Guess What I Got Today! (2)

In this second edition of Guess . . ., I present to you a special package I've been expecting for weeks after its arrival to my state from Kyoto, Japan.  Opening the box and sifting through crumpled-up ads of toy trains, bento box lunches, and "Evangelion Christmas Cake," I finally uncovered . . .

The 1/144 HGUC Char's Zaku II (7 Eleven Colors)

As with all the other Gunpla I couldn't get locally, I snagged this at an eBay auction.  Though it originally sold for 1300 yen ($15.00), this set me back $50.  But getting it any cheaper would've meant flying to Japan, driving to the nearest 7 Eleven that had the kit in stock, and buying it along with a chili dog, wasabi chips and a ginseng soda.  So this was actually a bargain.  Though I already have Char's original Zaku, it remains the most versatile kit in my collection and I didn't mind having another like it.  This is what the Red Comet himself would pilot if he worked at a convenience store; then maybe I'd get my food 3 times faster!

Here are pics of the sides of the box:

Here's what's inside:

As though predicting the hassles that would befall getting my hands on this model, the seller was generous enough to throw in a thank-you note, along with a few extra treats:

Two bagged snacks, a Pokemon puzzle with gum and a cute origami bird.

Whether I'll paint the Zaku as I build it remains to be seen.  Till that day comes, I owe you an SD, an NG and a kitbash, so stay tuned for those.  Until next time, Oh Thank Heaven!

WIP: SD G-Gundam (Part 2)

For an SD kit I'm building straight out of the box, it's sure taking a while to finish.  When I'm not busier than usual during the week, I'm reading, watching TV and websurfing between paint jobs.  That and following discussions concerning the premiere of Gundam AGE makes for a weekend full of distractions.  But the project itself is coming along nicely, despite having to paint dark plastic parts in lighter colors.  Here's what I've got so far:

Front and back of the completed head

Both arms

The chest

The torso

One of 2 chest pieces included for the chest

And finally, the Core Lander that attaches to G Gundam's back.

Though it's too bright to see, I painted the thrusters chrome silver with a coat of clear yellow.

And there you have it.  Though I don't have pics of it, I also painted and detailed the 2 beam swords included with the model.  I'll try working on the other parts during the week so that I'd wrap things up by this weekend.  I'm also expecting something new in the mail, so stay tuned for that.  Until next time, does anybody else have the AGE theme song stuck in their head?

WIP: SD G-Gundam (Part 1)

With the introduction out of the way, I'll be showing the progress I've made with my newest SD.

In the last post, I said I wouldn't use any stickers.  But the eyes aren't sculpted on the face.  So the sticker for the eyes is really the only option, right?  Wrong!  First I pressed the sticker onto the face as much as I could.  Then I cut the eyes out of the sticker with my knife, using the rest as an outline.

From there I colored the exposed areas with my metallic-green Gundam Marker before removing the rest of the sticker.  Though the result was pretty messy, the knife had cut deep enough to create the outline for the eyes.  So after hand brushing the surrounding areas black, the eyes were done like a dinner (anyone else ever heard that phrase?).

Next I started painting the other parts to match pics of the finished product.  In order to paint colored plastic in a lighter color, I added layer after layer of white as a base coat.  Next time, I should buy a jar of surfacer (liquid primer) for this sort of thing.

Here's what I've done up till now.  That shiny piece in the middle is the bottom half of the Core Lander jet that latches onto G Gundam's back, which I painted gray.  If I really put in the time, I should be done painting and panel lining by the next post.  Until then, you've never heard the phrase "done like a dinner?"  Seriously?

WIP: SD G-Gundam (Intro)

In my last post, I've bought 2 Gunpla kits to tie me over during my hiatus from my Leo IV project.  They would also be the second and third Gunpla in the God Gundam model kit collection I'm planning.

If you didn't know already, it started with the SD G Gundam (as it's often been called), released way back in 2002 and sold for 600 Japanese yen.  The third completed model in my collection (and the first that I fully painted), it was also the first--and still the best--SD kit in my possession.  But it's not the first SD kit based on G Gundam, which is what this and the next few posts will cover.

