1/35 Tiger II WIP

Spray Booth Revision 2.0

Some revisions to the spray booth design, based off of a desktop fan and this air filter. Dimensions are to scale, but may change depending on availability of product. The filter will be secured with a set of two screws into 1" wide by 11" long pieces of wood. The walls of the front of the system will be made out of an abundantly ready material in this apartment: cardboard. I think the system, combined with a backsplash for the work bench and a stand up fan to fumegate the room with the window open along with a respirator mask will be a wise choice. Albeit a pricey one. Let's see if I can cut down on costs. The filter will be removeable for replacement.

This design will not accomodate anything larger than about a foot in length. Large 1/350 scale ships will not be possible with this system.

Perfect Grade Strike Gundam WIP Part 01 [480p]

There are going to be a lot of WIP videos and pictures on this kit as it is a perfect grade. I know I'm bad- I should be working on Wing Zero proto but this PG has been screaming my name. I have to sand proto with 600 grit yet and then clean the parts. After that things need mounting and we can set up the paint facilities. The Strike Gundam is deceptively simple in its PG form, but the details are everywhere. In fact I would say I don't mind the streamlined build compared to the PG MK-II, and this kit will shine (ok, it will be dull in color) with all of the details painted on the inner frame.

1/100 Metal Gear RAY by Kotobukiya

Ooooooooooooh. Rob do want.

Disappointment with the 1/100 MG Jesta

I just cannot get used to the hands on this kit. They were molded separately from the normal trees- and it's that new molding technology Bandai has been using. However, as you will soon discover if you try to move the fingers too far they will go flying. Already I have had one finger go flying after I put too much pressure on it. I can't find it, and I don't have the patience to look any further than I did. I am going to see if I can order some aftermarket parts instead.

The dual peg system is just awful. There is one peg in the hand and one in the rifle that both fit into the same grove. Since the pegs are free to rotate up and down, they never line up and make it more of a pain in the ass to get the hands the way you want them.

Compounding these issues is the fact that he cannot hold his weapon very well. I am getting limp-wristing already, and immediately I suspect the construction of the hands.

Replacement parts for 1/100 MGs can be found here. Hobbylink Japan gets free advertising from me because they are saving my ass by offering an availability of kits and aftermarket parts. I have done business with them and I trust them 100%. Shipping has been early or on time.

EFSF Hands 1
Verniers (Boosters)

Gundam LED Lights

Bandai sells individual LED lights that work with some Master Grade Kits and Perfect Grade Kits. Though, for every gundam out there it may be difficult to develop a unique solution to get the head unit to light up. For those kits that do take the LED units though, I have come up with a design that will work.

The reason I choose to not import the LED light set is because they are expensive. I don't want to deal with sending them half way across the world when I can build them here AND have them in any color I want. With Bandai LEDs, you are stuck with orange or green, I think.

An example of LED light up eyes.

There are five parts to this device. The LED, the top plate, the batteries, then the bottom plate. I am using plates so that I do not have to solder to the battery. When the plates make contact with the batteries, they will help to complete a circuit. When you attach the negative LED lead to the bottom plate, you must ensure that that portion of the LED does not touch the top plate or a short circuit will result. Use electrical tape for this job.

It might be necessary to use a resistor in this circuit, due to the specs of the LED. If this is the case, the design will be moved into a new prototype stage which will accommodate for the resistor. Until the Jesta gets to my doorstep, I have no idea what the diameter of the LED unit is. I am guessing half an inch, but I want to measure just to be sure.

The drawing is not to scale. It may be that the batteries are way smaller than half an inch- and that may give me room for a switch.

Initial Thoughts on the 1/100 MG Jesta

I decided to run out the other day to Hobby Lobby and I picked up the last pair of plastic nippers. While my current pair is fine, it is about time I replace them for something a bit sharper. I will donate the pair to a friend who wants to get into model building. It's a nice store- unfortunately the closest one back home is 30-40 miles away. I'd rather suck it up and go to Pier 1 Imports 3 miles away. ANYWAYS, back on topic.

I decided to work on my MG Jesta. There is zero way in hell that I would have the time to build a complete PG Strike Gundam. The Jesta came highly recommended- and I didn't feel like fiddling with a real grade. I figured I would post my initial thoughts of the kit, which will be translated later into a video for RobsGamingNetwork.

