The Untold Story of the Klingon D7: Star Trek's Most Iconic Starship

[@murdockscott]

I had a UFO Mystery Ship model when I was a boy that I absolutely loved and was eventually lost to time during my troubled childhood. Many years ago a came across the new version of it in a hobby store and grabbed it. It sat on my shelf for several years and a few years back I lovingly assembled it and gave it what I consider a fantastic paint job maintaining the glow in the dark nature of it by using transparent inks and washes. I have several space ship designs that inspired me when I was young, and certainly it was one of my favorites.

[@murasaki848]

I really liked the small ship for the shuttle bay of that model, looking sorta like a sleek Klingon ship with a duckling head. I had a bad habit of playing with my models, and that little ship would last far longer than the larger mothership.

[@TeatroCalamari]

@@murasaki848 I use that small shuttle for the “The Black Hole” diagrams I made in high school. I put the model in a blacked out shoebox and at one end there was an eye hole , the other end was my mom‘s vacuum cleaner. Strangely, my teacher refused to look into the eyepiece. The model looked all glowy and cool and the box compacted nicely. No eyes were sucked out.

[@Katzbalger001]

I had one as well. The thing was hanging from my bedroom ceiling for many years. The little shuttle that came with it looked like a duck, which was actually pretty cool.

[@toonman361]

I built the original model as well. The larger ship is long gone but I think, maybe, that I still have the small ship somewhere.

[@davidchenot3520]

The good ship Leif Erickson!

[@deadlyradiation7977]

As a kid, I enjoyed building the Klingon AMT model kit. 🥰 Purchased from Dillard's department stores. In those days, they had a toy department.

[@murasaki848]

One of my sisters (8 years older than me) was dating a guy who worked in a warehouse, circa 1974 or so. One day he showed up with NINE returned Star Trek model kits they were just going to throw out and gave them to me. I can't remember exactly how many of each, but there was the phaser/tricorder/communicator, the Spock fighting the three headed serpent diorama, the Enterprise, the Galileo, and the Klingon battlecruiser. Despite the fact that they were each missing a few parts or decal sheets, I had a blast building and painting all of them.

[@TheBigMclargehuge]

K

[@deadlyradiation7977]

@@murasaki848 I had the phaser/tricorder/communicator kit, The Enterprise and the Klingon Battle Curser. Never got the Shuttlecraft or the UFO master ship.

[@FassEddie]

Same. The movie version blew my mind.

[@deadlyradiation7977]

@@FassEddie Yeah, the movie version with all the details was great!

[@rotorheadv8]

“Those are Klingons?” Worf “We do not talk about it”

[@Frankie5Angels150]

Possibly the best line ever in the Star Trek universe!

[@TonboIV]

@@Frankie5Angels150 And it would have been so much better if they'd left it that instead of trying to explain things during Enterprise.

[@davidk6269]

The Klingon D-7 is by far my favorite Sci-Fi space ship design of all time. It is just so sleek, menacing and iconic. What a stroke of creative genius!!!

[@j.b.macadam6516]

My favorite ship design as well. Did you ever get the blueprints?

[@davidk6269]

@ No, I never got the blue prints. I bet they are fascinating!

[@j.b.macadam6516]

@@davidk6269 At the time, I had a drafting table and tools. The blueprints inspired me to design my own starships. I wish I still had some of my drawings.

[@davidk6269]

@@j.b.macadam6516 Wow, I really like how you were inspired to build your own designs by the blueprints! I'd love to see some of your creations. ; )

[@davidalangay1186]

I HAD THAT GLOW IN THE DARK MODEL SHIP! Sorry for the screaming caps. I just nerded out over a long forgotten memory now remembered.

[@scottmcintosh4397]

UFO Mystery Ship 🛸 🌌🔭

[@mahbriggs]

@davidalangay1186 So did I! It was also used as the model for the INS MacArthur for Pournelle and Niven's "the Mote in God's Eye"!

[@timcallender999]

@@mahbriggs came here to say this -- thanks for posting this!

[@quentinmichel7581]

Back in the 60's I had car models on my bookshelves in my bedroom, and hanging at different heights from the ceiling were airplanes, missiles, and movie/TV space ships, & one of my favorites was the D-7 it had internal lights showing through the multiple "windows" an a couple other spots. I loved looking at that thing when I was falling asleep

[@ConceptJunkie]

Visiting that 1992 Smithsonian Star Trek exhibit was my first date with the lovely young lady who would become my wife. We still enjoy watching Star Trek today. I had all the Star Trek models as a kid in the mid 70s. And yes, I had the glow-in-the-dark ship, too. It was very cool, and I loved the little miniship.

[@TREK-WORLD]

First, congratulations on you and your wife’s many years together. It sounds like you picked a great first date!

[@tommargarites2811]

I had the AMT kits when I was a kid, loved having them, building and painting them. After watching the Motion picture, I took out my model D7, took it apart, added Christmas tree lights to it, reassembled it and tried it out. It lit up beautifully, for a few hours anyway until the lights burned out, but it looked incredible.

