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Star Trek Models: 1:350 scale developments
UPDATE: It now looks like a strong possibility we will have test shots of the new saucer parts at Wonderfest. See you there…
It has been a while since we’ve talked about upcoming sci-fi releases. I’ll spill the beans on a few things, but focus on what we have in the works for our 1:350 scale kits that should arrive later this year to commemorate the 50th anniversary of STAR TREK: The Original Series.
Part of the fun of fandom is holding the great debates… DC or Marvel…? Star Wars or Star Trek…? Chicken or egg…? When developing our 1:350 TOS Enterprise kit, it was “engraved panel lines or no engraved panel lines…?” In order to serve what we considered to be the widest range of modelers, we opted to engrave the panel lines on the upper and lower saucer. We did so knowing that it might upset some, but would satisfy others that didn’t have the skill or tools to install them in pencil like the filming miniature had. We have decided it is time to reverse course and offer the saucer without the panel lines. We will be releasing the saucer as an accessory piece so everyone that already has untouched kits can supplement them with these replacements and save the time and effort from filling and sanding them. Along with that change, we have corrected the position of two sets of windows that were off by a few degrees, but got by us. The “toothy” surface texture will also be removed so the saucer should now be as smooth as a baby’s bottom.
Some may say “Well, if you are doing that, you may as well include them in the kit that way now.” To which we say “Yes, indeed.” And while we are at it, we will be updating the color reference to reflect new-found information gleaned by the team of experts that are restoring the Enterprise filming miniature. Our go-to Star Trek guy, Gary Kerr, has played a key role in the restoration and is dutifully documenting the untouched/unseen areas of the miniature to determine the exact paint colors that were used. We’ll finish off the offering with an updated 50th anniversary scheme on the packaging. We plan on giving the Pilot parts accessory pack the same treatment and everything should be out by the end of the year. Additionally, we’ve heard the demand for more light kits and a new batch is on a boat as I write this. Expect them on store shelves within a month. If you have been on the lookout for a set, let your retailer know you want a copy (item number is MKA007).
There is a slim chance that we may have a test shot of the saucer on display at Wonderfest. We should have a preliminary look at the 50th anniversary packaging at the show as well. As usual, we look forward to seeing everyone at the show. It is a personal highlight of mine every year to get a chance to meet the builders that enjoy our products so well. We will once again be sponsoring two prizes in the model competition. We will present awards for what we deem to be the best use of a Round 2 model (any brand or subject) in the junior/teen and adult categories. The junior/teen winner gets a selection of kits from all of our brands. The adult winner will receive a gift certificate to autoworldstore.com which despite the name does deal in sci-fi kits as well. Good luck to all who enter. see you at the show!
Yet again you guys at Round2 are listening to the kit buyers,I take my hat off to you all for doing this,and offering the smooth saucer as a separate purchase. Round2 you’re the best.
It is a bit disappointing the Galileo was not the big 50th anniversary release, but I understand business decisions. As for this update, will you be re-releasing the electronics and accessory parts for the kit as well as the paint scheme updates?
We’ll update the package on the Pilot parts pack as well as the paint guide for that. the light kit will stay the same as nothing needs to change.
Looking forward to getting the 50th anniversary release and another shot at the lighting kit. Thanks!
This is big news, and I like that a smooth saucer will now be de rigeur in the full 1/350 kit.
Thanks, Jamie!
Great news! Will the Bridge/B/C Deck also be corrected?
I’m not aware of any problems with the B/C deck. I’d be interested to hear what the problem might be…
Here is a link to Gray’s reference…
http://www.hobbytalk.com/bbs1/99-science-fiction-modeling/378454-1-350-tos-enterprise-building-tips-tricks-21.html#post4367583
Okay. I’ll see if there is anything we can do.
I liked the engraved lines myself but this will no doubt please those who wanted it smooth. I would love a 1:350 K’Tinga for the 50th though.
Want now… Bank account number coming.
Great news. How much will the new additional smooth saucers be? 🙂
Just a suggestion… for those who wish to build the 1st Pilot version complete with a “painted on” window look… a simple set of black and white window decals. Each window or portal being its own separate decal. Amazingly, no aftermarket decal maker has thought of this, but it would sure be a big help to those of us who want to capture the look of the original “roll-out” version.
Nice idea. I’ll take that under advisement.
Please do! I paid $90 to have dry transfers made for the “rollout” version, per Gary’s info!
This is a really cool update! I have been wanting one of these for so long, and the grid lines never bothered me at all, but including a new, smooth saucer for an update along with the even more accurate paint scheme information is so beyond awesome.
