1/350 Romulan BOP

Great progress on this so far, can't wait to see how it turns out.  It's beyond my price range for now, still getting some good tips and would like to scratch build one some time.

I've been kind of stalled on this for the last month but yesterday I picked up the brass tubing to make my power base and the multi-plug for the control systems. Just need to solder this stuff to a support plate, insert that into the hull and I'm ready to close up the main hull.

WOW when you do something you go all out....

She's looking good want to see more more more ............

Bud

It took two attempts to get a good mold from the original kit piece, first time had an air bubble in the most inconvenient place. Once the mold was right then two tries to get a good casting. I have a much better appreciation for the problems AW Studio faced getting this part done without the micro-bubbles. The original kit piece was simply a clear part and if you wanted to light it, well -- figure something out. Since I was at a point where I was casting an entirely new piece I elected to cast a set of three LEDs right into the part. The two outside LEDs are diffuse red 1.8mm units and the central LED is a 3mm very high output red. The fire sequence will cause the two outside LEDs to ramp up to a mild glow then the central unit will pulse at maximum output then the outside units will ramp down. Testing of individual components is good so far and light output in the cast piece is excellent, soon we shall see how it all works when assembled. The only areas on this part that will be left clear are the three lenses, everything else will be painted black then metal.

Since I'm back into working with some RTV I'll be diverting for a little bit to work on some molds for my 1/48 H-19 cockpit detail set - gotta do it when the mood strikes and the seats are calling me.

Just finished the fiber optics tonight. Next I'll be casting a new clear plasma cannon piece with LEDs placed within the mold.

Quite a project there, this will be neat to see finished and all lit up.

As far as the lighting in the original series, I recall reading that the episode was inspired by WW2 ship vs sub movies. Since the BOP was playing the part of the sub they probably didn't light it as that is more submarine like, of course that doesn't really explain the giant bird painting on the bottom.

As a kid the BOP was my favorite, but also the only ship from TOS I never built.

Amazing, simply amazing

The lights are all installed now. The LEDs that will light the various sensor ports are all 130 degree LEDs so have a pretty good pattern. The LEDs used in the engines and plasma weapon are 30 degree viewing angle. Normally when installing lights and boards I like to use hot glue but am concerned about the heat warping the vacuformed plastic of the hull. Instead I have superglued each piece in place to start but since superglue is so brittle and could be popped loose easily after the hull is closed up I followed up with a good coating of silicon caulk. I am waiting on a new clear part for the plasma weapon which should be here in a couple days. Once that is done, the fiber optic lenses around the hull perimeter are done and the center post/power jack are installed I can close the hull.

I needed something to fire LEDs for the plasma weapon so started with Jennifer Petkus' posting of a photon torpedo circuit based on Paul Newitt's Enterprise E board. From that I designed a printed circuit board and etched such as seen here

I had to do this a couple times to rectify some errors like inverted chips and such but finally got things worked out. Here is the completed board, all tested out and functional.

When the momentary switch is activated there are two low output LEDs mounted to each side of the main weapon that begin to glow then the main weapon LED (a high output LED) pulses and then the two side LEDs fade out.

The original clear piece that came with my kit for the plasma weapon was full of micro bubbles, so much so that all the light from the LEDs was disbursed. Right now I am waiting for a replacement piece from AW Studios then will install the LEDs and test fire the weapon for video.

BTW, this is my first PCB board.

Very cool build, I'm impresssed. Cant wait to see it done. But I do have one little thing I feel needs brougth to everyone's attention.

 

The original "Balance of Terror" Romulan BOP did not have warp capability. Watched the episode just the other night and at the conference table Scotty answers Kirk's question about Enterprise superior performance and Scotty says "No question. Their power is simple impulse." Kirk says "Meaning we can out run them?"

At that Mr. Styles says "to be used in chasing them or retreating , sir."

 

It was because of this that the Romulans signed an "uneasy" alliance with the Klingons and this is how the Romulans ended up using Klingon design ships for a while, as made known in the episode "The Enterprise Incident".

 

Hope this helps

Etching a board for the plasma weapon right now. More to come.

I'm impressed.  Any updates?

Impulse engine test

http://www.swannysmodels.com/images/AWBoP/enginetest.avi

 

The kit has frames molded in plaace for all the sensors and windows but they are inconsistent and pretty much end up getting sanded off in the finishing process. Obviously AW Studio recognized this and included a set of vinyl frame to replace them. I spent two days placing the frames on the upper hull.

I thought about doing something like that about half way through cutting these off. Should have waiting and thought a little harder, would have made my life a little easier that's for sure.

