Flashback

One already forgotten day, about 10 years ago, a kid stood in awe in front of a shelf in a toy store, fixated to a mass of boxes printed with incomprehensible characters, amazed at the vividly colored robot figures illustrated on the boxes. But these robots were unknown to this boy's then-current knowledge of animes and cartoons. The deterring factor of steep prices notwithstanding, he reached for a maroonish-colored box of a 1/144 figure and decided to use the money given to him by his ever generous uncle for visiting them for the weekends. Back home, what the boy found was something that would, years later, turn into a crazed series of collection and pursuit. About a year later an anime series Gundam Wing aired on local television. The boy watched every episode faithfully, never missing one, not minding the inconvenience of having to go to his grandmother's house just to watch when their set at home broke. Nearing the end of the series, the boy had a fateful rendevous with his first ever Gundam kit; Gundam Epyon

12 years later, in Plaza Singapura, a guy stood outside a toy store on the topmost level of the shopping mall, looking intently at a Master Grade box of Gundam Astray Blue Frame Second Revise, feeling the same giddiness and excitement as he had when he was a kid looking at a shelf-full of boxes of build-your-own mecha...

12 Years Later...

A month and a half after I have rekindled my enthusiasm with Gundam Model Kits, I bought my first kit after 12 years. A four-day stay in Singapore was uneventful for me until i asked my cousin if she would have any idea of where i can get my on hands on one. Her fiance directed me to Plaza Singapura and lo, an MG Gundam Astray Blue Frame Second Revise box was waiting for me outside the shop. For an unbelievable price of S$80 i droolingly bought it ('twould have costed me more to buy from Switzerland plus the shipping and import taxes). The night i got back home, i spent one sleepless night assembling it, amazed at the complexity of a master grade -compared to my HG kits from years ago. Three more Master Grade kits later, I decided to make this blog to put up the results of those labors and frustrations (with customizing the paints -will post another entry about that).

MG MSN-06S Sinanju Version Katoki [Complete!]

Finally, after almost 6 months of intermittent assembly and paint job, i completed my beloved Sinanju kit. Lusting after the Titanium version that Bandai released, i tried my best to give this normal kit the paint job that would, hopefully, come close if not fully resemble, the titanium finish version. I did not add the decals, as i am not really fond of them. For me it feels like betraying the paint job -my own opinion. to each its own...

Ultimately, i would say i am only about 80-85% satisfied with the work. Owning to the fact that at some time, my laziness kicked in so i believe i could have done a better job. The gold parts are hand painted, which came as a surprise for me for i am satisfied with it, considering how trembly my hands are nowadays.

As for the paints used, the majority of colors, e.i silver, clear red and orange were Tamiya Acrylics, weapons and underside Light + Gun Metal also from Tamiya, but the gold lines were this Lascaux Acrylic paint i came upon the art shop in the area. It was perfect for my fine brush as Tamiya acrylics are too runny for brush use. The gold rings, which i used to substitute the hrrible plastic ones provided with the kit, i accidentally found in this Hobby store in Singapore during my stopover gundam shopping spree last week. 

And so, finally, here are the pics of the finished Sinanju:








 Now moving on to Kshatriya and Qubeley... :)

Gundam kit semi-bashing ver. 1: Deathscythe Hell EW Ver.

For the longest time, the replacement parts I ordered from Bandai were sitting in the garage, still in its original bubble packaging used by Bandai. Yesterday I finally mustered the courage to put my plans into reality and finally use them, not just let it accumulate dusts. Here is the first of my many plans; the double scythe:


Next up, will be the wings. And it's already proving problematic, if not difficult for me...

Oh Happy Days!!!~

Kosutte Gin San finally!

I never thought I would ever lay my hands on a Kosutte Gin San considering the uber elusive nature of it and its affinity for always being sold out. That is until i found this mail order website whose motto, it seems, is making the sold out sold for you and the out of print/published books reprinted/republished for you. hehe sounds very nice and some may think that that would cost a lot of money. On the contrary, there was, or maybe still is, a fucked up psycho in ebay selling his USED kosutte gin san for freaking 50USD. is he a retard or something? When with this order of mine i only paid the SRP of Gin san in Japan which is 1350. Of course i had to pay shipping but i must say that their shipping charges are reasonable, compared to other online shops i have used before. Also, recently i was on a crazed search for some Media Works books on Gunpla modeling published years ago but they were able to get some copies for me and are now on their way to Zurich. rak en rol!~

Diorama Inspiration #1: The Empress Flames

The Empress Flame, Five Star Stories

I recently stumbled upon an old Hobby Japan Magazine 1998 in an otaku flea market and upon laying eyes on this image inside, I had the itch and curiosity to finally try my hands on diorama making as well. The first one should feature my Sinanju (still sealed and locked up in the box) instead, as the price of a  figure from the Five Star Stories Resin Kits like the one above is exorbitant. Although i promised myself my glass show case would and should feature at least one figure from the series. At the moment i am still racking up pointers and tricks as to how to make a stunning pillar of fire as well. My problem is that my imagination is almost always way too off the realistic side of things. And though I have grand images in my head i would need to do a lot to make them into reality. Well, please watch over me Empress Flames... 

Talk about lagging behind and boredom...

