AMT Deep Space Nine w Fibre Optic

With the workshop coming up next month, its time to open up this model kit. OK, I was bored so I just want to open it up for the sake of opening it up. Many years ago, I did buy a Deep Space Nine Model Kit. Not that I liked the show, but that red glowing thing underneath the station, was the only reason I bought it. Later on, AMT came up with the Fibre Optic version and I did not know what happened but I missed it. However, thinking back, I think I was put off with the Fibre Optic version of the Enterprise-D. Maybe its because I keep thinking about the Fibre optics being round, but the Enterprise's windows are oval, so it was more like a con to the modeller. Anyway, thanks to viper of SFTPMS, I got it from him last year for a very good price.

If memory serves me right, this box is heavier than the normal version because it the 'extra bits' in it. So, let's open up the box...

This is the size of the AMT box and its just the same
like any other AMT Star Trek boxes. This is one of
the special series IMHO, where they gave out the
free Enterprise-A or Enterprise-D mini posters.

And boy, there were a lot of stuff in there. Its a
wonder that the whole box did not crumble.

Looking at the parts, there is nothing different apart
from the two sets of instruction sheets, the extra bag
of plastic parts.

However, if you open the white box, you will be presented
with a black battery holder, a string of fibre-optics, a silver
foil reflective sticker and of course, a mini drill where some
6 volt bulbs and the drill bit was hidden.

Here is a closer look at the extra bag of plastic sprue.
These are actually mean to help with the lighting. But
look a little closer and there is an orange transparent
sprue, which, I am very sure, was not in the original kit.

It was fun reading these two instruction sheets as they
really help you in building the model. However,I am
going to replace the bulbs with LEDs, I will not be
following some of the steps exactly.

Ingenius isn't it? This AMT's free drill. But there is
a slight bad news. Just look at the drill bit on the
bottom right. Its a single piece.

And the instructions telling you what to do next
if you're as clumsy as me.

Here again, is the battery assembly, where you can hide
them all inside the black enclosure. Again, I will have to
modify this or even get rid of it completely.

Here is a picture of how you will use the bulbs inside
the model. If you take some Christmas lights and put
it in, there is no difference except that some of the
'windows' will flicker every now and them. Which is a
cool effect but no one switched their room lights on
and off in a matter of seconds. But if you can find a
way to achieve this so the sequence runs for minutes,
it would look more realistic.

And here, is how AMT recommends you to put the
fibre optics. Which is fine for bulbs but bad for LEDs.
So, I might consider running a rounds of EL strings
instead.

So, there you have it folks. A very simple project. Simple that is, unless my EL strings do not arrive in time and also, I need to find a better drill too. The again, I still have to do some research to see which part does the station have blinking lights. Now, where can I get a 1/3708 Enterprise-D to dock at one of the pylons? Or is it 1/2500 scale? Or is it really 1/3300 scale?

Hmm.....

The Moebius MoonBus

Finally, after waiting for days, tonight was the chance for me to open this. So, with half an hour to spare, I have to take open them, take in the details and take the appropriate photos for the two boxes. Did I mention two? Yes, this is the first of the two, and the other is actually the AMT Deep Space Nine that comes with Fibre Optics.

The first thing that struck me was how sturdy the box was. This is very different from the two other kits, namely the Viper Mk II and the Battlestar Galactica where although the quality of the cardboard were better than AMT or Revell's, they still managed to get themselves crumpled in my Workshop. But as for this one, its going to take a lot more effort from the other dastardly boxes and sharp objects in that room.

This is the box of the kit. Although it looks compact,
you'd be surprised at the amount of sprues inside.

Just like the 1/350, Moebius definitely knows how to
pack all the goodness into a very small box. Please do
note which sprue comes out and their orientation. It
took me a very long time to put them back properly
into the box without breaking anything.

There are 9 sprues and three floating parts. And each
one of them is very detailed (to me, that is)

Looking at the clear part, they make me want to detail
them. But when the time comes, I want to try it with
the Future Floor Polish first.

Its so nice to look at the assembly instructions. You
can compare them with the modern ones and there
is a stark difference. Here, with just two pages, there
was enough information to get the kit built. The modern
ones, use a step by step guide, complete with accurate
drawings. Oh well. to each their own.

So, the problem with this kit is in its details and the reference pictures. Paragrafix has a photo etched set to make the model more realistic. But to make it more accurate, one would need to watch the DVD again and again since this model had appeared very briefly. Right now, all I know is that the cockpit has red lights while the passenger area has blue. Still, I was secretly hoping the two 'holes' in front of the nose are actually spotlights.....

So, should I get the Photo-etch set and part which costs a lot or not? That is a lot of money, man.

This is the photo-etch set which costs USD32.95
(image taken from paragrafix.biz)

And this bells and thrusters set for USD49.95
(image taken from paragrafix.biz)