OK, I just got my new 1/48 Fast Packs...

[Sebastian]

Very Nice WM Cheng!

I got my FP yesterday and they definetelly needs the detailing.

I hope mine end as good as yours!

I LOVE those fast Packs.

[KiraYamato]

Great Detail man,

I hope we can see more pic on the finished work... die to see how beautiful it is.

Kira

[mechatek]

Welcome to MW KiraYamato!

Master WM, another great custom. How about some close ups of your oil washes on the engines?

[recon]

Is anyone bugged that the packs came in green instead of the blue that we saw in the Yamato photos? I would of personally preferred the blue - more DYRL like. Just nitpicking... Don't shot me.

Still can't put this toy down - just love it to bits still.

Hi Wmcheng,

I agree, that the 1/48 Fps should have being molded with a blueish/charcoal grey instead of the normal dark green. But i guess yamato what color is more accurate to that of the Dyrl or TV series. If you observed closely, 1/48 Fps retained the same color as the molds of the Fps on the 1/60 Super and Strike variants. As for the 1/48 VF-1S, i have already preordered that 2nd release, do hope that the existing problems will be eliminated by then, especially the seams along the fuselage and the s head, not forgetting the the crooked skull emblem. Lastly wish that it would be molded in a white/grey tone than the regular beige/white tone

Cheers

[recon]

Yah, I've put on a dark oil wash on the missiles and engine compartment goodies and the details just pop out!! I also put a panel wash on the exterior of the fast packs too. I was going to give the nozzles and main engine bell a shot of airbrush black to simulate some burn, but I'll do that after the decals - I was going to give the fast packs a flat matte clear coat finish when I decal them to help seal in the decals - after that I will give the edges a light dry brushing. I painted the double barrelled gun port and rear exhaust port in Tamiya gun metal.

Hiya Wmcheng,

I have being meaning to ask ya, how did you paint the double barrel gun port and rear exhaust port? Did you disassembled them or just mask and airbrush? shucks yamato could have at least paint the front double barrel gun port in metallic black instead of leaving it in the original mold color.

Cheers

[Omni Existence]

Hi Wmcheng,

I agree, that the 1/48 Fps should have being molded with a blueish/charcoal grey instead of the normal dark green. But i guess yamato what color is more accurate to that of the Dyrl or TV series. If you observed closely, 1/48 Fps retained the same color as the molds of the Fps on the 1/60 Super and Strike variants. As for the 1/48 VF-1S, i have already preordered that 2nd release, do hope that the existing problems will be eliminated by then, especially the seams along the fuselage and the s head, not forgetting the the crooked skull emblem. Lastly wish that it would be molded in a white/grey tone than the regular beige/white tone

Cheers

Want to hear something funny?

Well, I was also complaining about the colors of the FP's as being a little more on the green side. However, if you look at the FP's under a different lighting condition, it actually comes up blue. Try it.

About the 1/48 1S, if you're referring to the Hikaru 1S, Graham already stated that it will have the modifications found on the Max and Bucky Lee 1/48s.

[wm cheng]

I hope my wife lets me buy the Hikaru VF-1S and the fast packs together I don't know if I can wait for them to be separated again

Hey Recon, I just painted them by hand with a brush - the old fashion method. Its a small enough area, and the delineation between the parts are pretty clear. I still need to give the nozzles that little spritz of black, the silver is too bright, and the little black hole at the end looks a little out of place.

[Toonz]

wah! you did it again!! B)

[williwoods]

I have noticed that both fast pack sets I have gotten have the super missle launchers pointing to the left on both sides, just like that pic you posted on page one of this topic the one with the red squares. I took each missle rack off the super cover and mounted them without the racks inside and guess what.....they do not angle all crooked like that, which means the racks are to blame for being crooked, so I got a flat metal nail file and went to work on the racks, all you have to do is make them flush with the missle covers and voila not nearly as bad. The nail file I used is metal and was just the right width to fit in-between the mounting nubs on missle racks. You can even file away a small indentation (naturally happens as you file away) at the base of the mounting nubs and they still mount nicely no floppyness. and now they both point quite a bit straighter. Williwoods

[Mechamaniac]

Hey WM Cheng, I love the effect of the dark oil wash....

Can you give a brief how to?.

Arigato!

[wm cheng]

Hey mechamaniac,

Its the same process I use for my plastic models. Look here: http://www.macrossworld.com/cgi-bin/mwf/ik...=8;t=4555;st=20 Its on page 2 about 3/4 the way down - I hope it helps. I used the same stuff on the fast pack - just artist oil paints thinned down with low-odour varsol (mineral spirits). I didn't leave the stuff on too long on the silver painted stuff (you never know - but it was fine) - but its safe on the coloured plastics.

