That looks like fun.  Is Arii still around?  I built a few of their kits way back.

keavdog

That looks like fun.  Is Arii still around?  I built a few of their kits way back.

I don't know if Arii is still around.  I bought these kits decades ago when they were first released.

They are a fun easy build.  The detail isn't there like the newer Hasegawa and Bandai kits but they go together real fast and look decent enough.  There's a reason they were what I used when I started back into modeling.  :)

This ine makes me think search and rescue or fire department.  May see what decals I can come up with to make evoke that idea.

Better get a Destroid Tomahawk and convert it into a pumper unit - that little gun pod won't hold much fire foam!

Maybe it doesn't compare with new Bandai kits but it's cool to build a blast from the past like this! 

Real G

Better get a Destroid Tomahawk and convert it into a pumper unit - that little gun pod won't hold much fire foam!

 

Don't have a Tomahawk but I do have these.  ;)

However, their destiny lies elsewhere.

I do have some left over Super Valkyrie add-ons that could be repurposed.

Hmmmm..... 

Mischief may ensue.

Gamera

Maybe it doesn't compare with new Bandai kits but it's cool to build a blast from the past like this! 

 

Aboslutely!

These have been my comfort kits for a while.  I shall miss them once they are all finished.

PhoenixG

This ine makes me think search and rescue or fire department.  May see what decals I can come up with to make evoke that idea.

If I recall correctly, there was an episode where she was pressed into a rescue role, carrying survivors (one of which looks remarkably like a baby penguin) in the battroid's hands.  

Thinking I may be able to turn these into fire foam tanks on the back and run those to a modified pod  for dispensing it.  Perhaps inverting the rocket Nozzles to form a more rounded ended to enhance the perception of a pressurized cylinder inside the outer housing.

The main pieces are glued together but in the process of cleaning up the seams I managed to "enhance" the build with many gouges. :(

Managed to remove that thumb wart. 

Primed those pieces so I could more easily tell where the hidden seams and gouges were.

And then for the first time ever decided to putty the seams and gaps from assembly.  This is only my second attempt at puttying since resuming.  My first attempts long ago went, poorly.

Used the square end of a hobby knife as a putty blade to help with shaping since I don't have any specialty tools for it.

Once it finishes curing, will sand and shape.  This is a real nail biter for me but, my goal is to attempt at least one new thing per build.  Otherwise it's too easy to stick with what's familiar and that means no new skills.

Part of the fun is the challenge, right!?

PhoenixG

This is a real nail biter for me but, my goal is to attempt at least one new thing per build.  Otherwise it's too easy to stick with what's familiar and that means no new skills.

Part of the fun is the challenge, right!?  

That is a most excellent philosophy!

Real G

 

 

PhoenixG

This is a real nail biter for me but, my goal is to attempt at least one new thing per build.  Otherwise it's too easy to stick with what's familiar and that means no new skills.

Part of the fun is the challenge, right!?  

 

 

 

That is a most excellent philosophy!

 

Yeah, a little improvement everyday! 

I like where you're going- nice work!!!  

A few things learned about putty

1. Apply closer to twice as much as you think you'll need.  Shrinkage is real.
2. Press firmly and smoothly while applying.  Air pockets suck.
3. Feather the edges as much as you can when applying.  It's harder to sand them into being.
4. Take your time sanding.  The goal isn't to to get back to the plastic.
5. When using the squared end of the hobby knife as a putty blade be sure to finish dulling the other end.  Bleeding on your model is not considered a weathering technique.  Unless you were trying to make it look like it had dried blood on it.  Then, it is.

Yes I got myself.  But, barely deep enough to get a drop of blood. ;)

The Macross series had a lot of kits run from it by several companies back then, including Relvell who called them Robotech. When the Battletech games came out many of the original designs were taken from that series as well as a few others.

The Commander's pod was , and probably still is a very saught after kit as well as the Defender, but probably the most wanted kit is the Monster.  It came out in two scales, 1/200th and 1/160th.  Why they did this I don't know, I was too busy buying kits in Okinawa at the time.

This is what I did to my 1/100th scale Monster:

I used deacls from the Battletech board game for the Word of Bqlake and had a crew chief blocking it out for a mission.

Phoenix: Those sound good to me!

Now your model will have to be a success since you made the blood sacrifice to the modeling gods!!!

Ikar: I think you posted this before but I'll say it again here- nice work!!!

Ikar01,

The paint scheme of your Destroid Monster definitely has a Battletech vibe.  I painted a few Battletech miniatures back in the day.

I have had fun amassing a small collection of the Macross/Robotech models put out by various producers.  The next level of fun has been building them.

It's been really rewarding to finally see the kits come to life.

Thanks for sharing!

Gamera

Now your model will have to be a success since you made the blood sacrifice to the modeling gods!!!

LOL!  Life experience supports your claim.

Thanks.  I heard at Modelpalooza that the old kits, or at least most of them are going to be produced again soon.  If they are, I'll have to watch my disability card account.

