GU-11

I've got a question: Let's say I want to upgrade to a larger HDD; can I copy my save files to a USB thumbdrive and paste them to the new HDD? Speaking of which, what are the basic steps I need to follow when upgrading to a new/larger HDD?

I know I did. In any case, I'm not curious as to why HE came on to her, but why SHE agreed to date HIM.

Thanks for the recommendation, Jefuemon. I can get a hold of Mr. Surfacer, but I don't currently own an airbrush. Planning on investing in one, but it'll be a while yet before I can set aside the cash for it. Honestly, I'm not even all that experienced with spray cans. Not sure if I'm experienced enough to handle the complexities of an airbrush. Thanks for the info. BTW, I'd just wet sanded the parts today, and some of the edges were slightly worn off. Will this affect the final finish adversely? It's very slight, but I'm worried that the edges might chip. Then again, you did mention that enamel hold pretty well on naked plastic. Think I should touch up with a couple more light coats or just go ahead and spray on the color coats? Also, I have a problem with coverage when spraying primer. I can't completely cover the edges on sharp parts if I spray at a 20 to 30 cm distance. I can only cover the areas if I spray up close. Am I doing something wrong, or is it okay so spray up close?

Between the movie and the OVA, the latter is far better IMO. More screen time means more space for better character development; Isamu in the movie acted more like a caricature than a believable character. In the OVA, he had enough "normal/sane" moments that makes him more of a human being than that stoned, yipping chimp on LSD in the movie. The way his relationship with Lucy developed was very disjointed, too. When he comes on to her after the aerial pterodactyl scene, she's disgusted by him, but right after he gets a scolding from Milliard Johnson, there she is yelping for dear life behind him as he races his bike against traffic. Of all the characters, I find Myung to be my least favorite. All that depression and melodrama just gets old. Speaking of which, I'd have liked the backstory to have been explained a little more. All I got from it was that Guld, Isamu and Myung were childhood friends, and both guys had the hots for the girl. Guld walks in on Isamu and Myung, goes into a rage. He beats up Isamu and tears off Myung's tanktop. The three of them go their separate ways, only to meet during the events of Project Super Nova. Here's what I don't understand [the DVD I watched had missing subtitles in the middle of episodes 2 and 3 so it might be just me]; what happened to Guld's memory of the incident? Was it subconscious mental suppression or did he use those pills to suppress them? What exactly was that medicine he took every time he had a flashback? I've read on a post somewhere that it was to suppress his Zentran aggression. That said, I still find it to be my favorite Macross title of all. It's a refreshing departure from the usual massive space opera setting, using a competition for the next-gen fighter as a backdrop. The characters were interesting, too. The gorgeous Valk designs were just the icing on the cake.

Thanks, EXO. I guess you just can't cut corners in certain areas.

Thanks. That's good news, as the place where I get my GS paints is a lot further than where I stock up on Tamiya stuff. Cool! That'll save me a ton of time. Wow, I'm glad I asked. I used to only wait for an hour or two [dry to the touch] before applying the next coat. The way things look, it'll take me a few weeks to finish this model kit. I've been searching to the fricking ends of the earth for a respirator, but just couldn't find one. Ace hardware, Home Depot [called Houz Depot where I'm at], and all the local hardware stores...none of them carry respirators. I had to make do with a double layer of surgical masks, topped with a NIOSH N95, and hold my breath whenever I spray. I do all my spraying outdoors, and walk to the other side of the patio between sprays. It might or might not be enough, but it's the best I can do until I find a place that sells respirators. Wonder if I could order one online? One of the good things about being in Asia is that modeling tools and accessories are relatively easier to find. The down side is that the weather sucks donkey balls; it's usually either too hot or too wet to paint outside. A day of temperate weather is more the exception rather than the norm. Even Tamiya acrylics? I know acrylics are super fragile, but if they can stand up to reasonable handling, I might be able to save up on clear coats.

Good advice, anime52k8. I'm a stickler for prep work myself, although in this case, I got "punked" by the weather. Thanks for the heads up on the black spray. I did plan on that, but the hobby store's sold out of Mr. Color black for a while now. Could I use Tamiya's TS spray cans with Gunze Silver? BTW, would light sanding be a good alternative to priming? Where I'm at, it rains a lot, and it can get aggravating if you have to wait for days on end for a temperate sunny day to do some spraying. Also, how long do you usually wait between coats?

Can't believe I didn't this post all this while. Awesome build, PetarB! The VF-2SS is one of my favorite VF's, and it's a shame Yamato has no current plans for a perfect transformation figure.

Again, thanks for the advice. I can't thank you enough for the heads-up on the gunze silver paint. The only reason I applied the primer was because I was worried that the silver might rub off or chip on naked plastic. In retrospect, I think it might have something to do with the fact that it rained in the middle of the night. I slept right through it, and only found out from my neighbor just now. I guess that rules out improper spray can preparations--I'd properly prepped the primer by soaking the can in warm water for several minutes, kept a 30cm spraying distance, applied thin coats and waited several minutes for it to dry between coats, and even swirled the can instead of shaking it.

Thanks for the quick reply! I'm using Tamiya Surface Primer for Plastic and Metal [Gray]. For the color coat, it's Mr. Color #8 Silver Metallic. As for the finish I'm looking for, I want the finish to be more like polished armor. In any case, should I just sand down the primer or completely sand it off and spray a gloss coat on it?