[stratos]

Wmcheng,

Did you actualy get a hold of a decal set? I wanted to get one, but have not heard much if anything since the boards moved. I know there are sticker sets out, but I want a waterslide set.

[williwoods]

wm- did you also use this process on your 1/48 valk?

the first one i did with mech pencil but thinking of trying your method

also did you prep any surface prior to the wash? such as clear gloss/matte coat?

[recon]

Hi Wmcheng,

I agree, that the 1/48 Fps should have being molded with a blueish/charcoal grey instead of the normal dark green. But i guess yamato what color is more accurate to that of the Dyrl or TV series. If you observed closely, 1/48 Fps retained the same color as the molds of the Fps on the 1/60 Super and Strike variants. As for the 1/48 VF-1S, i have already preordered that 2nd release, do hope that the existing problems will be eliminated by then, especially the seams along the fuselage and the s head, not forgetting the the crooked skull emblem. Lastly wish that it would be molded in a white/grey tone than the regular beige/white tone

Cheers

Want to hear something funny?

Well, I was also complaining about the colors of the FP's as being a little more on the green side. However, if you look at the FP's under a different lighting condition, it actually comes up blue. Try it.

About the 1/48 1S, if you're referring to the Hikaru 1S, Graham already stated that it will have the modifications found on the Max and Bucky Lee 1/48s.

Hi,

Sorry for the misunderstanding, i was refering to the 1/48 VF-1S Roy, it has said that yamato would be reissusing those babes. Im getting one as i missed the intial release, hopefully these reissues would come with all the modifications and improvements that the 1A Max and Low vis has. Not also forgetting the 1/48 VF-1S Hikaru, will be getting one too. This year is a good year for us macross fans but a bad year for our wallets.

Cheers

[wm cheng]

Damn! they are re-issueing a VF-1S Roy's colours?? I wish I knew - its too expensive for me to get it again Its one of my favourite colours schemes - I guess Hikaru's VF-1S will have to do...

Yes, I did an oil wash on my 1/48 Yamato Valk - I mixed up a light grey for the panel lines and a darker grey for the moveable surfaces - black is still too contrasty. The wash is a much finer line than marker - plus you can mix the colour to your liking.

Nope, I haven't recieved my decal set yet, Anasazi has been kind enough to let me know whats happening, there was a screw up with his decal paper supplier, so he is behind a week or so. He didn't expect over 90 orders from us - so he's trying his best to keep up with demand. I will post a soon as I recieve them and apply them to my naked bird.

[williwoods]

sorry for the constant barage of q's

could you define moving surface? how do you differentiate between the two?

maybe you could show some pics of your 1/48 and illustrate the difference between them?

I know I am getting annoying sorry.

[stratos]

Nope, I haven't recieved my decal set yet, Anasazi has been kind enough to let me know whats happening, there was a screw up with his decal paper supplier, so he is behind a week or so. He didn't expect over 90 orders from us - so he's trying his best to keep up with demand. I will post a soon as I recieve them and apply them to my naked bird.

I hope he has me down for some. I had asked on the old thread. Is there any way of contacting him?

[recon]

Damn! they are re-issueing a VF-1S Roy's colours?? I wish I knew - its too expensive for me to get it again Its one of my favourite colours schemes - I guess Hikaru's VF-1S will have to do...

Yes, I did an oil wash on my 1/48 Yamato Valk - I mixed up a light grey for the panel lines and a darker grey for the moveable surfaces - black is still too contrasty. The wash is a much finer line than marker - plus you can mix the colour to your liking.

Nope, I haven't recieved my decal set yet, Anasazi has been kind enough to let me know whats happening, there was a screw up with his decal paper supplier, so he is behind a week or so. He didn't expect over 90 orders from us - so he's trying his best to keep up with demand. I will post a soon as I recieve them and apply them to my naked bird.

You can say that again Wmcheng, but im glad Yamato are re-issuing those babes. If you wish, when im in Hong Kong next january, i can purchased one for ya. Of course there the price is relatively cheaper, but provided the hungry MWers are going to Hong Kong too dun devour it before i do.

Cheers

[VF-18S Hornet]

All together now! Pictures, Pictures, Pictures, Pictures, Pictures, Pictures!

[Jawjaw]

wm_cheng - It would be cool as hell if you could write up a detailed how-to on customizing the 1/48 and fastpacks.

[UN Spacy]

All together now! Pictures, Pictures, Pictures, Pictures, Pictures, Pictures!

Ask and you shall recieve.

[williwoods]

gonna start a thread over at the toy customization forum. One specifically about 1/48 customizing.

see ya there.

