# Lighted 1/2500 Constitution Refit Enterprise



## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

I've slowly started to get moving on the next project as I wait in between paint coats on TOS E... taking the lessons learned from my TOS Enterprise build and moving onto one of my all time favorite Star Trek ships the Enterprise A. 
 

Thanks to my newly acquired SMD LED's, I'm planning on using 12 LED's, 3 LED's in each major section of the ship. On top of this I plan to include a botany deck, officer's lounge, and possibly even a shuttle bay... 

This is my progress with making the botany deck. 
 
 
 
 

I used this broken piece of plastic and some Tamiya modeling tape to experiment with using Realistic Water to make windows. I think it turned out decent, and on the ship I'll use bare metal foil to seal it off so I get a smoother finish. 
 

Thanks for looking, I'll have more updates up later. I would like some help from my fellow modelers though... I need ideas with how to come up with an accurate lighted deflector dish. The dish that comes on the model is perfectly flat, and I'd like to have a concave dish that's thin enough to allow an LED to shine through it.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

harristotle said:


> I would like some help from my fellow modelers though... I need ideas with how to come up with an accurate lighted deflector dish. The dish that comes on the model is perfectly flat, and I'd like to have a concave dish that's thin enough to allow an LED to shine through it.


When I built my 1/2500 refit I used a round router bit in my small battery operated "dremel" to make the dish concave. Being battery powered it spun at a slower speed than my larger dremel giving me more control so I didn't remove too much material all at once. the router head was abiut the same diameter as the dish so it worked really well. 

Here's a pic showing the dish:


1701-A Deflector and Photorp Launcher Detail by trekriffic, on Flickr

Mine was done using Absolute Models aztec decals. No lighting like yours will have.

Love the tiny arboretum by the way.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

PERFECT! I don't know why I didn't think of that, I already use my dremel to grind out the inside, I'll just have to use the ball head. Unfortunately, mine is not battery operated, but I've gotten used to being very precise withe grinder and the plastic. 

Thank you! If I get the work done today that I'd like (real work, not fun work) I'm going to try and start working on the shuttle bay. I need to get some sheet styrene though. 

My other issue is figuring out a means to light the nacelles. I can't find cathodes small enough to wedge inside there. The trouble with LED's is getting an even light across the grid that's not spotted where the lights are. One idea I'm toying with is cutting the grid out and gluing fiber optic cables in a row together to get the texture and have some transparency that will distribute light.


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## jgoldsack (Apr 26, 2004)

if you are any good at making cast you could always try castings the nacelles in clear as a solid piece, and embed an LED inside it while it cures, which, in theory, should light the whole piece since it is so small.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

jgoldsack said:


> if you are any good at making cast you could always try castings the nacelles in clear as a solid piece, and embed an LED inside it while it cures, which, in theory, should light the whole piece since it is so small.


That would be the way to go for sure. Trying to drill out the space between the grills would be a nightmare. And drilling out the grill and replacing with a clear piece woudl be challenging because of the concavity.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Unfortunately I won't be able to go that route right now. The startup cost for all the micro lighting, combined with the planned purchase of an airbrush mean something like casting will have to wait till a later time. 

Like I mentioned above, I may try the fiber optic route, or I may just make do with what I have. I've already ground down the inside of the nacelles and saucer. What I might do is paint the whole grill blue, then go back over the raised parts of the grill with black...


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## robn1 (Nov 17, 2012)

You could try back lighting the white plastic, it may show through well enough for the nacelles. And it should diffuse the LEDs too.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

robn1 said:


> You could try back lighting the white plastic, it may show through well enough for the nacelles. And it should diffuse the LEDs too.


That's plan A, I'm just trying to find a better way to do it. I've already ground the plastic down in that area. I may cut that portion out and fill it with Realistic Water, then just apply the decal over that, just not sure if that will be too bright. 

Spent a bit of time working on the refit today. I've got 95% of the holes drilled for windows. Right now I'm working on getting the grooves cut for the saucer edge lights. I need to bite the bullet and cut open the hanger bay too. I think I may cut the secondary hull in half to allow me to work better on the hanger bay...


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Now that TOS E is done, I've focused on the refit full time. When I build models I gather as many pictures as I can for reference. I am having a seriously hard time finding good picture references for the hanger bay. I know I'm going to be terribly limited as it stands simply due to the small size, but I'd still like to get as close as I can. SO if anybody has some good pictures or references for the Constitution Refit hanger, even if they're of models, I would greatly appreciate some help in this area!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

harristotle said:


> Now that TOS E is done, I've focused on the refit full time. When I build models I gather as many pictures as I can for reference. I am having a seriously hard time finding good picture references for the hanger bay. I know I'm going to be terribly limited as it stands simply due to the small size, but I'd still like to get as close as I can. SO if anybody has some good pictures or references for the Constitution Refit hanger, even if they're of models, I would greatly appreciate some help in this area!


I did a search on Google under "Enterprise Refit Hangar Bay" and got lots of good pictures for reference.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Trekkriffic said:


> I did a search on Google under "Enterprise Refit Hangar Bay" and got lots of good pictures for reference.


I've probably tried five different search terms with no good results. Naturally the one I didn't think of produces all the results lol. Thank you!


