How Would You Modify Enterprise-B For A Series?

[Knight Templar]

There was a fan site explanation that the flared skirt on the Enterprise-B caused the maximum velocity of the modified Excelsior class ships to drop by a full warp factor so it was not implemented on other vessels of that class.

 

[Uxi]

I prefer the Excelsior to the Ent-B add-on bits. Since they were a retcon that didn't make it to TNG or DS9, the upgrades/modifications obviously failed.

Though I love the Enterprise-class refit (and 1701-A has always been my imagination's favorite), I do kinda wish they had just given Excelsior to Kirk at the end of STIII (if not a new hybrid style) something like the "NX-1701-A" that was in Starlog. Or a Dreadnought Refit.

 

[Knight Templar]

I prefer the Excelsior to the Ent-B add-on bits. Since they were a retcon that didn't make it to TNG or DS9, the upgrades/modifications obviously failed.

Though I love the Enterprise-class refit (and 1701-A has always been my imagination's favorite), I do kinda wish they had just given Excelsior to Kirk at the end of STIII (if not a new hybrid style) something like the "NX-1701-A" that was in Starlog. Or a Dreadnought Refit.

They did use the U.S.S. Lakota in DS9 which was a renamed Enterprise-B.

Of course this is against literally scores or even hundreds of original Excelsiors shown over the years.

 

[Uxi]

duh even mentioned in this thread, but briefly forgot about Lakota.

 

[Santaman]

In any case I would remove those stupid looking extra impulse engines since they're straight aimed at the nacelles.. typical Eaves.. he does the same with Ent-E.. not the smartest move unless you're interested in replacing yer nacelles every time you go to full impulse..

 

[Knight Templar]

In any case I would remove those stupid looking extra impulse engines since they're straight aimed at the nacelles.. typical Eaves.. he does the same with Ent-E.. not the smartest move unless you're interested in replacing yer nacelles every time you go to full impulse..

That assumes the "impulse engines" are simply rockets.

One of the novels, the one with George Kirk aboard the original Enterprise explained that "impulse engine" is actually "Internally Metered Pulse" (IMPulse) engine and that the output of the fusion reactors in the engines it used to create "waves of gravitic distortion " through space that the ship then rides.

This would actually clear up lots of tech problems in Star Trek where the Impulse engines are shown to be used in conjunction with the warp engines and also to provide emergency FTL speed when the warp engines are off line.

 

[Santaman]

^^ I actually assume they're the exhaust of the fusion reactors, won't really give thrust but a stream of overheated fusion residu isn't nice either..

 

[Knight Templar]

^^ I actually assume they're the exhaust of the fusion reactors, won't really give thrust but a stream of overheated fusion residu isn't nice either..

Well as someone once noted, to move a ship the size of the Enterprise with fusion rocket engines alone (if that is what the impulse engines were) then the impulse engines would have to be several times the size they are...plus the entire engineering hull and half the saucer would have to be full of fuel.

Even if the impulse engines used antimatter rockets, the ships would have to carry thousands upon thousands of tons of fuel.

The only way the "impulse engines" as shown in the various series could move the masses they are shown to move at any reasonable speed would be if the ships mass were being effectively lowered by a warp field.

 

[Santaman]

I assume the impulse powerplant is a coil engine just like warpdrive, including mass lowering magic, however they're powered by big ass fusion reactors and not the M/AM plant, the exhaust seen on most ships I see as exhaust ports to get rid of excess heat and the stuff coming from the fusion reactors.

 

[Knight Templar]

I assume the impulse powerplant is a coil engine just like warpdrive, including mass lowering magic, however they're powered by big ass fusion reactors and not the M/AM plant, the exhaust seen on most ships I see as exhaust ports to get rid of excess heat and the stuff coming from the fusion reactors.

I agree.

Of course lots of the assumptions about the impulse engines come from "The Cage" and Spocks line

"Blast us out (of orbit) with rockets". Which is about as hokey as you can get.

IIRC, NASA astronauts do not even say "rockets" in regards to rocket engines when speaking during missions. Perhaps Squiggy can clarify this.

 

[Squiggy]

"Engines" are the causal parlance. Getting more technical you get to "SRB" (solid rocket booster) or "SME" (shuttle main engine).

 

[Blip]

I agree on the above definitions of the Impulse Drive (ie gravitic distortion generators), but there's still the nasty problem of directing the heat/waste/crap out of them straight into the nacelle. I'd suggest swapping the P/S drive "pods" on the saucer to extra shuttlebays. At this point, we see the design begin to lean towards the separate bays on the Ent-C and Ent-D. I'd probably give the original central engines more of an orange hue, ala the TMP 1701.

Apart from that:
I'd eliminate the dual Impulse Deflector Crystals (or whatever) and return the original single unit from the Excelsior. For the colour scheme I'd get rid of the teal bits and re-introduce the blue-grey accents. Those daft neon-blue window lights can go aswell - especially on the saucer sensor dome. Time for some proper white bulbs, thanks!

Secondary hull:
I'd prefer to ditch the outboard flange things - they just looked ugly, IMO. I'd also (as stated by others here) enclose that useless empty space in the ventral undercut and devote it to something more functional or aesthetic - most likely cargo bays. I'd also restore the design of the aft Secondary hull from the angular blocky structure on regular production models, to the more attractive and curvy (windowed, arboretum?) feature shown on the Prototype Excelsior before she was commissioned.

