MickyG's (Slow) VF-25G Build

[mickyg]

Thanks you two. It's a real honor to have you both pop in. Your comments and advice are always welcomed!

I haven't got much progress to report. Finished the decaling on the other knee, and it's way better than the first one (no idea why I waited so long to do the second one). Amazing what a few months of experience and proper tools will do! No pics unfortunately. The death of my DSLR is annoying as it means the only good camera is again a precious commodity. I also managed to get one shoulder hex decal on today. Man these are a pain! I read somewhere ages ago that cutting them on the corners was a good idea. So that's what I did but I've got pretty small gaps on all four corners now. Oh well, they'll probably blend in once I get some weathering on them. They're so small! That and the colours are so close to the blue part that you almost can't see the stupid decals.

Edited January 12, 2010 by mickyg

[mickyg]

Quick update:

• Second shoulder and lettering (003 and SMS) done. Lots of dried "decal goo" to clean up.
• SMS003 lettering done on the legs/landing gear doors. I actually struggled more with placement on these decals than any other so far! Could not get them to line up and remain "unstuck" to save my life. Ended up using both "spares" for the open door option. That's OK, didn't intend to ever display it gears down.
• Side of leg (the blue strip) vernier decals and purple "things" applied. The verniers were terrible! It's like they applied a circular mold to the part but from the top instead of perpendicular to the surface. The result is an oval vernier that doesn't line up with the round decals at all. I've got the PE detail kit but couldn't be bothered trying to apply a flat circle to a complicated plastic surface. I have spare decals for the standard shield that I might use if I decide to try the PE parts in the future.
• Chest piece black decal applied. Lolicon, thanks for the heads up on this one. You're right, it doesn't fit to the edges but since I was expecting the worst, I was pleasantly surprised by how uniformly it did fit in the areas I wasn't expecting (around the panel line detail). This will be a cinch to fix up with black paint or gundam pen.

Edited January 12, 2010 by mickyg

[mickyg]

Long time between updates! I've been spending every waking moment, it seems, trying to repair my broken DSLR. The camera repair guy said it wasn't fixable (well economically, at least). I figured I didn't have anything to lose so it's been apart at least 4 times now! In the end, I was able to fix my lens but that's all. It now functions as a manual only sort of camera. The light metering system, which determines every automatic setting, except for auto focus, is broken. So in the meantime, I can take pictures, as long as I'm willing to snap a few to get them right. No big deal really, just a bit more time consuming.

Anyway, after I got all that out of the way a few days ago, I was able to get back to the model. I've accomplished the following since then:

• Removed excess decal "sludge" with fine and finishing tamiya polishing compound - works really well!
• Paint the silver chrome for the back of the red lights on the shoulders and chest - pen works as well as I had hoped.
• Paint in (using a gundam marker) the missed areas from the shoulder hexagons, due to seperating the decals.
• Apply a thick clearcoat with brush to the shoulder hexes.
• Apply a brown oil wash to the super part thruster nozzles.

Pics of the above:

[Lolicon]

Whoa those shoulders look perfect! What color gundam marker did you use on those?

[mickyg]

I should have been a bit more descriptive on the shoulders, actually. The only thing I touched up were the corners of the inside black line. And I only used a black marker. The rest is all decal. They're small enough and the colour is close enough to the blue plastic that you can't make out where they don't match up at the corners. Don't worry, they're a far cry from perfect! Sounds like my efforts have done the trick though. Thanks for the compliment!

[mickyg]

It's been a day of frustration (mostly)...

I thought it'd be fun to get out the "detail up" PE kit from Jasmine that I purchased some months ago. Up till now, I'd only just used the instrument cluster and feet detail parts. They weren't too big a deal. The rest though is a completely different story!

You might remember a few posts ago, I completed the vernier decal for the legs (inside near the ankles). The detail in the plastic is horrible, with this scewed, distorted oval shape to it. The end result is a decal that can't possibly fit right, and furthermore, why would you want it too? These verniers are one of those visual "macross" things, as far as I'm concerned! And those symbols are supposed to be round!

Anyway, I thought I would skip the grief on the fuselage verniers and just use the PE parts instead. I figured the fuselage was slightly less than flat but that I could get them to conform with a bit of pressure and some super glue. I had no idea how difficult this would be! The super glue wouldn't go on small enough, so every time I'd push, it'd ooze out the sides and stick to my finger instead. Or I'd get the orientation wrong, or it'd stick to the wrong spot. In the end, my best attempt resulted in the part fitting but not enough to get rid of an unsightly gap around the outer diameter. Not what I had in mind.

