Bandai 1/72 Scale Transformable Macross Δ Kits

[Duymon]

My quick and dirty build is taking way longer than I expected. Ended up painting the sensors and even the white oval bumps on the head. Photo really shows off how cheaply printed the stickers/decals Bandai includes in their kits are.

As usual I'm just using a mechanical pencil to draw in all the panel lines.

Looks like solid work.

I am curious, are the decals also sort of magazine-print dotty up close as well? I swear Bandai is the only company I know that makes dot-printy decal sheets that look really meh.

I would seriously pay the extra 5-10 bucks for a cartograph decal sheet :0

[Petrov27]

I wonder how Hasegawa will deal with the complicated schemes in their kits? Probably will need to be mostly masked?

[Skypoet]

You know what I want right now? Pictures of the VF-31 sitting next to some other 1/72 VFs, so we can appreciate the size of the thing.... That's the one thing I haven't seen yet, comparisons with other VFs or real-world fighters.

17-18 meters of length approximately in flight mode (somewhere between the length of an F-18A/B/C and an F-18E/F), from this video, at about 10:00, there is a side-by-side size comparison of the VF-31 in fighter mode with the MG Gundam Rx-78, which is 18m tall (or 18cm in 1/100)... from this still, the VF-31 appears to be 25cm long, which corresponds (25cm*72) to 18 meters.

Edited July 5, 2016 by Skypoet

[kajnrig]

I wonder how Hasegawa will deal with the complicated schemes in their kits? Probably will need to be mostly masked?

I doubt so. There's not THAT much complexity to the design, just lots of lines and striping. Hasegawa has decaled more complex designs than that.

At the very least, they won't be dumb enough to design decals with PANEL LINES ON THEM SERIOUSLY WHAT THE HELL BANDAI. (Eh, I'm sure it works better than it looks, but still. At this point Bandai may as well not make decals at all and just partner with Cartograf or something to print high-quality waterslides.)

My quick and dirty build is taking way longer than I expected. Ended up painting the sensors and even the white oval bumps on the head. Photo really shows off how cheaply printed the stickers/decals Bandai includes in their kits are.

As usual I'm just using a mechanical pencil to draw in all the panel lines.

Oy vey... Is the forehead decal any better than the sticker you've used?

EDIT:

And don't think I've forgotten about your shoddy hands, Bandai! /shakes fist impotently

Edited July 6, 2016 by kajnrig

[Lolicon]

Do you think that I'd get decent results with gundam markers if I paint the inside of the clear plastic parts (excluding the canopy of course) - I'll try that.

I think it would look alright. The hard part would be getting a clean and visible separation between the green and red parts if you're painting from the back.

I painted the grey plastic that sits behind the visor white so it would reflect more light and give a more "glowy" appearance.

Looks like solid work.

I am curious, are the decals also sort of magazine-print dotty up close as well? I swear Bandai is the only company I know that makes dot-printy decal sheets that look really meh.

I would seriously pay the extra 5-10 bucks for a cartograph decal sheet :0

Oy vey... Is the forehead decal any better than the sticker you've used?

EDIT:

And don't think I've forgotten about your shoddy hands, Bandai! /shakes fist impotently

Both the decals and stickers have that dotted print magazine appearance when viewed up close. Frontier kits were the same way.

You could mask and paint the blue and grey stripes across the fuselage if you're good at masking and painting, but that's way more work than I want to put into this lol

[David Hingtgen]

This guy did a pretty cool VF-31A custom.

https://twitter.com/mezarlance/status/747763279217340419

The navy is a really nice touch. Adds just enough color to make it "not super-drab" grey EVERYWHERE, but still keeps it quite low-vis overall.

[Graham]

Word of advice.............don't attach the head laser until after you have finished everything else, such as finishing applying stickers/decals etc.

I made the mistake of attaching the head laser early on and ended snapping it in two by accident while applying the stickers to the completed kit

Manhandling the kit while semi-drunk is probably not a great idea also...........hahaha

[Golden Arms]

I made the same mistake! I was able to glue it back together with rubber cement.

[kajnrig]

So I just received mine from HLJ, and also in the shipment were two Idolmaster itasha planes by Hasegawa. This means decal sheets made up of many many different colors. And yet they manage to print them just fine, and without the speckled mess that Bandai does. Are they using a different decal printing process or something?

[Petrov27]

is there any way to provide feedback to Bandai about the decals? Or just no point? Admittedly I have only build 50% of one of their kits so far but my experience has been great with the build - really impressed with the engineering and quality of the plastic - it just seems such a let down that the solid color decal sections are so poorly done....

[Chronocidal]

After this much time, and after as many complaints I saw here about the VF-25 decals years ago, I cannot believe in the slightest that Bandai has not already received an earful from their customers in Japan about how lousy those decals are. There's really no route for feedback from this side of the globe though, so you have to trust Japan to make those complaints for us.

