Once I started on this thing I couldn't put it down... it was just so easy. First thing I decided was to put lights in this puppy. So I did my research and came up with some really good references for other modelers to follow. You can see the Resource page by clicking on the top RESOURCES button.

So, once I got that finished, I decided to go ahead and start painting. Alot of modelers tend to wait until the model is finished before starting this. Not me, I jump right in. It's the most fun part. Anyone can slap a model together and that's the easy step. So, I started out painting the bottom.

I wanted to make sure that the hexagonal patterns would be able to be seen clearly so, using my dirty thinner method, I filled in the cracks. Brought out the detail rather nicely if I may say so. The center section I painted a Dark Gray. The middle detail I dry brushed a bit of gold to give it that coppery look. Next stop, painting the top.

Here you can see the detail. No I didn't MASK anything... I like doing all my work by hand painting the Light Blue striping on the ship. I tried to keep the gloss look as much as possible. So after painting in the striping, I covered it in coat of Gloss-Cote to preserve the glossy look to it. I discovered that they did a new technique to make the paneling look sectioned. They used a checker-boarding of gloss and flat coats on the various panels. So, I want to keep the glossy surface as my base.

I decided to go with a more weathered look so taking a No. 2 pencil and sharpening it up, I ran it through every recessed panel line. As you can see, the effect is rather amazing.

Next thing I did was by using electrical tape in thin strips, I added new struts and painted the various painted them on the window using the following diagram (Note the enlargement of the second original strut):

Then I glued it in place using Elmer's glue. You'll see in this picture is that the two lights that appear above the window have been drilled out for our fibers. I'm still trying to figure out how I'm going to run the fibers through the top of the command bridge without the fibers being seen through the window. I haven't glued the top of the command bridge down yet...

This is why. The command bridge doesn't set very nicely upon the top of the ship. You'll notice here that the fitting isn't very tight and leaves a big gap. Also, the right side is protruding a bit from the dome and the scribing lines will require being sanded down and re-scribed.