
Serendipity it seems as I had not planned it that way:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Secondary Hull Lights by Steve J, on Flickr

Next up... the flasher board and wiring!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

A rare trekriffic video. Nothing special...


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Lower Saucer Flashers Working Video by Steve J, on Flickr


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Awesome!
-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

All solder joints for the secondary hull are done. Just need to paint the black, green, and red wires with white enamel first before gluing the two halves of the secondary hull together. Also will add a milk jug plastic diffusion strip atop the LED strip behind the deflector array:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Ready for Gluing Together by Steve J, on Flickr

The red wires furthest aft (1 from each nacelle) are soldered to the green wire going to the white belly flashing LED then up to the flasher board. The red wires further forward (1 from each nacelle) are soldered to the negative black wire going to the power jack. Two white wires from each nacelle (4 total) are soldered together then soldered to the positive white wire going to the power jack. They should all tuck in nicely when I seal up the hull:









USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Stern Wiring Soldered by Steve J, on Flickr

Tested steady on LEDS and they all work. Ready to glue the secondary hull halves together:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Nacelle Wires Connected To Circuits by Steve J, on Flickr

Everything looks good. The flashers don’t work yet as I still need to connect the green wire to the Tenacontrols flasher board on the lower saucer:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Secondary Hull and Warp Nacelles Light Test by Steve J, on Flickr

Placed the strongback section on the starboard hull half. The ultrabright LED I added underneath it will really help light these ports up:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Strongback Windows by Steve J, on Flickr

Three Flashers (green, white, red) connected by green wire. Green, white and black wires will solder to wires from lower saucer:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Upper Saucer Flasher Circuit by Steve J, on Flickr

Rubber bands hold the hull together for a test fit. All wires tucked in without a hitch. I thought there might be a dead zone in the middle but that apparently was not the case. I think the light bounce off the white interior from having the hull together may have taken care of that. I also painted all the black, green, and red wires white so that may have contributed:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Test Fit and Light Check by Steve J, on Flickr

The front end where the lifeboat is has a gap I will need to clamp when I go to glue it. It was the same on the other side:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Test Fit and Light Check by Steve J, on Flickr

The strongback LED and windows light up well I think:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Test Fit and Light Check by Steve J, on Flickr

Without the strongback in place. The small ultra bright wide angle flat top LED looks so bright! :


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Test Fit and Light Check by Steve J, on Flickr

So that’s it so far. Thinks it’s time to glue the hull halves together with styrene cement now.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

This is great!!!!!!!
Exciting too!
-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

The front end where the lifeboat is has a gap I will need to clamp when I go to glue it. It was the same on the other side:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Test Fit and Light Check by Steve J, on Flickr

Rubber bands hold the hull together for a test fit. All wires tucked in without a hitch. I thought there might be a dead zone in the middle but that apparently was not the case. I think the light bounce off the white interior from having the hull together may have taken care of that. I also painted all the black, green, and red wires white so that may have contributed:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Test Fit and Light Check by Steve J, on Flickr

More soldering and the upper saucer is electrically connected to the lower saucer half:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- A Tale of Two Halves by Steve J, on Flickr

I didn’t notice it before gluing the halves together but the red flasher was barely lighting up in the upper half. The green flasher wasn’t much better. On the ventral side though the red and green flashers are a bit brighter, enough to be seen. All are over fiber. 
So it appears, I have a ship true to Nemesis with it’s CG Ent E which had running lights that either did not flash, only flashed occasionally, or sometimes just glowed all in the same movie! 
So mine will flash below and, on top, they may either be off or I may paint them with fluorescent red and green for the always on look...
Either way it’s canon since we saw it onscreen! 

😀😂



USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Connecting the Halves by Steve J, on Flickr


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

The spine plate that sits in front of shuttle bay 1 had to be cut off after I forgot and glued it onto the secondary hull before assembling and attaching the saucer hull halves rather than after. 🤬
After cutting it loose with a scribe and photo-etch saw I put it back into place and glued it onto the spine again. 🤗
What a job that was!


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Main Assembly Done by Steve J, on Flickr

I drilled out another row of windows in a shallow trench in front of what I think are the ports for the auxiliary deflector array in the deeper trench. Or maybe these windows I drilled today are the auxiliary deflector. Either way these ports were not molded into the kit plastic so I had to eyeball it more or less. I need to figure out how to narrow them and stagger their spacing better, I only knew they existed after looking at images and screen caps of the forward ventral saucer that showed another long row of ports in a depression between the forward saucer rim and the ports in the big lit up trench. I could have left them un-drilled I suppose but I’m becoming more of a screen accurate fan as I get older so wanted something closer to what we see on screen:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Main Assembly Done by Steve J, on Flickr

Can’t say this is my favorite Enterprise ship design but it really has grown on me since starting this build. It does have some nice angles and you couldn’t look faster just sitting still with those sleek lines. I’d rate it number three after the TOS and Refit Enterprises:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Main Assembly Done by Steve J, on Flickr

Now I need to work on the smooth dorsal transition from the saucer into the spine of the secondary hull that was new for Nemesis. Also need to make the single photon torpedo launcher above the shuttle bay and a small one at the aft end of the engineering hull just below the fantail. Then will mask before priming,


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Staying up kinda late on this one huh? ;-)
Incredible Steve!
How do you plan to fill in the windows?
Krystal Clear?
-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

JGG1701 said:


> How do you plan to fill in the windows?
> Krystal Clear?
> -Jim G.G.


Probably. I’ve not used Krystal Klear before but I think I do have a bottle of it from years ago and it should fill the openings well with these small 1/1400 scale windows. Hopefully it’s still usable. 
In the past I’ve filled windows with jeweler‘s epoxy resin or dental acrylic, both toxic and messy, and filling the windows really needs to be done from the inside with a good sticky tape on the outside as the resin will eat your paint If it leaks thru.
Now, if the model is unpainted, you can try filling from the outside with some kind of clear tape on the inside. Then once it’s dry you can clean any residue off with acetone and/or sandpaper before priming and painting. 
Of course, either way you still have to mask each window before painting, assuming you are spraying the paint.
So this might be a good time to use something like KK or... I might get ambitiously insane and cut pieces of clear styrene to fit each window. That’s what I did for my USS Saratoga build and it worked well, especially if you make the inserts thick enough to extend into the model far enough to catch the light from the LEDS. 
The Saratoga had a LOT less windows than this beast though.
Still, the KK is nice because you can do it at the end after your final paint is on without having to mask the windows. 
And you can wipe off any excess with water.

Decisions... decisions. 🤔


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Some gratuitous shots of the assembled model with lights on. Still a work in progress but getting there....


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Light Test After Assembly by Steve J, on Flickr


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Light Test After Assembly by Steve J, on Flickr


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Light Test After Assembly by Steve J, on Flickr


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Light Test After Assembly by Steve J, on Flickr


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## electric indigo (Dec 21, 2011)

Thank you for providing us with your daily dose of "E".


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

electric indigo said:


> Thank you for providing us with your daily dose of "E".


My pleasure!

Here are the last of the Nemesis modifications...

Easy to miss this stern photorp port but I saw it referenced on a drawing detailing proposed additions to the ship’s weaponry for Nemesis. One of the easier mods to make from scratch for this build, 
As you can see there will be some more cleanup to do:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Stern Shuttle Bay Ventral Torpedo Tube by Steve J, on Flickr

This single port photorp launcher is made from styrene tubing and rod. It sits in a shallow trench atop the stern shuttle bay just forward of the beacon. Another mod to the original design made for Nemesis:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Dorsal Stern Shuttle Bay Photon Torpedo Launcher by Steve J, on Flickr

Using AVES Apoxy putty I sculpted the smoother transition between the dorsal saucer and the secondary hull strongback. I decided to finish one side and let the putty cure overnight before tackling the other side. This modification made for Nemesis is a small difference but it helps the overall flow of the ship I think:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Strongback Transition Mods by Steve J, on Flickr

I’ll finish the saucer/strongback transition on the starboard side then l’ll finish puttying some other spots before masking and priming.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Steve, I'm really glad that you are keeping us updated on this build. 
Thank you.
- Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Sorry for not posting in awhile. I got sidetracked with an issue I’m trying to fix concerning the starboard impulse engine dark grey primer grill paint flaking off the brass photo-etch when I stupidly tried to pluck off a tiny speck of putty that was stuck between the grills. Oops! There went the paint flaking off! ARRGGGH! I found it was impossible to repaint the grills now that they we’re glued to the clear plastic part. The grills are too closely spaced together to keep the paint from flowing in between and making a mess of the lighting effect... but... I think I’ve found a solution using the same primer paint sprayed on white decal paper and sealed with liquid decal film. It will require slicing the dark grey decal paper into extremely thin strips and applying them one at a time to each row of the grill. I’ll take some pics if it works.

Anyway, shifting gears, I determined the winglets on each side of the saucer shuttle bay doors were offline, they should lap over the edge of the strongback part and into the secondary hull. They were too wide too and needed to be more tapered so I carved, filed, and sanded the cured Apoxy Sculpt then added some more AVES, pulling and blending with fingers and sculpting tools to form an unbroken curve around the spinal plate atop the secondary hull:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Main Shuttle Bay Winglets Resculpted by Steve J, on Flickr

I’m much happier with the smooth flow between the saucer and engineering hull now. Next I’ll brush some Mister Surfacer on:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Saucer Transition Zone Winglets Corrected by Steve J, on Flickr

The slanted rectangle of white styrene above the stern shuttle bay doors (which will get a black window port when finished) was blended into the beacon platform above the shuttle bay with AVES to make one continuous platform:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Stern Shuttle Bay Control Room Blending by Steve J, on Flickr

The upper saucer transition to secondary hull zone and spine was brushed with Mister Surfacer. It feels nice and smooth after all the sanding. AVES is so great for sculpting:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Brushing on Mister Surfacer 500 by Steve J, on Flickr

With the lights down I turned on the power and circled windows that glowed too brightly in pencil. These windows happened to be located above the LED strips inside the hull so they blew the scale effect, no ship would have cabins that glowed like the sun. Once I knew which windows were involved I filled them with AVES. They will become black windows when I’ve finished applying the Aztec decals:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Filling in Beaconing Windows by Steve J, on Flickr

Next up... respraying the starboard impulse engine frame with metallic black. Then finish masking the upper nacelle milk jug panels, the deflector dish, the impulse engine vents (again), the nav and formation lights, And the upper saucer Raytheon floodlight. Then I think I’ll add the phaser strips I cast from jeweller’s resin to the trailing edges of the upper and lower surfaces of the nacelle struts. Then I’ll shoot her with grey followed by white primer before applying the main hull color. I may mask off the phaser strips first though.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Lots and lots of work you're doing Steve! She's going to be beautiful. Can you please tell me again how and what you used to manage to glue down the photo etch without it oozing through the openings? Reason why I need to know is I will need to know this when it comes time for me to do the grills on my TOS Enterprise 1/350th.
Thanks in advance.
- Jim G.G.


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## StarshipClass (Aug 13, 2003)

Trekkriffic said:


> Sorry for not posting in awhile. I got sidetracked with an issue I’m trying to fix concerning the starboard impulse engine dark grey primer grill paint flaking off the brass photo-etch when I stupidly tried to pluck off a tiny speck of putty that was stuck between the grills. Oops! There went the paint flaking off! ARRGGGH! I found it was impossible to repaint the grills now that they we’re glued to the clear plastic part. The grills are too closely spaced together to keep the paint from flowing in between and making a mess of the lighting effect... but... I think I’ve found a solution using the same primer paint sprayed on white decal paper and sealed with liquid decal film. It will require slicing the dark grey decal paper into extremely thin strips and applying them one at a time to each row of the grill. I’ll take some pics if it works.
> 
> Anyway, shifting gears, I determined the winglets on each side of the saucer shuttle bay doors were offline, they should lap over the edge of the strongback part and into the secondary hull. They were too wide too and needed to be more tapered so I carved, filed, and sanded the cured Apoxy Sculpt then added some more AVES, pulling and blending with fingers and sculpting tools to form an unbroken curve around the spinal plate atop the secondary hull:
> 
> ...


