Chas

I agree. If scratch building is your eventual goal then I would start with glue kits, and skip the snap kits. As Jardann said, pay a visit to a local H.S. and look around for some cheap, simple kits of subjects that you like - maybe even ask the staff for some help. Also I would suggest looking into the different kinds of glues and picking up a container of each to get a feel for what each can do. Same goes for putties.

Well then, I guess I've been told. Upon reflection, I suppose my desdain comes from the fact that I like to build kits, and a fair number of the kits I like happen to be older kits, of which there are a limited number. I dunno I guess I'm just naive to get upset at the fact that many of those kits end up in the hands of people who have no intention or desire to ever build them and simply see them as an investment and a source of potential profit. I mean fundimentally, in the grand scheme of things, of course there is nothing - capital W - Wrong with that, but on the rare occasion that I do decide to sell a kit I like to see that it goes to someone who wants to actually build it. Someone who will get the enoyment out of it that I would. It's not really a case of me being pissed simply 'cus someone else got the thing I wanted, or someone else could afford to pay the high price that I couldn't, that's fine that doesn't burn me, if that person is going to build it. What burns me is if they got it and the thought of actually buliding it completely ruled out and all they see is just a source of potential profit. You see, I think what it comes down to is that for me, the value of the kit is in the pleasure I get from the act of building it and against that it becomes easy for me to invalidate the possible pleasure someone gets from turning a profit from speculating. I just see that as such a loss. Against the pleasure I get from building a kit the possible pleasure someone else could get from speculating with that kit just pales. That I guess is because I'm just not built that way. I suppose fundimentally I'm not a Capitalist. Part of it also is that speculating has very little to do with the actual kit, it could be anything really, the kit is simply a means to an end. Whereas the pleasure I get from building is all about the specific kit being built. Anyway that's just how I see it. Continue if you will. Oh and KOG - no My initial post was not directed at people who have large collections of unbuilt kits. It was directed at those individuals who buy kits for the express purpose of not building them, but only as a source of potential profit. Hence the trem speculators.

Well I never even thought of that . . . I guess I can understand it though, but you mean even after retirement they have NO intention of EVER building them? ( while my brain understands the words my heart cannot understand the feeling.) Huh! Oh well learn somethin' new I guess. So let's make the appropo changes. Firstly, appologies to those kit collectors who do not speculate (hadn't considered you in the ontology of the universe) Secondly, everyone please disregard the ref. to Kit-collectors and read only as kit speculators. Thank you. Continue please.

So some of you may already be aware of my desdain for the kit collectors out there, those bottom feeding, hobby kit speculators who never build anything and serve only to drive the price of older kits through the roof; you know the ones who pay exorbitant prices for older kits only to hold on to them and re-sell 'em for even more later on. Well, while I have not sold many kits (don't have too big of a stash) I have passed a couple on and I was always concerned that the kit was going to someone who had every intension of someday (if not right away) building it. Well I finally found away to do it, now you have to realise - I don't look to make a killing on the sales, I just want a fair price (if I recoup the cost great, if I get a little less, well Meh whaddya gonna do?). Anyway So this is my idea. Advertise the kit without the box! then when a buyer expresses interest I tell them the kit comes with the box (no change in price). So what do you folks think? Is this a concern you have had when selling kits? Do you care who buys it, or is getting as much $$ as you can more important? Do you have any schemes of your own to defeat the kit collectors?

Sorry but I just have to correct this --- Nothing personal. Actually Buddy Holly (and the Crickets) is pretty much straight Rock 'n Roll, where Bebop ( or just plain bop) is a form of jazz music that originated in the late 30's early 40's. It came out of the Swing era, but it's way different; much more fractured and nervous sounding - mainly due to its increased tempo, complex melodies, and just plain F'd-up phrasing. Think Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker Rather than Buddy Holly.

yeah I've been looking at the Kotobukiya frame but there are a few areas that I'm not to jazzed about - namely that gundam-esque knee protrusion, plus the general angular shapes of the upper and lower legs. The feet also seem to be rather intrusive/ limiting for the possible shapes that could cover them. I'm hoping that other releases in this series (it will be a series no?) will have different design elements AND that the various designs will be interchangeable within the series. Here's hoping. Let me know what you think of the Kotobukiya frame - is that knee protrusion integral to the function of the joint, or can it bee omitted?

So I've been thinking about the Yamato GN-U series and how cool it would be if they sold the frame seperately. I would love to have a few of these to play around with. You know. . . maybe modify some Hase. Battriod kits for them, or scratch some Destroid exteriors. . . Hell maybe even a little Macross. ust dreaming, I know, but still how cool it could be.

Very cool, but 2030 seems sooooo far away!

Well not a General Macross Calender but the 2010 MacrossF is available (with pics) Here Don't know if that's what you wanted, but there you have it.

Yes! Idiocracy is prophacy the future it portrays will come to pass! -- "OOWW! MY Balls!"

Thanks to that Cadbury Commercial and those kids with the EYEBROWS! I'm listening to Freestyle's Don't Stop the Rock over and over again on youtube! C'mon, admit it you KNOW you'd sing along if you knew the lyrics! Well now you do! "Freestyle's kickin' in the house tonight. Mooove your body from left to right. To all you freaks, don't stop the rock that's freestyle speakin' and you know I'm right" Now make those eyebrows dance BOYYYYEEEEEEE!

