Head modifications for paint

Well last night I began studying how I was going to modify the head to separate the face and eye pieces from the helmet so they can be painted and assembled separately. The directions call for the helmet to be snapped over the chin/eye/mouth pieces and then attached to the neck. This is problematic for airbrush painting because the eyes and chin are so small and intricate, even the world's greatest masker would have a hard time getting clean color lines and separation. So the only way around this is to modify how the head is put together. The modifications on this particular helmet all come in the face combo. I snipped the large clear camera lens away from the eyes so the lens can be inserted separately and the eyes can be inserted while joined to the chin/face pieces.I also snipped off the connecting posts on the back of the chin piece and the top corners so it could clear the receptors for the neck joint. Now these pieces can be inserted after the helmet seam has been filled and the pieces have been airbrushed separately for a clean paint job with NO MASKING!!!

So to fill the helmet seam I used some thin Tamiya plastic glue on both sides of the helmet and squeezed the 2 pieces together until the plastic ooze filled the seam. I let the helmet dry overnight so the bond was strong and would not shear during sanding.

After it dried, I carefully sanded the seam with 400 grit sandpaper and then with 600 to remove any deep scratches. The seam disappears with the exception of one small pock mark on the left side which will get a dose of putty and another sanding. Now the helmet is seamless and will look infinitely better.

Then, to test the assembly I slid the face combo into the helmet just to double check my mod. Worked like a champ! Onto the rest of the build......

Completed kit pics....

Here are some pics of previous kits I have completed and a few shots of my workspace.

Sanding and snipping......

I have finished the first sub-build for the kit, the torso and jet pack. I have a few ideas as to how I want the kit to look, but nothing concrete yet as my inspirations change as the kit nears completion. I did want to write about modifications and overall kit improvements for the beginners out there.

The first thing any beginner should know about building an HG or MG Gunpla kit from Bandai is that the kits are snap together. The kits are designed as children's toys to be played with, it is the intent of these models to be played with. With that being said, if you purchase a kit and snap it together the model will look something like the Gundam you envisioned, but there will be no "polish and pop". Seams in the middle of the guns and arms, irregular pour defects on all large plastic expanses and the colors will not jump off the model. This is where the modeler can take the kit to the next level. First, filling seams......

I tend to build the model completely first so I can make a decision on which seams truly need to be filled and which ones can be left because of where they occur. Any seam that is going to be covered by a later part or armor seems like a waste of time to me. So build the kit and then take inventory. Also before filling the seam take note as to how the subsequent pieces fit together and how they will be painted. Sometimes a piece must be painted, taped and then 2 pieces joined over the first piece and then that seam will be filled. Filling it first would have made painting the underpiece difficult and the paint job would have turned out worse than expected. I usually fill seams by applying Tamiya Thin Plastic Model Cement to the sides of the 2 pieces and squeezing the pieces together until a liquified combo of cement and plastic oozes up through the seam. I like this technique for pieces that stand alone and have not been joined over an inner piece. For pieces joining over a subassembly, I typically use Tamiya putty or Mr. Surfacer 500 painted over the seam. For both techniques, I will let the seam dry for 24 hours before sanding so I do not shear the seam apart. Also take note of any intricate details surrounding the seam, as these may be sanded away if you are not careful.

Once the seams are filled, it's time to start modifying. Some mods are easy like replacing the barrel on a gun or detailing the kit eyes with origami paper, but some must be thought out in advance to ease painting and piece fit. Joint modification and rivet/hose mods are some of the most popular and easiest to do for the less experienced kit builder. I have found great rivet mods in AC Moore in the jewelery making aisles and hose detail can be achieved with electrical hose found in any hardware store. I will do both with this kit and will update with pics and tutorials as they happen. Remember to keep your eyes open when you go to an arts and xraft store, inspiration may be lurking around the next corner........

The waiting is the hardest part.......

So I started snipping and sanding today. The bane of my existence is the current sprue cutter I have. The local hobby shop in my city carries the Xuron brand of sprue cutters, and these things cut like a chain saw. I have to cut well away from the sprue to ensure the gate doesn't leave a pock mark on the piece, and then overuse the Xacto blade to shave the gate down to a more manageable sanding size. I just need to break down and get a good quality pair of Tamiya sprue cutters and hope they last longer than the Xuron my hobby shop carries. And for all of you builders out there who have a half decent hobby shop in your vicinity, do not take them for granted. I have a franchise shop, you all have at least one of these, you know the one that would rather sell you an RC car or helicopter than actually help you with anything that has to do with modeling. They don't carry any Gunze products, at all, they only carry Tamiya paints, no tools, and they fill their shelves with off branded second rate companies that sell you $15 dollar sprue cutters that go dull after 4 kits. Thank god for the interweb, or I would have given this hobby up months ago. But I digress......

The torso is the first sub build for this kit. Shoulder joints, neck joint and the main frame of the torso is the first set of steps. No real inspiration as of yet, although I would like to find a way to show off the detail in the frame of the torso, as there is some quite nice sculpting in there, that will otherwise be covered up by the main armor. Maybe I'll do one of those hanger bay dioramas that I have seen quite a few times. Or not......

So on with the build, and I'll update as progress is made.

