ChristopherB

That certainly helps ChristopherB. One thing though, should our fellow MWer's vote for who will do whatever kit or it's up to you and Melissa to decide?

Hello Angel's Fury,

No, I'm not worthy with regard to that decision.

Actually, it is up to the owner of the kit first and foremost to decide who gets to recast his kit, but I'm sure Melissa will have some input, and Carl has been gracious enough to cover the mold costs if the preferred original clean-up method is used.

Carl,

You can at least spell "Homer's" name right. Poor guy gets no love. Or maybe Homor Simpson is his gay brother from San Francisco.

Not that Valkyrie needs our charity or anything like that, but he has done a good job in the past, he is out of work and the money probably couldn't hurt, plus he has plenty of time on his hands to dedicate to the project, and he's shown that he is capable/talented enough to handle this kind of task.

How much time can the other person you know Carl dedicate to this project, keeping in mind that you mentioned his other resin kit aspirations?

Sincerely,

Christopher

Angel's Fury,

Thank you for being proactive, and being cool enough to help out.

Only (1) person will cast the VB-6, and either the same person or another will do the other kits.

The person(s) has/have not been determined yet, and it will not be a matter of different people casting different individualy parts, so the list will be very short. Only (1) person per kit at a time, unless they take on (2) kits. Even if they do, they would most likely work on each kit separately.

Hope that helps.

The kit valkyrie did looks great. Only saw a small mold seam line on one part, and no surface pitting, air bubbles evident. He is definitely talented, and I look forward to seeing the other kit.

Sincerely,

Christopher

Carl,

Awesome pictures of the VB-6, thank you for posting them.

You make a good point about the recast, and I suppose the final decision will be up to the owner of the VB-6. I'm sure it will be a combination of who it feels comfortable with, as well as an idea as to who will do the best job.

The comparison pictures you are posting will definitely go along way towards showing the differences, and as you said the amount of recasts made prior to the one you received can potentially have an influence. It's cool that you are taking the time to show the comparison pictures.

Your opinion will definitely carry some weight.

Valkyrie,

First of all, I'm sorry to hear your are unemployed. Best wishes to you in whatever you choose to do.

I also appreciate you offering to take on this project, and even though the decision is not mine, I've heard nothing but good things about your recasts.

It's cool to see the pictures of the parts, and I always hate to get my hopes up. I'll wait to dance a jig until the VB-6 is safely in the hands of the recaster. It's great to get your hopes up, but it sucks to be let down.

The VB-6 parts have a lot of detail, and the all of the flash makes it look like the pieces are molded in plastic rather than resin. The clean up of the copy casting will be a good bit of work, but definitely worth the time. I don't see any air bubbles in the parts, so that is good, and as long as adding die will not affect not make the resin more brittle, it might be a good idea to go that route.

It's nice to be discussing the actual project again.

Sincerely,

Christopher

>EXO<,

Great picture, and reminder why we are posting in this thread.

It might be premature, but it might be cool to talk about our ideas with regard to how we plan to paint our VB-6.

For example, you could choose to go with the standard paint job similar to the Monster shown in DYRL, and if I remember correctly, was primarily olive green.

But since the VB-6 is also a plane/valkyrie(?), and has (3) modes, it would be cool to come up with something unique. After all, we don't want to have a bunch of custom VB-6's that look almost identical.

How about a Low Viz. or Enigma paint scheme?

This what I'm planning, but not cut in stone:

Paint it in aircraft silver, similar to what was used on the B-17's and P-51's towards the end of WWII in Europe. The Allies had air superiority, so camouflage was not an issue. Certain portions, such as in front of the canopy and the top of engine nacelles on B-17's were painted olive drap to cut down on sun glare. Well, I don't think something like the VB-6 would need to worry about hiding, but this scheme would also be realistic as less paint would be required.

This baby is big, bold and can kick a lot of ass.

Next, I plan to commission Devin to make me some really cool noseart, in the same tradition as the B-17's and B-24's. Instead of a blond/redhead, it will be Minmei or Misa in a cool seductive pose superimposed over the Macross kite emblem, or maybe a specially designed "monster" for my VB-6 Konieg Monster. Then again, my wife is a redhead, so I might go with that...

