captain america

Assuming I could track-down and find all of my masters, that would be a possibility. Not kidding

I'll have to agree that they are both very different in their approach. Not so much red versus green apple, as much as perhaps apple versus orange. Hasegawa kits are models, in the purest most traditional sense. Yes, they're detail is unmatched, however, construction is VERY simple. You've never built Hasegawa's 1/48 F-14 or F-18s, or Tamiya's 1/12 Williams FW-14B have you? They are many things, but not simple. In fact, they are infinitely more challenging since complexely-curved shapes must be both bonded and alligned, then skilfully puttied, sanded, lightly rescribed, and then painted; sometimes sub-assemblies must be painted and then inserted into another construct, whereby it must be carefully masked again to avoid overspray when painting the surrounding construct. And then you have decals (don't even get me started on those!) With a Perfect Grade, you just need to "assemble" and be able to exert enough strength to snap fit the parts together. Even if one does decide to paint a PG, it barely (if at all) requires any skilful masking or puttying. They certainly do have more pieces in a kit than almost anything else I can think of by any other company, but more parts does not mean more complex. If anything, the only challenge I can think of comes from designing them. Hase puts more emphasis on appearance, painting, etc. Yes, because true models are made for display, to be enjoyed with one's eyes, not fingers Bandai PG's look great as well, even without paint. Unless I'm doing a custom scheme, I don't even paint mine, just washes/weathering. However, Bandai kits, especially MG and PG, focus more on the assembly side of things. Moving parts, very elaborate, more sturdy, and yes, made for light play. Made for light play... The operative word to describe a toy That's the whole point I was trying to make. Bandai "kits" don't cultivate true modelling skills, such as painting, puttying, masking, sanding/finishing, decaling, etc. The very fact that most Gunpla "builders" just snap their kits together sans paint and slap-on stickers is pretty much what a Kinder Surprise toy is: molded in color, no glue required; just snap & apply stickers and voila: instant gratification. Please don't take this as me poo-poo-ing on Bandai or MGs, or even your enjoyment of the latter, because I like them too. In fact, if/when that PG VF-25 comes out, I'm down for two without batting an eyelash--and this, from a guy who hasn't bought himself a "real" model kit in almost 4 years.The very fact that PGs are toy-like is what makes them so interesting to me, even if they aren't real models.

Hasegawa, like Fine Molds, is a true model kit manufacturer: their crispness, attention to detail and ultra-fine recessed panel lines have never been matched, let alone surpassed by Bandai, who, for all intents and purposes, merely make highly-detailed toys that one must assemble one's self. This isn't to say that Bandai is bad or inferior; I myself just love their Perfect Grades (and have snapped together more than a few with much pleasure) but if you stop and think about it, a PG is really just an overly-elaborate Kinder Egg toy... Without the awesome chocolate outer shell

The 20 Graug spots are now filled! I've already begun prepping and will have the 1st update by Friday. I hadn't realized how massive the Graug would have to be in 1/72 until I started printing the plots out. It might not have as much mass as a Monster (which poses its own set of problems) but it will certainly be a challenge to keep in balance, what with those spindly limbs and what have you.

Ok, it's five after 6pm EST. All those notified in wave 1 who didn't get in on time are now on hold. Viceland and Codam 23, if you're still interested, I'm waving you in...

Less than an hour to go, and 5 spots yet unfilled.

As of 3:26PM EST, 9 spots still unfilled. I've begun making print-outs and HOLY FRACKING SH%$#@ this thing will be MASSIVE!!!

Ok, here goes. I will be sending out PMs to the initial posters of this thread along with deposit info, and will wait til 6pm Eastern time. If payment isn't received by that time, I move to the alternates. Fingers crossed...

Not at all. Everyone else has work/obligations to tend to, including myself. I really don't think it's going to be some 20 minute affair, but more likely a protracted deposit "window" extended over several hours at least. You can also make arrangements with a third party to make the deposit in your stead, if you're really hell-bent on it. There are always solutions if we are willing to discover them.

Bingo! And depending on the nature of Bandai and the Whory Froating Head's collaboration, it's entirely possible that the VF designs were done specifically with product already in mind, or perhaps with input directly from Bandai, which they were notorious for doing with Gundam. Either way, I wouldn't lose any sleep over transformation/proportional accuracy, if indeed they do go that route. Could it be a static, non-variable model? While it's possible, I feel that this scenario is highly unlikely. I liken Macross Flontier to Evangelion: something non-Gundam that Bandai saw potential in, and was able to sink its marketing claws into; good for Bandai, and good for the fans.

