LEGO builder Chris Melby has created an 18,000 piece version of the Starship Enterprise with a studless hull.
One of the things that you generally have to accept when working with LEGO bricks is that most everything you build is going to have a healthy layer of plastic pimples covering it. That being the case, there are some LEGO builders who endeavor to conceal the studded nature of their building materials. Take, for instance, LEGO fan Chris Melby. A veteran builder, he recently released a series of photos showcasing off his recreation of the Starship Enterprise as seen in the J.J Abrams Star Trek films.
Utilizing an estimated 18,000 bricks it measures 68 inches long, 29 inches wide and 32 inches tall when set on its base. The saucer portion of the ship is also 29 inches in diameter. As impressive as its size is however, its niftiest quality is easily how smooth it is. Through hard and careful work, Melby was able to completely conceal the model’s studs so that its exterior more closely resembles the sleek look of the Enterprise as seen in the recent movies. The key to its overall success according to Melby, was layering. “I realized that to truly capture the essence of something complex with bricks, it would have to be with layers,” he wrote in a blog post. “So, with that idea in hand, I slaved back and forth…until I was finally satisfied I had represented this iconic vessel.”
According to Melby, it took “about 8 months” of concentrated build time to assemble and complete his version of the Enterprise. We feel safe in saying that it was work well spent. While perhaps not as epically mammoth as some of the other space ship builds we’ve seen, this take on the Enterprise is impressive in its own unique way. If nothing else, it certainly beats the hell out of the KRE-O version the famous ship.
Source: ZMasterBrick
