Customizing for Dummies

[Deadzone]

Alright, this is my tribute to the Simpson's half-assed guide to foundation repair. I just finished doing my third Valk, and I think I got the hang of it. This guide is not for people who want to become expert customizers like WM Cheng, Xstoys, and Kidkorrupt. I paint my valks to look like they came straight out of the factory. No frills or extras, just a nice looking valk with a different paint scheme. I only do 1/55 reissues because they are my favorite and surprisingly affordable. So for anyone who ever thought about doing a simple custom repaint, here we go.

TAKING APART THE VALK:

Taking apart a 1/55 is fairly easy. Most of it is just unscrewing parts and pulling them apart. The biggest challenge is to separate the nosecone and the back section that hold the wings in place. For the nosecone, you're going to have to go in from behind. Stick a screwdriver in and slowly work the two parts open. It will take some force as the pegs are held in pretty tight.

The back section holding the two main wings has two parts that are screwed together and glued together. Remove all the screws, then use a screw driver to pry open the parts glued together near the shoulder area of the robot. This will also take some force. I'm surprised I didn't crack the plastic separating the two.

SANDING THE VALK:

This step is probably the most important to prevent chipping. Essentially, all the clear coat, primer, and superglue in the world will not prevent chipping if you have areas of high friction. To prevent this, you have to sand down those pieces that would scrap against each other during transformation. The vital areas include:

1.The plastic around the leg swing bars. If you notice, there are two indented holes made for the leg pegs to lock into when in fighter mode and in robot mode. I sanded the bottom half of the nosecone/canopy part on the sides from one indented hole all the way to the next indented hole. I also sanded around the hole for the swing bars.

2. The inside of the hips where they contact the upper leg. When the hips are screwed in tight, they will pinch the upper leg and cause friction when moving the legs around. You want to sand behind the area where those side guns are. (I think they are guns or missle launchers)

3. The insides of the shoulders. When the two shoulder pieces are put together, they will pinch the upper arm. Make sure the insides are sanded smooth. DO NOT sand away the ridges that allow the arm to stay in place and click when they are moved.

4. The two hook like pieces that hold the tailfins in place. Do not sand the bump that allows the tailfins to click in place. Only sand around them and the edges.

To find out if you have sanded enough, here is something I find useful. Take a piece of paper. If you like putting on multiple coats and heavy clear coats, take a thick piece of paper. If you can slide it in between two pieces without much trouble, you have sanded enough. If the paper gets caught in between two parts, keep sanding. A medium grade sand paper will do fine for the initial sand. For the final sand, use nothing lower than a 400 grit. (600 grit if you have it)

PRIMING THE PIECE:

1. You may not have to, but I like rubbing all the pieces with polishing paper. You can buy it at a hobby store for around $2.00 a sheet. The stuff feels almost like cloth. It is great for getting the shine off of the plastic which makes the primer stick better.

2. Now to prime. But what primer should you use. I have experimented with rustoleum, Krylon, and Tamiya. Tamiya is a great primer but very expensive. It dries smoother and preserves more surface detail. However, a small can runs around $7.00. You can get twice as much from a Krylon can that only costs $5.00. I find the rustoleum premium metal primer to be good on metal parts and plastic resin. The Krylon and Tamiya will chip off on certain resin parts. Although I never tried the rustoleum metal on the entire valk I imagine that it would be fine. The Reissues are made of ABS plastic that should withstand the metal primer. I would still do a test piece just in case. You should really choose the primer according to what you want to do. If you plan to use the primer as a paint, I would go with the Tamiya for the smooth coat. If you plan to paint something on top of the primer, it is hard to go wrong with the Krylon. If you are painting metal or resin (most custom heads are made of resin) go with the rustoleum premium metal primer.

3. People always say prime the pieces using light coats. However, what the hell is a light coat? At first I would go over a piece very quickly with a light mist, then bitch about how the coats were too rough. What you want to do is continually go over a piece until it looks smooth. Chances are it will also look slightly wet like a gloss paint. If the coat does not look smooth, keep spraying until it is. Sometimes, I have to go over a piece three times before I get the desired effect (And yes, I mean in one sitting I don't mean spraying, letting it dry, then spraying again) .

4. The can will tell you to hold the piece a certain distance away for spraying. The truth is, the proper distance depends on weather conditions. Hotter drier conditions means moving the can closer to maybe 8 inches away. Colder damper conditions may mean going to ten to twelve inches. It all depends on the weather. As long as you get the smooth result, it will be fine.

