captain america

Quasi DYRL colors...

Eww! Imai regult. I think mine looks much nicer

Just wanted to give everyone a little heads-up. I'm still working on the Zentradi, I've just been distracted with other things; I'll try to have some finished pics by friday/saturday.

I've sworn-off doing any more toy conversions.

Actually, Kamjin wears officer's armor which is quite different from the standard infantry armor which I'm sculpting, so a Kamjin head would be rather pointless. If there is enough interest for the kit, I may offer a couple of different heads later on.

The 1/72 Zentradi soldier, I must admit, takes up very little space. And what's more... No Valk collection can be complete without some bad guys to balance-out the decor

New update. Lots of time was spent refining shapes and small details, as well as working the pose. I also scratchbuilt the rifle, which now only needs minor detailing to be complete.

Hi Big F. The idea for the GBP-1 was that it be able to fit over the 1/72 Hasegawa Battroid. However, this thread is well over a year old, and there are several other kits I want to give priority to; namely Zentradi mech, since there isn't a snowball's chance that any plastic company will ever do them. Plus, I think that zentradi designs are just plain kickass

Hi Sar. In fact, yes: the soldier's face will be a separate, sculpted piece, with a separate face mask with space between the lens and the face... Just like a real helmet. With a little bit of dremelling, you'll easily be able to turn that face into a skull to do your post-war dio

Hi Sar. For the time being, my only plan is to include a helmeted head with each figure. The parts breakdown per figure is already at about 22-23pcs as it is, and I'd like to keep the kit price realistic, considering that I'm still not at the break-even point with the preorders. As anything else, if demand is there, some assorted unhelmeted/helmeted heads could be offered in the future.

Hi coolo8r. The seated pilot is designed for my previously-released 1/72 Regult kit. This was not a converted Imai plastic kit, but a completely new model. Pictures below

Hi Sdf-1. It's actually quite simple: by adding your name to the preorder list, you are effectively saying that you'd like to purchase a figure or set at the cost quoted in the first post (shipping is extra, depending on location). For the time being, there is nothing to pay, and I will continue to post update pics as the project advances. When the masters are done, I will post pictures of them from as many angles as possible: this will essentially show any potential client exactly what the kit/parts look like. From there, I will post instructions for contacting me and making payment. I also post in here if there are any delays in shipping, just so that everyone knows exactly what's going on. Usual routine.

Hi Az. The soldier stands at 13cm exactly.

one figure (and if so which version) or one set?

I had contemplated selling the figures separately as well. The logic being that people who might want to produce dioramas may want more of the standing figures, and so purchasing a set would be wasteful. Done. The figures are also available separately at $40 each.

Wow, things are really slow. I was expecting to have triple the current amount of orders by now.

Hi LTSO. I'm using hard Sculpey, Renshape and Polyester putty, as well as wax for some finer details.

Just as a comparison, here's a pic of the old Imai 1/100 figure of Kamjin.

January 12th update. The figure is coming along extremely well thus far. Though the figures will be pre-posed, I'm breaking down the parts in such a way as to make them "modification-friendly" to anyone who would want to change the pose from the standard ponderation and seated configurations.

In so much as the figures are not physically large, it may be possible to ship 2 sets for the price of 1.

Are these going to modeled in static position? Or will this kit be able to use ball joints for articulation? Will a weapon be provided for the standing soldier? ***Just thinking diorama, that's all. 359324[/snapback] Both figures will be static for optimum realism. I'll most likely include a weapon for the standing pilot, seems only right.

Hi all. The 172 Zentradi soldiers are now complete. If you'd like to know more about it, simply click on my screen name at left. When it takes you to my profile, select SEND AN EMAIL in the COMMUNICATE menu. In your email, please use the title "1/72 Zentradi." You will need to leave me your full name and address, as well as your MW screen name.

Hi Big F. The science of molding/casting isn't quite as difficult as some might believe, but it does, however, require a lot of preparation and precision when mixing components. The air bubbles you speak of are created upon mixing of the silicone/catalyst; happens even with a mechanical mixer. This issue is rectified by de-gassing the silicone in an appropriate vacuum chamber. This takes about 15 minutes. I do this, and my molds are pretty much flawless. Short pot life: generally, the specs in the product data sheet are pretty good. However, this depends primarily on the amount of material mixed, as well as the exactitude of the catalyst added; too much can cause the material to cure too quicky, etc. The best thing would be to check the PDS and if possible, cross-reference that info with a technician from the manufacturer.

For what it's worth, I advise extreme caution using urethane rubbers to make molds with. The stuff is easy to use and cheap, but if your master isn't PERFECTLY sealed with mold-release, the rubber will stick to it. With silicone molds, you get better detail capture and no release agent is necessary. Then there are the castings. Without an effective release agent, your casting will essentially fuse itself to the mold, so you *MUST* apply a release agent every time, and on *every* nook & cranny of the mold. What's more, urethane-to-urethane release agents (or at least none that I've ever seen) weren't designed with post-cast painting in mind. So while you may end up with good looking castings, you may also find that no paint will stick to them no matter how much you scrub or clean them. This is why, to my knowledge, all the big GK manufacturers use silicone molds.

The means is not the problem. The completed booster/pylon weighs-in at almost 1lb 9 ounces (0.69kg) by itself. Problem 1: Rotocast parts, while light, are not as sturdy as either full-cast components, or glass/epoxy laminate structures. While the weight of the booster/pylon may not be an issue *right now*, I have observed that many different urethane resins, when placed under load for long periods of time, tend to sag or deform. The hollowed structures can, of course, be reinforced from within (urethane foam, resin pylon, metal armature, etc.) however, this leads to greater complexity, more manual work/tooling time, and thus, the few dollars that are saved by using less material are compensated with higher labor costs. Problem 2: like any project, the more contractors are involved in the production of A given item, particularly a very short-run item like this one), the higher the end price will invariably be. Farming-out the casting was an option I had looked-at on many different occasions, but most all of the prices quoted to me (the most competitive ones anyway) were pretty much what I was able to do the parts for myself. Hence, when you add the need to ship patterns and test-shots back & forth, lag time, duty fees, you end up with yet another cost penalty. Plus, in order to get an accurate casting quote, you first have to produce the masters from which to get the costing done from, which means spending the month or so to sculpt them. If the molding/casting quotes end-up exceeding projected costs, you've just alienated a number of customers for which the price is just too rich, thus potentially lowering total sales, and if there aren't enough preorders to keep it afloat, you end up with a very nice, and very expensive paperweight that cost you a month (or *MANY* months' wages.)... 1/32 Legioss anyone? The short & skinny: sometimes when you want a very limited, hand-made model/piece of art, it's invariably going to be pricy, no matter how you cut-up the proverbial pie.