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Quick little update for tonight... 

I used masking tape to mark where I wanted to open the hull up for the gallery windows to the botanical gardens. 
 

I used the dremel to open up the hull, then I went back with a needle file and smoothed the edges. I also saved the masking tape to help mark off the masks to cover the windows, once I put them in. 


I'm hoping to make a lot of progress this weekend.


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## Garbaron (Apr 23, 2004)

Now that is something different .. I know that kit and know how tiny it is .. kudos for attempting what you are doing!


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Garbaron said:


> Now that is something different .. I know that kit and know how tiny it is .. kudos for attempting what you are doing!


Thank you! This job has proved to be incredibly challenging. The nacelle changes, and lighted deflector dish, combined with more windows and my attempts to have an open hangar and lighted botanical gardens and officers lounge have made this exponentially more difficult than TOS E! 

Painted the exterior of the hull and spots where I need light leak, such as the nacelles and deflector, with liquid mask. I forgot to take pictures, but you can see that I made the cut on the secondary hull to open the hangar. 
 
 

Then painted the interior black for light blocking. 
 

And lastly, painted it gloss white for light reflection. 
 

Didn't paint the saucer yet because I'm still drilling holes and scribing lines for windows. 

A good portion of the day has been spent practicing soldering these tiny LED's and resistors. This is tough stuff! Below is my first attempt at a simple circuit with 1 LED.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Quick little update. After going back and opening the windows back up in the secondary hull I put it together and stuck an LED inside to see how things looked... 
 

Also, after success with my simple single light series, I tackled a more complex set. I hooked up a 1 LED, 2 LED, and 3 LED series configuration in parallel with each other to both practice my skills, and ensure that things lit up like I had planned they would. It's not pretty, but here's the setup unlit. 


And lit 
 

Just in this short bit of time practicing I've noticed my solder joints happening faster and getting smaller.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

My god man are you mad! A hangar bay??? Next you'll tell us your making a shuttle for the bay with working lights!

Nice job on soldering those teenie-tiny LEDs.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Funny you say that... I was planning on attempting a lit shuttle exiting the bay. My only thing would be figuring out how to light it. It's not like the TOS shuttles where it's basically a box with easily lit mini nacelles on the bottom. 

I'm not opposed to doing it, I had just kind of accepted that that might be a little bit too much lol 

Thanks on the LED's! It's definitely a new kind of challenge. Thank God for magnifying glasses!


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Finished up drilling the windows and scribing the trenches for the fiber optics on the saucer section. 
 

Taped them to my trusty painting stick (this thing has like 8 years worth of paint build up on it) and sealed the outside and a few crucial interior points with liquid mask. 
 
 

Then painted the light blocking coat. 
 

Followed by the light reflecting coat for light distro inside the saucer.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Quick little update going into the weekend... 

Both nacelles have the initial light blocking done inside, and are ready for the LED's. 
 

All the little pieces of the project. You can see where I've started work for the shuttle bay in the secondary hull.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

I can just imagine how your weekend will be... to quote Steve Martin...

"I'll be home, sitting with my friends, and, uh.. we'll be sitting around, and somebody will say, "Heeeyyy.. let's get small!"


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## DCH10664 (Jul 16, 2012)

This is so cool !!! :thumbsup:


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Trek, if I could, this project would be so much easier. Heck, at that point I could do a full interior on her! 

Thank you DCH! 

Time for the shuttle bay! I started out by painting the area gray, then putting in the fiber optics. I was shooting for a shuttle bay based off of The Final Frontier (yes, I hate that movie too, to include the lack of proper scale of the bay) simply because it was the easiest to semi accomplish in this scale. 
 

Then I molded the back wall out of putty, painted it, then drilled the holes for the fiber optics. 
 

You can see the inside lights lit up. I was trying to achieve the two garage type structures (portraying them as if they were open to emit light) and the traffic control type post above the bay, but it didn't turn out the best. Also, there should be 2 bays on each side of the main hangar, but due to size limitations at this scale I was only able to pull off 1 bay on each side. 


Once that was set, I used a toothpick to paint the markings on the landing deck as well as the line up the middle of the bay. 
 


And then I decided that the whole hangar painted that dark shade of gray made it look like a cave when it was all put together, so I painted the walls/roof white to help lighten things up and better reflect the light from the fiber optics.


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## Fozzie (May 25, 2009)

To even attempt this at that scale is utter madness...to actually succeed is amazing! :thumbsup:


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Fozzie said:


> To even attempt this at that scale is utter madness...to actually succeed is amazing! :thumbsup:


I really appreciate that! After all this work with detailing interior decks and adding lighting I might lose my mind if I mess up the paint and decals lol 

One of the features I'm adding into this model is an officer's lounge. Below you can see the piece of plastic (bottome right) I cut out to build it on. 
 

I painted the floor gray, and added a very small piece of wire for the sofa. You can see it in the middle of the right side of the picture. 
 

And then, top middle in this one, you can see I painted the back wall white, the sofa red, and added little plants to either side of the sofa. 
 

I will leave a gap between the roof of the saucer and the back wall to allow reflected light to illuminate the lounge. 

