Gundam Plamodel Thread IV

[SchizophrenicMC]

I think the takeaway here is that the kit itself is Perfect Grade, but the LED set is markedly less so. I think this PG could legitimately get away without any paint at all, and still look pro-quality, but to get the best results, you'll have to modify the LED setup a bit. Not too big a deal.

In other news, I got an Eclipse HP-CS for Christmas!

...is what I'd like to say. While somebody did buy me one, they didn't realize it'd be shipping from Japan via SAL, so it's going to be a very long time before I see it. Which kind of blows, because a good airbrush is the one thing that's been keeping me from building more of my gunpla. And now I can't even buy one for myself, because I know I'm getting one.

[Hikuro]

I just cut all the pieces for the head.....and well......I thought the big deal behind it was that it was suppose to be magnetic?

[kanedaestes]

The antenna has a small magnet. The horn will still have a gap but not as big and overall it stays together well from what I've seen.

[Hikuro]

just was kind of expecting a bit more strength on that, it still wiggles a good amount. fairly disappointing there. Having trouble getting the top of the head to snap in place right now been working at it for ten minutes. If I didn't have the wiring there I'm sure I could take the face away and snap this piece in but I can't : / gotta keep workin it.

[SchizophrenicMC]

Extended family bought me some goodies:

Do you wanna build a gunpla?
Come on, let's nip some sprues

So I put the S. Matsunaga Zaku on the action base. I dunno, I kinda preferred it on its feet. I'll probably change the pose. I leaned it forward because all of my action bases are leaning back, but really it would just look better in a retro-thrust-aiming-its-bazooka pose.

By the by, these Tamiya sprue nippers are no joke. By far, best nippers I've ever used. 10/10 would recommend.

[Hikuro]

I finished the Unicorn, pics maybe over the weekend but now it's jsut relaxation time. It sadly does not fit in the case so Detolf cases aren't gonna be good with this thing if you use the stand. Which you have to if you use the LED's dammit what a world!

[SchizophrenicMC]

I refer back to my comments about Billy.

[VF-19]

http://www.macrossworld.com/mwf/index.php?showtopic=35120&page=41#entry1035186

I liked how my Shin turned out after I attacked it with a massive dose of dry brushing.

Zakus only look good when they're filthy!

[joppewo]

I refer back to my comments about Billy.

Regarding the Billy Bookcase, here's a good example of how it can be set up for gunpla!

http://otakurevolution.com/content/gunpla-display-cabinet-2-cabinet-harder

Edited December 26, 2014 by joppewo

[SchizophrenicMC]

http://www.macrossworld.com/mwf/index.php?showtopic=35120&page=41#entry1035186

I liked how my Shin turned out after I attacked it with a massive dose of dry brushing.

Zakus only look good when they're filthy!

I think my Shin would look a lot better if I took the time to panel line and apply the white wolf decals, but I haven't really had any motivation to try and screw up the shoulder decal. And I don't think it looks good filthy. Some moderate weathering would look great, I think, but moderation is the key word there.

Regarding the Billy Bookcase, here's a good example of how it can be set up for gunpla!

http://otakurevolution.com/content/gunpla-display-cabinet-2-cabinet-harder

Yeah, I need Billy.

[Hikuro]

Okay so I fiddled around with the kit a bit, transformed without instructions, not difficult to do at all AND I was a bit surprised! The stand can give you a bit of a free floating Unicorn, not much just a bit. enough you can get a few decent poses from it.

