Gundam Plamodel Thread IV

[mikeszekely]

What is everyones take on not painting there kits? I have never been a good painter and now with my hands shaking a bit do to the meds i take I do not bother painting them and putting the decals on. Is there anything I could do to make them pop a bit? They look good unpainted but just wondering if there is anything else I could

Thanks,

Mond

To each his own! Like yourself, I'm not much of a painter, so I don't have an airbrush or anything.

For me personally, aside from panel lining with a Gundam Marker, the only paint on any of the 20 RG kits I've built is a touch of black in some of the thrusters on my Zeta 3. Plus, all of the RGs I built before the Zeta 3 (so basically everything except the Zeta 3, the Gundam G3, Wing Zero, and the 00 Raiser) don't even have panel lining.

Most of my HGs have at least some paint, to better match their animated appearances. Mostly, this is as little adding black to verniers, vents, and thrusters. In a few cases, I might do a little more like vulcan barrels, the yellow/gold on thrusters, or some other small details that were molded but not painted. I'll also occasionally paint spots on HGs instead of using an included sticker, if the spot is smallish.

Only twice have I painted the majority of a kit. The first was an HG Crossbone Gundam Maoh, from Build Fighters. I painted the majority the purplish gray parts (legs, arms, waist, head) white, the darker purplish blue (chest, shoulders) black, and the red parts (feet, crotch) blue. The second was the HG Sinanju, where I used a metallic automotive lacquer on all of the red parts, and a gold sharpie with a light clear coat on the black parts instead of the gold foil stickers. For both of those kits, I basically took individual runners and used cans of spray paint to coat the entire runner, which you can do in a few light coats on both sides. You don't have to worry about your hands shaking much; the hardest part is waiting for one coat to dry before trying another, and making sure you get it at different angles to evenly coat the entire parts.

If you really want to skip painting, though, the best advice I can give is to work with RG kits (maybe MG... I'm a stickler for scale, so I haven't built any). They tend to use lots of layering of parts to give you accurate colors on even small details like head vulcans without any paint. They have tons of decals, but they're stuff like caution markings, model numbers, faction insignias, etc, not stickers to add more accurate color, so you can skip them. If you do feel like trying them, though, they're stickers, not waterslides, so you can remove and replace them without tearing them.

[chyll2]

It varies per person and the best person to decide if it is worth going the Painting Route is yourself. I really like Gunpla since the modern one (especially RG) are already good out of the box unlike other kits which really requires modelling effort (planning, planning, glue, Planning, painting)

[SchizophrenicMC]

I really enjoy painting my kits, personally. I think the paint makes the kits really pop. But even my MG Unicorn, one of my favorite kits ever, is a raw out-of-the-box build. These kits come molded in color for a reason. They look good unpainted, right out of the box. But adding the extra steps just makes that go from good to amazing.

If you don't want to go full-on paint, but still want to add something to the look of your gunpla, the first thing to look at is panel lining. You can do it with a marker, a thin paint wash, or even a premixed wash. Adding a bit of dark color to the little lines on the kit brings out the detail and gives a sense of scale. (Because if this were really a 15 meter tall giant robot, those panels would have a big enough gap to really cause some shadow) It's a really forgiving technique that doesn't cost a lot, and can add a ton of effect, even to a raw plastic build. It's not the kind of thing you can mess up irrevocably because your hand slipped, especially if you haven't painted the kit first.

RGs and modern MGs come with pretty good color separation and don't often need much, if anything, in the way of paint. Aside from panel lining, I've never added any paint to an RG.

[Hikuro]

What is everyones take on not painting there kits? I have never been a good painter and now with my hands shaking a bit do to the meds i take I do not bother painting them and putting the decals on. Is there anything I could do to make them pop a bit? They look good unpainted but just wondering if there is anything else I could

Thanks,

Mond

Decals are surprisingly a lot easier to handle once you got the science down.

As for painting if you're thinking those tiny tiny details it might be a problem if your shaking like you had 15 red bulls.

But more elaborate painting from air brushing? Shouldn't be an issue.

[GU-11]

What is everyones take on not painting there kits? I have never been a good painter and now with my hands shaking a bit do to the meds i take I do not bother painting them and putting the decals on. Is there anything I could do to make them pop a bit? They look good unpainted but just wondering if there is anything else I could

Thanks,

Mond

As far as Gunpla, I only give them a matte coat from a spray can to get rid of the plastic sheen. I find most Gunpla to be accurate enough color-wise that they don't really need any paint other than minor detailing and panel-lining.

Kits from other franchises are a totally different story, though. Most Border Break kits have parts that have unsightly seams that need to be filled and sanded, and this in turn necessitates a complete paint job.

[Vifam7]

What is everyones take on not painting there kits? I have never been a good painter and now with my hands shaking a bit do to the meds i take I do not bother painting them and putting the decals on. Is there anything I could do to make them pop a bit? They look good unpainted but just wondering if there is anything else I could

Thanks,

Mond

Despite shakey hands, assuming you can still do some things, here's what I generally do when I don't want to put in that much effort -

1. Panel line. Simply take Gundam panel line marker/pen and follow the crevices.

2. Paint just the minor details. Such as coloring in the vents black. Or painting the inside of the thrusters red or yellow.