5. The best thing to do after priming is to let the stuff dry overnight. Yeah you could start painting within an hour, but to ensure a smooth surface, you need to polish the piece with polishing paper or maybe a 600 grit sandpaper. This requires the primer to be completely dry which normally takes awhile.

6. Clean all the dust particles off with warm water.

PAINTING FINALLY:

1.Type of paints: I like using Tamiya paints. They spray great and look great after drying. They also stick better than Createx which I think is crap.

2. Thinning paint: Buy the large 250ml Tamiya thinner. You will be using it and the big gas tank like bottle gives you the best value. There is no defined ratio of thinning that is best. The problem is, every color has a different consistency. Sometimes I buy two pots of flat white and each flat white has a different consistency. People say thin until the paint looks like milk. That's good for the airbrush. If you plan to hand brush anything, go a little bit thicker.

3. The airbrush you choose is very important. Personally, I like the Iwata Eclipse. If you can't spend that much, I hear a Badger or Paasche is good too. Whatever you do, do not buy an airbrush meant for fine inks. You will be in a world of hurt. Get one that can spray the thicker paints as opposed to watery inks.

4. When spraying, you want to do the same thing as priming. Get a coat that is smooth. As with priming, you will have to adjust the distance of the airbrush depending on the weather and thickness of paint. Never start spraying directly on a piece. First start spraying, then move the airbrush slowly across the targeted piece. (Sometimes paint collects at the tip of the airbrush causing spattering when the trigger is first pulled)

5. Glass cleaners like windex should be used to clean the airbrush.

6. If you make a mistake and get paint globs on your piece, you will have to get a Q-tip with windex and wipe out the mistake. Don't try to paint over it. That NEVER works.

MASKING:

1. Masking is fairly simple. Put tape on the part you don't want painted. The best masking tape I have found is this automotive masking tape by 3m Scotch. It is $3.00 a roll, but it works wonders. Press the masking tape firm against the surface with either your fingernail or a toothpick. The stuff works best on smooth surfaces which shouldn't be a problem on a 1/55 valk. Just make sure the paint underneath has properly dried. I usually give it a day to dry before I start masking.

CLEAR COAT:

1. By now you have painted your valk and think it is pretty good. However, how do you protect it? If detail is important to you and you don't plan on transforming your valk too often, future floor wax works pretty well. Spray it on with your airbrush until you get a smooth wet coat. Don't overspray otherwise it will cause unsightly globs. Since future has almost the consistency of water, you will probably have to spray farther than your Tamiya paints. Let it dry overnight before handling it again. DO NOT USE FUTURE ON BRIGHT WHITE. I did one one of my valks which slightly yellowed everything. It gives it kind of a weathered look, but I like my valks bright white.

2. For those looking for a stronger coat, try envirotex. This clear coat is the equivalent of almost five to six coats of future. The stuff dries rock hard and provides excellent protection for your valk. However, the coats are so thick that they do cover up some detail. Also, mastering the spraying technique will take some time. You have to spray until the surface is smooth. A light coat is actually pretty thick. If the coat looks like sugar, you are spraying too far. If it looks like an orange pell, you haven't sprayed enough. Keep spraying until the coat looks smooth, or prepare for a lumpy finish to your paint job. Touch envirotex before it dries and you are screwed. You will probably put an ugly finger print on it and have to strip the entire piece or wait for it to dry and sand the finger print down. Finger prints will also be left in future, but they are more easily corrected since the future coat is thinner and easier to reapply.

PUTTING IT TOGETHER:

1. Pretty self explanitory except for one thing. You should probably sand the leg pegs slightly to reduce friction when moving the legs into their locking positions for the fighter and robot modes. Also, sand the pegs so that they can actually slide back into the hole towards the spring but not too much or they will end up falling out. Replace the springs with ones that have more give. I bought some at the hardware store for around $1.50 for six.

Well, this is how I do my valks. If you have any questions, feel free to PM me. The half assed approach is still time consuming but should yield you good results. So after all my instructions, sexual innuendos, and your effort, you should have a descent custom valk.

[scand]

Hey thats a good break down. I'm going to try future on my next custum. I haven't had any luck with the clear coats in the spray can. I just tried Model Master and it still yellowed a bit.

The Tamiya primer in the can is da bomb! It goes on so smooth and if you plan on using a clear coat there really is no need for another type of paint.