leading edge

Yup, the latter. Masking the cockpit. Yeah, what I do is "glue the canopy on before painting the actual canopy frame, then mask over the top of that and carefully cut around where it meets the fusalage for cases when there's a frame that's a different colour to the area just under the canopy".

Just wondered if there was an easier or alternative by using decals I like to avoid painting my canopies. I usually either dye the canopy so adding paint has been a problem. I've recently adopted making the canopy frame and painting it before attaching it to the clear portion. If anyone has better alternative please tell me the process I'm doing is kind of involved.

Can anyone tell me what color the main color is on the Yamato 1/60 VF-11B? I am working on a custom and am having a hell of time paint matching that color. Thanks

Looks like at least from the pictures a mixture of ghost gray and purpe gray combined and the decals are a cadnium red orange here's a pick.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v231/Hel...dderScheme1.jpg

Despite the release of the Max and Millia type -22s, which I believe many members intended to make with this kit, I still want this.

The canopy i assume you are going to cast it in some kind of clear plastic resin. I have yet to work with clear cast but I was wondering if your planning to use a vacuum formed canopy. If you pla to tint it try a orange metalic gold rub and buff along with either a transparent food dye or transparent paint will do for tinting. If you want an even coat for that fantastic canopy try car tinting. If you want an exact fit for the canopy here is a site.I got to tell you man your VF-22S is the stuff legends are made of dude genius stuff happening.

http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread....585&page=19

Has anyone tried this http://www.permalac.com/?gclid=CIfC7P3J-Z4CFQWTzAod92euMw or another product? There's clear sealants out there that are UV proof. I've got toys that are over 30 years old with no yellowing, then I have some that are horribly yellowed including legos.

I'm thinking our white finished models could benefit from this too. My testors painted white parts yellowed bad - in the storage box! - MT

A UV blocker can be used if you can get the paint to work with it. I myself have yet to try this but some classmates of mind like to mix a UV retarder into their paint for some painting they do if the haven"t enough money to afford a uv reflective glass. I would have to ask them or read up on the subject to comment further.

Who acts like a child?

Anyway, depending on the model I can't say it's more lineart accurate. I think Hasegawa has more of a real world feel to it but they add detail that is not lineart accurate on the VF-1s. As far as the VF-25s, I prefer the look of the 1/72 scale but then realized that the Messiah armor cannot be taken off so you can display it without. I think pricepoint is also part of the consideration. The detail on the Yamato products can compete with any model, unless screwholes and joints bother you.

Model or toy hmm... I guess a model more satisfaction this is just personal opinion mind you. A model offers more possibilities than a toy on that argument the toy offers sometimes greater durability at the cost of some accuracy. Still you can paint assemble and customize you model to an exact way that is at least for me a bit more appealing.

Looking good Jet. If you don't mind the input, I've got a few tips to help you out. It looks like your paint isn't covering well in the corners. I'd suggest washing the parts in dish soap and mildly warm water. The plastic molds are covered with a release compound (waxy substance) and the molded plastic has that on the outside. The paint (especially if it's water based) will bead up and glues are less effective.

Also, don't be afraid to tackle the seams. If you put a good amount of glue on the seam where safe (solvent or super glue) the seam will be sealed with a bead of glue or dissolved plastic. Let it dry and sand it off. If the seam is really bad, that will need putty (another topic).

You're doing great in the painting and decaling departments. A smooth seam will make life a lot easier on you. Yes, the sanding stinks, but it's the price you pay for a quality build. Keep up the good work and DON'T GET DISCOURAGED. Keep it a hobby and not a task or you'll get burned out. - MT

Nice battroid mode the style of those older kits has a vintage look that newer models just doesn't have. I like how you accentuated the panel lines yet some of the edges needs a little putty and sanding. The decals are applied cleanly and there is a clear distinction to the area and size they are applied. I wonder what newer Hasagawa decals would look like on a kit like this? Did you paint this with any paint or is it just the natural color I'm seeing? In any case this is a perfectly done kit thanks for the nostalgia makes me wish I was better at these things when they were out.

What is the current status? Wanna see more pix

Just some ideas if you want to give your valkyrie a realistic touch try giving it some squadron decals and decide if you want it for space or an atmospheric environment. Personally I liked the idea of a low visibility type it gives it the idea that the fighter was originally ment to be. There is also the idea you can attribute rank via a stripe of color like Macross 7 designating color can also be used as a reflector in space to better see incoming friendly craft. Just some thoughts on the matter. Here are a few ideas.

http://www.anft.net/f-14/f14-detail-colours.htm

http://cdn.globalaircraft.org/media/img/pl...res/sr-71_1.jpg

http://www.wingweb.co.uk/aircraft/Harrier_...-Jet_part3.html

Great stuff! Thanks for posting and welcome to the forums!