[VF-18S Hornet]

All together now! Pictures, Pictures, Pictures, Pictures, Pictures, Pictures!

Ask and you shall recieve.

OHHHHH- AHHHHHHHH! (then faints like a school Girl)

Thanks UN Spacy

[F-ZeroOne]

Well, I finally got my FAST Packs today - thanks to Kevin and the Valkyrie Exchange, and no thanks to Her Majestys Customs for the huge customs bill I will no doubt be receiving later... <_<

First impression: look at the size of those things! ( despite which, I still managed to walk right past the box when I first came home this morning... )

Yep, they are quite heavy, but something I don't think has been emphasized is how freakin' huge the Packs are; its suddenly obvious why Valks can't use them in atmosphere - they'd just go into a flat dive...!

Although I have a set of Takatoys decals, I mostly used the Yamato Strike ones; this is no slur on the quality of Takatoys decals, which I've used on my 1/48 itself - Yamato, please learn from this guy! - but partly due to my being a bit of a klutz and partly being in a hurry to get the stickers on so I could fit the packs.

Quibbles first: take your time. I found it quite difficult to attach the armour; however I should have slowed down a bit and looked closely at everything - once you've actually attached something, its suddenly obvious what you should have done in the first place ( I even managed to fit the arm armour backwards first try...! ).

Landing gear on my VF-1S does have a bit of trouble; it can collapse if the Valk is pushed hard enough but its not generally a big problem. The gunpod does also hang a bit low.

The micro-missiles were a bit of a pain; in fact if your experience is anything like mine you might need eye protectors because the things were springing all the over the place! However, again, this might be due to there being "flash" from the sprue left on the rockets and me not taking proper time to file it off, or even remove the missiles from the sprue properly.

That might all sound negative - however, to sum up, I adore these things and only wish I had more room for more Valks and their FAST packs. My VF-1S suddenly looks like it could take on the entire Zentraedi fleet on its own, Minmay or no Minmay! I also love the little "drinks can" stickers, which was a nice touch on Yamatos part.

And, oh, the packs fit very snugly; the only looseness can be found on the dual Reaction warheads and even thats not a significant trouble.

If I ever get to Japan again, I might have to find a loose set of 1/55 armour just so my 1/55 Max doesn't feel inadequate anymore...!

[imode]

The micro-missiles were a bit of a pain; in fact if your experience is anything like mine you might need eye protectors because the things were springing all the over the place! However, again, this might be due to there being "flash" from the sprue left on the rockets and me not taking proper time to file it off, or even remove the missiles from the sprue properly.

Yeah, I had the same problem. Odd thing is, I would let it pop out, then try to shove it into a different slot and they worked fine. The only ones that are hopeless are the single micromissles which don't POP, but instead just kinda roll themselves out of the slot.

[Uxi]

Yeah, I had the same problem. Odd thing is, I would let it pop out, then try to shove it into a different slot and they worked fine.

Heh, I noticed this too. Of course, this also applies to the RMS-1 missiles... and it also applied to my 3 1/60 VF-1s with some missile clusters/pods being really tight in one hardpoint but loose in another. So mix and match until they work.

And thankfully it works for the single mini-missiles too, at least for me.

These things are great. The right booster is a pain to get in and out of the backpack but the left one is niiiiiiice after putting it on and taking it off once or twice. The color scheme works great with the Low-Viz, too. Still, think I'm gonna have to start seriously hunting a Max -1A if I can't wait for the Hikaru 1S.

My only complaint would be Yamato's basic design of the 1/48's arm lockign mechanism. It's not that great for the ordinary valkyrie IMO, and it's just worse in Super Valkyrie trim. Mine is ok and I don't have the arm sagging problem of some, but at least make the arm pegs a little longer (and the correspending holes deeper) if they can't put an additional locking mechanism for a future release...

[Radd]

I just got my own FAST pack sets in today! Just before I left for work, too! Luckily it was only a 4 hour shift, so I didn't have long before I was back at home, busily applying stickers.

First of all, it's completely true. The 1/48 Valkyries are not complete without the FAST packs. In comparison, it's like owning half a toy. Less than that if you're a slacker like me that hasn't applied the stickers to your VF-1 yet. I applied my Hikaru 1A stickers last weekend in anticipation of the FAST pack sets and I'm glad I did, as the detail those stickers add is astounding (Thank you Takatoys!).

My complaints? Only a couple. First of all, I've had no luck at all with the micro missles. I'll probably wind up leaving them on the sprue, or eventually gluing them into the FAST packs for the added detail. The Budweiser stickers wouldn't even stay on right.

