Rewrites: None Yet
I had gone on hiatus from writing reviews due to a bunch of good life changes. HOWEVER, the break in reviews was not just because of a lack of time. Over a year ago, the world got turned up-side-down by the COVID-19 (or Coronavirus disease) crisis. This disease affected everyone in some way, and I'm not talking about getting sick from it. This disease effectively shut down businesses and industries on a global scale as we Terrans tried to cope with this deadly virus. As a result, manufacturing facilities, and shipping facilities were closed down and delayed for months. Eaglemoss was not immune to the effects either. This next review was delayed for quite some time due to those issues. I ordered this model back on May 14th, 2021, and finally received it at the end of October 2021. So, it is with gladness that I can finally bring you a review of Eaglemoss' Special Edition Issue #26, Relay Station 47.
We first get to see this starship in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode called "Aquiel".
Per Memory Alpha, "Relay Station 47, also known as Subspace Network Relay Station 047, was a Federation Relay Station 47-type communication relay station that was in service with Starfleet during the mid-24th century. This station was located in Sector Ipai, in close proximity to Starbase 212, Relay Station 194, along the Federation-Klingon border. It had a standard crew complement of two Starfleet officers and was equipped with one shuttlecraft, the Verne."
If you would like to read more official stuff on this type of ship, feel free to check out the following links:
Relay Station 47 Information: Memory Alpha LINK and NO Memory Beta LINK
I was surprised and delighted to learn that Eaglemoss decided to bring us a few more stations. After Eaglemoss produced Regula I with Special Edition #24, I really thought that we were done with the space stations. After all, the "Official" collection was already brought to and end at Issue #180. But from the looks of it, Eaglemoss has a few more surprises for up their sleeves.
Normally I don't talk about the magazines that come with these models. My reviews are supposed to be about the model after all, but given a challenge I ran into with this review, I need to say this. These magazines are supposed to be informative and give us both In-Universe, as well as Our-Universe information. The magazine always gives this interesting centerfold of the ship, or the station, and back in the day, this centerfold would have key parts or area of the thing labeled. This magazine was missing those notes, which makes it tough for me to describe the model accurately.
Luckily for my readers and myself, we can rely on the Internet to come to the rescue.
Photo Credit: Starship Operations Website
This station is a bit awkward in how it can be stood up for pictures. Because of this, I did not take my normal array of pictures.
This Eaglemoss model is tall, and there are lots of fragile bits sticking off of it, so you need to make sure that you display it in a secure and stable location. I can guarantee you that if it falls off the stand or falls over, you will be doing some repair work with super glue.
Given the odd nature of this model, I am going to break from my normal discussion of paintwork vs mold work and instead just start from the top of the station and work my way down. There is a lot to cover.
According to the documentation I found, the station is topped by a multideck Transceiver Module. Several porthole like windows were etched into the model on two different levels and panel lines crisscross the entire cylinder. If you look really closely, the panel lines do not line up once they make it completely around the cylinder. Even so, they are off by such a tiny fraction, it isn't even noticeable from afar. The paintwork is nice in this section, with Eaglemoss giving the top area a light aztec pattern. Sadly, the porthole paint does not line up with the molded details, which annoys me to no end since we are paying more for this model. The higher cost should afford us a bit better quality. The golden grillwork is not painted perfectly, but is not as badly aligned as the windows. The blue panel, red pinstriping and Starfleet logo all add a nice touch to this part of the station and help make up for the misaligned paint work.
Given the odd nature of this model, I am going to break from my normal discussion of paintwork vs mold work and instead just start from the top of the station and work my way down. There is a lot to cover.
According to the documentation I found, the station is topped by a multideck Transceiver Module. Several porthole like windows were etched into the model on two different levels and panel lines crisscross the entire cylinder. If you look really closely, the panel lines do not line up once they make it completely around the cylinder. Even so, they are off by such a tiny fraction, it isn't even noticeable from afar. The paintwork is nice in this section, with Eaglemoss giving the top area a light aztec pattern. Sadly, the porthole paint does not line up with the molded details, which annoys me to no end since we are paying more for this model. The higher cost should afford us a bit better quality. The golden grillwork is not painted perfectly, but is not as badly aligned as the windows. The blue panel, red pinstriping and Starfleet logo all add a nice touch to this part of the station and help make up for the misaligned paint work.