I really like the construction of this kit. Outside of Wing master grades I am not terribly familiar with bread and butter grunt suits; or other gundams for that matter. He feels bigger and fatter than a Gundam Wing kit. This isn't a bad thing- I really like the proportions and how large the kit came out. I am very impressed with the LED that can be put into this kit. It isn't included in the box. Since I don't want to import Bandai's LED unit, I will design a system myself that can be plugged in. I wish all gundam chests had a cavity for this thing so I could light up the eyes for all of my master grades. That would be amazing.

There is a panel on the back that slides out with the neck and head assembly. Put your LED unit in their and boom! You can light the head up. You have to disassemble the kit (albeit very little) to turn the thing off, but that's ok. They made the process very painless. The head and visor remind me of master chief from halo, I a new to Gundam Unicorn stuff but I have always loved grunt suits- especially Zakus.

The colors are great, but it's going to be difficult mixing that very dark bluish-green to get the desired effect. I am hoping Testors makes a WW-II camo paint that is close to that shade. I had to experiment with Epyon, so I don't mind dipping my toes in (not into the paint) to see what mix is right for this kit. I love the arm joints and the gear detail that they added. I can't decide what to paint those joint areas. The shoulder and arm mechanisms are awesome. They can pivot up at 30 degrees, adding more mobility and movement to a kit that can already pull some pretty awesome poses.

Leg construction is simple, but there are a lot of details that make someone like me happy. My only complaint so far with the kit is the fragile hands. They are taking PG hand technology and scaling it down a little bit. I have nothing wrong with it- but all of the fingers are on ball joints. This makes it more difficult to keep the fingers in place as they want to fall off all the time. Be very careful of this fact. However, there is a peg on the palm of the hand that comes out and helps to secure the weapons. I have no doubt that the Jesta will be able to hold his weapons securely. I had a little fun here for the holidays, but this particular project will be put on hold as I get painting facilities up for 1/100 MG Wing Zero Proto.

Master Grade Wing Zero Proto Parts Part 03 480p [Weapons and Shield]

Master Grade Wing Zero Proto Parts Part 02 480p [Backpack and Head]

Master Grade Wing Zero Proto- Parts Part 01 480p [Chest, Waist, Legs, Arms]

Master Grade Wing Zero Proto Unboxing

Master Grade Wing Zero Proto- WIP 01

MS-06F Zaku II with Cannon

Not really much to say about this- other than I'm getting it. I'd like to preorder it, but I don't want to get stuck in the stockpile bug again where I keep buying kits but finish them at a slower rate. I might just wait and order it when I am just about ready (a convenience of tracking how long it takes to build a kit).

I borrowed HLJ's image- so they get free advertising. You can preorder it there. I've done business with them and they are great.

Oct 2013 Apartment Photo Tour

Things are coming together in this corner. I'd like to add more games to the shelves though. That or some plushies and figma.

New display shelf I picked up at Ikea. I really like it.

That- is a clean closet.

It's mine and you can't have it :p

Little lackluster in this corner. No worries- I'd like to get some posters up soon.

This is where my model building desk will go.

Something tells me I can fit more Gunpla in this shelf if I axe the wooden bases.

Still some stuff waiting to be moved around. We haven't decided what's going in this corner yet.

Roommate's lack of motivation to move his computer into his room. Our eventual dining room.

Our makeshift entertainment center. We recently bought those lamps. A friend of ours had one in her apartment and we wanted the same model.

Living room is coming to shape. Here is the brick wall of pleasantries.

Still gotta take some cardboard out later today and vacuum.

Large box promo displays. Mine. <3 br="">

Roommate's shinai and jamaican shark.

I need to clean the dishes today.

And the stove.

New Glass Display Cabinet for Gunpla

Awwww yeah.

Dinner at work last week.

Puddy (Kelly) back at the house in Illinois

If I fits, I sits.

Wing Zero Proto Released

I just got ringed on le old debit card for Wing Zero Proto. With shipping charges the price came to $54.77- or about 5300 JPY. $16.37 to ship 8000 miles via SAL? cheaper than what UPS will do stateside. Good thing I preordered- this bastards out of stock.