So basically, metallic aircraft silver with olive drab trim, light weathering, detailing, and badass noseart.

Well, let me know what you guys think, and feel free to post yours.

A Blue Roses, or a Roy/Max/Hikaru theme perhaps?

Sincerely,

Christopher

tom64ss and Gene,

I couldn't have said it better, if I had said it myself. Thank you for understanding my intentions.

I've been hoping since Page ( when I first posted that this thread would not turn into a debate, but as usual the road to hell is littered with good intentions.

When "Gundamhead" signs up for a kit, we'll know if all of Carl's explanatory posts served to change his mind, but regardless it was informative.

Shawn was impressed with my Blue Roses Club M 1/48 VF-1S Strike bootleg/recast when he saw it at the MW Convention 2003, and as Carl mentioned, he might of even bought a kit for himself from Blackaces.

Sincerely,

Christopher

LocoMacross,

Anarchy symbol for your avatar. Pretty cool.

Grayson72,

I'll definitely have the kit(s) built, or do it myself depending upon how much time I have and if my skills improve. I can understand/sympathize with a collector that wants to keep an original kit, especially a rare one, in the best condition possible.

If all of the rare kits are built, we will no longer have the original to share with others, and that includes the box and art, decals and so forth. Not only that, but because of the people that have not built their kits, we have the opportunity to recast them.

If I had the money, I would purchase all of the rare Macross resin kits that are no longer produced, have them recasted to share with other fans, and put the kits in a Macross Museum to so that others can experience them the way they looked when they were first created.

Not only that, but you can more easily appreciate the work that went into a project when you can see the finished product and all of the pieces that had to be sanded, primered, painted and decaled to make it into what it is.

Save the rare originals and share them, build the recasts and the widely available kits.

Sincerely,

Christopher

Lets leave it at that, and hopefully you'll take my advice so this thread can continue as before.

Gundamhead has a valid opinion. He has stated it nicely and I believe that is to be encouraged. I've sure this thread will continue as before should he choose to stay and I hope he does. I'm about to state my feelings on the subject and would love to hear what he has to say.

Carl

Carl,

I understand your point, and if you read my post, which I presume you did not based upon your reply, I never once said his two reiterations of the same arguement were not valid. Looking back, I can't locate a post that said his posts were not valid, quite the opposite actually, because like mine they make a point to recognize his point of view.

Likewise, I do not agree that just because someones posts "nicely" as you put it, they should be encouraged or rewarded. I was under the impression that we should post responsible/respectful replies, which is what you, I and the majority of others strive to do with all of our posts.

Does everyone post appropriately all the time, no, and I do appreciate that he followed proper MW decorum, and so I responded in kind, but not because I felt the need to encourage him.

Furthermore, no one asked him to leave the thread, if he of course wishes to stay on topic. You don't have to agree or even plan to buy one of these kits to participate, but disagreeing does not imply some special privilege to derail the thread. As has been said thousands of times, it helps if we do our part to keep a thread on topic. Last time I checked, the title of this thread is not "Why do I think it is wrong to buy copies of recasted resin kits, even though I myself am quilty of buying bootlegs." I merely suggested that he use an alternate method to start a moral debate. Like I said, his post is relevant to this thread, but it does nothing to further the inherent purpose of the thread as created, and all though it adds to the length, it does nothing to serve the purpose of the thread. As a matter of fact, his opinion is anathema to the goals of the thread.

Lastly, I do not feel the need to justify my reasons for buying a recast. The reasons are self-evident, as I'm sure his are for taking the moral high ground, while at the same time taking part in the sin, at least in the past.

I do appreciate your well substantiated post as well as your reasoning, and you did so very well. Although I doubt it will happen, hopefully people will realize that you are either on one side of the fence or the other. All of the nice replies and counter replies in the world will do nothing to change someone's mind, no matter how much you repeat them or slightly change the semantics.

Looking forward to the pictures, and the end of this senseless debate...

Sincerely,

Christopher

Gundamhead,

You are entitled to your opinion and I understand your point.

This thread is for people interested in the VB-6 Koenig Monster and so forth, the thread was not created so you can post your opinion as to whether something is correct or not.