I apologize for not having better close up pictures but my camera can't take the close ups required to do this model justice.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

harristotle said:


> I apologize for not having better close up pictures but my camera can't take the close ups required to do this model justice.


What you need is an in-scale crewman armed with an in-scale camera to take some closeups for you.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Trekkriffic said:


> What you need is an in-scale crewman armed with an in-scale camera to take some closeups for you.


Haha, that would certainly help! 

As I get closer to assembly, paint has been on my mind. I just ordered my airbrush Sunday, so this will be my first airbrush project. I plan on doing a bit of practice before I tackle this though. With all this work, I don't want to screw up the paint. 

For the paint scheme I've decided not to use the kits aztec decals. The aztec pattern just seems too bold to me for this scale of a model, plus trying to work the full decals with the fiber optics would be a true nightmare. 

What I'm thinking of doing is a black primer to help eliminate any light leaks that might be left, plus when the fiber optics are cut, the black will look better when the lights are off than a light gray primer would I think. Next I was thinking of a base coat of white, followed by a pearl white. I'd still be using the decals for the details, strongback, and deflector housing. 

Also, not sure if I should seal it off with a gloss or dull coat. Seems like I've read where both would be accurate to the Refit?.. 

Any thoughts people have on this route I'd be interested to hear. Thanks!


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

You'll wonder how you ever got along without an airbrush once you get the hang of using one. I like the idea of black primer rather than grey. It will light block better I think. As far as the hull color I'd start off with a good white fine surface primer like Tamiya lacquer. If you spray it on over the black primer though, assuming the black is enamel based, I would spray on an acrylic clearcoat to act as a barrier layer before spraying with the Tamiya. Or give the enamel 3-4 days to fully cure before giving it a quick shot overall with the Tamiya. Either way, the Tamiya dries so fast it really shouldn't harm the underlying black enamel if you give it multiple light passes with the white lacquer. Testors gloss pearl clearcoat would work well for a pearlescent finish (I used it on my 1/1000 Refit) but it sounds like you already have a pearl white paint in mind so, in that case, pearl clearcoat might be overkill. 
For the final finish you may want to consider a semi-gloss clearcoat.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

I honestly don't have a paint in mind, so all the advice you can give would be appreciated! Where would I be able to find all these paints? Never had a need to shop for airbrush paints before haha. The best things I've got available are Hobby Lobby and Michael's. The closest hobby shops are like an hour drive for me. I also don't mind ordering online either. 

What's the difference between enamel, acrylic, and laquer and what impact would they have on each other? 

I'm assuming for decal application I could put the decals onto the pearl clearcoat, then shoot another coat of gloss clearcoat over it before the final finish? 

I appreciate the help! :thumbsup:


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

For tutorials on paints and supplies you may want to visit The Clubhouse:

http://theclubhouse1.net/phpBB3/index.php

You'd need to get set up as a member but it's easy and there is a lot of good information in the Painiting and Sculpting Tutorials section.

For instance, here's a list of paints for brush or airbrush:

Paint for a Brush 
1) Poly Scale 
2) Delta 
3) Liquitex 
4) Winsor and Newton Oils 
5) Humbrol enamels 
6) FW Inks 
7) Vallejo arcylics 
8- Liquitex 
9) Goldens in a tube 
10) Dr. Martins Spectralite 
11) Cartoon Colour animation cel-vinyl. Water based 

Paint for a Airbrush. 
1) LifeTones 
2) Comart 
3) Golden 
4) Humbrols + laquer thinner 
5) FW Inks 
6) PolyScale 
7) Model Master Acrylic 
8- Dr. Martins Spectralite 
9) Holbein Aeroflash 
10) Badger Freakflex 
11) Createx opaques and transparents 
12) Cartoon Colour animation cel-vinyl. Water based

And this:

Website for Supplies 

1) Dixieart Great site to buy 
a large number of Airbrushes and Paint to choice from. Great prices too. 
http://www.dixieart.com 
2)Woodland Scenics makes the best art supplies to replicate the great outdoors on a small scale: 
http://www.woodlandscenics.com 
3)Micro-Mark has just about every kind of tool you need for your hobby: 
http://www.micromark.com 
4)Bear Air Great site for Airbrushes and Supplies for them 
www.bearair.com 
5)VLS Modelmecca -Armored Fighting Vehicles and Figures. 
http://www.modelmecca.com 
6)Squadron, Great site for Military kits and supplies http://www.squadron.com 
7)Winsor Series 7 Brushes 
Michael Roberts http://www.michael-robertsltd.com 
8-Dick Blick art supply,all types of stuff for painters. They are also have Balsa Foam in two different densities. 
http://www.dickblick.com 
9) Kit Kraft - Since site for kit supplies. http://www.kitkraft.biz/catalog

The list above was posted in 2006 so some of the links above may no longer work but it gives you an idea of what's on the site. 

I know _Michaels_ carries Testors model paints in small bottles and spray cans. I like to use their 40% off coupons especially when I need a can of clear Dullcote or Glosscote. They don't carry Testors ModelMaster line of paints though which is a pity.

As far as acrylics, enamels, and lacquers... I'm no paint expert but this is my take... 