[SchizophrenicMC]

I won't be satisfied until I can get it to do The Pose

I always like to put each of my gunpla in the iconic pose associated with that mobile suit. Like Last Shooting for any RX-78-2s. Still, that Unicorn looks absolutely incredible. Apparently my local hobbytown got not one, but two in for Christmas. They wanted like $240 for each of them though. (Amazingly they sold both)

Found that one out today while I was picking up some stuff to play with my new Tamiya sprue nippers. I love these things. Image dump follows:

Front display case:

The haul:

The build:

I'm gonna panel-line and weather it a bit tomorrow. I do like the K9, though the backpack is fiddlier than all hell, and the thing weighs WAY too much for HG polycaps. The GP Base seems to hold it fine though. Gonna be tough to find a good pose for it. Kind of a shame there's no way to deck it out with all its guns. I guess the beam spray gun wasn't really in GBF, but it came with it, and I just would have liked some way to put it in the left hand or store it under the shield. If you're gonna go crazy with the guns, go all out.

[Hikuro]

I am currently working on the EZ-SR which I'm repainting into what I call the EZ-Blue a spin off of the Blue Destiny units using the GBF EZ-SR of course. If I find a suitable backpack I'll probably change it but for now it's the one it comes with.

I'll be using a mixture of Blue and white....Except for 1 armor area 95% of the mobile suit is a satin blue and the mobile frame will be white. I kind of have this fear I bunked it up but I'll be finding out little later. I think a particular area I needed white was accidentally sprayed blue cause I wasn't paying attention. It happens : / been exhausted since I finished the Unicorn.

[SchizophrenicMC]

It was a tossup between the K9 and the Ez-SR. I went with the Tacticool GM instead of the skinnyfoot Ez8 because the former wasn't locked in a display case at a busy hobby store. I don't regret it. I'm thinking about getting another one and doing it in Cold District colors, then recasting the visor parts in red because EXAM system.

I also picked up some Tamiya X20A thinner. I'm gonna try it when my Eclipse shows up, see how I like it. It was cheaper than the Aztek for once. I need to get a new drawer set for my paints. I won't say I have too many paints- you can never have enough- but my little drawer set from the 80s can't hold all my paint.

[renegadeleader1]

I'm heading to my local comic store tomorrow they're having an after Christmas sale with 20% off gundam kits. Damn good selection too.

Edited December 27, 2014 by renegadeleader1

[Hikuro]

You know I was watching this video from HLJ.TV and it featured them doing a wash on a MG Tallgeese using watered down enamel black and then wiping of with the tamiya enamel thinner to remove everything.

Apparently the thinner is practically lethal to the plastic Bandai uses. They were showing off the cracking going on because there was so much thinner used to wipe off all the excessive amounts they applied : / and honestly.......I don't like dirty washes so this is certainly a technique I'll ever wanna use.

But in other news I checked things out, I'm cool. No problem, parts were fine. Although I just hate white I really do lol, I'm never using white paint ever again it never stays on right even when it's mixed with a primer.

[SchizophrenicMC]

Tamiya makes two thinners: an acrylic thinner, and a lacquer thinner. It's well-known that lacquer thinners will damage raw polystyrene. Acrylic thinners are usually alcohol-based and don't react with styrenes. X20A is supposed to be the thinner that's already in their acrylic line, so I'm gonna see if the results are worth thinning it from that, rather than just using water, alcohol, or the Aztek thinner, which has been cheaper until recently.

I should also mention: I've never had any problem with white adhesion. Granted, I've only painted one kit with major applications of white, but even in my detail painting, I haven't had trouble. I just follow the steps. Prime, spray at least two coats of white, let dry. I even did panel washes on MG X Gundam before clear coating it, and all its white held up just fine.

[renegadeleader1]

Went to the comic store like I said and picked up the HGBF GM Cardigan, HGUC Jesta Cannon, the HG Endless Waltz Serpent, and the Votoms Red Shoulder Custom bandai kit. Yay me!

[SchizophrenicMC]

Got the K9 dry-brushed and panel lined. I really like how it came out.

My only complaint is, it's really not easy to find a pose that works for him. These HG polycaps just really do not hold up to the weight, and the thighs fall apart because of how the holsters go on. There's just not enough contact on an already-small HG joint.

