Federation Commander

djdood

Since I am finally getting my workshop room and benches set up, it's time to get my plans in-order for what I'm going to do on my Starline 2500 minis.

One ship that didn't quite hit where I personally wanted it to was the DW war destroyer. It's a great mini, but there were some niggling things that bugged me and I decided to choose my battles and stop carping about them, during development/reviews.

Now, with my own copies on my own bench, I can do anything I want.

My main issue is that the bridge dome is too small.

It's in proportion to the "B/C deck / command decks" teardrop (the bulge beneath the bridge) that are similar to the tv ship cruiser.

However, the DW is a much smaller ship. People (and the fairly standardized size of a Federation bridge) don't scale down. The bridge can't be that small (and wasn't on the FF frigate). So, I'm going to file it off and make new ones sized more like those on the FF.

I haven't decided how I'll fabricate these yet. I might turn them out of styrene rod, using the Dremel as a small lathe. I might also 3D print them, but they are so small they're below the size the printer I have access to is good at.

The "neck" for the center engine was the other thing I just feel the need to change. The prior art and the Starline 2400 mini show a much longer "strut/dorsal-neck". The SL2500's is kind of stubby and puts the center engine's bussard collector behind the sensor dish.

With it pulled in so tight to the main saucer hull, the ship looks too much like the NCA new heavy cruiser.

So, I'll cut the existing neck off at a convenient panel line and replace it with a new one fabricated from styrene bar stock, with brass pins to reinforce the connecting joints to the ship and the engine.

For both the struts and the bridge domes, I'll probably be making one master of each and then gang-casting copies in resin (along with a deckhouse enlargement piece for the Klingon D5W and a replacement deckhouse for the F5W).
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bluebirds38 · Lieutenant Commander Joined: 29 Oct 2009 Posts: 225

i like your revisions. i can't wait to see the dw when it is finshed.

Jim Lewis · Posted: Thu Mar 07, 2013 2:12 am Post subject:

Looking forward to seeing the revised ship!
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Jim Lewis
GunTruck Studios

Darkwing · Posted: Thu Mar 07, 2013 9:12 pm Post subject:

I agree. That's going to look really good and I'm looking forward to the results.
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Let's get DANGEROUS!

Tice Leonard, U.S.S. Lexington & IKV Annihilation

djdood · Posted: Fri Mar 08, 2013 12:51 am Post subject:

Thanks, guys.

This is the weekend where I get the workbenches assembled. Hopefully I can start cutting on minis before running out of weekend. Wink

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djdood · Posted: Fri Mar 08, 2013 8:57 am Post subject:

Got my box of goodness from ADB.

All in all, the new batch of Starline 2500 minis turned out really well. The Feds all look uniformly great. Love how the DNL and BB turned out - tickled to see "my drawings" made reality in metal. Sandrine really hit a home run with these two.

The Klingons also turned out nice. The E-5 is far and away superior to the Starline 2400 version. I had some good ideas in my suggestion drawing and Mongoose chose to follow it, but also added some details (like the "winglets") that really made the ship work. For such a bizarre design, it actually looks really, really cool. Also, SURPRISE!, it's a one-piece mini!

The F-6 also turned out really well and again, I'm quite happy that Mongoose chose to stick very close to my drawings. I love the extended deckhouse. So much so, that I really wish I had stuck to my guns more on doing the same thing on the D5W. It really needed it and it looks great on the F-6.

The only (slight) bummer with the new batch is on the F5W, which is the mini closest to my heart (I did the original "sculpt" for the Starline 2400 version).

Something went wrong, somewhere along the line, and the deckhouse geometry is too small. It has different details than the E-4 or F-5 deckhouses, but is definitely smaller, rather than exactly the same size as the F-5's, as it should have been.

Most folks won't notice or care. It's really only noticeable when you put the minis right next to each other.

Me, I'm a detail-nut, so I'll fix it on mine by cutting and filing it off and replacing it with new ones cast from a mold I'll pull of an F-5.
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