My kid showed me a model of the SDF Super Fortress that stood just over 8 feet hagh.  This thing had sections of the interior showing that included the city and some other areas.  On top of that it would change into its ship configuration.  The pictures were impressive.

ikar01

I heard at Modelpalooza that the old kits, or at least most of them are going to be produced again soon.

That is dangerous news.  Resisting Hobbylink Japan has been hard enough as it is!

That massive SDF1 would be a blast to see in person!

Quick progress update on the model.  Did a second round of putty and sanding last night.  Second round helped soften the edges more.

Working from home does have some benefits.  Took part of my lunch hour to prime the parts.

Next up is some color. 

Question for the group. 

I can add gloss medium to the paint to turn my flats to gloss.  Because of the articulation of the joints I am concerned about trying to paint flat and then apply a complete gloss coat.  Seems like it could be inviting incomplete coverage as well as frozen joints.  Appreciate any sharing of experiences.

Been collecting images of Search & Rescue and Fire Department emblems to make decals with.  It's got me thinking of using a Destroid Spartan as a companion vehicle to create a Heavy Rescue team.

Oh that looks cool!!!

I'm not sure there's any issue with a couple of paint coats- it shouldn't freeze the joints unless you absolutly flood the paint on. You might just flex the joints between each coat if you want to make sure she's not going to lock up.

Interesting news that more Macross kits will be reissued.  The big Arii kits have never been repopped (1/72 Galug, 1/72 Destroid Tomahawk, 1/160 Destroid Monster, etc.).

Wave had announced a new tool 1/144 Monster a number of years ago, but plans apparently fell through.    Wave made a 1/72 Tomahawk, and is an improvement compared to the Arii kit.  Hasegawa is releasing a 1/72 Armored Valkyrie this December, so the Arii kit is now superfluous.  I wonder if Hasegawa will do a 1/72 Gnerl fighter?  Too big maybe?

The Spartan remains to get a new tool 1/72 kit, but I'm not sure if Wave will tacke it, as it is not modular like the Tomahawk/Defender/Phalanx.  I bought the recently repopped Imai kit, now rebranded by Bandai, in the hopes of finally having a nice model of the Spartan.  I completely hosed the original kit back in the day.

I hope my informer was correct, but he's a well known seller so he should know.  I;ll have to start saving money for those kits.

Sometimes you have to just pull up stakes and accept your losses.

Each attempt to clean this side up just made it worse.  Thankfully this area won't be too visible.

Apparently I greatly exaggerated the truth about adding color.  This is about as far as I got.

Trying to emulate the box art color scheme. 

3.5 hours of work to mask that off.  At some point I am hoping masking will become little less tedious and a lot faster.  So far it's a really weird jigsaw where I get to decide how the pieces fit.

There's a second round of masking in the future once the legs and pauldrons (sounds so much more awesome than shoulders) are assembled.  But not until these are finished!

Gamera

You might just flex the joints between each coat if you want to make sure she's not going to lock up.

That makes total sense.  I am over thinking it.  Fighting a lot of bad habits that built up when I first started making these.  Getting paranoid.

ikar01

I hope my informer was correct, but he's a well known seller so he should know.  I;ll have to start saving money for those kits.

Boy did I pick the wrong time to become budget conscious. 

So I finish masking up the parts, painting on the primary color and decide to take a break by reading through the forums on airbrushing.  In my random perusing ,run across several articles about how twitchy Vallejo Primers are and how poorly they do with masking.  
Which has me leaning over and  looking at my recent work.  Because everything was done with Vallejo primers...

Looks good with the red.

So it was with great trepidation I started peeling off the tape after the paint had a chance to cure.

HUGE SIGH OF RELIEF.  The tape came off without the feared peeling of the primer.

Some clean needed up as expected.

It turned out better than expected and thankfully my fears about using the Vallejo primer were not realized.

Next up:

Finish blocking in the black areas, do any needed touch up, clear coat, and then initial assembly can begin. 

That looks great! I've had some issues with Vallejo's surface primer, but it's not consistent.

I haven't seen one of these kits built in a long time. I still have one in gerwak mode where I'm missing the right hand and gun to antiquity. I'm wondering if I still have the decals for it lol.

Anyways, sweet project! How many of these do you have completed?

I have discovered Vallejo paints are sensitive to surface contaminants.  I now wear gloves when doing any work on the models and it seems to have greatly improved the adhesion of the paint.

I probably built 5-6 of these way back when.  None survived the trials time.

Since resuming the hobby 2 years ago I have built three the ARII models.  A VF-1D Battroid, VF-1A Gerwalk, and a VF1-A fighter.

This VF-1J battroid will be the fourth but the first to be airbrushed.

Looks friggin' perfect to me!!! 

I rarely get masking to work out that well. I don't get much paint to peel up, just leakage under the mask. I'm tried lower spray pressure and carefully spraying away from the mask and I've been having much better results.