As much as we ST Enterprise fans liked the huge Polar Lights NX-01 kit, it’s a little impractical. I have no room for it. So here is my version of the Polar Lights 1:1000 NX-01. For the most part, this model is accurate. It’s easy to put together and measures only 8.5 inches in length. The most time consuming part of building this little kit is painting and detailing the Aztec pattern on the hull. For this I purchased the WeeNX Aztec Template sheet available from FederationModels.com. It runs about $15.00 and is well worth it. The sheet is basically a set of stickers that are placed onto the ship’s primary hull prior to applying the final surface color. They come with instructions, painting suggestions and placement guide.

The first thing you need to do is choose the underlying base coat. I wanted a subtler look so I chose Testors Magnesium. It really depends on the look your after. A lot of people recommend using Titanium but I just thought it was too dark. After applying the base coat, I sprayed a coat of semi-gloss onto the surface and allowed it to dry a full day. The stickers were then individually applied according to the directions provided. This took a little over an hour. After all the stickers were in place I then sprayed a light coat of Testors Aluminum. After allowing a few hours to dry, the stickers were then carefully peeled off and I ended up with a pretty decent Aztec pattern. Be cautious when peeling them off because they could chip off either the base or surface coat. The best thing is to give ample drying time. The final step was placing the decals and I used the ones provided with the kit. You have the option of designating the ship Enterprise or (NX-02) Columbia.

There are now decal sheets available that allow you to make several versions of this ship including the one from the “Mirror” universe as seen in one of the episodes from the show’s final season.

As I said, assembly is pretty easy for the most part although I thought the nacelles really didn’t piece together very well. The stand is a bit lame too. When all is said and done, however, you end up with a pretty decent little model that is great to add to your collection.

Image: Saucer section