Gundam GB 2005 - To March 1, 2006

Last Exile was definitely something.  aside from that Trigun, Bebop, Full Metal Alchemist, Samurai Champloo, Naruto were definitely some quality series that ended up being shown here in the states.  I personally really really like Full Metal Panic! and the currently running Full Metal Panic! The 2nd Raid.  Watched them over 6 times so far and still not bored of them.  Also for some war stuff, Zipang is a good series to watch as well, if you wanna know what happens when an japanese aegis cruiser goes head to head against the Yamato before the battle of midway in WWII.  (That scene was made so well that every hair on my arms just raises every single time i watch it.)

nathaniel wrote:

About a year ago though, I saw Last Exile, Steam Boy, the new Ghost in the Shell movie (the cgi one) and started watching Gundam stuff.  It was cool to see that there was still quality story telling anime that didn't rely on shock value and the like.  Now I'm hooked again.

Sorry your friends are pervs.  The element is there, just doesn't mean we have to watch it, right?  As for all those series you just mentioned, I either own or have watched.  In fact, I have Last Exile in my bag, and I've got to finish watching the last 1/3 of the series.  I'm planning on doing that here at work.

Have you watched Rurouni Kenshin?  Awesome series, still need to purchase it.  Also try to get your hands on Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex and Second Gig.  I haven't been able to watch Second Gig yet, but apparently it's going to be a bit more action oriented than SAC.  Blah, I can ramble on forever about Anime, even though I'm only a beginner Otaku.

2 Days till I can work again on my GB entries. :~(

... I forgot my old e-mail address, so I just made a new account.... (I am kinda angry about that.... But eh, not a BIG loss )

Still working on the Freedom... Need to get back to it though -__-

How the heck do you reply without quoteing someone?

ClumsyModeler wrote:

Yeah, I tried swanny's method but I managed to just smear everything all over the place.  It was horrible.  I may want to try the non-cheap q-tip swabs to accomplish the task, or just work faster.  The traditional puttying went quickly, so it's not a horrible thing to deal with, especially when you're using files to take it down quickly!

I think I'm going to try the same method used on resin kits.  I'm going to thin the putty until it's paintable and then paint it where I need it in thin coats.  I haven't tried Swanny's method either, but I think he uses the more expensive cosmetics swabs rather than cheapo q-tips.

ClumsyModeler wrote:

BTW, nice Avatar. I knew I could count on you to have an Anime Avatar and not leave me as the sole Anime lover on this site.

I've actually only returned to watching anime regularly in the last year.  I used to watch a ton of it a number of years ago while attending university.  The problem was my friends were really getting into the nastier, crass, borderline hentai stuff and I lost interest in watching it with them. 

About a year ago though, I saw Last Exile, Steam Boy, the new Ghost in the Shell movie (the cgi one) and started watching Gundam stuff.  It was cool to see that there was still quality story telling anime that didn't rely on shock value and the like.  Now I'm hooked again.

I like your Avatar too, Ed is a nutcase.

All I can say about your Gundam right now is that it's going to be HUGE.

well still trying to figure this new thing out so i finally got an avtar up and it is working and in the process of trying to find the other one i found that one. well any ways sorry i forgot, the zeta is a high grade. it actually is already in progress right now, i already have the upper torso done now i just need to get onto the rest. then i need to figure out what extra parts i got with the Tallgeese( it actually has a few extra trees cause it came from a friend of a friend who is going to iraq.) i shall now call him a god(jk). i have been looking for this kit forever. i might try and use spare parts on the ZZZ not sure were or how but i am probly going to just put it on hold until i get the Meteor and dendrobium. but after what i found on ebay yesterday i might have to wait longer. i found a limited MG RX-79(G) birthday edition and the jungle cammo edition. i swear where is a tree of money when you need one. well gotta go get working on the zeta and then its off to bed. oh well sleep is over rated when it comes to gundam models right.