I'll be using this when mine comes in in a week.

Looks great the canopy is very clean did you apply any kind of plastic polish to it? I'm not very familiar with this kit is it transformable. In any case this is quite the kit the rival/anti-hero plane was kind of a dark mirror image of the "hero" VF-25 so it's nice to see a well made kit make it to the Bandai Macross F model market. Kudos on a excellent job on such a badass Valkyrie.

As beautiful as it is, I'd love to see it mounted on top of the launch vehicle.

Nice job on the armature looks very authentic. The hydraulics you can also use a type of wax base metal applicator called Rub and Buff to add as a protective finish and give the metal a polished kind of machined look the stuff is transparent and also can be used on canopy tinting.

I've been looking as some of my older figures and was wondering if anyone had figured out which commercially available hobby paints and enamels as the best matches for some of the Bandai and Takatoku valkyries?

Like the red color on the VF-1A Hikaru (and the Bandai/Hasbro jetfire)?

Or the yellow on Roy's VF-1S?

It would be great to have a match to touch up the scuffs and paint chips that these older toys are prone to.

Man! I love those old Valkyries I'm so glad paints are more cutting edge thee days there was kind of a limited selection for people with a budget. I suggest Tamiya paints, car pants at you local automotive supplier, and Home depot they can match house paints so with a little work if you have the box art you can match paint perfectly. I've gone to auto suppliers and the paint can be thicker but it with a little paint thinner and a good airbrush can have a very durable and color accurate. If you want total accuracy then go to home depot and get them to match your paint up. Just be sure you know what kind of paint you apply though sometimes the older kits can respond adversely to paint so generous and evenly applied primer is a must.

Brilliant work there. Thanks for the update. This is really gorgeous!

I like the idea of an expansive environment. Have you thought of putting some windows to view SDF-1 workers? I think the idea is inspired as another suggestion what about doors which can with electric motors open and close. Lighting effects might help to display you planes. Maybe a suspended or broken Valk with mechanics for a working effect. Just some ideas.

Ever since Macross Frontier came out I've been trying to create a VF-171 EX. I feel it's one of the craft of the series that was given a bad rap. The Messiah though very well designed is cutting edge while the VF-171 Ex is a last minute custom modified craft. The fact that people expected it to be equal or better is a bit unfair so I've decided to give this mecha it's due with a fully transformable mode. I plan to use this as a basis for another project I will be presenting in the near future. This topic will be updated as often as significant progress is made. Here are some plans I've drawn up and would appreciate some feedback so I can perfect some of the more complex areas. Remember these are rough sketches so the refinements will be made as the project develops.

The black and white images are some sketches I've been working on and the other thumbnails are reference for the project please tell me what you thinks the criticism or ideas would be welcome.

If you do a search I reckon you'll find heaps of topics covering this.

There are a number of things you can do I'll list some sites and a few tips i myself use.

1. Prep the surface for paint that entails sanding at varying grits of sand paper and applying putty on uneven areas. I use Milliput fine it's used on porcelin and I ca guarantee a complete and smooth finish if sanded evenly

2. Primer from personal experience a good thinned primer with three coats of gray are what i use an with an airbrush. A lot of people use spray cans I recommend them if you have little money but if you want a custom coat( varying layers of lite and dark areas on the vehicle) then mix the paint yourself and use a airbrush

3. Painting: Painting is easy if you pay attention and make sure you know your paint. Paint can be tricky because if it is too permanent if you make a mistake you can"t easily remove it without damaging you model. I prefer a 3-4 coat spray the first 2 are about surface and color so get a grayer color than what you would normally use . I generally use this to see and test the surface to see if the color works and if the area is evenly sanded a must after you get to the painting stage. Once the paint is laid 2 coats and make sure it is fine and even so you can see a little gray through it. Remember the paint must not be too thick or when you finish it will look like the surface was warped. When you apply the 3-4 coat use semi-gloss if required and keep it even and a little thicker but remember keep it even. Finnally the finishing touches on the finish if it is a flat surface use some microscale flat coat or microscale gloss to finish. The reason for this is to keep you newly painted job an extra bit of strength and what better way to do this than by airbrushing with a transparent coat of clear plastic. This is something I like to do and take it if you want but lambskin on a low setting with a tiny buffer or nail polisher keeps a gloss surface looking sharp.

