I'm building the entire Starship Enterprise interior at 1:25 scale
- Thread starter Mike Nevitt
- Start date
Still amazed at what people can do with cardboard.
Unfortunately, the space requirements are outside of my current restrictions.
Unfortunately, the space requirements are outside of my current restrictions.
Aaaaaaand he confirms - TWO engine rooms! Woo-hoo!! 
I have to admit to some confusion over Mr Trek’s seeming inability to see how those original FJ decks line up. They are stacked diagonally, so they line up… diagonally. Not vertically. It is his project and he should do it the way he wants, but he’s changing the layout of the ship for no real reason.
The original design works, but so does the FJ design. The FJ design might make the turboshaft tighter and make fitting corridors on either side impossible, but it will line up diagonally.
I mean, spending that much time, money, and effort on anything certainly gives him the license to do whatever the heck he wants. 
I'm sure he will run into places with FJs design that turn out to not be physically possible. I just don't think this is one of them.
I'm sure he will run into places with FJs design that turn out to not be physically possible. I just don't think this is one of them.
I've been thinking about that, too. Franz Joseph had no insider access. He based his Blueprints and Technical Manual on the photos and drawings in The Making of Star Trek, from which you can't tell much about the dorsal's side. He made a lot of judgement calls, both to fill in the blanks and to fix what didn't work.
Nobody loves FJ's work more than I do, but his Enterprise is not a match for the 11-footer, whose model makers took some shortcuts off Matt Jefferies' plans. For one thing, they made the model's secondary hull underbelly straight instead of a sweeping curve. It was simpler to lathe the wood that way. FJ followed the Jefferies drawing curve as seen in TMOST, and it looks great— as its own thing.
And now: just as the 11-footer was built with judgement calls, and Franz Joseph made judgement calls, Mike Nevitt is going to make a bunch of calls to get his model together. He's picking a practical shape for the dorsal, and because he is building the FJ interior, it seems clear he should follow FJ's more generous secondary hull curvature.
“Franz Joseph had no insider access.”
It’s not true that Franz Joseph had no insider access. He was hired to work on Roddenberry’s Genesis II pilot, as Greg Tyler details on his Trekplace website. In 1974, on
“January 4 FJ flies to Burbank to meet with GR, Matt Jefferies, Bob Justman, Bill Theiss, and Ralph Naveda in GR's offices at Warner Brothers. The BGP has made the rounds of Warner Brothers and everyone, including the janitor, has seen it. Everyone is very enthusiastic about the BGP. GR and FJ discuss problems with Planet Earth, and FJ agrees to develop some sketches and get back together with GR ASAP.
Then again on
“January 8 FJ flies to Burbank for a second time. GR and FJ decide on the equipment types for Planet Earth, and FJ agrees to make drawings for both shooting dummies (Phase I) and working models (Phase II) and get them to GR as fast as possible, as they start shooting on January 19th.”
So he did meet with the people who had made Star Trek, including Jefferies, and discussed the BGP, which they had seen.
http://trekplace.com/fj-timeline.html
It’s not true that Franz Joseph had no insider access. He was hired to work on Roddenberry’s Genesis II pilot, as Greg Tyler details on his Trekplace website. In 1974, on
“January 4 FJ flies to Burbank to meet with GR, Matt Jefferies, Bob Justman, Bill Theiss, and Ralph Naveda in GR's offices at Warner Brothers. The BGP has made the rounds of Warner Brothers and everyone, including the janitor, has seen it. Everyone is very enthusiastic about the BGP. GR and FJ discuss problems with Planet Earth, and FJ agrees to develop some sketches and get back together with GR ASAP.
Then again on
“January 8 FJ flies to Burbank for a second time. GR and FJ decide on the equipment types for Planet Earth, and FJ agrees to make drawings for both shooting dummies (Phase I) and working models (Phase II) and get them to GR as fast as possible, as they start shooting on January 19th.”
So he did meet with the people who had made Star Trek, including Jefferies, and discussed the BGP, which they had seen.
http://trekplace.com/fj-timeline.html
A lot of us grew up inspired by FJ’s work. He brought a level of professionalism and detail to materiel that otherwise would be largely dismissed as juvenile. His work in tandem with the growing impact of Star Trek opened a new door in merchandising for popular properties.
But candidly there was indeed a disconnect somewhere between what he did and the original source materiel, Jefferies and Roddenberry signing off on it notwithstanding. Roddenberry took it as a way to make a buck and Jefferies might have thought, “What the hell, I’m not doing the work and it won’t get much attention anyway.” Little did he know.
Jefferies put a lot more thought and effort into his work on TOS than likely most would have. Roddenberry lucked out in getting just the right guy for the job. Sure, once the materiel was out of Jefferies’ hands he had little to no control over it (gridlines, anyone?) but he knew what he was doing and on some level it really mattered to him. For everything he did throughout his career he will be remembered mostly for designing arguably the most recognizable spaceship in history.
But candidly there was indeed a disconnect somewhere between what he did and the original source materiel, Jefferies and Roddenberry signing off on it notwithstanding. Roddenberry took it as a way to make a buck and Jefferies might have thought, “What the hell, I’m not doing the work and it won’t get much attention anyway.” Little did he know.
Jefferies put a lot more thought and effort into his work on TOS than likely most would have. Roddenberry lucked out in getting just the right guy for the job. Sure, once the materiel was out of Jefferies’ hands he had little to no control over it (gridlines, anyone?) but he knew what he was doing and on some level it really mattered to him. For everything he did throughout his career he will be remembered mostly for designing arguably the most recognizable spaceship in history.
That's interesting, but as Tallguy implied, the Blueprints were already drawn at that point. FJ worked from his retail copy of The Making of Star Trek, which he devoured in every detail, and what few photos and he could get from his daughter and her friends, including some 35mm transparency clippings from Lincoln Enterprises.
I myself sent away for some of those workprint clips Majel was selling, and I put them in plastic, half-frame mounts for Dad's slide projector. Their color has decayed to red now. They were great in their day, though. And I devoured TMOST, like most serious fans my age. So I had "access" to the same inputs as FJ had. It goes to show how much difference his professional skills made, because my innumerable drawings and notes didn't mean shucks next to his.
“the Blueprints were already drawn at that point. FJ worked from his retail copy of The Making of Star Trek…”
They were drawn but not released or even printed yet. He could have modified them based on those meetings, though I have no idea if he did.
They were drawn but not released or even printed yet. He could have modified them based on those meetings, though I have no idea if he did.
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Loving this work greatly.
Oldie but goodie at https://www.youtube.com/@havoc092:
He 3D modeled the Franz Joseph USS Enterprise Model in a series of videos. Might be a little helpful, unfortunately, his CAD work channel didn't survive.
Oldie but goodie at https://www.youtube.com/@havoc092:
He 3D modeled the Franz Joseph USS Enterprise Model in a series of videos. Might be a little helpful, unfortunately, his CAD work channel didn't survive.
Yeah, havoc92 was making impressive progress through FJ's plans.
Excellent @Mike Nevitt So glad that you seem to have worked it out.
Great work, again. Love the videos. Something I noticed, it looks like the position of the turbolift shaft is not quite in the right place as compared to the FJ drawings (see below). The front of Deck 14 is probably throwing things off. Of course, it's Mike's design and he can put it where he thinks best.
