NX-01 Deck Plans, Version 2.0

[Timo]

Well, the obvious next step in adding yet more insane detail would be to have the little stick figures replaced by ones that are working on the equipment, walking from A to B, gazing at the stars, hiding from their bosses...

Apart from that, it's difficult to see what would be "missing". Unless you want to tackle the Drexler idea of an ever-changing ship, and draw alternate warp core fits that slide and and out through the aft access ports, alternate weaponry for the berths that now hold phase cannon, and perhaps hints of that secondary hull installation Drexler dreamed up. Just in the form of "projected updates" or "past configurations", and not necessarily in any great detail.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[B.J.]

The Inspection Pod renders that Doug Drexler posted on his blog are NOT the final models used in the show. The model he used is missing key details and looks to be a digital "sketch" that the art department made before handing it off to Foundation Imaging. Screencaps from the show are of almost no use since they are either of the pod moving or at sharp angles. And I have come up with almost nothing in three days of searching on the net.

Can you tell us what is missing? Based on the renders and screencaps at DrexFiles, I can't seem to see what you're seeing.

View of Cutaway at Correct Scale

Very nice! I love the detail and hard work you've put into this. The only thing bugging me is that at this final scale, the cut surfaces (in black) are blending in with the other dark shapes, so it gets hard to distinguish them. A lot of other cross sections I've seen tend to use red for cut surfaces. I don't know how that would look here; it may look horrible, but it's just something to think about.

 

[Vincent Law]

Wow, you do amazing work, AstroSmurf. They should hire you to do the technical manual for Enterprise.

 

[AstroSmurf]

^ Unfortunately, Pocket Books will never produce a tech manual for "Enterprise". That ship has already sailed... and sunk. But don't get me wrong. I would love the work but I just don't see it ever happening.

@B.J.: Some of the detail is a little muddled in places. I may try your suggestion of using red lines but what I really need to do is fine tune the contrast, which I won’t do until the final composite. The scale and colors are exactly the same as the full deck plans. Those work because of that final adjustment.

As for the differences in the Inspection Pod models/renders, the images from the Drex Files are missing a small pod found port and starboard aft just back from the identification markings. It is also missing the formation lights, main aft thruster details and some of the hull plate details look different. But that list is from comparing it with some poor screencaps of the final model. I may be missing other changes and discrepancies because I don’t have enough information for decent comparison.

@Timo: I want to finish this project not add to it. Five years is a long time to be working on anything and I am about to hit that milestone in three weeks with this mess. The Inspection Pod, Uniforms and the Cutaway are the only things left to finish. After that I am done. (Maybe then I can get around to finally finishing the Companion.)

 

[Ziz]

http://www.lulu.com/

Self book publishing. I'm not a lawyer, I just play one on the internet, but if you sold it as a book of your artwork that just happened to be of the NX as opposed to "a Star Trek artwork book", then Pocket and Paramount might not be able to touch you.

Consult a real lawyer just to be sure.

 

[AstroSmurf]

Well folks I am back. I know I can’t compete with Vektor’s latest posts (jaw-droppingly beautiful posts) but I have an update. And it is for the… inspection pod. Surprise!

Despite all the trouble this one ultimately caused, I am pleased with how it finally turned out. But I want to be perfectly clear about something here. This schematic is not 100% accurate. Actually it is about 80% accurate, far less then what I usually prefer. The shape is correct and most of the major details are where they should be but a large part of the ventral surface is an educated guess.

Check it out. And remember the full-size properly annotated version is available for viewing under the E Deck Page on the TEP website. (A link is in my sig.) Feel free to let me know what you think.

I have two left to finish and I can stick a fork in this project.

 

[Sarvek]

I knew that you could do it. I always believed in you. You do such fantastic detailed work. Keep it up. What are the last two things left on your plate??

 

[B.J.]

Sweeeeet! It's amazing not only the amount of detail in the artwork, but all the mouse-activated annotations you put into these!

 

[AstroSmurf]

^ Truthfully, I hate doing all those pop-up labels. It is tedious and time consuming, especially with some of the bigger plans. But in the end it has been worth it. That style of labeling has really set my plans and website apart from all the others.

