On the nacelles, these were a first test of casting the nacelles from an original master.
The nacelles on the original study model were quite a pain. The ones on the model are actually my third attempt at making them. The first nacelle I tried didn't get very far, the second was more successful in that the attachment points worked pretty nicely, but the bodies didn't look as good as I had wanted, and the ones on the model started with the second attempt's attachment structures.
The final nacelles were still flawed, but by that point I didn't want to risk making them worse by trying again.
I started new versions of the half scale nacelles about a year ago, where I replicated the same attachment mechanism from the study model. The goal was to make a master and cast the new nacelles from the molds of it... both as nacelles for the new larger shuttlecraft model, and also as replacements for the nacelles on the original study model.
Wanting to test how I might go about making the mold for the nacelles was a big part of making these smaller models. They let me test out ideas using less materials (this was the same reason why I did the Phase II Enterprise and Columbia/Enterprise before I started in on building my replica of the 33 inch Enterprise... I wanted to test the process on scaled down subjects first). For these smaller shuttlecrafts, the nacelles are just solid white resin.
The goal for the larger nacelles will be to cast them in clear and have them internally lit on the model with an interior. Ideally having the front domes on normally and the rear domes light up separately (in purple) but look normal/metallic otherwise.
I'll try to take some closer images of the nacelles this week.
Here are a few more shots of the Columbus...
Click to enlarge
