Gundam Plamodel Thread IV

[mikeszekely]

Exia is done.

Well... I think I'm still digesting this one. Exia, perhaps even more so than the Zakus, is a very different experience than building the other Gundams, perhaps because Ebikawa's design is fairly different from the usual Okawara and Katoki designs. On the plus side, that makes for a fresh experience building Exia, and the finished product has an impressive range of motion that surpasses all of the other RG kits I've built. On the downside, though, that often involved working with tiny parts that connect in ways that increased the overall difficulty of the kit. I found the hologram pieces to be especially frustrating. Some involve hooking one end onto a peg, which it will resist doing, then folding the other end down (which may or may not cause the hooked end to unhook), and then clamping the whole thing down with another part. Another frustration is that the instructions will have you clip a peg onto a white piece when building the hip, fold it to the inside of the white piece, then stick the white piece into the hip joint. What the instructions don't mention is that the pegs are for attaching the GN Long Blade and GN Short Blade to Exia's hips, and if you want to do that, you're going to have to pry the white part back out so you can flip the pegs out.

(Also, it's not the model's fault, but I question some of Exia's design. Like, what exactly do the strips running from the shoulders to the arms do? And what's with the placement of the beam sabers on the back of the shoulder armor? Seriously, I can't think of a worse place to store them.)

Complaints aside, I think I would actually recommend Exia, especially if you've built a lot of the other RG kits, just because it's so different. It's a unique build with a unique inner frame that results in a Gundam that's very visually distinct, even unarmed, despite being the usual white/blue/red/yellow.

[anime52k8]

(Also, it's not the model's fault, but I question some of Exia's design. Like, what exactly do the strips running from the shoulders to the arms do? And what's with the placement of the beam sabers on the back of the shoulder armor? Seriously, I can't think of a worse place to store them.)

the various strips are piping to move GN particles from the drive unit to the rest of the body. Since Exia was an early design, they couldn't always rout the flow of particles through the joints and armor, so they had to run external cables. later suits improved the technology and eliminated the need for them.

As for the beam blades on the shoulder armor, they're beam daggers and the mounts in the show pivoted down a significant amount putting the handle more or less under the armpit. This let Exia reach across it's body, pull the dagger from under it's arm and throw it in a manner that was simultaneously really badass looking, while not being the exact same move as destiny using it's beam boomerangs.

[mikeszekely]

the various strips are piping to move GN particles from the drive unit to the rest of the body. Since Exia was an early design, they couldn't always rout the flow of particles through the joints and armor, so they had to run external cables. later suits improved the technology and eliminated the need for them.

As for the beam blades on the shoulder armor, they're beam daggers and the mounts in the show pivoted down a significant amount putting the handle more or less under the armpit. This let Exia reach across it's body, pull the dagger from under it's arm and throw it in a manner that was simultaneously really badass looking, while not being the exact same move as destiny Justice using it's beam boomerangs.

Fixed, because Destiny was just cribbing Justice's style.

Anyway, I'm pretty sure the sabers are on Exia's shoulders, and the daggers are on its butt.

On the model, the storage on the butt is on hinges and can swing into a position that'd be pretty easy to grab with either a regular or reverse grip. The shoulder mounts are c-joints on rods, and can go from almost flat against the shoulder armor to about perpendicular behind it. I assume the range of motion is to keep the sabers out of the way most of the time, because if I had something sticking off the back of my shoulder like that, I'm not even sure I could touch it. If it's meant to curl under the armpit, that's not as bad, I suppose.

[anime52k8]

I don't know why but a bunch of toys and models get the range of motion wrong, they can point backwards too far (they shouldn't be able to go parallel to the ground if the shoulders are in a neutral position), and they don't swing forward far enough.

:edit:

also, on the subject of the exposed piping: translated from the MG kit manual:

The exposed cables are actually weakpoints of the Gundams,^[1] though the weight manipulation ability of an exposed particle cable can greatly improve mobility.^[1] Gundam Exia makes extensive use of this concept by having more exposed cables than its three brethren units^[1] and as a result, contributes to its superior mobility at the cost of defense.^[1]

Edited August 20, 2014 by anime52k8

[Nekko Basara]

Exia is looking great! I didn't appreciate until your picture just how huge that blade is. Seems funny to me that it even packs beam sabers with that thing.

I haven't seen the show or handled the model, but I was assuming from pictures that the shoulder-mounted sabers would be grabbed with a "scratching my pit" motion, i.e. raising one arm upward while reaching across with the other. Not sure if the RG can manage that.

The funny thing to me about the armpit- and small-of-the-back-mounted weapons is that the Exia may be the ideal Gundam to put in a giant trenchcoat, a la Max's Valkyrie. It's carrying concealed weapons!

