Ah, Starfleet cases. They come in all colors and shapes and I love all of them! Especially the ones that were used by the engineering staff to carry around their great little tools and instruments. But that’s not the only use for them, of course. They’re also very useful to store PADDs for example. And that’s exactly what Captain Picard uses his briefcase for in the TNG-Episode “Starship Mine” (6×18) when he leaves the ship, which is due for a Baryon sweep that requires a complete evacuation.

Prop-makers love to use everyday items, re-dress them a little and let them appear in a futuristic environment. It’s cheap, it looks convincing and it doesn’t take much time to do it. Because of that, most of the cases that appear on Star Trek are actual cases, that have a unusual twist or a unique look to them. It’s the same with Picards briefcase, which is actually a uncommonly shaped CD case from the eighties. The good thing about this is, that any “replica” made from the same type of case is 100% accurate in size and material, which is also the case with my prop.

The case itself does not give away too much about the brand or maker of it, the only markings on the inside state: “Outer Circle Products LTD. Chicago, U.S. & Foreign patents pending, made in U.S.A.”

I got this case on eBay some time ago. Unfortunately it was painted in the wrong color and had the incorrect details on it, so I had to refurbish it and make it accurate to its prominent appearance in TNG.

Here are some screencaps from the show:

This case was actually also heavily used on “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine“, not very prominently however, but in the background on the Promenade. For these appearances, it was repainted and outfitted with different styles of tape detailing.

Here are some examples:

And here’s my prop:

One of many cases used on Star Trek: Picards Starfleet Briefcase.

The overall shape is very futuristic, unique and interesting.

The back-side is nothing but black and clean-looking.

The case opens up on the top where the handle is.

I lined the inside with some soft foam to protect whatever is carried in the case.

Instantly recognizable as Starfleet: The red pill-shaped label is essential.

These are the only markings found on the entire case.

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Thirdly, the color of the prop was way too light. Additionally, the backside of it wasn’t painted at all! The naked resin revealed itself which was simply unacceptable for me.

Here are a few pictures:

No doubt about it, I had to do some face-lifting work there.

My first step was to sand down the old paint completely and to remove the circuit graphic. I removed the paint residue from the “ground” of the circuit depression using an appropriate attachment for my dremel. This technique however didn’t work with the four upper small slots.

Next up was the backside. Since there was the raw resin visible – being everything but flat and even, I decided to strengthen it with styrene.

Some putty and sanding work helped here to make it look much better. There were however still imperfections left to eliminate.

After I had repaired all of the blemishes with spot putty, I could then primer and paint the piece. Since the original color – Plasti-kote 7173 – was never available in Germany and the original composition has been changed even in the US, I used a custom mixed equivalent that is indistinguishable from the original color.

Now I had to attend to the four small vents on the top of the prop. They had to be painted black again. Not an easy task to cover all of the insides with paint without messing up the front…

After I had cut the new circuit graphic, adjusted it to fit inside the depression and glued it in, I was satisfied with the result:

Looking back to the beginning I think that reworking this prop was worth the effort. The color is now accurate and the surface looks a lot cleaner and smoother. Only one question remains: How can I activate the darn thing…?

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The paint pictured here as an example is Tamiya light green, the accurate color for the power bar of Cobrahead and Boomerang phasers.

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Unfortunately, the result is prone to show finger prints, which however could be avoided by letting the part dry longer or a coat of clear.

Modulor direct link: Weicon metal spray

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Here’s a closer look to the resin parts that come with the kit:

First up: Wash these parts in warm, soapy water to get rid of any mold release agent that might still be sticking to them. You need to get it off completely because it can prevent primer and paint from adhering to the surface properly.

Parts cast in resin are most times rough when they come out of the mold and have to be sanded smooth before processed further. In this case, the pouring of the resin created a ridge in the “walls” of the body shell. This is the area that will later be glued together. Here’s a close-up:

In order to make it possible to glue the parts together, you have to sand those areas smooth. I use a large piece of sandpaper mounted on a board to accomplish this.

The parts that come with the kit have already been pre-sanded, but you’ll still have to do some fine-tuning to fit the parts together perfectly.