3. Dirty the model a bit. Just take a pencil and rub the lead along the edges

4. Spray matt clear. Just doing this will make your model look 100% better.

[areaseven]

New photos of the exclusive Gunpla available at next month's Gundam Docks at Hong Kong II.



RG 1/144 Wing Gundam Zero EW Ver. Gundam Docks at Hong Kong II



MG 1/100 RX-0 Unicorn Gundam Ver.Ka (Code_852)



HGBF 1/144 Beargguy III %5BSan%5D Ver. 囍 (Double Happiness)



HGUC RX-0 Unicorn Gundam [Destroy Mode] Ver. Gundam Docks at Hong Kong II



HGBF 1/144 Try Burning Gundam Full Color Coating Ver.

[chyll2]

Here is my recent completed straight build (with lots of nub mark lol) and current WIP. RG - Astraea Type F.

[areaseven]

Bandai and Sunrise just announced their newest Gundam title: Mobile Suit Gundam Iron-Blooded Orphans. Naturally, they unveiled the first wave of Gunpla for the series.


1/100 Gundam Barbatos (November 2015 - 2,700 yen) - It has an inner frame, but its simple detail and low price suggest it's not an MG; possibly a stand-alone NG line.


HG 1/144 Gundam Barbatos (October 2015 - 1,080 yen)


HG 1/144 Graze (October 2015 - 1,080 yen)


HG 1/144 Orphans Customize Set 1 (October 2015 - 648 yen)

Edited July 23, 2015 by areaseven

[electric indigo]

The new series has a lot of interesting designs.

Edited July 15, 2015 by electric indigo

[areaseven]

For a first-release grunt, the Glaze looks badass. But what's that blue MS?





HG 1/144 Glaze

[raptormesh]

Wow, as a non Gundam fan this new slew of designs really captured my attention. Somehow they are highly reminisced of the mecha from Full Metal Panic.

[SchizophrenicMC]

As a Gundam fan, I don't really like it. What's with high-heels cannon fodder over there? For that matter, Sumo-bot With Mjolnir?

Gundam mecha design just keeps straying more and more from what's always made it unique.

[DarrinG]

What's a Sinanbine?

Mixing a 1/144 Sinanju with a 1/72 Dunbine . . .

http://www.gunjap.net/site/?p=220783

[Kelsain]

Oh, that's too cool.

[SchizophrenicMC]

It's just crazy enough to work!

[areaseven]

O... M... G...









PG 1/60 Zaku II - Customized Build

[Hikuro]

Trying my hand at present shading which I'm iffy on. I guess you really need an airbrush with a MAC valve or something. I kept the PSI as low as I could by just blowing air before pulling the trigger back on a thinned black and neutral gray.

So? Do I pass?

[SchizophrenicMC]

Looks a bit too dark. Might try using a lighter color over the white.

[Hikuro]

Looks a bit too dark. Might try using a lighter color over the white.

It's just the colors from the camera that make it look that way. The colors for the white were actually way to light and pretty much vanished by the time I did the main colors. The ONLY pre shading piece that worked the way it should of was the red....that came out great i think.

I really need a dullcoat can pretty badly so I can finish this mold up. Sadly it looks to of gone missing.

[SchizophrenicMC]

Yeah, cameras do that. Just keep practicing, you'll get it all down eventually. Maybe look into a better regulator if you're still having pressure issues, though.

[Hikuro]

It's finished. The shield came out as the best part of the whole job. But I don't think gray was a good option with the white top coat, I should of just stayed black on it all and it would of worked out a lot better.

I did kind of figure out the pressure problem and had it topping 12-15 psi which is good, real good! Kit came out alright, it's a keeper, just not what I would of wanted it to look like at all. I still gotta figur out how to get that thin line.

[SchizophrenicMC]

The trick to a thin line is almost always, get the brush closer. The closer the brush is to the medium, the thinner the line will be. Of course, at higher pressures, paint control can still be difficult. I don't remember what brush you're using, but if it's the Master G series, you'll run into a bit of a limit just because of the minimum effective pressure being so high and the nozzle tolerance too loose. (If it's the Eclipse, get a better air regulator; that brush can run at much lower pressures than you're painting with) If you're not getting a thin enough line following these guidelines, and you can't get the pressure any lower, try changing to a narrower nozzle. Presumably you're using a .3mm nozzle, which is the best for general model painting. If you need thinner lines than your brush will let you, try a .2mm nozzle. It may not work, depending on the brush, but it's worth a shot. There is, of course, a minimum line thickness that can be achieved with an airbrush, but it's thin enough that you probably wouldn't be complaining, given the circumstances.

For what it's worth, I think the finished product looks fine. Could use some panel lining, but it doesn't seem like you've gotten that far yet.

