Anasazi37

This has been a true labor of love....

MW member min commissioned me to make him a very unique custom 1/48. He asked for a 1/48 Minmay Guard Strike, but not the one featured in the 1/72 Hasegawa kit. Instead, he wanted me to extend the designs from the original MG featured in Model Graphix onto a set of armor, FAST packs, and weapons. It took me quite a while to figure out how to make it all work so that when you add the armor the designs continue seamlessly. The end result is pretty darn cool.

This custom was a total repaint. The armor is now a medium grey (the original blue didn't look good) and the valk itself was painted white with a variable grey undertone (cool effect in good light). I also did some light panel line work to accentuate details. Even the pilot was repainted to match the color scheme.

All I have the energy to post tonight are pics of this valk in fighter mode, sans armor. I'll be taking A LOT more pics tomorrow when I have better light. For now, please enjoy these teaser shots.

Actually, I think you'll find the Hasegawa molds between fighter and battroid to have quite a few differences. Just to hit the short list, the battroid nose is shorter, the wings are a lot smaller, and the legs are much fatter than the fighter. I tried some decal swapping between the two, and I can definitely report that anything large just doesn't match up.

That's true, but the decals are pretty much interchangeable. You have to do a little trimming for fighter mode in places, but they work fine.

That's pretty good. I'd love to get a set for my 1D or the 1S Minmay Guard I'm working on. Is that armor set from the original Bandai/Takatoku, or from the reissue Bandai? Anyone know of anyone that's casted parts for the reissues, esp. the arms?

alftien casted arm armor that will work with pretty much any valk. It uses the same attachment method as the 1/55 Elint (no clips). I think mslz22 recasted these, too.

Perfectly clear. Thank you.

Now, since you don't provide the decal for the back end of the gunpod (it would be quite impossible to apply, I would bet), I'd imagine that it's a bitch to try and find the right color match.

I'm absolutely horrible when it comes to colors. I might as well be color blind.

Any possibility of strike battroid or fighter mode decals?

Tamiya Purple is pretty close, although you might want to lighten it with a little Light Grey or White first. The decals should work for Fighter Mode, too. Hasegawa didn't change their molds very much. MG Strike decals for 1/48 valks are planned. I believe the decals that come with the Hasegawa kit cover everything except the large colored panels (where decals don't work very well). I'll know more once I get my hands on a kit in the next few weeks.

Yay, Anasazi DOES have the 1/72 Minmei Guard set, though it seems a bit unusual... I don't really know what it is.

The set I designed at 1/72 scale is for this version:

The decals take the place of all the painting you would normally have to do to replicate the "tire tread" patterns and many of the other design elements. Here is where everying on my set goes:

Hope that clears up any confusion.

Devin (anasazi37) makes awesome stickers and waterslides for the 1/48. i recommend them to anyone who is looking for some nice stickers on their valk. Devin's an incredibly good guy. you won't be disappointed. 

wow, does he has a catalog or some sample?

You can see my entire catalog at this website:

Waterslide Decal and Sticker Catalog

I now have upwards of 50 different sets with more on the way. I just saw this thread--I've been busy with several custom projects. I won't be taking orders for a few weeks and I'm also working with another MW member on a new distribution system that I think everyone will be very happy with. I can't say more than that right now.

I agree that anything beats the stock Yamato stickers that come with their valks. The choice of what to buy really comes down to how much work you want to put into detailing your valk and how much experience you have with building models and applying decals. The stickers that Takatoys produces and the stickers and decals I produce cover the whole spectrum from basic to complicated, quick to time intensive. I'd be happy to answer any specific questions you might have.

That Blue Roses custom is very nice. What color did you use for the main body?

Testors Model Master Blue Angel Blue. Thought that was appropriate

That color works really well, along with Tamiya Sea Blue. I tried out both when I did my 1/60 BR custom and decided to go with the Tamiya because I prefer working with acrylics when possible.

Nice job, Shan! Keep the 1/55 customs coming!

Hopefully the ability to order will be forthcoming

I'm trying to finish up a few custom projects right now, and I'm waiting for the release of the 1/60 GBP so I can make decals for that. I'm also updating my 1/48 Standard set to include markings for the 1J Max and Miriya. Once all of that is taken care of, I'll be offering sets again. I just counted up all the different sets I've designed: 50! Good grief, I need to spend more time away from my computer....