[@nowhereman1046]

The original issue of the kit actually came with lights and mounts for batteries, that's why the windows on the command section are cutout. Same thing with the original AMT Enterprise model. The domes for the saucer and nacelles also were lit in a similar manner. Later pressings of the kits removed that to save money, and despite the kits ever increasing popularity.

[@benjaminbarrera214]

@@nowhereman1046 Yes, my older brother built it and I remember how cool it looked lit up!

[@seanmalloy7249]

The Leif Ericson model, or at least the concept of it, was loosely adopted by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle as the model for the INSS MacArthur battlecruiser for their novel "The Mote in God's Eye"; Rick Sternbach painted the MacArthur for cover art of, IIRC, _Galaxy_ magazine.

[@logandarklighter]

I read the "Mote in God's Eye" not knowing about this. I only read it later in one of Niven's anthology/essay books. You know - the ones where he would publish shorter stories that only saw the light of day in Sci-Fi magazines of the day - interspersing with Essays about things like... Well in this case - How he and Jerry Pournelle had - as you say, loosely adopted the "Leif Erickson" model as their stand in for the MacArthur. I think I recall that the MacArthur would up eventually in the book as something MORE than the basic Leif Erickson design - in other words - the model was where they STARTED the process of their ideas - but it wasn't necessarily where they FINISHED them. So if you read "The Mote In Gods Eye" - and you happen to have a Leif Erickson model - and try to mentally envision precisely what parts of the ship are being described in the book by looking at the model... Well... be prepared for things to get "out of alignment" pretty fast!

[@bobblum5973]

@@seanmalloy7249 Thanks for pointing this out... so I didn't have to myself!

[@DarkStar-os9pv]

Ah, ya beat me to it! ;)

[@MightyDrakeC]

I followed Pournelle, and he mentioned that, too. As a kid, I had one of those models. Never knew it was connected to Star Trek

[@Donleecartoons]

@@logandarklighter Somewhere online is a "developed" fan concept for the MacArthur; the guy who did it said he figured out what the Mac had to look like based on descriptions of what the ship did and what happened aboard ship in the book. The end result was a main hull (aft of the neck) that was globluar instead of flask-shaped, and the wings and fins went away. He said he showed the visuals to Larry Niven, who pronounced it good.

[@tofersiefken]

I was about 8 or 9 when I built the plastic AMT model of the D7 Battle Cruiser. I also built the Enterprise, Galileo, and the "landing party" set with the tricorder, communicator and phaser.

[@TREK-WORLD]

Those AMT kits were so much fun!

[@tomswift3835]

Wow, i forgot about those. I think I still have one still in the box. Not as interesting as the ships, though.

[@williamking3301]

I too had bought and built the Enterprise, Klingon D-7 and the Romulan Bird of Prey. AMT also made the model kit for the bridge of the Enterprise with the figurines of Kirk, Spock and McCoy (or was it Scotty?). That one was one of my favorites. Good memories of youth!

[@michaelblackwell7408]

@@tofersiefken Often the Klingon model was made in different colors to cut cost with whatever they had. I had bought a dark gray, light gray, off white and a teal one.

[@edwardpaulsen1074]

I remember building each of those and I think I still have one still in the box... I had a blast deconstructing the landing party set in later years to add the "new fangled" LED lights to those models in later years... They were very popular on the convention circuit by that time... I also started making new props from Star Trek and other Sci-Fi series... Tech was catching up to the fiction and has now even equaled or surpassed some of it.

[@katenunyabizness9221]

I loved the Leif Ericson ship model. It was released 3 times in different offerings. The first had a record with space sounds and a short story included. Then it was renamed UFO Mystery Ship and was cast in glow in the dark plastic without the record, story or engine parts. The third version was a smaller box of the UFO Mystery Ship that was made with a cut neck which resulted in a smaller box required but also made the model shorter by about 3mm. Years later, when Round 2 released it, the UFO Mystery Ship was the split neck version of the kit but included an awesome sticker sheet. Two years later, it was re-released as the Leif once again, with the missing engine parts stored, the neck reattached but still missing the 3mm length, and the lighting kit returns with LEDs. No record included but it had a new different sticker sheet.

[@tomswift3835]

I have an AMT one (not glow-in-the-dark) and sure enough, there's a little story in there. Forgot all about that. I don't remember a record, though. The outside of the box doesn't say anything about space sounds, just "LEIF ERICSON Galactic Cruiser STRATEGIC SPACE COMMAND AMT". If I ever had any space sounds, they must have run away from home years ago. I still have the stand and the decal sheet, although the decals have mostly crumbled into little flakes. And of course the little mini-ship which lives in that hangar. It struck me as strange that anybody would make a Galactic Cruiser which doesn't have much room in it to do more than carry a mini-ship in comfortable lodgings. I always like the Klingon ship. I drilled little holes in the front command thing to get that illuminated windows effect. I never cared much for the Enterprise, though. Though it was probably the first TV or cinema ship which didn't look like a flying saucer or a cigar with fins.

[@katenunyabizness9221]

@@tomswift3835 Yeah, I still have my scout ship from my first kit but the rest was tossed by my mom after a dusting accident. Now I've got 1 built and 2 in box R2 kits. The big thing I disliked about the Enterprise was the weight of the batteries so it was dangerous to hang from the ceiling, and mostly hated the way the nacelles attached to the hull. I have 4 of the old AMT kits lying around in various states. That said, the nacelles were better engineered to attach than the ones from the ST:TMP kit which were so thin they practically broke under their own weight.