Initial build, RX178 Gundam MKII Titans

So after the kit is washed, my next step is an initial build. As I build, I take notes of what seams might need to be filled, what pieces I may have to alter to make painting easier(head, hands usually fall into this category) and what modifications ascetically speaking I might want to make. Also I feel I get more inspired if I am going to do a custom paint job if I have a built model in my hands. So before the pieces start coming off of sprues, I give the pieces a light spray on the sprue with a surface primer. I use Tamiya surface primer for this step and use the more expensive Mr. Surfacer for the pre paint primer step. The Tamiya will almost all be sanded away, and the initial primer step helps pick out small details and imperfections I might have overlooked if I just cut and snapped the pieces together. So usually with my family and my hectic work schedule, this initial build can take me up to two weeks to complete. Some tools that I will use for the initial build: sprue cutter, #11 exacto knife blade, retractable utility knife, sandpaper from 400 to 1200 grit, China marker(for circling problem areas for puttying, modifications) and a toothbrush. I use the toothbrush to sweep a part clean after sanding or scraping away the sprue nub with the exacto blade. I'll post my notes as I do the build.

A move and the start of a new kit

So for all of my none readers out there, I am a married man with 2 lovely children. When I got married, my wife agreed as I transitioned from bachelorhood to the married life, I should have a MAN ROOM. A room where I could hang my plethora of sports memorbelia, build Gundams and just be. Well with the addition of my first son(I inherited a wonderful stepson, an All Star catcher), and the flow of visitors to our house to see the new addition, she thought it would be best that, instead of transplanting our son from his nursery into our room until the guests leave, that I should move the man room and we would turn the MAN ROOM into a guest bedroom. So, while my wife and children are on vacation in Maine, I have transplanted my bastion of sports and anime into the garage. It's not climate controlled, and none of my memorbelia is up yet, but for now, it is mine. The bright side is I can airbrush whenever I want, all I have to do is raise the automatic garage door for ventilation. My workspace consists of a large dining room table and 2 small 2 shelf bookcases pushed together. I have shelving on the walls and soon I'll publish some photos. But with them being on vacation, it has afforded me the time to start a new kit.

Last Christmas, I received 4 new kits, an RX 78-2 ver Ka, Wing Gundam ver Ka an RX-178 Gundam MK II and a Gundam Throne Drei from the new Gundam 00. I sacrificed the Throne to my new air compressor and airbrush which I also received for Christmas. I was pleasantly surprised with the results I achieved my first time out, I still need to work on controlling air pressure and thinning ratio, but I had enough confidence to move on to the RX 78-2 ver Ka.

That kit turned out wwwaaaayyyy better than expected. I tried a new technique on the base, using Quick Crete to simulate concrete and it gave the base a great look. I decided to wait on the Wing Gundam and am diving into the MK II. I first saw this kit on a website that had posted a ton of modeling videos from Japan titled "My favourite Modeler" which is an on running TV series on Fuji TV. This is where 80% of my inspiration to build kits in general came from, and they have truly helped with my growth in kit building. I'll post some websites to the left and give links so everyone can enjoy. But back to the build......

The first step for any kit whether it be Gundams or traditional armor, planes or autos is to wash the sprues. The modeling companies use a release agent to get the sprues to release from the molds easily and without breaking the sprues themselves. This release agent leaves a film on the sprues that will inhibit primer and paint from adhering to the plastic. So wash those kits! I have 2 tubs I picked up from the Dollar Tree, one for washing, one for rinsing. I fill one tub with lukewarm water and powdered Oxy Clean, and the other with clean water. I let all of the sprues soak for a few minutes in the Oxy water and then gently with a soft tooth brush give them a scrub. Then dip in the clean water and place on a towel to air dry. This gets all of the release agent off and gives your primer and paint a "happy little place to live".

While we are talking basics, here are a few terms for anyone beginning that you should know.

Kits: models, the things we build

Sprues: The square plastic molds that hold the pieces of the models. Also called trees.

Gates: The small nubs of plastic that hold the pieces to the sprues

Gundam: A 30 year running anime institution in Japan. The anime once aired on Toonami on the Cartoon Network, and it's latest incarnation is Gundam 00 which can be seen on the SyFy network, Mondays at 11 and 1130(2 Episodes!!!!)

GunPla: shortening of the terms Gundam Plastic Models

BAKUC: A competition sponsored by Bandai of Gundam kit builds.

Bandai: One of the largest toy companies in the world. They produce Gundam kits and anime, Power Rangers and loads of other toys and models. They also produce modeling tools and Gundam markers.

HG: High Grade, a specification given to beginner levels of Gunpla. Less articulate and less expensive. Can be either 1/144 scale or 1/100.

MG: Master Grade, the middle of the road, and the level at which my wallet normally operates. Some MG kits come with an internal skeleton, and usually 3 weapons. 1/100 scale is the norm.

PG: Perfect Grade, the highest grade given by Bandai on their kits. These monsters can come in 1/100 or 1/60 scale and usually run from $150 to upwards of $300 dollars. I freakin wish.....

I'll add more as i think of them.

Look for he links and I'll post some photos when my wife returns from the Great White North....

garukukukukukuku............

New beginnings.......twice

Well this is the first entry into what I hope can become a place for fellow gunpla builders to come and share ideas, links and lots of good information on this ridiculous hobby I have become obsessed with( I'm 32 years old and build giant Japanese robots in 1/100 scale......pretty ridiculous). I am a newbie, I have only completed 8 kits total, 2 of those are my inexperienced attempts at dioramas. But I hope that is who this blog attracts. The newbies. Grizzled veterans are free to come and go, but the one thing I want to happen with this blog is for the new guys to feel comfortable with questions and with posting links to their pics. We all were newbies at some point. So here we go...............