Colors of the nacell caps

[CDR6]

(CDR's silly question of the day) Ok, something that is beginning to bother me, what color were the TOS nacell end caps, and when did they become red?

 

[Ziz]

From what I understand, they were just clear frosted originally. They didn't become red until one of the early Smithsonian restoration efforts.

 

[AudioBridge]

(CDR's silly question of the day) Ok, something that is beginning to bother me, what color were the TOS nacell end caps, and when did they become red?

There were rotating panels behind the caps on the original ship with multiple C7 lights attached to them, as I recall. What the colors were and how many of each they used...who knows? I suppose they became red during the animated series.

 

[Albertese]

Wait, weren't the domes on the three footer painted red? I which case it would have appeared that way in every episode seeing as how stock footage was used over and over. And in the opening title sequence of every show.

--Alex

 

[AudioBridge]

Wait, weren't the domes on the three footer painted red? I which case it would have appeared that way in every episode seeing as how stock footage was used over and over. And in the opening title sequence of every show.

--Alex

You're right, the three-footer and the original eleven-footer were solid red caps before the eleven-footer's were replaced with the lighted caps. But, the bright red backlit ones didn't appear until TNG.

 

[BK613]

As the composite photo in Shaw's post here shows, the 11-footer was delivered with copperish-colored end caps with silver/chrome spikes which mirrored/matched the deflector and its spike.

I suspect it was the combination of the Smithsonian coupled with the influence of all those red end caps on the AMT boxes.