I.J. Lawrence (http://www.raytheonmodels.com/) has built a couple of interesting WHIF models:
(larger images at the link provided)
(https://www.whatifmodellers.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.raytheonmodels.com%2Fweb%2520pics%2FcobramkIII%2FImage5tn.jpg&hash=5b8497daf5389aa981c5e8a2354a44421e12ac70)
Image source: http://www.raytheonmodels.com/ (http://www.raytheonmodels.com/)
approximately ~1/48th scale Cobra Mk.III (http://www.raytheonmodels.com/cobramkIII.html) scratch-built model from an old computer game called 'Elite' that was all the rage many moons ago. The model was built by downloading a paper card model (http://mackayj.doosh.net/shipnet.html) which was then overlaid on to clear plastic to create this rather unusual model.
(larger images at the link provided)
(https://www.whatifmodellers.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.raytheonmodels.com%2Fweb%2520pics%2Ff15s%2FImage81tn.jpg&hash=13de60027d3798bd0cbc3e025108c0644ec9cc3f)
Image source: http://www.raytheonmodels.com/ (http://www.raytheonmodels.com/)
F-15S built from the Revell 32nd scale F-15 kit. (http://www.raytheonmodels.com/f15s.html) The 2D exhaust is interesting.
I didn't see that Cobra Mk.III on his site Jeff, well spotted! It's an idea I've had for a while, if you Google 'Elite Ships' (http://www.google.com/search?q=Elite+Ships&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a), there's a few sites were they have 'unwrapped' the vectors to produce templates for paper models, making the step up to plastic sheet is a no-brainer.
I can see why he states "1/48th'ish", pinning down dimensions for Elite is difficult. The original ones you got with a book that came with the game got the proportions all wrong & the ships are sometimes strangely scaled, a fighter can be the same size as a freighter. Which just means you have to do a bit of guess work to model it.
Oh, because I spent too much time as a kid on these games, I can pretty much state that that model has come from Frontier: Elite II because of the the extras on the hull (the original was purely wireframe vectors, unless you were rich enough to have an Archimedes). Probably the PC version too because that had the textured hulls, which my Amiga version didn't!
***added for google search html for "Elite Ships"***
Quote from: Jeffry Fontaine on April 08, 2009, 12:12:26 PM
This is a model of an old computer game called 'Elite' that was all the rage many moons ago.
One of the greatest computer games of all time - the original space trading/exploration/combat game. Spent many,
many happy hours playing it in the early 80s.