Phase II Enterprise paper model

[pfontaine2]

Planet Of The Titans Enterprise paper model

I posted this image in the thread about Planet of the Titans and thought I'd share it here. I'm not a huge fan of the McQuarrie/Adams Enterprise design but thought that it would be fun to build up a version just to see what it looked like in three dimensions.

I made this paper model. The model is probably 5 inches across but it seems to match up pretty well to some of the McQuarrie paintings, though there are inconsistencies in nearly all of them!

 

[dubeau]

NIce, good craftmanship on your part. Weird ship, since the point of a saucer is kind of lost on me, in that design...it's so smallish. I would have go with a continuation of the hull design shape. You should try other paper model. It's quite intriguing.

 

[CorporalCaptain]

As I said in the other thread, I really like what you did here. I haven't done a superimposed comparison or anything, but to a cursory glance, it appears to match really well.

This isn't the Phase II Enterprise, though. The Phase II Enterprise is actually pretty close to the TMP Enterprise, at least in outward appearance. I'm not sure what the "official" designation of Ralph McQuarrie's concept is, but I've seen it referred to as the Planet of the Titans Enterprise, which seems unambiguous enough.

 

[pfontaine2]

Regarding Phase II/Planet Of The Titans, you are absolutely correct and I should have caught the mistake before I posted. I'll see if I can edit the thread title to get the name right. Thanks again for the catch!

 

[Avon]

i've always really liked this design, nice model!!!

 

[pfontaine2]

One thing I have to say about building a 3 dimensional model of this is that the design looks much better than I anticipated once I could turn it around and view it from any angle. It's not a terribly practical design since each section is terribly thin, only allowing for a few decks in the saucer and secondary hull.

In the other thread where this image is posted, a comment was made that Ken Adams sketches differed from McQuarrie's renderings. I kind of like the proportions of the McQuarrie version though in some of the paintings he did, the Enterprise looks just plain awful, especially from the front.

I disregarded the elements I didn't like and kept the ones I did and came up with this design, which is pretty faithful to one of McQuarrie's renderings.

 

[Potemkin_Prod]

It looks aerodynamic, sort of like one of the old DynaSoar lifting bodies.

I have to ask... have you tried flying it?

 

[pfontaine2]

No Randy, I haven't tried to fly it since I'm not into the RC hobby. I agree though that it looks like it could work really well!
Pierre

 

[B.J.]

^I think he means just see if it glides. You know, just throw it like a paper airplane. But personally, I wouldn't just toss around something that beautiful!

 

[Shat Happens]

I don't like the Planet of Titans design (very good for a generic spaceship but not the Enterprise), but I love models and this one is sweet.

 

[Potemkin_Prod]

No Randy, I haven't tried to fly it since I'm not into the RC hobby. I agree though that it looks like it could work really well!
Pierre

BJ's correct. I meant to gently toss it like a glider onto a foam mattress just to see if it is aerodynamic.

I'm the guy who loved the Estes and Centurion rocket-launched gliders.

 

[publiusr]

As I said in the other thread, I really like what you did here. I haven't done a superimposed comparison or anything, but to a cursory glance, it appears to match really well.

If you can please do so. This design has really grown on me over the years, and a studio model with loads of detail might make all the difference.

Case in point. Take a look at what a good paint job can do to the JJprise
http://s13.postimg.org/y7ahyvs13/10258826_10152422435497597_153823173892944775_o.jpg
http://www.therpf.com/f11/retro-jjprise-199943/

Back on topic. Ralph's painting shows a bridge located near the front edge of the saucer, and his saucer is actually rather flat. Ken Adam has his rather more chunky:
http://filmsketchrlab.blogspot.com/2011/12/warp-back-in-time-to-lost-star-trek.html#.U7Bu-WwU_cs
http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Star_Trek:_Planet_of_the_Titans

Now I prefer Ralphs flatter saucer, which is a little thinner and wider. But Adam has this magnificent array of dish antennas and raised structures at the top center of the saucer, and a combination of those two would be fabulous if done in a large scale.

Remember, this was around the time of Conquest of the Planet of the Apes, when severe lines in architecture were all the rage, when Mies van der Rohe was all the rage.

To me, a wedge shaped secondary hull means planet of floor space--a larger hanger, and Gene wanted a hanger the size of an airport in his 1964 pitch--and this would be the best way to do it.

A saucer that can be left behind as a kind of base--that also makes sense http://astronautix.com/craft/bonaucer.htm
http://astronautix.com/fam/lenicles.htm


If you do another, perhaps make the saucer a tad wider-that would be a little closer to the painting (just eyeballing it) and it might help the design actually fly if done in Styrofoam.

If I were marketing a toy, well Styrofoam is cheap--and very large structures would be lightweight. This design may not grab a lot of folks, but there is a lot of sense to it. I wonder what it might have looked like on the big screen.

 

[JES]

This is certainly one unique design. It is nice to see her pop up every now and then!

 

[publiusr]

Here is what appears to be another painting by Ralph, showing how wide he wanted the saucer:

https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3545/3351497986_11ecc354ff.jpg

The paper model above has the saucer of the study model that made it on screen
http://www.neutralzone.de/database/Federation/Other/PlanetofTitansStudyModelI.htm
http://www.trekbbs.com/showthread.php?p=4302459
http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Star_Trek:_Planet_of_the_Titans

There were two study models:

One had the very wide triangular secondary hull and a Mann type saucer, and the other had a more narrow secondary hull--this was closer to the side view we saw of the ship nearing the asteroid base--only seen on screen as the Tholian base from "--Mirror Darkly."

Other finds from the web--

NX-01 concepts http://s261.photobucket.com/user/CessnaDriver/library/Bandai%20Voyager%20Instructions/NX?sort=3&page=1

Kerr speaks
http://www.startrek.com/article/matt-jefferies-original-starship-enterprise
http://advantagenews.com/news/features/godfrey-man-serves-as-‘star-trek’-designer-and-technical-con/
http://treknographics101.prophpbb.com/topic350.html

 

[Tiberius]

What is it with McQuarrie and wedge-shaped spaceships?

 

[publiusr]

Lots of hanger and floor space.

This design would be easy to build in a very large scale, yet perhaps more easily handled than that refit design that we love but cameramen absolutely hated.

The only way to do justice to this thing would be to make a model--get this--thirty feet long. Out JJ Mr. Abrams.

Have a group like this do uber-detail on the top antenna cluster: http://architectural-models.com/

Photo-etch out the ying yang.

This way, you can drag a tiny camera across the flat surface of the monster and make it seem miles long--to finally out-do the opening sequence of Star Wars.

That is the only way to make this thing really pop. Planet-- is a "shaggy god" story, like the finale of NuBSG after all, and a city ship enterprise is what you need.

I'd love to see something like this detailed to the point that it makes the old Cygnus studio model look simple--the saucer hull making the ID4 destroyers look tiny..

 

[JES]

Who cares? All I know is that they look cool.

 

[publiusr]

Any idea to make this paper models plans available?

 

[publiusr]

Something I was thinking of. A model plane's AWACS type saucer might make for a good primary hull for a similar project

 

[publiusr]

Sorry for posting so many times, but I thought you might like this:
http://losttrek.weebly.com/virtual-study-model.html