[@michaelchancey5505]

Me too, I had the first model, I wish I could find a recording of that record!

[@ChessIsJustAGame]

I had the glow in the dark version. It hung from the ceiling over my bed. 🤓

[@lloydonlead]

You're bringing back my childhood! I built all these exact models.

[@TREK-WORLD]

That's awesome!

[@lloydonlead]

@@TREK-WORLD 👍

[@AndieBlack13]

When I was a kid, 1966 , I had both the AMT Enterprise and the Klingon ships....after a short time though, I ripped off one of the Enterprise engine nacelle & its attached strut & voila, I HAD A PHASER GUN !!...I of course used the short rounded end as I pointed, the strut as its handle...

[@SoloPilot6]

Matt Jeffries was also a pioneer in experimental aviation. And a really nice guy, talking for an hour to a fan who had been riding by his house on a Saturday afternoon and noticed an airplane project in a garage. I was astonished to find out who he was.

[@TREK-WORLD]

It is always so great to hear stories like this about those in the Trek family.

[@MAC000013]

The Leif Ericsson model was used by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle in their novel The Mote in God's Eye as 'The MacArthur'. I remember reading an article (kind of a 'making of' article about the book) where they talk about spending a great deal of time looking at the model and trying to find logical pseudo-science reasons for things like 'why are their wings on a deep space ship' and 'why does the bridge module extend above the main body like a submarine conning tower'. Their approach was to use the model 'as is' and 'discover' reasons rather than change the ship if something didn't make sense at first. Their justification for starting with the model was that they felt to have a real physical object gave all of the ship descriptions and jargon have a more real feel to them as authors which would translate to more authentic feelings in the readers.

[@patrickwilson1459]

This has always been my favorite enemy ship from the original TV series. The best Klingon episodes are Errand of Mercy and Day of the Dove.

[@historybuff66]

Agree, Kor and Kang for their part were far and away the best Klingon commanders.

[@patrickwilson1459]

@@historybuff66 They also have a lot of exciting action scenes.

[@historybuff66]

@@patrickwilson1459Yes, and were very capably written by Gene L. Coon and Jerome Bixby respectively. Interesting how S2 really didn’t have a memorable Klingon featured episode. I detest the Klingons as portrayed in “Tribbles”, with “A Private Little War” faring somewhat better there. Still not a good Klingon centered episode though.

[@RedwoodTheElf]

the D7 name was, however, used in a Tabletop wargame called "Starfleet Battles" where they quantified the whole line of Klingon warships, from the fairly small F1, to the massively oversized battleship the B12, whose boom section could separate and act as a fully warp capable starship instead of being an impulse-only lifeboat like the boom sections on smaller Klingon ships.

[@TREK-WORLD]

Yes, in the very earliest part of fandom, Star Fleet Battles and FASA both used the name for the ship. They did so because of the whole situation between Shatner, Nimoy, and Gene as discussed in The Making of Star Trek. However, Gene clearly did not like the name, and refused to use it for the rest of his life. It was he who came up with the name "K'Tinga" for TMP because he didn't want to use the D7 name there either. It wasn't until after he died that Berman allowed the term to be used in Trek. Beginning with DS9. He chose to use the D7 name as an easter egg for the fans.

[@ElderEric]

@@TREK-WORLD I had the same question, so thanks for clearing it up! (Also, I recalled that FASA used the name but had forgotten that it was also in FSB, so thanks to @RedwoodTheElf for jogging my memory on that front.)

[@gralphirichmond2944]

I believe that the C8 and C9 ships also had a detachable boom with the center warp nacelle attaching to the boom. I did love that game (SFB) and we would be buying new miniatures just about every other week for the next battle.

[@Anaris10]

D6 and 7 were crap in that game, I played the Klingons anyway....

[@TurtleTrackin]

Ah, the FASA days. Star Trek was, in many ways, more fun for us back then.

[@anathardayaldar]

Klingon D7: my favorite sci fi ship of all time.

[@KyleCowden]

I met Matt Jeffries' brother once. He wrote a fantastic book on his brother's history and how he came to design for Star Trek. It's full of great examples of his art and fascinating anecdotes and insights.

[@russpaulus9171]

I remember seeing geese land and thought how much they look like the Klingon Bird’s of Prey.

[@MrGreensweightHist]

When pointing out the differences between the Roddenberry and Jefferies models, I am surprised you didn't mention the biggest difference. The body of the Roddenberry is curved at the front, while the Jefferies is straight creating a more tanky look

[@Twirlyhead]

The design of the Enterprise, Klingon and other ships from the original series went a long way towards its success and setting it apart from other sci-fi to date. For example, Star Trek was owes a lot to the film Forbidden Planet but that film had a ship that was basically a flying saucer in which very little imagination looks to have been invested.

[@Chesirecat111]

My older brother had the Leif Erickson model kit back in the 1970s, and even that early model was made with glow in the dark plastic. I well remember sneaking it away from his room to play with it in darkened rooms, but I never knew it had any connection to Star Trek.