Incredible! You are doing God's work--er, well, maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration, but not by much


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

JGG1701 said:


> Lots and lots of work you're doing Steve! She's going to be beautiful. Can you please tell me again how and what you used to manage to glue down the photo etch without it oozing through the openings? Reason why I need to know is I will need to know this when it comes time for me to do the grills on my TOS Enterprise 1/350th.
> Thanks in advance.
> - Jim G.G.


I used metal foil adhesive glue. Apply it SPARINGLY to the backside of the PE then let it set for a few minutes before positioning it on the clear kit part. Before that though you’ll want to paint the PE. I used a spray can of adhesion promoter then sprayed the etch with Krylon grey automotive primer. Still you need to be careful about removing any residual glue from between the etch grills as the paint can easily be scratched. Since the glue is water based you can use a microbrush dipped in warm water to clean up any excess. Just take it slow and you’ll be alright. A sharpened toothpick also works.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

PerfesserCoffee said:


> Incredible! You are doing God's work--er, well, maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration, but not by much


Thanks a lot Perfesser! It may not be God’s work exactly but the Devil is certainly in the details!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Greetings fellow modelers and model fans. I hope everyone is well during these trying times...

Back on May 15, I posted a photo of an assembled nacelle showing how it looked lit up. I had wanted to show some in progress photos of the inside of the nacelle showing how I wired the LEDs and created diffusers to give the warp engines a nice even glow. Unfortunately, I was not able to transfer the photos on my camera at that time due to a new company policy that blocked all employees from using thumb drives or loading images off cameras using my company provided laptop’s USB port. I could have done it over wi-fi but my camera doesn’t have that capability so there they sat locked inside my Canon EOS Rebel t1i until I could either get a new camera with wi-fi or get my own personal laptop.
Since then, I have been able to post images using photos taken on my iPad which I discovered has a very good camera. Then I, along with most of my department, got laid off from our jobs at AT&T. Being almost 63 and vested in my company pension plan I decided to take the severance payment and retire effective September 8, 2020 on my last day of employment.
Anyway, this means I will be losing my work laptop so... I FINALLY GOT MY OWN PERSONAL LAPTOP! 
It’s got a 17.3” screen and more importantly, it has a read/write DVD/CD ROM drive; not easy to find in an off-the-shelf computer at COSTCO. 
One of the first things I did was load it up with the Canon EOS utility software using the software CD That came with the camera. Then I plugged the camera and downloaded the images. So without further delay, here are the photos showing how the nacelle lighting effect was accomplished...

Milk jug plastic is trimmed to fit along the opening carved out on the top of the nacelles for the blue glowing grills. The diffusers will help eliminate LED hot spots from the blue LED strips underneath:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Nacelle Diffusers by Steve J, on Flickr

This foam packing sheet will further diffuse the LED glow on the top of the nacelles:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Foam Packing Sheet by Steve J, on Flickr

Here is a test with the LED strip lit up under the milk jug plastic panels but no folded layer of foam packing sheet in between:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Diffusion Test 1 by Steve J, on Flickr

With the foam packing material in between the milk jug panels and the LED strip virtually all hot spots have been eliminated:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Diffusers with Foam Packing Sheet Test 2 by Steve J, on Flickr

Two channels were carved out along the trailing edge of each nacelle, One groove will handle the two wires from the flashers at the aft end of the nacelles, the other will handle the wires connecting to the blue LED strip and the orange-red LEDs in the bussard dome:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Carving Out Wiring Channels by Steve J, on Flickr

Three flat topped amber LEDs stacked and staggered as shown in cross sectional diagrams of the E bussards online. The clear plastic bussard inserts have been brushed with Tamiya transparent red acrylic on their inside surfaces:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Bussard LED Assembly by Steve J, on Flickr

Bussard LED assembly light test. The three LEDs were connected in series using two 150 ohm resistors soldered together as I did not have a 330 ohm resistor:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- by Steve J, on Flickr

A single cool white LED lights the upper and lower flashers using short lengths of bent fiber optic strand:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Aft Nacelle Flashers by Steve J, on Flickr

The LED strip and bussards shown wired together and lighting up just fine. I'll add the foam diffuser sheet in between the strip and the diffuser panels before sealing the nacelles up:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Nacelle Light Check by Steve J, on Flickr

Just one more thing to add to the bussard before gluing the nacelle halves together:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Bussard Detail Light Test by Steve J, on Flickr

To diffuse the bussards I packed torn cotton ball material in between the LEDs and the nose of each nacell:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Cotton Added by Steve J, on Flickr

The upper strut half will be glued to the lower strut half once the styrene cement gluing the nacelle together dries:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Nacelle Glued Together by Steve J, on Flickr

The assembled warp nacelle all lit up:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Nacelle Lit by Steve J, on Flickr

Thanks to all who have continued following this build. I hope you have enjoyed this journey back in time. We now take you back to your regularly scheduled programming. I’ll have some new pics shortly showing the E in her current state. Stay safe everyone!


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## Milton Fox Racing (May 27, 2014)

Sorry to hear about your forced retirement but glad you got to at least retire as well. Shortly, you will begin to wonder how you ever had time to go to work (and then why!) 

Good to see the build progression as well.


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## alpink (Aug 22, 2010)

I really enjoy the breakdown explanations and pictures of builds like this.
although I don't build much like this, I am learning a lot that I can put towards other projects.
thank you for sharing


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Here are some new pics...

This is the phase called pointing up when you go over each centimeter of the hull looking for any stray paint, epoxy, or putty then cleaning them up before priming:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Ventral-Almost Ready for Primer by Steve J, on Flickr

Looking pretty good:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Dorsal-Almost Ready for Primer by Steve J, on Flickr

The trench got some additional puttying, filing and sanding. Special attention was payed to the corners at the top of the wall behind the dish. Scribing tools came in handy:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Deflector Trench Detailing by Steve J, on Flickr

The aft running light (non-flashing) /control room window platform was filed and sanded to shape:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Stern Attention by Steve J, on Flickr

Next I'll finish masking the running and navigation lights before shooting her with an overall primer coat.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Good Lord!
I wish that I had HALF the talent and motivation that you have Steve!
-Jim G.G.


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## Mark2000 (Oct 13, 2013)

Really great build! I'm working on the same model at the moment. I see we're both using fiber optics for the blinkers. I'm wondering how you're gluing seams together like the ones around the nacelles without melting the fibers. I've tried a lot of things and have yet to be able to use styrene glue with out the fiber breaking. I've been reduced to using 2 part 10min epoxy on those areas which I find has a little give and definitely doesn't leave a completely gapless bond.


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## jkirk (Feb 19, 2020)

jeeeezzzz! Amazing!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Mark2000 said:


> Really great build! I'm working on the same model at the moment. I see we're both using fiber optics for the blinkers. I'm wondering how you're gluing seams together like the ones around the nacelles without melting the fibers. I've tried a lot of things and have yet to be able to use styrene glue with out the fiber breaking. I've been reduced to using 2 part 10min epoxy on those areas which I find has a little give and definitely doesn't leave a completely gapless bond.


if a blinker lies on a seam (like the aft ends of the nacelles or the blinker under the secondary. hull) that will be glued with styrene cement I will drill a hole thru a short piece of small diameter styrene rod and feed the fiber thru the hole. Then I take a small round file and make a half circle in each half of the kit part opposite each other where the tube will be glued in. That way the styrene cement is glued to the styrene tube and not the fiber. A small drop of CA is enough to hold the fiber in place inside the tube: 5 minute epoxy works too.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Deflector trench reworking...

Now I have a concave trench with a transition zone from a flat to a curved roof (or floor depending on your viewing angle). 
Adding the strips along the rim helped re-establish the edge and gave me something to putty up to:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Final Trench Mods by Steve J, on Flickr

Did some more work on the back wall around the deflector dish:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Back Wall by Steve J, on Flickr

So I spent a couple of days off and on trying to improve what I just did to the deflector trench. 
The curvature of the sidewalls transitioning from a flat area in front of the dish to a curved area behind the yacht is rather complex. 
In my case it was too flat behind the yacht and the sidewalls were curved the wrong way, at least from what I could see in the CGI images. 
They needed to be concave not convex. 
So I carved and sanded away most of what I had done until the sidewalls were angled but flat then added strip 
styrene around the rim with a slight overhang to putty up to using AVES. I'm happy now:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Transition Zone by Steve J, on Flickr

The original stern strongback photorp launcher had turned into a lump due to all the Mister Surfacer and primer 
I’d brushed on it so I dug it out of the trench and made a new one that more closely resembles the one shown in the CGI images. 
I also installed the homemade resin cast nacelle strut phaser strips top and bottom along the trailing edge:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Reworked Photorp Launcher by Steve J, on Flickr

Am I nuts or do I see two heads in this image? 
The front ends of the nacelles look like old men wearing tall, conical red, white, and dark grey crowns atop their heads. 
There is even what looks like a round blue stone on each of their brows. 
You can see eyes, noses, and mouths making an "Oh" sound; this being the hole for the nacelle cover grill locator pin which will be glued on later. 
Anyway... I brushed liquid mask over the flashing and other running lights. 
Pointed up any areas of Mister Surfacer or putty getting rid of any crapola that would not appear on the exterior of a “real” starship. 

Masking is done! On to the pointing up/priming stage:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Two Old Men - Dorsal Ready for Priming by Steve J, on Flickr

A light coat of Mister Surfacer this time on the single photon torpedo launcher and spine. 
Also the strut phaser strips got some Perfect Plastic Putty to fill in the tiny gaps around the edge:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Photorp Launcher Primed by Steve J, on Flickr

Took some time to meticulously go over the exterior and clean off any residue of glue, primer paste, or putty. 
Also wiped her down with a rag soaked in 70% isopropyl alcohol to eliminate any oils or stains.
Lastly, finished masking the formation and running lights with liquid mask. Ready for priming I think:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Ventral Ready for Priming by Steve J, on Flickr


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## Milton Fox Racing (May 27, 2014)

I see them....


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Components for powering the display base for lighting:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Base Wiring Up by Steve J, on Flickr

After drilling a hole thru the wooden base, wires from the aluminum display tube are fed into a slot routed out in the underside of the base for soldering to the power jack:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Display Base by Steve J, on Flickr

12V DC power is plugged in and the ship lights up as it should. She’s fully masked. One more going over with the alcohol wipe and she gets primed:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Light Check with Base by Steve J, on Flickr

Before final alcohol cleanup I have her a close inspection with the magnifier headset. I was glad I did as I found a few small spots that needed carving or more cleanup, mostly dried putty in the margins. Stuff a digItal camera would notice:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Pointing Her Up by Steve J, on Flickr

Got these at Michaels craft store years ago and forgot about them. Found them and they worked great! I could not have done some of the smaller parts and detail work without them:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Magnifying Headset by Steve J, on Flickr

Parts with detail I don’t want getting buried under the primer coat are brushed with liquid mask. 
Looking at all the crap still on the surface before final cleanup... it’s truly amazing how many sins a good coat of primer will cover up:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Liquid Masking by Steve J, on Flickr

I don’t want the primer coat to cover up all the detailing on the stern spine Photorp launcher so I gave it a coat of liquid mask. It will probably be brushed with the final color at the end just before decaling begins:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Liquid Masking by Steve J, on Flickr

Next... reworking the aft ends of the nacelles. Looks like I spoke too soon about being finished with correcting hull details and inaccuracies.