[Hikuro]

finished the base work on the EZ-Blue Destiny. I'm not in love with this as I'd of hoped. Even bought an expansive pack for weapons since it is rather dull with just a beam rifle. But the packs are so limited in what they can do and plug in so loosely. I feel like I"m missing something and I'm not even sure what yet.

[Hikuro]

FOR SCIENCE!!

[mikeszekely]

I feel like I"m missing something and I'm not even sure what yet.

A dash of red?

[Hikuro]

A dash of red?

If I did it'd be the crotch area but I don't got a red that'll look good. it would be over a blue area and that never comes out right after you put blue on something. It'll look blue and red but not even purple....it's weird.

Overall, I got a lot of work to do on this kit I mean a lot....I don't really like it. parts scrape against eachother, things don't fit as well as I'd like due to the white. the weapon pack is to bland for my taste and needs a lot of touching up....nah overall I don't dig any of this right now.

[Scyla]

Is there another Ver. Ka Master Grade kit that utilizes the Gunpla LED unit? I've ordered two sets from HLJ and I have the Nu, Hi-Nu and Sazabi so I'm looking for a fourth kit for the last LED.

[Hikuro]

Is there another Ver. Ka Master Grade kit that utilizes the Gunpla LED unit? I've ordered two sets from HLJ and I have the Nu, Hi-Nu and Sazabi so I'm looking for a fourth kit for the last LED.

Gera-Doga, Gundam 3.0, I think the Murasai (Don't remember), Jesta, Exia and MG 00 kits, that's it to the best of my knowledge.

[Scyla]

Are any of them Ver. Ka kits? (I have a weird obsession with the Ver. Ka decals). The Gundam 3.0 looks promising but it seems it has stickers and not waterslide decals. =/

[Hikuro]

Are any of them Ver. Ka kits? (I have a weird obsession with the Ver. Ka decals). The Gundam 3.0 looks promising but it seems it has stickers and not waterslide decals. =/

The next version Ka's out there are the Sinaju and Sinaju Stein for recents but I don't believe they take LEDs.

The 3.0 is basically just an upscaled RG RX-78-2. And now I'm seeing that they're releasing a RG RX-78-3 as a web exclusive which pisses me off a bit as I've been reading Gundam the Origin.

[mikeszekely]

The next version Ka's out there are the Sinaju and Sinaju Stein for recents but I don't believe they take LEDs.

The 3.0 is basically just an upscaled RG RX-78-2. And now I'm seeing that they're releasing a RG RX-78-3 as a web exclusive which pisses me off a bit as I've been reading Gundam the Origin.

For a web exclusive, the G3 doesn't seem too badly marked up. Maybe cheaper than the Casval one. I'll probably try to get one. I dig the G3's colors, and I feel like I've gotten much better at Gunpla since I built the 2.

[SchizophrenicMC]

Sinanju, Sinanju Stein, and Unicorn don't take LEDs. RX-78-2 Ver3.0 does, though it uses all stickers. Of course, separate waterslide sheets aren't expensive at all.

[Scyla]

Sinanju, Sinanju Stein, and Unicorn don't take LEDs. RX-78-2 Ver3.0 does, though it uses all stickers. Of course, separate waterslide sheets aren't expensive at all.

Yeah the Stein is on my todo list. Does HLJ sell the Ver 3.0 waterside sheets or do I have to go through a middle man?

[SchizophrenicMC]

Well, I just found out the decal set (GD97) is discontinued, and no aftermarket set exists. Some people still have them, but they're all in the $30 area. (When Bandai was making them, they were 400 JPY)

Why is Bandai such a big fan of limited runs?

[Hikuro]

Cause it's a good way to make a quick buck is why.

For a web exclusive, the G3 doesn't seem too badly marked up. Maybe cheaper than the Casval one. I'll probably try to get one. I dig the G3's colors, and I feel like I've gotten much better at Gunpla since I built the 2.