At the moment that I am not building or painting my gundam model kits, I have subconsciously set my mode to hoarding kits instead. Today I ticked one kit off of my gundam target lust when I bought the gundam exia ignition mode. That makes it six unassembled kits on the shelf. And that leaves my hands itching to pick up the airbrush and start painting my Sinanju.

1/100 MG Gundam Exia Ignition Mode
On another note, my jap friend informed me that all my parts order from bandai have arrived and that I may be in a surprise coz of the amount I ordered and the size of the package. I sure hope it wouldn't cost me a fortune having it sent here to Switzerland.

More Work for ore-sama!

It doesn't sit so well with me, the idea of being able to buy my beloved Gundams here in Zurich as I have resigned myself from hoping such, but I discovered this little nook somewhere in town that sells a lot of japanese stuff, mostly manga and figures, that carries a little assorment of MGs and PGs. As fate provides, 2 nights ago I created my target list for this year and 1 from the list, well actually 2 of it but i had to choose only 1 for now, was available in that store. So now, I cross out the 1/100 MG GNX-603T GN-X from my list. When I saw that it has the GN Drive, i was esctatic to see the LED on it. But then I found out, to my disappointment, that I have to purchase it separately -wait for me eBay~ kura. Regardless, yet another addition to my lined up projects. 5 boxes on my shelf now. i would have a busy summer ahead...

1/100 GNX-603T GN-X

Another project in waiting...

Today I got my 1/100 ZGMF-X666S Legend Gundam that I ordered from ishop2go.com. I have to be honest though that although their prices are somewhat cheaper than Hobby Link Japan, the packaging, in my opinion is poorly executed. Maybe for some the box's condition is unimportant, but I have this obsessive-compulsive side of wanting even the boxes in mint condition. the upper left oner of the box is heavily dented, to my irritation, as it was just packed in a reused cracker box, the name of which I have no clue as it was written in chinese. On another note, I still look forward to starting on the kit, for although it is not master grade, I believe with a different color scheme i can make it look better. 

1/100 ZGMF-X666S Legend Gundam


Upcoming Projects

I figured I would regress to my normal state of laziness when it comes to blogging, as my 2 previous blogs proved, but for a breather from my Bleach marathon, I thought posting my upcoming projects would be more productive. Recently I have received my orders from Hobby Link Japan, and I got 3 more MG Kits i crazily ordered just to take advantage of the fact that Swiss Francs is at its highest at the moment. The First one I got, The MSN-06S Sinanju ver. Ka, gave me, in total, 1 week of sleepless nights trying to figure out how i can create something that for my opinion, would be better than if i have bought the Titanium version. Although The finished out of the box titanium finish appeals so much to me, i figured it wouldnt make sense buying it as in the end, i would want to customize or put my own paint on it. So far, i have spent at least double of the kit's value trying and testing different paints and effect, pigments and other what-have-yous to be used on the Sinanju. The appeal of the Sinanju on me is one of a Royal Knight/Guard. So i have in mind something of a crimson red, but pearly or metallic in effect. I have tested candy coating, and though the finish in my testing chips is amazing, i would not have it on the kit itself as for me it lacks the grandeur of a crimson knight. At the moment of writing, i have just acquired some acrylic paints from Lascaux, a paint manufacted here in Switzerland, and I have high hopes for it. Testing at the moment is at a halt as we are getting ready to move into a new house where i would have the whole garage as my workshop. yey! [completed Sinanju kit pics are now posted HERE)

MG MSN-06S Sinanju Version Katoki
Next up, RX-93 Hi-Nu Gundam. I haven't quite figured out why I picked this kit to buy, but it may have something to do with the wings and the shield. I think i am subconsciously attracted to Gundams with splendid or catchy shoulders or wings. Not to mention the shield as well, as i see it as a perfect canvass for imprinting my own ideas. I never quite got that with my previous two Astrays, as with both the Blue and Red Astrays, the parts are so much smaller and complex that it is limiting to put a decent size decals. And I am not a fan of broken or cut decals really. For the color scheme the first i thought of would be a mettalic or pearl blue for the blue parts and a pearl white or somewhat off or very light grayish white for the dominant white part. I do hope though, that when the time comes that i would start on the Hi-Nu, i would have discovered or learned a better way of executing it or an all together different color scheme. 

MG RX-93 Hi-Nu Gundam
And lastly, i had a tough call between the Shin Musha and Shin Musha Mark II Gundam. Although the helmet of the Mark II did strike me in the gallery pics, I chose the Shin Musha for a reason, up until now, I cannot explain. Maybe it was instinct, or i could just be plain stupidity as now I am planning a black and gray color scheme substitution to the Red and dark gray of the original. I did want to have the Shin Musha Sengoku no Jin version but unfortunately it wa sout of stock and i had to buy from what was available at the time. The weapon stand and the japanese styled banner/divider that comes with this version excited me. i guess i have to make my own then. The Shin Musha would be a perfect accompaniment to my Red Astray as I am planning on casting other katanas for Astray. Now i have two Katana wielders. 

MG Shin Musha Gundam
That would do for now. i am still waiting for another kit, the Legend Gundam, howver, i remain skeptical about it as it would be the one to break my all MG Line collection. I'll see how i would feel about it after painting and some customizing though. >o<