Building From Scratch This page demonstrates the scratchbuilding of the new TV starship! Click on any of the images on the left for a larger view.

This 'TV watchers' model started out by copying the photo spread in a TV watcher's guide magazine to a size appropriate to the 1/1400 scale. Using this illustration as a guide, a disc shape was poured from resin. This disc was sanded flat and 'laminated' with sheet styrene. The styrene was then scribed with circular lines using a compass and X-Acto knife. A second disc shape was poured from resin and sanded to a flat dome shape. This dome was glued to the center of the styrene laminated disc. Radial lines were then etched into the parts. Recessed rectangular shapes were then etched into the upper and lower halves of the saucer. A piece of .006" styrene was cut to a rectangular shape and all edges were sanded round. Lines were then etched into place. Grooved sheet styrene was cut to a trapazoid shape and laminated with two other guages of sheet styrene to form a wing. Resin was poured into a small cup and mounted to the chuck of a lathe. Three small disc shapes were cut from the resin with various contours. A tube shape was then cut with etched lines.

The tube shape had a wide groove routered along each side. Small stripes of sheet styrene were cut to shape and applied to the rounded end. The other end was cut to accomodate the helmet of a Tamiya military figure. Once the dome shaped helmet was glued into place, additional strip styrene detail was added atop and below the helmet. Strip styrene was also cut to shape and installed into the routered slots. After all plastic strip detail was added, putty was applied to form detail along the back end and on the bottom of the 'nacelle'. Thin panels were cut from vinyl sheet and applied around the entire nacelle.

I wanted a disc shape base to compliment the saucer shape. A graphic was rendered and taken to an engraver for etching into Corion.

The wing mentioned above was completed with scribed lines added. Another wing shape was needed and was constructed similar to the trapazoid shaped wing. Vinyl detailing and scribed lines were added to the new wing. Since two of each wing were needed for the final model, and the Corion proved too tough to be sanded to the final disc shape, it was decided the best way to accomplish these feats was to make an RTV rubber mold of these parts to be cast in resin and used on the final model.

The rectangular plate was glued into place on the saucer top. Putty was applied around the edges to blend it in. Sections were cut from the saucer for installation of 'Impulse Engines'. A 'platform' was cut from sheet styrene and added to the aftmost cutout section of the saucer. A casting was taken from the RTV mold for a duplicate Nacelle and Wing. Shown here together to get an idea of how the completed project will look.

One of the small disc shapes (The middle one in the first picture) was glued to the center of the top of the saucer. A half moon shape piece of sheet styrene was glued on the upper aft section of the dome making the bridge. A rounded trapazoid shape was glued down aft of the bridge followed by a wide strip of styrene. All of these shapes were contoured to the hull shape with epoxy putty and sanded to shape. Additional sections of sheet styrene were built up to form the upper odservation deck on the aft end. 'Impulse' thrusters were made from .008" thick sheet styrene laminated with thinner styrene to form the 'steps'.

A resin 'plug' was poured and sanded to the shape shown here. Since no 'real' data was available at the time, I decided to make this shape similar to the Akira. Lines were scribed in to follow the contour of this lower structure. Two quarter moon shapes were cut from .008" styrene and sanded round along the edges. These parts were glued along side to the resin shape and all contours were blended together with epoxy putty. A final touch of a classic lower sensor array was added to the center.

The back wall of the Deflector cutout was cut to shape from sheet styrene. Detail was added with sections of cut thin plastic rod. A strip of grooved styrene was cut to shape and placed at the top of the Deflector cut out.

Windows are drilled into the bridge dome. Detail is added with thin strip and sheet styrene.

The pod structions section line locations were drawn on the top of the saucer with pencil.

The pod structures were rendered from the top and side. Cross section lines were rendered at 5mm intervals and printed out. The printed sheet was glued to a sheet of styrene and the section panels were cut out. These plastic 'section lines' were glued to the hull surface on the preset pencil lines.

The pod structure panel lines were sanded down to consistant heights. .008" styrene was cut to shape the Intermix Pod and the uppermost disc from the first picture was placed on top. Castings of the Nacelles and Wings were all positioned together to get an idea of the finished size and shape.

Detail section holes were cut from .004" styrene and backed with additional styrene. These styrene panels were cut to shape to form the upper surface of the 'pods'. These panels were glued down to the section lines and epoxy putty was packed between each section line to form the shape of the pods. The section of pods aft of the saucer were cut off for ease in sanding. Final shaping of the pods was accomplished by sanding smooth the putty down to the section line panels.

The cut off aft ends of the pods were reattached after final sanding. The seam line was then contoured in with putty. The nacelle pylons were attached to the nacelles, completing those parts.

After the first episode airing, it was painfully obvious the speculated saucer bottom detail was a bit off. The impulse thrusters were removed along with prying off the saucer bottom 'plate' that comprised the detail. The inside of the resin disk that is the saucer was routered out (*cough*) to accomodate the future tiered bottom plate.

On to Part 2!

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