Anasazi37

well i definately want the stickers applied by someone who has done something like this more recently than when they were 8 (like me)

and i'd like a tiny TINY bit of weathering done. and some of the more plasticy peices made to look more realistic.

obviously i'd like to keep it mostly stock since its one of the coveted Low Viz's

i just think it looks a little.. uh.. plastic, if that makes any sence.

of course i'm not complaining, just looking for an upgrade.

I designed sets of waterslide decals specifically for the low vis 1/48. You can get them through Twin Moons Anime:

Low Vis Standard Set

Low Vis FAST Pack Set

They blend in well with the paint job and look far more realistic than the stickers Yamato provides. I'm way too backed up with other projects to help you out, but I'd suggest contacting Kurt. He does excellent work--especially with the type of "upgrade" you're looking for.

In a word, definitely. Anyone who's done a few 1/48 customs will tell you that disassembly is the only way to ensure a good-looking valk. And if you think the number of parts on the 1/55 is mind-numbing, just wait until you see how many the 1/48 has. On top of that, there are many parts that could potentially rub up against each other and cause paint scrape. You'll have to do a lot of sanding and modifying--especially around the knees, chestplate, backplate, backpack, etc.

Sorry guys.... It's coming along, just not as quickly as any of us would like

I've got a good deal of progress to progress to show off though. I'll try to put together an update and get it up tomorrow.

And yes, I most definitely want to have it finished before the Yamato release. Too bad they haven't anounced a release date yet

I'm still down for making the decals, btw. Just give me a heads up before you're done so I can set the necessary time aside to work on the project.

Beautiful work as always, Jung. It's great to see what my decals can do in the hands of true artist.

If that toy was a gift from your best friend, I guess it shoud be very rare for you, whatever people say

Very true, especially since he spent A LOT of time trying to find something I might like. It now has a place of honor in my collection, right next to my 1/55 GBP-1S.

All of the 1/100s are rare, although the Takatokus are rarer than the Bandai 1/100 VF-1A. Price for them depends on the usual stuff (condition of everything, even if everything's there), but the Takatokus are $40-$60, although when they're in good condition they go for a lot (primarily due to one person on ebay).

There were 4 1/100 Takatoku Variants

VF-1J Hikaru

VF-1J Max

VF-1S

VF-1A

Thanks for the info!

My best friend just gave me this as a thank you for helping out on some work projects of his. Knowing my Macross addiction he went hunting in the Bay Area for something special. He said he found this 1J hiding in a vintage toy store in Alameda. It's seen better days, but I've never come across one of these before. The MW toy section only has the 1S variant listed. How rare is this toy?

Back:

Right Side:

Left Side (note Minmay Guard 2 on right leg):

I had a few extra minutes today and decided to apply a set of stickers to my GBP.

Front:

Okay, here's the final layout for the 1/60 GBP sticker/decal set. I managed to squeeze in a few of the designs from the ARII kit. The "Next Objective" girl doesn't look very good, though. I even tried using the one that comes with the 1/55 Takatoku, but that one also looks bad. Twin Moons should have the decal version of the set up for preorder very soon.

If you want the sticker version and/or have a custom request for the set, please PM me.

Best I can do without opening the bags. I hope some good comes out of it. Anasazi37, let me know if need the 600 DPI PSD file ~ 17 megs.

Perfect! Thanks, Neova! This should do nicely. I'll try to incorporate a few more decals from this sheet. The "Next Objective" girl doesn't look too good, though. I'll see if I can find a better one. More soon....

wow devin,

these rock just as all your stickers/decals do.i have a question though.can i get a set w/ the "valk girl" sized to fit were the pin-up girls go on that armour? i really like her design & i thought she'd just make the perfect custom-devin pin-up girl touch to this already awsome set.

You mean this "valk girl"?

It comes from the Hasegawa Minmay Guard Strike kit (aka MG 2). I could easily resize it to fit on the GBP leg armor, but I am not sure everyone would want it. How about this: Those who are interested in decals for their GBP beyond those in the sample pic, please PM me and I can add them to your set if you're willing to kick in an extra $1 or so (depending on how many you want).

I have the 1/72 model kit here. I'll get a scan up for you guys soon. Damn, its still sealed MISB (bags). I hope 300 DPI is enough.

