Sorry for the Delay in Updates.....

I've been battling it out at my work this week, starting my new position and whatnot. I'll update soon!

- Jaa

S Gundam: Oh My! It's Thursday!

Whoops. It's Thursday already. This week slipped by so fast!

Just about done with the shoulders of the S. I've been reading my cameral manual non-stop so hopefully I'll be able to take some actually view-able pictures tonight or tomorrow.

I have to admit, there is a lot of beauty to the inner frame of the S Gundam's shoulders. None of which is seen unless you're willing to disassemble and un-do a few screws. Yes, screws. The S Gundam was produced back when Bandai still included parts that needed screws for a firm connection. Regardless, the final product should be a beauty.

Anyway, I'll post pictures once the shoulders are done.

Until then,

Jaa ~

S Gundam Update

A few updates tonight.:

First, finished the wing stabilizers. I think they turned out pretty good. I used Wave System's decals for the striping on the mounts. I had to mix Light Ghost Grey, Engine Grey and just a drop or two of Flat Black to get the Light Grey of the mounts.

I also finished the inner shoulder armor frames. Unfortunately, I had cancel my plans to do the shoulder armor split. I have a small hack saw which would work, but quite frankly, I just don't want to risk it. I'll make my own modifications, including an idea I had for the INCOM unit in the head.

I like to use a Gold Gundam marker for the detailing. I also use a Chrome Silver Sharpie brand marker. The gold and silver work great for hydraulics.

I also finished the shoulder lift bars. The fin blade stabilizer that sticks out of the shoulder frame is Light Grey like the mount.

Finally, I have to say, I've fallen in love with a new brand of paint. I made it known last post that I use Testors Acrylic paints, but I came across Tamiya Paint this weekend, and picked up a Metallic Grey for various parts on the Gundam. I love it. It looks fantastic, goes on perfectly smooth and still is Acrylic so it washes out with water. I may have to switch over all my paint to Tamiya after this.

More to come this week. I'm hoping on finishing both arms/shoulders in full.

Jaa~

MG S Gundam

Quick update tonight,

Finished the forearms and top stabilizer wings (base). I like the how the red turned out, I ended up mixing International Orange with Guard Red for a nice, deep combat Red.

Had a little trouble detailing the Red outline on the wing. It'll take some more work, I think.

I also finished painting the wing mounts tonight as well.

More to come, I plan on having the wings completely done, including the latch clips and mounts. I'll post pictures tomorrow.

Jaa~

MG S Gundam: First Post

Well here we are, this is my first post and the beginning of the S Gundam construction.

To begin every kit I build, I first wash all the sheets with warm water and a little soap or detergent.

Then its on to the primer. Primer comes in 3 main colors: white, grey and black. The darker the primer, the dark your colors will end up when painting. Priming the pieces also serves as a surfacer, filling small holes, and also gives the paint something to cling to.




I usually spray a fine layer from about 6 inches away. Once this dries, construction can begin. Each part requires sanding, as to remove the excess primer, leaving the bare minimum. Clipping the parts with a spur-nipper and sanding down the spur flash needs to be done anyway.








Before Air brushing, I still hand paint a layer first, this creates a much more adhering surface, and gives a much smoother final surface for the final product. Here are two pieces for the forearm of the S Gundam. I normally will build a unit's core fighter (if available) first, however, with the S, I decided to start from the begining, which is the arms.



Here's a close-up of a forearm panel so you can see what the final product will look like. Typically, I will detail in sections. So once all the forearm parts are painted, I put them all together, then add detail lining and decals before moving on.

White tends to be the most difficult color to air brush. However, I use (oddly enough) Testors Acryllic paints, so when air brushing with white, the paint tends to dry almost on contact, which avoids any "pooling" on the parts. I do recommend buying a bottle of acryllic thinner. Many say that water works fine, but in my experience, one small drop of thinner does wonders to avoid any clogging in the air brush (which happens if you let paint sit for a while and it dries within the passage ways).

I stopped here tonight. I really wish this picture was more clear and I'm going to have to figure out my new camera at some point because the close-ups turn out terrible. Anyway, what you see here is one of the back stabilizer wings. In the G Cruiser mode, this surves as main wing of the fighter. The reason I took this picture is to show what trouble can be found in a part that should have two seperate colors, but Bandai molded in one (for cost effective reasons). The edge of the wing should be Red. The wing itself should be white. See the issue? What I will end up doing is, now that the edge has been air brushed, I will use masking tape and cover the red sections, re-sand and paint the rest of the wing with white. Remove the tape and I should have a nice looking duel colored wing.

Stay tuned for more!

Trying something new..

Hey gang,

So I've decided, as I'm becoming more and more excited and obsessive about my MG S Gundam project, that I'm going to, starting tonight, document and post full updates on my progression and progress!

This way, you can see just how I go about painting, and assembling a kit step by step.

I don't plan on having every single moment documented, but once or twice a week show where I am.

Also, any modifications, or steps taken 'out of the norm' will be fully explained so that you don't see a plain piece in one picture, and a completely changed final result with no discription.

So until tonight (and believe me, getting through the rest of this day is going to be a pain!)

Jaa~

The Problem with My Brain...

