The Polar Lights original starship Enterprise (NCC-1701) model kit

Oh so long ago back in 2003, the only models of the original U.S.S. Enterprise were all AMT kits and all of them were horribly inaccurate. Enter: Polar Lights, the unintentional successor of AMT and their beautifully accurate 1/1000 scale model of the original Starship Enterprise. 

A gorgeous kit. 11.5 inches in length. A 3 in 1 kit, what that means is that there are parts to build three different versions of the Enterprise! First pilot version, second pilot version and production version. It also contains decals to render a "Mirror Universe" version of the ship which was represented by the second pilot version of the Enterprise. The kit was marketed as a snap-tite as are all Polar lights 1/1000 kits, but I would suggest using glue as the kit has some parts that will not stay put using only hand pressure.

A few tips on building the kit:

The instructions suggest building the kit in sub-sections, that will be necessary for the secondary hull, but I've found that with the primary hull (saucer section), it is best to attach the bottom of the saucer first to the secondary hull (snapping it in place then gluing the tabs), then attaching the planetary sensor (As it is attached from the inside, you will need to insert and paint it before you attach the top of the saucer as you will the Impulse engine). This gives you a nice firm, straight saucer!

Moving on to the engines. The attachment tab on the warp nacelle pylon is too thick and will need to be cut on only one side of the pylons, the remaining side will be sanded down some as will the insert hole in the Warp engine itself. Sand and check until you are satisfied that the engine will be straight upon gluing. Sand the attachment hole in the Warp nacelle at a horizontal 90 degree angle, this will ensure a straight, flush fit on for the engines!

Next is paint:

One of the most common questions asked about the original Enterprise is "What color is it?" Well, that's a pretty tough question to answer. There are many opinions on the answer to that question. My answer is to buy the "Space seed" edition of the kit (Released in 2014) as it is molded in the correct green/gray color. If purchasing that kit is not an option, I've found that "Krylon pewter gray" is a nice "out of the can" solution. If possible you can mix your own colors.

2014 "Space Seed" edition

That is pretty much it for this kit. It is a breeze to build out of the box and gives the builder lots of options. I've built more than a dozen of them just for the joy of building them, if you or your little one love Star Trek and would like a nice, manageable sized model of the first Enterprise this would be the kit to get.

Happy modeling! 

-Spaced out blogger