[@grahamturner1290]

I still have my copy of The Making Of Star Trek. 🖖

[@davydatwood3158]

I've my father's and its fascinating to read the notes he scribbled in the margins. Especially today, when my father adamantly refuses to rewatch anything, because it's clear he watch Trek over and over to produce those notes.

[@grahamturner1290]

@@davydatwood3158 bless him! 😊

[@fubarmodelyard1392]

Fascinating. So much time has passed that it's hard to believe the D-7 was only seen 3 times.

[@trevormillar1576]

I always thought the reason fir the long tube seperating the command and engineering section was to protect the command crew ftom the high radiation levels in the engines: the Discovery in "2001" was designed on the same principles.

[@camo_for_cocktails]

I held a friend’s Leif Erickson sip in my hands in the mid 1970s and never knew about the Star Trek connection. It had the on board shuttle included.

[@davidvega1212]

Nice one Jim. I visited the Air & Space Museum in 1979 and saw the Enterprise there, but missed the later Trek exhibit in the 90s. Did see the Kinglon Battle Cruiser at the Seattle Museum of Pop culture. Nice contrast between the preservation vs. modification between the Museum and Holywood. I think most of us would side on the preservation side.

[@wadebuff4465]

Fantastic episode! Please keep up the good work! Thank you!

[@TREK-WORLD]

Thanks so much for the kind words! It makes me happy that you are enjoying the channel!

[@alanfoxman5291]

I remember actually having the Lief Erickson model! I played with that for years. Loved opening the hanger doors to pretend to fly the little shuttle. Wow...I'd completely forgotten about that till I saw that model just now. That distinctive nose-cone...Thanks for that memory. 😊 I dont remember whatever happened to it. I believe I had the second version because I do remember it was glow in the dark

[@TREK-WORLD]

I’m glad that the video brought back such a good memory for you!

[@ericbrammer2245]

Front-Arc curvature of the Aft Body is Quite different, as are the Outer Wing-Sweep Angles between these ships. Perhaps, these subtle changes are a distinction between the D-6 and D-7 (Per SFB, and other "canon" Lore?), and the much-later K-Tinga would then, not-quite be considered a "D-8'', perhaps a 're-Fit' of lesser-used D-7's as an Up-Fit for the Type. The Romulan 'KR-6'/KR-7, would continue on in SFB lore as a brutally able strike Cruiser, one able to take-on bigger ships than itself, due to Dual Plasma Torpedo launchers (in the Engine nacelles, replacing Heavy Disruptors favored by the Klingons), and it's Cloak.

[@captainsatellite2112]

The way you're holding the ship in the thumbnail makes me realize it would make a cool guitar for an over the top metal band.

[@BradRushing]

Enjoyed this video so much. I knew some of it, including the Leif Ericson. That Phase II logo was something I had never seen before. I also never knew that the Klingon Battle Cruiser was created by AMT. I never realized it only appeared in the 3rd season!! And I had no idea how the D7 designation originally arose. Bravo and Thank You!

[@TREK-WORLD]

I am glad you found some new information to enjoy!

[@Cmrdata]

Wow! As a teenager, I used to own that glow-in-the-dark "Interplanetary UFO Mystery Ship"! I NEVER realized that it had Star Trek origins/connections! The model that I had even had the opening cargo doors and the little ship that stayed inside! Wow! If I had only known, I would've kept it all these years! Fortunately, I did keep my technical reference manual!

[@MrLangDog]

My favorite ship. I have the Franklin Mink pewter version in my living room. :)

[@sff1987]

Yes sir I have the Franklin Mint Enterprise, Master Replicas Enterprise AND the Tomy Enterprise.

[@stevekillgore9272]

18:50 about the Leif Ericson .. I believe I've read that that design was influenced by an (almost) entirely seperate sci-fi IP - an award winning novel The Mote In God's Eye, which had a "battle cruiser MacArthur" , co-author of the novel is Larry Niven, who had an unrelated story adapted directly into the ST Animated series.

[@TREK-WORLD]

Hi there! The Mote In God’s Eye was actually published in 1974. Which was well after the 1968 release of the model. However, what actually happened was that Larry based the Macarthur on Matt’s design, with some enhancements. And I do remember the story being passed around at conventions in the 70s & 80s that had the story backwards. LOL. Way back when, there was no way to verify the stories we heard. So we just passed them along!

[@silkwesir1444]

@@TREK-WORLD Weird, I had a dream once in which kinda the same kind of discussion happened, with a book cover (sci-fi but not Trek) featuring a ship that looked similar to one from Star Trek and discussions about which came first, whether it was licensed, and so on. It was set in a kind of convention or museum setting. But it was about the Romulan Warbird from TNG.

[@Seemsayin]

I remember getting this model as a a Christmas gift in the early 70's. But the box was not labeled "Klingon D7 Battle Cruiser". It had some generic name, like "Alien Space Ship". I don't remember it exactly. At the time, I had discovered the TOS show, when it first went into syndication. So, this ship was new to me. I do recall really liking it, as it was unique and looked like it was a bonafide space ship. I was only 7 or 8 years, and I was hooked, the first time I watched the show. The first two models I ever owned were the Exploration Set (begged my mother to buy it), and the Enterprise. I found both models in the Johnson Smith Catalog (a thousand, 10-cent wonders kind of book). Ahhhh... memories. Wished I had held onto my Whacky Packs stickers. Loved them.