Second, Takatoy's stickers, while completely wonderful and flawless on the VF itself, don't quite work with the FAST packs. Mainly due to the white frame around some of the stickers. I would have loved to use Takatoy's Skull 011 emblem on the side of the FAST packs, as it looks much better than the standard Yamato sticker, but it was too small and the white border just made it hideous. This was the case with a few of the stickers, so I mixed and matched what I could.

Third, the arm pegs aren't quite lined up right for the arm armour. It holds well enough, but still comes off a little too easy for my taste, and looks even more fragile.

Also, getting the back leg armour into place was painful. Anyone else have that problem?

Don't get me wrong, though, these are all minor complaints at best. Now that it's all stickered up and has the FAST packs attached, my Hikaru 1A is the pride of my collection. I seriously can't wait until both my Focker 1S and my Max 1A are all prettied up as well. I'll probably work on Focker this Saturday, then finish up with Max next weekend, once I've had plenty of practice.

[F-ZeroOne]

Radd - yeah, I had a bit of trouble getting the leg armour on. It does appear to require a degree of force unless theres some secret technique I'm missing.

Takatoys decals - I suspect, though I can't be certain, that being based on the Hasagawa models they've come out a touch too small - possibly the Yamato FAST packs are a bit bigger than strictly speaking they should be. I went with the Yamatos because their skull fills the circle more completely, but I used the Takatoys for everyones favourite MW fan artist on the leg side packs ( for those who haven't a clue what I'm going on about... "Beware of... " )

I put my Budweiser and Cola stickers on the Reaction warheads, partly because its more obvious and partly because I don't have a handy reference copy of DYRL around...!

Edited September 19, 2003 by F-ZeroOne

[tom64ss]

I didn't have any problems with the leg armors. The key is to put the bottom "slot" in before the top "peg". The "side" leg pieces went on like butter.

I do however have the problem with the micro missles, and it seems to be the rack that's the culprit. If you're lookin at the Valk and FPs head on, the right, bottom, single micro-missle slot on the rack seems like it refuses to hold the single micro missle. I have 3 sets of FPs and I have the same problem with all 6 missle racks.

That and arms that don't lock in place in fighter mode are the only complaints I have with the FPs. Other than that, Woooooooooohoooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! My 1/48s look so freaking cool now.

[Radd]

Wow. I'm going to have to get a Low-vis, now. I mean, currently I have 3 1/48ths and 3 sets of FAST packs. I'm going to miss seeing them without the packs, because I'll never have the heart to take them off.

Anyways, I've pretty much settled on the idea of gluing the micro missles into place on the racks. They're not going to come out once I put them in, anyways, and the armour looks that much cooler when you open it up to display the details.

One question, anyone have the Hasagawa decal placement sheet and a copy of the Hasagawa decal sheet to use as reference? The Takatoys stickers for the FAST packs are almost completely different than those that come standard from Yamato. I didn't want to just place stickers at random, so I put the Yamato stickers on until I can find out where the Takatoys stickers should go.

On a last note, I noticed differences between my Hikaru 1A and my Focker 1S, mainly in the backpage hook and the backplate panel. On my Hikaru, the back panel (the one with the locking hook for the backpack) snaps easily into place and holds well, even with the FAST packs attached. On my Focker, you have to force the back panel into place, and in doing so it only snaps into place too far back, meaning you have to force the backpack much more than I'd really care to. Even then, forced into place and locked together, it still doesn't hold that well, falling out of place far too easily.

I've noticed that my Focker 1S is much more fragile overall when compared to my Hikaru 1A. When posing my Focker, one of the intakes pressed against the little fins sticking out of the underside of the fuselage, and broke that little piece right off (the whole thing, both little fins just popped right out). I super-glued it back together, and it looks as good as new (well, it seems to as sturdy as ever, but it won't quite fit back into place no matter how I positioned it into that thin slot it rests in), but it's made me very nervous handling the 1S.

I must reiterate, I've had absolutely no troubles with my Hikaru 1A. Also, my troubles with the 1S back plate only really occur when I move the toy around, changing poses or transforming it, it seems to hold fine when left alone, though the backpack hinge still worries me in battroid, so I'll probably keep it mostly in fighter or gerwalk until I figure out some sort of fix for the back plate locking mechanism. Before anyone asks, the additional part Yamato included to reinforce that particular section only works once the back plate is locked into place, still putting the stress onto the backpack hinge. The additonal piece won't even fit without the plate locked into place.

Next week I'll sticker up my Max 1A and the last set of FAST packs, give my thoughts on how that goes, and probably post some pictures of all three in all their glory. Pictures much better than this one, I hope.

[Etrigan]

Hope this helps.

http://etrigan.homestead.com/files/hase_blueprint.jpg