Myersjessee Posted January 18, 2004 Posted January 18, 2004 Well, I got a chance to sit down with MSLZ22 and see his Colonial Viper first hand. I was very excited to see the kit, as I grew up watching Battlestar Galactica. I know this is a Macross site first and foremost, but it seemed there was enough interest in the new series to warrent a review for members to share. (mods, be gentle. ) The kit...well...let me just say its gorgeous. Mike started to spend some time to tell me how much work had gone into it...apeaerently the original master for the molds was used in the filming, but was pretty beat up....the state of the original, and the age of the molds left the quality of the recast Mike got in major question. Instead of crying over spilt milk mike got to work. He redid the nose, where it had become warped, added back a ton of detail that had been lost, or damaged with age, reshaped the thrusters and basically redid parts of the entire kit (including rebuiling lasers, etc) The final redone kit is steller. Included in the kit are: The body 3 wings pilot pilot head cockpit detail canopy two lasers 2 detail pieces for the body decals Larger then I expected, the body is solid, and heavy. It has a hole in the bottom of the fuselage so it can be mounted on a display rod. Quote
Myersjessee Posted January 18, 2004 Author Posted January 18, 2004 (edited) The pilot - I honestly could not do the pilot figure justice with my camera. It is large, and very detailed. Everything from the emblem on the helpemt to epilets are clearly visible. Im sure this will look great painted up. Edited January 18, 2004 by Myersjessee Quote
Myersjessee Posted January 18, 2004 Author Posted January 18, 2004 The cockpit in the body is bare, but the kit comes with a cockpitdetail piece with controls and console on it. I plan on scratch building a couple extra details, but at this scale that should be easy. Its really nice! Quote
Myersjessee Posted January 18, 2004 Author Posted January 18, 2004 (edited) The kit comes with the two recognizable cannons for the wings....wow...I loved this show! Mike told me he had to scratch build these back up, as the originals were destroyed. I compared them to pictures of the original...they look great! Edited January 18, 2004 by Myersjessee Quote
Myersjessee Posted January 18, 2004 Author Posted January 18, 2004 The details down the side of the viper body are cool. I couldn't capture all the detail that will be visible with a wash, but I wanted to try the best I could to show them off for you. In general, seeing it in person, the detail really gives the Viper the "rag tag" look that you would expect the ship to have...very cool stuff! Quote
Myersjessee Posted January 18, 2004 Author Posted January 18, 2004 One thing I am very excited about is it is a large kit. After working on 1/72 and 1/100 scale kits this should be a nice change. The Viper itself, is small, so the scale on the kit must be hugh (I am guessing 1/24....Mike told me, but I can't remember....so here are some scale shots) With a hasegawa Quote
Myersjessee Posted January 18, 2004 Author Posted January 18, 2004 Here it is in front of a Yamato 1/48 Quote
Myersjessee Posted January 18, 2004 Author Posted January 18, 2004 (edited) And here it is with the headless pilot on the 1/48...man...imagine how big the VF1 at this scale would be! Edited January 18, 2004 by Myersjessee Quote
Myersjessee Posted January 18, 2004 Author Posted January 18, 2004 Here are some pictures of a completed on Mike did "in a weekend" Wow....let me say in all honesty the pictures dont do the kit justice...not even close. This will be a gorgeous premier part of my model colllection someday. Thanks Mike. Anyone, if you are a fan of Galactica, like me, I can honestly say you won't find anything close for the price Mike is charging. The kit itself has to be nearly $35 of resin alone...the molds had to be huge...he certainly isn't making any money on the sale...and considering the Monogram models don't have a cockpit, are smaller, less detailed, and selling on Ebay for $70 or more...this is a steal. Mike, thank you!!! Quote
Myersjessee Posted January 18, 2004 Author Posted January 18, 2004 (edited) and If anyone has any questions please feel free top post or PM me. Thanks. Edited January 18, 2004 by Myersjessee Quote
bsu legato Posted January 19, 2004 Posted January 19, 2004 Wow, that's pretty impressive. I'd love to see one of those sitting next to the Captain Cardboard X-Wing. Studio scale models rule. Quote
Myersjessee Posted January 19, 2004 Author Posted January 19, 2004 Wow, that's pretty impressive. I'd love to see one of those sitting next to the Captain Cardboard X-Wing. Studio scale models rule. Ill ask Mike...he has both!!!! (much jealousy!!! ) Quote
Myersjessee Posted January 20, 2004 Author Posted January 20, 2004 Mike posted it in for sale, but here is a copy for historical purposes. Quote
bsu legato Posted January 20, 2004 Posted January 20, 2004 (edited) Damn, that's nice. I wish I'd jumped on the Captain Carboard kits while they were still available. As I understand, the molds finally gave up the ghost. BTW, have you seen any photos online of the original Viper miniatures? I've got an old Monogram kit in my closet and I'd like to find some reference pics before I build it someday. Edited January 20, 2004 by bsu legato Quote
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