Hacking/modding valkyries

Pontus · January 22, 2019

If there's already a thread for this topic, I was unable to find it in a quick search, but please let me know and I will continue there.

What hacks/mods have you done to your valks? Have you done any repairs that have left the valk improved over stock? (although I don't mean for this to become a repair/maintenance thread) Has anyone added lighting or even electronics? If you already have a project thread about this, post a link and I'll add it here for reference. Perhaps we can make this a sticky reference post for all hacks/mods if this is a thing people do a lot of or are interested in. If not, enjoy my own mods in the next posts. I'll reserve this first post for links to project threads or posts below. Feel free to post your own below and I'll link those here as well.

Personally, being Mr. Fixit for just about everything and working in the repair field, I'm not squeamish about taking things apart and making them better if possible, although I do suffer from a condition known as "scope creep" among vehicle project circles where the scope of a project tends to creep unsustainably larger until you've got a monster you can never hope to tackle. Just ask my motorcycle and camping van. :fool: And this new obsession is no different as I'm already forming big plans for lighting and modding my 1/60 VF-1S and making a large, well lit SDF-1 model (that hopefully transforms) based on the papercraft model.

Anyway, I'm eager to see what others have done and hoping we can share ideas and do cool things. Cheers! :drinks:

Pontus · January 22, 2019

I was dissatisfied with the amount of angle you got with the strike cannon. It didn't seem to be all that useful for a cannon to only have about 15° of range:

So I took out my trusty exacto knife and got to work:

Much better now. It may be a cannon, but it doesn't have to be canon! :rofl:

Then I noticed that the arm missiles weren't glued in place, but they also don't come out. So I took the two screws out, disassembled, and noticed that all I needed to do was shave down the sides a bit. Be careful though - if you shave too much off, they'll just fall out, and if you shave too little, they will pry the sides apart and stress the little screws. I did too much on one side, but a little creative melting of the tab fixed that right up. I think they need some additional detail too... someday.

no3Ljm · January 22, 2019

Nice. Thanks for sharing. :good:

AFAIK, threads like this are basically everywhere. But mostly I see is in the Workshop! section. And we do actually have a Maintenance thread.

Anyways, looking forward to your mods.

Pontus · January 22, 2019

4 minutes ago, no3Ljm said:

Nice. Thanks for sharing.

AFAIK, threads like this are basically everywhere. But mostly I see is in the Workshop! section. And we do actually have a Maintenance thread.

Anyways, looking forward to your mods.

Ok, from the description, I thought the workshop was more for modeling, but if this needs to be moved in there, that's cool. I guess that's why I didn't see much of it here, duh. I saw the maintenance thread which is why I thought it appropriate for this here.

I was concerned about maybe making it too broad and thought maybe I'd limit this to 1/60 mods but talked myself out of it. Would it be better if I just made my own thread in the workshop? I'm just a big fan of reference threads where people can find scattered info in one place.

no3Ljm · January 22, 2019

10 minutes ago, Pontus said:

Ok, from the description, I thought the workshop was more for modeling, but if this needs to be moved in there, that's cool. I guess that's why I didn't see much of it here, duh. I saw the maintenance thread which is why I thought it appropriate for this here.

I was concerned about maybe making it too broad and thought maybe I'd limit this to 1/60 mods but talked myself out of it. Would it be better if I just made my own thread in the workshop? I'm just a big fan of reference threads where people can find scattered info in one place.

TBH, I'm not sure actually.

I think you're good here since I also created my thread before on starting my YamArcadia Valks ala-Premium Finish. And also the description of this section said 'Finish Customed' so I have a feeling you're good here.

No need to move or request this thread to be put on the Workshop. I only said that because that's where I always see some mod threads whether it's for kits or toys. Unless the moderators says otherwise though.

And besides, it is nice to see custom mods on our toys so keep on posting sir! :good:

Edited January 22, 2019 by no3Ljm

ArchieNov · January 22, 2019

Something must've been wrong with your Strike Cannon. It's supposed to be able to fold down 90 degrees without any mods.

no3Ljm · January 22, 2019

I didn't notice that earlier. Archie is right. The Strike Cannon doesn't need any mods to be fold down 90 degrees. The extra joint comes in the connector itelf (Strike Cannon connector that attaches to the Booster portion).

Here's a sample photo from @jenius' Anymoon website:

Edited January 22, 2019 by no3Ljm

Pontus · January 22, 2019

1 hour ago, no3Ljm said:

@jeniusI didn't notice that earlier. Archie is right. The Strike Cannon doesn't need any mods to be fold down 90 degrees. The extra joint comes in the connector itelf (Strike Cannon connector that attaches to the Booster portion).

Well I'll be damned. I did NOT notice that on mine as it was very stiff and the back of the connector popped out instead of the extra joint popping up. I just looked at my cannon and, although I had to hold it down on its mount while forcing it around to get it to pop, sure enough, it popped up this time. Well, anyway, I like my way much better. Why have an extra joint that puts stress on the cannon mount points instead of just allowing the hinge to extend down farther? Plus, that's not quite 90°, and with the extra joint, mine now comes past that down to right beside the head.

Anyway, thanks for the tip!

Wow, I love this toy more and more every time I play with it!

Edited January 22, 2019 by Pontus

tekering · January 24, 2019

I put LEDs into my HMR Valkyrie cockpits:

Just drilled a hole under the console, large enough to fit the bulb housing inside.

Stuck a couple in my HMR Monster cockpit as well.

Rogueload · January 24, 2019

What are those leds you used? Those are cool!

tekering · January 25, 2019

https://www.amazon.co.jp/gp/product/B0772P8J3L/

Sildani · January 25, 2019

I’m still looking for a good way to remove screw covers. One tip I got was to superglue old sprue onto the cover and lift directly, then carefully remove the sprue and sand the glue spot. Wondering if there’s another solution...

Bobby · January 25, 2019

A DX YF-29 that I converted into a "VF-31"-ish build after a wear-n-tear mishap [LINK]

Pontus · January 26, 2019

I was walking by some ribbon on the shelf... is that 1/60 gun sling strap?! Flattened a bit of copper wire out and made a buckle. I noticed two pairs of holes on either end of the gun for strap connections. Rolled in some paperclip rings, and... Tada!