The Collective: Review Of Hamilton Star Trek Trek Ship Collectibles

You may not have heard of them, but the Bradford Group (and its various brands) has been making legacy-quality Star Trek collectibles for years. Over the next couple of weeks TrekMovie will be reviewing their latest offerings which are perfect gifts for dads and grads. Today we start with the Hamilton USS Enterprise NCC 1701 D Laser Etched Glass Statue, and the Guardians of the Federation Collection Figurines. 

 

Hamilton Collection Collectible Enterprise D Glass Statue

Measuring 3-5/8″ tall, 7-3/8″ wide, the first thing that is noticeable about the glass block is how heavy it is, revealing its quality. Bradford Group items are meant as legacy products, meaning that while they are usually not cheap in price, neither are they cheap in construction and are meant to last a long time. Both the display base and glass block are well designed.


Laser etched glass Enterprise D with lights off and on

Almost a million laser points are used to etch the three dimensional image of the Enterprise D into the middle of the optically pure glass. Fans could see in and through the ship, studying its detailing including the Captain’s Yacht and main bridge which are discernable in the image. Each statue includes a Starfleet base that lights up the Enterprise D giving it the appearance of being suspended in the glass and providing a very beautiful item to enjoy. The photos do not really show how cool this effect is, including the fact that the name of the ship itself is dimensional. You could run the lights either with the included adaptor or by your own AA batteries.


Side view


Top view with lights

Included with the display, statue, and adaptor is a certificate of authenticity which is hand numbered the same as the number on the display bottom. To further make these items collectible, these are only manufactured for 95 days. These are great items for a student’s desk or mom or dad’s office.

However, even though there are protective pads on the bottom, its weight might leave scratch marks if you slide it across your furniture.


Base top and bottom (showing limited edition number)

The Enterprise D costs $99.95 plus shipping and is available in installment payments from the Bradford Group website

 

Guardians of the Federation

Ship Figurines

For those looking for a less expensive gift for themselves or others, there is the Guardians of the Federation collection of starships. Each ship in the collection is $29.95, plus shipping. You could subscribe to the entire set or just get that one favorite ship of interest. These items are 5″ tall statues that feature a pewter-like appearance (without being as bendable as pewter).


Guardians of the Federation Figurines

As of June 2009, there have been three ships in the collection. The first issue is the USS Enterprise D, the second the USS Enterprise 1701, followed by the USS Enterprise NCC 1701 C. The C is often forgotten as a collectible item and it is great that for fans of “Yesterday’s Enterprise” the ship is getting some respect from the Bradford Group.


Top of the original Enterprise


Side view of Enterprise D

These are nicely detailed and affordable statutes with hull markings and an attached display stand. Like the glass statue, these are limited to 95 production days and include a numbered certificate of authenticity. They look very nice together and make for a classy display on desks or shelves.


Enterprise C

 

Subscribe to the

Star Trek: Guardians Of The Federation Starship Enterprise Figurine Collection at Collectiblestoday.com
. You can also get just the first issue (U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701-D Figurine: Collectible Star Trek). By calling Collectibles Today at 1-877-268-6638 (the Bradford Group’s online store), you could ask about ordering either the C or 1701 if you wish.

 

 

 

More Bradford Collectible Reviews
Look for more reviews of collectibles from the Bradford Exchange brands over the next few weeks.

48 Comments
oldest
newest
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

I love these ships!!!!!

I hope they would create a model of the Enterprise J.

I want to see the 1701-A in glass!

An Original E. Nice.

Very nice ships! :3 I’d love to see the NX-01.. And maybe even the Enterprise J, even though we only got a glimpse of it? ;D

the enterprise D’s end was almost as bad as kirk’s

3: Agreed. The Galaxy class is hideous by comparison to the most beautiful ship ever made — the modified Constitution class.

The “Guardians of the Federation” figurines should have been better checked for accuracy – the TOS Enterprise had the smaller registry numbers on the BOTTOM of the saucer, NOT on the top!!