The interconnecting pipes and conduits that run from the Transceiver Module to the main hull of the station is interesting. While this areas does not have any extra paintwork, the sculpt and molding of the pipes does a fantastic job of making this part of the station interesting.
To the one side of the main body of the station is the impressive looking antenna array. In my opinion, this part of the model sells the entire thing. The sculpt and mold work of this section is just simply amazing. Spindly bits stick out both horizontally as well as vertically and the golden panels are extremely eye catchy. The small bits of blue paint work, while not completely lined up with their molded counterparts, still add additional counter color to this area of the station that adds to the effect.
Opposite of the Antenna Array is the Habitat Module. This is another multi deck part of the station, as represented by more of those round porthole windows, which once again, bear some misaligned paint work. The light aztec pattern covers the arm that extends out to this module, and also covers the Habitat Module too. Eaglemoss also added some grey paneling as well as some red pinstripes both on the arm and the module.
I had a hard time finding any references to it, but apparently, the pincer like thing sticking off the Habitat Arm is some sort of docking clamp. The sculpt and mold work on the clamp is well done so that it is clear that it serves some sort of purpose.
The only issue that I have with this part of the station is that the join seam is very noticeable in the form of lots of excess flashing. Unfortunately, if you trimmed the flashing, then it messes up the paint work.
I had a hard time finding any references to it, but apparently, the pincer like thing sticking off the Habitat Arm is some sort of docking clamp. The sculpt and mold work on the clamp is well done so that it is clear that it serves some sort of purpose.
The only issue that I have with this part of the station is that the join seam is very noticeable in the form of lots of excess flashing. Unfortunately, if you trimmed the flashing, then it messes up the paint work.
The main body of the station is tall. It is also extremely detailed. The light aztec pattern permeates the entire thing from top to bottom. The panel lines that are sculpted into the model continue to crisscross the main hull and are just as crisp and clear as other parts of the model. Other neat little details have been molded into the model as well like windows and hatches and other necessities that a station like this would need. And the paint continues to do a fine job of highlighting those parts of the station. The station's registry stands proud on the side of the station.
At the very bottom of the station is the Fusion Reactor, the source of the station's power. The paint work and sculpt and mold work match the rest of the model with being nicely represented. My only complaint is that you can really see the join seam along the bottom of the station.
And that is all the pictures and comparisons that I have to share on this model at this time. Prices were researched last on November 9th, 2021, and as of the writing of this article, I was able to find the model from a seller on eBay for around $71 (shipping included). Lucky for us, you can also currently order the model right from Eaglemoss' US WebStore for around $50 (shipping unknown).
I was very excited to learn that Eaglemoss was going to continue producing space stations in their Special Edition line. While I initially was not pleased with their large size, this small series started to grow on me.
I was very excited to learn that Eaglemoss was going to continue producing space stations in their Special Edition line. While I initially was not pleased with their large size, this small series started to grow on me.
I'll be honest, Eaglemoss' quality control department continues to make mistakes. The join seam flashing, and misaligned paint should not be happening, and on a more expensive model, I find those sorts of mistakes very annoying, and uncalled for.
However, even with the few mistakes I found, other parts of the model were very well executed, so much so that I think that this is currently my most favorite station in that series of models. If you are able to find it for the lower cost, and you like space stations in your display case, then this one comes highly recommended. I might even, dare I say it, be willing to pay the higher eBay price for it in order to obtain it.
BONUS ROUND!!!
Every once in a while, I'll have a little extra stuff to share with you that sort of fits in with my comparison articles.
Over the many years that the Star Trek: The Official Starships Collection has been produced, Eaglemoss brought to us a total of FIVE stations, with the promise of at least one more to come.
Pictured above are the following space station, along with links to reviews that I wrote about them: Special # 10: Deep Space Station K-7 (K Class) (REVIEW LINK), Special # 15: Earth Spacedock (REVIEW LINK), Special # 24: Regula I (R1 Invictus class) (REVIEW LINK), and last but not least, Special # 1: Deep Space 9 (REVIEW LINK)
As always, I hope you found this article useful and informative. If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, please feel free to comment below.
So for now, "Live long and prosper!!!"
Additional Links To Photos Of My Collection:
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