Acrylics are water-based and the least caustic. They dry quickly and don't give off much fumes. Great for someone working in an apartment with no garage or where ventilation is poor. Cleanup is easy with water. They can be thinned with water or alcohol which speeds drying. Some modellers like to thin with Windex. 
Some issues with acrylics involve durability and poor adhesion to plastic although a good primer and sealer will help them stick. I don't use them much myself; they dry too quickly in my experience and gum up my airbrush but that's probably due more to a lack of familiarity with acrylics on my part than anything else. 

Enamels are oil-based and are more caustic than acrylics. They take longer to dry and give off more fumes. In general they are more durable than acrylics; adhere better to plastic; and are less likely to pull up during mask removal. I use mostly Testors and Model Master enamels for my builds. When airbrushing with enamels I thin with airbrush thinner to the consistency of milk and spray using between 15-20 psi from the compressor.
Cleanup with mineral spirits. 

Lacquers are solvent-based and the most caustic; especially automotive grade lacquers. There are now synthetic lacquers which give off less fumes and are somewhat less caustic than the old lacquers of my youth. They even smell different. They dry very fast and very hard. Cleanup with lacquer thinner. I like to use Tamiya lacquer based primers under my enamel paints. 

When spraying enamels and lacquers use a paint booth with an exhaust fan or spray outdoors when the humidity is low and the air temperature is between 60-80 degrees. And wear a mask. 

Acrylics and enamels are available in bottles while lacquers tend to be found in spray cans. Enamels come in bottles and spray cans. 

As a rule, you can lay acrylics down over enamels and lacquers and enamels down over lacquers but not the other way around; although, lacquers (especially synthetic clearcoats) over enamels and acrylics can work if you are really careful and lay the lacquers on in light coats as they dry so fast there isn't much time for them to react with the softer paints underneath. I like to seal enamels with Glosscote or Dullcote and have rarely, if ever, had an issue with paint wrinkling so long as I've given the underlying coats 3-4 days to fully cure. 

Decals go best over a glossy finish so you could put them on over a gloss pearl clearcoat and seal with the same; however, the pearl will obscure any letters or stripes with a silvery sheen depending on how many layers you apply.

If most of this is old news to you don't be offended as I have no idea of your experience level with paints, decals, etc.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

You Sir, are awesome! I really appreciate all the help. I'll have to order some paints tonight so I can practice this weekend. 

I'm moving in a couple months and I really would like to get this finished before I move. I fear if I don't it'll be one of those things that ends up not getting finished for years...


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

My newest toy!!! I can't wait to use it  
 

I'll be going this weekend to get some paints so I can practice. I've got a little ways to go before I'm even ready for primer so that gives some time to practice.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Nice!


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## jgoldsack (Apr 26, 2004)

I like! I need to get myself a new one (I like to have different airbrushes for enamel and acrylic).. let us know how you like that one


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Thank you both! I'll definitely let you know what I think. I'm hoping to test her out today or tomorrow. I'm gonna keep it simple for now, but hopefully with practice I can get into more advanced techniques. 

Update for the morning, I've got the nacelles wired and assembled. 

I had to grind out a bit more plastic to allow the LED's to comfortable fit, then went back and painted black over those spots again. 

This is the first nacelle 
 

And the test before gluing 
 

Both nacelles going together 
 
 

And assembled and glued. You can see the small light leaks where I had to grind the plastic down even further. I'm not worried about these spots as the black primer should get rid of these trouble areas.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Amazing! In another life you'd have been a watchmaker... or someone who made those Faberge Eggs with the little scenes inside them.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Well, life snagged me for a bit and I haven't been able to get much work done on this... 

Got the post mounted that will hold the ship as well as provide the power to all the lights. 
 

I just got some paint today to try with the airbrush... I'm going to have to plan ahead and order all my paints. Hobby Lobby's airbrush paint selection sucks. They had some pearl white, but I had to source the white base coat and black primer from rattle cans. I played around with the Pearl white and the black to just get a hang for how it feels. Spray paint in an airbrush is a serious pain lol! I think I'll just rattle can the primer, then do the rest with the airbrush. All in all, I'm happy though. Just really gotta get cranking if I want to get this done before the move...


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Yeah I always use rattle cans for primer. Once you get some practice it won'tt be such a pain cleaning the airbrush. I use an old Paasche VL and can break it down and clean it in under 5 minutes. I always clean it after each use too; some try and get away with just shooting thinner thru it until the next time but it's a real pain if any paint dries in the brush. One tip, if you are doing multiple colors in the same session start off with the lighter colors and do the darkest colors last. For instance, if you are painting red and yellow do the red after the yellow. That way the darker color won't contaminate the lighter color if there's any residue left in the airbrush after you clean it. Another tip, invest in some pipe cleaners. Canned air is handy to have too.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Trekkriffic said:


> Yeah I always use rattle cans for primer. Once you get some practice it won'tt be such a pain cleaning the airbrush. I use an old Paasche VL and can break it down and clean it in under 5 minutes. I always clean it after each use too; some try and get away with just shooting thinner thru it until the next time but it's a real pain if any paint dries in the brush. One tip, if you are doing multiple colors in the same session start off with the lighter colors and do the darkest colors last. For instance, if you are painting red and yellow do the red after the yellow. That way the darker color won't contaminate the lighter color if there's any residue left in the airbrush after you clean it. Another tip, invest in some pipe cleaners. Canned air is handy to have too.