And thanks for the comments so far. It makes me smile to think that after five years folks are still interested in this mess. And Sarvek's multiple use of the thumbs-up smile makes me feel like the Trek version of Tinkerbell... thumbs-upping me will make me live.

 

[AstroSmurf]

This is not really an update but... Yesterday, I did some upgrades to two of the warp core animations on the website. They turned out so darn stinkin' spiffy that I had to share.

The reactant chamber "swirl" animation on the previous one sucked. I never got the timing right so I redid it from scratch. I also redid the reactant injector animation.

Again, I changed out the "swirl" animation on this one.


And I am so pleased with the results I may add the Warp System Schematic to the website again using the upgraded graphics. (I removed the first version because I didn't like the way it turned out.)

 

[B.J.]

Nice! I must have missed the animations the first time through. You know, it's stuff like this that I wish modern graphics programs had color cycling.

 

[AstroSmurf]

^ That would be nice. My energy bursts would blend better. I also wish the animation created smaller file sizes. I end up half-stepping the animation stops to make it easier to download. If it was up to me, I would be working at a frame rate three times faster then what you see here. My plasma "clouds" are way to jerky for my personal tastes.

One day, hopefully really soon, I can scrape together enough money to finally purchase Adobe Flash. I hate doing all this in gifs.


And the animations are found on the Warp Systems Page of my website. There are other tech pages like the Warp Factor Calculator and the Transporter. (A lot of folks cheat and go to the Download page and miss these.)

 

[Ziz]

OK, I can see the animations on the two Warp pages but the Transporter one doesn't do anything. What should be happening there? I mean, I know what SHOULD be happening - someone should be beaming in and out - but on the screengrab at the top or in your drawing down below?

 

[AstroSmurf]

^ Actually the transporter page doesn't feature any animation. I was just pointing out some tech pages people miss. Sorry!

But I have been thinking about redoing that transporter cutaway picture. I could always add a little animation when I do.

 

[Ensign Ro-]

@ AstroSmurf - Just visited and bookmarked your site for the first time. I'm boggled by the amount of care and detail you've put into it. Truly a phenomenal undertaking with even more phenomenal results. Incredible work.

 

[AstroSmurf]

^Thanks! It has been a labor of love.

 

[AstroSmurf]

I am back with another update. This time it is highlighting the uniforms, designed by one of my favorite unsung Trek heroes, Bob Blackman.

The schematic gives a brief look into some of the more popular looks of the NX-01. It includes the much derided (but uber-sexy) Vulcan catsuit and the M.A.C.O. uniform. The ranks have also been thrown in for good measure.

There are several briefly seen designs that I chose not to include in this schematic due to space, references available and importance. This includes the two piece jump suit variant, T’Pol’s drab brown jumpsuit from the first two seasons, and the Starfleet arctic wear. I admit I hate that brown jumpsuit of T'Pol's. It looked like a rug my grandmother had in the 1970's. Since my work is supposed to be a snap shot of the NX-01 at the end of "Terra Prime", I could ignore it and get away with it. Sneaky, huh? As for the arctic wear, it was seen once in "The Aenar" and has been very poorly documented. I wanted to include it but there just wasn't enough reference available.

So, what do you think?


Just an FYI, we are almost at the end of our journey here. The next update will be for the Cut-Away schematic... and that will be the end of it.

 

[B.J.]

Nice!

... and that will be the end of it.

Famous last words!

 

[Bill Morris]

For reference, here's the auction page with ENT uniforms and one of T'Pol's catsuits (only $9977.99).

http://startrekpropcollector.com/trekauctions/data/pages/iaw/page102.html

 

[AstroSmurf]

^ I have all of those images already. (And why would I need reference when I have already finished?)

And just as an FYI, most of T'Pol's catsuits seen in the third and fourth season are all different. They DID NOT use the same pattern for each one. I chose the rust colored version because I liked the color and it's design fell in the middle of the lot. (And that pink version seen on that auction page is from the very last episode. It features several alterations that were not in the rest of the series.)