Well, I'm all set to start working on the MG S Gundam. Still have no idea where he'll go when he's done but I'll deal with that when I get there (how odd that I refer to a MS as a 'he').

Anyway, I want to use Erix93's color scheme shown here. You can check out Eric and his friends site here. They do amazing work. I love Eric's S Gundam design.

The problem with my brain though, is I start looking at all the modifications Eric made to the kit and realize I don't think I could possibly do that. Some of them I could pull off. Some not at all. I like how the shoulder armor seperates and I emailed Eric to see if there is any change in how it would mount to the should joint of the kit or not.

But from looking at Eric's modifications, I went to look at other items that can be used, products to be bought and soon found myself in a whirlwind of items I, for some reason, seem convinced I need.

The truth of the matter is, I'll never be able to produce something like this. Whether its lack of time, lack of patience, lack of materials or lack of money, its far beyond my reach.

So I need to remember that the whole idea is to have fun while you build the kit and enjoy your own skills as they progress, right?

I'm still going to try that whole armor seperation thing on the shoulders though!

I'll keep you guys posted.

-jaa-

Max Capacity!!

*Edit: Click on the pictures for a much clearer picture!*

Okay, its crunch time...literally. Here's a picture of my main Gundam Shelf.

Yikes, right? I'm "packed to the rafters" as they say and really, before I begin the S Gundam, I need to figure something out for more space.

I took some closer shots so you guys can see what I'm working with.

Here's the left side of the shelf. My Powered GM MG Conversion kit, the PG Mk. II, and MG GPo1 are the most easily viewed. They're all painted kits. The Mk.II and Gp01 are hand painted, the Powered GM marks my first Air Brushing attempt (and resin conversion as well!) Around them are the GFF FA Gundam and Gundam 05, MiA Gundam Hazel, Zaku II Ultimate Op. Stand Art, and various Robust Silhouettes. I think the HCM Pro Death Scythe was jut cut off in the shot.

Here's the right side of the shelf. My PG RX-78-1, MG Alex, and MG Zaku II F2 can be seen. My MG Blue Destiny Conversion is just cut off, but you can see its 100mm Machine Gun behind the Zaku II. Then we have the GFF Nu Gundam and F90-2 along with the Ultimate Op Stand Art Gundam Mk.II Titans. You can just see the wing of the HCM Pro Wing Gundam as well.

And here's the master piece. The GP04 Bust that I waited for more than a month arrived and look at what an Amazing job GundamPro Shop did (Ebay seller GundamProShop) - I don't have the lights on, as I want to conserve the batter for as long as possible. You can also see the MG X1 behind it, both are actually dead center on my shelf.

Here's my TV. My MG Gp02 and 1/144 Resin FA Gundam Mk.II as well as my DX V2 Assault were moved to the TV as clearly, there is no room on the main shelf. How is the GP02 actually holding it's shield you ask? It's permanently plastered to the display stand. I grew tired of it falling all the time. This works great though! The FA Gundam Mk.II is mounted on it's display stand in a similar fashion to the V2...a copper pipe running strait between the legs and attached into the base. He's very very fragile (I think it was a re-cast resin kit...actually, I'm sure of it) so this way, he won't fall ever again!

Here's my Ultimate Operation Shelf. Q did a post today on various "Gashapon" collectibles in Japan, and Ultimate Operation is by far my favorite. The GP01, FA Gundam, Aile Strike and Dom Tropen can be seen, but the shelf actually goes down about four more cubes on each side. On top is my 1/100 Leopard Destroy (He's been through a lot...lost most of its weapons in moving) and 1/100 Burning/God Gundam from G Gundam. Its actually a toy, but it was a present so I keep it on display. I'm not a huge fan of G Gundam, but the Burning Gundam is pretty cool. It's fun to use in Dynasty Warriors Gundam for Xbox 360.

Finally, here's the "collective shot" of the shelf again. I added my Ez8 High Mobility Custom MG Conversion (of my own design..it was pretty tough) and you can see it on the far right side next to the Zaku II.

I gotta figure something out guys! I need a new shelf or something because I have the MG S Gundam, MG Aile Strike, and MG Z plus to add, plus a kit of the Mobile Assault Carrier Albion from 0083, and a 1/144 GM Cold Climate as well!



Until next time -

Jaa~

Robot Damashii Line

I'm going to post on this, even though I just left a comment on Ngee's blog as well.

I have to say, I'm a bit disappointed in the Robot Damashii line. You can see the Robot Damashii Diary here. Don't get me wrong, they look amazing and I would love to add a few to my collection. But If Katoki-san is really as involved as the line claims, then I think its time the Gundam line branches off from OO Gundam.

I know the series is a big money maker right now, but I'm sure fans of the older series would agree that it would be nice to see some other timelines. UC, AW AC, CE are all left untouched so far.

The V2 Gundam from Victory Gundam would be a great addition, seems the V Gundam line hasn't really been explored by any of the current action figure lines (Robot Damashii, GFF, HCM Pro, etc).

I suppose this is a ranting post, but I want to get on board with the Robot Damashii line, and so far, I don't have a reason too.

Hopefully they have more in store for the development as the line gets older.