GUNDAM

[cumbersome]

I've watched quite a lot of Gundam before, from One Year War which had the pioneer mobile suits like the RX-78 and the Zaku, up to Zeta to Double Zeta to V Gundam and a smattering of F91. I didn't watch the other stuff that came after V, like Wing and G, since they didn't belong to the Universal Century (UC) anymore and thus have significantly different lore and physics as far as the original series is concerned. They seem more like side stories and parallel universes compared to what started in the late 70s. I have around 25 kits lying around waiting to be assembled, like Marasai, Kampfer, Gelgoog and other suits. Since i currently don't have the luxury of time to assemble and paint the kits, i started buying some MS in Action toys like the Sazabi, GPO1 and GP02, Nu Gundam, and some Fix Figuration suits (which i absolutely recommend! Ganda pero masakit sa bulsa, hehehe). Anyhow, cool to hear that people are still into Gundam.

[city_hunter]

My Collection:

1/144:
Nu Gundam, ZZ Gundam, GP03S, Hyaku Shiki(coating version), Sandrock custom, Serpent custom, Aegis Gundam, GP01FB, V2 Gundam, Wing Zero custom, Tallgeese III, Wing Zero, EX-S Gundam.

1/100:
Wing Zero Custom, Heavyarms custom, Deathscythe Hell Custom (special version), God Gundam, Shining Gundam, Double X G-Falcon, Super Gundam, Crossbone Gundam X1, Nataku, Zeta Gundam, Aile Strike Gundam, V2 Buster Gundam, Freedom Gundam, Sazabi, F91 and Ez-8.

Dati na kasi akong nagcocollect kaya halo silang lahat. Pero, I'm leaning towards the UC models. Mas maganda kasi silang tignan.

Tamad din akong magpaint kaya hanggang assembly na lang ginagawa ko.

Pics will be added later on(kung may oras).

[Type 100]

Sa totoo lang medyo sawa na ako sa Gundam-type MS. As far as model kits are concerned, I'm more into the Zeon/Zeon-inspired/Titans prototype and grunt MS designs now. MS-18E Kaempfer anyone?

The Gundam Exia from the current TV series "Mobile Suit Gundam 00" is a notable exception though...just look at the posability of that thing! No bulky backpacks or outrageous wings, just a good well-balanced MS design.

[city_hunter]

Medyo mahirap maghanap ng ganon kaya tyaga lang ako sa mga Gundam-type.

[safeorigin]

well, gundam types are kinda nice though sa bagong series ngayon. i think they took the advice of some of the fans of bringing back the MS style.
anyways, i'm drooling over the strike freedom and strike noir and it's from seed destiny. actually i did some comparisons lately and i think only the wing series gundams are exaggeratedly invincible. the seed series are not however invincible because there are some battle scenes where the gundams themselves are torn to bits yet the sheer willpower of the "seeded" pilot is what makes it keep going. will make a storyline synopsis later

[Bogeyman]

actually i did some comparisons lately and i think only the wing series gundams are exaggeratedly invincible.

Don't forget G Gundam. Pinaghalong Daimos, Street Fighter at Dragonball Z. :bwahaha:

Old school Gundam fans have known all along that Wing depicted the Gundams as over-the-top; when I was a member of a prominent online Gundam community, there would always be discrimination against 'Wingers', because they would always be mouthing "sacrilegeous" statements about UC Gundam. Sabihin ba namang ginaya lang daw ni Char Aznable si Zechs Merquise. Erm, kids, it's the other way around. And the Wingers would always complain how old the animation was on the original MSG.

I was introduced to Gundam via Wing, pero I knew enough to take it with a grain of salt, more so when I finally got immersed in the UC timeline. The present crop of Gundam series (SEED, SEED Destiny) hasn't caught my interest yet; I find the suits too flashy. UC pa rin ako -- for now. The relative crudeness of UC suits carries a certain charm that only an old-school fan can appreciate.

Bogeyman: Ganyan din ako, tamad sa "real modeler stuff." I've successfully painted just one kit in my entire collection, and that was with Pylox spray lacquer. With proper technique, okey naman ang hitsura. Di ko lang tinapos kasi mahal yung Tamiya masking tape.

Other than that, the farthest I've gone is to bond, fill and seal the parts with plastic cement. Then I buff the excess with varying grits of sandpaper to remove the "lumps" of melted plastic on the bonded areas. (A nail buffing block will do just fine too.)

