Saturday, June 27, 2009

A Miniature Crew of Your Own

Matakishi 28mm Starship CrewIt was about 2 1/2 years ago that I "re-discovered" The Hobby. Actually, I hadn't forgotten it, but I'd stopped following it on the Internets back in '99 because I felt they were sucking the fun out of it. Anyway, the reason I "came home" was due in big part to Star Trek and its long legacy of gaming, much of which I'd missed during my exile.

One of the first things I started looking for was the miniatures I'd had and those I missed. I've been lucky enough to have saved (or recovered) and expanded my collection quite a bit with the Heritage, Citadel, FASA, LUG and Ultimo Avamposto officially-licensed releases. Of course, those aren't the only options.

It was around that time (early 2007) that I was on The Miniatures Page and saw a post about a fellow named Matakishi who was planning on designing and casting his own 28mm Starship Crew. By early this year, I'd given up hope that he would finish the project, but lo and behold! He says he's still working on perfecting the sculpts, but apparently is willing to share the fruits of his labors in return for a donation. See his site for details.

It was also on his site and others that I came across pictures of some other "not Trek" miniatures that came out a few years ago, and are no longer available. Here are some from OOP Eureka Miniatures (that I have since managed to get off eBay):

Star Trek Eureka 28mm miniatures

...and here are 1st Corps' 28mm "Away Team", also long gone (that I have not managed to find):

Star Trek 1st Corps 28mm Away Team
There are at least two other options for a miniature crew of your own. I'm particulary fond of MegaMiniatures 25mm "SF Explorers", available through their eBay store:

Star Trek MegaMiniatures 25mm SF Explorers

They may look a little goofy, but they're very nicely cast, very affordable and easily modified with a little skill. Take a look at what Scott over at the Star Trek Miniatures Yahoo Group managed to do with one:

Mr Adventure, modified Star Trek like MegaMini by Scott

And I think Adam or I mentioned them before, but Victory Force Miniatures has their outstanding line of 28mm "Spacefarers" that are perfect for Next Generation era Trek, Galactica, Babylon 5 or even Galaxy Quest! Here's the "Space Crew Explore Pack #2":

Victory Force 28mm Space Star Farers TrekBe sure to scroll down the whole page, and you'll find perfect sources for men, women, aliens... and even redshirts!

28mm Star Trek Red Shirt Minis Victory Force

3 comments:

  1. Hey, know of any star trek dollhouse miniatures? I'd love to feature some on my blog.

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  2. No, I'm afraid not. I suppose it depends on what scale you're talking about, but I can't think of anything that's (for instance) 1" (1/12) scale. Well, I suppose any figures or accessories from any of the Playmates 6" line of toys and accessories would match. But for 1/24 scale, I can't think of anything offhand. Sorry!

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  3. I've just had some more 28mm ST figures made if you're interested.
    http://www.matakishi.com/startrekproject.htm

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