Scratchbuild TOS shuttlecraft....

[Warped9]

I'm just giving the heads up here since I've already begun a similar thread elsewhere.

After waiting years and years for some company to finally offer a decently scaled and decently accurate model kit of the TOS shuttlecraft I've finally gotten tired of waiting. And so I'm going ahead with plans to build one myself based on my drawings of the Class F shuttlecraft (featured elsewhere in this Arts forum).

I'm doing only the exterior albeit with lighted impulse engines, and to facility building I'll be making it in 1/16 scale which will come out a bit less that 20" in length, a bit more than 12" wide and just under 7" in height. The finished model will be in "flying" mode with the forward landing pads retracted and fitted onto a nice display stand perhaps resembling part of a planet or planetary surface. I'd also like to add a touch of weathering to the finished model to suggest regular usage and repeated atmospheric reentry.

I've also decided to depict the model as the Copernicus, NCC-1701/3.

I've never done anything quite like this before so any helpful suggestions will be welcome.

 

[judexavier]

Sounds like a great project.
I spend waaaay too much time at these sites (and not nearly enough time actually learning or building):

http://www.resinilluminati.com/

http://www.therpf.com/

Here's a thread that might be of interest, as far as basic structure is concerned:
http://www.resinilluminati.com/showthread.php?t=11376

Looking forward to your build, and perhaps WIP pics.

 

[Patrin-Zero]

Mind just my two pence worth but I always do a cardstock model of any project before moving to the final builds envisioned materials.

 

[Albertese]

Yes. A mock-up/prototype will save a lot of expense and frustration for something this big. I suggest foamcore to build a 1:1 mock-up of your finished piece so you can make any finicky adjustments to the pesky angles that seemed a little different on paper...

Plus you can basically just draw on the details and make any useful notes right on the model's surface. Treat it as a 3-D blueprint. That way when you make real components you can have something to take final measurements off of and something to "eyeball" smaller parts to, in order to better imagine it in place of the real model.

My dad and I are currently in the foamcore mock-up stage of a 1:98 model of the old Oregon state capitol building (burned down in the 1930's). We're shooting for "photographic miniature" quality. I'm more the modeler, he's more the historian. One of the guys at the Oregon Historical Society in Salem told him he probably knows more than any other person alive about that building now. He's collected a 4" binder of refference material. But there don't seem to be any actual working drawings of whole building so we've managed to grab what few actual prints that have survived and run some photo analysis of dozens of pictures of the building throughout it's life (and even some aerial shots of it after it burned down) and managed to put together some good estimates. But still, working on the foamcore mock-up has been really helpful in seeing how some things were done and just what true dimensions look right against our photos of the real one. I too plan to eventually build a shuttlecraft (but about half the scale of what you're planning) and I think using this same process would be the right way to proceed. Try it out!

--Alex

 

[Gepard]

http://www.therpf.com/

Whoo-hoo! An RPF alum. Represent!

 

[Warped9]

Hmm...a preliminary mockup. That's a good idea. It's funny, too, because way back in the '70s I made a cardboard model of the shuttlecraft. It was a lot simpler, of course, but it also wasn't bad. Thanks guys.

 

[JohnnyE4]

sounds like a fun plan I had the same thought but in 1/6 scale mine is still in progress

http://littledandbubba.weebly.com/index.html

 

[Warped9]

What you see here is a longitudinal cross section of the Class F shuttlecraft that allows for a clearer understanding of the shape of the vehicle between the outside hulls. If you refer to this in conjunction with the elevation and plan views I posted at the beginning of this thread you can see that there are indeed compound curves on the design, particularly on the roof, the fore section of the underside and a bit of the aft section underside.

The angles forward panel on the bow and the angle panels on the aft end are also curved but as can be seen here in this cross section they are clearly simple straight curves.