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## Mark2000 (Oct 13, 2013)

Trekkriffic said:


> if a blinker lies on a seam (like the aft ends of the nacelles or the blinker under the secondary. hull) that will be glued with styrene cement I will drill a hole thru a short piece of small diameter styrene rod and feed the fiber thru the hole. Then I take a small round file and make a half circle in each half of the kit part opposite each other where the tube will be glued in. That way the styrene cement is glued to the styrene tube and not the fiber. A small drop of CA is enough to hold the fiber in place inside the tube: 5 minute epoxy works too.


That's interesting, because I've found that just the fumes of styrene glue will snap a fiber optic. I will give this a try in future projects, though. Thanks.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Mark2000 said:


> That's interesting, because I've found that just the fumes of styrene glue will snap a fiber optic. I will give this a try in future projects, though. Thanks.


Well I tend to use thicker fiber strands that are less likely to melt. Plus I only use a small amount. For the really thin fiber I use epoxy.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

I finished reworking the aft ends of the nacelles. Now have to look at the framing around the bussard collectors and decide if I need to do any rework there (sigh). 

Reworking the aft ends of the nacelles...

So this what I’m shooting for:


Nemesis E - CGI Image - Aft Upper Nacelle Detail by Steve J, on Flickr

This is how rough they looked AFTER cleanup. This will get the same rebuild treatment as the other side...


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Reworking the Aft Nacelles by Steve J, on Flickr

Scribed plastic sheet will replace the grills on the aft ends of each nacelle. I’ll build a new frame around and on top of the new grill sections:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Reworking the Aft Nacelles by Steve J, on Flickr

After removal of old grills and gluing in a new grooved styrene grill piece. I’ll lay styrene strips around the edge of the grill section to complete the rework:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Reworking the Aft Nacelles by Steve J, on Flickr

After laying on styrene strips the framing of the port grills is complete. Note that the sides of the nacelles gently slope upward so the grill openings are not straight sided trapezoids either. I noticed this in the CGI images:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Accurize and Cleanup Fore and Aft Nacelles by Steve J, on Flickr


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Wow Steve, your work is amazing!
-Jim G.G.


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## whiskeyrat (May 7, 2012)

This is a tough model to light, thanks for showing us how it's done! My biggest gripe about this kit is the small scale for the subject. I would have preferred something around 1/700 or so to get better detail resolution, but that would probably have driven the retail price up (would also put it out of scale with most other Trek kits but I could live with that!). Awesome work here.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

The raised center strip underneath runs across the slanted aft end and across the top:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Accurize and Cleanup Fore and Aft Nacelles by Steve J, on Flickr

Forward nacelle panels and around the main deflection crystal are cleaned up.
I’ll do the same for the starboard side:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Accurize and Cleanup Fore and Aft Nacelles by Steve J, on Flickr

You can see the sloping profile of the aft upper nacelle end in this photo. I had to file and sand the hull to get the gentle curve I wanted:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Accurize and Cleanup Fore and Aft Nacelles by Steve J, on Flickr

After final cleanup with alcohol wipes and a few shots of Krylon Dark Grey primer:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- In Primer by Steve J, on Flickr

After airbrushing the first basecoat:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- First Basecoat by Steve J, on Flickr

This time a few drops of Model Master medium grey was added to the airbrush mixture:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Second Basecoat by Steve J, on Flickr


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

She already looks finished. 🤩
This is going to be FANTASTIC!
-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Hope everyone had a safe and enjoyable holiday. Here’s a small update...

more second basecoat pics:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Second Basecoat by Steve J, on Flickr


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Second Basecoat by Steve J, on Flickr

The secondary hull and warp,engines are slightly darker aft of the saucer separation arc. There is an even darker set of panels flanking the aft end of the strongback oval which has been masked off for painting:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Panel Masking by Steve J, on Flickr

A darker grey variant of the secondary and nacelle hull color was used on these panels.
I may lighten them a bit once I can see the contrast with the secondary hull lighter grey after de-masking:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Strongback Accent Painting by Steve J, on Flickr

I decided to brush paint the various greys using thinned enamels using Tamiya tape and a liner brush:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Nacelle Accent Painting by Steve J, on Flickr

The medium dark grey I used for the trim on top of the nacelles looks almost the same color as the dark grey primer I used on the photo-etch grills. A good match:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP-Nacelle Upper Test Look by Steve J, on Flickr

Shades of grey...

Below are bottles of the enamel paint mixes I’ve used on this build so far. 

The large bottles are... 
On the left, the secondary hull, nacelle pylons, nacelles, and ventral saucer light grey enamel; 
and the slightly lighter upper saucer and nacelle accent, very light grey. 

The small plastic containers (pots) are, from left to right...
Two pots of the upper nacelle trim (around the blue glowing grill) medium dark grey, the second pot is just thinned down. 
The pot on the right is the color I used for the medium grey panels on the strongback. 

There will be more shades to come I’m pretty sure:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Shades of Grey by Steve J, on Flickr

hope to have more done before the New Year. Take care everyone!


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Awesomeness!!!!!!!!!
-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Accent colors...

I decided to brush paint the various greys using thinned enamels using Tamiya tape and a liner brush:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Nacelle Accent Painting by Steve J, on Flickr

A darker grey variant of the secondary and nacelle hull color was used on these panels. I may lighten them a bit once I can see the contrast with the secondary hull lighter grey after de-masking:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Strongback Accent Painting by Steve J, on Flickr

Light test after unmasking. I like how the fiber optic “porch” lights turned out:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Saucer Shuttlebay Unmasked by Steve J, on Flickr

The lower saucer flood masking tape is removed and cleaned up:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Lower Floodlight Unmasked by Steve J, on Flickr

A few spots to clean up in the corners but otherwise this turned out pretty well:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Lower Flood after Unmasking by Steve J, on Flickr


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

The upper floodlight masking tape is removed and cleanup begun on the edges. It will be interesting to see how this looks once the aztec decals are on:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Unmasking by Steve J, on Flickr

Did a little sanding around the edges to eliminate any paint ridges. An aztec decal will cover the whole area including the floodlight:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Unmasking and Cleanup by Steve J, on Flickr

Video!

The model is partially unmasked. Still have to unmask three bussards, the tops of the nacelles, impulse engines, the deflector dish, and some of the running lights. The floodlights on he saucer will be mostly covered by aztec decals.The aztec wallpaper decals mean I could have been sloppier with the paint but I can’t work that way so... I have spent hours pointing up and fixing very small imperfections; mostly cleaning up small bits of putty that must have stuck to my fingers then stuck to the model unnoticed until later or reshaping some of the window ports.
Seems like overkill maybe but the camera will show up any mistakes; mistakes which could spoil the illusion of a real starship that you are trying to create:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- In the Dark Video by Steve J, on Flickr

Stand by for more exciting transmissions!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

More reveals...

I scribed around the edges of the bussard masks with a #11 exacto blade before peeling off the tape:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- All Bussards Unmasked by Steve J, on Flickr

Deflector dish unmasked...

The tape was really stuck down tight but I eventually got the edge to come free to peel it off. 
Then I cleaned the face of the dish with alcohol. 
I’ll try wrapping the rim of the dish (which protrudes from the hull about 1/32”) with copper tape before I attach the photo-etch brass grill to the clear plastic face of the dish:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Deflector Dish Unmasked by Steve J, on Flickr

The brightness of the deflector dish will be toned down quite a bit once I glue the photo-etch grills in place. 
Should still be bright enough though:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- More Unmasking by Steve J, on Flickr

I’ll leave the tape around the saucer rim until I start decaling the upper saucer. Keeps the edge clean while I work on the rest of the ship decals:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- More Unmasking by Steve J, on Flickr

I do like the look of the bussards, reminds me of lave churning although the effect is static for this model:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- More Unmasking by Steve J, on Flickr

Sort of looks like the model box cover:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- More Unmasking by Steve J, on Flickr

Here's a quick video:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Unmasking by Steve J, on Flickr

Unmasking continues. Still need to uncover the impulse engines and upper nacelles.

Stay tuned for the next episode... 
*
Disaster Strikes!*


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

At the risk of being sued by a certain corporation, I'm lovin' it!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Disaster strikes!

Had one of the worst things in electrified modeling happen when I messed up and broke the DC power jack 
in the underside of the secondary hull loose from inside the model when I pressed down too hard on the coaxial DC plug. 
There must have been a slight misalignment between the tubing rings that connected the jack to the mounting 
hole where the coaxial plug display tube plugged in. 😮
My heart sank. 

I would now have to cut open the underside and re-attach the polypropylene 
(or whatever that black plastic is) jack to the inside of the hull plug hole.
Using a razor saw and scribing tool I cut out a rectangular opening around the jack socket in the underside of the model. 

Thank god this happened before I applied the aztec panel decals! 

There it was... the power jack... ripped from its moorings and pushed down into the wiring.
The ease with which the jack broke free confirmed that I needed to come up with a better, stronger mounting point for the model. 
Luckily I left enough slack in the wires to be able to pry the jack up 
and out of the opening I had cut without having to remove it and re-solder the wires. 

I suppose it was a good thing this happened when it did though. 
The joint was weak as it turned out and, I think, would have broken at some point down the road anyway.


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Power Jack Disaster and Rework by Steve J, on Flickr


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

It will be worth the agony in the end.


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## edge10 (Oct 19, 2013)

Chrisisall said:


> It will be worth the agony in the end.


The Agony and the Ecstasy.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Spacer test fit for proper insertion depth using the DC power plug from the base and a spare DC power jack from my stash. 
A box will be constructed around the black plastic jack for the jack in the model to glue into:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Power Jack Disaster and Rework by Steve J, on Flickr

Rather than just gluing the old jack back to the mounting hole 
like before, I decided to improve the entire power/mounting point assembly by building a box to fit around the sides of the jack. 
Here is a spare jack I used to build the new super strong jack with L brackets 
that will be glued to the sides of the black power jack inside the model using Plastic Surgery glue and epoxy:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Power Jack Disaster and Rework by Steve J, on Flickr

New DC power jack mount checked for levelness on base. I also held up the model behind it and it will sit nice and level when the hull piece is glued back into the underside of the model:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Power Jack Disaster and Rework by Steve J, on Flickr

The mounting box is completed for the power jack using styrene sheet, tubing, and AVES Apoxy Sculpt.
It will be glued up and plugged onto the power jack which is still soldered in place inside the model:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Power Jack Disaster and Rework by Steve J, on Flickr

Muuuuch better mounting point after replacing the flimsy jack glue attachment method that broke under stress. Just a few light leaks to fill in around the hull piece I’d had to slice out to make the repair:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Improved Mounting Point by Steve J, on Flickr

The new display mount is much sturdier. No wobble at all on the stand. Here are the unmasked impulse engines:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Impulse Engines Unmasked by Steve J, on Flickr

More to come as I continue cleanup and detailing.


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

That was fast.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Chrisisall said:


> That was fast.
> View attachment 315215


😺 yeah. Once I figured out what was needed the repair only took a day or so.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

That truly sucks Steve.
Hopefully it's just a minor setback. 
-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

JGG1701 said:


> That truly sucks Steve.
> Hopefully it's just a minor setback.
> -Jim G.G.


