1/500 reboot JJ Abrams Enterprise

konp

New Member
So I figured I'd post a build thread of this model so others could see what it involves.


Box:


ngo7xhw.jpg

Not much to say here, I'm sure everyone's familiar with the boxart for this one.


Saucer top after drilling for nav LEDs:


7FbMV2j.jpg



Inside saucer top after some lightblocking:


s079Hm5.jpg



LEDs used for nav strobes:


x0mFFcH.jpg

These LEDs are package size 3020. Quite small, but by no means the smallest SMT LED you can get.


Ratsnest of wiring for the blinker circuit:


A8IDTMq.jpg



Here's a video of the nav strobes in action for the top of the saucer.
 
Nice work so far... I really enjoyed the reboot. Looking forward to the Star Trek 3!

Yeah I enjoyed the reboot immensely. Into Darkness less so, but it was still fun. From the looks of things, they're going to be following somewhat in the footsteps of The Search for Spock, with the Enterprise being exploded and stuff.
 
Yeah I enjoyed the reboot immensely. Into Darkness less so, but it was still fun. From the looks of things, they're going to be following somewhat in the footsteps of The Search for Spock, with the Enterprise being exploded and stuff.

Yeah, looks that way. I'm looking forward to the new TV series as well. This year is another one for great movies! Can't wait. I still need to get my first Star Trek model, but that will be some time in the future. My Star Wars kick is going to last some time.
 
So I started adding the static lights to the top of the saucer:

6rwL2hb.jpg


For reference, this is how big the LEDs are (package size 0402):

vnUOtwX.jpg


Right now there's 4 leds in the spotlight areas; no joke, I went through 3 times as many LEDs just to get those successfully soldered and positioned. Luckily I bought 100 of them, but still I worry there's not enough.
 
Right now there's 4 leds in the spotlight areas; no joke, I went through 3 times as many LEDs just to get those successfully soldered and positioned. Luckily I bought 100 of them, but still I worry there's not enough.

I hear you! I remember when I was doing mine, I burnt out so many of the bloody things, and lost so many more to the carpet monster... Good luck, apart from the fiddly lighting I found that the actual kit goes together really well!
 
How the heck are you soldering those things?? I bought some after watching a video that made it look easy. It's not. ;) I'm using pre-soldered ones now. They're a buck a piece but saved my eyesight! Looking forward to the rest of this build.
 
How the heck are you soldering those things?? I bought some after watching a video that made it look easy. It's not. ;) I'm using pre-soldered ones now. They're a buck a piece but saved my eyesight! Looking forward to the rest of this build.

With incredible patience and more than a little skill :p lots of muttering and cussing too of course.

Teslabe yeah, I made sure to get the PE when I bought the kit. I plan on putting the bussard rings on motors and making them spin.
 
With incredible patience and more than a little skill :p lots of muttering and cussing too of course.

Teslabe yeah, I made sure to get the PE when I bought the kit. I plan on putting the bussard rings on motors and making them spin.

Here is how I solder to SMD LEDs, three pieces of blue painters tape in a "H", one with the sticky side up and two to hold it down. Then just
place your LEDs on the tape to hold them as you solder your Mag-wire to them, I also use liquid Rosin Flux, that really helps... These are the 0603 LEDs I placed in the ends of the bussard domes on my JJ-Prise.



Forward LEDs01 72dpi.jpgForward LEDs and bearing 72dpi.jpg
 

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Damn, those bussard blades look amazing. I built mine before the etch set came out so I just scratch built very basic blades.

Chris

Edit: sorry for my faux pas
 
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So I've more or less finished the static spotlights on the top of the saucer. I got sick of screwing up 0402s so I went one size bigger to 0603. Way easier to use, and still small enough to be suitable. Haven't got a pic of that yet though, still sorting out the wiring.

I modified the impulse engine exhaust a bit. Revell mold this part in white instead of clear for some reason. I've got the photoetch parts though, so I cut away the back of the grille, and filled it with clear polyester resin. After it cured I sandblasted it with my mini blaster. This is the result:

RbiKrzl.jpg


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Once it's painted, the photoetch applied and some deep red LEDs chucked in there, it should look an absolute treat.
 
Hi Konp,

looking great. I feel for you regarding the LEDs, nothing like spending time fiddling with those things and then having them fall never to be seen again. My personal favorite is holding one with a tweezer and pressing just a tad too hard until it catapults into the unknown. ;)
 
Is that a bearing glued in the center of the LED ring? Are you planning on rigging up a system of spinning blades?

That is my Bussard cover I had posted to answer konp's question about soldering SMD LEDs, I also posted a video of my counter-rotating blades but took down the video because
I didn't want to hi-jack his thread, I'll repost it if konp is ok with it.
 
That is my Bussard cover I had posted to answer konp's question about soldering SMD LEDs, I also posted a video of my counter-rotating blades but took down the video because
I didn't want to hi-jack his thread, I'll repost it if konp is ok with it.

I'm totally fine with it, dude. Your build is one of the "reference" builds I look at for direction (the other being HughB's). I'd like to do counter-rotating blades as well, but I can't find the right kind of motors or gears for them. So I'll have to make do with single-direction rotation.

There are so few fully-documented awesome builds of this model - most of them that I can find are unlit, or badly painted, or HAND painted, or unfinished, or they haven't bothered with the right colours or decals and so on. It's a bit disappointing, especially considering the absolute wealth of information that can be found for 1/350 refit builds (which I'm tackling after this one).
 
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