Really though, I don't think these kits are even aimed at "serious" modelers, so Bandai probably doesn't care that the decals suck, because they know that people who actually want good ones are going to wait for Hasegawa kits somewhere down the road.

Edited July 9, 2016 by Chronocidal

[Skypoet]

After this much time, and after as many complaints I saw here about the VF-25 decals years ago, I cannot believe in the slightest that Bandai has not already received an earful from their customers in Japan about how lousy those decals are. There's really no route for feedback from this side of the globe though, so you have to trust Japan to make those complaints for us.

Really though, I don't think these kits aren't aimed at "serious" modelers, so Bandai probably doesn't care that the decals suck, because they know that people who actually want good ones are going to wait for Hasegawa kits somewhere down the road.

Aren't some of the moderators/creators of MacrossWorld residents of Japan and fluent Japanese speakers/writers/readers? If yes, thy could pass the message to Bandai...

[Lolicon]

Bandai is sustained by your tears.

I'm sure Bandai is well aware their decals suck compared to Hasegawa. I'm also certain they don't give a crap. It's "good enough" and that's all Bandai is shooting for.

On that note, the most commonly uttered phrase by George Lucas during filming of the Star Wars prequels (according to the actors) was "That's good enough."

[electric indigo]

Even the kits from Bandai's Star Wars line, which is the cream of the crop currently, have those badly screened decals, so Bandai seems to expect the serious modelers to paint those areas anyway.

[Petrov27]

anyone built the VF-31J already and not using the water slide decals who would be willing to spare them? Already botched a couple - probably wasnt the best idea to use the water slide but I am fairly committed at this point - please pm if you got a set and willing to sell....

[David Hingtgen]

Hase decals are much better than they were years ago, but even back then, Hase decals never had the "screen door/dots" effect that Bandai ones have.

[Lolicon]

Not to mention Bandai decals tend to be more brittle and break easily. They don't work very well with decal softener either, from my experience, though I'm hardly a pro with the stuff. I'm using Mr Mark Softer.

anyone built the VF-31J already and not using the water slide decals who would be willing to spare them? Already botched a couple - probably wasnt the best idea to use the water slide but I am fairly committed at this point - please pm if you got a set and willing to sell....

If you're unable to find a seller, you can always special order the decal sheet from HLJ. Hasegawa won't sell decal sheets separately, but Bandai will, unless their policy has changed in recent years.

[Vifam7]

Having built the Bandai VF-1 kit, my recommendation for all Bandai Macross kits, when it comes to general colors, is to mask and paint as much as possible. It's actually a lot easier than you think. And easier than using the brittle Bandai decals. I would just use the decals for the markings (numbers, insignia, words, etc)

[ayaxr]

Not to mention Bandai decals tend to be more brittle and break easily. They don't work very well with decal softener either, from my experience, though I'm hardly a pro with the stuff. I'm using Mr Mark Softer.

If you're unable to find a seller, you can always special order the decal sheet from HLJ. Hasegawa won't sell decal sheets separately, but Bandai will, unless their policy has changed in recent years.

Is there a special section in HLJ where one can order the decal sheet or it should show up as an item you can order if you search? I'm looking and haven't seen anything like that so far. Not just VF-31 but previous versions as well don't seem to find them.

[Skypoet]

Is there a special section in HLJ where one can order the decal sheet or it should show up as an item you can order if you search? I'm looking and haven't seen anything like that so far. Not just VF-31 but previous versions as well don't seem to find them.

I think you will have to order straight from Bandai using a special form that comes in the box of the kit

[arbit]

These Delta models look nice.

One thing I didn;t like about the Frontier valks, although they were great transforming models, is that the armor parts were integrated and you could not display the valk alone.

The Deltas look like the Super parts are separate, and perhaps the armor parts will be too.

[SebastianP]

These Delta models look nice.

One thing I didn;t like about the Frontier valks, although they were great transforming models, is that the armor parts were integrated and you could not display the valk alone.

The Deltas look like the Super parts are separate, and perhaps the armor parts will be too.

Sure you can display the VF alone - *all* of the VF-25 kits come with a full set of parts for the plain version, and all the decals and stickers. (except for the VF-25F Tornado, which only has decals). It's just that you can't just pop the armor off and display it, you have to put the plain parts back on first. I'm pretty sure the VF-31 will work the same way.

What I'm not sure about is how they're going to handle the separately sold Super parts, because the VF-25 super parts had the unit-specific bits molded in color for the Ozma and Alto releases, and white for the separate release, and you had to use stickers to color them. But the VF-25 super parts only had four unit-specific color parts to begin with, so it wasn't *totally* awful.

The VF-31 has at least 11 parts that are unit-specific in color, and they're all huge, and some of them are really complicated. Covering some of these, like the back end of the boosters, up with stickers is going to be *really* difficult. So what are they going to do? Release individual super parts for each VF appropriately colored runners? Release a single pack with five dfferently colored runners so you can make the one you want? Make only a "Hayate" version? Or will they do what they really should have done with the VF-25s, and release both a super and a plain version of every VF individually?