Oh yeah she’s better than before now,


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

I filled in around the hull part I had had to cut out to effect repair of the DC Power jack mounting point with putty. 
The first putty was water based PPP mixed with black watercolor pushed into the seams to eliminate a few light leaks from inside the model. 
After this dried I filled the seams with AVES Apoxy sculpt To smoothness. 
Next morning I brushed the whole area with more hull color, about 3 coats did the trick. 
It didn’t have to be perfect since the entire thing is covered by an aztec decal but it still looks pretty good I think. 
A much improved stronger mounting point now.:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Repair Complete by Steve J, on Flickr


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Here's some motivation for you Steve. 😀




-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Oh man how could you not be inspired with that opening? I’ve been watching that clip quite a bit and it never gets old.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

I filled in around the hull part I had had to cut out to effect repair of the DC Power jack mounting point with putty. 
The first putty was water based PPP mixed with black watercolor pushed into the seams to eliminate a few light leaks from inside the model. 
After this dried I filled the seams with AVES Apoxy sculpt To smoothness. 
Next morning I brushed the whole area with more hull color, about 3 coats did the trick. 
It didn’t have to be perfect since the entire thing is covered by an aztec decal but it still looks pretty good I think:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Repair Complete by Steve J, on Flickr

After removing the Tamiya tape and cleaning up any primer flakes I placed the PE grills on top and lit ‘em up! Love the even glow I got using the diffuser materials:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Upper Nacelle Blue Panels Unmasked by Steve J, on Flickr

I removed the tiny piece of Tamiya tape masking the quantum torpedo port located just under the front of the Captain’s yacht. 
There was some dried liquid mask as well. After that I touched up around the opening using a fine tipped brush and some 
of the thinned lower hull color:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Quantum Torpedo Cleanup by Steve J, on Flickr

The quantum torpedo port lit up with its blue LED:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Quantum Torpedo Port Lit After Unmasking by Steve J, on Flickr

The blue LED shining thru a thin layer of hull color inside the quantum torpedo port. 
I had planned to clean it up but I may just leave it as is; it serves to mute the brightness which is better I think.
If you look even closer you can see shallow grooves I scribed inside the hole with a pointy scribing tool:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Quantum Torpedo Port Lit - Closeup by Steve J, on Flickr

Tailoring the detail painting to match the decal sheet:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Decal Sheet Comparison by Steve J, on Flickr

Masked and painted around recessed window ports and photorp launcher. The captain’s yacht was painted with metallic black and a mix of light grey enamel and black decal film trimmed to fit the yacht’s warp pylons:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- More Masking by Steve J, on Flickr

Still finishing up detail painting on the Cousteau captain’s yacht. Removed masking after painting the forward secondary hull dual photon torpedo launcher and the window recesses:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Unmasking by Steve J, on Flickr

New decals for the front of the nacelle and RCS thrusters. Courtesy of meatloafr over on All Scale Trek. Meatloafr printed the decals in two sizes and provided plenty of spares. He also printed several iterations of a Nemesis base decal:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Meatloafr Decals by Steve J, on Flickr

After two days of hell I finished the yacht. The gloss will be cut down to satin flatness after the final clear coat:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Captain’s Yacht Gloss by Steve J, on Flickr


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## StarshipClass (Aug 13, 2003)

Looking like a special effects model


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

PerfesserCoffee said:


> Looking like a special effects model


Thanks Perfesser but I hope it looks better than that even. I’ve seen closeups of studio models and often they don’t bear close inspection.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Definitely looks like it belongs in a movie, that's for sure. 
-Jim G.G.


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## StarshipClass (Aug 13, 2003)

Trekkriffic said:


> Thanks Perfesser but I hope it looks better than that even. I’ve seen closeups of studio models and often they don’t bear close inspection.


That particular special effects model was built at the zenith of special effects model making. It was incredibly well detailed from what I've seen of it.

But, yeah, in general, you're exactly right.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

It took me awhile to get the stripes right, I even went back and stripped off some paint layers after too many touch-ups. Finally got it smooth and no brush strokes showing. What a chore:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Cousteau Captain’s Yacht by Steve J, on Flickr

After a few iterations I finally sorted out the Captain’s yacht using some black decal film and a fine liner brush for the black and grey strips.. I did fill in most of the recess around the black arrowhead on the top (actually the bottom of the yacht) with AVES before adding the two trapezoidal black pieces on each side of it using black thin sheet styrene I then used thin white styrene sheet to make what appear to be two small doors, possibly for landing gear, painted medium grey to match the grey stripe. I also repainted the whole assembly of the photorp launcher and the yacht with a slightly darker shade of the light grey I used for the hull. The three rectangles aft of the black arrowhead and fins are black decal material trimmed to fit.
The quantum torpedo port got a little more attention too as I found some more masking tape blocking half the opening. After cleanup the port now has the right shape when lit by the blue LED. This yacht took me 2 days to get done to my satisfaction:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Cousteau Captain’s Yacht by Steve J, on Flickr

Almost done with painting the details that the wallpaper decals don’t address. After I finish painting over the bussard stripes I should finally be ready to do some serious decal application:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Current Status by Steve J, on Flickr

The grey cowlings atop and between the bussard collectors on each nacelle are medium light grey enamel brushed on. The grey stripes that frame the red bussard domes were cut to fit from some light grey stripe decals I had leftover from a previous starship build. I will let them dry after a coat of Solvaset to get them down tight. Then a few coats of Future before I go back and paint over them using a fine liner brush to match the grey enamel of the cowlings. After I finish all the other aztec decaling I will apply the black “tuning fork” decals to the cowlings in the center between the red domes:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Bussard Detailing by Steve J, on Flickr

I used black decal material to make these, what I presume to be, vents on the aft edges of the nacelle struts. Technically they should have rounded ends so I will attempt to punch out some half rounds from the leftover decal I used for the vents. If that doesn’t work I will punch a hole of the correct diameter in a piece of Tamiya tape, cut the holes in halves, and apply them carefully to the ends of the vents before brushing them with flat black enamel:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Pylon Vents by Steve J, on Flickr

I painted over the striped grey decals framing each Bussard collector with a medium grey enamel applied freehand with a fine tipped brush:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Bussard Stripes Painted by Steve J, on Flickr

Detail brushwork on the aztec patterns present on the upper three levels of the saucer superstructure is mostly finished. Now I have masked off the front of the bridge dome before painting it a darker grey aztec. The sides of the bridge structure will also get a aztecing with the same color grey. The two decks below the bridge got a light grey aztec pattern hand painted loosely with little masking to match the look of the aztec pattern shown in the CGI images:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Bridge Aztec Masking by Steve J, on Flickr

I used a mix of the hull color and a dark neutral grey for the darker grey aztec patterns on the bridge. I had to paint the fiber optic flasher strand with hull color then wipe off the tip. The horseshoe aft of the bridge dome was painted with Gunship Grey mixed with black. Have a few windows to clean up on the upper decks then final touch ups before the wallpaper decals go on:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Saucer Aztecing by Steve J, on Flickr

The window ports will look better once they are filled with Krystal Klear. Still I went back and did some minor cleanups, the camera picks up any imperfections of course no matter how small. I have to say I am quite happy with how the bridge aztecing went:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Saucer Aztecing by Steve J, on Flickr

Next up some painting on the nacelle pylons.


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

I love this ship, and you are doing her justice here. My Son & I made the 1/1000. Turned out well, but not like THIS is looking...


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Good Lord Steve!
She's looking great. I am envious of your patience. 
-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Nacelle Strut Paneling Top and Bottom...

The aftermarket decals didn’t have the detail of the CGI model for these grey panels on the leading and trailing edges of the pylons so I masked and painted them on with a brush.:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Nacelle Strut Paneling Top by Steve J, on Flickr


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Nacelle Strut Paneling Bottom by Steve J, on Flickr

Finally... I may be done with detail painting now. Will apply the other strut paneling decals first I think.


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## StarshipClass (Aug 13, 2003)

Wow! Just keeps getting better and better


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Okay, you've convinced me. I am never doing this. But Great Bird Of The Galaxy bless YOU for doing it!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Here I have masked off some medium light grey panels close in along the edge with the bottom of the secondary hull. I will paint to match the grey of the other panels:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Nacelle Strut Paneling Bottom by Steve J, on Flickr


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

After removing the Tamiya tape wrapped around the midsection of the secondary hull for handling purposes, I inspected for areas where paint had gotten worn a bit of which there were a few. 
Fortunately I was able to mix up new batches of the primary hul light grey and the darker secondary hull/nacelle light medium grey to match the colors on the model when brushing up some areas around the shuttle bay. 
I have also masked off the bussard domes in preparation for the clear gloss lacquer coat to come:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Upper Secondary Hull Touchups by Steve J, on Flickr

After unmasking and minor cleanup/touch up with an exacto knife tip, thinner and a micro brush, I am pleased with how these medium grey aztec panels at the bases of the struts turned out:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Bottom Strut Aztec Panels Done by Steve J, on Flickr


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Hope you guys haven't lost interest in this build. 
I know it has been a long time since my last post but, take heart, I can see the finish line now. 
Thanks to everyone who has replied with comments and suggestions.
Here we go...
Finally got warm enough to apply a coat of Glosscote lacquer. Now is time for some serious decal work:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Glosscoted for Decals by Steve J, on Flickr

Light test after first Glosscote:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Glosscoted for Decals Light Test by Steve J, on Flickr

Bow port quarter. I see where some small spots along the rim will need a little hull color touching up when I'm done decaling and before sealing coats: 


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Glosscoted for Decals by Steve J, on Flickr

When she's all done she will have a satin to more flatter finish:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Glosscoted Ready for Decals by Steve J, on Flickr



Above aft ready for decals:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Glosscoted for Decals by Steve J, on Flickr

Various tools/supplies used for decal application. Most are well used:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Decaling Station by Steve J, on Flickr

One new addition I made recently was the purchase of a coffee cup warmer. 
Warm water makes a big difference getting the water slide decal adhesive to release the film from the backing paper prior to sliding 
it into place on the model; reducing this process from an average 10-15 seconds using room temperature water to a mere 5 seconds or less. 
Considering how many decals are involved this is a significant time savings. 
Another item recently purchased is the long metal tray which I got mainly for longer aztec decals like the ones for the nacelles and along the sides of the secondary hull. 

First wallpaper decals went on without a hitch...

The deflector trench looks great:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Trench Decals by Steve J, on Flickr

The upper strut decals went on fine except for a blotch on the starboard strut near the nacelle. 
I fixed that by brushing the decal with liquid decal film under a coat of Future:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Strut Decals by Steve J, on Flickr

The lower strut decals weren’t a perfect fit but close enough for government work:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Strut Decals by Steve J, on Flickr

Next time I should have pics of the lower saucer which I figure to touch the least least after decaling. 
I'll do the secondary hull last, at least the area forward of the nacelle pylons, as I am more likely to grab the model there when changing its position. 
I must remind myself to wear gloves when doing that.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

If you call this "government work'', you are terribly mistaken.
THIS is a work of art if I may say.
Thank you very much for sharing your progress with us.
REALLY!
-Jim G.G.


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Keep on keepin' on, man. This continues to amaze me.


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## StarshipClass (Aug 13, 2003)

This model is like Neil Armstrong walking on the moon, man.  Great stuff! What are you ever going to do that will top this?


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## Milton Fox Racing (May 27, 2014)

Well the odds are pretty high that he did eventually find someone to agree to marry him. 🙃


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Milton Fox Racing said:


> Well the odds are pretty high that he did eventually find someone to agree to marry him. 🙃


 That is true. 42 years and counting . Of course, it helps that she considers me a “model husband”.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Thanks for the comments everyone. It’s nice to know your modeling brethren appreciate the effort I’ve been putting into this. Yesterday I glued the deflector grill in place with Kristal Klear. It looks great all lit up, bright enough without being too bright. I will post more pics later today.


