whistler

i checked that link, thanks. the YF-21 is up, at least to page 18. it cuts off there i'm afraid. but still it is a really nice resource to have seeing as i am pretty new to building models and there seemed to be a number of issues you had to contend with. i'll retry the other links as well. thanks wmkjr!

hey man, any word on recovering some of the step-by-steps? i am about to start building up several Hasegawa kits and would love to have some kind of guide to reference, especially in the case of the YF-21 and Super Strike VF-1.

excellent work, man. seriously. i was wondering about the feasibility of painting my SV-262 kit. did you put it all together and then paint or did you do each part individually? i've actually assembled mine so i am quite curious to know (either way i am thinking of waiting until the Mini Drakens come out (that was the main reason i got the Bandai anyway, the fighter looks so much cooler with the drones and missile packs in place). i dont really plan to transform mine but i will need to move the wing flaps to attach the drones, and i wasn't sure how much of an impact the extra paint would have on the joint. i take it the reason you didnt seal was because you wanted to maintain transformability? how did you get such nice decal application without sealing first?

Big s, can you elaborate some on how to properly thin the Citadel paints? some colors i have had no trouble with out of the pot, while others leave brush strokes no matter how careful i am. some, like reds, dont seem to cover very well, though i guess multiple lawyers are simply required to get the results i want. still one careful layer would be great considering the schemes i am trying to paint.

mickyg, thank you for spending so much time and effort on your reply... it is very helpful! the -262 i got to pretty much keep in fighter mode. had i known about the Hasigawa (which of course i only found out about the day after mine was delivered) i might have gone for it instead but i am hoping that they will have the super parts/drones for the Bandai at some point and going by the -25's FAST pack it seems i wouldnt be able to just add them onto one of their kits. but since i am really not planning to transform it i am seriously considering painting it. in the meantime i got myself a Corsair model and am going to use it as a trial run. i am fairly sure i am going to get an airbrush, as i will be able to use it on my Battletech minis and in my painting-painting, but we willl have to see. i might just try and do the Corsair by hand to see what shakes out. so, practice on the Corsair, maybe assemble the -262 (with the option of reselling it or getting a Hasigawa kit), and save the -25 for last. thank you again for your help... fell like i need to reread it a few times here as i am looking over some of the stuff i picked up earlier from Hobby Lobby. i do actually have some Citadel and Reaper paints i use for my other minis, but i kinda figured they wouldnt go too well with the airbrush. so you're saying the Tamiya paint can just go straight in the airbrush? that would make things easier since they are: 1. fairly easy to get hold of and 2. i am looking at a gravity-fed airbrush so they would seemingly pair well thanks to the dropper style bottle. well, that is at least if i am understanding you correctly and i can just go straight from the bottle. seti, that link of yours looks to be a great resource. thank you! will be taking a look at all this this week. if i do the assembly on the -262 i will be sure to post it here for you guys to see / judge for yourselves.

hey guys so i ordered some new fighter kits (Hasegawa 1/72 Super VF-25G and the Bandai SV-262H) and i have to say i am feeling a bit overwhelmed. back when Frontier was out and i had funds i wasn't able to get myself a Valk of my own, so when i saw the -25 kit while looking at -262s... well, i jumped on both. i have a decent amount of experience with making/painting pewter tabletop minis (Battletech specifically) and i thought that would prepare me for these projects but now that i am looking through the kits (the Messiah in particular) i am not so sure. since i can't read Japanese very well (let's be honest, at all) i figured i would turn to you guys for some advice, both basic and specific. for easy organization (i hope) i am color coding questions for the two models because i do of course realize that these are different types of kits and may well have different requirements. 1. is the colored plastic simply a base coat? both models come in the basic colors that they should be (including the super parts and various portions of the Draken) but there are some extensive painting guides on the -25's instructions and minor ones on the -262. - an assembly guide for the -262 that i found (http://blog.livedoor.jp/hobisima-rittai/72_Sv-262Hs_2016-08-20) seems to put it together straight away without painting anything or even applying decals. some areas, like the pilot and landing gear, obviously need painting if you want to have them visible. what about the rest of the fighter? can you paint over the plastic without priming? and if you did how would it look? or is the color guide just there in case of touch ups on the main body? - i found some color chart translations online, but is there one that is specifically for Hasegawa's instructions? - i have a good deal of (and experience with) acrylic paint. is that what is recommended on these kind of kit or are you supposed to use enamel? - if the colored plastic is supposed to simply be the surface then should i avoid sanding down bumps and leftover flash? if so what should i use to preserve the surface? - should i paint everything first and then put it all together, paint after each assembly step, or all at the end? - how important or helpful would an airbrush be? dont have one but i have been considering a really basic model for some time now so i am constantly wondering if this will be the project that makes me try one. 2. is super glue good enough or should i use something like plastic cement? 3. there are alot of decals. like, a ton. i have some decal setting solution that i can use to make things easier but would there happen to be some kind of tutorial on cutting and maneuvering this many decals? not to mention getting the alignment right. - the -262 comes with both decals and stickers. why is that? are the decals going to be harder to see once applied or is it just that some people find stickers easier? i know i need to get some hobby clippers to free the pieces from the spruce but hopefully i can start soon here. if i can come up with any more questions i will be sure to add them. any advice you guys can offer would be greatly appreciated. thanks!

