Gamera, TP is slowly returning to the shelves here in Hawaii, original home of the TP hoarding craze.  But what we modelers really need are paper towels, of which I was able to get a pack last weekend.

I can’t wait for this insanity to end.  The pandemic too.

Well, that's a relief to hear. I haven't been to the grocery store in weeks, there are some advantages to being single. 

Gamera,

But if you are single, you have to do everything, including grocery shopping!  I know, because I’m in the same boat.  

Actually, I didn’t go out a lot before the lockdown, so aside from no trips to the hobby shop, it’s pretty much business as usual for me.

But my cat passed away on Monday, so I am now truly living alone.  I’ll try filling the empty space with model building.  I have to finish the Space Piggy in his honor.

Well, I live mostly off canned food and TV dinners. I can get milk. bread, etc at the local convenience store (and yeah I pay more than the grocery but it's worth avoiding the hassle).  

As an intervert it really hasn't affected my life that much either, go to work, come home, never went out much anyway. I do like eating out once in awhile though. I'm getting sick of Dairy Queen and Quiznos so I really want to get some real food for a change. 

I'm so sorry to hear about your cat. 

Real G

what kind of weathering do you have in mind?  It's a space MS, so... SPACE MUD???    Sorry, a friend that is obsessed with weathering concocted the term so that he could demand all my space MS should be covered in mud.  Maybe crispy marks and soot?  Bandai's box art as of late has some great heavy space weathering ideas, like the Jegan.

I have no idea. I was thinking of doing it really rusty and grimey. I linked the video above of Dr. Faust weathering his Dark Eldar and I'm probably going to try doing something similar. If push comes to shove I'll just take a picture of the front skirt armour and say "Is that dirty enough for you!" It's basically a sausage................

I started the putty work yesterday and that was not fun. I used super glue since I didn't trust the plastic to weld together well and it's... complicated. The inner tail is extremely hard to sand but I've managed to pull it off. I threw on some black primer on the legs arms and tail to see if it needs more sanding. I'm usually a perfectionist but for this one I'm willing to let things slide. As long as it's not an obvious problem then it'll stay as it is. It won't be that obvious if it's done in dark blues and black any way. I have a plan to jazz it up a little but you will have to wait to see that. Going back to the first colour scheme I ever seriously painted.

Sorry to hear about your cat G. It sucks to lose companions and is especially hard for those who don't venture out much.

Gamera, see the "What's Cooking" thread for some tasty home cooked ideas.  The sodium and other stuff in canned/boxed instant stuff will get you eventually!

Robotism, no space mud on this box art, but it might provide some inspiration:

Thanks guys for the kind words about my cat.  He (the Chicken) was a household fixture for 16 years.  He got me up in the morning and made sure I went to bed at night.

Notice he is perpendicular to the long dimension of the bed, standard cat procedure to use up all the space.

I did work on the Space Piggy last night, and one last round of touch up filler needs to be done before the painting starts.

Thanks Real G, you're right- my diet is a mess. It needs help. 

I'm more of a 'dog person' but I'm so sorry to hear about Chicken. Sixteen years- wow!

Looking forward to more on the Space Piggy or as I'm going to call it- 'Spiggy.' 

Sorry about you cat, I've gone through it several times.  Too bad you don't live where I do, I could turn over one or two to fill your days.  I had a neighbor give me two kittens a couiple months ago that she found in her back yard.  The mother, who hangs around owith the outside crowd brought the third over to my place the next day.  When she walked off for a while I grabbed the third and brought her inside with the others.  I put her into the open door of the cage whre the other two were and she walked right over to them and fell asleep with them.

You could always go to the shelter or take in a stray.

Ikar01, my house has been a stray cat sanctuary for almost as long as I have been around. They just keep coming every time we lose one.  The one time my sister brought a cat home from the shelter, THREE strays showed up the next day!  Years later after two of them died, two more showed up, one of which was the Chicken.  We were going to call him the Dirty Chicken (see, there is a tie-into this thread) because he was always dirty and very skittish.  He was the last of the four to pass.  In a way they were the lucky bunch, all living 16 to 18 years.

My sister has yet another cat that washed up on our shore as well as one that she picked up in a parking lot.

I need an emotional break for now, so hopefully God’s student help will take his Starbuck’s latte off the “send cat” button for a while.

Back to the Dirty Robot Build.  Time is getting short, so progress is a must.

Yeah, I'm running out of time too.  I have got to come up with some way to dirty up a city fighter.  Maybe a few scars from lasers or an explosion, or some brick dust.  Most of it would havt to be on the lower half, this thing weighs in at 100 tons and roughly the heigth of a three story house.

I'm surprising myself by making good progress:

Next will be more weathering and maybe some mud.

I think you need this G. It's what to look for in future feline friends.