Maybe a little closer to SDF Macross? (in theme anyway)

Oh, yeah . . . um sorry 'bout that But what's so wrong about a Japanese show (anyone remember that wretched term Japanimation? - Yeuch!) about resurecting the naval incarnation of the Japanese spirit and having it save the entire planet - I mean the Americans do that ALL THE TIME! Oh, wait . . . did I just equate the Japanese with Americans? . . . HOOH BOY I just keep digging myself deeper don't I

Well yeah but I mean let's call a spade a spade here, we are not talking about ". . . a WWII battleship . . ." It is THE YAMATO for crying out loud, the veritable incarnation of the Japanese spirit no? Nationalism is a very powerfull thing. Perhaps it was simply a case of a decent enough production at the right time in the right place.

Tounge firmly planted in cheek! (guess I should have mentioned that in my previous post) Interesting, never really thought about that since I came to Yamato through Starblazers. How then do you explain the success the film(s?) had then. was it simply from the groundswell created by the then small but dedicated fan base who took on promoting and advertising the production? Anyway I wholeheartedly agree with your trepidation about this latest 'Venture' (pun intended) in the franchise. Bu tat the very least it should mean some great new visuals and hopefully some great new (reasonably priced) model kits [i need a praying emoticon damn it!]

Yeah the effects they could do no problem. The writing shouldn't be too much of a problem either (although some care would have to be taken as far as abridging the story). I think the most difficult element to pull off will be the characterizations of the cast of characters and their relationships (the drama if you will). I mean as good as it was (and still is IMHO) Yamato was still aimed at a (I'll be diplomatic here) youthfull audience and so, a fair bit of its characters, thier motivations and its plot points were at various times rather simplistic, formulaic, and 2 dimensional. Oh, wait a minute, that sounds just like most Hollywood films we get nowadays -- I take it back no reservations about the live action movie at all, It'll probably be great!

For small batches you could pick yourself up a good quality digital kitchen scale that goes up in increments of 1gram for under $50.00. (cover it with plastic wrap before you pour though - makes clean up a snap.

Does anyone have a copy of the fold out poster from TIA #11? It was one of Minmay sitting in a blue &whit striped (simapan?) nightshirt with both arms raised over her head. I used to own this but over the years it has disappeared. Haven't seen the image in years and would like to, I miss it.

Well that explains why 'Prototyping' is still an expensive service: to produce good quality prototypes still involves a lot of 'hand working' and skill (as in skilled trades people) ergo $$$$

That was exactly what I thought when I read ABS is notoriously hard to 'work' and because all of the various methods of automated 3 dimensional constuction (that I'm aware of) build items in a series of layers, the end products will always have 'steps' where a new layer was begun. These machines do not produce a 'finished' model. Usually what comes out at the end of this process is 'hand-worked' to a smooth finished 'pattern' from which a mould is made, and then casts are produced. At least that's how we used to do it in ther shop that I worked at back in '03-'04. We used SLA and SLS to produce the patterns.

The feasability of this kind of thing is becoming more and more possible I agree, but there are a number of things to take into consideration here. First of all what kind of Stero-Lithography are you thinking of? SLA? SLS? 3DP? something else? each method uses different materials which each have their limits - i.e. cost (SLA resin last time i checked was still extremely expensive), britleness, resolution (amount of detail), etc. So exactly what is possible in terms of the finished product will depend on the method of production. To make transforming toys one would have to do a lot of work in the design of the joints and the parts breakdown. Chances are good that for each joint one would need multiple parts to be fabricated and then these will have to 'cleaned up' (build lines sanded down by hand) & then test-fit together to ensure that they work. Once all of that is done the masters will have to be molded and then cast. Now if you're talking about transformable toys you need to consider what materials are going to be used, some how I don't think polyurethane is the best choice given the material stresses involved in transforming toys. Don't get me wrong I still think this is a good idea I just think it best to start off with small steps. I'd leave the talk of large scale transforming mecha off the table for now.

G-man - T-H-A-N-K Y-O-U.! THANKYOU!THANKYOU!THANKYOU!THANKYOU!!!!!!! For a long time Macross fan this is a dream come true! To finally be able to read this book and get all of this FABulous background info. I was actually tearing up, from joy and disbelief, as I was reading this. (Truly no hyperblee. Not unlike Minmay in class when she found out that everyone had nominated her for the Miss Macross Contest.) I must say that I agree with your take on this book as expanding the characters rather than changing them. I also agree with those who are of the opinion that with Ranka K awamori was finally able to realize the compltete Minmay. It is as if he had picked up the pieces of Minmay that were left on the script-editting-room floor all those years ago and used them to fill in Ranka's character. In many ways I feel that Frontier is Kawamori's retelling of the SDFM story. Reinterpreted? - undoubtedly, derrivitive? - not in the least. Along with Ranka being another (closer) cut at the Minmay character. I also think that the Vajra were another (closer) cut to what Kawamori thought the Zentradi should have been. more a force of nature than an evil empire. Also the sense of them (the Zents) being manipulated by other forces (outside & beyond there control including their biological nature) was also present in the original but again revisited and hightened with the Vajra. Admitedly a large part of Why I think frontier is Kawamori retelling SDFM is because it is his last chance to 'get it right'. Anywho, that's my two cents. I just need to say once again how much I appreciate all the effort and work that you have put into this. From one fan to another - ありがとうございました

Is it possible to get this through any means other than a torrent?

Now this is something worth getting excited about! Given Hase's track record there is no doubt in my mind that I'll be more than satisfied with this series. Can't wait to make my first Gerwalk custom when the Battroid kits get released! It's so nice to hear the news of an upcomming release and not have any reservations about the finished product. I feel like I used to feel as a kid in the last few weeks before Christmas. WOOOOHOOOOO!

Just saw this and thought some folks here might be interested. LINK They have a bunch of other macross / macross F stuff as well i.e. Sheryl/Ranka mouse pads with soft 3-d breast wrist pads. Enjoy!