[@vincentsaia6545]

Didn't know THE MAKING OF STAR TREK was out of print. Then I had better hold onto my beat-up old copy.

[@UltraKryptonian]

Mine has a silver cover, not white

[@murasaki848]

My copy is lost to time, but between fourth and fifth grade I read The World of Star Trek, The Making of Star Trek, Star Trek Lives, and The Trouble with Tribbles. But the one item I still have is The Star Trek Technical Manual. Not in great shape, but still decent, with vinyl cover and insert.

[@timcallender999]

@@UltraKryptonian mine doesn't have covers at all XD

[@krkhns]

@@UltraKryptonian A silver cover means its a printing after 1974. From 1968 to 1973 the covers were white, except for the 1st ed. I have a 1st ed. The cover has a picture of Kirk and Spock at the bottom and the Enterprise at the top. The title is in a white band in the middle with "What it is - How it Happened - How it Works" under the title. Even the one's with silver covers are worth quite a bit in good shape. In excellent condition they're about $75. The one's with white covers can go as high as $200. My dad bought me mine in 1968 for $2.99. It's worth over $1000, they're almost impossible to find.

[@UltraKryptonian]

@@krkhns Thanks for the publishing info! Very interesting! Mine is still in pretty good condition. That book was a favorite of mine, along with the Starfleet Technical Manual.

[@ianbrett3276]

The Klingon Battle Cruiser made a triumphant return in the opening sequence of Star Trek the Motion Picture,its one of the best parts of that movie.

[@stuartwald2395]

With regard to the first naming of the Klingon cruiser as a D7 in the DS9 episode "Trials and Tribble-ations" (1996), that may have been the first use on screen, but I played Star Fleet Battles through the 1980s and early 90s and the term was commonly used (along with the older D6).

[@TREK-WORLD]

Yup. Ironically, SFB used the name D7 as a result of the comments made in the Making of Star Trek. Gene didn’t like that, so he refused to use the name in any of the movies or TV series. After he died, Berman approved of the use of the name as an Easter egg to the fans.

[@no_handle_required]

this answers so many questions I had when I used to watch TOS

[@w3vjp568]

When I saw the thumbnail for this video my first thought was "Wow, awesome guitar!"

[@russellharrell2747]

Freebird! Freebird!

[@MichaelWinter-ss6lx]

Yeah, but looks more like an electric Sasz, with the thin round neck. That's a Tuerkish lute with movable frets;• like a more rounded D shaped neck. They have more than 12 notes in an Octave, I believe to remember, and a master officially studies over 10 years. Young Tuerks have discovered the power of Sasz equiped with Pick-Up, played over a Marshal tube amp, together with Bass & Drums. Of course there were soon solid body versions available. Rock from the overlap of Asia & Europe! 🚀🏴‍☠️🎸

[@Marconius-SPQR]

@@w3vjp568 🤔

[@mikereilly2745]

Mike Able of Custom guitar operations in Venice Florida , Built a incredible electric guitar as a D-7 as seen here ! Last I knew, He owned a subway restaurant in the Port Charlotte mall in Port Charlotte FL.

[@crominion6045]

Totally! I never noticed that before, but now I want a Klingon D7 bass guitar.

[@TheOldDragoon]

I absolutely love the Leif Ericson. I've tinkered over the years with doing a tabletop RPG that takes place aboard the ship on behalf of the Strategic Space Command.

[@wz2001]

It's interesting. When the Leif Erickson was first released, it came with a thin plastic 45 story disc. You can listen to it somewhere on the interweb. I'd post a link, but you know what would happen. When it was first released it wasn't made of glow in the dark plastic. Just regular polystyrene. It wasn't until the mid 70's that it was first released in glow in the dark plastic, but without decals. Then when it was re released in the 2000's it came in glow in the dark plastic, with the original decals, and some newer decals for building options.

[@TREK-WORLD]

The model is definitely fascinating to me, as I don’t think there are any more realized examples of work that he completed on his own.

[@wz2001]

@@TREK-WORLD Didn't Jefferies also design the Botany Bay?

[@KageNoTora74]

The D7 Battlecruiser is among my favorite ship designs from Star Trek, alongside the Miranda class Reliant, Constitution refit, the Excelsior class and the Bird of Prey.

[@scionofdorn9101]

The Miranda Class is my second favorite Star Trek design after the D7 and just ahead of the Excelsior. Honorable mention to the sleek Bird of Prey and the STTNG Romulan Warbird.

[@sjTHEfirst]

I had the UFO Mystery Ship. Always loved the shuttle craft.

[@patraic5241]

The one thing that always bugged me about the Klingon D7 was that thin spar connecting the bow to the engineering hull would be incredibly vulnerable to damage. Still it's a beautiful design.

[@charlestaylor253]

That design aspect was to make it extremely difficult for mutineers/ boarding parties to gain access to the Command section...

