Polar LightsStar Trek U.S.S. Enterprise Reliant Wrath of Khan Edition 1:000 Scale Set Prop Replica Model Kit, White

Easy to assemble don't really need glue but I did glue some parts miminual decals

It's a great kit, easy to assemble, accuracuy and really value for the money. I'm very happy that it came with the battle damage decals sheet. Now I can match up with the enterprise refit to do a nice scene with both kits.

Fast prompt delivery what more can you ask for!

I received this kit a year ago as a gift to help me get back into scale modeling after decades of neglecting the hobby. The kit itself is pretty good quality. The pieces fit well together and very little glue if any is really needed to hold the parts together. This is a snap kit and I really only used glue to keep larger seams closed.The problem is that many of the decals that come with the kit are breaking apart and, in some cases, disintegrating on me. Luckily, I purchased this kit again because I glued some parts together that I subsequently thought I should have painted first. So, I've been using the spare sheet of decals and applying liquid decal film on them to restore and keep them from breaking apart. Without the liquid film, some of the new decals from the spare sheet are also breaking up. I have ultimately purchased some 3rd party decals as a secondary backup to finish this kit.This simple kit is nice and so far I am happy with my results in the construction and painting, but the decals that come with it are a big problem.

The only thing that would make this kit better is if it came with the aztec decals. I’m currently working on my 5th one

The first package I received had the wrong parts. (pieces for the Enterprise Polar Lights 1:1000 model) Amazon helpfully exchanged it for a model with the correct parts.The plastic model snaps together very easily and the final product looks cool! However, the application of the decals isn't something I would wish on my worst enemy! It was AWFUL trying to put these hair-thin decals with my slightly shaky hands onto this model. I gave up on decals after the fourth one broke!If you are training to become a neurosurgeon or have the patience of a divine saint, then this product won't drive you into clinical madness. I settled on simply displaying the mostly-undecaled Reliant on my shelf. Be warned! Putting the model together takes less than an hour. Adding the decals takes a lifetime!

Many Rigellian moons ago, one of my favorite kit builds was my AMT USS Reliant in 1/537 size that matched up with the Enterprise Refit and Klingon Cruiser kits in the same scale. One of the things I loved about it was the fact the Miranda Class was the first Starfleet ship fans ever got to see that was not the Enterprise (or her sister ships) and was featured prominently in its battle with Kirk's ship in Star Trek II, in addition to enjoying apparently extended service by its inclusion in many episodes of the Next Gen and DS9. Unfortunately, due to the inevitable fate of so many of the models of my youth that were either carelessly shoved into a box or lost in various residential moves, it was reduced to more pieces than even the Battle of the Mutura Nebula could hope to accomplish and unsalvageable. Since then, that particular kit has become either rare, commands high prices online or both and AMT doesn't seem to be in a hurry to re-release it or crank out more.Enter Polar Lights version in a reduced 1/1000 scale. While there are drastic differences in this mold compared to AMT's one, much of it is an improvement, especially in the previous inaccurate to studio model aft section of its larger cousin. Despite its size, this model has quite a lot of detail crammed into it and for someone like me who is rapidly running out of display space, the smaller is actually the better. Although I haven't built Polar Light's Enterprise Refit yet and the two ships are made to complement each other, the Reliant does scale nicely with other 1/1000 Star Trek ships, including my AMT USS Excelsior (see photo for both a scale comparison and to show the size difference between the two classes of ships).Being a snap together kit, it is a quick & simple build and perfect for beginners or younger children. Since I am used to more advanced, glue-together models and wanted to make sure it stayed in one piece, I used cement on most of the parts anyway and though not mandatory, I would still recommend it if one has the skill, just for more security should it take a tumble from its stand. This I think is especially paramount due to the fact most of Polar Lights's models use the same type of dome & stick stand, which always seemed, cheap, flimsy and unstable to me, as well as not being very aesthetically pleasing. Despite begin snap-together, I did find a few of the pieces still required a more strong-arm effort than they should have to fit them into place, with some even requiring some trimming, so I don't know if it is indicative of all molds or just the one I received. Where the nacelle pylons connect to the hull was particularly notorious and as a result mine did not have a tight fit.Another issue was with some of the decals as I have never had the best of luck with them overall and the lower one goes in scale, the more the frustration meter rises. At 1/1000 scale, some of the smallest applications really requires the skill of an expert needle-threader or neurosurgeon and no matter how careful I was, some of them ripped or twisted, especially when handling the model afterward and (as can be seen in some of the photos) are pretty much a wash. As a result, I deliberately left off some of the red pinstriping as it was not worth the effort and their absence doesn't really distract. Speaking of decals, while there are optional Aztec ones available for both the Reliant and Enterprise kits, they are sold separately for about the same price as the models themselves in an extension of the monetization trend that Polar Lights has apparently went with in the last several years when it's come to their model kits. Since for what they charge for the decals, I can purchase another full kit and I've never been a fan of Aztecing (too much detail crammed into too little space looks cheesy), the deliberate money grab doesn't affect my decision not to buy them. I do however have to take off one star for the "Value for money" rating due to the decision not to include them with the kit.While the kit also comes with optional decals to simulate hull damage, I did not use them since I was making a different ship than the Reliant, but if I ever purchase an additional kit in the future to further kit bash or modify, I might consider it in perhaps a Kirk vs. Khan diorama.Overall, this was a fairly fun and mildly challenging build and while it may never fully replace the larger and now rarer 1/537 kit, even for nostalgia alone, Polar Lights's version is an acceptable alternative. It can easily be built in a day or two (depending on how much additional detail one puts into it) and thus I usually buy and keep smaller, lower skill level kits like this around for when I want to make a model, but don't have a lot of time for a more sophisticated build.

Fun to build and light