YARN
Fleet Captain
As to the bits directly behind the deflector dish, you're right that it doesn't quite work. When you look at just that part and the dish (like when I'm building it) it looks great. But I've tinkered with it again and again and just can't get it to look right with the ship as a whole. I'll replace it in time, but whatever goes there will still be "exposed."
I hope you find an elegant solution that meets your artistic goals and fits the overall TOS aesthetic.
The praise you are getting here is well-deserved. It looks great AND it really fits the era. This one's a winner.
It seems to me that TOS era designs benefit from their simplicity, that pseudo-aerodynamic arrangement of cylinders, saucers and "wings."
I like the general shape of the "Deflector Engine" -- it just seems like it should be a slightly simpler shape and a little more aerodynamic -- those bomber old engine pods you reference would not feature large lateral support structures disrupting airflow around the engine and the wing. Those supports would be in line the direction the plane travels in.
Nitpicky I guess, but I think you've got a near-perfect TOS-era Miranda there. I think we'll all be very interested to see any updates. Awesome stuff.