[@patraic5241]

@@charlestaylor253 It doesn't matter if the ship gets broken into two pieces.

[@wilsonj4705]

Ships weapons as portrayed in TOS were far more powerful than they were later portrayed in the movies and later series and were capable of taking out an entire ship in one shot if it was unsheided as shown in Day of the Dove when they destroyed the D7. One episode there was talk of using phases to take out entire cities (Mirror Mirror). Shields were your armor and without them something like the long neck on the D7s didn't matter, with them it was fine. If they had kept to this idea in ST-TWK the Enterprise would have been destroyed in an instant with the first shot but that would have made for a short movie so things like the ships' phasers were defanged a bit so to speak for the story and then on.

[@TREK-WORLD]

You are absolutely right about that! Still, I can't help but love the D7's aesthetic.

[@patraic5241]

@@TREK-WORLD Same. 🥰

[@kmenzies601]

I had the mystery ship model as a kid. It was my favorite spaceship model. I especially loved its shuttle. Unfortunately, the model didn't survive all the times I've moved in my life.

[@stephenkoehler4051]

One thing you missed about the Leif Ericsson /UFO Mystery ship model. In the early 1970's, George Pal contemplated a TV series based loosely on his War of the Worlds movie of the 1950s. The story involved an interplanetary space force in search of the Aliens who had invaded Earth in the 50s movie. Matt Jefferies was among the designers recruited by Pal for this project. Matt based his starship on the Ericsson model and the preproduction art features it prominently. There is a video elsewhere on KZbin featuring Pal's pilot presentation which shows Matt and others behind the scenes designing the new show. Obviously it never reached fruition, but it would have been ambitious for its time. The Pal series also bears no resemblance or connections to the later series which premiered in the late 80s.

[@TREK-WORLD]

Thank you so much for sharing this insight!

[@flamencoMensch]

Yup; I used to have the glow-in-the-dark "Leif Erickson" starship kit. Thanks for the fascinating background on this and all the rest!

[@IMayOrMayNotBeNoelG]

WOW! I had that glow in the dark interplanetary ship I had no idea! I also built the Enterprise the D7 and the Galileo as well as the Enterprise bridge. Man great childhood memories.

[@stevenewman1393]

🖖😎👍Very cool and very nicely greatly well informatively explained and executed in every detail way shape and format provided on the Untold Story of the Klingon D'7 Battle Cruiser, And I myself have built this model kit many of times along with the TOS Enterprise kit. And today I still own all of the different versions of this fabulous Ship by various different Die-cast companies and model makers of the D'7 and K'Tinga class as well. Any ways a job very nicely greatly wonderfully well done indeed Sir!👌.

[@TREK-WORLD]

I'm glad you found the video informative! I'm a big fan of the D7 myself, and love seeing how many people share that passion.

[@charlierice5756]

I had completely forgotten about the mystery ship. I had that one. One of my favourite models.

[@sff1987]

Thanks Jim ! This was very intriguing. I remember building the glow in the dark UFO model, it was neat with my black light and black light posters from Spencer's. Take care.

[@TREK-WORLD]

You’re welcome! It’s those little details like that that make growing up with Trek so much fun.

[@mikhailhutchcraft7711]

Nice video. I'd be curious to know what happened to the Ferengi D'Kora Marauder model Funnily enough they made another mistake at 15:56: They call it a Klingon Bird of Prey! Klingons didn't have BoPs in TOS (though Enterprise & SNW show they chronologically did, the actual BoP model first appears in Search for Spock)

[@fredhollis3999]

My favorite to Klingon ships is the Klingon battle cruiser and the Klingon bird of prey.

[@lancraft]

I had mystery ship model as a kid in the 1970s, and it glowed in the dark.

[@Anaris10]

It was supposed to be from the "UFO" series but the show was cancelled before it appeared.

[@grugbug4313]

Solid! Top KEK! Peace be with you.

[@edb.2365]

I had the Leif Erickson/ UFO model, and I completely forgot about it until seeing it here, The model itself got broken, I think one of the cats we had when I was a kid knocked it off the shelf, but I had the little shuttle plane for many years later until losing track of it. I never knew it was originally meant to be a Star Trek ship. Cool👍🏾

[@gideonsiete1868]

I had the Leif Erickson model too, the glow-in-the-dark one. I always thought it was a submarine and played with it in the bathtub.

[@jameshayden5053]

They were my Favorite from the first time I saw one.

[@robertwwallii1357]

The Klingon D-6/7 is in the episode "The Trouble with Tribbles" as well,😍😍😍😍😍

[@xyonblade]

star trek is still the best series, I love all these background details on the ship models, cool stuff.

[@TREK-WORLD]

Glad you enjoy it!

[@svenmartin840]

Imagine Star Trek having the budgets like they have today. And if they got in touch with the model makers of the Thunderbirds are go. And ascriptwriterr named Terry Nation who created the number one sci-villain of all time. The Daleks. I wonder what the show would be like.

[@unpaintedleadsyndrome]

Maybe the D7 designation wasn't used on screen until DS9, but it is one of the ships available in the 1979 Star Fleet Battles game. So it was known as that a lot earlier.

