OP Gunpla

New Shipment 12/5/2011

2011-12-05T13:25:00.001-08:00

Hey ya'll! Sorry for the no replies (as if I have any followers xD)

My computer died in October and I just got around to getting a new one! So look out !

Here is one of the new kits I got in the mail today! I'll be building it soon!!(after I get a new panel line marker)

Here is a few shots of the box. Lovely box art once again. You can see Titus tearing through a UE suit. I believe it might be the Gafran unit.

Side 1 shot

Close up of Side 1. I like how they add the frames to the side. It's an nice technique.
The close of of Side 3 is picture of the model using one of it's signature attacks "Beam Lariat"

Here is side 2 and 4 they look the same.

Here are the parts

You could see Titus in the Opening of Gundam AGE since episode one.

How did Titus come about? As most of you AGE watchers know, the thing that is special about AGE is the AGE System. Gundam AGE has the ability to scan battle data and make new weapons for AGE to use. DOTS Rifle was made to pierce the armor of the UE suits and Titus was made after a battle with the new UE suit Batqo.

After AGE-Normal was badly damaged it was re-fitted with Titus to combat Batqo's heavy armor and great defense

Darth_Andrea Tips and Tricks

2011-10-23T10:41:00.001-07:00

Well I have gotten a few questions about where to start with Gunpla. So many different scales different series and different Grades of kits to wade through.

So first and foremost you need to look at your budget Gunpla is a generally expensive hobby. There can be other costs involved depending on how far into it you wish to get.

Painting

If your going to paint your kits you have 4 options. Hand brushing, Spray painting with masking and Airbrushing (also with masking very often) and finally using Gundam Paint markers.

Given the totality of the various materials you will need for painting a cash sink of at least $100+ in brushes, dowels, a large hard foam block and bottles and cans of paint as well as gator clips and masking tape is to be expected.

Airbrushing supplies can be even more expensive. The average airbrush unit (Top Bottle Gravity Feed) can run anywhere from $150 to $350 depending on brand and unit complexity. A suction feed (bottom paint bottle) are generally cheaper and can be used with cans of compressed air with a adapter and can be bought for usually between $25 to $50 again depending on complexity.

Also since most people don't have a dedicated and ventilated room for painting most spray painting including applying primer will need to be done Outside.

Airbrushing can be done indoors but you will need to either buy a paint booth ranging between $200-$500 depending on model. Or build one which is cheaper. To build a paint booth you need the following supplies.

A Ventilation Fan, the type you would find in the ceiling of your bathroom for example. It's a Ducted vent so it's a fan enclosed in a box with a port for a tube ducting to attach to. These can be bought at most home improvement stores and range in price from $20 to $150 depending on Brand and complexity. Along with this you will need to a long section of flexible ducting like is usually attached to a clothes dryer again usually around $25-$35 depending on length and tube diameter.

You will need a large box either self built or something like a old entertainment center modified with a sturdy plywood backing (the method I used)

Finally you need a replacement air filter like used in home heating and air conditioning units. These range widely in price but generally go for the cheapest you can find in at least a 12 to 24 inch wide design.

Assembly is simple cut a hole in the back of your Box large enough for the vent fan to fit though and be attached, Note the side with the ducting port should be on the outside of the box, attach the vent fan with screws to the box and here you have a choice, you can hard wire the vent to a switch or simply use a extension cord and plug it into the wall when used, most have a plug already installed so no wiring will be required for this options. Then attach the flexible ducting to the port on the back and run that pipe out a window. Place the filter in front of the fan inside the box and your done.

Now lets talk about the kits.

Models

For beginners I would not recommend the larger more complex kits. Generally with a few exceptions Gunplay runs in these scales.

1/200 (2 to 3 inch tall) 1/144 (generally 4 to 5 inch tall) 1/100 (6 to 8 inch tall) 1/60 (9 to 10 inch tall) 1/48 (11 to 13 inch tall) Now these vary based on the size of the Gundam their based on.

Here is a pic of 1 design the Rx-78-2 the original Gundam from the 1979 cartoon in each of these scales.

Now this unit is a 18 meter tall mobile suit. To give you a idea of what that means look at the following picture.

That is a adult male standing next to the 1/1 scale RX-78-2 Bandai built in japan a couple of years ago. Now given statistics show Japanese adult range 5 feet 5 inches tall as a general so notice the top of his head just barely reaches the top of the ankle joint.

But some other kits are larger even though they are in the same scale. The Unicorn Gundam for example in 1/144 scale is a head and shoulder taller.

And these are the kits I do recommend for starters. Generally kits in this size in High Grade or HG as is labeled on the box have little to no inner robotic frame have generally easy assembly and poseability.