Be careful not to sand too much material away – keep in mind that the electronics have to fit inside! Keep measuring the thickness of the two shells aligned to each other with a Caliper to make sure the prop will be equally thick on each corner.

Here’s the result:

Before continuing with the body, let’s pay some attention to the inner workings of the scanner first! Here are the electronics that are included in the kit:

Since the LEDs alone are not wide enough when placed next to each other, use some 1.0 mm styrene to act as spacers between them. This way, the width will be more accurate to the original prop.

This step can be quite tricky! Use some fast setting super glue and rough up the LEDs as well as the styrene with sandpaper or a file. When done, the glue will bond easier to the material.

Update: Since I wrote this tutorial, I’ve improved the set of electronics and am now using a LED bar instead of five seperate LEDs. Thereby the aforementioned (very elaborate) step in construction can be dropped:

Also, I am now using other super-bright red LEDs as the one shown here.

Next you’ll have to cut out all the windows out of the resin parts. Let’s start with the one for the front LEDs. As you can see in Part II, I specifically designed the silicone mold to create a particularly thin layer of resin in this area. That way this step is easily done with a sharp X-Acto knife.

Although the area of thin resin is fairly large, be sure not to create a window that is too big, because you wouldn’t want to have any gaps later. Keep comparing your assembled LED bar with the window to ensure a tight fit. Of course, if you want a bigger window, feel free to do whatever you think looks best. Gaps can be filled with putty later if needed.

Use a small jewelers file to smooth the edges. If necessary, use some spot putty to resculpt any imperfections here. Primer the part to reveal any blemishes and keep working until they are removed. When the electronics are installed, any work on this window will be very difficult, so complete it before the installation!

Next you need to cut out the battery door. The best place for it is in the handle on the backside of the prop. The opening can be conveniently hidden under one of the styrene parts that will be added later.

To determine the dimensions of the opening, simply measure the battery holder which is included with the kit. Then, cut out the matching styrene part using the included templates and place it on the handle.

Hint: Use spray glue to attach the templates to the styrene before cutting. This way the shape will be accurate and the paper can be easily removed in warm water.

Trace the outline of the detail piece and add the measurements of the battery holder like this:

The resin in the handle is approximately 5 mm thick, so you’ll need something more effective than an X-Acto knife this time. You can get good results if you drill four holes in the corners of the layout and then use a fretsaw to cut out the door.

This is the result.

Use a small and flat file to clean the shape of the door.

Now, the openings for both the trigger and the top LED have to be drilled. When doing that, it’s important to align the resin halves perfectly and to be careful not to bring them out of alignment during the drilling process.

For the trigger, simply drill a hole of 4 mm in diameter in the middle of the recessed area on the handle. Test fit the trigger and extend the orifice if necessary before continuing!

To determine the location of the opening for the top LED, use the template of the head piece, which will be added later. You can also use this and other pictures in this tutorial as a reference.

You’ll have to make sure that the electronic components have enough room inside the body to perform their function. To do this, you’ll need to dremel some of the material away.

This is where the battery holder will be put. You’ll have to align it to the door in the other body half, which will be placed on top of this one to enable easy access to the batteries. Again, use the dremel to create some more room if necessary.

This is how the electronics are arranged inside the prop:

To attach all of the components permanently into the resin shell, use a strong putty, for example a 2-component polyester putty which I use in my builds.

As you can see, all of the LED components are placed very near to each another. In case of the green running lights, this is on purpose and not a problem. But as far as the super-bright red LED is concerned, there is a problem with the close proximity to the green LEDs: Light bleeding. To make sure that the red LED doesn’t light up the green ones next to it when activated, you’ll have to putty up the entire area around the green LEDs and use black masking tape around the red LED.

When inserting the LEDs into the window, be sure not to make them flush with the front of the resin body. There needs to be some space for a piece of the included translucent plastic to go in there later.

When the electronics have been successfully installed and tested, the resin body can be permanently sealed. First, use 5 minute epoxy glue to attach the resin body halves to each other. Then, putty up the seam lines and sand them smooth when the putty has dried.