So I ended up ripping them both off. I think I'll just go with the decal, after all. Just don't have the patience to make it work.

Next step, try some of the cockpit parts - they can't be that hard, right? Wrong. The main issue with these is paint application. Paint just doesn't go on and stay on to a metal surface. And yes, I'm using Mr Metal primer. I might not be using it right, but I'm using it. Anyway, after I got the paint applied, I had to be super cautious not to scratch it with my tweezers as I tried to apply it. That failed, by the way. No way to prevent paint chipping with metal parts, in my limited experience. So that went pretty slowly. I gave up on the front windscreen parts around the HUD/instrument panel. They sit too high to allow the windscreen to fit on. Hadn't thought that'd be an issue but it is. Furthermore, there's pretty much no chance that I'll even be able to see that kind of detail with the canopy closed! So it got chucked. Same for the shoulder parts of the seat back. I couldn't see how to paint them or how they match what's in the anime and so they got discarded as well. I used the hands and joysticks but I don't know that I like the look of them. Oh well.

In the end, these parts were just too much hassle for something that I don't think I'll notice when it's done. And it's taking me so incredibly long as it is! Another slowdown just isn't an option right now. The ones that I will be using are either already applied (instrument panel and feet details) or will be easier (the "sensor cluster" dots in the nosecone, for example).

Anyway, end of my rant.

The good news is that I managed to get some of the two-tone blue airbrushed on the underside of the fuselage. This is the part that I keep forgetting and the way I was going, it'd be after I started assembly that I remembered to do it.

No interesting pics, in my opinion. Sorry.

I hope to post more progress tomorrow.

[mickyg]

Lot's of pics ahead...

I've done pretty much nothing over the last week but had taken lots of photos of my previous efforts, and haven't posted them yet. So this is a "catch up" post for anyone that wanted to see some progress.

First up, my PE adventures. The first pic is the Vernier, after painting it and attempting to super glue it. I didn't end up keeping these due to poor fit. I'm not experienced enough with these and it's possible a more seasoned modeler could have bent the part properly before attaching it, thus avoiding the unsightly gaps I experienced. The next two are of the nose "sensor dots" that fit into the little recesses. I like these parts but they're so small! I ended up using the one for the top and haven't made up my mind for the sides yet. Once I attach these, the nose halves will be "locked" together. That, and I don't know that I really need them here, as there are discs already molded into the triangles on the sides. The final pics are of the cockpit details. I've used the front part that goes directly under the front canopy section (can't remember what this is called - cowl?), the instrument panel and decal, the two "wall" parts behind the seat, and the hands/sticks. The front "wall" parts wouldn't fit under the canopy, so weren't used, and the parts on either side of the seat just didn't seem to represent what was in the anime that well in my mind, so I chose not to use them.

Next up are pics of the areas I still need to paint. The bottom fuselage and a closer shot of the area that still needs to be painted blue (the white sliver between the sections that form the crotch area).

And finally, some progress shots of the oil wash I did after my last post. I started with a dark wash on all the deep and detail parts (attachment points, access panels, etc) and a lighter wash on the rest. In hindsight, the lighter wash isn't nearly light enough. I'm debating on whether I go over it with a lighter wash or just spray a thinned coat of white over it. I might go for that option, as the super parts white doesn't match the kit white, so that sliver piece, the guns, the crotch, all don't match the rest of the white on the plane. Don't know...

Thoughts and comments are always welcomed!

Edited February 6, 2010 by mickyg

[Chronocidal]

Ok, possibly dumb question... what's the actual proper color scheme for the underside of Michael's plane? Bandai included both blue and white versions of the panel surrounding the front gear doors, but it makes absolutely no sense to me to use the blue one, while the rest of the underside (gear doors and the panels to the rear) is white.

I guess it's a moot point for me anyway though.. either way, I plan on making the entire belly white, even if it's wrong. I just think it looks better to have the underside consistently white.

Really, Bandai seems kinda clueless with the correct color scheme on the VF-25G.. Aren't the entire intake assemblies supposed to be white? If I make my Alto with the super pack, I might use the spare white intakes on Michael's plane.

[Lolicon]

The underside of the nose around the landing gear doors is blue in the anime.

