Klingon D7 and K’t’inga battlecruisers: Star Trek starship parts kit expansion

[This kit can also be found on my Google Drive mirror.]

Note: I’ve created a Patreon to support my modelling projects. If you’ve found my work useful, have the means, and would like to support my efforts, please give it a look. I will continue to release my designs for free on Cults 3D and Thingiverse, but Patreon members will get early access and in progress updates on my new projects, and it will serve as a central location for announcements. Thanks for reading!

The Klingon D7 from the original Star Trek show and it’s refit K’t’inga class from the movies and later series are among the most iconic ships of science fiction. I’ve previously released my version of this design as part of my FASA Klingon ships collection. However, as I started working on an update to that kit (to bring its detail level in-line with what I’ve done with recent Federation ships) I realized that the D7 and K’t’inga really needed a thorough rebuild. As part of this process, I’ve decided to break the these two particular designs into their own release, with updates to the other Klingon kits to follow shortly.

This round of updates has essentially rebuilt the entire model, significantly increased mesh density and quality, and adding details like windows. While originally targeting miniature scale prints, these files should now look good at their native 1/1000 scale or even larger. I’ve also taken advantage of detailed reference photos of the original filming models found on Red General’s archive site to improve the models. While there are still a few significant inaccuracies on my model, this latest version is much more accurate than the previous versions.

The downside of this quality and detail level increase is massively larger file sizes, with a 8-10x increase in size for the final ship files.

In addition to the combined ship files, this kit also includes the following zip files:

• d7ktinga-D7-Ktinga-blender-files.zip - The Blender source files used to generate the STL files.
• d7ktinga-D7-Ktinga-parts-stls.zip - Individual part STL files used to build the complete ships.

Ship details

D7

There were two versions of the original TOS D7 filming model. The differences between the two are minor, mostly involving nacelle details. For completeness, I’ve built out a “Type 1” and “Type 2” variant accounting for these differences. A “thick” version with a reinforced neck connection with the command module is also included for smaller scale prints

I’m also including what I’m calling “AMT variants” for both major versions. These include some hull detailing (mostly the “vents” on top of the secondary hull) that were included in Matt Jefferies original blueprints but not on the filming model. They were included in some of AMT D7 model kits, however. Some of these details can also be seen in the animated series rendering of the ship.

The differences between my previous model and the new one may seem minor, but here’s some images comparing them:

K’t’inga

The original K’t’inga filming model built for the first Star Trek movie started out as a larger version of the D7 originally intended for the aborted “Phase II” TV series. However, for the big screen much more details was added, resulting in the much altered greeblie-heavy K’t’inga that we all know and love.

This model was tweaked several times over the years, particular for Kronos One in Star Trek VI. Although I’ve been able to find many good reference photos of the model, the clear timeline of what changed when is a little difficult to track down, so I’ve tried to find a happy medium between the variants. As I’ve noted above, there are still several inaccuracies, but this should be a radical improvement over the previous version.

One of the major differences between different versions is the presence or absence of a rear torpedo tube, with a later version seemingly replacing it with some kind of sensor dish. I’ve included parts and ship files supporting both versions, as well as “thick” versions intended to print at smaller scales.

Notes on scaling and working with Blender

My target scale for all source files and output STL files is 1:1000. Although these files have not been extensively tested through printing, they are intended to be resized to match common modelling and miniatures scales.

Target scale	Scale STL files to:	Notes
1/3900	0.25641026 (25.6%)	FASA miniature scale
1/3788	0.26399155 (26.4%)	ADB Starline 2400 scale
1/3125	0.32 (32%)	ADB Starline 2500 scale
1/2500	0.4 (40%)	The Trek modelers "Golden scale"
1/1600	0.625 (62.5%)	TOS 3-Ship Set scale
1/1400	0.714285714 (71%)	Common resin model scale
1/650	1.538461538 (153%)	Modelling scale
1/537	1.862197393 (186%)	Common scale for TMP models
1/350	2.857142857 (285%)	Large scale

Blender is free, which to be honest was the primary factor in my decision to learn it. There are many fine video and text tutorials available online if you're interested in learning more. See the Blender fundamentals tutorials playlist to get started.

You can use File -> Import -> Stl (.stl) and File -> Export -> Stl (.stl) to load or save STL files in blender.

Note: This kit was built using Blender 2.9.

Post-processing STL output

Although all of the STL files included have been tested as valid watertight meshes, joining the parts together and exporting new STL files can introduce small errors that may cause issues with slicing programs. I recommend any STL files you create are checked using a program like Netfabb Basic free edition. Doing a simple "Close All Holes" repair has fixed most of the issues I've run into so far. If you do run into issues with mesh quality, please let me know.

Combined ship STLs

These files provide complete ships generated using the parts included in this kit.

Part	Description
ship-D7-type1.stl	Type one D7.
ship-D7-type1-amt.stl	Type one D7 with added AMD style details.
ship-D7-type2.stl	Type two D7.
ship-D7-type2-amt.stl	Type two D7 with added AMD style details.
ship-D7-thick.stl	Thick version of the D7 for small scale printing.
ship-ktinga.stl	Standard K’t’inga with aft torpedo tube.
ship-ktinga-rear-sensor.stl	K’t’inga variant with aft sensor instead of torpedo tube.
ship-ktinga-thick.stl	Thick version of the standard K’t’inga with aft torpedo tube.
ship-ktinga-rear-sensor-thick.stl	Thick version of K’t’inga with aft sensor.