This is the most elaborate part of the buildup. Use primer to reveal any blemishes in the finish and remove them with spot putty and sandpaper until they’re all gone. Be sure to mask all LEDs and the trigger to protect them from sanding, puttying and priming!

Next, the head piece needs to be attached. Before you do that, sand a good portion of the top array off so that it will have the original thickness afterwards when the styrene is in place. Use the templates to cut out the shape and then use 5-minute epoxy to glue it on.

Again, putty the edges and use sandpaper to round them. Try to make it look as if the part was integrated into the overall shape of the prop from the beginning. As before, repeat the puttying, sanding and priming until the result is acceptable.

When everything is done, it’s time to paint!

You don’t want to glue the greeblies onto the paint later, so mask off all areas which will be enhanced with details. Then, paint the entire body with PK 7173 or a matching equivalent.

Don’t forget to drill the holes for the battery door screws!

When the paint has fully dried, mask off everything but the handle and the top scanner array and paint them with PK 7179 or a matching equivalent.

After this is done, remove the masking tape and continue with the last step.

Here all of the detail parts at a glance. For the emitter, shorten the acrylic rod to a length of approximately 12 mm and cut it in half. Sand the flat side of it to achieve a frosted look and a light diffusion effect.

Here are the color codes for the greeblies: Handle details, front ribbed piece and one of the small top details: copper metallic. The other small top detail: red. Rim strips and pointed front detail: PK 7179 or matching equivalent. Square additional detail on pointed front piece: beige. If you want, you can also paint the screws in the same color as the handle details to blend them in.

Again, use 5-minute epoxy or CA glue to attach the greeblies.

Screw the battery door in place after inserting two AAA batteries.

Fit the translucent plastic into the front LED window and insert it.

Cut out the display graphics that you wish to use and test fit them. When your display graphic fits the recess perfectly, use some thin double-sided adhesive tape to glue it inside. You can also use spray glue for this.

That’s it, your ODN Scanner is finished!

Now, go ahead and scan away!

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Matt’s PADD kits contain three black acrylic plates which have been precision cut with a laser using the accurate shapes traced from an original prop. The thickness of the plates is also correct (3 mm).

Along with these plates I got a set of graphics for the display and the control buttons. I also got another display graphic so I could choose my favorite one. Furthermore, there’s a sticker of brushed aluminum vinyl included for the big button in the right control window. Looks sweet!

Here are all of the kit pieces at a glance:

There is a protective paper backing on the acrylic plates. This is a necessary part of the laser cutting process.

This paper has to be removed first, but only on the “inner” sides of the front and back plate:

These are the two plates without the paper. Note that the right (front) plate is lying on the table reversed showing it’s “inner” side.

Next these plates are carefully glued together so that they are perfectly aligned to each other and the edges are flush. This is just a temporary fixation and will be unfixed later. So I didn’t use a non-removable glue, but double sided adhesive tape instead.

I left the paper attached to the front and back side to protect them during the next step.

The corners and edges of the PADD need to be rounded. Since acrylic is a pretty hard material, you won’t have much success using sandpaper. For this you need either a dremel with an appropriate attachment, a router or a big file. I decided to use the latter to keep a higher degree of manual control.

This is a rather tricky process. The curvature should be clearly visible, but it shouldn’t be too round. It wasn’t easy to remove an equal amount of material all around and on each side to make it look symmetrical.

The file work is of course only a means to add the bevel to the plates. You won’t be able to get the surface smooth that way. To achieve that, I used sandpaper going from lower to higher grit numbers. This works best using wet sandpaper under running water!

During sanding I then disassembled the two plates to also sand the “inner” edges slightly – not to round them, but to remove flashes left over from the laser cutting process.

Finally, I also removed the paper backing to check the curvature of the two plates and used sandpaper to do corrections.

Here’s the result of my work with file and sandpaper:

Next up is priming the PADD.

Since the plates are later glued together, the areas where the glue will be applied need to be masked. This is done because glue attaches itself more easily to “naked” acrylic than to primer or paint. This way you won’t have to use sandpaper later to rough up the surface.

To prime the pieces, I placed them on paper without suspending them in any way! This way I didn’t have to worry about overspray getting on the other side of the plates and making them look ugly. I didn’t prime the edges in this step because they could get stuck to the paper.

