Lord_Of_Tetris

YIKES I didn't even see those. Yep, all that is caused from pulling the rear section back.

I circled and enlarged the stressed part. That's after ONE pull with kid gloves. It still holds together decently, but it's a ticking time bomb. :/

I was taking some pictures to save for later to remind myself of the correct position of all the moving parts, and I figure they work double duty as work-in-progress pictures of my build. I'm actually really happy with this so far. As a reminder, I don't consider myself a master builder. All you see here are stickers (not the waterslide decals), panel-lining, and a conservative amount of sanding and plastic cement.

Heh. Me and my big mouth. One part I forgot to "practice" transforming was the part where you pull out the rear half of the jet (the part with the wings) back from the torso so you can fold it down. I just pulled it out for the first time and caused a big huge stress mark. Had I noticed this earlier, I would have definitely sanded it down. Unfortunately, I already used plastic cement to seal shut the torso, so there's no going back now....... I'm still sticking with Plan A. I'll still handle this figure with kid gloves, of course, but I'll still transform it with a minimum of fear. If it breaks, I'll cement it together in battroid mode. I have a Messer model kit coming my way, anyway, and I'll be sure to sand down this part for that one....

Just wanted to chime in with some comments about the VF-31 model kit (Hayate's colors). I don't consider myself a master builder, though I've built dozens of MG Gundams and a handful of Hasegawa Valkyries. The extent of my "customization" skill is panel-lining and small amounts of painting. This is my first Bandai transforming Macross model kit. Building this is REALLY FUN! I'm actually AMAZED that the VF-31 kit seems to have half as many parts as the typical MG Gundam kit, yet the VF-31 transforms. Voodoo, I tell you, voodoo! Prior to building, I did my research. I've read reviews that stated the Battroid mode doesn't hold together, parts break during transformation, etc. So I'm building very cautiously. Each time I put together a moving part, I "practice" transforming by just moving that one part in the way it needs to go to transform. In doing so, I've found several spots where the parts clearances are quite small (or nonexistent), and I've sanded them down so that the clearances are just right. It's pretty clear that, if I were to transform the kit as-is without any sanding, it's exceedingly obvious how transforming the toy would break it. I've also found some parts that come apart (in unintended ways) while moving them around (such as the various pieces that comprise a solid section of the wing), so I use some plastic cement here and there. Never on moving parts. Anywhoo, I'm only half done with the kit so far, and I'm taking it slowly but methodically, testing the parts clearances one by one as I add them. And, did I mention building this is actually FUN? I do appreciate the details on an MG Gundam, but I've always found it tedious to build the inner skeleton, then some inner machinery, and then cover it all up with outer armor. For better or worse, the VF-31 kit doesn't have that layer of detail. The parts count is basically the bare minimum for just the outer appearance of the jet and/or robot, which suits me just fine. Building this kit is so fun, I ordered another VF-31 (Messer's colors) because, well, I want to build another one. At first, buying the model kit was just a cheap substitute because I can't afford the DX Chogokin VF-31. However, the model kit is so well engineered (after some sanding and cementing), I find that I don't even think of the model kit as a substitute anymore.

I really really really really want Bandai versions of the Macross Plus jets, done in the same style as their VF-19 Advance. For starters, repaint the VF-19 Advance and call it the YF-19. Then, a YF-21 and VF-11. I would THROW MONEY AT THEM for doing this.

I'm finding the transformation surprisingly enjoyable, considering how difficult the YouTube videos made it seem. Every step of the transformation makes sense to me, except 1 step: How do you get the jet-mode engine to look like it's 1 piece? There's a little plastic clip piece on the back of each leg, but there just isn't enough room for those 2 plastic pieces to tab in.

Hmm. What items? And what prices?

Wait, is a Hi-Metal VF-0 really a thing? Are there pictures?

I should point out that I searched Shapeways pretty thoroughly for a BP-8 piece. I found pages for replacement parts for... VF-1 1:60 v2 shoulders Yamato 1:60 YF-19 biceps Arcadia VF-0 shoulder hinges So, there's clearly a market for replacement Valkyrie parts on Shapeways. But could not find any replacement BP-8 parts. The search is quite difficult, however, because these replacement parts seem to be avoiding the use of copyright-infringing names. So they have innocuous names like "Variable fighter bicep" or "19 shoulder joint." It's possible that it's already on Shapeways but I just don't know the correct search terms.

Any chance this service is still being offered? I'm looking for a BP-8 replacement piece for my 1/48 VF-1A (Max colors)...

Hello, my apologies for reviving a decade-old thread. Longtime lurker here, just got this account because I finally broke the BP-8 piece on my 1/48 Valkyrie and I'm now desperately looking for a way to replace it. Can someone let me know of someone who still offers replacement BP-8 pieces? Thanks.