Torpedoes:
Not to enter fanboy territory, but I'd probably swap out the odd turret things and replace them with stacked rectangular launchers, two port, and two starboard. I expect that Starfleet would find their ships in need of more rapid-fire capability as the various other powers advanced, and the existing technology available not being sufficient to develop this with single (dual) launchers.

Interhull Connector:
This does need slimming I think, but not a great lot. Maybe take a couple of metres from the total diameter front-back and side-side. I'd also have it as a solid hull piece, with perhaps the forward three quarters aving an inset grill feature - again, leaning towards the Ent-C.

Nacelles:
I'd keep the ones from the Generations appearance, but I'd nix the silly-looking fins from the Bussards, and at the same time remove the ones from the aft ends also. Once again, starting to drift towards the Ent-C a little... The Bussards I don't mind being blue - but then I've always preferred either that or black versus the red end caps (the whole red/white/blue motif of TNG Federation ships being a bit much for my tastes )

Internals:
I quite liked the Ent-B bridge... But, I'd get rid of the weird metallic copper/brown paint on the bulkheads and restore the gunmetal grey of the Excelsior and Ent-A. No complaints, otherwise.

 

[Knight Templar]

"Engines" are the causal parlance. Getting more technical you get to "SRB" (solid rocket booster) or "SME" (shuttle main engine).

Do astronauts ever use any slang terms for various pieces of flight hardware.

For example, Americans refer to the augmentation of a jet engine by dumping fuel into the aft portion of the engines as "afterburner" or simply "burner" while the British call it "reheat".

But of course the real term in "augmentation".

 

[Mytran]

Even so, but would Spock use slang?

Actually, maybe Young Spock would - he was trying to fit in with his human crewmates by smiling and shouting, after all!

 

[aridas sofia]

Simple. Ingram:
http://www.cygnus-x1.net/links/lcars/excelsior-blueprints.php

 

[T'Girl]

Torpedoes ... replace them with stacked rectangular launchers, two port, and two starboard.

Maybe instead of stacking them, they should be dispersed as widely as possible consistent with their forward firing direction.

Bunching your weapons make sense?

 

[TommyR01D]

3: I agree that the "neck"/"interconnecting dorsal" pylon should be thinner. That pylon on the Excelsior and Enterprise-E was both way too bulky, which messed up the "see through" nature of the original Jefferies design, especially the aft view.

...

5: The interiors of the ship would be a more imperative challenge. The movies and "Yesterday's Enterprise" did not explore the bridge design (or other set designs) as thoughtfully as TOS's Enterprise or TNG's Enterprise-D. The C and B looked like recycled bits of A and D. That always disappointed me.

I quite like the thick neck on the Excelsior, as it added to the "heavy" feel of the ship. The Excelsior class always had a feel of solidity about it, making the Refit Constitution look rather weak and dainty by comparison.

I agree with the interiors, however. For all the dozens of Excelsiors we saw throughout the TNG era, we never really saw inside any of them (If we did it would just be a cheap redress of the Battle Bridge and other old recycled sets.), and the movie era rooms were all either redressed or improvised.

On the whole, I would want the Enterprise-B's hideous stardrive-section-bulges-that-exist-solely-to-get-blasted-off-by-the-Nexus removed, along with all of the other changes that were made for Generations, so that it would be like a normal Excelsior class again.

 

[Santaman]

I agree on the above definitions of the Impulse Drive (ie gravitic distortion generators), but there's still the nasty problem of directing the heat/waste/crap out of them straight into the nacelle.

Very much agreed, if anything it just looks stupid...

 

[Tribble puncher]

I'd love to hear a in-universe reason for the modifications to the Enterprise-B. Was the new design because of some sort of new warp-dynamic theory? Was it a competing design with the "traditional" Excelsior class that only saw limited production? Was meant to be something intended for a specific role that only needed a limited number of these types of Excelsiors?

I always figured it was a rare variant that saw limited production, perhaps the "Phalanges" on the engineering hull were extra space that could be used depending on the mission. There are several different variants of both the Miranda, Nebula and Nova Classes so why not the excelsior class?

 

[Timo]

Of course lots of the assumptions about the impulse engines come from "The Cage" and Spocks line

Well, perhaps Spock did wish to use rockets instead of impulse engines? Andy Probert's take on the ship does include the former in addition to the latter.

It's not just the E-B that has oddly placed glowy bits for the supposed impulse engines. There's the mysterious tendency to put the glowly surfaces at an angle in "recent" (ST:FC onwards) designs, suggesting that it's good to have a lot of glowing surface area but unimportant to have a lot of this in the aft direction specifically. Then there's the Steamrunner where the impulse engines also are "blocked" by the ship's structures when viewed from astern. And then there's the TNG tendency for the engines to glow all the time, regardless of whether they are producing thrust or not, coupled with the TOS-R artistic choice of having the engines flare red only when they are producing high levels of thrust, rather than every time the ship is accelerating under impulse.

Perhaps the red surfaces of the E-B could be extended into a curving shape that makes them look even less like nozzles and more like radiators?

Timo Saloniemi