BTW, nice Avatar. I knew I could count on you to have an Anime Avatar and not leave me as the sole Anime lover on this site.

is my avatar not showing up it may not neccessarily be anime but hey it is chibi couf and zaku and i don't know about many others but i think most of us are probly anime lovers.POWER TO THE OTAKU!!!!!!!!!

nathaniel wrote:

Are you just going to do the typical model putty job where you fill things in as thinly as possible and sand?  Have you seen this method of puttying: http://www.swannysmodels.com/Seams.html

Yeah, I tried swanny's method but I managed to just smear everything all over the place.  It was horrible.  I may want to try the non-cheap q-tip swabs to accomplish the task, or just work faster.  The traditional puttying went quickly, so it's not a horrible thing to deal with, especially when you're using files to take it down quickly!

BTW, nice Avatar. I knew I could count on you to have an Anime Avatar and not leave me as the sole Anime lover on this site.

ClumsyModeler wrote:

Knuckled down on the kit and decided the only way to get it done was to putty it traditionally.  Good news is I've now started learning how to putty correctly, and I'm not so bothered by it any more.

Are you just going to do the typical model putty job where you fill things in as thinly as possible and sand?  Have you seen this method of puttying:

http://www.swannysmodels.com/Seams.html

I'm going to get my workshop/office cleaned up tommorow.  Then the puttying begins.

Good job on the seems on the legs.  It looks like one piece of plastic.

I-beam wrote:

I actually got my kits today!!!!  The Ex kits Salamis and Magellan.  I could post pics of the sprues if anyone is interested but pics won't do them justice.  They look great and are well engineered.

Great!  I've always like space ship models.  If you do scan the sprues and need someone to host them, email/private message me.

I have about an equal amount of non-Gundam kits and Gundam kits.  I do find that Bandai brought the engineering of the sprues to a whole new level.  It might just be that I haven't don't a high quality armour kit in a long time, but the Gundam stuff seems to be above and beyond most other models in quality of engineering.  Especially when you consider how many of the kits are posable after assembly.

I-beam wrote:

BTW: I just hit "reply" on the 1st post on the screen.  Not really replying to Mustangs post but I can't figure out how to just reply to the thread???  Does it make a difference?

I don't think it matter.  I really miss the quick reply.  I would just cut and paste what I wanted to quote from the previous page and just reply to everyone at the same time.  Now I have the thread open in one tab and the reply box open in another.  Annoying.

Overall though, I like the changes.  I think it looks great and is very readable.  PMing and Avatars are also neat.  But the Quick Reply was the best feature ever.

mustangs102 wrote:

but i would like to add a 1/144 zeta to the project and also a 1/100 Tallgeese III. if that is alright i would greatly apreiciate it.

What grade are they?  There's only the one 1/100 Tallgeese, but what about the zeta?  It seems that lots of us are adding a second kit as we wait for stuff to finish our first.  I thought about picking up a macross kit instead of starting the Lunamaria Hawke Gunner Zaku and joining that group build, but I think I'll stick with what I have instead of spending more cash.

@A Mejias - That's quite the time you had with the rodent.  The only similar experience I've ever had was with a pigeon.  It crapped everywhere as I tried to get it out. I guess it's also happened a few times with neighbourhood cats.  They didn't emulate the pigeon, so that was good.  And coming up stairs to find you dad had arrived!  Classic!

My God, man!  That's funny as heck!  He didn't hurt any of your kits, did he?  Hope he wasn't stashing Gundam parts in his cheeks for the winter...

OK, so I had a bit of a "squirrel cop" day today. (See link below.)

This afternoon I headed downstairs to my basement office to get some work down before moving on to finish cleaning the house before my Dad arrives the next day. When I reached the bottom of the stairs I heard a noise coming from my Gundam kit stack. I looked in that direction and saw a gray streak flash by me. My lower brain registered it as a medium sized squirrel. SQUIRREL? I then noticed a misplaced shaft of light and realized he must have gotten through a small space next to the air conditioner duct.