Thank you for the tips Trek! I need to get another can of air, mine is running low, though I do have a spray nozzle for my compressor that would be easy to swap over for cleaning. I never even thought of using pipe cleaner. 

Quick update heading into the weekend... made the windows using bare metal foil to get a really smooth surface, then filled from the inside with Realistic Water. 

Masked off 


And all finished 
 


Thanks for looking :wave:


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

I've got the second LED in the secondary hull here. In addition I'm mock fitting the nacelles to get an idea on how everything fits and how the wiring will flow inside the hull. Soldering in this tiny thing is getting more challenging every connection... 
 

I was going to try and and have the botany deck a flat deck that stretched all the way across the middle of the secondary hull. The first problem was being off by the tiniest bit would have messed up how it looked from the outside. The second issue was that testing the fit would have meant gluing it in place every time I checked or adjusted the fit. In addition to this, at this super tiny scale, it would have been hard to appreciate the detail of the botany deck. So... I cut it in half! 
 

What I did was glue it flush with the interior of the hull so it sits at an angle to the windows. On a larger model this would have looked horrendous, but what it does at this scale is gives the interior an appearance of depth and and detail from the outside that wouldn't have been there if it was flat. 
 

You can kind of see what I mean in this picture. I'm very happy with how well you can see inside the windows at this scale.


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## MLCrisis32 (Oct 11, 2011)

Kudos to you for trying to light such a small kit. I keep thinking about doing one like this but I have a hard time fitting wires/leds into larger models. Looking good so far!


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

MLCrisis32 said:


> Kudos to you for trying to light such a small kit. I keep thinking about doing one like this but I have a hard time fitting wires/leds into larger models. Looking good so far!


Thank you! I've really got the itch to build the self destructed Enterprise from ST:III. Seeing the great work you did with the battle damage on the Ambassador E makes me want to try it even more.


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## DCH10664 (Jul 16, 2012)

I'm overwhelmed at the detail you have packed into this small model ! :thumbsup:


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## MLCrisis32 (Oct 11, 2011)

harristotle said:


> Thank you! I've really got the itch to build the self destructed Enterprise from ST:III. Seeing the great work you did with the battle damage on the Ambassador E makes me want to try it even more.


Hey glad you are enjoying the build :thumbsup: There's something just exciting about building a beautiful model only to destroy it right? (Maybe I'm crazy)


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## d_jedi1 (Jan 20, 2007)

harristotle said:


> Thank you! I've really got the itch to build the self destructed Enterprise from ST:III. Seeing the great work you did with the battle damage on the Ambassador E makes me want to try it even more.


You should go for it! I did one and I'm VERY happy with it.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

d_jedi1 said:


> You should go for it! I did one and I'm VERY happy with it.


I definitely will, just want to get finished with all of the Enterprise models first. I might do the Enterprise B and then go back and do the destroyed refit as more practice before I go onto the much larger C, D, and E.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

A little update from the last couple weeks... 

I've got the lights glued and wired for the saucer section 
 

The fiber optics are glued into the secondary hull 
 

And I've attached the secondary hull to the primary hull 
 

And the mess that is the starship Enterprise... 
 

As I get closer and closer to painting I've been wondering about the final finish. I plan on building this as 1701-A and I'll use the self-destructed refit to fill the 1701 Refit billet in my 2500 scale Enterprise collection. That being said, would the final finish on this be a satin finish, whereas the original refit received a gloss finish?


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## Paulbo (Sep 16, 2004)

You are one sick individual ... with excellent eyesight!

:thumbsup:


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

U R Nuts. 

In a good way.


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## DCH10664 (Jul 16, 2012)

I have to admit that I would have already pulled out half of my hair. And been searching for a Prozac, before I got anywhere close to what he has accomplished so far ! :freak:


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## Carl_G (Jun 30, 2012)

I vote for a satin finish. I'm building a 2500 refit atm and the gloss paint makes it look really toy-like.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Carl_G said:


> I vote for a satin finish. I'm building a 2500 refit atm and the gloss paint makes it look really toy-like.


I think that's the direction I'm leaning. I'll get a better idea of how it looks when I throw the high gloss down for decal application. I do like how the satin looks on me TOS E.


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## SteveR (Aug 7, 2005)

How about painting matt, then polishing with something soft?


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

I went with a flat coat on my 1/2500 refit then rubbed with some Tamiya silver pastel chalk over the Absolute Models aztec/registration decals to tone the decals down and give a silvery metallic look to the ship before sealing with a satin semi-gloss.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Thank you everyone for the tips! :wave: 

Got the nacelle's attached to the rest of the ship. Soldering the negative join down inside there with all the fiber optics was a chore! 
 

I thought this was kind of a cool view... 
 
 

A few tweeks here and there and I'll be cementing the two side together.


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## eagledocf15 (Nov 4, 2008)

*Excellent Work*

Keep up the great work!


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## jgoldsack (Apr 26, 2004)

Dude you are crazy to light something that small.