Correct! I will post here as well as notify people via PM. I'm thinking around 1pm-ish Eastern time.

Yes, United States Dollars. For the moment it looks oversold, so I will proceed in the order of posting to collect deposits. If someone misses their turn, I'll wave you in. Not trying to be difficult or anything, just want to be fair to those that stepped-up the the plate first.

A million? Never. I start to go bonkers after a few dozen castings The molds may or may not be able to take more than 20 casts, it's hard to say. The bigger the part, the greater the exotherm produced by the resins and this degrades a mold exponentially quicker than lots of tiny pieces, and the high-strength stuff is even worse. 20 pieces is what I felt I could guarantee safely. I might be able to handle an extra 1 or 2 castings, but that's really it.If I don't feel I'm able to do justice to more than 20, I reserve the right to simply refund those that fell outside the limit and call it a day. The quality of my work is more important than a few extra digits on a bank balance. Oh, speaking of bank, with their ever-changing policies, they "offer" to freeze funds and charge "extra" fees now for M-Os, so Paypal has actually become less of a hassle... At least for the time being.

50 bucks? For THAT?? They should've just molded the sprues in color and packaged it in a chocolate egg

I haven't determined a specific time, but yes, Paypal is fine. Looks like there may be more demand than slots available, which is reassuring and preferable, since from experience, actual orders are always a bit lower than expressed interest. I call it market deviation

One week left til crunch day. Also, take notice that if/when I do take down-payments it'll be on an impartial first come, first served basis until the 20 slots are filled

Given Bandai's predictable marketing nature, it wouldn't be a static display model, but likely a PG grade, as some of us have surmised.My guess is that the photo is of a quick stereolithography mock-up that they put out to gauge public reception.

The mock-up of the VF-25 in that pic doesn't look variable to me, but in as much as Bandai doesn't make pure model kits, the final product likely would transform. Is the 1/48 actually a confirmed release, or just a demo prototype?

Don't thank me just yet, we still have a few slots to fill Note to self: don't give stroke to customers... Oh, and if we do manage to get this donut rolling, I'll see if I can throw-in a pleasant surprise with the kit.

The kit'll be ready in about 3-4 days. Just kidding! Most likely early-mid July.

Yes, mega-spendy actually. It will require a LOT of resin, and the pricier type that cures very slowly too, which reduces turn-around time three-fold; combine that with the extra time it'll take to make jigs and inserts, it all adds up labor-wise.My mom says I'm worth it... But then again, she never bought any of my kits, so I have to wonder sometimes

Hi guys. Well a few people have asked for it, so here is the next project proposal, a 1/72 Tacticar Pod Graug. What do I foresee? A realistically-scaled Graug, complete with detailed cockpit and a seated Quamzin figure. How big would this sucker be? VERY big! Like 36cm tall, about 24cm deep, and almost 20cm wide... So big it almost needs its own zip code. It will also likely be quite an engineering challenge, requiring big honkin' metal screws, metal inserts, as well as the use of some extra tough polymers to combat sagging. As such, this will be a very labor and materials-intensive project, so I would limit the run to 20 kits. The damage? $390 with a mandatory deposit of $100 per kit ordered. The deposit would not be refundable, but would be transferable, should you decide to opt-out. Anyhoo, I will let this thread run until the 25th, at which point I will assess the matter and see if we have enough interested people to get a green light, so if it's a go, I would start collecting deposits the week of the 25th. As always, I'll do my best to answer questions if you have any

Holy guacamole, that chopper looks awesome! Love the camo paint scheme too, can't wait to see her done!

The YF-19 wasn't an in-service fighter, it was a prototype. Lots of experimental or prototype aircraft have semi-gloss or full-on gloss paint schemes. As mentioned above, most military aircraft start out in matt or satin finish, and end up a tad shinier in ceratain areas as a result of friction with the air, and also due to maintenance & cleaning. You can test this yourself by spraying a sheet of plastic or metal with a matt paint, and then just by rubbing it a few times with a cloth, you end up burnishing it. If you do that often enough, you can start to get quite a shine going. On a real fighter, it creates quite a visually-interesting texture/patina. So to answer the question of what kind of finish these aircraft have, I would say that it's generally matt, but with certain areas being almost semi-gloss, like the leading edges of wings and parts of the aircraft that are accessed/walked on frequently for maintenance.

Maybe one day I'll finish the 1/32 Legioss I started way back when. The micro-machines Legioss & Tread were made to accompany this sucker here...