hey guys, i know that i'm not really a regular on these forums... just a notch above lurker really, but I need some help. to be more specific, help with written Japanese (Kanji). and since this is as close as it gets to an Off Topic section, i figured i should post here. i grew up with a respect and appreciation for Japanese art and culture thanks to my mom, and now i have several examples of Japanese calligraphy in my apartment, from prints to shoji panels... i just wish i could read it. now i'm not trying to get mushy or fish for sympathy, but when i was in 7th grade (2000) i had a tumor removed from the inside of my spinal cord. my C2 through C7 vertebra are fused, and as you might imagine i have alot of nerve damage. i've been lucky enough to retain all my motor function, but i still have serious day-to-day issues and have been developing new neurological conditions over the last few years. a few days ago someone in my family died from cancer that had spread to her brain... and while i am by no means on death's door, the next few years are kinda uncertain. it really made me think about going through with something i've wanted to do for a long time. lame or cliche as it may sound, i'd like to see what "I took the road less traveled by, and that has made all the difference." looks like in Kanji. i know, i know, i can hear eyes rolling now, and i don't blame you. but frankly i personally don't know anyone who could help me with this, and i know that if i asked somewhere else i would just get thirty variations of 'i'm a sad panda' or somesuch. if you can, i thank you for your help.

sorry, i guess my use of terminology is a bit off... i meant to ask if there are any of the toys like the Bandai VF-25s and the like coming out, in addition to model options. can you tell me more about these resin kit? unfortunately my Japanese skills are almost nonexistent. do any of these kits remain, and are there DX versions as well? thanks for the replys fellas

call me crazy, but i happen to think that the VF-171 is awesome. she may not have the flash of the Messiah, especially in her base configuration, but the EX models just look dangerous. they remind me of the Strike Valkyries from Do You Remember love, and i tend to think that the -171 finds a nice middle ground between the lean-and-mean Messiah and the heavy-hitting Lucifer. and while i do prefer the Messiah's battroid design to that of the Nightmare Plus' (and the name for that matter), the -171EX's fighter mode takes the cake. now while i completely understand the release of the new Tornado variants and the VF-29 (still trying to get used to that weird little kitbash), i find myself both surprised and disappointed by the fact that there don't seem to be any VF-171s available. After all, Macross Frontier came out in '07 (with the Nightmare Plus being featured before the mighty Messiah) so i figured that it would have put into production already, if only because Alto flew one for several episodes and half the finale. but as far as i can tell, aside from the random Bandai Fighter Pack 4 there are no Nightmare Plus models out there. so please tell me, am i just looking in the wrong places, or has no one actually made a VF-171? they even took the concept of the "GRAVE" nose art on the back of an EX and made Messiah kits crammed full of decals, but no 171s? if there are no -171s around, is anyone planning to release one in the future? any information or insight would be greatly appreciated. an somewhat unrelated question, so pardon my noobishness, but how exactly do the scales for Macross models work out? i tend to see 1/100 as the most common, but how big is that? how big are the 1/200 scale Bandai Fighter Pack models? i assume they are fairly small, but actual measurements would help give me a better idea. i have experience with Battletech minis and painting but almost none when it comes to model kits and / or high-end toys. thanks fellas

yup, the good ol' .mkv. i was really hoping it was VLC, but i should have known better. damnit.

Media Player Classic at least gives me an error message... says that it cannot render the file. i am going to download one of the smaller segments to see if it will work instead. it really sucks, but hey, what can you? Dallas, eh? i live in Grapevine ^.^

after two hours of waiting for the download, it won't play. T.T i don't even get any kind of error message... i just try to open it with VLC and it simply opens the program, nothing to play. despite the fact that its 4.5 gigs. anyone have any ideas? having waited to long for the movie, being stopped now... its torture.

man, i'm totally jealous! have a great time, and definitely looking forward to pictures! - whistler

i have to say, some of these are really quite phenomenal... its amazing how, either through luck or sheer effort, people can look just like M:F characters. bravo to all! - whistler