Love it. I keep waiting for someone to light the 1/2500 D....


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

eagledocf15 said:


> Keep up the great work!


Thank you! F-15 maintainer? 



jgoldsack said:


> Dude you are crazy to light something that small.
> 
> Love it. I keep waiting for someone to light the 1/2500 D....


As I've been doing these 1/2500 ships I've searched around a lot online to try and find other people who've done it. There's a couple who have done the Galaxy class Enterprise. Here's a link to one of them, http://cognitivedreams.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=124.0 

If you stick around long enough I'll get to it eventually... I'm building all the Enterprise models one at a time. One of the big challenges that gives me a headache as I try and figure out how to solve it, is how I'm going to do the windows on the Enterprise D. Pinpoint lights like on the previous ones won't work on that one. 

All cemented together, minus the top of the saucer...


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

You should post this and your TOS Enterprise over in the 1/2500 scale forum:

http://z4.invisionfree.com/The_2500_Page_Forums/index.php?

They'd go nuts over this for sure!


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Trekkriffic said:


> You should post this and your TOS Enterprise over in the 1/2500 scale forum:
> 
> http://z4.invisionfree.com/The_2500_Page_Forums/index.php?
> 
> They'd go nuts over this for sure!


I checked that forum out, which led me to looking around on the 1/2500 section on allscaletrek.com, and I found people talking about this, http://www.shapeways.com/ Do you know what shapeways is?


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Update for the night... 

Gluing the last of the fiber optics to the saucer. What a tedious and annoying task! I tried to do a whole section at once, but it was just too hard to get them all correct. I moved to just doing 2 fibers at a time, pinning them with the wood and clamp, and moving on every hour at a time. 


All ready for assembly! 
 

My wife brought two bags of these little clamps home from the store a couple months ago. When I saw them I immediately set to convincing her how helpful they would be. She got a chuckle when she saw what I was using them for  
 

All lit up


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## Paulbo (Sep 16, 2004)

Sweet! What size FOs are you using? One shot they looked like .06" 'til I recalibrated my eyes for the scale


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Paulbo said:


> Sweet! What size FOs are you using? One shot they looked like .06" 'til I recalibrated my eyes for the scale


Thanks! I think they're about .01". I bought 1mm and .5mm fiber optic, but the smaller stuff that I've been using for windows is from my Great Grandma's old Christmas tree and I think it's around .01", I've been using the .35mm drill bit for it. 

I inherited this fiber optic Christmas tree from her after she died and used it until the tree croaked. Rather than just throw the thing away, I've been salvaging the fiber optics from it. My Pap (her son) is one of a couple people responsible for getting me into Star Trek, so I think it's fitting that I get to memorialize her in my tiny little models :thumbsup:


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Not much to update, but you can see after clamping the saucer section that I went back and filled the gap. 
 

Used my new sanding sticks to go around and get it all smoothed out after it hardened. Getting between the FO was a huge pain! I anticipate that will show in the paint once it's all done and cut, but it's hard to get fussy about that bit without risking ruining the FO. 
 

Still some sanding to do, as well as filling a few spots around the rest of the model and masking off the areas that will need to be protected for lighting such as the nacelles, deflector dish, windows, and shuttle bay.


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## DCH10664 (Jul 16, 2012)

I really enjoy following your builds. And I think it's way cool that you have incorporated your Grandmother's tree into your models as you have. While being a very sensible and resourceful thing to do. It's also very respectful.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

DCH10664 said:


> I really enjoy following your builds. And I think it's way cool that you have incorporated your Grandmother's tree into your models as you have. While being a very sensible and resourceful thing to do. It's also very respectful.


Thank you :wave: 

I've been unable to post updates for a while as I've been in the middle of moving. I don't have my workshop completely set up yet, but I can post up a few progress pics for now. 

After puttying and sanding, you can see the light blue where liquid mask was applied to allow light to shine through. 
 
 

A little teaser of the lights on...


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

It's amazing the amount of work your putting into what would seem to be a simple model.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Trekkriffic said:


> It's amazing the amount of work your putting into what would seem to be a simple model.


Amazing?.. Or did you mean insane and ridiculous :freak: This build is starting to make me question my sanity. I believe I discussed earlier how instead of doing a true aztec paint job that I would just use pearl white. Well, I've slightly changed my mind. I'm going to stick with the pearl white, but instead of doing the entire hull a satin finish I'm going to cut tamiya tape into tiny panels and mask it after the final clear coat then paint with a satin finish. I figure this will provide the proper look of the Enterprise A with differing finishes, add to the aztec feel, but not completely overwhelm you with colors since it's such a tiny scale. My only concern is damaging the paint that would already be on there, but I think it's doable. 

The update for tonight. First coat of black primer is on and you can see I clearly need to sand and fill some seems. 
 
 

I've got a question for you guys. What are the proper markings on the bottom of the secondary hull on the Enterprise A? The first photo is the studio model and you can clearly see the different colored shapes that were on TOS E, but the 4 phaser banks that the kit decals have aren't there. In the second picture from STVI you can see the phaser banks but no shapes. Is it both, and the studio model isn't showing the phasers due to the mount or is it one or the other? 
 


