Donny's TOS Enterprise Interiors

[lawman]

Which is why I’m making two "main" engineering rooms. One for “Warp Engineering” (Season 2/3 layout) in the engineering hull, and one for "Impulse Engineering" (Season 1 layout) in the primary hull. And because it's just gonna be fun to do both

This has long been my preferred approach. It elides a lot of script inconsistencies, and also obviates the need for a major internal refit between S1 and S2. (Lots of Enterprise cabins, offices, labs, etc., are presumably modular and easily swapped modified, but that never appeared to be the case for either engine room.)

Question (with apologies if it's already been covered in the previous 200 pages!): what's your approach to the infamous set of forced-perspective tubes behind the screen? Short, or long? Or does it even matter, if you're approaching this as a "walk-through" model, since that's a space no characters actually enter?

 

[GNDN18]

Question (with apologies if it's already been covered in the previous 200 pages!): what's your approach to the infamous set of forced-perspective tubes behind the screen? Short, or long? Or does it even matter, if you're approaching this as a "walk-through" model, since that's a space no characters actually enter?

June 13, 2018, at 179, Donny speaks:

I tried modeling as it would be if it were the actual size, and it just looked wrong. I don't think I kept the model of the results, however, as there was such a blatant "nope!" from me when I looked at it in game. The force-perspective version just feels better and more accurate, as odd as that seems

 

[uniderth]

June 13, 2018, at 179, Donny speaks:

So it is written, so shall it be done.

 

[Maurice]

I...And as I've recently been reminded in another thread, the dilithium crystals work differently in TOS than in later Trek -being more associated with powering deflectors and phasers and not so much with the engines, so there's no particular reason for the dilithium crystal converter assembly to be in the secondary hull.

Umm... see "Elaan of Troyius" where the ship could not go to warp without the crystals. And minus the "lithium" crystals the ship could not even blast out of orbit in both "Where No Man Has Gone Before" and "Mudd's Women".

 

[Mytran]

In my mind the dilithium (AKA lithium) circuits enabled power to be channelled through to the high end machinery on board ship. This includes the usual suspects like shields and phasers of course, but also a little system called inertial dampeners. Without those you could still technically take the ship to warp, but the crew would be reduced to mere stains on the back wall...

As for the situations in MW and WNMHGB, the batteries and auxiliary systems were almost completely drained and the ship (for whatever reason) was parked in a low orbit. With no way to generate thrust, the Enterprise was doomed to drop out of the sky like a stone

 

[blssdwlf]

Apologies for the tangent. Just a point of clarification in case I was misunderstood in the other thread - I had pointed out that dilithium crystals in TOS (and TWOK) functioned outside of the TNG-depicted matter-antimatter chamber. In other words, a TOS M/AM reactor runs just fine without crystals but you need the crystals downstream to convert the energy to usable power for weapons, defenses, recharging impulse and powering the engines. The TOS crystals can be bypassed in emergencies (TWOK being the only time the bypass circuits were not burnt out). In TNG, the crystals are required to be in the M/AM chamber for a reaction to even happen.

As to the location of the TOS crystal converter assembly, they could be anywhere but I think they would be closer in location to where the main energizer is

And as I've recently been reminded in another thread, the dilithium crystals work differently in TOS than in later Trek -being more associated with powering deflectors and phasers and not so much with the engines, so there's no particular reason for the dilithium crystal converter assembly to be in the secondary hull.

 

[STEPhon IT]

What does the Main Energizer look like?

 

[137th Gebirg]

A big pink rabbit with a drum?

 

[TIN_MAN]

@ Maurice; Yes there's definitely a connection between the engines and the power from the charged up crystals, "TDOTD" also indicates as much, but my point is, overtaxing deflectors/phasers etc seems to "burn out the engines" in several instances, so what's apparently "burned out" is the lithium/dilithium in the crystal converter assembly itself, as the core element of the overall/power distribution system. But keep in mind that the use of dilithium as a direct moderator of the M/A-M reaction was a post TOS invention and not something the TOS writers -or even Jefferies himself as the set builder- would have used to inform their work. Having said that, I'm neverthe less still undecided as to whether TNG tech can be successfully retconned in this regard or not.

@ blssdwlf; In "The Doomsday machine" Lt. Palmer reports that "deck seven reports failure in main energizer" which fits perfectly with the Whitfield's "TMOST" and Joseph's SFTM/BOGP location for the engineering section.

 

[Maurice]

Except that according to Jefferies' cutaway deck seven is the one below where FJ has the engine room, so that would put the main floor of engineering in the neck.

 

[TIN_MAN]

Well, if we go by Jefferies apparent intent based on Shaw's reconstruction of the TOS/PII cross section, then the impulse deck would be on decks five and six which is interesting in light of TOS's "TCM" where intercom chatter places a division of engineering on deck five and TAS's "More Tribbles More Troubles" implies deck five as the location of the engineering computer room.
Also, in this case deck seven would be in the lower saucer section and could still be the location of the energizer circuit lab/section from "TAF"?
YMMV

 

[Norsehound]

ugh, not sure how I feel about kicking off a technical debate over the location of engineering in an art thread.