Here are some sites:

http://www.hobbyfanatics.com/index.php?/to...macross-models/

http://www.arcforums.com/forums/air/index....p;#entry1624663

http://scope-eye.net/

http://themodelmakersresource.co.uk/articles/article003.html

http://www.tamiya.com/english/scale/beginner2/2.htm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7F8La1BgRE-video guide

Welcome Ice Blue to MW. If you're using foam core, test the ends with whatever glue you are using. Like EXO said, solvent based glues are bad on thin plastic and will dissolve most foam cored materials weakening the material. Superglue is good but will still dissolve some foam cores. A good hobby shop will sell superglues that are foam safe or sealers for foam. I know Hobby People stock it. - MT

At the moment I can share a number of discoveries which will enable even the most frugal model builder/scratchbuilder make their projects that much more satsfying there is something called styrofoam board specifically blue styrofoam it's used in home insulation. It's manufactured by dupoint DOW extruded styrofoam it is coarse yet fine and denser than the average foam found at stores like Michaels. Now understand it's in your best interest if you have to buy something do it with a friend or a very large project otherwise you'll be spending $400 on a piece of 12-14ft foam that will sit forever in your garage. Usually if it's a foot or so it would be $5 or so a square foot depending on the supplier. Mechtech when working on the Daedalus mentioned a mixing of talc powder and paint applying it to cardboard. I tried some of his techniques on this stuff and of course it works there are a few advantages and disadvantages. Styrafoam is better at shape and holding the paint /talc together create a good binder and color to shape vehicular form. I use terracotta not very strong but makes form clearly and cleanly by mixing an appropriate amount of talc and colored acrylic paint you get a pliable yet shapeable shell. To bind the two pieces of foam use Elmer's school glue paste as long as no moisture is present you should be able to stack and bind the materials together. I've seen some very interesting use o this in the following sites.

http://www.heresy-online.net/forums/showthread.php?t=36990

http://advancedtautactica.com/viewtopic.ph...7b&p=175840

http://staff.bath.ac.uk/ensajg/tg/TG4foambuck.jpg

http://cs.trains.com/trccs/forums/p/146899/1629219.aspx

http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=prod...cts&Ntt=DOW

My biggest gripe is that I've had lousy luck with Testor's brand Model Master sprays clogging up and/or having tooth problems resulting in uneven spray.

I have never had an issue with Tamiya spray paints, and the tooth seems to provide a finer spray than the Testor's stuff. There are other brands other members may like better than Tamiya; I started using it due to local availability.

BTW, please post pics of what you are working on.

I've worker with Testors stuff before good color but has some issues wit drying if not careful can rub away if a acid is anywhere near it before it dries. Usually I dry it with a hair dryer and mix a bit of thinner and the right amount of Microscale for strength the combination in an air brush makes for a stronger more even coat of paint. Also I like to thoroughly sand my surface before painting which is extremely helpful. A 900grid give more stick than 1000 grit. Testors is more about economics but if there is a sale try Tamiya for a finer finish.

It's got a macro setting, it's what I was using.. maybe just need better lighting and a steadier hand/tripod.

Hopefully with the super packs, you'll have a bit more room to cram things in, since they add so much bulk to the valk. Regardless of where you put the pegs, the tricky part is making them line up. There's a bit of play in the joints, so you can't size the holes exactly for the pegs.. you just have to make the holes a little sloppy side to side, so you can adjust them. It's a lot of trial and error.

Locator pins made of metal might do better actually. Given a second kit, I'd probably try that instead. The holes I made are rather messy, and smoothing them will make them bigger, and sloppier. I'm hoping painting will cover some of that up, and smooth over the area.

If you have a hand Dremel and a small enough bit you could carefully sand down the inside of the area to where it is more smooth. As for the you drooping area s nice that the kit responded so well to the tightening looks good the older Macross kits form the 90's were a pain to transform and build it's nice to know that the newer ones if there are minor problems you can correct them easily. If you want to be sure the area hold try testing it out with material that won't stick to the plastic to see how tight or loose you need it. I do a test with some paper or soft foam that can be crammed evenly in a seam. The level of tightness is usually best if you can remove it with only very minor difficulty. If a seam is too tight or too loose I like to use some Milliput fine to fill it up after properly calculating the mass needed via the fill method mentioned above. When the amount is ready I spread it on with a flat dental tool so the putty will spread cleanly then after about 4-5hrs I sand and paint the area.

Thanks

How did you get the rivets so evenly spaced? Did you use a precalculated temlate? I like to use a .005 drill bit by hand very small so I have to be careful or the bit will snap.

I'm going to attempt duplicating the YF-19 CAD model at some point in the future, and use that as a test bed for the idea, checking to see if it changes the transformation any. It might even be possible to use 3D printer of some sort to make a new fuselage section with these changes incorporated, but I don't know what type of materials would be needed for that.