Oh, and my Unicorn is coming along nicely.

(I fixed the assembly error in the ankle after seeing the photo)

[azrael]

Anyway, I'm pretty sure the sabers are on Exia's shoulders, and the daggers are on its butt.

Technically, they could be both saber or dagger as all you would need to do is adjust the power and particle flow. 00 Gundam made that adjustment to its 2 sabers as I recall it throwing a beam saber as a beam dagger. But that's a minor point.

[mikeszekely]

Exia is looking great! I didn't appreciate until your picture just how huge that blade is. Seems funny to me that it even packs beam sabers with that thing.

I haven't seen the show or handled the model, but I was assuming from pictures that the shoulder-mounted sabers would be grabbed with a "scratching my pit" motion, i.e. raising one arm upward while reaching across with the other. Not sure if the RG can manage that.

The funny thing to me about the armpit- and small-of-the-back-mounted weapons is that the Exia may be the ideal Gundam to put in a giant trenchcoat, a la Max's Valkyrie. It's carrying concealed weapons!

Oh, and my Unicorn is coming along nicely.

I don't remember the show too well. Despite being the second-most recent serious Gundam series (I love Build Fighters, but I think of it more like a side series), it seems it was awhile ago that it was on.

But yeah, from what I gather from the model, the art Mike linked, and what I remember, that's basically it. The sabers hang off the shoulder armor, and are are supposed to swing down under the armpit. On the model, though, the part can only rotate so far, and the saber can't even get quite perpendicular to the ground, let alone continue to swing under the armpit. I can double-check that I built it properly later, but I'm 99% sure I did. I think it's just the limitation of the 1/144 scale. The part the saber plugs into is already very small; to get the real range of motion it'd actually have to be two parts with a hinge.

The beam daggers on its butt, though, work almost exactly like the drawing. Rather than being two parts inside the skirt armor, that section of the skirt armor is on a swivel so it can rotate up and down. The part that holds the saber is on a hinge, so it can fold outward.

As for your Unicorn, you're flying on that compared to the RG Mk-II!

Technically, they could be both saber or dagger as all you would need to do is adjust the power and particle flow. 00 Gundam made that adjustment to its 2 sabers as I recall it throwing a beam saber as a beam dagger. But that's a minor point.

They didn't have that tech when Exia was built, then? The Gundam Wiki's entry on Exia says that the Beam Daggers became obsolete, and the entry on 00 reads, "Unlike the beam sabers used by the 3rd Generation Gundams, their blade length can be altered as needed to function as either a beam saber or beam dagger." I really need to rewatch the series (which I'll probably do after I finish Destiny), but it still sounds like shoulder-sabers and butt-daggers for Exia. Edited August 20, 2014 by mikeszekely

[azrael]

They didn't have that tech when Exia was built, then? The Gundam Wiki's entry on Exia says that the Beam Daggers became obsolete, and the entry on 00 reads, "Unlike the beam sabers used by the 3rd Generation Gundams, their blade length can be altered as needed to function as either a beam saber or beam dagger." I really need to rewatch the series (which I'll probably do after I finish Destiny), but it still sounds like shoulder-sabers and butt-daggers for Exia.

Had, but likely never implemented in the 3rd gen Gundam beam sabers. Probably had to be serviced if they wanted to adjust it on-the-fly. IIRC, the HG manual (or maybe it was the HG Enact manual) did mention Flags (or maybe it was the Enact) had the capability to adjust the power of their linear rifle from lower powered, high RPM, low-impact-mode to high-powered, low-RPM, high impact mode, but they had to be serviced each time the pilot wanted it changed.

[Hikuro]

it's nice to know that buying all those damn kits at the hobbytown near work has paid off as they got some new stuff in stock, looked like someone even bought the RG Full Burn GP01 cause they restocked with BF Dark Exia, HGUC GP03, GP02 and Zeta Gundam. Since I had a $5 off coupon on me I picked up the Zeta and working on that right now. It's gonna be fun comparing it to the new HGUC Zeta Plus when it arrives...maybe this weekend!

[dizman]

So the RG RX-78 Casval Custom is coming out soon and I was wondering how the 78 compares to the other RGs. I have a RG Titans RX-178 so is it just as good or not worth my time?

Edited August 21, 2014 by dizman

[Nekko Basara]

Compared to the RG RX-178, the RG RX-78 is a lot fiddly-er. The construction involves more tiny parts that are used to create different shades of color across its armor. It's fantastically detailed, perhaps even exceeding the 178, but a bit more of a hassle to build, and very prone to having parts pop off when posing it. Personally, I enjoyed building it a bit more, but I don't like messing around with it now that it is built.