I mean, I know it’s only a minor thing, but seriously – you’d expect better quality for a $30 toy ship.

Great to see the Enterprise-C getting some attention. Ever since “Yesterday’s Enterprise” aired I’ve been a fan of the Ambassador-class design.

I’m with #8. I love that there are these miniature ships coming out, but the TOS Enterprise is represented wrongly.

Also, why’s the Enterprise -C pointing upwards compared to the other two? Hopefully just not put on it’s stand correctly. The -C also appears to have lettering on top of the saucer which I’m not sure is supposed to be there (either side of the bridge module).

The galaxy class is beautiful no matter what anyone says, maybe a hotel on nacelles but still powerful. I feel like a jerk now that I gotta google enterprise J….waaaait a minute is that the registry of Rikers enterprise in All Good Things?

I’d love for them them to make one for the ST09 Enterprise.

I have the ent d and original enterprise in the glass blocks and they are spectacular-I have the original big e and d models as well-I like em-havent gotten the c yet–

Oh my God! Jesus! I can’t wait to see and buy a NEW Star Trek (2009) Collectible U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701 Laser-Etched Glass Block…

And I’m still waiting to receive my Playmates Toys NEW U.S.S. Enterprise.

Brazil is on the far side of Delta Quadrant afterall…

how cool-scifi channel is showing yesterdays enterprise right now as i type- anyone in the west coast who does not remember the c tune in now-9-10pm sci fi mon june 1

I hear you #6, I hear you….so sad.

Riker’s AGT Enterprise is the D. The J is the ugly piece of taffy shown in a future scene in Enterprise.

That glass block is sweet, I’m not usually a collector but that is well worth getting.

I would love to see DS9 and Voyager in the glass block form, it would be sweet!

#17 Ugly is in the eye of the beholder!

Me likey the Laser Etched Glass Statue! I’ll be collecting all that they have to offer of those, for sure!

I’d love these, but there’s no international shipping for these collections.

A shame, but I’m not really surprised..

That’s a nice sized glass block- about the size of a stack of 10 Dvd covers. And the base with it would make it really stand out. 111 bucks for the item with shipping, jeez, I’d love to but I dunno… better than getting those damn teddy bears for a hundred each, though!

Valar1 its not nearly that big-they are maybe half that size i think bout three times as big as a cube of butter maybe? I love the original e and d both -have them sitting next to each other

The Enterprise-D is not my favorite E but I’m getting that etched glass statue! Very cool!

Count me among those who won’t pay a dime for a ‘collectible’ with a misplaced registry number. I’d be embarrassed to display the thing.

Rob+

Are these metal?

As far as ships go, why not just buy the Hot Wheels versions and save yourself a considerable amount of money.

The main thing I’m interested in, from the Bradford Group are the TOS dioramas. The scenes they selected look great, but on close inspection the figurines in the promotional material are nothing more than photoshopped images from the actual show. I hope Trek movie highlights some of the actual figurines so I can see what the sculpts and paint jobs really look like before I buy them.

And yeah, that top heavy Enterprise D is seriously lacking on aesthetics but I like the idea behind the collectible..although it’s way overpriced considering the cost it takes to stamp these out over in China, but that applies to just about everything these days I suppose.

waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah! I’ve never seen so much whining and complaining in my life. I thought Trekkers were a more optimistic bunch, guess I was wrong.

If you think the figurines are wrong, it’s real easy, don’t buy them… Why not go out and buy one of the many model kits and put ’em together yourself? … that way you have some control over the accuracy as you see it.

Hi John, a nice QT movie going around the glass block would be fun! Thanks, Russell

What about Enterprise-B? What about Enterprise-A? I agree with others above that I would rather see the Enterprise-A in that block of glass than the Enterprise-D.
As much as I like TNG, but a missed opportunity was Star Trek Generations. Instead of destroying the entire ship either the battle section or the saucer could have been refit instead of rushing to the Enterprise-E. The D went too soon.