Cool effect! It is going to look good. Before painting, I pushed the fiber optic through the hull. When it was complete I took my cutter and nipped the fibers at the base. For a lens, I used a toothpick and added a dab of Future to each fiber.

I have completed installation of the fiber optics for the upper sensors arrays. Lots of these little buggers and now I have to worry about masking them and adding the frames around each one -- yippee!
Here is a light test with surrounding studio lights on then off.

Keep us updated.  I like pictures!

Well, since I already have built my board for the main lighting with all the neccessary resistors I guess this means I am using the outside power supply with a stand hook-up. No big deal really because other than those few evenings when I will be flying it around the studio making ray gun sounds it will be sitting on the stand. I hope I can make mine as good as yours. I'll probably have more time in the paint job than in the rest of the build combined.

Swanny, just don't make the same one, okay? Make it better!

Here is something I have learned for portable lighting. For my price and value, it is better to power using 1.5-Volts...or rechargeable batteries.

There is more capacity in 9V cells but to use LEDs I would have to resistor down the voltage. Resistors drain voltage by transforming power into heat and that ruins efficiency. But what is worse is that there will be an initial brightness for about 15 minutes then a long and constantly dimming model.

There is the high-tech way to have constant brightness and long runtime. A 1.5V battery (or a couple in a parallel circuit) would use boost electronics to light LEDs. And the converter works in two ways. It boosts the voltage or limits the current so the lights are consistently bright for a longer time. Think of it as a dam that can control water output. Just the right amount gets out.

Boost converters not quite as efficient as buck converters but are much cheaper and easier to find. I could use a buck converter but that is too costly for me! As an example: with one AA battery 5 white 5mm LEDs can be boosted to light for over 6 hours. Paralleling two batteries gives over 12 hours. And AA (or AAA) batteries are much easier to find.

That is enough rambling!

Actually I liked many of the things you included in yours. Last night I scribed the landing gear pads, I will be adding the various doors you marked out on yours. I am also referencing the BoP blueprints. As for the ship not being lit up in the television episode, everything you say makes sense and lays a good groudwork for a lighting decision. I am trying to decide if I want to use an external power source for this or to scribe the large lower cargo door and use it as a battery access door and just use a 9 volt to power the beast. I'm going to need to use some kind of tactile switch to fire the Plasma Weapon so that factors into my decision also. If external power then no question, just mount it in the base, if internal power then what? I'm thinking maybe that little round thingy between the impulse engines. Worse thing about this build is once complete I'm going to have to do one of the 1/350 Enterprise kits to display next to it. Anyway, your build was inspirational and a great source of reference material for me.

Just watching and enjoying your build- you have me as a captive audience- looks mighty nice to me. No trash doors? That was an interesting part of the story.

I'm glad you liked the impulse engines lighting. Here is the rascal today- impulse engines and all. How many years has it been running...seven or more?

The $10 AMT BOP was a sloppy wreak so just make it worse...right? Angling and reinforcing the rim of the hull was a pain but I think it came out quite well. If I did it again then I would battery power the LEDs with two AA cells. With a cheap boost converter or two and I estimate it would give about 8 hours of constant light.

If I were building it today then I would have added the belly button lights to the front to give it a flicker effect. As it stands, the jewels under the dome give a static swirl effect.

For the Romulan without lights, I would think it was to their advantage to keep quiet. Powered down it was meek but fully powered up, lit up, and attacking then I would imagine it would be truly ominous. If I remember the story right then the cloak and plasma gun took enormous power. They were on the wrong side, far away from home, and under pursuit from an enemy of unknown power. They had to be stealthy, cautious, and frugal. And they didn't want to break the Praetor's flagship! It would make sense to power down the engines to putt along on yet occasionally use impulse power for maneuvering. Then they would coast as much as possible. The Enterprise was sniffing with full Christmas lights flashing and warp engines whirling plus the clanging noises so the Romulans could sure see their enemy's "reflection" while the Enterprise could only guess using the "motion detector."

My son wants an X-wing fighter so that is my build this week. It was suppose to be a quick build but you know how that goes. "Hey...how about this", and, "how about that?" Today we will Vac-U-Form the canopy.

Keep building and I'm enjoying it!

Always willing to look at what other guys are doing for ideas. Right now I have a box full of timers, counters and other electrical do-dads and can make my own printed PC board pretty quick.

More on the impulse engines. This is the light panel that will mount facing the translucent panels in the hull. The large round printed panels are stripped down belly button lights and the LEDs are red/orange diffuse LEDs. The belly button lights flash red and green at a pretty good pace and the LEDs will act as fill-in light. The final effect is that the impulse panels will have a slight flicker to them making in look as if they are in use.