[Hikuro]

The trick to a thin line is almost always, get the brush closer. The closer the brush is to the medium, the thinner the line will be. Of course, at higher pressures, paint control can still be difficult. I don't remember what brush you're using, but if it's the Master G series, you'll run into a bit of a limit just because of the minimum effective pressure being so high and the nozzle tolerance too loose. (If it's the Eclipse, get a better air regulator; that brush can run at much lower pressures than you're painting with) If you're not getting a thin enough line following these guidelines, and you can't get the pressure any lower, try changing to a narrower nozzle. Presumably you're using a .3mm nozzle, which is the best for general model painting. If you need thinner lines than your brush will let you, try a .2mm nozzle. It may not work, depending on the brush, but it's worth a shot. There is, of course, a minimum line thickness that can be achieved with an airbrush, but it's thin enough that you probably wouldn't be complaining, given the circumstances.

For what it's worth, I think the finished product looks fine. Could use some panel lining, but it doesn't seem like you've gotten that far yet.

I'm using an Eclipse HP-CS. I did panel line it, enamel wash after clear coating, makes the paint flow better from the tip of my paint brush after watering it down with lighter fluid.

According to Iwata's website, my brush should be able to achieve hairline spray coloring and up to 2 inch covering. What i need to do is figure out how to get that hairline to show up and I've been watching a few youtubers doing it in different ways. 1 guy removed the top nozzle bit, got super up close pressing down the trigger to get the air flowing and the paint mixing then barely pulled the trigger back and just did it nice and slow. He got a pretty good straight narrow solid line from it all.

I also realized I have smoke paint, I smacked myself this evening when I realized I could of just been using this the entire time I was airbrushing the pre-shade cause that was EXACTLY what I bought that color for.

Cleaning my next kit which is the RGM-79G Command Ground type. I wanna get this sucker prepped before the gunpla meet up this weekend. Shouldn't be difficult as it's on a saturday evening and it only takes me half the days worth of time to paint and clear coat.

[SchizophrenicMC]

Yeah, the Eclipse HP-CS gets super super fine at the bottom of its range. Check your test sheet for an idea. All Eclipses are tested before leaving the factory and they come with their test sheet at the bottom of the package.
Get some practice in and I'm sure you'll become more and more confident in your results as time goes by.

MG or HG on that ground pounder? I've got an MG Sniper that I dropped out on after painting, because I couldn't fund the diorama I wanted to build for it. They're pretty neat. Fun gimmicks for its age, too.

[Guest davidwhangchoi]

11758834_10207152198340355_443821000_n.jpg

It's finished. The shield came out as the best part of the whole job. But I don't think gray was a good option with the white top coat, I should of just stayed black on it all and it would of worked out a lot better.

I did kind of figure out the pressure problem and had it topping 12-15 psi which is good, real good! Kit came out alright, it's a keeper, just not what I would of wanted it to look like at all. I still gotta figur out how to get that thin line.

Hikuro, when are you going to start on the huge GP-03 you ordered

[Hikuro]

Hikuro, when are you going to start on the huge GP-03 you ordered

The Dendrobium? It'll be a while....probably in August. I wanna start getting use to pre-shading and possibly post-shading before I do it. For 300 bucks I really want this kit to look more like a piece of art than a snap together model. That's why I'm taking the really cheap models I got and practicing off of those. I think I got the general idea on it now but still....practice practice!

Yeah, the Eclipse HP-CS gets super super fine at the bottom of its range. Check your test sheet for an idea. All Eclipses are tested before leaving the factory and they come with their test sheet at the bottom of the package.

Get some practice in and I'm sure you'll become more and more confident in your results as time goes by.

MG or HG on that ground pounder? I've got an MG Sniper that I dropped out on after painting, because I couldn't fund the diorama I wanted to build for it. They're pretty neat. Fun gimmicks for its age, too.

I remember the test sample paper, but don't got it anymore, my box was thrown out as trash by accident. I looked on the iwata website and they don't mention anything about how to do it. So I'll be trying out some of the ideas I saw on youtube this weekend to get it going.

[areaseven]

What an amazing custom job. The white color brings out the Labor design influence.

[SchizophrenicMC]

I will never be that good.

[joppewo]

P-Bandai: MG Gundam Fenice Rinascita (Wing Colours?)

http://p-bandai.jp/hobby/item-1000098218/

Looks like a collab with Hobby-Japan

Edited July 22, 2015 by joppewo

[Hikuro]

Roiiight lets just sell a color scheme about a thousand others have already done at a premium.

[chyll2]

For the intended market, it just a few hundred yen premium. For the general market, it will probably suck if someone really want the color scheme but lacks the painting skills.

[anime52k8]

P-Bandai: MG Gundam Fenice Rinascita (Wing Colours?)

http://p-bandai.jp/hobby/item-1000098218/

Looks like a collab with Hobby-Japan

I was right, it looks WAY better in classic wing colors. I think I'll wait til someone posts detailed pics of the parts breakdown and instructions, then I'll just repaint the regular MG.

[areaseven]

Hong Kong gets ready for their month-long Gundam event.





Gundam Docks at Hong Kong II (Times Square, Hong Kong)

[areaseven]

1/100 Gundam Barbatos