He went right for my office and after running over every surface and leaving his grubby paw prints on everything he tried hiding in the corner behind the storage cabinet. I assessed the situation, formulated a plan and put it into action.

Priority one: Get him out of the office… I tried chasing him back to the main basement area and out to freedom through the windows I had opened for him, but the little freak actually GROWLED at me! "Dude, I’m trying to help you here." Ingrate! After some more cajoling and much rearranging of furniture, that task was completed.

Then it was twenty laps around the workshop and photo setup. NOOOO, he’s in my Gundam kits! Boxes go everywhere… NUTS! I forgot to close the office door. I chase him back out of there and remember the upstairs door is still open too. I run up close door, run back down. Now to figure out where his hiding again. Another ten laps and he’s still not seeing the ramps and ledges I set up for him to get out! What is wrong with this guy!

This was going on for almost an hour. At that point I’m exhausted and covered is sweat. See, part of my action plan was to suite up for protection. I’ve heard that they could carry diseases like rabies and that they "always go for the eyes!" I had put on my work boots and some heavy jeans and tucked jeans into my thick boot socks. I didn’t want it running up my leg. I put on a heavy work shirt and work gloves. I also tucked the shirt in pants and the sleeves into the gloves. And a knit hat for the head. I looked like Bill Cosby’s little brother Russell. Oh, I forgot to mention it was almost 70F degrees out side today.

By now I was really tempted to call the local cops to see if they could connect me to some city agency that actually does this kind of thing for a living, but I kept thinking of the "Squirrel Cop" story and it running under the hot water heater. Just then I heard some noises coming from upstairs. I thought, OH NO, there are more of them in the house! So I run upstairs with the long poking stick in one hand and the wide herding plank in the other (also part of the action plan). But just as I reached the top I realize it’s my Dad, who was just arriving from his drive up from Miami. A day early! He looks at me up and down and says, "Do you have company over?"

For the "Squirrel Cop" story see http://www.thislife.org/pages/descriptions/98/115.html  This is one of the funniest things I’ve ever heard!

Alright, as promised:
The legs, don't mind what appears to be pink booties, it's just primer over red plastic.


The arms.  The shoulder and forearm armor is not yet glued in place, since I don't have the base coat of paint on the arms yet.


Thoughts?

I like the upgrade, but with all new things there will be a few issues to iron out in time.  Of course, personal opinions will vary.  I like being able to have an avatar, and I'm sure everyone's going to love the PM system once they start using it.

As for my build, I got antsy and decided to test fit all the bits and pieces together to see how it was coming along.  I might say that it's beginning to look like a Gundam!  I'll get some pics up of how it looks in a few minutes so we may share the experience together.

mustangs102
Thanks for the leads, I'll try to follow them up sometime in the future.

well clumsy moler i don't know if they carry it but you might want to try bob's hoobies and also there is a hoby shop near the Englewood light rail station on broadway but they don't realy have many special thing. i am not really sure as to the name of that hobby shop but the cross streets are Englewood and Braodway(i think).

well my opinion is that the upgrade was pointless and stupid it looked better and worked better before. i hate not being able to use the quick reply we should all e-mail finscale and tell them to reinstate the quick reply.

but anyways, to the subject at hand i was wondering if it is alright to add one or two models to my build list. the ZZZ is going to be a while before i can do much else, i still need to get a 1/550 dendrobium and a 1/144 meteor unit but don't have the money right now. but i would like to add a 1/144 zeta to the project and also a 1/100 Tallgeese III. if that is alright i would greatly apreiciate it.

From what I can tell, it doesn't matter which post you click on to reply.  All it does is open the box for your message.  We need our quick reply box back...

If you want to post pics of the trees, it might help someone, but if you don't I don't think anyone's going to hold it against you.   