I finally decided to redo old model kit I did as a kid, and this time, I planned to do it right, primer, paint, top coat and all. Now I've never used primer before, and the first time I used it on the kit today, it left a rather grainy finish. Is primer supposed to be like this? I thought of sanding the surface to make it smoother, but I was worried that if it were too smooth, it might not have enough "teeth" to hold the color paint, which is silver. On the other hand, the graininess might cause the color paint to take on grainy finish as well. In short: is the graininess normal for primed surfaces [in which case I should leave it alone], or would it be a good idea to lightly sand it down? Thanks for any advice.

I might just get Lightning...but Grayfox is all kinds of awesome. I'm not enough of a MGS fan to collect the whole line, but a collection of Old Snake, Solidus, Cyborg Raiden, Grayfox and Olga Gurlukovich [ninja suit worn in MSG2: Sons of Liberty] would be nice.

If it's going to be a retool of the 1/60 Fire Kai...I dunno, I'm not a fan of the visible ankle joints. Sure it adds a lot of articulation to the feet, but it looks pretty distracting. Also, I prefer the more robust look of the V2 in fighter mode. The wings could stand to be a little longer, though.

Guess you're right; the price of batteries doesn't seem to be the reason. Interesting that they actually gave options for button-cell AND AA batteries. For some strange reason, that pic keeps reminding me of that convenience store guy from "Bad Boys." "Freeze, mother-bitches! I killed before, I kill again!!!"

Same here. Arnie is the only Conan I know, and the only version I acknowledge.

That's what pisses me off the most. I actually pre-ordered Strength at my local hobby store, but they had to go on a first pre-ordered first served basis, and I still haven't received a call from them yet. I'm just hoping that Strength gets a re-release, seeing how popular the whole BRS line has become. Besides, there's so much more potential in BRS [a veritable smorgasbord of characters in the BRS universe, and probably many more to come] than K-On [5 lead characters, and the story pretty much ends with the second season, unless they start a reunion/college band thing]. The game version of BRS is scheduled for a December 2011 release too, but still no news on the bike. Love that bike.

That's a very good idea, actually. I suppose it's the higher price of button-cell batteries that prevent them from being used. Most higher-end Hasbro TF's tend to have "try me" features that allow kids to activate the voice-chips, most likely to tempt them to beg Daddy for an early Christmas gift on the spot. They'd have include the batteries if they want to keep this strategy. But going back to the power consumption issue, they also have to power the voice chip as well as the LED's. I'm not sure how much power those button-cell batteries have, but the speaker for the sound gimmick might use up quite a bit of energy.

Been wondering about the same thing. Seems like the BRS Strength figs was in severely short supply for some reason, and most all online stores are sold out.

Thanks for the pic, s001. I just realized that I had the DN in "no-arms" GERWALK mode, which blocks those thrusters from view. Sorry, my bad.

This is more about the YF-19's design and not so much the toy, so I'm not sure if this belong here. Mods please transfer this to the proper forum if it doesn't belong here. Anyways, I was looking at my YF-19 DN that was displayed in GERWALK mode and noticed that unlike the YF-21 or VF-1, it's got no "backpack thrusters" in GERWALK mode to propel itself forward in GERWALK mode. This seem to be true for the SV-51 Valks as well. The leg thrusters are basically used for hovering in GERWALK, and are the only means of forward propulsion. Is this a legitimate design error or are there hidden thrusters in the design that just weren't or couldn't be used in the toy?

I agree with the general consensus here: it's the all the lights and sound-box gimmicks that ruin Leader class TF's more than anything else. Leader class ROTF Optimus could have been A THIRD SLIMMER had it not been for the battery pack. And I'm pretty sure LC Starscream's jet mode could have been slimmer without the batteries, too. I'd also like to add that time constraints also plays a part in bad TF designs. The toys have to be ready for release by the time the movie hits the theaters, and Micheal Bay works like a nuclear-powered Energizer bunny. It took them an extra two years to "perfect" Optimus' leader class toy [i used quotes only because the damn battery pack prevents it from true perfection]. The first movieverse leader toy looks almost primitive compared to the ROTF version. As for Jetfire, I think he could have turned out worse, considering the roles he had to play as a toy: jet mode, alt mode, and combined jet parts for Optimus.

My last DOTM buys before moving on to TFP are deluxe and HA Soundwave, and DOTM Skyhammer. Speaking of Skyhammer, I just recently saw some pics of a custom painted version, and for some unknown reason, I'm just mesmerized by it. I don't know why. Wasn't even a different paint scheme--same colors, but slightly more matte, and repainted head. Maybe it's the head that made all the difference.

Thanks for the correction. I seem to have misread some info on another forum. One thing though; on the other forum, I saw a pic of a BRS bike that was featured among the figures. Does anyone know how much it costs?

Ye ole brick-and-mortar hobby store started pre-orders for the V2. Preordered it last weekend.

Good point about the availability of DMK Optimus. It's completely sold out at most online shops, and I could only find it in selected hobby stores in my area. Come to think of it, I guess I'd better do the same as you, and try dry brushing on other less expensive and rare figs before Optimus. DOTM deluxe Bumblebee is a good candidate. If I like what I see, then I'll move on to DMK Bumblebee and finally, to DMK Optimus. Truth to be told, I've never done dry brushing before either, although it looks extremely easy on the tutorials; supposedly, the trick is to know when the dry brushing is just enough. One thing I think is safe to do right off the bat is to apply a coat of gloss spray onto the alt mode parts of DMK Optimus to give the plastic a more realistic sheen. I'll definitely do some panel lining on it as well.