[Hikuro]

Agreed, lots of lil parts for those color details and such, but I still liked the kit a lot and wish I could find mine but it's still in storage. In the mean time these came today. And the Zeta Plus came with a randomly packed Gunpla accessory that seems to be just melee weapons with a small petite mobile suit.

But dear god do I have some seriously awesome kits to build!

[mikeszekely]

So the RG RX-78 Casval Custom is coming out soon and I was wondering how the 78 compares to the other RGs. I have a RG Titans RX-178 so is it just as good or not worth my time?

The RX-178 is better. I think the RX-78 has some issues with the engineering. Unlike Nekko Basara, I enjoyed everything about the Mk-II better than the RX-78. I had the same issues with parts coming off, but I also had issues where the RG gimmick wouldn't just separate pieces as the inner frame moved, it'd bend them. I wound up with cracks on the shield arm and the front right thigh.

As long as you don't move it, though, the regular RX-78 looks fantastic once it's done.

My advice would be to skip the Casval version and buy the regular one for like half the cost.

[anime52k8]

just buy all of them, you know you want to :ph34r:

[mikeszekely]

just buy all of them, you know you want to :ph34r:

I'm tempted. If I buy the Skygrasper and Char's Z'Gok, I'll have all 16 of the regular releases. And I'd gladly shell out $55 for an RG RX-78-3... but to be honest, I've always thought the Casval Gundam is kind of ugly.

Oh, I want the Zeta 3, too... just not $80 worth.

[dizman]

Thanks for the help guys, I'll probably just skip the Casval 78 for now (I like the color scheme, so strange to see it on a gundam). Maybe I'll get a RX-78 if they release an Origin version .

[kanedaestes]

Other than Zgok I have all of the RGs and the Zeta 3 version as well as the add on for the MkII to make it super and the wave riding craft. The MkIIs are my overall favorite of the line with Strike Freedom a close second

[mikeszekely]

I'm also a big fan of the Mk-IIs.

I was a little disappointed that the decals were, aside from replacing the AEUG stickers with Titans ones and throwing in some numbers, basically white versions of the AEUG Mk-II's gray ones. The Zakus have different markings, after all.

I guess they make up for it by including "Test Type" parts. Not sure where they got the idea for the Test Type look; the first appearance of the Mk-II in the first episode of Zeta Gundam looks like the standard build. The differences are subtle; different thrusters on the outside of the legs, slightly larger shoulder armor with a different thrusters inside, and chest vents with only two slats instead of three. Despite not matching the anime, I opted to use the Test Type parts anyway, to help make the Mk-II's more visually distinct beyond the colors.

[Hikuro]

So today I worked on my Zeta Plus Bandai's latest HGUC kit...I must say that while it feels a lot more sturdier and more solid than the old Zeta Gundam, it's still just as much of a parts former. Legs, arms, crotch, butt, and side guns, wings and stabilizer are the only parts of the main mobile suit body that are yanked off and placed on an entirely new frame consisting of a solid chest and back part. It's practically 2 kits in one. Although I DO like this kit a ton.

[Hikuro]

apologies for the bad lighting, only thing left are the side skirt armor parts...waiting till I get a close enough paint mixture to the frame.

[treatment]

Man, I wish I got this dude's patience and skills, but damn awesome pictorial of built MG 1/100 Sazabi Ka over at toysdaily:

http://toysdaily.com/discuz/forum.php?mod=viewthread&tid=227166&extra=page%3D1&page=1









Now THAT is a friggin' MasterGrade build...

[Hikuro]

that's a guy with TO MUCH time on his hands.

[Hikuro]

Okay so my initial thoughts on the Zeta Plus Unicorn Version

1) Look over your plastic bags as you remove the trees. as I was going over things I noticed I plugged the wrong barrel into the beam rifle. I started scanning around and I noticed the part was inside a bag I put in my trash bag (bag in a bag yo) and sighed in relief. Looks like I'm not the only one, guess during the bagging process it snaps under the pressure and gets rattled around.

2) Colors for the skirt armor cannons IMO are Tamiya Sky Grey and Nato Black, more gray and a pinch of black, mix well. Once it dries you'll notice it's REALLY close in color to the barrel and I liked it. Closest color choices I've come to in a long ass time.

3) Kit is SOLID compared to the Zeta Gundam so long ago. My Zeta after completion was kind of floppy and droops. My Zeta Plus doesn't do that and the transformation works better.

I'd say this was a really fun, easy and thought out kit after the recall I think it's safe to say this is a winner winner chicken dinner (did I just say that?) and might buy another to customize someday.

