Mcoy's AMT TOS ENterprise

[DrMcoy]

Pretty much straight from the box build. I added a few mods and an after market sensor dish that looks more like the one I remember from the kit I had as a kid.

Gloss Gull Gray for main color (hit with dull coat after), Fiery Orange metallic on engines. Decided to leave domes original translucent green cause I always liked the color of them as a kid. I had some trouble with the decals -- you can see one of engines decals is all wonky...tried to slavage it but it started tearing, so I thought better to have it on crooked than not at all.

I usually use Tamiaya acrylics, and was very frustrated using the enamel paints. Not sure if it my area's high humidity, but the paint seemed to stay tacky for days and it bubbled up in some areas (very tiny but noticeable on close inspection) -- I almost threw the whole thing away but figured no matter what, it would still look 20 times better than anything I built as a kid, so I embraced the imperfections and finished it as an homage to my childhood...so please don't be too rough on me when critiquing it.

My advice to anyone building this -- TAKE YOUR TIME WITH THE DECALS and consider having someone standing by to help you hold certain parts so you can use both hands to apply the decals...especially the longer ones.

If you get yours finished, please post pics as I always love to see how far people take this kit, or simply how they interpret the paint schemes for overall color and/or the nacelle engines.

 

[saarno]

Very nice job! I like the comparison between the two kits back to back. I have seen several people use the Gull Grey and I'm starting to think I should overcoat the white I'm using with the same.
I should be getting mine close to decal time. I decided to put in an LED lighting system, so it set me back a few days work time. I'll be posting status pics tomorrow.

Again, great job! Good idea with the sendor dish upgrade. Looks much nicer.

 

[DrMcoy]

i have been following your build, saarno -- looking forward to seeing it finished.

 

[DrMcoy]

also, just ONE AMT kit shown. It is also shown with the Master Replicas version, which I obviously did not build, and the Corgi die-cast Enterprise can also be seen in the pic.

 

[Shaw]

I usually use Tamiaya acrylics, and was very frustrated using the enamel paints. Not sure if it my area's high humidity, but the paint seemed to stay tacky for days and it bubbled up in some areas (very tiny but noticeable on close inspection) -- I almost threw the whole thing away but figured no matter what, it would still look 20 times better than anything I built as a kid, so I embraced the imperfections and finished it as an homage to my childhood...so please don't be too rough on me when critiquing it.

Yes, Gloss Gull Gray does stay tacky for days... but really I've used it as an advantage. The tackiness of the paint helps with getting the decals to adhere nicely. I finished painting my model of the Enterprise Gloss Gull Gray on Saturday, and I know that I have until next Saturday to make the most of the tackiness or it's value will be gone.

Sure, you can handle Flat Gull Gray within minutes of painting something, but if decals are important, the Gloss Gull Gray works better.

As for the trouble with decals... I screwed up on one of mine a couple days ago (and had to order a second set). It was a stupid mistake, I didn't let the large number for the primary hull soak long enough and it shredded before I even got it off the backing.

One question... did you fully assemble your model before doing the decaling?

I keep my models in pieces so that I'll have an easier time with them. It isn't a great image, but here is what my nacelles looked like after I had applied the decals to them...

And I still haven't glued the nacelles to my first model (which was also done in Gloss Gull Gray)...

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But if you already have a Master Replicas version, then you shouldn't worry too much about the imperfections of your AMT model (though I think it was a good idea to replace the dish). It is a good solid build, and you can always replace that one decal later on if you want. :thumbsup

 

[DrMcoy]

Love your builds, Shaw -- and the fact that you did the 3-foot filming version -- sweet.