Well this is my 1st post since the new forum and I have good news.  "I just saved a bunch of money on my car insurance ..."  Just kidding I actually got my kits today!!!!  The Ex kits Salamis and Magellan.  I could post pics of the sprues if anyone is interested but pics won't do them justice.  They look great and are well engineered.

BTW: I just hit "reply" on the 1st post on the screen.  Not really replying to Mustangs post but I can't figure out how to just reply to the thread???  Does it make a difference?

Ohhh!  How I missed this page!  OK, here's the deal:

Knuckled down on the kit and decided the only way to get it done was to putty it traditionally.  Good news is I've now started learning how to putty correctly, and I'm not so bothered by it any more.  The legs are complete, the feet need a bit more work concerning gap filling.  I've started assembling the arms, but the shoulder paldrons and the finned sensor on the forearms still need to be completed.

Good progress is being made, and I should have assembly complete by the end of this weekend.  Hopefully painting can commence next week.

mustangs102
Unfortunately I don't have any pics of crashed A-6's, nor did I find any when searching for them this morning.  I'll keep an eye out, however.  Besides Colpar (Expensive!!!) do you know of any place that carries Tamiya paints or Sci-Fi kits?

Clumsymodeler: i saw that when i checked out your portfolio i actually am not to far from you i am in littleton. the only place that i really know about is colpar. but i am trying to find other places. i only wish i could work at buckley. i love aircraft i actually am getting ready to start building a diarama that includes a botched kit i maid years ago of an A-6 Intruder, crash landing on an air strip. hey can you by any chance get ahold of any photos of crashed A-6's that pretty much did a belly landing with one rear wheel still intact and extended. if you could i would love to see some of them for ideas man. after i get done with that i am going to get ready to build a 737-300 1/144(perfect scale) and make it so that it looks like it got tromped on by a gundam. probably my other chop i did which me and my friends like to call the SUPERCHOP, aka SMS-23-6 SuperChop( there is a good reason behind its nickname) i will try and post pics of it soon on my photobucket. well gotta go and do some other anime and gundam things. so ttyl.

Nathaniel: Thanks! The scans are only 100 DPI so they don't do the kits justice! Both kits have really impressive fine detail! I'm almost afraid to paint them for fear that is will be obscured.

I may try the lacquer thinner + Tamiya paint technique instead of spray can primer.

QUOTE: Originally posted by nathaniel @A Mejias: More excellent photography related information! Thanks! I got my digital camera a couple months back and other than it, I've only ever owned a 35mm (which I haven't used since June, 2000). I've been doing my share of reading, but it's great to see info about a model/gundam specific set up. I love the Turn A scans. It's great to be able to see the details of a kit without having to buy it first. Nathaniel

@A Mejias: More excellent photography related information! Thanks! I got my digital camera a couple months back and other than it, I've only ever owned a 35mm (which I haven't used since June, 2000). I've been doing my share of reading, but it's great to see info about a model/gundam specific set up.

I love the Turn A scans. It's great to be able to see the details of a kit without having to buy it first.

As for me, I've decided I can't wait for the primer-- it hasn't been shipped 2 months after I ordered it. I'm going to get the puttying done tommorow and shelf the Duel Gundam until the primer finally does arrive. I'm going to be starting the HG Zaku Gunner Warrior 1/144 which I'm going to paint as Lunamaria Hawke's Zaku Gunner but in metallic candy apple red rather than pink and red.

I've updated the participants page, let me know if I made a mistake or missed anything.

Nathaniel

mustangs102
You live in Colorado? Whereabouts? I'm in Denver, but work in Aurora at Buckley AFB.

As for cheap places locally to buy AB stuff, I haven't a clue. Sorry, I know I'm worthless.