Donnie, would it be too much trouble to render some orthos of your shooting model Enterprise? Would like to reference it if I go about building one of my own

 

[Donny]

Donnie, would it be too much trouble to render some orthos of your shooting model Enterprise? Would like to reference it if I go about building one of my own

I'm currently investigating the best ways to take good orthos from Unreal, since the game engine is the only place I have assembled all the parts of the Enterprise together (the separate meshes that make up the model, the decals, the window decals, the nacelle caps), and is the only place I have all the materials set up. I'll try and whip some up soon, and if I can't, I'll have to take a day or so to get everything set up in 3ds Max properly so I can take orthos from there instead.

ugh, not sure how I feel about kicking off a technical debate over the location of engineering in an art thread.

I'll just distract everyone and change the topic by posting new hangar shots

Obviously, this is a WIP, as I don't have the turntable/elevator or fueling staiton constructed yet.

(Note, there is some lens distortion in these pics, due to using a field-of-view of 90 to show more of the bay)




You'll notice in the alcove in the above shot, I have implemented some simple vertical panel lines to break up the space a bit. I know those details weren't there on the original model, but I feel I should take some liberties with this set and add very subtle details to help sell realism. But then again, on the other hand, I've opted not to add paneling to the floor because I feel that would be too distracting? Ugh, the decisions....

Signage is a WIP too. I've left the canon WARNING FIRE labels, and hopefully I am selling the idea that fire supression equipment may be behind the recessed panels that these signs are above. Obviously I've changed the "ELEVATORS" labels to instead be directory signs for each of the ladderway access halls that will eventually reside behind the alcove doorways.

I touched on this before, but I'm going to have the 4 control booths on the observation level handling a different aspect of the hangar bay functions, so their directory signs will reflect this. Here's what I'm currently planning for the control booth signage:

Port side forward control booth: "FUELING STATION CONTROL"
Port side aft control booth: "TRACTOR BEAM CONTROL"
Starboard side forward control booth: "ELEVATOR CONTROL"
Starboard side aft control booth: "BAY DOORS CONTROL" (from Sulu's line in TDM...."someone is opening the shuttlecraft bay doors...")
And then the signage pointing to the aft most alcove hatches are labeled: "OBSERVATION DECK".



It should be noted that I'm trying to bring out the color of the flight deck. Most of the original FX shots are very washed out of color, but in other behind-the-scenes shots, it's clear that the walls are a beige color and the trim is a blue-grey, as opposed to how the flight deck is sometimes depicted as being primarily shades of flat grey. As an FYI, I'm using the following reference shot as my primary color guide. Note the slight green tint the doors have, possibly painted or lit that way to reflect the greenish tint of the outer hull of the Enterprise? Works for me!

 

[blssdwlf]

The vertical panel lines look great, IMHO Since that area wasn't very visible as filmed you've got a lot of flexibility to not follow the model. (At least that's what I would tell myself )

You'll notice in the alcove in the above shot, I have implemented some simple vertical panel lines to break up the space a bit. I know those details weren't there on the original model, but I feel I should take some liberties with this set and add very subtle details to help sell realism. But then again, on the other hand, I've opted not to add paneling to the floor because I feel that would be too distracting? Ugh, the decisions....

 

[Maurice]

I've left the canon WARNING FIRE labels...

Are they canon? Which photo(s) confirm this?

 

[Donny]

Quick update before bed:




I've blocked out the elevator size, scaled up to match my 28 foot shuttlecraft. For those interested, the turntable disc (within the yellow circle) has been scaled from 24 feet in diameter to 32 feet. It's the only thing I've broken in regards to proportions so far within the bay.

It's noticeably bigger, for sure, but I think I can live with it if it means having a shuttlecraft exterior with a full-sized interior. Having a scaled-up shuttlecraft also has the added benefit of making the cavernous bay seem a bit smaller

Are they canon? Which photo(s) confirm this?

Sorry, I meant "canon-ish". I've heard around that there are high-res photos out there that confirm the text, but I have not seen them with my own eyes. Either way, AFAIK there aren't any screen-used FX shots showing the text as legible, so I don't have to use WARNING FIRE, and am still somewhat on the fence about it.

 

[Tomalak]

I love this! I've no problem with the scaled-up shuttle. I'm not beholden to any of the official specs if they don't tally with what's seen on screen or practically possible. In this case the shuttle interior takes the lead. The shuttle doesn't look too large for the bay by any means.

As ever, great work Donny!

 

[Lt. Washburn]

I think it looks great. Besides, a lot of apparent size and proportion is thrown off with different lenses. So, that can be a convenient excuse.

By the way, does the red square raise up to form a rail for when the elevator is lowered?

 

[uniderth]

It's noticeably bigger, for sure, but I think I can live with it if it means having a shuttlecraft exterior with a full-sized interior. Having a scaled-up shuttlecraft also has the added benefit of making the cavernous bay seem a bit smaller.

That's what's throwing me off. Comparing with the screen cap above you can definitely tell the difference. To be honest that what I really love about the hanger bay, that fact that is is so huge. I understand why you scaled your shuttle, though.

 

[Jedman67]

Awesome stuff Donny!