You've made your point in this thread, so please either PM/IM/e-mail or start your own thread where you and others can debate the topic of recasts. Feel free to contact me via PM, and we can talk about the morality of pornography, alcohol, bootleg toys, gay marriage/civil unions, and anything else you feel compelled to take a stand on, even though you've also engage in the activity. Also known as, "Pot calling the kettle black."

No one is saying you do not have a right to post your opinion, which you have already done twice, but how much more can you reiterate the same exact sentiment without it becoming redundant. Melissa and Valkyrie have both presented our side of the topic very eloquently, so please do your part to refrain from beating a dead horse, rather than ruin this exciting thread.

I've been around a while, and like others, nothing is worse than seeing a positive thread which sometimes seem rare, turned into a debate.

Obviously, your post relates to this thread, but inherently it is different, and if your want to start a crusade, please take it elsewhere on this forum, or let sleeping dogs lay.

Lets leave it at that, and hopefully you'll take my advice so this thread can continue as before.

Sincerely,

Christopher

Angel's Fury,

Thanks for starting a list, even though another a separate thread might be started once more information is posted.

By the way, you might want to look through the thread a little bit more closely to identify any people you might have missed.

Right off the bat, you are forgetting Melissa (Trueblueeyes) the person that started the thread, and me Christopher.

I'm not sure where you got the names on your list from, but it seems weird to leave off Melissa and myself after we've posted in this thread quite a few times. I'm sure it was just an oversight though, or perhaps you thought we got a kick out of typing messages when we are bored. A review of our previous posts will show that we are interested in all (3) kits you listed, as well as others.

Keep in mind, Melissa has already started a list, and the order in which people get their kit will have to be finalized as well.

I hope everyone had a great weekend, the weekly grind starts tomorrow.

Sincerely,

Christopher

Melissa,

Everything you posted sounds great! I previously sent you a PM, but I went ahead and e-mailed you as well.

Carl, and the owner of the VB-6 should definitely get first dibs on the recasts. Both have been very gracious. The owner of the kit has turned a dream into a reality, and Carl has been cool enough to help finance the project.

Thank you to both of them.

Carl,

It will definitely be awesome if your friend makes those rare kits available. Please keep me/us informed, because I will definitely sign-up to buy a recast of any/all kits that become available.

I remember seeing pictures of your L-Trans-R 1:72 YF-19, but had totally forgotten about it. That is another kit I would love to see recasted, in addition to the IHP 1/100 VF-17D.

Do you happen to know the production numbers for the D'Stance YF-21? So far it seems to be the rarest of the rare, especially since all of the other kits mentioned so far have turned up, but not this one.

A separate interest list for both the VF-4G and VB-6 should be started, according to which project is being worked on at the time, or hopefully both can go forward at the same time. If one of the moderators will "pin" it that will be great.

It would be easier to wait until interested parties have a firm idea what the estimated price will be, completion date, and what will be included (screws/decals/instructions), as well as who the recaster will be.

Sincerely,

Christopher

William Gunn,

Thanks for posting the pictures.

I see that you opened your limited edition TRU version Cannon Fodder.

You can clearly tell that it is the one on the left, because of the slightly darker brown color and the lack of fastpack holes.

I've yet to open mine, but it isn't doing me any good just gathering dust.

Sincerely,

Christopher

Great Job Jung!

(It's hard to come up with anything more to say, when so many nice compliments have already been posted. )

Hello,

Rob, who is a long time member here at MW, lives in Spain, and is the original MW recaster, is supposed to be working on a Stampede Conversion Kit. Not sure of the scale, but everything else he did was for the 1/55, but that could be because back when he and I started out here at MW, Yamato was not around yet.

At the time he mentioned the project, he made sure that no one else would be working on it to prevent the same item be offered by more than one person.

I have not heard any updates since the project started, but then I could have missed the thread.

Does anyone have information.

Sincerely,

Christopher

ok, ill take the bait

Fuke Me, i dont know

Reminds me of the (2) Asian twins from Austin Powers, Goldmember:

Fook Me and Fook You.

Pretty funny.

Hello Melissa,

Great job!

Thank you, and thank you to the person willing to lend the kit!

I don't need to repeat that I'm in for the Koenig Monster, because I've been committed since Shawn had the original thread going. I 'll most like buy (2) if the price is right.