If it's still MISB, then please don't open it up on account of this project. I'd hate for you to ruin a mint kit just so I can put a few more decals on a sheet....

The tringle with the P and the torch is an insignia representing what?

The Prometheus? I guess the torch is because he was the one that gave fire to humanity.

What squad, fleet is that Knight insignia?

Your guess is as good as mine on the torch insignia. I haven't found it anywhere else. The Prometheus angle, referencing the Greek mythology, could fit. The knight insignia comes from the old Macross Hobby Handbook and it doesn't reference a particular squad or fleet. The Handbook has it associated with "Armored VF-1" and nothing more. I guess it's a general designation. And it looks cool.

Oddly enough, on the page of the Handbook with the knight insignia is GBP spelled out: Grenade Box Protector. I never noticed that before. So much for the debate on that acronym...

If someone can get me a good scan of the original decal sheet, I might be able to add those--if it's just the ones you circled.  I'm trying to keep the sheet fairly simple and affordable, though, so I don't want it getting too big.

Unfortunately I don't have that kit, I got that image off Macrossworld's model section. Can anyone help? Those little extras would be a great addition to spruce up the 1/60 GBP.

There is one thing that could be quickly added, however, without much effort. See attached picture for the circled item.

You know, I've always wondered about that particular kite symbol. I think it's the only example of one where the red and white are reversed. I've never been a big fan of it, but it does show up on the box art for both the ARII kit and the Takatoku 1/55 armor set....

I'll try to get that one added later today.

Wow!

That is great Devin, you are the man!

Edit: just notice you say you added 013 but in the sample sheet it shows 012, will the final version show both numbrs?

Whoops. My mistake. I guess the coffee hadn't kicked in yet when I was working on the set this morning. The 012 has been changed to 013. Thanks for the heads up.

Okay, I've added more numbers to the set. I read through the "GBP Numbers" thread and it looks like 1-7 should take care of all known variants for the chestplate. I had to "scratch build" 5-7 based on how 1-4 were designed. I think they fit in with the theme pretty well. As for individual valk numbers, I added 001, 011, 013, and 117 (standard CF). Whew!

Is there any chance of expanding the decal/sticker sheet to include some of the extra warnings, numbers, pin-up art and assorted stencils that came with the IMAI kits like the one pictured bellow? That would be great and a definite improvement over what Yamato offers.

If someone can get me a good scan of the original decal sheet, I might be able to add those--if it's just the ones you circled. I'm trying to keep the sheet fairly simple and affordable, though, so I don't want it getting too big.

I just spoke with Tamim over at Twin Moons and they will be carrying this set. Price has yet to be determined, but I think around $5 is a pretty good estimate. They should have the sets available in a few weeks. I have to squeeze in production between a ton of other projects....

Okay, looks like people want more numbers. I'll see what I can do.

Hey, DEVIN, the decals look great!! One question though: are they the waterslide type or yer regular run-o-da-mill decals?

They can be printed as either waterslide decals or standard stickers.

I just got my 1/60 GBP set from Twin Moons a few weeks ago and finally had some time to sit down and create a set of decals/stickers for it. They are essentially repros of the original sticker sheet, but they are by no means straight copies. I redrew each one, in many cases improving on the originals.

I also threw in the Armored Valkyrie badging from the old Macross Hobby Handbook. I really like the design. There are enough of them so you can put one on each tailfin, the heatshield, and the nosecone section of the GBP armor (instead of the winged-torch-triangle thing).

Price should be around $5, but I won't know for sure until I talk to Tamim over at Twin Moons. In the interim, let me know what you think.

Oh but yours are water slide decals right? sorry I meant stickers. I like stickers. Im too lazy and ignorant to use water slides.

I make both waterslide decals AND stickers, so you're in luck.

I'm working on them right now.  It's long overdue, I know.  I figure I might as well make them while I'm creating a set for the 1/60. 

I need a better scan of an original sticker sheet, though.  The one I have isn't very good (150 dpi).  I need a full color scan at 600 dpi or better.

Anasazi37

Will you be producing extra numbers for the chest, leg, and arm piece for customization?

I hadn't thought of that. I was planning on doing a straight repro sheet, but I can add some extra numbers no problem.