I won't be able to resist building it once it arrives. I'll break out the nippers and have a go with it.It was a must order.

Building My Model Building Station, Part 1

Moving across the country- I packed my supplies and left. I literally cannot do anything until I have a model building work station set up. This originally involved putting it in the living room- but the schematic for my apartment differed from what was advertised- so I have the room in my room to include my model building station.

For all of my furniture we have been using 2 by 4 wall STUDs. I figure it is such a common and strong material that I will continue with it. The model desk has to fulfill a couple of purposes.

1) Provide an area for me to build, sand and paint my models.
2) Provide adequate ventilation of paint fumes.
3) Protect from paint spillage.
4) Protect from water spillage.
5) Be comfortable to work at.

Item #1 is our primary goal. For item #2, a custom vent booth will be constructed in a week or two (no painting is required yet). #3- guard bars will be installed in determined locations to prevent paint jars from spilling over onto the carpet. #4 will involve putting down newspaper and getting a green workpad and #5 is addressed by making it wide enough underneath to fit my legs under, and high enough to match my desk at 29.5" off of the ground.

The lumber store sells Plywood in 4' by 8' sections. I like 15/32" thick plywood for two reasons. It is a prefect mix of affordability and strength in thickness- I would need to support something like 1/4" plywood.

If the top to my table is 60" by 26", we are going to have a lot of left over wood. Being resourceful is taking what you have and making use of it. My roommate and I are constructing an entertainment center for the living room- and we need plywood panels for the exterior. Turns out with some AUTOCAD calculations I can get five pieces out of one 4' by 8' section of plywood- four for the entertainment center and one for my desk. According to those same calculations, I will need four 2x4 STUDs at 8 feet long each.

This design for the station is based off of the design for my desk. It is open source- feel free to use it as you see fit. There are no dimensions on this diagram.

I have found through real life experience that the supports connecting the feet add a lot of stability to the desk. If you were really picky you could add a back support in the back- but my desk is sturdy enough that I don't believe it will be necessary as the load on this desk at any given time does not exceed 50 lbs (23kg).

This is the base design that will fulfill objective #1. To reach the others, modifications will be made to the desk at a later time, especially when the shelf unit for supplies and models is added. The world is your oyster so to speak when it comes to design- just make sure any structure you build can support the load you are putting on top of it.

Gundam Build Fighters

I just got done watching gundam build fighters- the new gundam anime that is airing in Japan. I'll be honest- at first I thought it was a silly idea having remakes of mobile suits and their variants fight each other. This series is an excellent way for Bandai to integrate their animated works (with Sunrise) and their plastic models- letting more people know about them. Though I am sure many Japanese and other peoples all over the world know about Gunpla, which stands for Gundam Plastic Models. More or less, this is a way for Bandai to get a boost out of their model sales and it may be targeted to a younger audience of 7-14 year olds.

When I got through a lot of the opening episode's cheesiness I began to enjoy the meat of the episode- which is mobile suits fighting each other. There have always been fantasies about which suit would win versus another- and this is kind of a neat way to portray that. The last thing I thought of was seeing Wing Gundam (reanimated) fight the Gyan.

They can really pull off some of the neater aspects of building as well- showcasing what it takes to build a plastic model kit and get people further along in the hobby- though I'm not sure how many will take the experience as far as some have.

The anime also encourages kit bashing. That is a cool concept that I would like to try- but am afraid that I might mess it up. Through this anime Bandai made the announcement of the All Gundam project- where I believe all of the lead Gundams from every series will come out in HG form based on a common frame (hint: not an inner frame). I don't know if this will tie in with the arcade games in Japan.

If I can get access to future episodes I might watch them. It's not really something I would hold in a lineup of anime to watch, but I'm sure it will stir the cooking pot of interest when it comes to gundam model building- something that is always welcome.

Proto Zero Pre-Order a MUST

Oh dear god yes. With all of my sweet, sweet love shall I preorder this kit. A few people have been complaining that this new MG "doesn't hold true to the original design from the anime". You could say that for a lot of the EW master grades, up to and including Epyon. I happen to love the retcons more than the anime versions.

1/144 RG Gundam MK II Titans Color WIP Part 3