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## Hagoth (Mar 12, 2015)

Somehow got dropped from following this thread. Impressive work here! She is looking fantastic. 
..and the trend is for getting better and better.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

*First* wallpaper decals went on today...

Below are various tools/supplies I use for decal application.
Most are well used.
One new addition I made recently was the purchase of a coffee cup warmer and round metal bowl.
Warm water makes a big difference getting the water slide decal adhesive to release the film from the backing paper prior to sliding it into place on the model; reducing this process from an average 10-15 seconds using room temperature water to a mere 5 seconds or less.
Considering how many decals are involved this is a significant time savings.
Another item recently purchased is the long metal tray
which I got mainly for longer aztec decals like the ones for the nacelles and along the sides of the secondary hull:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Decaling Station by Steve J, on Flickr

The deflector trench looks great IIDSSM:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Trench Decals by Steve J, on Flickr

Lower saucer decals require cutting out the opening for phaser strips using an exacto knife:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Decal Trimming by Steve J, on Flickr

t’s easier to cut the phaser strip opening down the centerline for application on either side of the strip rather than try to position the fragile thin decal film around it:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Decal Sectioning by Steve J, on Flickr

After attempting to place the wet decal I found out the opening needed to be lengthened as the phaser strip was too long, this was the result of my attempt to extend the slot using an exacto knife:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Decal Mods on the Fly by Steve J, on Flickr

I wound up sealing the decal with liquid decal film prior to brushing over the decal with thinned enamel,paint to match the dark grey color of the decal:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Decal Repair Using Enamel Paint by Steve J, on Flickr

The secret to working with these thin, fragile aztec decals is to cut them into smaller sections before application. Openings for the recessed windows on the lower saucer were particularly challengiing. Here I decided to cut the decal material framing the recesses into separate top and bottom pieces and apply them separately rather than as one piece. This also applied to the longer sections between the recesses:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Decali Trimming and Sectioning by Steve J, on Flickr

Today I finished about half of the under saucer aztec decals:

[/url
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2kSq1y8]USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Lower Saucer Aztec Progress by Steve J, on Flickr

After positioning each section using Micro Set decal setting solution I waited 15 minutes to set before brushing them lightly with Solvaset. Unfortunately, a few of the decals were too short leaving gaps at their ends. I will probably fill in the gaps using a few shades of light grey enamel to paint the aztec pattern unless I can find some leftover unused aztec decals from prior builds in my decal remnants stash.

Sorry for some of the longer descriptions. I can get a bit wordy sometimes.

NexI post I have pics of the mostly finished lower saucer aztec and the deflector dish with its grills.

Thanks for posting any comments.


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

THIS is the very definition or perseverance. You are a better man than I, Reman Shinzon.


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## Hagoth (Mar 12, 2015)

This is looking really nice! Very helpful tips with the decals. I thank you in advance for reducing my potential headache.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

If I remember correctly, we are supposed to use the Micro Sol first before applying the decals. 
Then use Micro Set after applying the decals. 
Correct?
-Jim G.G.


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## Milton Fox Racing (May 27, 2014)

No it is the other way around. In most cases you dont need the Micro Sol unless the surface is really irregular or the decals are old.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

JGG1701 said:


> View attachment 316867
> 
> If I remember correctly, we are supposed to use the Micro Sol first before applying the decals.
> Then use Micro Set after applying the decals.
> ...


I misspoke earlier. I am using Micro Set for the initial application. The Micro Sol comes in later for use over areas where the decal won’t lay down tight. Also for use when releasing trapped bubbles. I poke the bubble with a pin to release the setting solution underneath before dabbing on some Micro Sol to shrink it down even tighter.


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Trekkriffic said:


> I misspoke earlier. I am using Micro Set for the initial application. The Micro Sol comes in later for use over areas where the decal won’t lay down tight. Also for use when releasing trapped bubbles. I poke the bubble with a pin to release the setting solution underneath before dabbing on some Micro Sol to shrink it down even tighter.


I converted a Reliant kit into a Bozeman for a client once.... what a freakin' nightmare. I used tons of Micro Sol... It all worked out in the end, and he was happy with it, but wow what a lot of curses were uttered in the process.


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## StarshipClass (Aug 13, 2003)

Incredibly good results.


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## jgoldsack (Apr 26, 2004)

Trekkriffic said:


> *First* wallpaper decals went on today...
> 
> Below are various tools/supplies I use for decal application.
> Most are well used.
> ...



This is exactly when I ended up making my own scans and edits of the decals to eliminate those issues. The decals are good, but leave a lot to be desired.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

OK. Time for an update...

This looks pretty good I think. The brightness is just right from what I can tell. 
Two Testors copper painted brass photo-etch grills nest to form the deflector dish. Glued on with Kristal Klear: 


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Lower Saucer Aztec and Defector Dish by Steve J, on Flickr


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Deflector Dish Aglow by Steve J, on Flickr

Some of the aztec decals were too short, some were a little long. I was able to rob from Peter to pay Paul a few times but there are a few areas I will need to make up my own aztec “decal” to fill in the blanks. Also one stretch of light aztec decal on the upper side face of the phaser strip tore somehow and some decal is missing so I will paint a simple aztec pattern on some leftover clear decal sheet and patch the holes:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Lower Saucer Aztec Touchups by Steve J, on Flickr

The aztec pattern on the decals is very light and not showing much contrast against my hull color soooooo ... 
I am going to go back and add some darker grey spots using a fine tipped brush and a mix of light grey, white, and light sea grey enamel. 
Here are a few I just painted on the existing decal:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Lower Saucer Aztec Retouching by Steve J, on Flickr

Not a bad job IIDSSM. I used a 20/0 pointed brush to make these wing ding type shapes. After a few minutes I scraped the edges using a stubby exacto knife to sharpen and square up the corners. This is not an exact copy of the CGI image but I tried to follow the spacing of the panels with my brush and my own custom shapes. I also tried to mirror the aztec shapes and locations between the port and starboard sides. :


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Lower Saucer Aztec Retouch by Steve J, on Flickr

Next up is sorting out and attaching the upper nacelle warp grills...


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Oh my. I'm amazed by your dedication to this project. As a fan of the Enterprise E I salute you!


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Trekkriffic said:


> OK. Time for an update...
> 
> This looks pretty good I think.


Pretty good?!
You seriously underestimate yourself sir.
She looks FANTASTIC!
-Jim G.G.


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## StarshipClass (Aug 13, 2003)

Chrisisall said:


> Oh my. I'm amazed by your dedication to this project. As a fan of the Enterprise E I salute you!


Verily, I say unto you,Trekkriffic is the high priest of the NCC-1701-E!


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

StarshipClass said:


> Verily, I say unto you,Trekkriffic is the high priest of the NCC-1701-E!


Of this there can be no doubt.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Ahhh do not be so quick to praise me so profusely my fellow modelers! 
This build has been tortuous to say the least, due mostly to my tendency to go juuuuuust a little too far and I end up having to fix my own dumb mistake that I didn't have to make. Must be getting old I guess... maybe not...

Anyway, took a break from decaling to finish installing the upper nacelle grills to the tops of the nacelles.
I had debated decaling the nacelles before doing this work but now I am glad I didn't do any decaling as there has been a ton of touchups and cleanups with the nacelles that I could have easily damaged the aztec decals in the process.
Here now is my saga of the grills or, how to manage something acceptable after some royal screwups on the part of yours truly.

But...I degress... here we go...thanks for listening...

The CGI reference images for the work I would do on the nacelle grills and surrounding areas:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Port Nacelle CGI Screen Cap by Steve J, on Flickr


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Port Nacelle Above CGI Screen Cap by Steve J, on Flickr

After gluing in place with Kristal Klear I puttied any gaps around the grills with AVES Apoxy sculpt.
The putty was an almost perfect color match for the medium grey raised frames around the grills.
I feathered the putty to cover the curved forward and aft sections of the PE grill into the grey raised frames which went really well:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Nacelle Grills Finally Done by Steve J, on Flickr

These will get a brushing with Liquitex Matte Varnish at the end of the build:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Nacelle Grills Installed by Steve J, on Flickr

I am amazed at how good these look lit up. The blue glow is nice and even - no hot spots:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Nacelle Grills Lit After Install by Steve J, on Flickr

I cleaned a little more out between the brass strips.
Once I have the decals on and sealed I will spray the ship with Dullcote which will give the ship a satin semi-gloss finish when applied over the Glosscote clear lacquer sealing coat. I will then brush the grills with Liquitex matte varnish.
t looks really good with a flat finish:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Detail Nacelle Grills Lit After Install by Steve J, on Flickr

These are not perfect but I am surprised how well these turned out after all the touch ups and cleanups I had to do mostly due to my own mistakes. This included the almost unthinkable task of tearing a glued brass photo-etch grill off the clear kit part and respraying the grill with medium grey Krylon primer after I had made a mess of retouching the grill with an inferior brush after it was installed.
Still, the lacquer primer tented to crack off the thin PE strips during installation necessitating more touchups but, after much practice and using a 20/0 very fine tipped brush, I was able to brush the individual brass strips with a very steady hand using medium grey enamel.
Many cycles of retouching and clean out of the clear slots while using a sharpened round toothpick, a fine tipped microbrush, cotton swab, alcohol (not a beer unfortunately), and canned air took place before I was satisfied.
The final matte varnish coat will help too:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Nacelle Grills Lit After Install by Steve J, on Flickr

Next up ... back to decaling. I do not anticipate having to make any more paint touchups.

I know... famous last words.,, shhhhhhhhhh...


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## Hagoth (Mar 12, 2015)

Holly cow! That looks cool! Mistakes along the way aside, the final result here so far is fantastic!

Your appeal to side step praise is hereby dully ignored! 
High praise continues...


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Steve!
You need to get this as part of your base!




__





This item is unavailable - Etsy


Find the perfect handmade gift, vintage & on-trend clothes, unique jewelry, and more… lots more.




www.etsy.com












-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

That’s pretty cool Jim but I can’t see spending the bucks when I’ve already got the base figured out using a decal from meatloafr over on the AST forum made up for me. But that is very cool.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Trekkriffic said:


> That’s pretty cool Jim but I can’t see spending the bucks when I’ve already got the base figured out using a decal from meatloafr over on the AST forum made up for me. But that is very cool.


Well, ya can't blame a guy for trying. 😉
-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

While waiting for Glosscote to fully cure I took these gratuitous images of the main saucer shuttle bay. I do like how the “porch lights” turned out with two bent fiber strands pointing down under the shuttle control room overhang. The second coat of Glosscote went on the nacelles and struts only. 
The masking tape on the strongback is there only to protect the paint from the oils on my hand as it’s the spot where I grab the model most of the time,.
It will come off before I decal the secondary hull which will be the last thing decaled:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Porch Lights by Steve J, on Flickr

I like this angle looking up from under the front of the nacelle. You can even see the ends of the two lit fibers:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Porch Lights by Steve J, on Flickr

Next thing will be decalong the nacelles.


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## Milton Fox Racing (May 27, 2014)

The masking tape doesnt bond to the paint from the heat of your hand as you hold it? (ie how 'temporary' do you leave the tape in place at a time?)


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Milton Fox Racing said:


> The masking tape doesnt bond to the paint from the heat of your hand as you hold it? (ie how 'temporary' do you leave the tape in place at a time?)