 I'm going to modify the prototype woundwort colour scheme to do something more unique but still leaning on that deep blue. I'll disassemble as much as I can tonight, prime it tomorrow and see how we go. I've got that terrible drive where you want to wander off and do other projects but I knew it would happen so made the timeline too tight to allow it.

BL: Ohhh that looks really nice! Love the is that whitewash wears off? In any case it came out really well!!!

Ikar: Dust from collapsed buildings sounds good to me! Looking forward to seeing more from you and Robotism.

Anyway here I am. Sorry about the photo quality- I should have took the pictures earlier when the sun was still out.

Black primer:

And the black chrome. Which I love the looks of. But still I'm not totally sure it or the gloss black really captures the look of the movie though...

I really like that weather Nuc, maybe give it some tone shifting by stippling some blue over different areas so it looks like different depth scratches?

Ikar, I don't know if it's just me but I can't see the photo bucket images.

G, I like how your kit looks like a metal album cover skull when disassembled. What shade of pink are you going to paint it? ;)

Gamera, how did you get the gloss black so shiny? Whats your weathering plans?

Bad, those colours go together extremely well. Liking the way it looks on the backpack especially. Are you going to do some streaking like water running down taking the winter wash with it too?

Here's what I got up to last night.

Rust is one of those things I've found a recipe I think looks great and enjoy applying to pieces. Got a whole heap more to do up this way and then paint over it. I'm basically throwing scale out the window and going for rule of cool here.

Oh I love that rusty look Robotism!!! 

And the black on OF is just plain old Testor's Model Master acrylic gloss black. And the black chrome is Alclad II. 

Not sure how I'll try to weather him. The only time you see him in the movie is the streets of Sydney and on a frozen tundra. I'll probably go with the tundra, but not much I can do there other than maybe put some ice on his feet and lower legs. 

Robotism

Gamera, how did you get the gloss black so shiny? Whats your weathering plans?

Bad, those colours go together extremely well. Liking the way it looks on the backpack especially. Are you going to do some streaking like water running down taking the winter wash with it too?

 

Here's what I got up to last night.

Rust is one of those things I've found a recipe I think looks great and enjoy applying to pieces. Got a whole heap more to do up this way and then paint over it. I'm basically throwing scale out the window and going for rule of cool here.

 

Gamera, the paint on the Obsidian Fury looks awesome!

Robo, I love the rust. What's your technique? For the Zaku, I'm in the middle of doing some drybrushing and chipping. I'll probably do some streaking as well after that.

It's fun watching these builds evolve, keep them coming!

Rust Recipe isn't fixed exactly because the paint drawers a mess but it always turns out if you're in the right range. This one was Black undercoat, Vallejo model colour burnt umbra, Model colour air rust, panzer aces shadow flesh. Stipple them on with an old brush and in this case a sponge and it looks okay. The secret is Vallejo's rust washes, stipple them on (rubbing off with my finger as they dry in places) and it adds a huge amount of depth to the rust. Going for more of a red tone prevents it going cartoony but the washes add that hint of orange you need without making it obvious.

Writing that made me think I should try painting a camo the same way, i bet that would get some really interesting results.

Robotism,

That rust effect looks like a nice patina.  I agree using the technique to apply camo colors would look good.

The Space Piggy will first be painted “Antiflash White”, which is a yellowish off white.  This is the standard color of the Mercenary Forces space suits.  It will then get all its service stencilling, followed by a sloppy, thinned, hand applied camo of RLM-75 Grau Violet, avoiding the stencilling as best as possible.  The centers of the camo pattern will be infilled with airbrushed color.  Then the unit markings will be applied over the camo.  The intent is to represent a factory fresh suit getting a field applied camo scheme.  The crew would obviously apply the unit specific markings last.  And then all kinds of gross colors will be slopped on to the details to give the kit life.  This finishing system is consistent with the original artist’s approach.

Robotism: I love the results you got there! 

Real G: Ohhhh, that sounds cool. Looking forward to more photos of Spiggy. 

BTW: Pulled out 'Pacific Rim: Uprising' last night. The black chrome I used is pretty darn close- much better than I remembered. I'm going to go ahead and start decaling this weekend. And the fight on the Siberian tundra OF is very much covered by snow and ice. I'm going to see if I can weather him that way. 

Here is the very old (1990s) Aeromaster primer that I am using for finish filling.  Gotta hand it to the pre low-VOC era paint for their longevity.  The primer is very "watery" but builds fast due to the short drying time.  See how it just soaked into my reddish home brew filler and completely covered it in a nice, hard, smooth finish.

The last bit of seam filling is done.  I just have to sand out the thighs and then it's painting time.

A last look at the Space Piggy before paint.

The SAFS suit next to it was my first Mak (SF3D) kit, bought and built in 1985.  My how time flies.

Some where between my desk and my desk I've lost the back of a leg. It was clearly there when I painted it and now it's not, not on the floor or on the desk it's self. So the bloody parts gnomes have come and ransacked my desk I guess.