Thanks for the help!


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## Gregatron (Mar 29, 2008)

harristotle said:


> Amazing?.. Or did you mean insane and ridiculous :freak: This build is starting to make me question my sanity. I believe I discussed earlier how instead of doing a true aztec paint job that I would just use pearl white. Well, I've slightly changed my mind. I'm going to stick with the pearl white, but instead of doing the entire hull a satin finish I'm going to cut tamiya tape into tiny panels and mask it after the final clear coat then paint with a satin finish. I figure this will provide the proper look of the Enterprise A with differing finishes, add to the aztec feel, but not completely overwhelm you with colors since it's such a tiny scale. My only concern is damaging the paint that would already be on there, but I think it's doable.
> 
> The update for tonight. First coat of black primer is on and you can see I clearly need to sand and fill some seems.
> 
> ...



The phaser banks were there since TMP. The TOS markings were added for ST VI. You just can't see them in that screencap, because the angle is wrong, and the markings are small. They're visible in other shots, however.

So, both the phasers and the markings are supposed to be there, at least for the ST VI version. All other versions only have the phasers.


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## Garbaron (Apr 23, 2004)

You don't see the phasers in the first picture because she is mounted to the lower secondary hull mount ... which, if mounted differently, say starboard side mount like in the second picture, was covered by a cover plate that featured the lower belly phaser banks.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Garbaron said:


> You don't see the phasers in the first picture because she is mounted to the lower secondary hull mount ... which, if mounted differently, say starboard side mount like in the second picture, was covered by a cover plate that featured the lower belly phaser banks.





Gregatron said:


> The phaser banks were there since TMP. The TOS markings were added for ST VI. You just can't see them in that screencap, because the angle is wrong, and the markings are small. They're visible in other shots, however.
> 
> So, both the phasers and the markings are supposed to be there, at least for the ST VI version. All other versions only have the phasers.


Gents, thank you very much for the help! STVI is pretty much my favorite all time Trek movie, so I suppose it's fitting if I emulate this specific model and put both sets of decals on.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Quick update for the night... sanding and filling progress.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Second coat of primer applied. Seams aren't perfect, but I'll have to roll with it. I'm too afraid of losing hull detail if I get to crazy with sanding and filling.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Looks like the Porcupineprise!


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## BWolfe (Sep 24, 2013)

Looking at this with the parts to my copy of this model laid out in front of me and I am just flabbergasted by what you have done with it.


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## barrydancer (Aug 28, 2009)

If I understand how this works, you've pushed the fiber optic through from the inside and glued it in place. After all the painting is done you'll trim all the FO down and she'll be ready to go?


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

barrydancer said:


> If I understand how this works, you've pushed the fiber optic through from the inside and glued it in place. After all the painting is done you'll trim all the FO down and she'll be ready to go?


Yes, that's how I do it. Some people will go back after painting and drill the holes then feed the FO through. I prefer to drill, feed, then paint just because the thought of scratching the final paint job terrifies me. 

One bonus that Trekkriffic kind of eluded to is the porcupine affect. With the ship being so small, it's nice to have those little strands to hold onto instead of having to grab the actual painted model. I just use a really sharp exacto to trim the tips off before I move to clear coats and decals. 

Also, I owe you a big thank you! I've been using your paint job as a bit of a reference with making my own aztek masks. 

The base coat has been applied. I used a fine white to help maintain the surface detail.


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## barrydancer (Aug 28, 2009)

harristotle said:


> Yes, that's how I do it. Some people will go back after painting and drill the holes then feed the FO through. I prefer to drill, feed, then paint just because the thought of scratching the final paint job terrifies me.
> 
> One bonus that Trekkriffic kind of eluded to is the porcupine affect. With the ship being so small, it's nice to have those little strands to hold onto instead of having to grab the actual painted model. I just use a really sharp exacto to trim the tips off before I move to clear coats and decals.
> 
> Also, I owe you a big thank you! I've been using your paint job as a bit of a reference with making my own aztek masks.


Glad I could help with the paint job. I still think you're crazy working in that small a scale!

If I ever finish this refit, I'm determined to light my next kit. I plan to build something simple before I tackle the 1:350 NX-01. I'm thinking I'll do a Klingon K'tinga, and I'm trying to plan ahead already how I'll do it. I'm thinking a little fiber optic for the windows in the bulb.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

barrydancer said:


> Glad I could help with the paint job. I still think you're crazy working in that small a scale!
> 
> If I ever finish this refit, I'm determined to light my next kit. I plan to build something simple before I tackle the 1:350 NX-01. I'm thinking I'll do a Klingon K'tinga, and I'm trying to plan ahead already how I'll do it. I'm thinking a little fiber optic for the windows in the bulb.


Oh I'm crazy haha 

You won't regret lighting. I find myself looking for models that I can somehow light up now.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Once the white was completely dry, I used an exacto to pick off the liquid mask for the lights around the bridge area. 
 

After that was done, I got to bust out the airbrush for the first time on this project. I used to coats of pearl white over the white base coat. This paint is flipping beautiful, I love it! 
 
 

Thanks for looking! :wave:


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

Coming along nicely!