Mustangs102:
For great air brushes and supplies at great prices check out: Free shipping on orders of $45 or more.
www.dixieart.com

I highly recommend the Paasche H Set. Easy to clean, sprays almost anything can do fine lines and it's a workhorse. My brother has been using his for almost 20 years! He and all his friends use the H at home and work. See links.
I just bought mine from Dixie Art:
www.dixieart.com/HSet.html
www.dixieart.com/Paasche_Airbrush_Main.html

Links:
www.PaulMejias.com
www.EldritchDesign.com

well have been gone for a few days had to work(grrrrrrrr) did a remod ....again. all it was was i put my dragons on instead of my friends. it looks so much better. still have absolulty no idea as to whether or not it will still tranform, highly doubt but never know, but hey that is the point behind the gundam chops.... isn't it. well have to save up money and get an air brush system. anyone know of a really cheap site or store to go to in colorado. get paid soon so yay for me. i am also in the process of building a 1/144 zeta my friend got me at NDK. anyone mind if i build that in this build at the same time? sorry no pics of the updated kit so far i will try and get those up soon.


FG: looks like your kid is already becoming a gundam geek lets keep it going. i never have been fond of sd kits but those i might actually get they are sooooo cuuuuutttte. esp. the RX-79BD. i might try and get that one. as for assembling if you don't want any seems then i would recommend a fairly extensive process:
1.assemble
2.sand
3. disassemble
4.paint
5. sand excess paint from areas that are going to be glued together were seems are going to be
6. glue together
7.let glue finish up about 1-2 days
8. sand any seemed areas
9. paint again

the initial building like said before is just to get a good idea as to where the seems are going to be and where prob areas are. you may need to assemble sand and reassemble many times. to get the fit to work. be sure to take your time in the process. when doing the final painting you will need to use something to block excess paint from hitting other areas, for this i recommend you use regular masking tape w/ thin and flexible paper and also some model masking tape, even though it is very expensive. at least this is what i do to a few of mine to make themm look ablsolulty perfect. it really comes out well.

A Mejias: i never thought of using such a ghetto rig setup but it looks to do the job beutifully i will have to try and set something like that up in my small apt, and get a better camera a pawn shop has one for about $100 w/ nice DPI, but i have not enough money.

archangel571: Gundam store and more doesn't charge much if any not really sure never have enough money to buy there always dump into ebay before checking it, oooops. (coulda saved some money). ow well. but that is what i hear form a friend that buys there all the time.

Nathaniel: Thanks! I thought it would be helpful for everyone to see my setup and also to compare the two kits.

The kits are both nicely detailed and it looks like all the 144 joints have good articulation. I’ll know more as the build progresses.

More Photo tips:
I was a professional photographer a long time ago and learned how to improvise with inexpensive household items to get the same effects. This was very important when shooting on location and there are not photo shops around.

The umbrellas come in many different sizes and are used to spread and “soften” the light by giving you a large light source that makes the light rap around the subject. They give you soft shadows and are good for hiding wrinkles, scratches and other defects. The reflections are kind of cool too. Sometimes you’ll see a “light box” used. They are basically a square or rectangular umbrella that give you a nice rectangular reflection. Great for glass, metal and other shiny - reflective objects. The down side is that really fine detail can disappear.

You can simulate the same effect by softening the light through any semi-transparent material like Mylar, velum, or even a white bed sheet or shower curtain. A lot of photographers make a tent with the subjects inside and the lights outside shining through the tent. Where you point the light on the tent will then affect the light inside the tent.

A bare light will give you sharp shadows and show off all the fine detail. It will also show off all the defects too. This is good while you’re working on your kit!

You can use almost any light source including a window or even going outside. Just make sure you set your digital camera’s white balance correctly. Also most lights get VERY HOT and can be a fire hazard. PLEASE be careful with what you put near them!!!

You can then use black paper or cardboard to selectively block the light as is needed. The light you stop is just as important as the light you give. This can also be used to control the shape or placement of highlights and reflections.

In most cases you’ll want to use a combination of all these tools and techniques.