No. The paint and gloss clear coat have been cured for weeks before applying the tape. Also it’s Tamiya tape which uses low residue adhesive. The tape‘s main function is to minimize wearing off of the paint along the leading edges of the struts and the lower bottom edge of the impulse engine frames from contact with my fingers. Any oils or residues that do happen to get on the model can be wiped off with a quick pass from an alcohol wipe. This tape has been in place for a month or more during decaling. The important thing is to make sure the paint layers are FULLY cured, usually waiting a week does the trick.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

I gave the nacelle aztec decals a few coats of liquid decal film to thicken and hopefully toughen them up. 
I may lay the individual strips down in sections anyway, easier to handle and squeeze out any water from underneath that way:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Nacelle Aztec Decals by Steve J, on Flickr

meatloafr over on All Scale Trek printed me up several sizes of decals for the RCS thrusters on the saucer 
and nacelles and the black tuning fork that goes on the front between the bussards. 
Saves me from having to paint them on. 
Also he printed me several variations of a Nemesis decal for the base:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - More Decals by Steve J, on Flickr

I was able to glue down a single short piece of the PE nacelle grill that was popping up a tiny bit. 
Hardly noticeable from most angles but naggingly irritating to the perfectionist in me. 
Micro Krystal Klear was applied under the offending 1/4 inch section using a toothpick and 
held down with my clean thumbs at each end until the glue set, about 5 minutes. 
The glue dried clear but I went ahead and cleaned out any excess in the trench either side 
using an exacto knife to slice along the edge of the grill (so as not to grab the glue under the grill as 
well when I picked it out) followed by a quick pass with alcohol on a pointy small cotton swab to dissolve any remaining gunk:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Nacelle Grill Glue Down by Steve J, on Flickr

Taking a slight detour from decals... 

These grills turned out great. Had to spend some time picking out bits of Testors copper enamel 
from the teeny tiny holes with a sharp metal pick but it was worth the effort. The trench aztec decal looks great too:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Deflector Dish Detail by Steve J, on Flickr

And veering way off course...

Gratuitous shot of the finished lower saucer aztec and escape pods. Nice shot of the lit deflector grills too:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Lower Saucer by Steve J, on Flickr

Rest assured I have since gotten back to the task at hand and have but three sections of decal left to complete the nacelle Aztecs. 
Of course I won’t be completely done since the decals didn’t quite fit right so a few will need ... TOUCHUPS! 
So I will end up having to brush paint the areas that need touch ups (or simply to be filled in) with black or medium grey paint. 
First though I will seal the decals with a lacquer gloss coat before applying my paint over, or adjacent to, the decals.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

1 word:
OUTSTANDING!
Question:
Will the thickness of the decals be to thick to be flush with the paint, or will the clear coat make up for that?
-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

JGG1701 said:


> 1 word:
> OUTSTANDING!
> Question:
> Will the thickness of the decals be to thick to be flush with the paint, or will the clear coat make up for that?
> -Jim G.G.


I don’t think the decals will be too thick even when brushed with liquid decal film. They are so thin to begin with. Laying them on over a gloss coat followed by an overspray of the same gloss coat should eliminate any decal film borders. 
I will let you know for sure once I have done the final sealing coat though.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Finished the aztec decals on the nacelles. Just need to add the tuning fork decal to the front and RCS thrusters to the back. Also will add the stripes and registry decals:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Nacelle Decals by Steve J, on Flickr

These grey and black patches up forward fit poorly. I ended up overpainting the black decal section to fill in a gap between it and the grey patch. The black section was also about 1/4 inch too short; and didn’t quite reach the end of the slot in the hull. Anyway, the touchups went well. I sealed the decal with clear gloss lacquer before brushing with thinned black enamel. The enamel was a little darker than the decal so I painted the whole section:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Nacelle Decals by Steve J, on Flickr

Should be finished with the nacelles tomorrow. Then I’ll tackle the upper saucer decals.

🙂


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

I hope that you are going to have a serious display case for this build. 
She deserves it. 😀
Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

JGG1701 said:


> I hope that you are going to have a serious display case for this build.
> She deserves it. 😀
> Jim G.G.


She will go into the big display case with her sisters. Next to the D. I should take a picture of the big case. It’s massive, oak with glass shelves, mirrored back wall, and a sliding glass door. 
Has a skeleton key to lock it.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Awesome. 😀
-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Here’s the display case:


Display Cabinet - Models by Steve J, on Flickr

I think I can squeeze the E in over on the left side in front of the D but we’ll see. I still have an empty shelf on top once I move the Spindrift to the flimsier IKEA glass cabinet upstairs:


Display Cabinet - Top Shelves by Steve J, on Flickr

More cabinet shots here for those interested:









Big Display Cabinet


Photos of my large oak cabinet that houses many of my models.




www.flickr.com


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

That's impressive. Most impressive. Indeed you are powerful as the Admiral has foreseen.  Seriously, that is an incredible body of (hard) work!


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Great representations of your beautiful workmanship Steve. 
Seriously. 😀
-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

The “tuning fork” decals went on between the bussard collectors without too much incident:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Nacelle Fork Decal by Steve J, on Flickr

Yesterday I added Aztecs to the upper bridge superstructure as well as the dark blue dome on top. Not everything you see in this photo is decal though as I did a number of medium grey panels with a brush. The decals fought me from the start and I had to perform some miraculous recoveries refloating with warm water to save a few. The tip of the dark grey “scythe” on the starboard side at the front got irreparably mangled so I will need to either paint or add a section of cadaver decal to restore the tip. No big deal:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Bridge and Superstructure Aztecs by Steve J, on Flickr

The dome decal went on the easiest after I took my time cutting it out from the decal sheet with a sharp exacto knife. 
After positioning and tamp down with a swab using Micro Sol, I brushed it with Solvaset which got rid of any remaining wrinkles of which there weren’t many:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Bridge and Superstructure Aztecs by Steve J, on Flickr

After a few coats of Solvaset:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Bridge and Superstructure Aztecs by Steve J, on Flickr


ST Modeler included these tiny added “window” or “ports” or somethings for added detailing, it also includes the round access ports for the aft end of the main upper superstructure that will fit nicely on the photo-etched:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Extra Detail Decals by Steve J, on Flickr


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

So far so good. The top decals have gone on very well:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Upper Saucer Decals by Steve J, on Flickr

Decided to add the thin black panel lines on top and sides of the main shuttle bay control room in this CGI image using donor decal material:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Control Room CGI Image by Steve J, on Flickr

Using some leftover decal material from a 1/2500 Enterprise D kit I carefully sliced sections of thin black stripes to lay atop the saucer shuttle bay control room:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Donor Decals by Steve J, on Flickr

The black stripes I cut off the leftover donor decal sheet were used to make the panel lines seen on the top and sides of the shuttle bay control room. Using decal material was the only way to make these lines as I could not foresee being able to make such extremely thin lines using a brush. After the decals set I brushed on a coat of Future hence the glossy finish:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Shuttle Bay Control Room Panel Lines by Steve J, on Flickr


Finished up aztecing the upper saucer. Spent an hour poking holes thru the windows openings before giving them all an individual good brushing with Solvaset to shrink the decal film down tight inside the opening prior to filling with Krystal Klear:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Upper Saucer Aztecs Done by Steve J, on Flickr

While working on the saucer I covered the nacelles and the aft end of the secondary hull with a wax paper bag salvaged from an empty box of Cheerios. It fits nicely over the nacelles as well as the saucer to protect the areas already decaled from getting nicked or rubbed:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Wax Paper Bag by Steve J, on Flickr

I like how the Raytheon Effect looks under the decal. Still need to add the RCS thruster decals and the escape pods. Once those are on I’ll spray with Glosscote before applying the ships registry and insignia decals. Also any stripes or additional detail decals:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Upper Saucer Aztecs Lit by Steve J, on Flickr


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Now THAT'S what I'm talking about!!!!!








-Jim G.G.


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## Hagoth (Mar 12, 2015)

Learning a lot from this build log. You have put so much into this. Looking really cool!


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Hagoth said:


> Learning a lot from this build log. You have put so much into this. Looking really cool!


One is never too old to learn from a master, Mr. Kidd.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Here's a video showing current progress...


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Current Status Video by Steve J, on Flickr

Next thing will be aztecs for the upper secondary hull followed by the lower secondary hull. 
Seal entire ship with Glosscote before adding ship’s name and registry decals and stripes. 
And any additional hatches or whatever detail decals I want to add.


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## Hagoth (Mar 12, 2015)

This is looking fantastic. So much work has gone into this and it shows with the results. Wow!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Thanks Hagoth!

Sorry for no posts in awhile Enterprise E enthusiasts. This will be a somewhat wordy post.

I know... you are all shocked! 😱

Here we go...

After finally figuring out what they were, I cut out several of these bits from the ST Modeler decal sheet.
These extremely small markings get spaced evenly around the sides of the phaser strips.
The ends of the phaser strips get a half circular decal and I had already done those.
Honestly, I debated even putting these on but thought they might help add a little scale to the ship if placed carefully and evenly.
So, in for a penny, in for a pound or something like that, and I took the plunge.

Also shown are the sharp pointy tweezers to pick up and soak each individual decal
in warm water and a scribing tool (?) with a screw nut to lock in a measurement, to use for spacing the decals.
This will add hours more to this build as each decal can take up to a minute to pick up, soak, place with a brush, and settle down.
There are 130 decals alone for the long arcing upper and lower phaser strips on the saucer not to mention the others aft and elsewhere:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Tiny Phaser Strip Node Decals by Steve J, on Flickr

There are 66 of these "nodes”, as I am calling them, on the long loop on top of the saucer and 64 on the two on the bottom; at least according to the blueprints of the Sovereign I have seen online.
This image is at the start but it ended up taking me at least 2 hours for this one section and the one opposite it on the port side.
Thankfully it gets faster as you go along and gain experience and can mirror.
I am using a synthetic flat soft brush which is amber colored to pick up and place the decals. The decals show up well against the amber.
Once on the model I position them using the brush and a toothpick, then using MicroSet, I tamp them down with a cotton swab before brushing with Solvaset later:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Tiny Phaser Strip Node Decals by Steve J, on Flickr

I applied Aztecs to the forward lower secondary hull just aft of the deflector dish.
The dark grey recessed panel in front of the phaser strip required three treatments with Solvaset to get it to finally shrink down tight with no air bubbles. You can also see a line of four oblong circles in the middle of the deflector trench I added to match the Soveregn blueprints I found on the internet:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Lower Secondary Hull Aztec Decals by Steve J, on Flickr

Finished applying the upper secondary hull and strongback aztec and panel decals.
Had to trim the black “inverted bell curve” shaped decal to fit the sidewalls of the shuttlebay porch after the Nemesis modifications.
Still need to add spine stripes and the sickle shaped decal in front of the clamshell doors.
Also have a couple of docking ports for the secondary hull to add:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Strongback Aztec and Panel Decals by Steve J, on Flickr

These are the remaining Aztec and panel decals for the sides and underside of the secondary hull:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Last of the Aztec Decals by Steve J, on Flickr

I saved these remnants from when I trimmed the decal to fit the sidewalls I had added to make the Nemesis version of the E,
I should be able to use them as donors to add the borders to the decal on the model:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Strongback Bell Curve Decal Remnants by Steve J, on Flickr

It really helps to cut these larger decals up into sections before soaking and placement. Less chance of the decals ripping, folding, or wrinkling which they tend to do at the slightest provocation:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Strongback Aztec Decal Low Light by Steve J, on Flickr

Next up...

Docking ports and wing dings.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Sorry for the delay in posting my progress. 
I have more pics but I thought I'd save them for later since everyone knows I always try to keep my posts from getting too long and wordy.

Yeah... 

Right... 


Anyway, here we go.