I think Jamie and Round 2 really deserve our thanks and a heartfelt inter web pat on the back for all they do, even in this increasingly tough market.
Keep rocks’ guys!
Here is an idea. You guys already have the “weathering” decals. Why not create a set of decals specifically for the grid lines? That way everyone is happy. 🙂
This is great news! Although I have already done a production version where I filled in and sanded smooth the upper and lower saucer, Now I can build up my personal favorite version of the Ship, Captain Pike’s without all the elbow grease!
This is cool, I will definitely be getting the smooth saucer, but I like the gridlines for hybrid TOS-TMP builds. DOes this mean the version with grid lines will no longer be available?
Yes, once we switch over it will be that way for all future releases.
Jamie instead of ditching the grid line saucer altogether ( which would be a waste } wouldn’t it be better to offer both somehow? Even in the same box?
That would make a pricey kit get more expensive. that would be a lot of plastic to throw away.
Why not offer the kit without the saucer section and people then buy the saucer section they want?
Glad I held out. Also glad I can finally buy this kit without filling in those awful gaps. Now hopefully the “restoration team” at the Smithsonian doesn’t listen to any “experts” and carve lines in the filming model.
Hi Jamie
Thank you very much, you guys at Round 2 seem to bend over backwards to please the customer.
Will you break even with this type of kit release? Are supplemental and upgrade parts profitable?
There could be a number of kit options for your 1999 Eagle (Cargo Pod, Science Pod) and TOS Enterprise kits (secondary hull necks for Destroyer and Scout class ships) Would such upgrade packs be worth the cost of development and marketing?
Thanks again for releasing a smooth version of the TOS Enterprise, you guys are the best!!!
Jim
No grid lines, correctly placed lower hull lights AND a smooth finish, what’s not to like? Thanks for making this available, not only in a revised complete kit but as an accessory kit for those of us that have unbuilt original kits (like me)! Oh, and please add the corrected color notes in with the accessory kit (the way your post reads, it sounds like it will only be in the revised original kit).
The pilot parts pack will also have updated color notes. As I understand it, there were many significant discoveries in regards to the pilot version paint schemes.
I will probably have to get the new saucer though the gridlines don’t bother me per se.
Hopefully you will post a link to get this when ready.
A slightly off topic question Jamie, I have TOS E and the refit 350 scale kits both of which are in need of replacement parts.
2 pieces for TOS E and a parts tree for the refit. My question is, can I send the forms in the same envelope and can R2 ship them out in the same box?? Thanks in advance.
I’ll guess and say yes to both. 😉
Hi Jamie, looking forward to the smooth saucers and the upgraded Excelsior! You guys are awesome! Thanks!
Once the updated saucer is included in the kit, will you have a way to identify older kits vs. newer ones? I already built my 1701 club piece, but of course, want to build another, and I can hold out for the newer kit to throw into the build queue.
The smooth saucer will be included in the 50th Anniversary edition of the kit. It will have all-new packaging.
I love the way this is spun, doing us a favor (for a price, mind you…) I had a bad experience with this model in the first place as I had signed up for the “1701 Club” for two advanced “special edition” purchases back in the day (I got my shirt, which was red and shoould have been an indicator of things to come)I never received the email that the kit was ready to be purchased on the “special” locked website. I did, however, receive my “last chance to purchase” link which lead absolutely noowhere. I emailed Round 2 and actually left two messages with the office as well as inquiring on certaim Bulliten Boards I knew they monitored. No reply. But at least now they are correcting the mistake that they insisted on making, and for an additiional 30% of an already expensive model (I actually ended up purhasing two at the “non discounted” price that 1701 Club members received} I can now build my models the way they were meant to look. again for an additional 30% per model and of course I will have to buy a converson kit for the Pilot version, because I was screwed out of my Special edition ppurchases in the first place. So I am very grateful that they liisten to their customers….
I’m very sorry to learn 4 years later that we missed someone. We did everything we could to notify everyone of the kit’s availability using every means at our disposal and did so for several months before the supply was sold through.
Thanks Jamie for your response.
You indicate you are only finding out about my situation 4 years later, which may indeed be the case, however, if you re-read my post you will see that I made several efforts through various venues to contact Round 2 while this was going on, including leaving phone messages with the company,once speaking to someone in person and explaining my situation. That’s how far I went to communicate with Round 2. So why you did know about it then should be the question, I suppose. Anyway, not looking for a post war. Just stating what happened…
This is great news. I wasn’t able to attend Wonderfest this year, unfortunately, but I’ll definitely be picking up a couple of the newly revised kits when they arrive.
