Last year I got something a little out of the ordinary for me - a science fiction model.
The American kit company AMT is best known for their car models, but since the 1960s they have also done many Star Trek models. Starting with the USS Enterprise herself in 1966. The Star Trek range expanded during the 1960s and 1970s, and in 1975 AMT introduced the U.S.S. Enterprise Command Bridge -showing the interior of the ship. Three of the main crew members were included.
This is a large model, being made to 1/32nd scale. According to the box top, the Bridge has a diameter of 12 inches. The model has been re-issued a few times over the years, and in 2022 it was up-graded with new parts, and extra figures. This is the version I have. The name of the kit has changed slightly, to U.S.S. Enterprise Bridge Set.
AMT is now owned by Round 2, and the kit itself is moulded in China. The box top has a rather poor painting of the Bridge, but this is surrounded by photographs from the show, with more on one side of the box. The bottom of the box has photographs of the assembled model, which looks stunning.
My first reaction on opening the box was Wow ! It is absolutely filled with large, white polystyrene parts, packed in four separate plastic bags. There are no clear parts. The total parts count is now 108. Oddly, the parts seemed dusty despite being in sealed bags, and will need a wash before assembly begins.
The Bridge is basically a circular room, with a lowered central floor, surrounded by walls. In the original version of this kit the walls did not fully enclose the Bridge - there was a gap for ease of viewing. In this revised kit, all the walls are present.
The original kit also came with only three figures - Captain Kirk, seated in his chair, with Mr Spock and Mr Sulu standing. The 2022 version now has six figures, and ten heads, so you can model most of the main crew from the original TV series. There are three Seated Males, one Seated Female, one Short Standing male, and one Tall Standing male. The heads are Captain Kirk; Doctor McCoy; Ensign Chekov; Mr Sulu; Lieutenant Uhura; Mr Spock; Mr Scott; and three unnamed generic heads (two male, one female). It may be possible to find some additional figures of the right size, to fully populate the Bridge.
The decal sheet is beautiful, and very detailed. There is a choice of three images for the Main Screen. You are advised to remove the raised detail from the chair, helm, and view screens before applying the decals.
The assembly instructions are not great, but should not be a problem for an experienced modeller. The painting guide is a single drawing, with the colours identified by name and Testors paint number. There is nothing on the uniform colours, or Star Fleet rank insignia. No indication of who should be wearing what. Your main reference is going to be the photographs from the series, and of the assembled model, on the box.
The decal placement guide is much better, and runs to two full pages.
Looking at the instructions, there seem to be a lot of joins in the floor and wall sections. From what others have said about this kit, it would probably be best to mount it on a solid base of some sort, for support.
I have a few other things to finish off first, before starting on this kit, but I am really looking forward to it. In the meantime, here are a few photographs of the kit, the decal sheet, and the box.
Five photographs. Hope you like them.
Paul Adams from New Zealand
Wow. Just, wow. I don't think I have the patience to build something like this anymore, but it sounds great. You could even use it for role-playing games; I understand the currently-in-print "Star Trek Adventures" from Modiphius uses 1/32nd scale figures. I look forward to seeing the results of your efforts!
ReplyDeleteBlimey! What a kit! The small screen images of the alien and Klingon ship are great. Best of luck Paul with his herculean task! Or should I say Kirkian?
ReplyDeleteI loved the AMT kits as a kid. I go the Enterprise and Klingon Battlecruiser, which seemed huge at the time. Had to get my dad to make them and he just stuck them together with no paint! I had the Space Station K-7 re-issue too, which is really basic, but a great design. I am looking to find the recent release of it again, as it has been upgraded slightly. This looks like a nice kit, but as you say, will probably need some additional support and more than a little filler and sanding. Its a good scale though and could lend itself well to a little customisation and modelling additions. The spare figures have to be red shirts, waiting to get shot! Bill
ReplyDeleteExcellent kit review, Paul. As a kid I really enjoyed Star Trek and had the AMT Enterprise kit. The ship seemed huge at the time. Really looking forward to seeing the finished Bridge set.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with it. I've got the Polar Lights 1:350 Enterprise, now that really is huge!
ReplyDeleteI had the Enterprise, the Klingon ship, the Romulan ship and, of course, the standing Spock with three headed snake !
ReplyDeleteBest of luck with this beast of a kit! All those modules and detail painting would scare me off, but you are more intrepid than I! Progress photos would be welcome here too, I think. It will be a stunner when finished, I’m sure. Sending you good modelmaking vibes from the US! SFZ
ReplyDeleteWow what a great kit that is now, since the upgrades! I remember seeing the unopened boxes in Sydney's Hobbyco the 70s, but never got any beyond builsing the AMT Enterprise and Klingon ships.
ReplyDeleteAs an aside, I'm loving the retelling of the Original Series in the Strange New Worlds series with the untold adventures of Captain Pike. They recently featured a reworking of the original Balance of Terror episode.
My Blu Ray disc included the original episode as an extra feature. I was gobsmaked at one of the bridge scenes which featured an upskirt shot of Lieutenant Uhura which left Gerry Anderson's leering UFO camera angles in the dust!
What do you think Moonbasers?
http://mystartrekscrapbook.blogspot.com/2012/02/uhuras-panties.html?m=1
Thank you. This was a really unusual kit for me, and my first Science Fiction subject.
ReplyDeleteI had not thought about using the kit in role playing games.
I have now built the kit, and will send in photos of the build. First up, the fit is terrible, there are no location pins or tabs - just butt joins for the walls and floor sections. It is very easy to get the different wall and floor sections mixed up. Be very careful.
If you assemble the model first, and fill all the joins, they are going to be very difficult to sand, given all the weird angles. It will also be very difficult to paint, or to apply the decals.
Given this, I thought it would be easier to paint each part, apply the decals, and then assemble everything. I then build the kit in sub-sections that could be removed to make display and photography easier. These sub-sections all have gaps, that you will just have to live with, as filling them will damage the work you have already done.
The result is a great looking model, but it needs planning and care. It might be an expensive kit, but there is a lot of plastic in the box, and there is plenty of work involved, so it is value for money.
I had the original kit back in the 1970s. The one thing that threw me was realizing that it had nothing for all those dozens and dozens of lighted instrument panels.
ReplyDeleteI think it was that kit that made me realize my limitations as a modeller. There were no decals available, no DVDs with freeze frame, not even VHS cassettes to work from. And I was going to try to paint all those buttons with a sewing pin dipped in enamel paint.
I seem to recall reading that the graphics were done by a guy on "TOS GRAPHICS.COM" which has since disappeared. He was using Blu-Rays to freeze frame and reconstruct all those tiny panels,and I think the model company bought the rights to use his stuff for decals.
Amazing stuff really!
I had their original Enterprise model back in the day when it came out, followed by the Klingon ship. I was less than happy with my results! In regards to building space models, I've been emotionally damaged since! LOL
ReplyDelete