Parts list

The following lists provide a summary of the included parts from all the zip files. For the majority of items, the mesh origin has been set so that when you import these objects into your 3D editor of choice, they are positioned as they would be on the sample ships provided.

Parts

Part	Description
d7ktinga-D7-command-module.stl	Combined D7 command module.
d7ktinga-D7-neck-standard.stl	D7 standard width neck.
d7ktinga-D7-neck-thick.stl	D7 thick width neck for smaller scale prints.
d7ktinga-D7-secondary-hull.stl	D7 secondary hull.
d7ktinga-D7-secondary-hull-AMT-details.stl	D7 secondary hull with added AMT-style details.
d7ktinga-D7-sensor-pods.stl	D7 sensor pods mounted on the sides of the shuttlebay.
d7ktinga-D7-shuttlebay.stl	D7 shuttlebay superstructure
d7ktinga-D7-standalone-command-bridge.stl	Separate D7 command module bridge domes.
d7ktinga-D7-standalone-command-bulb.stl	Separate D7 command module lower bulb structure (with torpedo cutout).
d7ktinga-D7-standalone-command-bulb-no-torps.stl	Separate D7 command module lower bulb structure (no torpedo cutout).
d7ktinga-D7-standalone-command-mid-decks.stl	Separate D7 command module middle decks
d7ktinga-D7-standalone-disruptor-heavy-mount.stl	Separate D7 style disruptor, as used in the command module.
d7ktinga-Drell-nacelle-type1-center.stl	Symmetrical D7 warp nacelle, meant to be center-mounted (Type 1).
d7ktinga-Drell-nacelle-type1-port.stl	Port D7 warp nacelle (Type 1).
d7ktinga-Drell-nacelle-type1-starboard.stl	Starboard D7 warp nacelle (Type 1).
d7ktinga-Drell-nacelle-type2-center.stl	Symmetrical D7 warp nacelle, meant to be center-mounted (Type 2).
d7ktinga-Drell-nacelle-type2-port.stl	Port D7 warp nacelle (Type 2).
d7ktinga-Drell-nacelle-type2-starboard.stl	Starboard D7 warp nacelle (Type 2).
d7ktinga-ktinga-aft-sensor-dish.stl	K’t’inga sensor dish alternative to the aft torpedo
d7ktinga-ktinga-aft-torpedo.stl	Standard K’t’inga aft torpedo tube.
d7ktinga-ktinga-command-module.stl	Combined K’t’inga command module.
d7ktinga-ktinga-command-module-thick.stl	Thick variant of the combined K’t’inga command module, used for small prints.
d7ktinga-ktinga-nacelle-base.stl	Un-positioned K’t’inga style warp nacelle (port version).
d7ktinga-ktinga-nacelle-center.stl	Symmetrical K’t’inga warp nacelle, meant to be center-mounted.
d7ktinga-ktinga-nacelle-port.stl	K’t’inga port warp nacelle.
d7ktinga-ktinga-nacelle-starboard.stl	K’t’inga starboard warp nacelle.
d7ktinga-ktinga-neck-standard.stl	Standard K’t’inga neck.
d7ktinga-ktinga-neck-thick.stl	Thick width K’t’inga neck, meant for smaller scale prints.
d7ktinga-ktinga-secondary-hull.stl	K’t’inga secondary hull.
d7ktinga-ktinga-sensor-pods.stl	K’t’inga sensor pods mounted on the sides of the shuttlebay.
d7ktinga-ktinga-shuttlebay.stl	K’t’inga shuttlebay superstructure
d7ktinga-ktinga-standalone-command-bridge.stl	Separate K’t’inga command module bridge domes.
d7ktinga-ktinga-standalone-command-bulb.stl	Separate K’t’inga command module lower bulb structure (with torpedo cutout).
d7ktinga-ktinga-standalone-command-bulb-no-torp.stl	Separate K’t’inga command module lower bulb structure (no torpedo cutout).
d7ktinga-ktinga-standalone-command-bulb-no-torp-thick.stl	Thick version of the K’t’inga command module lower bulb structure (no torpedo cutout).
d7ktinga-ktinga-standalone-command-bulb-thick.stl	Thick version of the K’t’inga command module lower bulb structure (with torpedo cutout).
d7ktinga-ktinga-standalone-command-mid-decks.stl	Separate K’t’inga command module middle decks
d7ktinga-ktinga-standalone-command-mid-decks-thick.stl	Thick version of the K’t’inga command module middle decks
d7ktinga-ktinga-standalone-disruptor-block-mount.stl	Separate K’t’inga style disruptor with integrated mounting block.
d7ktinga-ktinga-standalone-disruptor-heavy-mount.stl	Separate K’t’inga style disruptor mount, as used in the command module.
d7ktinga-ktinga-standalone-disruptor-neck-mount.stl	Separate K’t’inga style style disruptor mount, as used in the neck.

Blender files

Each ship ZIP file contains two blender files for each design: a parts file, containing the STL parts arranged as used in the sample ship designs, and a parts source file, containing the raw blender objects used to create the parts. Some ships will also have separate blender files for specific components such as nacelles and bridge modules.

License

I'm releasing this under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike license. You're free to distribute and modify these files (even for commercial use), provided you attribute the creator and distribute your contributions under the same license.