Wave 1/72 Destroid Tomahawk (In-Box review & WIP)

This will be the last build for the GB so shelved for the time being.

Hey MM, where you @ on this one. 

Yeah, I actually tend to go with references I can gather of the studio minis themselves, but there are exceptions ( such as an off-white TIE fighter from Ep 4, instead of the actual powder blue that was used and turned out to be non-photogenic ).  I figure much of the "on-screen" appearance will come out under lighting for photography. 

As far as that old Ent-D model, the annoying thing was the LHS got a hold of Model Master's ( then ) new international colors line a few months after I finished it, and two of the Russian colors were perfect matches for what I'd mixed.

Kugai

Cosmic J:

 

 

 

Not that accuracy is critical w/ a sci-fi kit.

 

 

Now you tell me, years after I spent 3 hours going frame-by frame through the saucer crash scene in ST:Generations and mixing about a dozen samples trying to match the hull plating colors...

LOL! Sorry man. If I'd have known you back then, I promise I'd have told you.

The correct color for any model is the stuff of endless internet debate. If questioned about the accuracy of colors on my kits, I just do what I've seen other folks do - I cite some obscure internet guru/episode guide/original model-maker/animator and assure the questioner that my colors are as close to the actual [original filming model/craft-as-viewed-on-television-screens/photos taken at studio back lot] as I could possibly get it.

If they persist, you can always just say that you Really Don't Care (even if you actually do). That always works for me.

No updates from me for the next 36 or so hours as I am heading out of town to pick up a few kits.

Will post an  update with the last 2 GB entries on the BG thread when I get back.

I know 2 kits that are confirmed to be picked up but might add a few others that want to go home with me.

Cosmic J

 

 

 

Not that accuracy is critical w/ a sci-fi kit.

 

Now you tell me, years after I spent 3 hours going frame-by frame through the saucer crash scene in ST:Generations and mixing about a dozen samples trying to match the hull plating colors...

Mad-Modeler

Forgot to add.

 

I will have the painting guide from the instructions translated by tomorrow for interested parties.

Thank you. When I did my little 1/100 kit, I had to guess at colors based off the box art. Not that accuracy is critical w/ a sci-fi kit.

I may do the next one in that bluish-grey on the cover of the 1/72 Arii box.

I don't think there will be much difference between the builds once they are finished.

The Arii kit builds up well but can be improved with small touches here and there.

My first build also won't be the Tomahawk, got a few smaller builds lined up first.

Should be interesting how the two of these compare after building.  I am sure the Wave kit far supersedes  the ARII, but I believe I can pull as good a build from it as you will from this one too.  I will just have to add a few things that is missing from my version of the kit and work a bit harder to bring to the standard of the Wave kit.  The ARII does not have alot of gimmicks, but does appear to have enough movement to make it possible and interesting.  And another feature between the two is the different color schemes.  Should be interesting to see which color brings out the best features of the kit.  I am very partial to Earth Tones and I am not crazy about Greys, but we will see.  I really like the Vamp decal that came w/the ARII kit, but noticed that many of the same markings appear on both kits.

Ok, here are the colour instructions(translated) for the Wave Tomahawk kit.

Below are 2 links to scans of them:
http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/image/10110457t/60/1
http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/image/10110457t/60/2

Doing them in 6 rows from top to bottom and left to right,

Row 1:
Main Body Colour: H79,39 Dark Yellow 45% + H51,11 Dark Gray 45% + H1,1 White 10%
Dark Brown: H37,43 Wood Brown 35% +H79,3Dark Yellow(alternate 19 SandyBrown) 35% + H1,1 White 30%

Row 2:
Red: H86,68 Monza Red
Black: H12,33 Semi Gloss Black

Row 3:
Silver: H8,8 Silver
White: H11,62 Semi Gloss White

Row 4:
Gray: H53,13 Neutral Gray
Khaki: H81,55 Khaki

Row 5:
Blue: H15,65 Indie Blue
Clear Red: Below: H8.8 Silver On Top: H90,47 Clear Red

Row 6:
Clear Green: H94,138 Clear Green.

As always the colour codes for Gunze that start with H are the Hobby colours, ones without are for the other colour range.

Happy painting.

P.S.: Those were easy to translate as it only involved Katakana.

Forgot to add.

I will have the painting guide from the instructions translated by tomorrow for interested parties.

Phil.

Agree the kit is nice and worth it but pricey now with the high yen. I love cockpits and was disappointed that the back with the seat is well detailed and that's it. Also you can see the Polycap once the cockpit is opened. No decal, etc for the instrument panel.

Another feature that don't work(yet) on my kit is when you push the seat backwards the periscope is supposed to pop up a bit.

 Another thing that the pics don't show is the missiles in the chest-area are in 2 parts(left/right row) makes painting easier.

Also when you open/close the chest hatches the missile assembly slides in and out respectively.

Lots of clear parts Periscope is a clear part as are all the sensors and lights.

Overall a very nice kit and falls together easily.

Smeagol.

Not going to drill out the arm barrels, they will work fine as they are just need to get the right shade of black to make them appear deeper.

Looks like a nice, neat little kit.

Seems to eclipse the old Imai kit by a wide margin and though pricey, is still cheaper than what people are asking for the old Imai kit.

If the barrels are not hollow may I suggest hollowing them out with a rottary tool?

Japanese kits hardly ever use the FS-numbers, they usually give the mix ratio for the Gunze line of paints plus colour chips.

If you are interested Hobby Search has scans of the Instructions for the kits they sell. Go to their website and enter Tomahawk in the search field.

Looking at the pics, I can see why making the barrel openings deeper would be an issue.  Thanks for linking them. 

As for the two-tone brown you mentioned, any info on FS numbers or other color-identifying details?  I have one of the Bandai 1:100 kits in the "to-finish" pile and have been debating what colors to use.

Painting Instructions are only for the standard version i.e. two-tone brown.

The box cover is nice. Do they give you suggestions for painting options?

Finished test-snapping the kit and took some pics along the way. Pics are here:

 http://s996.photobucket.com/albums/af84/Mad-Modeler/Tomahawk/?start=all

Kit assembles fairly quickly but I would treat it as a glue-it kit.

Found a few areas that will need a bit of detail and attention.

Next step is taking the kit apart again, final cleanup of parts and start assembly for puttying, etc.

As expected from the instructions some joints are loose(hate polycaps), some gimmicks don't work well, etc.

Most of those will be fixed when I glue the kit into the desired end-pose.

Started on snapping sub-assemblies.

Noticed one thing many parts are attached to the runners with under-gates, not a problem but some residue of those attachment points are in tight spaces. Already nicked on part(will get a touch of putty later on.  Recommend jeweller files for a lot of the parts cleanup.

Kit is snap-together but will benefit from gluing(what I will be doing during final assembly).