Real Grade kits which are a fairly new line, Marked RG on their boxes, are basically 1/144 scaled Master Grades. Master Grades are 1/100 scale kits and have partial to full inner robotic frames to build. The RG kits are those in miniature.

These kits while very highly detailed for their size are not recommended for the beginner. with lots of very small parts and complex assemblies I don't think the beginner would be able to cope given the ease parts can break being this small.

Now if you are a beginner or someone just interested in seeing if you would like to get into Gunpla there are various outlets online to buy kits at really good prices.

If you would like some links feel free to PM me and I'll point you in the right direction.

I hope my ramblings help a bit and might tempt someone into the hobby

GN - 005 Gundam Virtue

2011-09-28T15:34:00.000-07:00

So, as I started to watch Gundam 00 I fell in love with Virtue. That big design, he looks like a good tank or fighter type. That cannon and Shoulder Cannons.. Man! This gundam is awesome.

The head was an interesting build. With the chin and everything.

Here is the Cannon, I actually had a hard time figuring out how to open the cannons but I finally figured it out. Fun time posing him with it!

A very stable suit and I love it. Shoulder Cannons are awesome

GN-001 Gundam Exia

2011-09-17T03:08:00.001-07:00

This is the MG1/100 GN-001 Gundam Exia. This kit is where I tried out for the first time Enamel washing
so it's not very good. But yeah! I've gotten a little better with it now.

WOW! Look at all those Runners! This sounds like a all nighter!

Tried to get those little details in the head. I think I did a good job :)

Here is a problem I had, when I was putting together the beam sabers, they broke!!! I have no idea why but most of them are broken....

Overall, I had a nice time building this kit! Other than the sabers this is another one I love. As much as I don't enjoy the show, I've yet to find a OO kit I didn't really really like!

Slow Months

2011-09-07T15:18:00.000-07:00

So, September and October are going to be slow months for me. I'm saving up money to go to a convention... with someone..

Anyways, So there won't be many kits coming along, mostly because when I pre-ordered my Shining Gundam and Master Gundam+Fuunsaiki the store charged me an extra 40 bucks for shipping, which jacked up to the 86 bucks in total.

I can only imagine what AGE is going to cost me in October but what are ya gonna do right?

Anyways, I'm sure Darth_Andrea will have some updates for you guys in the mean time :)

Happy Gunpla Everybody!

New Shipment Part 3 of 4

2011-09-07T15:08:00.000-07:00

So I just got these in today. I'll make a post about them later.

Get Ready to Fly In The Sky!

RX-0 Unicorn Gundam (Unicorn Mode)

2011-09-06T18:10:00.000-07:00

Today's Build is the RX-0 Unicorn Gundam (Unicorn Mode)
I got interested in this Suit while playing DW: Gundam 3. I grew to love the design of it.

First thing I notice is how little I had to panel line this suit and also, look at this. only 2 Stickers. I've never seen anything like that before.

Here's the Torso, I actually had the shoulder panels on backwards for a while.

I didn't think the horn would be that long honestly. I gave it a good sand and it looks sexy!

Here are the arms! I love how thick they are :)

Completed! Looking good, easy to pose and stands up nicely!

I'd give this kit a 9/10 and I love it. I might even pick up the Destroy Mode.

GN - OOO O Gundam (Type A.C.D)

2011-08-26T08:49:00.000-07:00

So today's post will be about the O Gundam. Now, I just started watching OO Gundam so I have not encountered this gundam yet but I liked how it looked so I decided to pick him up!

The first thing I noticed that this kit only has 2 stickers on it! Something I've rarely seen.

I was having some trouble pushing this piece in, I think the polycapwould not go into the slot, but I eventually got it to fit!

Here he is complete! Looking good I might add! I have no complaints about this kit. It's kinda hard to pose it in the famous RX-78 pose, but we'll get to that later :)

Very cool Kit! I loved it. Very low maintenance and not much panel lining to do!

HG G30 RX-78 - Darth_Andrea

2011-08-24T15:23:00.000-07:00

I went ahead and assembled the HG G30 RX-78, no stickers or decals, not sanded or painted, paint coming next week. Just a test assembly to make sure I had everything and everything fit.

You can see where I used the Grey Gundam Panel Liner Marker on the head face and thighs. That was just a test to see the color and how they work. (Never used them before) And I think once I paint I'll use black paint to do the panel lining. I don't like the Grey and I want hard lines on it, and the black will show up better. May even use enamel for the lining so when I clear (gloss) top coat it the panel lines will pop.

Also on a related note, we got a announcement today of the next mobile suit in the Beginning line. A Variant of the Beginning G.

