I'm now getting SOME free time. I'm still pretty tired, but I've started yet another insane project. The USS Enterprise from Where No Man Has Gone Before, the second Star Trek pilot ship. It's just a start.
It has that fresh, new starship smell. Actually, I love your images, especially the spiked, nacelles.
Oddly, it winds up being a mixture of both. Because of my not saving a version before I started cutting in the windows, I respun the saucer. The rest is a modification of my Pike-era USS Enterprise. I've even got the non-lit windows on the port side of the saucer. I'm debating if I should leave them there, or add lights to the "lit" windows. LOL! Thank you, Henock!
Getting there ... slowly. Fairly happy so far. The good Mr. Gary Kerr helped me by answering a few of my questions and provided additional information beyond those questions! I want my model to reflect the original as it was at the time, not necessarily as to what remained visible after all the photo-chemical processing.
Thank you, Bernard. Thank you very much! Oh, sorry! Just like with the first pilot, I thought I had found a detail on one side, but I wasn't thinking clearly. The yellow box on the side of the bridge ... I thought it was lit. It was (essentially) a post-it note. It was painted on. He pointed out some things I already knew, such as WNMHGB has recycled shots from The Cage. I think we all know that. And if not, the shots that come to my mind are the close up shot swinging over the saucer with flashing lights. It is the EXACT same shot from The Cage. Look at the front of the bridge. No light screen in front. When the Enterprise limps out of the force field at the beginning of the second act, it is a reuse of the introductory shot of the 11 foot model from The Cage. Literally the SAME as the fly-over-the-saucer shot, but earlier when the Enterprise enters the frame of the shot. Those, I knew already. Heck, I believe you have them wonderfully noted in your Enterprise shot catalog! I also (of course) knew that the Mirror, Mirror shots were of the 2nd Pilot model, but he pointed out something I didn't know and had read as being done differently. When the ship shows her Port side, if you have a VERY clear image, you can see that for the registry numbers on the nacelle, they papered over it with hull-colored paper that had reversed text. When they flipped the shot, it looked correct. I had read that it was reversed decals. I never looked for the paper. He pointed out that the lettering on the upper saucer was black and the rest of the lettering is a dark grey. I always use a "dark gray" because it looks a little more real on my models. Perfect black isn't something people are used to seeing. Although I understand that there is a near-perfect black paint now. Nano particles absorb and deflect light from returning to the eye. I'm sure you already know the rest. The ends of the intercoolers and the control reactor were a very light gray, "almost white" were his words. The ribbed center sectiosn were painted the same medium gray as the markings on the undersides of the front ends of the nacelles. A tiny bit darker than the hull color. I thought they were the same as the hull color. That's it! You now know everything I learned last night. Of course, I thanked him profusely. He has a good sense of humor.
Excellent. Yes, it's amazing that there is exactly ONE shot of the 11 foot in The Cage. I know there are a couple of shots where you can make out the details of the bridge dome with the "window" on the front. But most of the WNMHG shots you can't. So as far as I'm concerned MY WHNHGB is the 2nd pilot ship with the 1st pilot bridge markings. It's actually one of the few shots where you can see the top of the saucer. There weren't that many, IIRC. Keep up the good work.
I will (eventually) make a recreation of the 3 foot model, and possibly a couple of versions of it. Yes. I will certainly be using Shaw's measurements and plans as they are probably the most accurate ever produced, outside of those who built the model. His love for the 3 foot model is profound.
I absolutely HAD to do the back end of the Warp Engines. I've been wanting to do that for YEARS! I hope I did it justice. Now, on to the rest. (Maybe I'll do the Impulse Engines next ...)
It IS really good and your renders are very sharp and clear btw, the colour is really nice too. And still quite something that a design that is so old still fascinates people, there's always someone recreating the TOS Enterprise, either to make the perfect screen/model accurate version or the wildest redesign.