Built a suitable replacement at least and did some putty work tonight. Doesn't feel like I made much progress though. I'm at that point I just want the kit done. I still have stuff to build with it's weapons as well.

Robotism

Some where between my desk and my desk I've lost the back of a leg. It was clearly there when I painted it and now it's not, not on the floor or on the desk it's self. So the bloody parts gnomes have come and ransacked my desk I guess.

Built a suitable replacement at least and did some putty work tonight. Doesn't feel like I made much progress though. I'm at that point I just want the kit done. I still have stuff to build with it's weapons as well.

 

Ugh, vanishing parts are the worst phenomenon of all time. I think they go to the dimension with the socks that get lost in the drier.

Added some streaking and finished up the backpack today. Also added streaking to the Zaku.

I put some mud on his feet and on his knee prop thingy. I'll post pics tomorrow after it's all dry.

Looking good BL!

Robotism, if you built a replacement part, pretend to glue it in place, then leave the room and come back after a time.  Look on the floor and your lost part might be there!

The Space Piggy is going for a bath now.  Painting starts tonight.

Real G

Looking good BL!

Robotism, if you built a replacement part, pretend to glue it in place, then leave the room and come back after a time.  Look on the floor and your lost part might be there!

The Space Piggy is going for a bath now.  Painting starts tonight.

 

So I got the feet all muddy. Having never tried making and applying mud before I'm happy with the results.

I'll post pics of him all together a bit later.

Feel like I was falling behind on this build, but I made up for some of it this weekend. I have the cammo done.

I have started on detail painting, but no pictures yet.

I'm going to drop from the group build. Usually when I build a kit I get an affection for it, it becomes something I want to see built up and cool looking. With this one I didn't get any sort of bond to it, I build because I said I would do it. Painting seemed cool but didn't really work and I realized I enjoyed painting but I didn't enjoy painting this kit. The final nail in the coffin was trying to convert it to Mobile armour mode. I was thinking of toughing it out and using it as a test bed for weathering techniques. The kits not able to transform into MA mode, the legs are slightly too close to the torso so it can't do it properly. Since that was my last ditch attempt to get something out of it, I'm considering it a failed project. I picked a kit that was shelf warming, thinking I would do it for the group build but it turns out that was the wrong approach. I'm going to clear it off the desk and work on something I have a passion for.

Robotism

I'm going to drop from the group build. Usually when I build a kit I get an affection for it, it becomes something I want to see built up and cool looking. With this one I didn't get any sort of bond to it, I build because I said I would do it. Painting seemed cool but didn't really work and I realized I enjoyed painting but I didn't enjoy painting this kit. The final nail in the coffin was trying to convert it to Mobile armour mode. I was thinking of toughing it out and using it as a test bed for weathering techniques. The kits not able to transform into MA mode, the legs are slightly too close to the torso so it can't do it properly. Since that was my last ditch attempt to get something out of it, I'm considering it a failed project. I picked a kit that was shelf warming, thinking I would do it for the group build but it turns out that was the wrong approach. I'm going to clear it off the desk and work on something I have a passion for.

 

Sorry to hear, Robo, but I get it. We all have a Shelf of Doom for a reason. I know I've gotten kits before I though would be awesome, but when I had time to build them it was like 'meh'.

Nuc, that Gouf is looking nice!

I'm calling the Zaku done. Here are some final pics of it:

I'm glad I took part in this build! I've been wanting to try some of the techniques I used with this guy but this is the first chance I've had to use them. I also can't remember the last time I built a model this quickly - but being stuck at home really helped there. I'll keep watching every one else with interest!

BL: Ohhhh, I love that!!! Great job!! I love the chipped paint and whitewash and the mud on the feet!!!!

Stephan: Great job there too! I love the camo and chipped paint.

Real G: Looking forward to more of the Spiggy!

Robotism: Ohh, and I loved where she was going so far. I hope you'll pick her up and finish her sometime in the future. Good luck with your next project.

I started to apply the 'decals' to Obsidian Fury Sat. I say 'decals' 'cause the kit didn't include any. Just friggin STICKERS!!! I tried the stickers and they looked terrible. So I'm trying to paint in the markings, thankfully there isn't much of them. 

Gamera

BL: Ohhhh, I love that!!! Great job!! I love the chipped paint and whitewash and the mud on the feet!!!!
 

I started to apply the 'decals' to Obsidian Fury Sat. I say 'decals' 'cause the kit didn't include any. Just friggin STICKERS!!! I tried the stickers and they looked terrible. So I'm trying to paint in the markings, thankfully there isn't much of them. 

 

Gamera, thanks! I appreciate the kind words.

Is Obsidian Fury a Bandai kit? The do so love their stickers. I've built enough Gundam models to have bought a few of their Gundam waterslide decal sheets to replace the dumb stickers with (the decals I put on my Zaku were out of my spares pile). And you're right, the stickers are usually so thick you just can't make them look good.