I'd probably get a Casval RG if it exists in the future. I don't know why we have to wait until April for it when it's just a repaint and using magnetic coating covers versus the servo variants. There's almost no change to the design.

I began work on my RG RX-178...I mean I've had it since October and it's just been sitting there by my bed since I picked it up I should build it.

I HATE the fabric pipping, it annoys the crap out of me that I gotta cut that crap like I did with the previous MG. Actually, I don't even remember if the 2.0 had that same feature or they did away with it using rubber tubing like the Gera Doga and I think the Sazabi Ka. Can't remember....

But still I had kind of a hard fit for one of the areas making up the knee....it just wouldn't snap in right and the fabric was fraying from moving the joint around.

Is it just me or does this thing have more stickers than usual on a RG? there's a couple hundred I think....

[SchizophrenicMC]

The Ver2.0 had fabric piping. Such a pain.

In other news, I put together a concept piece for what may be my next gunpla project:

RGM-79K9D GM Sniper K9 Cold District Type

[Nekko Basara]

I began work on my RG RX-178...I mean I've had it since October and it's just been sitting there by my bed since I picked it up I should build it.

I HATE the fabric pipping, it annoys the crap out of me that I gotta cut that crap like I did with the previous MG. Actually, I don't even remember if the 2.0 had that same feature or they did away with it using rubber tubing like the Gera Doga and I think the Sazabi Ka. Can't remember....

But still I had kind of a hard fit for one of the areas making up the knee....it just wouldn't snap in right and the fabric was fraying from moving the joint around.

Is it just me or does this thing have more stickers than usual on a RG? there's a couple hundred I think....

In my experience, the fabric + wire piping is the only part of that kit that might be called troublesome. What worked for me to prevent fraying was to brush the ends with a little superglue as soon as I cut them. Clear nail polish would probably work just as well. The way they are tucked in, it shouldn't even be an issue, but it gave me peace of mind.

The rest of the build is totally straightforward, and the resulting MS is so solid for a RG. You can look back in the thread for more gushing about it.

[mikeszekely]

Cause it's a good way to make a quick buck is why.

I'd probably get a Casval RG if it exists in the future. I don't know why we have to wait until April for it when it's just a repaint and using magnetic coating covers versus the servo variants. There's almost no change to the design.

I began work on my RG RX-178...I mean I've had it since October and it's just been sitting there by my bed since I picked it up I should build it.

I HATE the fabric pipping, it annoys the crap out of me that I gotta cut that crap like I did with the previous MG. Actually, I don't even remember if the 2.0 had that same feature or they did away with it using rubber tubing like the Gera Doga and I think the Sazabi Ka. Can't remember....

But still I had kind of a hard fit for one of the areas making up the knee....it just wouldn't snap in right and the fabric was fraying from moving the joint around.

Is it just me or does this thing have more stickers than usual on a RG? there's a couple hundred I think....

There is a Casval RG Gundam. I'd link it, but I'm on my iPad sick. IIRC, though, Gundam Planet had it in stock for around $57.

As for the G3 not turning up until April, I dunno. Maybe it takes time to print the stickers and mold the parts in the purple-blue? All I know is I want it. The G3 is my favorite of the 7 main RX-78s. Too bad I couldn't find a Zeta 3 for under $100... I bet it's look great with the G3. And an RG Hi-Nu, if/when it happens.

As for the Mk-II, the cloth tubing is the hardest part. I didn't mind it as much as you seem to, and I think it's worth it, because it looks fantastic when it's done. When I cut the cloth, I just put a fresh blade on my hobby knife, lined it up with the guide in the manual, then sliced at it. That'd cut 90% of the way through the tube, and plain ol' scissors could finish it no problem. It's alright if it frays a little, because the armor will cover the ends.

Honestly, it's probably one of the simplest RG's, but also one of the best-looking and most solid when it's done. Probably my favorite.