*Docking Ports and Wing Dings...*

Added these three round docking port decals on the sides and back of deck 3. Had to make my own light grey decals in thin strips to lay down on top of the hangar deck in front of the side ports out to wrap over the edge. The aztec decal sheets did not include them so I cut some from my donor decal pile. The transporter pads were placed too. I also added a maintenance hatch just forward of the photorp launcher courtesy of the detail decals. It’s barely visible in the CGI image:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Deck 3 Docking Port and Transporter Emitter Decals by Steve J, on Flickr

Placed the docking port decal on the aft end of deck 3 under the dual photorp launcher:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Deck 3 Aft Docking Port by Steve J, on Flickr

What started off with using decal material ended up being a hand brushed “wing ding” aztec on the lighter band of the upper saucer. I just wasn't satisfied with how faint the decal's aztec pattern was against the light grey of the background. So I used the CGI images to paint some of the shapes a darker medium grey, other shapes I just “winged” it. The pattern is rather random and mostly evenly spaced. I am not going to paint ALL the wing dings, just enough. I’m using MM flat Neutral Grey enamel. What you see took me two hours to do what with painting and touch up with thinner and a microbrush, I estimate it will take about 8 or 10 hours to do the rest of the saucer band:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Upper Saucer Aztec Wing Ding Brushing by Steve J, on Flickr

I decided to finish the starboard side before moving on to the port side. Took about 4 hours. Now I just need to mirror the wing dings so both sides match. If you could make a living painting wing dings, I’d be rich! 


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Upper Saucer Starboard Aztec Wing Dings Done by Steve J, on Flickr

I saved this image at the largest size allowed on my iPad, the better to see all the tiny figures I painted by hand with an 18/0 brush. If you look closely you may find a dog, a duck, a squirrel, a few snakes, and even a tiny TOS Enterprise, all done as "wing dings". 
There are also a lot that look like birds. 
95% of the time, the resemblance was unintentional, I only discovered them after the fact:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Upper Saucer Aztec Wing Dings Mirrored and Done by Steve J, on Flickr

*Moving along...*

Having finished hand brushing the medium grey wing dings in the lightest grey saucer band, I revisited some of the detail decals on the bridge and decks 2 and 3. Added a few access panels to the sides of deck 3 and some others to the bridge and deck 2. Where possible, I chose decals applied to mirror those found on the original studio model:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Upper Saucer Detailing by Steve J, on Flickr

Went back and did a little aztec decaling on the secondary hull forward under and behind the deflector trench. 
The rest of the underside will get decals last:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Forward Secondary Hull Lower Aztecs by Steve J, on Flickr

*Next...*

Painting the "unlit" unopened windows with flat black enamel and filling the lit drilled out window ports with Kristal Klear. 
That should only take 8-10 hours...


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Steve, you have taken model building to a whole new level sir.
-Jim G.G.


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## Hagoth (Mar 12, 2015)

The details upon details upon details...
Wow!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Lots of tiny windows...

The unopened windows were painted with black enamel using a 20/0 brush:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Upper Saucer Windows Painted and Ship Registry Decals by Steve J, on Flickr


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Upper Saucer Windows Painted by Steve J, on Flickr

Next I’ll fill the opened windows with Kristal Klear...

Microscale Kristal Klear is like thick white glue which I used along with a fine 
tipped microbrush, toothpick, and cotton swab to form clear window panes. 
Hmmmm, might be time to get a new vinyl work mat pretty soon:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Kristal Klear by Steve J, on Flickr

A sharp toothpick worked great for filling the window openings with Kristal Klear. 
Sometimes a little minor cleanup with water and a microbrush was needed but not every time. 
After I was finished I noticed a side benefit to using the Kristal Klear. 
Earlier during the window drilling phase, I had pushed a small piece of clear styrene too far into one of the lower saucer 
window ports and it had fallen inside of the model where it would rattle around whenever I tilted the saucer one way or the other.
This bothered me but I did not want to have to open the model up to retrieve it or have to drill a large hole and hope it fell out. 
Using the thick, sticky, white glue that Kristal Klear is to fill dozens of windows in the saucer turned out to be the answer. 
The little clear plastic piece must have gotten stuck to some of the glue that would have leaked inside the model and now 
when I twist and turn the model the annoying rattle is gone! Nice!


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Toothpick Glue Applicator and No More Rattle by Steve J, on Flickr

All closed windows on the saucer have been painted black top and bottom. 
Then I started filling each open window with unthinned Kristal Klear starting with 
the slotted ports on the back of the bridge followed by the windows on decks 2 and 3. 
You can see fresh KK in the window slots along the back of deck 3 between the docking ports in this image:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Window Filling by Steve J, on Flickr

I brushed each of the unopened, undrilled window ports with flat black enamel using an 18/0 brush. 
The upper saucer took about 4 hours to do. The open, drilled ports are filled with Krystal Klear which dries clear in about 20 minutes. 
You can see some of the fresh KK in the rim windows to the left which look milky white. 
The KK in the windows along the rim to the right has dried clear:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Black Windows by Steve J, on Flickr

Next... Some strongback detailing.


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## Milton Fox Racing (May 27, 2014)

Nice detail work!

Are you going to frame and hang the old one? Looks like a lot of good memories can be found their!


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Questions:
Will the K K dry flush with the model or would have to apply it again to be flush? I'm just asking because the K K windows look a little recessed. Also after you spray a dull clearcoat, the K K windows will appear to be opaque to help diffuse the light more. Correct?
Thanks, 
-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

JGG1701 said:


> Questions:
> Will the K K dry flush with the model or would have to apply it again to be flush? I'm just asking because the K K windows look a little recessed. Also after you spray a dull clearcoat, the K K windows will appear to be opaque to help diffuse the light more. Correct?
> Thanks,
> -Jim G.G.


Yes. The glue tends to shrink as it dries so I have gone back and added glue to windows that were particularly deeply recessed. As far as Dullcote goes, yes, it should increase the opacity of the clear windows a bit more which will be a good thing for eliminating any remaining bright spots of which there arent too many even now. Once I have all the decals on I will go back and give the windows a once over after which I will apply the finish coats of lacquer.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Milton Fox Racing said:


> Nice detail work!
> 
> Are you going to frame and hang the old one? Looks like a lot of good memories can be found their!


Thanks very much but I’m not sure what you mean. Please elaborate.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Trekkriffic said:


> Yes. The glue tends to shrink as it dries so I have gone back and added glue to windows that were particularly deeply recessed. As far as Dullcote goes, yes, it should increase the opacity of the clear windows a bit more which will be a good thing for eliminating any remaining bright spots of which there arent too many even now. Once I have all the decals on I will go back and give the windows a once over after which I will apply the finish coats of lacquer.


Thank you Steve, I appreciate your prompt reply. 
-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Time for more tortuous progress my long suffering friends...

I cut these tiny bits of red decal film to place on the top of the secondary hull as shown in the CGI image. 22 altogether to place on the teeth of the “combs” on either side of the spine:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Tiny Red Rectangles by Steve J, on Flickr

I cut the tiny red rectangles rom leftover decal material. I used my pointy tweezers to soak them in warm water, then I used a microbrush to position them carefully on what I am calling “combs” on each side of the longer of the two raised spines running down the middle of the strongback atop the secondary hull:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Little Red Strongback Dots by Steve J, on Flickr

I added a few more panels using my donor decals to complete the strongback decaling:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Strongback Decals Done by Steve J, on Flickr

Lower secondary hull panel and aztec decals. The big one around the power jack hole developed a few wrinkles that would not straighten out until I hit her with 3 treatments of Solvaset. Still there are some minor stripes of white that I will need to retouch with Gunship Grey where I wore away the ink with my thumbs trying to get out the wrinkle out. No big deal, I had to retouch these same dark grey toned areas on the saucer decals already and I should be able to blend the paint in pretty easily once I coat the decal with Future and give it a day to dry. Also, these are where the escape pods are located which will cover up most of the areas I’m touching up! 
Still need to apply the aft lower side aztec decals and the aztec decals will be DONE! Ahahahaha! DONE!!!


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Lower Secondary Hull Decaling by Steve J, on Flickr

Later...

The CGI model had some additional light grey striping around the lower aft of the secondary hull. They partly surround the raised “bullet” shaped area under the aft shuttle bay. Here I have masked off and painted the starboard stripe with neutral grey enamel. The masking was made easier when I found the decal paper in my trash that the aztec panel decal for that area had slid off of. I used it as a template for cutting the thin strips of Tamiya masking tap:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Aft Secondary Hull Stripe Detailing by Steve J, on Flickr

After removing the masking tape. I used a microbrush and some weak thinner to clean up the edges and touched up some sections with a 20/0 brush but this went quite well I thin:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Aft Secondary Hull Stripe Unmasked by Steve J, on Flickr

After allowing the paint to dry I used tracing paper to copy the shape of the grey stripe “horn” at the forward end of the starboard stripe.
I will flip it over for use as the port side template for cutting a piece of Tamiya tape. This will save me 15-20 minutes at least:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Aft Secondary Hull Detail Tracing by Steve J, on Flickr

Port horned stripe after masking and ready for paint:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Aft Secondary Hull Stripe Masking by Steve J, on Flickr

The secondary hull Aztecs are done which means all the aztec decals are on the model! Also the escape pods decals were applied. All I have left are stripes and ship name and registry decals for the nacelles and the pennants for the sides of the secondary hull and any detail decals I want to place here and there. Oh and I need to paint the black windows on the lower hull and fill with Kristal Klear then do any touch ups to windows that need more KK:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Aft Secondary Hull Lower Aft Aztecs and Escape Pods by Steve J, on Flickr

Now have to fill lower secondary hull windows with KK and paint the others black. Then add the last decals before applying final clear coats:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Ventral Aztecs Done by Steve J, on Flickr

Next up will be application of registry and pennant decals and then detailing.


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## Milton Fox Racing (May 27, 2014)

Your patience and attention to detail is amazing! The end results are impressive.


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## edge10 (Oct 19, 2013)

You really need to get a hobby!

Really nice work.


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## Hagoth (Mar 12, 2015)

This is such impressive work! I'm now looking for details I never knew to look for.


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## electric indigo (Dec 21, 2011)

This thread is like watching the Sistine Chapel in the making!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Hagoth said:


> This is such impressive work! I'm now looking for details I never knew to look for.


If you like details you're going to love my next post.

Steve


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Dorsal aztecs and windows done...

Will need to go over the saucer windows again with Kristal Klear to fill any that look too deep after the first treatment; not unexpected and should go quickly with all the practice I’ve had making windows:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Dorsal Aztecs and Windows Done by Steve J, on Flickr

Decals all on and windows filled again. Will get started on the base tomorrow:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - All Decals Done by Steve J, on Flickr

Pennant and registry decals applied. Additional KK added to any windows that needed it. Did a little more pointing up here and there. 
I’ll go back and see if I want to add any more of the detail decals. 
Then she’ll get her clearcoats followed by anything I want to do with Tamiya pastels. 
I may not do anything with weathering though. Need to work on the base soon:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - All Decals Done by Steve J, on Flickr

Details... 

