6ft Omega: A fan-art project

[deantendo]

Hey all. New here.

Wanted to join to share my project with folks. So i can get some good fan-related talk going on etc, rather than use a generic project or modelling forum.

Fan of B5 since it first aired, and recently got into 3D printing, so i figured i'd combine a few hobbies and make my own Omega class. Almost went with the excellent 1 meter Omega, but it didn't have the detail i wanted, so i decided to make my own at 1000:1 scale.

While i'm not going 100% screen accurate, i do plan to have a kit to make it accurate if desired, and when i'm done i'll be making the print files freely available.

As i said: Fan art.

So how far have i got?

This far with design, and over 100 test prints of various parts with many more to go.

But this isn't final. And a lot of the design here is experimental (like the rectangular dishes for example).

There's a lot more detail regarding this, and you can see that in a post over here, if you want to get a better feel for the what's and whyfores / my head-canon and reasoning.

I plan to post project updates in this thread so as not to bother folks too much, and i'm more than happy to answer questions / take suggestions.

But yeah. Will be free when done, and designed to be as easy to print and build as i can make it.

I hope i can finish it, and if i do; I'll likely cart it around to conventions in the UK.

 

[Springer]

Very cool! I like the modifications - I figure that the Omegas wouldn't all be cookie-cutter, but have details that set them apart, a bit like how there were multiple different versions of the Miranda-class starship in Star Trek.

Also pleased to see that you're reintroducing the fighter launch bays into the rotating section. Will it rotate on the model? And I always wondered where the bridge was, I know it's in the rotating section but I always wondered where, especially if the ends of the rotating section was launch bays. Maybe one half of the habitation section is operations and the other half living quarters?

And most importantly – what name will you give to the ship?

 

[deantendo]

Very cool! I like the modifications - I figure that the Omegas wouldn't all be cookie-cutter, but have details that set them apart, a bit like how there were multiple different versions of the Miranda-class starship in Star Trek.

Also pleased to see that you're reintroducing the fighter launch bays into the rotating section. Will it rotate on the model? And I always wondered where the bridge was, I know it's in the rotating section but I always wondered where, especially if the ends of the rotating section was launch bays. Maybe one half of the habitation section is operations and the other half living quarters?

And most importantly – what name will you give to the ship?

Most kind

This specifically is subject to a couple main drivers:

1. Modernisations of the base design to accommodate over 30 years of CGI and sci-fi, especially post BSG, and Expanse

2. My own head-cannon that this is a prototype refit/upgrade to the Omega class which was in development just before the formation of ISA, but got cancelled in favour of the Warlock class when the ISA dropped a load of tech. So you'll be seeing some Warlock stuff here, mostly the armour plating but not the grav drive etc...

Not only am i bringing the hab fighter bays back like they had in the original concept, but also the planned RCS and thruster systems like the StarFury which were also cut at the time. I want to put that same consideration into the Mk2 Omega as the starfury had.

As for the bridge? Wherever it is, it's under 10m of armour as standard, and beyond that i would guess wherever there's 1G or close to it.

The split hab sections has me a bit lost as to how they'd get between them, or if they even did. So i might add a connecting structure as you can see in the image. Might not. Whatever feels right.

The hab will indeed rotate at a scale-accurate rate to give 1G at the ends, and there will be lights via fibre optics inside it and powered by a couple wireless phone charger coils so i can just drop the section into place. The rest of the ship will also be lit similarly.

It'll also be modular so i can dismantle it for transport or storage and it also makes it far easier to work on, to build, and to manage. The insides will have component trays, and sections will share power via magnetic connectors to make it simple.

The main body will be a featureless carcass onto which the plates and details can attach. Most via retaining features and a mix of glue, clips, and magnets.

I plan to have it as easy to print and build as possible, with or without paint, with or without a multi-colour 3D printer. Just as much for my sake as for others. It all adds to the fun and challenge of the project.

And as mentioned: All the print files will be 100% free when i'm done, though i'd like to offer a nicely designed assembly guide (also designed by me) and other things, but that's what the patreon is for; To help towards costs and expand the project. Not essential to it, but it all helps. I'd do it anyway though it'll take longer.

 

[deantendo]

Oh, the name! You asked about that.

Well... Nothing final, but i have a number of ideas:

1. Stick with the convention
2. Offer custom name plates
3. Give it a simple designation as it's a prototype (but this is a good opportunity to get some large text on the hull which looks great)
4. Go with one of the various ship names i've used over the years for Star Trek stuff and other projects.

 

[Springer]

As for the bridge? Wherever it is, it's under 10m of armour as standard, and beyond that i would guess wherever there's 1G or close to it.

The split hab sections has me a bit lost as to how they'd get between them, or if they even did. So i might add a connecting structure as you can see in the image. Might not. Whatever feels right.

I think there does need to be a way at least for star furies that have entered the front docking bay to be transported to the launch bays in the hab section. I imagine this would be achieved through a central corridor and then some kind of moving platforms that cut down through to the ends of the rotating sections, a bit like how the docking area in B5 worked.

 

[deantendo]

I think there does need to be a way at least for star furies that have entered the front docking bay to be transported to the launch bays in the hab section. I imagine this would be achieved through a central corridor and then some kind of moving platforms that cut down through to the ends of the rotating sections, a bit like how the docking area in B5 worked.

I suppose that specific mechanism would be something like:

1. Docking portal at front which leads to a racking system / autoload
2. Conveyance to a radial loader in sync with the hab rotation
3. Loading corridor 'down' to the launch bay
4. Lateral hand-off interchange from vertical to sideways
5. Load fighter into prep bay for repairs and rearm
6. Load to launch ready rack