Cheers!
Chris Doll
I was able to make it out to this year’s WonderFest, and was able to see the “test shot’ of both the top and bottom of the saucer up close…very sweet. I was half tempted to walk off with them both when no one was looking, but I didn’t. I will definitely be picking up a couple of sets of these!
To be honest, I never really had an issue with the engraved panel lines, except that I felt they were out of scale to the model, but that’s probably one of the limitations of injection molding: that was about as small as one could go. I wanna second ‘Spockboy’s’ post: decals with the gridline detail. Sounds like an elegant solution to me.
One note about the shuttlecraft release for the 50th: I was surprised you folks didn’t do a limited edition re-release of the original shuttlecraft kit as is, but included an upgraded decal sheet, that also contained detailed interior markings. Maybe throw in a couple of crew figures from the bridge kit? That would’ve tided me over ’til the new shuttlecraft release was ready (still keeping my fingers crossed for that one.)
We have been hesitant to reissue the old AMT Galileo for a couple reasons…
1) we plan to do a much better one. To release the old one at this time might seem more like adding insult to injury to those that have high hopes for the new kit.
2) Vintage copies of the old kit are plentiful and inexpensive. We wouldn’t expect to sell enough of them to make the work of restoring a copy of the old box and making a new decal sheet pay off.
I’ll take this opportunity to make a point that I’ve tried to make before, but I’m not sure has been picked up on. (this isn’t targeted at you specifically, Jim, but everyone that wonders what happened with the Galileo…) The primary reason we can’t do the kit right now is because the tooling is relatively expensive and we had no idea it would be so high when we proposed it in our survey. Many folks (including us at the beginning) keep the old kit in mind and think we would just be doing a slightly bigger, more accurate version of that kit and that the kit would probably have about the same number of parts (probably a little bit more anyway) and would assemble in the same way. Basically, most of us think of the Galileo as a “box” shape with details added on to flesh out the interior and exterior look of the ship. What became clear during the planning stage was that in order to do an accurate interior, we can’t make one box-worth of components that can serve both the interior and exterior walls. To make the kit accurate, we need to have interior walls and exterior wall parts. Those along with all of the other elements that go into making it “right” (like the aft compartment, etc) essentially doubled our forecast for the amount of tooling involved.
@JamieH, is there any chance of making the revised paint information available to existing owners of the kit who are ok with the grid lines?
Kudos for listening to the customer base, though. I can understand that many builders find the engraved lines inaccurate, but having sanded a few 18″ primary hulls in my career, I can attest to the fact that they make aligning decals soooooooo much easier!!!
No plans to do that, but I’m betting you’ve got friends that will share. 🙂
So is the pilot parts pack coming back ?
Yes, towards the end of this year.
So…if the deflector grid lines are not carved into the model proper, are they going to be a decal?
no, but we will supply a paper template.
Will the template be available for owners of the original issue?
Chuck
Not unless you ask a friend that buys the smooth saucer or the re-issue of the full 1:350 kit.
So, I missed out on buying the first issue of this kit 4 years ago, when will this 50th Anniversary model be released?
It is due to be out in November.
Excellent! Thank You!
Hi there,
I command U human P´tak to finally create a 1:350 scale K´tnga Battlecruiser!!
ok, ok… I try it charming:
If a twinkling star would turn into my greatest passion and would fall down from the sky onto my smiling face… it would be a Klingon K´tinga that fits my 1701 A.
Come on…
Greets from another galaxy
yep nuq DaneHchugh
I like the gridlines, guess I like the feel and look of texture more than the original. Is there any way of purchasing the saucer with grid lines engraved seperately to use for the new 50th kits?
We suggest checking around on message boards to see if anyone with the old parts would be willing to swap. After smoothing the saucer we will never be able to offer the saucer with grid lines again… but there are plenty of those out there…
Hello again. I realize that there is soooo much you manufacturers have to consider. I suggested the 1/350 USS Excelsior. I just want to take the opportunity to thank you for USS Grissom, the USS Defiant, and especially the 1/350 K’tinga. Don’t want to seem ungrateful!!!!! We are glad about your choices. I know the 1/350 Excelsior is hoping against hope. Sincerely, thank you.
I am looking for the light kit for the 1/350 scale Enterprise TOS? Can you help me?
Check with Culttvman.com or starshipmodeler.com