Graham

Yeah, usually the 1/60 and 1/72 boxes come sealed with tape. The 1/72 Macross Plus toys usually have one peice of tape on each end. For the 1/60 VF-1 series, I've seen boxes from the factory sealed with both 1 and 2 peices of tape at each end. I guess it depends who is on tape sticking duty on any given day B) Graham

I'll probably be picking mine up from one of the many console game shops in the Golden Arcade in Sham Shui Po district. They usually get Japanese games on the same day as they are released in Japan. Actually, my wife is going to be buying mine for my birthday present. Can't believe I'm going to be 34.....arghhhhh!!!!!!! Feel old Graham

IIRC, my 7 sets of FAST packs purchased from Kanto Hobby (HK) were not sealed with tape. The same goes for my 2 Low Vis purchased from Animate (HK). I can't remember if the other 1/48 toys were tape sealed or not. Graham

I got to handle a painted test shot last week for about half an hour. The paint application on the toy is very nice. From what I recall, a lot of the lower leg is die-cast, most other parts are ABS. The toy is insanely complicated with more joints, hinges etc than a dozen VF-1 toys added together However, despite the complexity, it did appear quite sturdy. Without access to the instruction manual, which I think is not ready yet, I gave up trying to transform the toy. Graham

Err...not familiar with Freehand. is it something I can view using Photo Deluxe? Graham

Nice, designs. I think for the front I prefer the black polo w/UN Spacy emblem (top row, middle pic). For the back, probably the design in the middle of the bottom row. Although I think the orther back designs with the extra stripes look better, they might increase the cost a bit. Toonz, I'm gonna need the artwork really big and clear for my friend with the garment factory to see so he can give me a quote. Graham

Specs for the VF-0's micro-missles indicate that they are heat seeking (IR), so presumably the VF-1's micro-missile are heat seeking as well. Graham Depends on the missile..... and source qouted ^^;; Oh yeah, speaking of the VF-Zero's micro missiles - - here's a small tidbit. I drew this side view schematic of the GH-30B. (Scroll down) Note that the entry isn't done yet. http://nanashi.macrossmecha.info/resrc/cat...siles/gh30.html Interesting. They seem comparitively long compared to most other micro- missiles. The use of fins on micro-missiles is a first as well. It would be interesting to know the length and diameter of the missiles, but I doubt Kawamori will ever provide that information. Graham

I love both series, but as I've admitted many times before, of the two I do prefer Macross 7. Graham

IIRC, on the Hasegawa battroid kits only the chest strip is colored, the rest of the battroid is plain white, so a lot of painting is involved to look good. Not sure about the Super & Strike if the FPs are colored or not. About the only precolored Macross kits which look fairly good with little or no painting are the 1/100 VF-19 Fire Valk & VF-19S Valks. Graham

Specs for the VF-0's micro-missles indicate that they are heat seeking (IR), so presumably the VF-1's micro-missile are heat seeking as well. Graham

I would think that in fighter mode, rear-hemisphere defence would be the primary purpose of the arm missiles. However, if the VF-1 mounts UMM-7 micro missile pods as well, it also has the capability of backwards firing as the rear-most 5 micro-missile in each UMM-7 pod also face backwards. Graham Something else that Hasegawa screwed up on.... So did Yamato on the 1/60, but at least they got it right on the 1/48 Graham

I would think that in fighter mode, rear-hemisphere defence would be the primary purpose of the arm missiles. However, if the VF-1 mounts UMM-7 micro missile pods as well, it also has the capability of backwards firing as the rear-most 5 micro-missile in each UMM-7 pod also face backwards. Graham

I'll be buying my PS2 in about two weeks time. Luckily all the small gaming shops in HK sell PS2 that are already modded. So, when I buy my PS2, it will be able to play original Japanese, US and European games, along with all bootlegs. BTW, I'll be buying an original of the Macross game. Graham

I've gotta say I do not find Carrie Ann Moss attactive at all. I thought she looked really haggard and crone-like in Reloaded. During the scene in Reloaded when Trinity and Neo where making love, my first thought was like "Eww...I do not wanna be watching this". My second thought was "Neo, you have some seriously bad taste". B) As for Animatrix, I loved most of the segments, except for the one about the athelete and the one with the skateboarding kid. Graham

Nope, there were never any Gekiganger anime, oustside of what you see in Nadesco. Graham

I dislike the design and design concept of pretty much all mobile suits, except those of Gundam Sentinel. My favorite is the S-Gundam, closely followed by the Z-Plus C1. Graham

Ah, sorry.....I thought all you guys were going to decide on the wording. Graham

That's what makes me think extra gunpod ammo. BTW, love the new avatar. Graham

Nice, K frames always have the best triggers of any Smiths IMO. I've always wanted to try my hand at PPC, but never had the chance. Graham

Top pic. One of my favorite outdoor ranges in HK, the Disciplined Service Shooting Association outdoor range at 'Kau To Shan', now sadly closed. Lots of steel 'Pepper Popper' targets to knock down. Bottom Pic Me back in 1992 during my basic training with the Royal Hong Kong Regiment (the Volunteers) RHKR(V). issue weapon was the 7.62mm FN FAL (L1A1 SLR). Can't believe how young I look in that photo! Graham

Hong Kong was under British rule at that time, so then it wasn't technically part of China then. But yes, there was more shooting then as we were able to rent some of the outdoor ranges from the British Army. Even now, civilian gun ownership is allowed, but is fairly tightly controlled. We do have several gun clubs in HK, catering to different shooting sports, but they are all very expensive to join. Graham

And lastly, me with my Remington 870 12ga which I combat customised myself. Graham

And me again with my 6" S&W 629 .44 magnum. Go ahead, make my day.....LOL Graham

Hee Hee. Time for some photos. Here's me with my S&W model 745 .45ACP pistol, back in the mid-1990s,when I was heavily into IPSC shooting. And yes, the beard and pony tail are long gone now. Graham

Actually, I'm not saying that the FAST packs could hold extra clips of ammo for the Gu-11 gunpod as it does not use clips, but rather an extension of the ammo belt. In the GU-11, the 200 rouns of ammo are stored wraped around the barrels in a helical (spiral?). It would be fairly easy just to rig an extended feed mechanism in the form of a powered feed chute or belt, which just keeps feeding extra rounds from the FAST pack directly into the gunpod. Basically auto loading extra ammo into the gunpod. The VE-1 was basically for Electroinc Intelligence gathering, not ECM. Most modern warplanes carry somesort of ECM pod. Graham