[@TREK-WORLD]

Yes, in the very earliest part of fandom, Star Fleet Battles and FASA both used the name for the ship. They did so because of the whole situation between Shatner, Nimoy, and Gene as discussed in The Making of Star Trek. However, Gene clearly did not like the name, and refused to use it for the rest of his life. It was he who came up with the name "K'Tinga" for TMP because he didn't want to use the D7 name there either. It wasn't until after he died that Berman allowed the term to be used in Trek. Beginning with DS9. He chose to use the D7 name as an easter egg for the fans.

[@chrisddawson]

One of my first model kits as a kid was the AMT Klingon ship model. It was the first of almost 50 Star Trek models I have bought since. I hadn’t even yet seen an episode that featured the Klingon ship, and which episode came on tv later that day? The Enterprise Incident!

[@TREK-WORLD]

It is those types of serendipitous events that truly show how much Trek was a part of our lives.

[@MC-en9rg]

The D7 and the Bird of Prey are two of my favorite ships. Just imagine seeing those ships hovering in the sky. Beautiful and intimidating at the same time. I have a model of each, plus one of the Undiscovered County design.

[@TREK-WORLD]

You can’t beat that iconic design. A true classic, especially the Bird of Prey.

[@galtthedestroyer]

Excellent show! I had no idea your channel existed. All of the trivia about the Klingon Battle cruiser was fascinating.

[@TREK-WORLD]

Welcome aboard! So glad you found our little community. We have lots more of these kind of videos in the pipeline.

[@TheShornak]

That mystery ship I built back in 1976 about a year after I got into Star Trek. I swear it was a glow in the dark model. I remember not painting it because of the glow in the dark feature. Also you mention the 3 foot wooden Enterprise model and you said, that is has since been lost. I guess you narrated this over a year ago since it has now been found.

[@TREK-WORLD]

Yup! I re-edited it to bring it up to the new branding. And since it had been done over two years ago, I figured many folks hadn’t seen it when it originally was released.

[@tcthepackrat]

I had an original glow in the dark mystery ship, back in the day I remembering having a lot of fun playing with it, there was a little scout ship and compartment with opening doors

[@freddurant1918]

FYI, the name D-7 was used in the board game as far back as the 1980s. I still have the rule book , hex board and pieces.

[@mikecrabtree8200]

Trials and tribilations. DS9. A FANTASTIC EPISODE.

[@bradleypotts9865]

Back when I was a kid, in the 70's, my older brother had one of the Leif Ericson models. His was painted red and did glow in the dark where the plastic was exposed.

[@PantheraOnca60]

I've seemed to recall for a long time that, when I was a kid in the 60s, and well into the 70s as a teenager, I we called the warp engines power units. Now I know my memory was correct - thanks!

[@scionofdorn9101]

I’m a fan of a long and wide ranging selection of fantasy, horror, and sci-fi film, novels, etc. To this very day, the D7 and its progeny remain my favorite sci-fi “capital ship”, even over such notable contenders as the Star Wars Star Destroyers (though the competition is stiff indeed against the Super Star Destroyer) and the Battlestars of Battlestar Galactica. The D7 and its ilk are just so graceful yet utterly ominous looking. Jefferies really did make a masterpiece iconic ship. Even against the justifiably ever-popular Bird of Prey, it still pick the (in)famous D7 (and its later incarnations). I wasted untold hours with the ship construction book for FASA’s old Star Trek: Starship Tactical Combat Simulator building various ever more efficient, lethal variations of that ship. I’ve commanded one in every Star Trek game that I’ve ever played that let me do so. She is as popular with me as she was said to be with the Klingon Empire in numerous fictional sources. A replica of the K’t’inga graces my desk, and I had a large scale model of it when I was a teenager.

[@shannonchurchill4556]

Built the all of the ST AMT models (Enterprise, Klingon ship, Romulan bird of Prey, phaser/tricorder/communicator kit and Galileo shuttle) when I was about 7-8. I dropped the Klingon ship within a week-2 of finishing it, and snapped the bridge right off the "neck". Being 7, I had no idea how to repair it, so in the trash it went.

[@guillermodiego819]

Excellent info! Thank you!

[@TREK-WORLD]

I am glad you enjoyed it!

[@johnherdener6801]

I am 73, so I watched TOS when it was new. I am a scale modeler and have a lot of Star Trek models including both versions of the Leif Ericson. I sold my old AMT Galileo when the new Polar Lights 1/32 with the interior came out.

[@davidbest4908]

I have the AMT models of the Enterprise, Galileo, D7, bridge of the Enterprise and the Leif Ericson. The Ericson had a cardboard record called Sounds of Space which was electronic sounds. I love the models. I modified a copy of the Enterprise and turned it into the Constellation too.

[@commodorerook3797]

I had the UFO Mystery ship and loved it! My favorite part was the little shuttle ship and shuttle bay doors.

[@RenePeraza]

Thanks for this! Made my morning 'reading' fun! I became a Trek nerd post TMP because I was too young when TOS came out, but soon came to appreciate the artistry when I went back to discover it.

[@TREK-WORLD]

I’m so glad you found something to enjoy!

[@madnessbydesignVria]

I think I had a Leif Ericson model as a kid (it might have been the glow in the dark one), but I never had any idea it was connected to Star Trek.