Okay, I'll take the lack of response as a "No."

I've PM'd and emailed you about this several times, but no reply so far. Do you still want the 1/48 Minmay Guard set as a gift for you-know-who? If so, please let me know ASAP so I can get started on it.

One more shot of this bad boy in better lighting before I put him in the display case. I took this one at my camera's highest quality setting.

And, of course, my pride and joy: The 1/60 Blue Roses 002 Strike!

I started branching out into Yamatos with this Angel Birds custom. The valk was painted completely white and then decals I designed for MW member trueblueeyes were used to created the Angel Birds color scheme. This custom is sporting the new ALPS printed decals. Designing them took a looooooong time, but making this custom took very little time. No muss, no fuss.

Here's my second custom, a 1/55 Super VF-1A CF. I was able to control the weathering on this one a bit better and even managed to produce a neat "stressed" paint job--completely by accident, I must admit. This was the first custom I made with the Hasegawa-style decals I designed. Back in the day, I made these on my inkjet printer.... The squadron comes from the old Macross Hobby Handbook. I changed the color from blue to green and gave this valk a number designation. This was a gift for my best friend. Jetfire body, Chris Barretta custom head and heatshield, Kotobukiya nozzles.

Here is the first custom I ever made. I was going for the "Focker's Last Fight" theme with this Super VF-1S. Jetfire body, Chris Barretta custom head and heatshield, Jung decals. I was REALLY inexperienced when I made this. Note reversed stripes on chestplate. Definitely not my best work, but a good start. Working on this inspired me to start making decals. The friend who received this as a graduation gift dubbed it "The Dirty Bird."

This custom is a perfect example of why I continue to make decal sets. It's simply gorgeous and a true inspiration for all customizers....

Just finished up the pilot. Pardon the glare, but it was hard to get a good close-up shot with the lighting in my workshop. I painted the white suit the same blue as the valk and kept the orginal yellow parts. It looks really good in the cockpit. Thanks for the idea, Toonz!

Talk about a cliffhanger!!!

Any hint?

(evil laugh) Heh heh heh....

Before I forget, I want to say thank you to everyone who's commented so far on this custom. I put a lot of work into it and I'm elated at the overwhelmingly positive response it has received. I'll try to get it shipped to wherever MW Con 4 is going to be held this year, along with my Angel Birds custom and perhaps one other I am working on right now.

just a suggestion, how about painting the pilot suit to match the dark blue valk and leaving the yellow untouch?

I hadn't thought of that! Interesting idea to have the pilot suit match the rest of the color scheme. I'll dig out one of my detail brushes and give it a try over the next few days. I'll be sure to post pics when it's done.

And my favorite mode of all for this custom, armored fighter!

I think I'll display it in this mode. It looks really formidable when it's armed to the teeth....

As promised, more pics!

Battroid mode, no armor:

Battroid mode, with armor:

I'll get pics of armored Fighter mode uploaded later today. Gerwalk is not easy to pull off with 1/60 customs, so I don't think I'm going to try that one--it puts too much strain on the paint job....

nice! bluerose is one of my favourites too

are you using the old or new gunpod? why is it touching the ground?

It's the new type of gunpod. I didn't fully collapse the handle for fighter mode. Need to do some touch up work on it first.

This project has been on my workbench for about a year now. To make room for some other projects I have in the queue, I finished this one. This is by far my favorite color scheme and it pained me to have the valk sitting incomplete for so long.... All of you have been keeping me super busy with decal orders! I took a VF-1S Strike and put it through the normal routine of disassembly, cleaning, paint stripping, sanding, priming, painting, detailing, and clearcoating. I made the decals for it, of course. The dark color of this valk made it especially difficult to pull off without a ton of paint scraping that might expose the white plastic underneath during transformations. I used my Dremel way more than usual to make this custom work. Talk about a headache....

Here are the Hasegawa 1/72 kits from Model Graphix that this custom is based on:

And here are fighter mode pics of my custom (without armor). I elected to use a satin finish so it appears a bit darker in color than the original. The Tamiya Sea Blue I used is a perfect match. I'll be uploading battroid as well as armored pics tomorrow once I do a little touch-up work on the cannon. Enjoy!