[mickyg]

Just about to post a similar screen shot - you beat me to it!

Yeah, I don't get it either. I was actually going to continue the blue to the next section, just behind the gear doors, as that section has a panel line that matches the one in front. But the anime has it all white and I'm a sucker for accuracy! Oh well...

[Chronocidal]

Heh.. and go figure, the DX has an all white bottom.

[regult]

...sorry to ask but since when the DX VF-25 serves as a reference for accuracy?

NOTE: the white on the F is much whiter than that of the G, so if you're going to leave that unpainted, be ready for color mismatch. I plan to do the same substitution, if I ever get around to building the things I have piled up.

[Lolicon]

"Accuracy" and "DX" should never be used in the same sentence.

[regult]

stop right there...the DX VF-27 is probably more accurate than the model version you just completed! At least I am crossing my fingers it WILL be

[Lolicon]

Battroid mode still suffers from old man pants syndrome, albeit not as bad as the VF-25. I'll call it middle-aged man syndrome.

Edited February 10, 2010 by Lolicon

[mickyg]

...And we're back!

Long, extended hiatus there. For anyone waiting with baited breath my apologies. Amazing what happens when my I get preoccupied with new "projects" - the latest has been getting my camera back up and running. Which required money, which required selling off a bunch of things on Ebay to get the necessary funds. But now I'm back up and running and have a decent camera setup to record my progress again!

I spent about an hour tonight on some very small details so it's not super exciting. But the payoff in the end should be pretty good. I'll get to the point: There's this two-tone blue and white scheme going on from the landing gear bay under the fuselage to the part that becomes the crotch. The blue is not a seperate (blue colored) part and has to be painted. I thought I'd gotten all this done and out of the way, then assembled some of the parts of the crotch and discovered I'd missed one. (shown a few posts above):

Anyway, I needed to mask the whole part off, paint it blue, then remove the masking. That took about an hour but came out surprisingly well!

Pics:

Edited March 11, 2010 by mickyg

[Maxtype]

MickyG, I've just read through this thread, and I want to tell you that you are doing a tremendous job on this kit.

I'm about to start my VF-25G Klan Deculture (just got it from HLJ today! ) and I'm going to benefit so much from this build and the experience you and the others have had. I've decided to build mine locked in Fighter mode, to better show off and protect the special markings.

Thanks for this thread!

[mickyg]

You're most welcome! Thanks for the kind words. I hope my irritation and many mistakes will help someone in the end so feedback is always very nice to have.

I'm starting to think I'll leave mine in fighter mode too. As I've mentioned a few times, any attempt at moving parts around, even during assembly, just reminds me of how fragile this thing is. I think even if it's transformed a few times a year, it would either break or scratch my careful painting and decaling. In the end, it's just too risky, in my opinion. I'll have a final opinion when I'm finished with it, of course. That should be sometime in 2020, at this rate!

[Maxtype]

LOL - don't worry Micky, I'm a slooooowwwwww builder,too!

I'm definitely locking my -G in Fighter Mode, and the experience of building it will tell whether or not the next one (probably Ozma, but it depends on the mood I'm in Friday when I order from HLJ again) stays Variable or gets locked in GERWALK.

Did you give your kit a bath before you started? I usually do, but with all the handling this model will need during construction, I'm think maybe just wiping her with rubbing alcohol as I get to the steps that need paint. What do you think?

[mickyg]

Yes, I did wash the parts. I don't know if it's just me, but I found the acrylic paints I used didn't stick near as well on the unwashed parts. So I always give the whole sprue (when possible) a quick wash/rinse before I paint. Rubbing alcohol would work but I think it'd be a lot quicker to just mix up some lukewarm water and a drop of dish soap into a suitable container (a baking dish or sink works well). Toss in the parts and swish them around a bit, then let it soak for a few minutes. Rinse and dry on a paper towel and you're set.

I'm itching to get back to this! Got some family down from the 'states and they're here for 2 weeks (leaving this Sat). Haven't done ANYTHING on the project since they arrived!

Edited March 31, 2010 by mickyg

[Maxtype]

Yes, I did wash the parts. I don't know if it's just me, but I found the acrylic paints I used didn't stick near as well on the unwashed parts. So I always give the whole sprue (when possible) a quick wash/rinse before I paint. Rubbing alcohol would work but I think it'd be a lot quicker to just mix up some lukewarm water and a drop of dish soap into a suitable container (a baking dish or sink works well). Toss in the parts and swish them around a bit, then let it soak for a few minutes. Rinse and dry on a paper towel and you're set.