[@NathanTarantlawriter]

This video is awesome. A great look at an iconic prop.

[@TREK-WORLD]

I am so glad you enjoyed it!

[@scottkellogg3502]

Kind of wish they'd given more details as to what the differences in the paint scheme they were talking about. From what they showed, I couldn't see much, and what I did see it was hard to tell what was paint, and what was just lighting and shadow differences.

[@thurin84]

and the klingon battlecruiser was called a D7 in the 1980s game "starfleet battles".

[@Smithcraft1]

They also had the D5, D6, C8, C9, and the B10.

[@andrewkapplin1138]

I built the D7 from TMP. It took me 2 weeks just to paint its 5 colors. I even did a balsa wood “box” around the impulse engines to give it a 3-D effect. All in all it took almost a month to build. Love every minute & loved the finished ship.

[@TREK-WORLD]

The details are what make these models so much fun!

[@avnrulz]

There are two different hull shapes, as well. The Jefferies model had a flat leading edge to the main body, and the Roddenberry model has the curved, concave leading edge.

[@kellyjeaularson5786]

The Leaf Ericson was a very cool ship. I always associated it with late 21st or early 22nd century. The story behind it, how it was captured and turned into a pirate ship. Totally wicked!

[@andrewkapplin1138]

Just watched this vid all the way thru. In typical Paramount ignorance they treated the D7 as a tool, a prop to use as they wished. Cold. The Smithsonian treated it with the respect it deserved. Love the Smithsonian. The Leif Ericson was used in the fan series from Star Trek: Continues as a Orion trader’s ship. Check it out. The ep is titled “Lolani”

[@Milosz_Ostrow]

(14:08) Since about 2000 it has become feasible to produce high resolution 3-dimensional laser scans of solid objects that can be used to produce a CNC database to machine a near-identical replica. If the Smithsonian Institution has such equipment in-house, they shouldn't need to loan any objects to future outside projects, such as the Klingon Battle Cruiser model - just a copy of the database and a set of high-resolution digital color photos.

[@TREK-WORLD]

Agreed. It has been their policy concerning the Trek items since the debacle with the Klingon Battlecruiser.

[@thompsonterry4804]

I built a couple of the Constitution class models using the AMT decals to name them different ships, and I had the Galileo and the Klingon Battle Cruiser, I really wanted the Leif Ericson. A neighbor friend had one, it was not the glow in the dark edition and it had some chrome parts. He’d done an amazing job finishing it. I eventually got into kitbashing in the eighties and built something inspired by the “mystery ship” but I never did find the kit in a store, glow in the dark or plain. Such a rich time for model building offering great variety for the imagination.

[@Paladin1873]

I had all three models as a teenager, the Enterprise, Klingon Battlecruiser and the Mystery ship, though I recall it being described as some sort of ion drive vessel. I also had a first edition copy of "The Making of Star Trek". I may still have it somewhere in my paperback collection, along with a first edition Star Trek Concordance. This pales in comparison to what a classmate of mine had when I attended Georgia Tech a few years later - an original working Phaser pistol. I think it was one of 12 such models ever made for the show. It had a strobe light that could be activated by pressing a button on the grip. This cued the special effects man when to color in the phaser blast. There was also a light meter on top of the pistol, though I'm not sure what its function was.

[@crimsonorc]

Love the D7 model. Easily recognisable. I recently purchased the Dinky die cast toy off ebay.

I had one as a kid. Even though it was never used in Star Trek, I loved the ship because it glowed in the dark and the ship had moving doors on the top for the smaller ship. 19:16

[@thompentax2985]

As a child I actually had the Leif Ericson ship. I believe I bought it from Woolworth

[@caseyferrill6953]

I had the Leif Ericson/UFO Mystery ship (as well as all the other AMT models in the early 70s. That tiny scout ship which comes out of the top hanger bay on the model was a nice touch of detail which you rarely found in in modles back then or since.

[@brenthill3241]

Hands down the best-looking, best designed family of space vehicles I've seen in all of science fiction. The Star Fleet ships, on the other hand, looked like they were created by Tele Tubies.

[@montylc2001]

Actually the majority of Star Trek fans know about the Leif Ericson kit, especially amongst the model kit builders. I have two myself, and one of the glow in the dark versions. But this is still a great video. Good job!

[@TREK-WORLD]

Thanks! It's amazing how much history is out there when you know what you are looking for!

[@jlsperling1]

The inability to afford any of the models and sets necessary for using a shuttlecraft in the making of the pilot, "The Cage", required the creation of the transporter for getting personnel to and from the ship and other locations.

[@silkwesir1444]

Half correct. They were not thinking about shuttlecraft at first, but about landing the whole ship (or maybe just its saucer, like in Forbidden Planet). But yes, the budgetary and practical restrictions of the time caused them to instead to invent the transporters.

[@jaredloveless]

what an interesting history of the models and model-makers of the series.

[@ARWest-bp4yb]

Fascinating.🤨🖖

[@barryjack3025]

I bought the Glow in the dark mystery ship back around 1975 or so… loved it. Until it became parts for my scratch building phase. Thanks for the show.