1/72 Hasegawa VF-1S Valkyrie - I finally completed it

[Vifam7]

I did it. I finally completed my 1/72 Hasegawa VF-1S.

This is a kit that I started 7 or 8 years ago.  When I first started on this build, I had a number of Gundam kits and ancient Arii 1/100 VF-1S fighter kit under my belt.  Thus, I was feeling somewhat confident in being able to take on a Hasegawa kit.  Initially, it went well.  I got up to a point where the forward fuselage, main body, and legs were put together.  But then I started painting some of the built up sub-assemblies and noticed areas that needed more filling and sanding. In addition, I messed up with the painting.  The attempt to strip the paint off did not go well and so I started a 2nd Hasegawa VF-1 kit. After building another forward fuselage and pair of legs again, I got tired and completely lost interest in completing the kit.  What was done was boxed up and put on the shelf with a promise to come back to it sometime in the future.

Then, last year,  Calibre Wings announced a diecast version of the VF-1 in 1/72 scale. With that in mind, I decided that I wanted to finish the Hasegawa kit so that I can put it next to the Calibre Wings model and compare them.  I pulled out that 2nd kit that I started and began work.  And now it is completed!

Over the years, I've gained some skills in kit building but it's still not anywhere near what others on this board can accomplish.

I painted the main body with Tamiya AS-16 USAF light gray.  Instead of using the supplied decals, the black on the tail and both colors on the ventral fins were painted. The black trim stripes on the rear engine section (ie. the legs) were also painted .

There was still a lot of decals to put on. While not the craziest amount ever, it's certainly the most of amount of decal work that I've ever done on a kit.  Thankfully, the quality of the decals is good (unlike some other kits I worked on in the past). The most difficult part was getting the yellow stripe on the back to conform over the speedbrake.  It just wasn't happening for me so I resorted to painting that area.

The one thing I did not use from the kit were the landing gear wheels.  The wheels included with the kit were so small, thin, and under-detailed that they looked ridiculous. I threw them out and swapped in aftermarket F/A-18 Hornet wheels.  I think they really improve the look of the undercarriage. 

That said, the kit does build into a superb looking VF-1 Valkyrie.  The level of panel-line and rivet detail is amazing (something that perhaps only Hasegawa could do to a kit of a fictional aircraft).  And to be honest, I am just proud of finally completing this kit.

A few more photos below.  Canopy looks a bit cloudy due to my poor buffing skills. The panel-line detail is a bit washed out due to lighting, me using a very light gray color for the panel-lining, and these photos being taken via my phone camera (Galaxy S8). Bigger size pics, a few additional pics, and a slightly longer review can be seen here:  https://wingedtoys.blogspot.com/2019/08/172-hasegawa-macross-vf-1s-valkyrie.html

 

 

 

 

 

 

[derex3592]

Looks good!  Congrats on finishing it! I have yet to build a Hasegawa kit. Got 3 in the to build pile in the closet! 

[electric indigo]

Great work! It was a good decision to paint much of the decoration, and I love the subtle panel lining. 

[pengbuzz]

There's 3 reasons I don't try to build one of these:

1) I cannot find them where I am.

2) Broke (as friggin' usual).

3) (and the biggest reason): Knowing me, if I found one that I could afford, I'd probably try to make it transform!!!

[peter]

Looks good!  I have a few Hasegawa Macross kits I started about 7+ years ago .......

[derex3592]

Now I'm scared to start one.... LOL.. It seems everyone starts them and then bails for a number of years! 

[vt102]

Looking good! Great build.

[peter]

22 minutes ago, derex3592 said:

Now I'm scared to start one.... LOL.. It seems everyone starts them and then bails for a number of years! 

Yeah, I get a bit discouraged every time I look in the box and see a million parts that need to be fitted.  I was surprised that Hasegawa kits didn't always fit perfectly and had massive seam lines that needed to be erased.  Not super beginner-friendly, if you're OCD about seam lines.

 

I think I will just slap the thing together this weekend just to get off my butt and get the thing started again.  Worry about seam lines after that.

[Vifam7]

6 hours ago, peter said:

Yeah, I get a bit discouraged every time I look in the box and see a million parts that need to be fitted.  I was surprised that Hasegawa kits didn't always fit perfectly and had massive seam lines that needed to be erased.  Not super beginner-friendly, if you're OCD about seam lines.

 

I think I will just slap the thing together this weekend just to get off my butt and get the thing started again.  Worry about seam lines after that.

 

Yeah, I would say that this kit is not for the beginner.  The hardest part of building this kit is getting the motivation to start the kit and keeping the motivation to work on it. There are just so many things to work on, it's hard to get motivated and once you start, it's easy to lose the motivation due to the seeming lack of progression.  Just too easy to get sidetracked by Bandai's gunpla and other snap-fit kits.

That said, I'm now working on the Bandai re-pop of the old Imai 1/72 transformable kit.  My goal is to  put together a lineup of fighter mode VF-1S Valkyries from every manufacturer that made it in 1/72 scale.