Used the aftermarket detail decals for the two hatches forward of the aft facing dual torpedo launcher. 
This matches the detailing seen on the Insurrection studio model:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Hatch Details by Steve J, on Flickr

Used a decal from my donor pile. A little round window from the 1/1000 scale PL Romulan Bird of Prey kit. 
It frames the aft dorsal shuttle bay beacon nicely. I used another one for the beacon on the ventral side:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Aft Upper Beacon Detail by Steve J, on Flickr

Used the aftermarket detail decals. These red oblongs match the detailing seen on the Insurrection studio model. 
I am going to add some donor pile and detail decals to the shuttle bay 2 doors I think:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Pylon Vent Detail by Steve J, on Flickr

Used the aftermarket detail decals trimmed to make a decal with four black lines for the grill below the deflector dish. 
These match the detailing seen on the Insurrection studio model:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Deflector Housing Grill Detail by Steve J, on Flickr

Used the red lozenge shaped aftermarket detail decals. This matches the detailing seen on the Insurrection studio model:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Shuttle Bay 1 Control Room Details by Steve J, on Flickr

Used the aftermarket decal for the dorsal bow transporter emitter pads:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Transporter Emitter Pad Details by Steve J, on Flickr

Used the aftermarket detail decals to match the round docking ports seen on the sides of the CGI model. 
There is one on each side just above the pennant stripes:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Docking Port Detail by Steve J, on Flickr

Next up... Detailing shuttle bay 2's doors.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

My setup for decaling and detailing using foam padding, an old t-shirt, and wax paper to keep off dirt and whatever is on my dirty workbench.
I need to do some serious cleaning after this build is done:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - E from Astern in Wax Paper dock by Steve J, on Flickr

image of the “Insurrection” studio model stern:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Studio Model Shuttle Bay Doors by Steve J, on Flickr

Using the photo above I added detailing to the shuttle bay doors and aft end. I also repainted them a slightly darker shade of grey.
Good use was made of my donor decal stash and the detail decals too for the thinner black strips
and wing dings... or whatever those little red oblongs are in the corners:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Shuttle Bay 2 Door Detailing by Steve J, on Flickr

I don’t think I posted a good closeup of the new tapered inverted bell curve shaped decal I had to modify to fit the more smooth
Nemesis saucer to secondary hull transition zone I sculpted from AVES.
Anyway I was pleased to be able to adapt the white border pieces from the trimmed bits to frame the new pointed tips.
You can also see the little L-shaped decals I added to the corners of the metallic black impulse engine vent frames:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Secondary Hull Bell Curve by Steve J, on Flickr

Starting work on the base, Mixed up some AVES Apoxy Sculpt and packed it around the power jack and the bottom
of the aluminum display tube, a metal washer came in handy too.
It’ll be painted gloss black with a custom decal I got from meatloafr over on the All Scale Trek site:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Base Puttied by Steve J, on Flickr

I used some donor decal material to add some panels and dark lines on the sides and around the photorp barrels:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Photorp Launcher Detailed by Steve J, on Flickr

I gave the base 2 coats of Future floor wax. May get 1 more:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Base Done and Futured by Steve J, on Flickr

The base has gotten three coats of Future. The ship has had as many or more. All decals are on aside from a few niggling detail decals here and there. I’ll finish that today and apply the finishing clearcoats. I figure no Glosscote with all the Future but about three coats of Dullcote might be needed to bring her down to a more satin finish:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Glossy Ship and Base by Steve J, on Flickr

Finally found a good use for the brass photo-etch Enterprise insignia leftover from a prior set of Paragrafix PE:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Glossy Ship and Base by Steve J, on Flickr

I keep saying this but... just a few more little things and she gets her final clear coats.
Then I'll get the camera, table, and lights set up for her finished shots.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

The flashing starboard formation light got a dollop of neon green enamel using a toothpick. This is done top and bottom on the saucer:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Formation Light Detailed and Painted by Steve J, on Flickr

The flashing port formation light got a tiny dollop of fluorescent red enamel using a toothpick. This is done top and bottom on the saucer. You can also see the TOS enterprise wing ding in this pic:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Formation Light and Ent Wing Ding by Steve J, on Flickr

Love how the deflector dish glow turned out… and the Raytheon Effect… and the base:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Glossy Ship and Base by Steve J, on Flickr

Gratuitous shot. Love those porch lights:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Final Pointing Ups by Steve J, on Flickr

Oh yeaaaah.This marathon build is almost done...I can feel the tape of the finish line pulling on me now...


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

OK. One more thing ... 

I used this CGI image of the lower impulse vent frame’s grey panels for reference:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - CGI Impulse Vent Panels by Steve J, on Flickr

Using white decal paper painted previously with the lighter hull color, I cut a thin strip to fit each of the lower frames of the impulse engine vents then masked along the edge before painting two shades of grey stripes using a mix of white and neutral grey:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Impulse Vent Panel Decal Painting by Steve J, on Flickr

After applying the decals to the lower impulse vent frames an enamel clear coat was brushed over the top. I’ll let the clear coat dry overnight then brush on a few coats of Future. This was the last item left on my detailing list. All that’s left are the clear finishing coats and this beauty is DONE!


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Impulse Vent Grey Panels by Steve J, on Flickr

Sprayed the underside with flat lacquer. I’ll spray the top next after I fix a few of the red striped spine decals by adding new red stripe pieces on top. The ones on the model are a little thin in spots:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Ventral Dullcote by Steve J, on Flickr

The top was sprayed with flat lacquer. All glossiness is gone now which means she should take some great photos I think; better than a semi-gloss finish too. After it dried I placed the model back on the stand. Just need to set up and take the finished pics with my DSLR camera:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Dorsal Dullcoted by Steve J, on Flickr

She looks great with her flat coat:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Undersaucer Matte Finish by Steve J, on Flickr

The Dullcote’s dullness blends the different shades of grey as a unifying layer. Looks good from so many angles:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Under Secondary Hull Matte Finish by Steve J, on Flickr



Here you can see some of the detail decals added like hatches, small panels, and the detail added to the shuttle bay 2 doors:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Aft Secondary Hull Matte Finish by Steve J, on Flickr

Here you can see the tiny warning markers along the phaser strips:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Upper Saucer Matte Finish by Steve J, on Flickr

Almost finished but really 99% done:


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP - Teasers by Steve J, on Flickr

More to come with finished photos and a video.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Looking forward to the video Steve!
-Jim G.G.


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## StarshipClass (Aug 13, 2003)

Holy moly! That is SCARY good!


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Is she finished?
Patiently waiting for a video. 
-Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

JGG1701 said:


> Is she finished?
> Patiently waiting for a video.
> -Jim G.G.


Almost. I wasn’t satisfied with some of the transporter pads. The decals apparently were inkjet printed making them more transparent than those printed with a laser jet. When laid over a dark background they disappeared, in particular the pads under the secondary hull just behind the forward photon torpedo launcher. Also, the wing shaped pads on the bow of the saucer somehow got marred; I tried fixing them with paint, they look okay but not great. Soooo… I contacted my decal guy (meatloafr) over on All Scale Trek and he is printing me up some sets of laser jet printed transporter pads along with some additional detail decals, stripes, etc. We went back and forth a few times getting the size and color just right and they are ready to print now so I should hopefully have them very soon and be able to lay them on over the top of the existing decals. Being laser jet printed they will be more opaque so they will not disappear or allow the underlying aztec decal pattern to show thru. Then it will be time for final photos and a video.


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## jkirk (Feb 19, 2020)

Brings a tear to me eye....


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Just paid for the decals yesterday. Should hopefully have them later this week or early next to complete the build.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Just heard that my decals have shipped. Yahoo!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Got the decals last week and they weren’t quite right. The transporter pads lacked the thin horizontal grill lines that the sample images my decal guy had sent me previously for approval had. They just looked like blank yellow pads. After contacting him he admitted he had not examined them closely enough before shipment and surmised that the thin grill lines had shrunken so much they became virtually invisible to the naked eye. He reprinted them with thicker lines before shrinking them down to their final 1/1400 scale size and they turned out fine. He sent them out 2 days ago. He also included some ship damage/scorch mark decals on the sheet for if I ever decide to do a battle damaged ship. 
They arrived this afternoon and the pads look great now, 
I’ll put them on the model tomorrow and then wait a day for them to dry completely before sealing them with Dullcote.
Here are some photos of the decal sheets for those who enjoy looking at decals.

Transporter emitter pads in two sizes, whichever fits the E best:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Custom Decals by Steve J, on Flickr

Miscellaneous hatches, docking ports,, sensor pads, etc: 

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Custom Decals by Steve J, on Flickr

I think I have enough of these to detail a fleet of starships now! 😊

Scorch marks for that battle damaged look:

USS Enterprise E - Nemesis-WIP- Custom Decals by Steve J, on Flickr

Maybe I’ll finally get around to building the wreck of the Constellation someday. 
That and/or the Enterprise C.


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Thanks for the update Steve!😀
Jim G.G.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Finally got around to taking some photos with my garage camera setup. I have four videos but have to look them over and see if they are worth posting. 
Hope you like the pics...


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis - Finished Image by Steve J, on Flickr


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis - Finished Image by Steve J, on Flickr


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis - Finished Image by Steve J, on Flickr


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis - Finished Image by Steve J, on Flickr

I do love the porch lights...


USS Enterprise E - Nemesis - Finished Image by Steve J, on Flickr

More pics here on page 5 of my Flickr album:









USS Enterprise NCC-1701-E


My build of the AMT/Ertl 1/1000 scale USS Enterprise E. Built as the version seen in "Star Trek: Nemesis."




www.flickr.com


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

You have really outdone yourself with this build Steve. Needs to be put on top shelf under glass.😀
Looking forward to rhe videos. Add some Star Trek music in background too.
-Jim G.G.


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## Milton Fox Racing (May 27, 2014)

Very nice images. The over head view of it appeared in my flikr feed this past weekend - just an awesome image and view point! 🤙


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## jkirk (Feb 19, 2020)

You're attention to detail never fails to amaze me!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

jkirk said:


> You're attention to detail never fails to amaze me!


Thanks Jim!

If you guys want to see the higher resolution (3300 x 2000 approx) images go to the Imgur link below:



http://imgur.com/a/jr3ReXS


You can really zero in on the details.


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## jkirk (Feb 19, 2020)

I have to agree, the porch lights are cool!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Milton Fox Racing said:


> Very nice images. The over head view of it appeared in my flikr feed this past weekend - just an awesome image and view point! 🤙


Thanks, the overhead shot seems to be very popular.


USS Enterprise NCC-1701-E from Nemesis High Resolution by Steve J, on Flickr


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## electric indigo (Dec 21, 2011)

This is a work of art! Congratulations!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

electric indigo said:


> This is a work of art! Congratulations!


High praise indeed. I blush.


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## Chrisisall (May 12, 2011)

Trekkriffic said:


> High praise indeed. I blush.


You CRUSHED it, dude! (Universal translator: Perfection has been presently achieved)


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Chrisisall said:


> You CRUSHED it, dude! (Universal translator: Perfection has been presently achieved)


Oh pshaw… It has a few blemishes so not quite perfect but… her good angles predominate. Now if I built another one, now, that one would br perfect. 😊


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

JGG1701 said:


> You have really outdone yourself with this build Steve. Needs to be put on top shelf under glass.😀
> Looking forward to rhe videos. Add some Star Trek music in background too.
> -Jim G.G.


Thanks Jim. I debated whether to share these two bad videos or not. 
I characterize them as bad merely because they were made at the end of a four hour photo session in my cold garage hence they suffered somewhat from the barking of my old knees and back. So, be forewarned, they really aren't as good as I eventually intend them to be. In other words, enjoy them for what they represent... grist for the mill.


USS Enterprise NCC-1701-E from Nemesis Bad Video 001 by Steve J, on Flickr


USS Enterprise NCC-1701-E from Nemesis Bad Video 002 by Steve J, on Flickr


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

Outstanding!
Thanks for the videos 🙂
-Jim G.G


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## jkirk (Feb 19, 2020)

Did you use the StarCraft pylons by any chance? You inspired me to rebuild my E and was wondering if the cast pylons would warp under the weight of the nacelles.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

jkirk said:


> Did you use the StarCraft pylons by any chance? You inspired me to rebuild my E and was wondering if the cast pylons would warp under the weight of the nacelles.


No. I decided to go with the kit pylons.


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