HG 1/144 Beginning J Gundam (Release Date: Dec 2011, Price: 1600 yen)

new shipment

2011-08-22T12:42:00.000-07:00

Got these in the mail today, I can't wait to try them out!!!

For those who don't know what to do with these.

If you take black enamel and thin it out. You can get those small pesky thin panel lines!

GN - OOOO OO Gundam

2011-08-21T12:19:00.000-07:00

Wow, lots of "Os" in this title. This is the 1/144 scale HG version of the OO Gundam

The second Mobile Suit for Setsuna.

This was a fun kit to make but I had some issues with it.

This is another first for me, the first steps are on the information page. I rarely see that.

Here comes the first problem I came into. These two clear parts obviously fit into the sides of the head, but I could not fit them in there, they are not on my kit now.

And this one might be a personal problem, but the stickers for the "v" fins did not stick on at all so for the final product I removed them.

So overall, This is a good and sturdy kit. If you like OO, you'll obviously like this kit.

More updates to come soon!

New Shipment Part 2 of 4

2011-08-16T17:37:00.000-07:00

Here is more of my shipment!

This shipment also came with that Gundam.Info contest :)

I hope I win the third prize, but I highly doubt it!

New Shipment Part 1 of 4

2011-08-11T20:00:00.000-07:00

I got a new shipment in a few days ago! Here we go!

So this is the first of my shipment of gunpla
I won't be building any of these any time soon, even though I want to, but I'm saving up for a airbrush + air compressor set.

SD MSZ-006 Zeta Gundam

2011-08-02T16:44:00.000-07:00

So I decided to Build Zeta Gundam

First thing I notice is Blue instructions! Wow, never seen that before!!

also gray PC parts and this one is a first at least for me, The eyes, face, and helmet is molded as one piece.

So, I decide maybe to try panel line with the piece still in the sprues.

It worked for awhile but eh.. I'll just put it together before I panel line.

My big neckbeard ham hands smudges the lines.

Very cute kit and I like it :)

Next Project

2011-07-29T11:27:00.000-07:00

Now that my Sandpaper came in, I can start working on my SD RX-93 V Gundam!

The Zeta + V Gundam I will work on in a few months when I get my airbrush kit and the such. These SD kits are here to tie me over while I stock pile the HG kits I'm getting.

So yeah, I like this kit. I love V Gundam!

Here is the head and body, The head is kind of a mess, I was trying out my Sakura Micron 005 and 01 and they were a little smudgy and the head looks terrible.

But I enjoy my new sandpapers :)

Here are the arms and feet. I'm still not sure if I should panel line these, the shoulders smudge everytime I

Complete! Next are some pictures of the weapons and funnels

Some action shots. I can't wait to do it better in the next kit!

Updates and new models

2011-07-26T14:06:00.000-07:00

So I haven't updated awhile, and I know no one reads this so I can make this as LONG as I want. (But I won't)

Anyways, I have not been buying many kits because I'm trying to save up for supplies and such. I bought the wrong airbrush so now I need to save again to buy a airbrush/air compressor combo pack.

Anyways here are some of the kits I got. I wont be building them until more of my supplies come in.

This post will be highlighting one of my favorite Mobile Suits RX-78NT-1 or Gundam "Alex"

Why do I like Alex? You'll find out later.

Here are some shots of it, Sloppy panel lining I know, my Gundam Marker split on me.I am going to try doing black enamel panel lining in the future.

Pretty decent kit, but I wish I had my sand paper while I was building this.

Now, Why do I love Alex? d'uh, Gatling gun arms

I love Sniper Gundams and Gatling Gun Gundams, like Heavy Arms

GPB-X80 Beginning Gundam

2011-06-05T07:34:00.001-07:00

So, not much to say about this Kit. I enjoyed building it. But I tried to give it a nice paint job and it was terrible, which is why I kinda stopped building it because I just losti nterest.

But finally, a few months later and I'm done!

1/100 OO Gundam

2011-05-07T04:27:00.000-07:00

First Blog Post here. I don't really know how to write reviews. So. These will just be pictures of Kits I've done and how I felt about them.

So for the first post let's start with Gundam OO # 11 1/100 OO Gundam (I'd like to point out I actually don't watch much Gundam. I've only seen Mobile Suit Gundam, G Gundam and Gunpla Builders) So if I'm inaccurate, please correct me.

I really liked this kit (though I had to shell out 8 bucks for the Cell Batteries)

Not much panel lining to do on this kit (in my opinion) and as a whole, This feels like a tough and durable kit. I never once felt it would break if I picked it up.

The L.E.Ds are cool in the dark (though it makes the plastic hollow.

In my personal opinion. I'd give this kit a 8 out of 10 :) I really enjoyed this kit!