Isa pang bilib ako eh dun sa mga nagtyatyaga talagang maglagay ng wiring for lighting effects -- and I don't mean the PG kits. HG kits ha, at 1/144 scale. Wow! :D

[safeorigin]

gundam SEED era

during this era, there are three main factions:
ZAFT-zodiac alliance forces treaty, a group of space colonists who are genetically engineered (aka coordinator), thus giving them better and keener abilities than a normal human being.
EAF-earth alliance forces, a coalition of different sovereign nations who pride themselves of being "naturals"
ORB union-a neutral faction which is open to both EAF and ZAFT. it is a small nation which is also the most advanced of the 3.

mobile suits nerfed?
yes, generally all MS are nerfed during this era. the nuclear reactors that power the MS and everything dependent on it are disabled because of a device created by ZAFT called the neutron jammer. this device dissipates nuclear reactions by slowing down neutrons thus nuclear reactions will not occur. this was devised to prevent EAF from using nuclear arsenals and MS's.
after a few years, warships have been equipped with a neutron jammer canceller that counters the effects of a neutron jammer, and thus nuclear reactions are once again enabled. however, this devise is so expensive that only ships were designated to carry it. on the otherhand, MS's are forced to use up batteries which constitute their bulk and render them awkward.

The story is focused on Kira Yamato, who is a coordinator. he founds himself stuck in between a war and is forced to fight for the EAF. what makes things worse is that he has to fight his best friend, Athrun Zala, who is the son of the ZAFT chairman. as time passes by, both pilots witness the horrors of war - losing friends, love ones and eventually ended up to nearly killing each other. because of the pains they have, they were able to tap the coordinator's special ability of "SEED" which enables them to become berserk, super enhanced willpower, reflexes and zero error evasive/offensive maneuvering. this ability was their greatest curse and regret.
later in the story, they reconciled with the help of Lacus Cline, singer/actress and daughter of an assassinated reformist, and Kagali Yula Atla, the daughter of the ORB sovereign. with the lessons they learned from the war, they have decided to be neutrals and aimed to end the war. with the "SEED" ability, they were able to target with precision and hit only the non-cockpit parts, thus enabling the MS pilot to survive.

the story ended with the destruction of the ZAFT gamma-ray cannon, where in if it hits the earth, every living creature will be annihilated. there is also the final battle between Raww le Klueze and Kira Yamato. the fight was a slugfest where in the Freedom gundam, which kira pilots, was heavily damaged where only the cockpit and one arm was left. with "SEED" being maxed he was able to defeat the Providence Gundam, the one piloted by Raww.

A new political order was able to preside on ZAFT. and peace was finally attained, or so they thought...

[Type 100]

Isa pang bilib ako eh dun sa mga nagtyatyaga talagang maglagay ng wiring for lighting effects -- and I don't mean the PG kits. HG kits ha, at 1/144 scale. Wow! :D

+1 ako dyan men. Di ko na kaya yan, pinapasma ako eh. Kapag hawak ko na yung soldering iron, baka yung plastic ng kit ang matunaw ko imbes na solder. Heheheh :p

[safeorigin]

mga sirs, paturo naman po. noob po ako pagdating sa ganyan. hehehe

[Type 100]

Noob din ako bro! I have no skills whatsoever hahaha

If you want to paint your Gunpla or other plastic scale models you will need to follow a certain procedure.

1. Snap-fitting/test fitting - you can try cutting the pegs of the parts at an angle to facilitate removal later on. Also remove "flash" (excess plastic from the runners) at this phase with a hobby knife and sandpaper.

2. Dismantling and organizing into sub-assemblies - divide the parts into the head, torso, waist/hip, arms, legs, weapons etc.

3. Refitting - after refitting you may want to bathe the model's parts in soapy water to remove any oil or releasing agent left on the plastic. These will hinder the adhesive properties of the primer and paint

Note: After step 4 there is no turning back...

4. Bonding and sealing - usually for PS (polystyrene) parts; you apply plastic cement to the parts you want to bond to melt their edges, then you "weld" using the melted plastic. This melted plastic should ooze out a little as you apply pressure, and this is what will make a seal. The whole point of sealing and bonding this way is to make the edges between two parts disappear when you paint. Let the cement dry.

5. Filling - any leftover gaps in parts should be filled in with putty.
A cheap alternative is a quick-setting mixture of superglue and talcum powder. Whatever your filling agent, let it dry, then sand down the excess afterward.

On to painting...

6. Primer - this actually fills in the smallest gaps you may have left out and provides the paint with a base to "bite" into. Some modelers do not use primer though. For the Duel Gundam I painted (my only painted kit so far), I skipped this

7. Painting - a lot depends on what kind of paint you use: acrylic, enamel or lacquer. I used PYLOX spray lacquer, but many modelers use acrylic. Many of them also use airbrushes. Each paint type has its own quirks. Avoid painting in the rainy season because the humidity will give your paint bubbles. You can mitigate this with the use of an improvised painting booth with a warm light.

These final steps are for the really hardcore guys

8. Topcoat - spraying this will protect the model's paint from chipping, but topcoat is highly toxic. Be warned.

9. Weathering effects - there are a lot of these, from physically damaging the plastic, to drybrushing, to applying washes (highly diluted paint). You can apply panel lines with a black wash too.

I used to hang out with a modellers' club before. HTHs bro