Wow. Screwed up those decals on the Originial 1701, didn’t they?

Also, I thought the crash of the 1701-D was pretty fantastic. I didn’t have a problem with it. (Kirk is another story, though.)

I love me some good ships. But, I don’t really care for the sectioned-off 1701 primary hull. I always heard that that was something Rodenberry did to the 11 foot model… with pencil. I never understood it, because you CAN’T see it in any TOS episode… or even TAS. It’s a helluva lot cheesier than even the earliest aztecking. So, I’d just as soon keep the 1701 pristine, with a smooth pearly-blue hull. I always loved that about 60’s asthetics. It’s probably unrealistic, but unibody and sexy… I loves it.

The laser etched ships are very cool when seen in person. Kind of mesmerizing. But $100! Urf.

Yeah the registry number on the top of the saucer on the mini E is a deal breaker for me.

#31 Yes. Grid lines were in pencil.
Color of ship was concrete gray, not pearly blue.
(I’ll pass on these. Yuk.)

These are embarrassing offerings. The Enterprise-D’s warp nacelles are, well, warped, the TOS Enterprise’s decals are wrong AND her warp nacelles look like they were molded into place by half-attentive factory workers, and the Enterprise-C looks like they just used the Furuta Enterprise-C mold.

Whole lot of trash for approx. $30 each, if you ask me. I’ll go spend $7 on the Furuta toys instead and just paint ’em silver.

Why is the USS Defiant always left out of these collections?

The Enterprise D glass statue is pretty awesome, I’d buy that. It would be cool if they had one for The Enterprise E also.

Did anyone notice that on the base of the glass-etched Enterprise D that
THERE ARE FOUR LIGHTS!

(sorry, couldn’t resist….)

You broke your little ships.

Hmmm “Budget” collectible or not, I’d expect the paint job to be accurate – not just misplaced reg numbers – look at the finish on the Ent-D’s nacelles. That’s the sorta job I’d have done when I was 8 – and I wasn’t trying to sell mine!

Compare that NCC-1701 with the Corgi equivalent for example.

The quatloos stay in the wallet on these ones.

22 Jim Nightshade:

The size of the glass block is stated to be “3-5/8′” H x 7-3/8″ L x 5″ deep” so I’d say about a stack of 8 or 9 Dvd plastic covers.

#40

To clarify, the glass is 5″ wide by 2.5″ tall. The base and the glass together is 3-5/8″ H x 7-3/8″ W.

41.

Okay, now that is kinda small for a 100 bucks. Dangit I really was thinking about getting it, but I just can’t justify it to myself let alone the wifey, at that price.

I got the 1701 (no bloody A, B, C, OR D) etched glass for Christmas…It is AWESOME.

yah i told ya valar1-I own bothe of the blocks wish they were bigger-looking at em again id say not much bigger than twice the size of a cube of butter-they are very detailed for their size–

That laser Enterprise looks B*TCHIN’!

What the hell are those guardian ships made out of, I’m guessing metal of some kind I could be wrong.

Does ANYONE know where to get the Glass Enterprise? I can’t find it! Link please?

I have the Original Series Enterprise in the Etched Glass Block Collectible from The Hamilton Collection. The Etched Glass Block portion is Awesome looking. The base I must say, although visually very nice looking is poorly designed. The bulbs started flickering and eventually burnt out and were not replaceable from the top or directly underneath the etched glass block. Nor were they accessible from the bottom as the Certificate of Authenticity is glued directly to the botom of the base and the only accessible part is the battery compartment, which you would expect it to be. Once I was finally able to remove the Certificate of Authenticity from the back with little damage, I was disappointed to find out that all the electronics on the inside, Including the Bulbs, were Hot-Glued in; making them impossible to remove and replace or repair. I have since then, gutted the base completely and will design and create my own light source to display my glass block, lighted, once again.