[Nekko Basara]

Such great stuff going on. The Titans Mk. II looks very mean, and I love of the Zeta Plus. Really appreciate the mini-reviews, too!

My Unicorn mostly wrapped up mid-week, but I haven't quite finished the weapons or done a photo shoot with it. But I saw a friend who is a big Zaku fan, and it inspired me to crash-build the RG Zaku II that I've had lying around. It took basically my entire weekend, but it was (mostly) good fun.

I took pictures as it progressed, and made a little gallery here.

[mikeszekely]

Yeah, I really liked the Zaku... like, 2nd after the Mk-II. The green one's a little more fun, because they give you a lot more options for customizing it with the decals.

Started the GP01fb. When I say started, though, I mean I got the Core Fighter done and that's it. It's really frustrating that the red line stickers around the beam sabers don't stay down. Not a knock against the GP01fb, because if I look back pretty much every Gundam with a round-hilted beam saber has that sticker coming off. If anybody has a technique for keeping the stickers down, I'd like to know it.

I'll be a tad busier this week, but I still hope to have the GP01fb done by Thursday... then I guess I'm taking a break from Gunpla until the RG Z'Gok is either sold or fulfilled by Amazon. At that point, I'll grab it and the Skygrasper, and finish the RG line off.

[UN_MARINE]

Still tinkering with the Ex-S. I finally manned-up & split the shoulder plates. Also improved the smartgun arm for better proportion & articulation.

I wish it had more stickers/decals. Looking at the sticker sheet, it feels so plain.

[sketchley]

A couple of years back, a sprue to convert an RGM-79C Kai into the 79C Kai "Wagtail" came with Dengeki Hobby. I finally decided to get around making it.

I picked up the RGM-79D Cold Weather GM as it was the closest match at that particular store that I went to. Suffice to say that it wasn't a match -at-all-, and the (you guys'll hate me for this) ￥604 price didn't break the bank.

So, I went ahead with putting it together - and compared to the old school Macross kits I've been working on recently that take months to complete, it was a breeze and a pleasure to complete it within a week.

Despite it being low cost, I'm really impressed by its range of movement, and how smart it looks overall (credit to Izubuchi Yutaka for his excellent designs). Though, it's range of movement is totally outclassed by the 79C Kai conversion (picked up the proper kit about a week later).

I also used the kit to try out a 'new' panel lining technique -black watercolour mixed with acrylic paint thinner-, and I was very satisfied with the results (went on easy, cleaned up just as easily (much faster and easier than with Gundam markers), and parts of it ended up nicely weathered (shield interior in particular).

All in all, it's a good addition to the Gundam puramo shelf.

... and while taking the pictures, I realized that with the Higogu (2nd favourite in my Gunpura collection), I can do a reenactment of 0800 to a limited degree!

Edit: ... and the drawbacks to the kit: the head antenna piece fits only loosely, and continually flew off. Had to glue it in place. The head/neck joint has a design that comes up lacking - not only does the head occasionaly come off when manipulated, the internal pieces that grip the neck piece are gouging into the softer neck ball joint material. Lastly, the activated beam sabre is molded gripped in the hand, in white. Painting it looks like a real chore.

Edited August 28, 2014 by sketchley

[Scyla]

First look for the MG Hi Nu Gundam Ver. Ka:

http://www.gaijin-gunpla.com/2014/08/hi-nu-gundam-ver-ka-first-look/

It has some small transformations which is cool but I wished for a Psycho Frame like the Nu Gundam Ver. Ka.

There is also a video up on HobbyLinkTv where Syd from HLJ is building the kit:

Can't wait for mine to arrive.

I haven't gotten an invoice from HLJ for the Hi-Nu but it is weekend is Japan so maybe I will get it on Monday.

[edit:] I don't like the missing "camo pattern" on the shield. I wonder why it is missing. Damn you Katoki!

Edited August 29, 2014 by Scyla

[Hikuro]

might of though the blue camo was dumb or to expensive I dunno.

I'm still waiting on mine but I'm super patient on this since I still have HG Nu Gundam, jegan and PG zero to finish.

[electric indigo]

Naoki takes care of the Hi Nu for Dengeki Magazine:

[McFly!!]

sweet pic of the hi nu! i really dig the understated weathering! can't wait for mine to arrive!

[Hikuro]

just paid for mine.

[Nekko Basara]

I shall call him...

Mini Me!

[Hikuro]

I got one of those mini unicorns. replaced the clear parts with fluorescent pink and yellow. looks AWESOME in black light.

I picked up MG 00 Riser, Turn X and Turn A. totally stoked!

[MILKAUTICO]

WTF!!!

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10201512799701361