When the primer was dry, I turned the plates over and then did suspend them on small blocks of wood. I primered the pieces again and also applied some to the edges. Because the plates are suspended, they can’t get stuck to the paper and I don’t have to worry about overspray because most parts of the inner side will not be visible.

I repeated this step with my Plasti-kote 7173 equivalent spray paint,  suspending the pieces when doing the outsides and laying them flat when doing the inner sides.

Next up are the graphics. They have to be cut precisely to fit inside the windows of the front plate. This requires some patience.

Also the brushed aluminum vinyl sticker has to be applied to the gray area on the bigger control graphics using a pair of tweezers. The sticker has the exact same size as the rectangle and is not removable, so I had to be very precise!

Once the paint has dried, …

… I removed the tape from the inner side of the plates.

Now all the parts have to be assembled. I used 5-minute epoxy glue to join the acrylic plates together permanently. Be careful with this stuff and always wear gloves to avoid glueing your fingers together!

First, I removed the paper from the middle plate. No additional work is necessary on this one. Then, I glued it onto the back plate like so:

I had to be careful to align the smaller plate correctly (the shape is not symmetrical) and to place is exactly in the middle of the back plate. I used the working time of the 5-minute epoxy glue to correct any errors.

Next up is the front plate which is glued onto the middle plate. Again, careful aligning of the edges is in order.

The last step is to apply the graphics. They are self-adhesive so you merely have to peel them off and place them where they belong:

That’s it, the PADD is finished!

Bottom line: A very inexpensive prop that is quickly and easily built and looks just plain cool lying on a desk!

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As a special feature, this kit allowed you to take a look inside the phaser. To implement this into the finished replica, the builder is supposed to cut a piece of styrene to fit as a thumbpad which then could be slid out to reveal the “circuits”.

Note the two struts at the rear end of the body. They are caused by the resin being poured into the mold and also getting into the air vents that probably had been created to allow the air to escape as the resin was poured. They of course need to be sanded off.

Another thing you can see in this picture very well is that the sides of the casting were pretty raw. This was probably caused by the seam line running here, which is inevitable with all two part silicone molds.

This is after the first filling work was done. I filled the defects on the sides using polyester putty and sanded it down. Also the first splash-coat is already applied here. It revealed where I had to do more repair work.

As you can see, the muzzle of the phaser was originally solid and supposed to be implemented using paint only. However, I had other plans for it. More on that later though…

I then filled small holes and imperfections using spot putty. Don’t apply too much of it unless you want to make the sanding process any more difficult than it has to be.

The phaser during priming. Several thin coats are in order to prevent paint running down the body.

Here you can see the controls. They are nothing more than styrene cut and sanded to shape to fit into the respective recesses on the body.

Fits like a glove!

Next up was the cover for the “inner workings” of the phaser. After I had cut a piece of styrene to fit the designated area, I realized that it didn’t fill all the gaps present. Also, there was no way to make it fit in perfectly and keep the functionality of sliding it out.

Because of this, and because there was never seen a open “cricket” phaser in TNG or elsewhere, I decided to seal the thumb pad using putty and to make a solid prop out of it:

Sanding all of these edges and corners smooth was a challenge, especially because the corners were supposed to keep their curvatures.

Here’s the result of several puttying and sanding passes. The remodeling of this area was extremely elaborate and required a lot of patience.

After I had applied a coat of primer here , I realized that the area of the thumb pad was too small and also that the recess of the cover was too deep. So, I repeated the last step and cut another piece of styrene to fit. Then I once again had to use putty to seal all the gaps.

Here’s the final result after the last coat of primer:

The rear end required some effort, too. I had to join the pieces of styrene with the resin body to make it look smooth and “natural”.

Now back to the muzzle: As I said, I had a special plan for that. Instead of simply painting it red, I wanted to insert a seperate piece as an emitter. I thought that would look more authentic and I also used this picture from “Star Trek: The Next Generation – Technical Manual” as a reference:

So, I took a small round file and removed some material from the front of the phaser until I thought it looked right:

Next I shaped the muzzle insert from a spare piece of resin. It nicely re-completed the forward shape of the phaser and fitted inside the opening very well. Since we’re talking about very small sizes here, the task of modeling the muzzle was not an easy one. My own fingers often were in the way holding the piece of resin.