I'm also working on the lenses for the sensor bands and inspection ports. Here I am using .04 fiber optic strand superglued in place. Each piece is cut flush with the exterior then shaved with a razor. Inside it cut off short and is a little more sloppy looking but as you can see from panel #5 they do the job and illuminate just fine.

Swanny wrote:

Yes, those will be lit as well. I'm considering what to do with the Plasma Cannon, if I want to add a capacitor and timer to that to create a build-up and flash or just put a steady light behind it. Also, should I go with red or yellow? I know when the weapon is fired it is a red flash but have seen examples built with both a steady yellow or red light. I was originally looking for the old AMT kit but after seeing the prices compared to this I figued 'what the heck' and just went with the bigger kit.

 

IIRC they're are at least a couple of DIY "photon torpedo" circuits online with a build up, then flash, using red and white LEDs. Do you have access to any for checking out? I could PM you a link as long as I find it again?

Yes, those will be lit as well. I'm considering what to do with the Plasma Cannon, if I want to add a capacitor and timer to that to create a build-up and flash or just put a steady light behind it. Also, should I go with red or yellow? I know when the weapon is fired it is a red flash but have seen examples built with both a steady yellow or red light.

I was originally looking for the old AMT kit but after seeing the prices compared to this I figued 'what the heck' and just went with the bigger kit.

Ah, cool!

I like the added visual interest and assume they'll be lit as well?

Besides liking how your approaching this I also have a vested interest in my two original AMT kits sitting in the stash. Eventually I'll have those to do, albeit oin a smaller scale, but am eager for you to give me even more ideas!

Thanks Mr. Squid. This build is a little off my beaten track so trying lots of new stuff.

I was considering picking up some brass channel at the hobby shop to reinforce the wings when I came across a stash of bamboo skewers in the studio and figured what the heck. I sawed these to length and fixed them in place with silicon caulk.

Once that had cured overnight I was able to close up the wings. I used Bondo glazing material to fill the larger gaps. This is my first experience using this product and I am very pleased with the results. I used Mr. Surfacer 1000 as my final treatment to fill any small imperfections in the Bondo hence the various colors of fill material. Note all the little dimples of gray filler scattered about the surface, these are small fills needed to remedy small vacuforming errors.

Now back to the space craft's hull. I'm not adhering closely to the original 'Balance of Terror' episode. If I was this would be overall non-descriptive gray and have no lighting at all.  When originally researching this project I ran across a build that Bill Lehner did where he installed impulse engines in the aft hull and I really liked the idea so that is being incorporated into my build. This next shot shows the process of marking off the impulse engines and opening them up. These are only rough cut right now and will be fine tuned as the translucent panels are installed.

Great work so far. I like how you've made sure to give it a strong 'foundation' with the bracing and then covered the fundamentals with the light blocking and such. It will assure you of having something strong and lasting to lay your paint work upon.

 

Great stuff and I'll be eager to watch the rest!

I've spent some evening time while other kits are drying removing the excess plastic and drilling out sensor and light ports on the main hull. I decided to begin actual construction with one of the warp nacelles. The disc that the LEDs are mounted to are made from scrap plastic with aluminum foil attached to the lit side with rubber cement. The insides of the nacelles were first painted with Krylon gloss black then with Alclad chrome.

Once the nacelle halves had been glued together I filled the rather nasty seam with Milliput, sanded that then followed with two applications of Mr. Surfacer 500 to finish off the small holes. There are several rough spots in the exterior surface of the main parts that needed to be filled with Mr. Surfacer also. Soon the aft fitting will be attached but the nose glazing will be left off until after painting.

Now the wing sections are cleaned up and test fit. I attached the upper wing surface to the nacelle first to get a good mating surface. I'll most likely run a couple pieces of brass channel inside the wing as stiffeners but it seems pretty solid as is. The lower hull has had several bulkheads installed to add strength there. These were done in sections paying careful attention to the hull contours so as to not cause any warpage. Now the lower hull is very solid and the original shape has not been disturbed. Primary electronics will be placed in that central area just aft of the center point.

Swanny wrote:

I agree with your logic on the anti-collision lights. I'm probably not going to put any flashing lights on this one for that reason just wanted some other input. I am also leaning toward the Aztec pattern but it is going to be a lot of work. I'm thinking at least three shades of tinted Alclad and all the masking .... so much masking. Of course it can't be much worse than masking the Millennium Falcon, that took forever.

Instead of masking, you could make a template of the shape using heavier stock paper or masking film and cut out the Aztec pattern that way. Though, you may have to do it in sections....