Wooden Starship USS Enterprise Model

[MKretschmer]

I just wanted to share my latest project with all of you. I built a 36 inch wooden model of the old school Starship Enterprise, made of maple, black walnut, padauk, osage orange, ebony, and yellow heart. The goal was not only to create the epic vessel, but to do it in original style not seen anywhere else...exploiting the natural grains and colors of the woods used. There is no paint or stain in this. It is coated with clear gloss polyurethane and rests on a 3/8" stainless steel rod fixed into the black walnut base sporting the starfleet emblem.

If you're interested in its construction, check it out at http://www.kretschmerkreativ.com/uss-enterprise

Cheers!
Michael Kretschmer
[http://www.facebook.com/KretschmerKreativ]
[http://www.kretschmerkreativ.com]

 

[Albertese]

If by "no paint" you mean to say that the lettering and striping is all inlaid wood, than I really am quite impressed.

--Alex

 

[MKretschmer]

Yep, absolutely no paint. The lettering and striping were all done by dremeling out the shapes 1/16"-1/8" deep, filling the voids with superglue and sawdust (ebony, padauk, and yellow heart) and compressing it by hand, then sanding it smooth and flush to the surface. I don't know what the technical name for that technique is but it's used in electric guitars a lot. I call it pseudo-marquetry. So hopefully you'll at least be half-impressed...haha. I plan to do full marquetry on the next piece, whatever it may be...haven't decided yet.

 

[DS Operative]

Truly incredible. I wish I had the words to describe how beautiful this is and what a wonderful and unique idea it also is.

 

[mobius303]

really nice piece of art...well done well done.

 

[Michael Bergeron]

That is stunning!

 

[PHArchivist]

True artistry!

 

[robn1]

Beautiful! Really great and unique piece.

 

[Joosh]

Simply Amazing

 

[Angelus Lupus]

Wow, impressive! Would it be rude to ask if there's any chance you could take a picture with better lighting to really show this off?

Brilliant idea with the glue an wood dust technique, I bet that made it a heck of a lot easier to contour those details onto the curved surfaces.

 

[Ronan87]

Very impressive!!!

 

[SenseiFetter]

That is an amazing display of technique and skill.
Very well done!

Although my next statement will make little/no sense considering the intent of this build I feel the need to say it first..."you plan on pulling any molds from this?":facepalm

 

[MKretschmer]

Thank you all for the compliments!

Ad Angelus Lupus: Not a rude request at all, in fact I'm planning to take some better shots with better lighting and from an actual camera...versus my phone...haha. When it came to the decision to do the glue/sawdust technique versus actual marquetry, that was determined by the fact that you wouldn't even be able to see the wood grain because most of it is ebony. The yellow heart boomerang shapes are too small and the padauk is too dark. So the work put into the marquetry wouldn't have paid off. Now, I'm considering turning this into a 3-piece adversary set (just like the old model set) with scaled Romulan Bird of Prey and Klingon Battle Cruiser to match. The Bird of Prey would then have actual marquetry for the bird on the underbelly.

To SenseiFetter: Funny enough, I actually thought about doing a mold of this for casting copies, but I don't know if I'm willing to risk ruining the polyurethane finish by spraying the mold release onto it. Tempting because of the awesomeness factor of making TONS of Enterprises...but not quite worth the risk. Mayyybe, someday I could make a version strictly for casting.

 

[JediMichael]

I've had people ask many times if I know how to do wood work....and its a sadly no....after seeing this....I can cry....haha.

 

[glorbes]

Wow, that may be my new favorite thing ever! Its really a gorgeous, impressive display piece. I could imagine this being commissioned as a retirement gift to Captain Kirk himself...the fact that you even inlaid the lettering and stripes...just amazing.

 

[Wes R]

Absolutely stunning.

 

[JMChladek]

This is one of the most incredible pieces of wood craftsmanship I have ever seen. Sure, the shapes might be simple, but it is the total package that really sells this one. Very nice job!

 

[SmilingOtter]

Insanely beautiful.

Bad news, though. You can't stop now. There are A-Wings, Serenities, and Galacticae that need building!

 

[blueunit1701]

That is awesome.

 

[Splat]

Wow. That is some incredible work!