Released in 1999 and sold for 500 yen, the original SD G Gundam was actually based on the "SD Generation" series of video games based on the Gundam franchise.

Here are all the runners, the polycaps, the stickers and the instruction booklet for the kit.  Molded in 5 colors, the model itself would need a lot painting to look anything like the box art.  But because this is a break from a bigger project, I'll just build the model and paint what needs painting as I go along.  No, I won't be using the stickers.  And no, there are no missing parts; Bandai just left those empty spaces on the runners.

Due to a series of unforeseen events, posting this WIP is taking longer than I expected.  So I'll stop here.  Join me next time to see how far along I am with this thing.  Until then . . .

OK, I've got nothin.'

Guess What I Got Today!

By now you've probably realized that I've been as stagnant with my latest project as the Earth Federation during a war (Gundam joke).  This realization takes me back to my freshman year in high school.  In my English class, we would write something, anything in our notebook for a few minutes before the day's class was officially in session.  Whenever we started something we couldn't finish, the teacher encouraged us to start something else, as long as we kept on writin.'

In pretty much the same fashion, whenever Gunpla builders are stuck on something, they usually have another model or two lying around so they could work on a new project until they're ready to finish the old one.  I usually avoid this method for two reasons: First, I didn't like spending money on anything that could wind up collecting dust under my bed and second, I didn't have the money to begin with.  Once I did, however, I decided to buy at least two models to tie me over.  But which would I get?

For a while I've noticed that whenever someone has a favorite mobile suit, they build every model based off it.  Prime92, for example, is crazy about Gundam Exia:

And 2Old4Toys is just mad about the original RX-78-2:

For me, it was quite simple:

Though I've already built the second version of the SD God Gundam, I'll start with its older counterpart (Left).  Then I'll work on the 1/144 NG version (Right) before moving on to the HG version.  From there, I just might buy and build every model based on God Gundam (except maybe the MG Hyper Mode version and the MG kit with the clear leg cause they're basically the same).

If I do go through with this, it'll be on top of all the other Gunpla projects I've already planned.  For now, stayed tuned for my first WIP post on the SD G Gundam.  Until then, I best get started.

Good Site, Long Address

Having trouble typing in the incredibly long web address to my blog?  Then strain your fingers no longer!  To ease your suffering, I've tweaked my address to:

http://gslayer1.blogspot.com

So I ask that all those who follow GKNK to take notice and spread the word.  I'll also be adding a Facebook page soon.

Until next time, I'm having a late lunch.

Me, Myself & Irene

Over the past 2 weeks, I've taken time off from my Leo IV project to reconsider what more I wanna do and what I could do differently (though most of that time was squandered on my anime/movie/AMV addiction).  This weekend was spent in preparation for Hurricane Irene; buying supplies, stuffing my windows with shopping bags and gathering plastic containers when the windows leaked the ugliest looking water I've ever seen.  After a heavy rainstorm, the damage was little more than light water stains.  Now that I suddenly have even more time on my hands, I'll continue working on Type IV and I hope to finish the torso sometime this year.

Looking at this pic, I have a pretty good idea of how I want to complete Leo's upper body.  Once the waist area and the headcrest are taken care of, I'll glue both halves of the torso together but keep the seam line running down the sides (Center).  Next I'll drill 4 tiny holes in each corner of the back to accommodate metal pins (Left).  And finally I'll scribe panel lines like those shown here.  But for now . . .

I have to clean up the waist area after just sawing off the excess plastic.  That pink area on the left part is a dry piece of Tamiya putty that will be used to help sculpt the waist and fill in areas that are cut too deep.  I had this putty since '06, so I was gonna throw it away when I bought a new tube.  But then I discovered that I can still use the old putty as a sort of modeling clay.

Here's Leo's chest squeezed onto Tallgeese's torso.  As you can see, the chest doesn't go all the way in, stressing the need for further modification.  I thought about drilling into the chest to fit the peg on the torso, but now I'm thinking of just trimming down the peg itself, though I'd still have to work on that waist.

I have more ideas, but I don't wanna drag this out anymore.  Stay tuned for my next official WIP post and other news.  Until next time, break's over.  Back to work!