(Because what's the point of an RVF-25 without the super parts, it's literally only seen without them when Alto rescues Luca...)

[kajnrig]

I think you will have to order straight from Bandai using a special form that comes in the box of the kit

In which case you're out of luck, as that form is only applicable to in-country customers.

[Skypoet]

In which case you're out of luck, as that form is only applicable to in-country customers.

So in other words, there is no way to get replacement parts, and one can only hope that Daban, TT Hongli, Dragon Momoko one day decide to make cheap knockoffs! (Which won't happen, in the case of Macross Gunpla kits)

[Lolicon]

In the past I have been able to special order Bandai decal sheets and even individual runners of parts through HLJ. I had to email HLJ support directly with the request.

It's been a few years since I did it, so no idea if their policy has changed. No harm in emailing them and trying though.

The VF-31 has at least 11 parts that are unit-specific in color, and they're all huge, and some of them are really complicated. Covering some of these, like the back end of the boosters, up with stickers is going to be *really* difficult. So what are they going to do? Release individual super parts for each VF appropriately colored runners? Release a single pack with five dfferently colored runners so you can make the one you want? Make only a "Hayate" version? Or will they do what they really should have done with the VF-25s, and release both a super and a plain version of every VF individually?

Never underestimate Bandai's willingness to make you cover huge sections with equally huge stickers.

[David Hingtgen]

HLJ doesn't do parts anymore, sadly.

[Chronocidal]

So, assuming the white parts of Bandai's decals aren't speckled for some ludicrous reason, you could always scan them, replace the screen printing with solid colors, and then print decals yourself to lay over the top of the Bandai ones.

I'm tempted to do that myself already. Scan in my sheets, reproduce them in vector graphics, and only use the white sections of the existing decals.

[anubis20]

Got mine today and got started the build is fun and not overly complex. I'll get started romorrow with the painting of the head, cockpit, and Hayate figure.

Edited July 10, 2016 by anubis20

[Petrov27]

So, for the suggested paint mixes on the Bandai instructions, pretty sure for the primary blue they are saying 70% Bright Blue (Mr Color H65?) and 30% white, but for the purple-tinged grey that makes up most of the top center part of the fuselage, sides of lower legs, etc. I am a not sure. I think it is saying "grey?" 60% + white 20% + purple? 15% + ? 5%...

Anyone able to translate the paint call out a little better? Thx....

Edited July 10, 2016 by Petrov27

[TMBounty_Hunter]

I think it is saying "grey?" 60% + white 20% + purple? 15% + ? 5%...

That last 5% is Blue Grey

H42 in the Aqueous line. Equivalent in the Mr. Color line is C72 Medium Blue

[Petrov27]

Thx! Do you know what Mr Color code is the 60% grey that should be used in that mix?

[anubis20]

Started out with Hayate and the cockpit, later on today i will airbrush the canopy, visor, and some gray details.

[sh9000]

This guy did a pretty cool VF-31A custom.

https://twitter.com/mezarlance/status/747763279217340419

That VF-31A custom looks awesome.

[Golden Arms]

Damn Anubis! Your Hayate turned out so much better than mine. Great detail!

[kajnrig]

Snapped it together, no decals. My thoughts:

- Goes without saying, but blah those landing gear.

- Definitely a better build than the VF-25. Many more locking mechanisms, some which you don't even notice until you've completed the build and started on the transformation. Speaking of...

- Much simpler, much smoother transformation. Part of that has to do with the design itself, part to do with better engineering. That being said,

- There are still major gap issues here and there, and even those sections that meet well are still noticeably separate. The two filler pieces that go between the gunpods and wing roots almost don't fit at all, for instance.

- Design concessions all over the place. There's the aforementioned landing gear, but also the un-removable pilots. Additionally, the drone launchers in the legs are a nice touch, but all that connects the doors to them is a big fat square peg. Fine for a toy, not so much for a model. I'd have preferred they gone all out or not bothered at all: A fully opening door with accurate hinges/swing bars or a molded-close leg armor.

- Unlike the Bandai VF-25s, this kit looks best in fighter mode. Which is actually a bit of a shame when I know (or at least predict) a Hasegawa release is going to happen in the near future that lacks all the gaps and hinges and tabs and so on and so forth.

- That's not to say that the other two modes look bad per se, but man those arms. They really are super super skinny. I imagine the Gimix kits will mold those biceps to be much more substantial than they are here.

- All that said, it really can't be understated how much better this kit is than the -25s. Besides the design concessions, the simplification of certain mechanisms/parts and better implementation of others made for a much, much more enjoyable build.

- I wasn't enamored with the 31's FSW design, but I like it well enough now that it's in my hand.

Still, I'll wait for the Hasegawa release. In case anyone's interested, I'm putting my 31J up for sale in my FS thread, $30 + shipping. A handful of parts has had pegs cut to make for easier disassembly, but only a handful. Stickers/decals/spare parts included, and box if wanted (though shipping will be more).