I would definitely like the screws to be included, and perhaps someone like Devin can make custom decals with cool noseart variations.

As Carl said, the original kit can be casted and returned in perfect condition, and then the copy parts cleaned up and the final product made from them.

I will definitely without a doubt buy a variable 1/72 VF-4, and I wouldn't mind having a 1/100 either. Carl mentioned that he definitely has the 1/72 version, and the detail is definitely better from what I've heard.

Thank you Carl for offering to cover the cost to make the second set of molds, that is really cool.

It's also great that "Valkyrie" has stepped forward and agreed to take on the recasting project.

Wow, what a wonderful day.

Sincerely,

Christopher

"I'm kidding."

Min,

I'm not sure what part you are "kidding" about. Please clarify.

Sincerely,

Christopher

Hello Noel,

I'm glad I contacted you, and I appreciate you offering to help.

It's too bad that whoever owns the VB-6 Koenig Monster pictured above, did not know how to transform it properly.

Looks like a nice paint job though.

Did you take any other pictures of it, if the picture posted ends up being the same one you took?

I wish there was a way to contact the person that had it on display and find out if they are willing to sell.

Min,

Thank you for offering to help.

Sincerely,

Christopher

Rob,

Thanks for your help.

Carl is offering a free recast of the kit to the first person that locates an original for sale.

Carl also mentioned that he has seen (3) of the kits auctioned off on Yahoo Japan. Is it possible to contact the individuals that won the auction and make them an offer they can't refuse?

I know that on Ebay, you can do a search for completed items, and then send an e-mail to them. I've been able to buy some items I really wanted like that.

Of course the age of the auctions will have a bearing on our ability to still locate them, but it is worth a shot.

I will also go ahead and contact Noel to see if he can help.

Sincerely,

Christopher

Trueblueeyes,

Good to hear from you, and good luck with dinner tonight.

Thanks for stopping by, even if it was only a "quickie." I don't mind though, seems that all my wife has time for nowadays is a "quickie," so I've gotten used to it. That is of course if she doesn't have a headache.

Anyway, yes Carl has been a big help in the past, and I'm sure he'll like Mississippi. I'm from the South, and have relatives in that state. Very pretty and laid back.

Gene,

You can call me Little Orpah Annie, and you can be Daddie Warbucks. Based upon our phone conversations, PM's and business dealings, I know you have an awesome collection, and much more than just Macross.

Happy Hunting to all, and all for one.

Sincerely,

Christopher

Carl,

I appreciate the clarification. I know how much you want an original of the kit, and how much pride you take in your collection, and I appreciate your help with this project. I'm sure that most of us will be more than happy to have a nicely done re-cast.

The only problem is that both Gene and Melissa have also offered to pay the price for the kit, so as long as everyone understands from the beginning, only (1) person will get the original, and the rest of us will get re-casts, then all should be fine.

Once the kit is found by a MW Member, please post the information promptly so we know one has been located, and if it is an auction, to prevent counter bidding which will only drive the price up. After the kit is located, whoever is willing to pay for it can make the arrangements and get it to the recaster. The key here is communication, and to use as many resources as we can. I'll contact Rob and find out what his fees are to start searching for this kit. If anyone has any resources in Japan/etc. please enlist their help.

Gene,

Thank you for your offer for help as well. It's nice to know we have a few big spenders here at MW to help bankroll the project.

If you ever want to adopt me or put me in your will, just let me know my friend.

Hopefully we will hear from Melissa with her comments. It all comes down to whether one person pays for the kit, or we all pool our money, but regardless everyone can start looking.

Sincerely,

Christopher

Carl,

Congratulations on the job!

I also appreciate you offering to help out with the project.

Sincerely,

Christopher

wwwmwww,

Carl, I hope you are doing well, and I said to you

quite a few months back, my best wishes to you

and your family. We must have been typing our response

to Melissa at the same time, but mine of course took longer,

because it is so long.

I remember when you told me about TI when it first happened,

and it is good to have you back. Are you still going to be

living in Sugarland, TX? Resin kits aren't cheap as you know.

I have someone working on serveral thousand dollars worth of

resin kits for me, and pictures of the first completed projected

should be posted soon, but that is another thread at another time.