I'm itching to get back to this! Got some family down from the 'states and they're here for 2 weeks (leaving this Sat). Haven't done ANYTHING on the project since they arrived!

Thanks, Micky. I usually wash my parts too,and I'm going to take your advice again.

Hope you can get back to this project soon!

[mickyg]

Well, I've gotten back to it but in such a small update that it's almost not worth posting! My family's been sick with a nasty, lingering cold for the last week and my visiting relatives only left a week before that.

Anyway, the red "lights" on the shoulders and chest have been painted. I don't like the standard clear red, so always mix a bit of clear orange with it in a 2 parts red, one part orange ratio. I find it makes the red less purple and the colour looks more convincing to me. I considered this such a minor update that I haven't even taken pics.

[Lolicon]

Let's see some progress pics! I want to see your completed work before I start on my 25G.

Here, I'll post all the progress I've made on mine since February.

[mickyg]

Looking phenomenal!

OK, I did take a picture or two the other day (after posting that it wasn't worth doing, no less). And I did manage to put together a few of the pieces of the front section, along with the arms. It was good and bad. Good because it's looking good so far. Bad because there's still so much to do and the glossy paint is pissing me off soooo much with how easy it is to finger print!

I'll post pics as soon as I find my memory card.

[mickyg]

Some pics, as promised.

First up, 1 of 2 items I ordered recently showed up today! I'm still waiting on the unassembled VF-1S kit - that'll probably be my next project (or one of the 3 Hasegawa kits I have or the VF-27 sitting under my desk at work...). The VF-1S must be shipping via another warehouse and not directly from HLJ.

Very interesting to see these side by side - I knew the 1J was whiter but it was nice to see it up close and in some decent light (not that the pics really show that, mind you). Also was surprised by the very subtle difference in colour between the DYRL and TV super packs. I was expecting a much bigger difference between the series. Kinda why I got the 1J with the packs, to do a proper 1S TV style. Now I think I could have done with the DYRL colours and no one would have been the wiser! Oh well.

Now, where were we? Oh yes, the point of this thread!

Here's the red I did the other day:

And some of the assembly I've undertaken:

I really needed a tripod for these but couldn't be bothered getting it out. So they're a little dark. You might be just able to make out some of the parts that aren't panted. Specifically, the arm covers or wrists. I don't know why I missed these but there are plenty of other blue parts that haven't been painted. And I'm not sure I'll paint them, because the paint is so close to the molded plastic. Once I get my final satin coat on them, I doubt it'll be that bad. Plus, I'm getting impatient and doubt I'll transform this thing from fighter anyway!

Edited April 22, 2010 by mickyg

[Maxtype]

Looking good,Micky. Little more done every time!

Those VF-1s are nice too. I've got a Hasegawa -J started. I haven't started my Klan Deculture G yet, but I did get a Ozma Super Messiah just before HLJ ended the sale on it. It even has Cathy Glass noseart!

I have to admit, I'm still intimidated by these VF-25 kits. They just seem so much...more than the MG Gundams I've built or the Hasegawa VF-1s I'm working on.

[mickyg]

Intimidated is right! I was feeling exactly that last night as I was assembling a bit more to see what I still need to do (it's hard to know what's left when it's still in a million pieces!) and noticing how hard it was just to get the arms out of the way and correctly stowed under the backpack, all while trying to make sure the head was sitting correctly along the back, and then noticing how terribly fingerprinted everything was getting! I did manage to get all that done without scratching the shoulder decals though. So there's a huge positive!

I'll keep at it - this weekend is a 3 day one for us so maybe I'll get some more time to do a bit more.

[Lolicon]

That's looking fantastic. On the red parts, did you just paint it straight on or did you need to use a silver or other undercoat?

@Maxtype

Hey if you can handle a MG Gundam kit, you can handle a Frontier kit. They're about the same in terms of complexity. The real trick is lining everything up in fighter mode without totally scratching up the paint and decals... the VF-27 fighter mode nearly broke me...

[Maxtype]

That's looking fantastic. On the red parts, did you just paint it straight on or did you need to use a silver or other undercoat?

