Die Cast Lighted 1/350th TOS Enterprise (TOMY crowd funded)

JiminSTLouis said:
I bet the higher-ups consider this project a success. Almost 3,000 units sold, maybe 200 cancellations that will be resold, and actually not that much backlash. A couple of dozen (at the most) dissatisfied here on the RPF, and a smattering around other sites and FB. Much of those possible the same members from here.

I bet we see a diecast refit with lessons learned incorporated from this project.
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Maybe. But it will be very expensive. Especially if they try to appease people who don't like diecast seams. They would probably have to do some welding next time.

We shall see. But I'm not as optimistic as you. Maybe they will do a fully lit in scale diecast TOS Klingon battle cruiser. I would love to see that before another Enteprise.
 
xlowes said:
Just checked out a site that makes cases. For one of that size over $400 without shipping
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plexi bonnets aren't the sort of thing you buy online, you need to find a local fabricator. Got a Piedmont Plastics near you? Or a place that makes aquariums?
 
JiminSTLouis said:
I bet the higher-ups consider this project a success. Almost 3,000 units sold, maybe 200 cancellations that will be resold, and actually not that much backlash. A couple of dozen (at the most) dissatisfied here on the RPF, and a smattering around other sites and FB. Much of those possible the same members from here.

I bet we see a diecast refit with lessons learned incorporated from this project.
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I hope so.. but I doubt we will see this price point again.. I am totally happy with what I got for $600, but it would have been even better if everything had been communicated clearly. If I had paid $1200 or more for this.. I would probably be very disappointed. But then, there is no way such an expense would ever be taken in my household , no matter how dang cool . ( I stared Long and hard and multiple times at the Serenity BDR. If there is one thing I regret not purchasing.. but now , even in hindsight, I can't justify that amount of money for a model given my means ) But If the refit is this same quality and $600 -- yeah, I am all over it. Maybe this time they actually give them some marketing guys.. they would have sold way over the 5000 goal if they had introduced it at comic con and given the crowdfund 3 months. Meanwhile the available ones one ebay are $1500 or more. Stupid wife not letting me buy two.. could have had this one for free ...
 
After opening the package and playing with it a bit, I gotta say that this thing is freaking AMAZING! I’ll fight anyone who says different!
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Ant1988 said:
Maybe. But it will be very expensive. Especially if they try to appease people who don't like diecast seams. They would probably have to do some welding next time.

We shall see. But I'm not as optimistic as you. Maybe they will do a fully lit in scale diecast TOS Klingon battle cruiser. I would love to see that before another Enteprise.
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There is a market for people who can live with the seams and plug holes in return for the lower costs (me) A Refit with the spotlight startup sequence would sorely tempt me - more than a D7-- The model is just -- too smooth without the detail required. Even as a Kid with my dinky.. the Klingon counterpart was - - disappointing

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Now a Romulan War bird? With full decal on the bottom? My ( rich) friend had all of the models when we were kids. We would fight over who got to be the Romulan- even better than manning the Enterprise. (Balance of Terror was absolutely my favorite episode as a kid) If TOMY did a 350:1 of one of those....


But now that I have a decent enough 350:1 enterprise? Yeah, what I really dream of is a Serenity BDR knockoff I can afford. (till then its the keychain..)
 
Fizzbin said:
Said by 7pm today. Thing is I figured with the signature requirement they would have left a notice if I wasn't home and I would go pick them up after work. Oh well, no harm done. Saves me a trip, and I definitely wanted them today.
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Glad they were all accounted for when you arrived.. My guy wanted the sig, but then I was already walking out to meet him :)
 
Reign1701A said:
She's beautiful. Pictures you see don't do it justice. She looks just like the one in the Smithsonian (I should know I live right outside of DC)View attachment 1753075
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Can anyone comment on the one- very orange - window in the neck. It shows up hereand in Trevor's videos as slightly brighter - but its a very different color on mine -- but I can't find any reference material that shows this difference.. Top row - furthest aft behind the two "dot" or porthole windows.. I am totally happy even if this is "wrong" .. just curious as to why ..

on a related note - the last windows aft on the shuttle hangar are green on both sides ( and unevenly painted)

Alos, it vaguely bothered me as a child my Dinky shuttle was not to scale and would have BARELY fit into the Dinky's hangar bay (much less it was stored in a place it wasn't supposed to be0
Now I finally have a model to fit.. and the nacelles don't droop ( yet)

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weisshaupt said:
Can anyone comment on the one- very orange - window in the neck. It shows up hereand in Trevor's videos as slightly brighter - but its a very different color on mine -- but I can't find any reference material that shows this difference.. Top row - furthest aft behind the two "dot" or porthole windows.. I am totally happy even if this is "wrong" .. just curious as to why ..
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Check out the original prop at the Smithsonian. It's accurate to that....
 
Ant1988 said:

Check out the original prop at the Smithsonian. It's accurate to that....
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Stupid cell phones. Yep, that one is orange..but also a few others...that don't appear orange on ours
not seeing the aft-most hangar bay green - and that -on mine at least -looks deliberately done- if not pretty and uniform. But camera tech makes these things -- less obvious. Its just not capturing things as they are. Still not disappointed. Just curious as to differences.

Red and green saucer lights seem to stay on longer and blink less often as well.

And the aft blinking light under the hangar bay seems to be faster as well..