You’ll really need a good tripod. Not only is the quality of your photos at risk, but so is your photo equipment! If you really can’t afford one use LOTS of duck tape to secure your camera. If you’re handy in the metal shop you can make your own camera mound. The standard tripod to camera thread is ¼-20. Camera shake and bad focus render a photo useless and it’s worse than not shooting it at all. It’s very distracting to the viewer. So hold that camera steady.

If your camera doesn’t have a good close-up or macro feature you can try putting a magnifying glass in front of the lens. Most auto focus cameras will work this way to focus on close objects.

You can find a lot of web sites showing basic photo and lighting setups and many are geared for small items like kits and dioramas. Just look for “still life” and “table top” lighting.

I hope made all that easy to understand. If you have any questions don’t hesitate to ask. I’m here to help. I also hate seeing good models photographed poorly.

QUOTE: Originally posted by nathaniel @A Mejias - That is an excellent photo shooting area. Thanks for explaining all that went into it. It does look like it would be fairly simple to set up something similar. Perhaps those wierd mini-umbrella hats could be used for smaller lights for closer up shooting. And building the 1/100 and 1/144 scales concurrently -- a heck of a good idea! So far I've stuck with 1/144 scale stuff and gave only brief consideration to 1/100. It'll be cool to see the same Gundam in two scales like that.

Zen,

He's gotta sleep sometine. Doesn't mean you have to

Most of the modeling time I get in is when the whold family is asleep. Although these past few nights, I've been following asleep with them.

Progress so far all the major assemblies have bee done and sanded down.
Next step wil be priming.

After that it will slow down for a few weeks as the Wife has to go to Hospital and I need to baby-sit our son.

as promised, here r pix of django's build:
gundam blue destiny, bandai 1/144 kit

blue destiny & tallgeese (the blue destiny is slightly more detailed)

these kits r unpainted colored plastic & the markings r all
self-adhesive stickers... he took the pix himself, too.
cute little guys, eh ?
as 4 the mobile suit, nothing 2 report.... as yet.

frosty

Looks like my last post didn't show up. Hmmm. Anyway:

QUOTE: Martian Gundam Modeler Man am i late for this one!! My My 144 Gundam Leopard just won second place in dios at AWA [Anime Weekend Atlanta last month!!

Congrats! If you still want to, you can definitely join in on this GB.

@A Mejias - That is an excellent photo shooting area. Thanks for explaining all that went into it. It does look like it would be fairly simple to set up something similar. Perhaps those wierd mini-umbrella hats could be used for smaller lights for closer up shooting.

And building the 1/100 and 1/144 scales concurrently -- a heck of a good idea! So far I've stuck with 1/144 scale stuff and gave only brief consideration to 1/100. It'll be cool to see the same Gundam in two scales like that.

QUOTE: frosty: as 4 mine, i'll probably start painting the next color ( which is also green) on2 the model b4 starting assembly, unless i should b worried about seams showing & do assembly, then paint ? is there a typical order 4 doing this stuff ?

My particular goal for the two kits I'm building is the finish. I want no seem lines, and everything smooth and puttied and sanded perfectly. So what I'm doing is assembling the major sections with the liquid cement/squeezing idea talked about earlier in this thread. Then I sand them all. I'm going to use putty shortly. I just found out that primer/paint order hasn't even been shipped yet (placed the order on the 6th of September). Since the kits were building have so few major assemblies, I believe I can assemble and paint the entire leg, the entire main body, the head, each arm, etc.,. as a single piece. Basically I do everything that needs glue before I paint and only leave things with polycap joints or similar tabs seperate. On the more complex kits, where the joints are part of the construction, I'll likely build them and then clean the seems as needed by simply moving the joints to the extreme. I'd also likely build any internal assembly (say the shin that fits inside the knee) before build the out part (the knee) so I can get all the seams beforehand. When priming, I'm going to a few light coats in one pose, and then bend the leg to the other and put on the last coat. I hope that made even the tiniest bit of sense.

Nathaniel