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## colhero (May 18, 2006)

Awesome! and crazy... crazy awesome!


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## Garbaron (Apr 23, 2004)

Looks great, but I think you will have a hard time smoothing up the hull once you cut those fibers.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Thank you for the compliments guys! 



Garbaron said:


> Looks great, but I think you will have a hard time smoothing up the hull once you cut those fibers.


True, the hull will not be perfectly smooth, but from TOS E that I did, I don't think it detracts from the overall model. The only place I anticipate having a rough time is the saucer rim. 

I've started to remove the masks and here's the results...


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

With the white base coat and pearl white overlay done, I decided it was finally time to not only remove the masks, but cut the fibers. All work from here on is clear coat's so they shouldn't impact the FO, and I'll just mask the windows when I'm spraying dull coat. 

First the lighted shots... 
 
 
 

And without lights. 
 
 
 

As I mentioned in the post to Grabaron, the only FO I expected to not come out great were the ones around the saucer rim and I was correct.


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## Trekkriffic (Mar 20, 2007)

OMG... dude... this is incredible work.


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## BWolfe (Sep 24, 2013)

At the risk of repeating myself:


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## DCH10664 (Jul 16, 2012)

This is certainly turning out to be a testament of your skills and patience ! :thumbsup:


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Thank you for the compliments, they mean a lot! 

Quick little update. With the FO trimmed and the first layer of gloss clear coat dry, it's time to start tackling the details. Because I didn't want the severe white/gray contrast of the kit decals, and I don't need the windows since I have FO, I have to trim the decals quite a bit to get at the parts I want. 

The only things I'll use for the nacelle's are the green strips on the inside, the grilles (not sure the real name) that are on either side of the center, and the registry markings. As I am a fan of Enterprise's that lean towards the blue markings, this might ruffle some feathers, but I chose to go with this blue to do all the details and highlighting. 
 
 

The blue you see on the impulse engines is liquid mask. 

Hope you all had a Merry Christmas :wave:


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## Fernando Mureb (Nov 12, 2006)

Incredible work Harristotle! In other incarnation you may have been a watchmaker, or one of those guys capable to write a page of the bible on the head of a pin.


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## colhero (May 18, 2006)

Nice to see her finally getting her colors!


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## Griffworks (Jun 24, 2002)

Most impressive and inspiring! :thumbsup:

Now, make a to-scale, lit V'Ger! :freak:


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## Garbaron (Apr 23, 2004)

Incredible work for such a tiny model.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Gents, thank you for the compliments! 

Griff, funny enough I just watched that on Friday. One of my least favorite movies, but I hadn't seen it in years so I figured it was due. Better than I remember, and I just reveled in the beauty of our beloved Refit! 

Here's a quick update on the decaling and painting process... 
 
 
 
 

As always, thanks for looking :dude:


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

With family in town, getting time for hobbies has been difficult, but here is a quick update... 

I used an exacto to cut the details that I wanted out of the provided kit decals. 
 
 

This picture makes me cringe, but I wanted to show how I first did the deflector dish... 
 

My first attempt was putting the decal on, but since the decals are transparent it looked terrible, so I pulled the decal and painted it blue. What you see here is that attempt. The blue paint, since it was painted by hand looked awful when lit and I wasn't going to let this ruin a model that I'm otherwise fairly happy with. Out came the dremel yet again and I got rid of the paint. The final solution, which I don't have a picture of just yet, that I'm fairly pleased with was to layer on my liquid mask which is a transparent blue. It allows a nice even blue glow when lit, and when it's not lit it stands up to scrutiny as well.


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

An unexpected snow day today, meant more time for models! 

I combined the decals from TOS E as well as the supplied phaser decals to achieve the ventral look from STVI, my favorite of the movies. 
 
 

And here's a picture of the next phase of the project in progress... it was a nice excuse to finally snag a compass.


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## Garbaron (Apr 23, 2004)

Like I said .. insane work at such a scale! Impressive!


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Garbaron said:


> Like I said .. insane work at such a scale! Impressive!


Thank you Garbaron! 

Another quick update.


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## colhero (May 18, 2006)

Insane in the membrane! hehe - nice work sir


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

All the masking is done. In some areas, particularly the saucer, I wasn't necessarily going for screen accurate, but more just the visual affect of having the aztek pattern. We'll see how this turns out...


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## Paulbo (Sep 16, 2004)

You are one sick individual. Looks great!


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## harristotle (Aug 7, 2008)

Alright, I was in such a hurry to get this lady done that I didn't take any pictures of the base so I'll just describe it. I had some leftover wood that I cut into a rectangle. Used a router bit to hollow out channels for the wires and holes for the switch and power source. I hand drew the Star Trek insignia on the base, then used my dremel to engrave it into the wood. After fitting the switch and power, I puttied, then painted 2 coats of primer, then 3 coats of black. I hand painted the silver into the insignia then 2 coats of satin clear. Here's a picture of the underside of the finished base. 
 

AND here's a teaser of the finished model. I will post another thread later with LOTS of pictures of the finished product when I've got more time, but for now hopefully this will tide you over. It's not perfect, and I'll discuss in the other thread what I would have done differently, but overall I'm really happy with the outcome!


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