With my old eyes I have to look for the screw covers. If only they had placed those on the side obscured by the stand..... ( but really, I like others, am questioning if the saucer stand is required)
 
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xlowes said:
THE FOLLOWING POST AND PICTURE IS NOT MINE. POSTED ON FB !

In 2022, Iowa based Tomy which acquired Ertl, a long-time metal-model maker of metal toys that included John Deere farm tractor replicas, came onto the scene with a license to create a series of high-end large scale metal models that would launch their Prestige Select line of Star Trek collectibles. The first product of this new venture was a 1:350-scale classic original series Enterprise.
Myself along with others formed a group of paid consultants to help create this first model. This fulfilled a life-long dream for me of not just owning an accurate screen replica of the Enterprise but with the added bonus of helping build it. Though my role was relatively minor compared to others, I still played a part and it was fun.
The end result of our efforts is now shipping. Some have already received their orders. Now that I have received my own copy of the model, I am impressed with what Tomy has done. There are issues which have and will be pointed out by others. Knowing how much attention that Tomy did take to our suggestions, I remain pleased with the results. There were so many levels of management and other factors that remained outside of our control. Tomy was not obligated or required to take any of our suggestions but they did listen and some things were changed as a result.
In the end, the Tomy model is the best and most accurate functioning (i.e. lights up with motorized engine fans) for the price point given. I’m still amazed that all of this (yes seams and plug holes included) was made available to buyers for under $600 which includes shipping for the 46-pound model! Yes, there will be those out there that say that they can do better with the Polar Lights model either the 1:350 kit or the limited-edition preassembled version (if you can still find one). Some also have done very well 3D printing their own. But if you are among the untalented model makers like me that could not possibly come close to producing a finished kit that resembles anything like what the 11-foot Smithsonian model looks like, then the Tomy model remains a good choice.
Tomy is working on other models that will be part of their new Star Trek Prestige Select line. They have learned from their mistakes and despite what you may have heard, they do listen to their customers.
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xlowes said:
Glen Swanson !
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xlowes said:
According to his post he also indicated the following. No mention as to who however.

There are already third parties working on making available alternate display stands for this model
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That's all good news. Taking feedback, learning lessons, and marching forward with more models is the best we can hope for! Customers getting their shipments this week still seem pretty enthused by what they've received despite the stumbles.

Fingers crossed for the Enterprise D following all the Picard season 3 hype. The ship was on billboards in Times Square earlier this year, it's never gonna me more relevant and marketable than now. It's got current momentum, but it also has decades of fans behind it as well. Seems to me to be a logical choice. The only other ships with as much momentum in the public consciousness recently are the SNW prefit and the Titanprise, although I don't expect those to have quite as large followings.

Since doing same scale as this first model would result in obscene length, I'd be quite content with same size ~32". For a line of releases to appear congruent, they gotta match either scale or length, and I think length makes a lot more sense in this instance considering a 1:350 E-D would be 6 feet long!

Of course the refit is an obviously popular choice as well, and well deservedly. It's not quite as hot right now, but I'd still certainly be interested. I'm a huge TMP fan and if a model managed to replicate some form of that pearlescence, I would not be able to resist as long as it was remotely in my price range.
 
weisshaupt said:
Stupid cell phones. Yep, that one is orange..but also a few others...that don't appear orange on ours
not seeing the aft-most hangar bay green - and that -on mine at least -looks deliberately done- if not pretty and uniform. But camera tech makes these things -- less obvious. Its just not capturing things as they are. Still not disappointed. Just curious as to differences.

Red and green saucer lights seem to stay on longer and blink less often as well.

And the aft blinking light under the hangar bay seems to be faster as well..

With my old eyes I have to look for the screw covers. If only they had placed those on the side obscured by the stand..... ( but really, I like others, am questioning if the saucer stand is required)
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Feel free to experiment. I'll touch base in a few years.
 
Got mine today and just finished putting it together. This thing is a beast! When you hold it you know this isn’t some cheap thin plastic, it’s SOLID! The paint job is amazing, the details including the bridge and shuttle bay perfect! I can’t say how much I love the lighting. Bright? Yeah, but in space with no atmosphere, no particles, nothing everything will look bright so I’m fine with it. It’s not JJ Abrams lens flare bright. The shuttles are cool, individually numbered and all, but I agree the seam is a disappointment but not worth a major gripe. As for the covers, meh, I barely notice them but I’m not a perfectionist for $600.00. The stand is a pain though…if only they flipped it or centered it. Or eliminated the saucer sep from the start as the trouble I had aligning the primary and secondary hulls it ain’t never coming apart again.

For the price I’m deliriously happy! One of four dream ships with lights and big scale down! The Refit, a Star Destroyer, and the Cygnus would be my others. Perfectionists will never be happy, but I have no doubt this will be huge with fans and collectors.
 
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VitalNonsense said:
Fingers crossed for the Enterprise D following all the Picard season 3 hype.
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Yeah. Picard season 3 was..okay. My daughter, after being forced to watch TOS 2 episodes a night, was watching 4-5 episodes of TNG a night by her own demand. Whatever it takes I guess. But the D isn't for everyone. For one thing.. how big is it at 350:1 scale again?

Best part? My 1970's Millennium Falcon is pretty damn close to scale with 350:1 . Looks so tiny next to this.
 
Can anyone figure out the name of shuttlecraft 3? The other two are the Einstein and the Galileo, but can’t make out the third one.

I thought it might be the Copernicus but according to canon, NCC-1701/3 was an unnamed shuttlecraft that has never been given a designation. Can anybody make out the name?
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