It would have been nice to do the muzzle piece from a translucent red material, but I decided not to pursue this because the muzzle should have the same appearance as the particle vents on the pre-fire chamber. Since there was no way to do them transparent on this build, I chose to do the muzzle piece opaque as well.

Here’s the emitter being test fitted into the phaser body:

Now all of the seperate pieces were finished and I could move along to painting them!

First I painted the phaser body using the standard color for Starfleet equipment: Plasti-kote 7173. This paint is of course not available in its original form in Germany and that’s why I went to a spray paint specialist and got me the accurate color custom mixed using a color sample of the original paint.

All of the areas that are not supposed to come in contact with the paint have to be masked off before spraying. In this case I masked the recesses of the controls so that the coats of paint won’t make them smaller to make sure my buttons would still fit in there later.

Just with the primer it’s extremely important to spray several thin coats instead of one thick layer of paint. It’s alright if the primer is still visible after the first coat! With the subsequent coats the paint then becomes more and more dominant until the surface is perfectly covered. Between coats you should wait 5 to 10 minutes to let them dry.

Try this trick to avoid ugly paint blobs: Place the can into warm water for a few minutes to heaten up the paint. It then disperses a lot finer.

Here’s the result:

The second color was next: Bronze. Again, I masked all the areas except the thumb pad. To help attach the masking tape I sometimes use toothpicks in tricky situations. It’s important to stick the tape very tight onto the surface to prevent paint from getting under it which would make the paint line look messy.

Everything but the thumb pad had been masked off:

The power bar was also ready to be painted now. This piece of styrene is merely 25 millimetres long and the strips of masking tape were 1 millimetre thick. Masking this tiny thing required some patience.

If I were to do this today, I’d probably use a printed graphic instead of painting styrene…

This is the phaser after the second color had been applied and the tape had been removed:

Very nice!

These are all the finished greeblies: Muzzle emitter, power bar, control buttons and the trigger. I glued golden paper onto the styrene control buttons to make them neither too glossy nor too dull. Then I used a black marker to paint the sides. The trigger is also styrene painted silver.

Several masking and painting passes later the forward part and the muzzle of the phaser were finished. It still looked quite unfinished though.

Next the greeblies had to be attached. The emitter had to be inserted into the muzzle, the power bar and the control buttons had to be glued into the appropriate indentations and the trigger had to be attached to the thumb pad. To provide the glue with a better grip to bite on, I carefully roughened up the respective surfaces using sandpaper.

Now only one other thing was missing: The particle vents on the prefire chamber. A lot of replicas show them to be angular. However, the originals always had straight vents. To make my phaser as accurate as possible, I of course decided to make them straight as well. On the top and bottom side, there are one large and four small vents each. On each side there are three of them. Originally I wanted to put them on using red paint. It then however became clear that red vinyl tape was the better solution for this. It is less error-prone and also looked better.

And here is the finished phaser:

Although there are some things that I could have done better in this build, I’m still very satisfied with it.

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The kit consists of the resin cast body and some tape which is added in the end. And that’s all there is to it, really.

Here are some detail shots of the casting:

And here is a picture of the original for comparison:

When I first tried to cast this prop up, I had a lot of trouble with air bubbles in my castings. Then I learned how to improve my technique of mixing the two resin components by adding them together and then pouring them from one cup to another several times instead of stirring them. So, very few air bubbles were left to be filled.

To fill the bigger holes I used a two-component polyester putty which is normally used in the automotive sector. It cures very quickly (within 30 minutes) and can be sanded very easily.

Here are two of the biggest bubbles already filled:

Next is sanding. This is the most elaborate step in any prop building project. You will spend a lot of time grinding and sanding. So, sandpaper is essential here.

Remember to “go through the grits”. This means that you should start with a higher grit sandpaper to roughly shape the object and then move to lower grit numbers to make the surface smooth. Be careful not to remove too much material in the beginning, because it’s much easier to remove a little more instead of adding something.

