For those of you wanting to build the production version of the Enterprise, be aware that there are some inaccuracies in the Polar Lights model that can easily be fixed. Don’t worry, I’m not talking about any major modification work. Here’s a rundown for those perfectionists out there:

1. The front edge of the primary hull has a nub sticking out that will need to be sanded off.
2. You will need to simulate a red and green formation light on the top of the primary hull. These formation lights should be positioned near the outside edge of the saucer, next to the red and green running lights (the clear bulbs included with the kit). The decal placement instructions actually depict the formation lights in their correct position. I guess it was an oversight to include them on the kit.
3. The running lights are too close to the edge of the primary hull and will need to be moved in a little bit. You’ll have to separate them from the navigation lights (the clear part that extends through the bottom of the primary hull).
4. The subspace communications antenna arrays (the 2 triangular objects etched into the bottom of the primary hull) will need to be filled in with putty. These elements need to be painted on since they aren’t included on the decal sheet.
5. The bottom of the primary hull has two small nubs (depicting lights) near the edge of the saucer that will need to be sanded off. The transporter emitters (decal #32) should be placed in this general location.
6. The etched line running down the dorsal connector between the primary and secondary hull should be filled in with putty. This separation should be depicted with a change in the paint scheme.
7. There are two navigation beacons that protrude slightly from the sides of the secondary hull. These beacons are adjacent to structural frame markers 1837. The decal sheet depicts these beacons, but they shouldn’t lie flat on the secondary hull like a window.
8. There should be a small red navigation light protruding from the top of the secondary hull, between the warp nacelle pylons and the shuttle bay homing beacon.
9. The etched lines on the bottom of the warp engines should be filled in with putty. These etched lines run from the front of the engines to the support pylons. This area should be depicted by a change in the paint scheme.
10. The impulse fusion reactors emergency eject hatches (decal #12A and 12B) are not correct. These hatches should be clear in the center - not white filled.

I would recommend you check out the pictures at this website to better visualize the ten suggested corrections:

There are only two complaints I have about the model. The first is that the windows were not cut into the model like Bandai did with the movie version Enterprise model. It looks so much better to have actual windows instead of applying decals to simulate windows. This leads to my second complaint - some of the decal windows are colored white to simulate a lit window. I wish they printed all the windows black, since white doesn’t convincingly portray a lit window.

As you can see, most of my complaints and suggested corrections are quite minor. This is a great kit, and with a little effort, can be transformed into a beautiful recreation of the classic Enterprise. My hats off to Thomas Sasser for a job well done!

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