I don't think finding someone to cast the kit will be too hard,

and as I always say, "First things first." Talking about casting it

is moot if we don't find one.

Sincerely,

Christopher

Hello Melissa,

I've had the same idea for a while, but have been too lazy/busy to

post a thread, so I appreciate you taking the initiative. I even had

the title for our group of like minded fans already planned, let me

know what you think. If you remember, both you and I posted to

the original thread started by Shawn that we would take someone

elses spot if they decided to back out, but of course none of the

orders were ever fulfilled for MW Members, and so it was all moot.

Here is my corny title:

"The VB-6 Koenig Monster Acquisition Consortium"

"Consortium" describes an agreement amongst a fellowship of

like-minded individuals to pursue a common goal for the benefit

of all. All work towards achieving the goal, which will improve the

chances of success especially since we are dealing with a limited

commodity, and competition is not the way to proceed. Sort of

like, "The Fellowship of the Ring."

First of all, we know the kit exists in a very limited quantity based

upon sightings on Yahoo Japan, but the price is the issue here,

plus we need someone familiar with the auction site, the Japanese

language, and someone who can of course bid.

This is how I thought it would work, let me know what you think.

Not trying to steal your thunder, but just help make this work, or

at least give it our best shot.

First of all, obtaining the item will be based upon (2) things:

1.) Locating the kit either directly from the source, a secondary

source, or auction site.

2.) Having enough capital to outbid any competitors. We do not

want to be outbid, and perhaps rather than one person shoulder

the entire expense thereby limiting the maximum bid amount, if

all interested parties pool our funds we can go a lot higher

but end up paying the same or less if we were to bid separately.

Here is how I would proceed if we go this route:

1.) Contract with MW Member "MonkeyNugget" and/or perhaps

"Noel" and/or someone else to become our liason, Yahoo Auction

searcher/bidder. I know MonkeyNugget offers the service,

he knows the language, is a extremely nice/honest person,

and can be counted on. We will of course have to compense him

for his services in the form of a percentage of the sale price

or a flat fee agreed to in advance. The person must be

committed and able to dedicate the time to the search.

Using multiple people will increase our chances,

but also increase the fees.

2.) Start a list of interested parties, 100% dedicated to not backing out,

who are able and willing at moments notice to Paypal the funds

needed to pay their part of the kit. We could agree on a maximum

contribution amount in advance from each person so that confirmed

parties know what they are committing too in advance.

A designated and trusted part would receive the payments,

and then forward the combined payment to the seller.

For example, (10) interested people at $100 each equals $1,000.00

to bid with. That is still far less than the $300.00 original price.

Each person would then pay the re-caster the applicable amount for

their kit, which would still potentially less than the price from the

original thread. The more people, the lower the price.

Of course this all leads to one matter. Who gets the original kit,

because all others would get a recast? This is of course presuming

we get an original as opposed to someones well done recast. Here

are some of the options:

1.) Use it as payment/partial payment/incentive to the re-caster.

2.) Let the person that agrees to commit the most money receive

the kit after it goes to the recaster, but we must all be considered

as equals in the project.

3.) Hold a drawing of some sort, and the winner gets the original,

which might be the fairest way to do it.

I know all of this is moot if we don't actually find the kit, but I've

put a lot of thought into this over quite a few months, and I think

my plan will work. It involves teamwork, and we will all achieve the

ultimate goal which is owning a copy of this kit. I'm sure we could

even find someone to build it for those of us modeling challenged.

I know of some good resin casters as well.

Sorry for the long thread, but working in the legal/professional field

has made me verbose and loquacious.

Sincerely,

Christopher

(Edited to try and prevent sentence length)

Hello,

I agree that the VF-0 front landing gear as pictured could definitely have more detail added, but I will wait until the final product is released to judge, but it never hurts to make constructive comments.

As usual Hasegawa continues to impress me, because the SV-51 looks great!

I'm not sure if it has been mentioned, but Yamato changed the canopy frames on the Max and Millia to black as opposed to blue and red.

Sincerely,

Christopher

Gene,

I bought quite a few items from Ming in the past, and he is definitely a good seller.

He even helped me track down an item I needed.

Sincerely,

Christopher