In the next picture you can see that I used a high-grit sandpaper to process the larger air bubbles first. The hole is still visible. Also, there is still putty which doesn’t belong there.

The tip of the instrument is next: Here I also filled a smaller air bubble and sanded it smooth going from high to low grit numbers.

I decided to drill a hole into the tip, because that’s how it is on my original aluminum prop. Also, it adds a lot of authenticity.

Sandpaper is not only used to sand down any left over putty, it is also necessary to remove other flaws that resin castings might have, for example the seam line. It occurs along the body where the two mold halves meet and is inevitable. Certain professional casting techniques however can reduce the seam line to an extent where it’s almost not visible anymore.

Reality is, that you should inspect every square centimetre or even millimetre of your prop and process it with sandpaper or putty. Sometimes however, sandpaper is not the first choice, for example when it comes to fine details or structures. In this case you should have several different small files handy to handle that.

For bigger kits or larger areas you can also use power tools like a belt sander. But be careful: These tools don’t allow the same control over your work as a manual job does. Before you know it, your project could be ruined because you removed too much material or you slipped and damaged something. Also, the risk of injuring yourself is a lot higher, so take the appropriate steps to protect yourself!

Now, if you think that the prop surface is smooth and you repaired all of the defects, apply the splash-coat (a coat of primer) to reveal any previously invisible imperfections: scratches, blemishes, pinholes.

Allright, there’s still a lot to do here!

To remove such small defects, I use a spot putty. It’s not necessary to mix it from two components which makes it very easy to use right out of the tube. I chose to use a red spot putty because it’s easily visible during the application as well as during sanding. Since it will be painted over later anyway, it won’t affect the final finish.

Here you can see the areas covered with spot putty:

After I had applied spot putty to every visible scratch, pinhole etc., I then again used sandpaper to once more remove any excess putty by “going through the grits” until the beige color of the resin becomes barely visible again. However, don’t take off too much – you don’t want to change the overall shape of the prop.

This is how the result looked like:

Now, another coat of primer was in order. After it had dried, I again took a hard look at every part of the prop. Normally there are still pinholes etc. left after this “second splash-coat”.

This is repeated until the prop body is absolutely perfect. Of course, the term “perfect” depends on what the person who is building the prop is regarding acceptable. Me, I’m a perfectionist and I probably do this way too often. Remember: The final coat of paint doesn’t hide any defects, but makes them even more visible!

A very important aspect here is patience. It can be quite unnerving to apply another coat of primer only to discover that there are still scratches or pinholes left. However, once they are all repaired, you can tap yourself on the shoulder knowing that you did everything possible to make the prop perfect.

Now that the surface was completely flawless, I could apply the final coat of primer. One last checking look: Is there still a… No, thank god it’s just a shadow!

After the primer had completely dried, I moved on to the paint. I used a chrome paint containing real aluminum particles to create a highly realistic approximation. Silver spray paint is also suitable for this. A little trick helps to prevent ugly paint blobs: Place the can in warm water for ten minutes. The heated paint will then be dispersed a lot finer.

One precept of painting is to apply several thin coats and let them dry before applying the next instead of spraying one thick coat. It’s alright if the primer is still visible after the first coat! Be patient, even if you want to finish the prop soon. You don’t want to ruin it during the last step by causing “paint noses” occurring due to too much paint, do you?

Once the painting process was finished and the paint was dry (again, you should rather wait a little long than ruining the prop), I could add the greeblies which was the last step in this buildup.

In this case, the greeblies are nothing more than differently colored grip tape cut to shape and attached at the correct areas (see illustration).

The last step is to paint the tip golden. Of course, I had to mask off the rest of the prop to protect it. I used crepe tape for this because it can be removed easily. Anyway, to avoid any risk of damaging the base paint, I only masked a small area at the tip and wrapped a paper napkin around the rest of the prop.

The prop is finally finished! Here’s how the result looks like:

Here are some comparison shots I did with the original aluminum version which served as a master model here:

There’s almost no difference visible on the pictures. The chrome paint is not quite as shiny as the real aluminum, but that was to be expected. Unfortunately it also tends to get even duller when handled.

Anyway, I think the result is very good and satisfying.

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