Anyone have any thoughts on this? Would it even be worth attempting, or is it more likely to completely screw up the plane?

Edit: It may not look like much of a difference, but here's what the end result would be, without all the extra colors and lines.

The problem with all those solutions no offense is that they are extremely time consuming or very difficult without the proper tools. You said something about a 3d-printer that might help the next question is do you really want to commit that many resources to this? I have a solution it's rather unsophisticated either alter the plastic via heat gun or sand it down and replace mass with liquified ABS plastic as that is what Yamato usually makes their valkyries out of. ABS is very difficult to melt however if you grind a piece and practice with some modeling glue or solvents you can make a paste another idea is just to use my favorite epoxy putty Milliput fine it's extremely good at repairing and supporting surfaces than the usual putties out there and it's very strong. It sound a lot less sophisticated but if you aren't careful the plastic could stick. I sugest you practice with a heat gun or remove the plastic with a fine sanding tool to get the shape you want. As for the shape of the rounded areas Yamato forgot putty or a subtractive method to change shape is an idea. Mind you this suggestion is the best I could come up with so you will probably need to read up on similar method to get the result you want.

Yes, the nostalgia is what many members like myself love about Macross collecting -- thanks for sharing the pictures of this model. I laugh at the inaccuracies of this kit's castings but still enjoy my memories of the same kind of kits I not-so-skillfully built many years ago.

I like the white a little grayer than pure kind of titanium white and the black looks pretty pristine. Did you do anything to the surface like a little epoxy and sanding to even out the imperfections in the surface? Thos e older kits had areas with "dimples" where the plastic wasn't properly cast. From what I can see from you pictures the body is all there and the paint is applied very evenly.

Thanks for the pic, I guess I'll go with a pencil, I got a .7mm pencil so that won't do at all, looks like I'll order one from HLJ since I won't have time to drive to a shop and get one.

I like the option to keep finished details very impermanent although that is not to say that Gundam markers are not good it's just that a well prepared surface maximizes the results. A careful sanding with grits ranging from 100 grit to 900 give the surface a pristine kind of look. Between the sanding is the best way to apply the color I found between 400 and 600 grit is usually good especially if it is a dense surface like epoxy resin kits and ABS plastics. A middle tone gray marker is good then black afterward when all the details are finished I like a little graphite on the surface between the panel lines just as a finishing touch. I've heard from other aircraft modeling sites some people like to use powdered colors ( pastels, crushed charcoal) to great affect I haven't tried anything except for the surface priming method and the graphite finish.

tamiya masking tape:

How effective is this Tamiya tape I don't have any experience with it. Does it work well with brushes as well as airbrush?

Oops... Double post.

Although I don't usually mask the canopies I put together just as some quick advice try using a resist on the canopy. One comes to mind by Grumbacher it's a kind of watercolor rubber resist that gently clings to paper and plastic. It makes accurate lines when I've used it on paper and models ( I use it to airbrush and hand paint camo lines). It's very accurate when used with an airbrush and won't run I've even used a brush to do some work. I usually find it at craft store Aaron Brothers and Michaels.

Beautiful rooms and build! VERY NICE! Hang in there with the build! - MT

Quality job on the deck man I never knew you could used acrylic talcum powder that way. How do you keep all those lines so crisp? In any case you need to get that in a magazine dude your sure to get some notoriety for such a professional job.

I've seen some customs in my day, but this one takes the Holy Grand prize!! Jarrod, I don't know how you did what you did, (and I read yoru description) but still, its mind blowing!!

If you could do the same with a VF-0D or 0A Hasegawa kit, I'd be speechless!!

Awesome Valkyrie man. I've been wanting to do that to a Hasagawa for years hats off to the quality job on both the plane and the Battroid.

Thanks for the help guys/girls. I really appreciate the sound advice everyone has been giving me. I have a lot of respect for what you guys do. Your art is amazing to say the least. I dunno if I'll ever have the skills you guys have, but I sure look forward to learning the craft.

Anyone know of any good Robotech/Macross galleries showing the various available models?

What are your favorite places to order Robotech/Macross models? I've searched all over town and our model stores lack variety. All of the sci-fi models are Star Wars (which I love) and they don't seem to cater to those interested in scratch building.

Thanks!!!

I don't know about the stores you like to visit bu there is a local store called Value Craft in California I like to visit the staff like store help with specialty craft so scratch built stuff passes in the store all the time. It's a combination artstore/ framing store with a an entire section of the store devoted to train, aircraft and remote controlled planes. As for the Macross/ Robotech galleries here are a few links

macross model links