@Maxtype

Hey if you can handle a MG Gundam kit, you can handle a Frontier kit. They're about the same in terms of complexity. The real trick is lining everything up in fighter mode without totally scratching up the paint and decals... the VF-27 fighter mode nearly broke me...

@Lolicon

That's good to hear - thanks!

I'd love to get that Klan g and Ozma Super s done.

[mickyg]

That's looking fantastic. On the red parts, did you just paint it straight on or did you need to use a silver or other undercoat?

@Maxtype

Hey if you can handle a MG Gundam kit, you can handle a Frontier kit. They're about the same in terms of complexity. The real trick is lining everything up in fighter mode without totally scratching up the paint and decals... the VF-27 fighter mode nearly broke me...

I used the Tamiya chrome marker pen, per WM Cheng's buildup tips: You just get the paint flowing from the marker and use a small brush to dab it on. It's very reflective and dries super quick (lacquer, I think).

I'm not looking forward to my VF-27...

[mickyg]

Got some more done - not tons but given the lack of any progress lately, this is at least something!

I've been a bit bothered by the wing hinge all along. I don't like that you can see white on the top, when the rest is blue. Given the two coloured molding process, there's nothing that can be done, except to paint it. I'd been putting this off for a while because I thought it'd be really difficult to get the right parts painted. Turns out, it was so easy that I actually didn't even need to mask it - but I did.

I also got to experiment a bit with the Gunze flat base on my pre-mixed blue. I got it to mix with the clear gloss coat to make some sort of satin, but I also wanted to try it to flatten out my glossy paints for brush painting. I find the glossy paints go on really baddly when brush painted - too many brush strokes show up. Anyway, the theory only sort of proved itself. Turns out if you add too much, it dries with this really powdery look (but the positive is that coverage is definitely better flattened). And by too much, I mean I mixed about 4 drops of blue, from a toothpick, with one "drop" of flat base. The stuff is very gooey, so very difficult to measure correctly, especially when dealing with such small quantities. Anyway, the bits on the lower wing root are so small, that the white powdery stuff didn't really show up like it does on the last pic - which was a test to see what it was going to look like. It'll get wiped off with a cotton swab and some windex.

Anyway, just a bit of FYI.

[mickyg]

More distractions just arrived! Finally got my unpainted Yamato VF-1S kit! So many pieces! No explanation about what glue to use that I can find. I suppose I'll have to start a new thread for that.

Along with the kit, I also got a new lens for my SLR and a new camera for my wife. Means she won't be too concerned if I take my SLR away when I eventually start working on the model at work again (haven't done that in quite a few months).

[shinagami]

i dont know how u did it....but if I were u i'd given up brush paint and use airbrush instead...it's faster. i've tried brush paint on my models few years back...guess i'm not as patient as u r. anyways, really admire ur patience and hoping to see the final painted G version of yours...soon

Edited April 28, 2010 by shinagami

[mickyg]

Hah! The brush painting is just on these last two updates! Very, very little has been brush painted. Most is done with my Paasche VL airbrush, using a broad tip. I've got a medium and fine needle but haven't used either on this yet.

[mickyg]

Got some more painting done today. In fact, this might be the last detail painting on the main part of the valk. The only part left is the missile covers on the super parts, and the intake covers. I'm not including all the clear coating I need to do, that's still to be done. And still a lot of decals.

I'm never going to finish this stupid thing.

So for today, I finally finished painting the tail pieces (not sure what to call them, as they're neither vertical, nor horizontal). Then moved on to the blacked out "stripe" area at the top of the shin. And for kicks, I practiced painting a burnt look on the booster nozzles. It came out OK but it might not really be subtle enough. That, and I don't know that rocket nozzles really burn in real life. Who knows...

I managed to get the white on the stabilizers, way too thin. As a result, it crept under the masking tape. I was able to clean it up with a toothpic. Luckily, I've left the dark blue as bare plastic, so this made it much easier to scrape of without damaging anything. Except for one small spot on the painted lighter blue areas. That ended up scratching both layers off. So a quick dab with a tiny brush fixed that up.

Same deal with the black stripes - too thin so crept under the masking. Again, bare white plastic, so no big deal. For the black, I went half steel, half flat black. I like it. I also used that for the burnt exhaust look on the booster. I might have to thin it a bit more on my next application (only did 4 nozzles this time).

Anyway, more progress pics (apologies for the out of focus nature - been playing around with a big aperture lens and I still haven't found a good setting to get everything in focus yet):