Bandai Ex Model 1/44 - DFA-03 Dopp - WiP

Dopp is massive up against the RG Core Fighter!

Very easy to assemble kit, its all snap-fit. Since this photo was taken ive added a little bit more detail, mostly to the rear engine parts which was very sparse and tried to add some more panel lines which im really bad at.

Was meant to buy a BMC chisel in Japan but forgot to buy one for the panel line and outside Japan there rare and twice the price and they were expensive in Japan.

Started updating the cockpit which i think could still do with some more work, it turns out this is the most exposed cockpit ive built, the Dopp canopy is large and give a great look inside.



Ian

Real Grade 1/144 - MS-06F Zaku II - WIP - Assembled!

Finally put together this guy over the weekend, one amazing model this! How it pieces together and the way the joints move. Really happy with the way it looking at the moment., very clean though.

The weapons have been given a matt finish which really improves the way they look and the zaku a satin but i think i will go with matt effect soon.

Can't see the mono-eye once the head was put together, painted it a clear red which looked great until until i put in the eye socket might have to paint it pink.
Ian

Japan Trip 2011 - Day 5 - Osaka and then back to Tokyo

Day 5 in Japan i decided to visit Osaka which is only a 30 minute train journey from Kyoto, saw a giant size chocolate bar on the side of the tracks, awesome advertising.

Got to Osaka and it was damn hot, really hot for this Englishmen who's use to cloudy skies, in Osaka i got super lost, everyday in Japan i got lost but this day i got seriously lost, was meant to got to the aquarium bit got ton the wrong train and when i got to the end of the line i could see where i wanted to be across the river and trouble was when i finally managed to figure out what happened it was a hour until the bullet train to
 Tokyo left. So i played some awesome Gundam arcade game (which i sucked at) and generally moched around the Osaka station trying a few bit of foods of street vendors and wondering being amazed by Japan.

Got back to Tokyo in the evening after my last ride on the bullet train where i got to drink a coke in some sort of can/bottle combination and had a moch around Akihabara which i would be doing properly the next day. Not sure what the satellite crashed in the building was about, heard something to do with Stains;Gate but was getting alot of attention.

Last thing at night on TV was Danny Choo's Culture Japan which was a great watch and it was set in Osaka! Knew Danny was from the UK and only ever heard him speak Japanese so was really surprised to hear is his English in an London accent.





















Ian

[Kit Review] - Bandai Ex Model 1/44 - DFA-03 Dopp -

Time to start building some of  the kits i brought back from Japan, first starting with the smallest easiet kit.  This Dopp kit i knew existed  but did'nt expect to find but it turns out that the Bandai Ex kits are easily available in all the model shops i visited which really surprised me. Been wanting some of them for years but the price i find them for on the net is way too expensive for what i think of as a just a kit, but of coruse Japan being awesome you get a great selection at a great price.

Dopp is a great little fighter and looks really unusally as an aircraft due to it being designed inside a colony, apprantly it can reach mach 5. Not going to model it as Garma's Dopp instead im going for a 08th MS Team or M.S. Igloo standard green.

Nice little kit, all snap fit and perfect detail up aginst the line art, im going to have ago at adding some detail especially to the cockpit, comes with a real wide range of MSV sticker, with some cool nose art for the MS-07 Gouf and lots of ofther Zeon symbols and icons ive never seen or have any idea what for.



Ian

Macross 1/144 - VF-1S Valkyrie - VFA-143 "Pukin Dogs"

Been quite some time since ive finished one of the f-toys 1/144 scale VF-1 Valkyrie's. This one had been painted grey and gloss for over a year waiting for some to be done to it and while shifting through the spare decals ive amassed found the VFA-143 "Pukin Dogs" decals and though they would be perfect on the Valkyrie.

Copied the scheme that the F-14 use to have and the large pukin dogs griffin surprisingly fitted perfectly onto the tail wing.










Ian

Star War : The Clone Wars - The Umbara Arc

Just finished watching all 4 episodes set on the Shadow World of Umbara, brilliant!!! These 4 basically clone center stories are the best ive seen in the Clone Wars fro some time and it always seems to be the stories from the clone point of view i like the most.

Really like how it showed the the clones are actually men instead of grown in tube soldiers, incredible dark set of episode not just visually which looked fantastic but emotionally and the echoes of Order 66 in the last episode really got me exited clone in Phase 2 armor hunting a Jedi, awesome!

Feel The Clone Wars improving every season, story and beauty of the animation. Looks like the animators are now almost able to full a screen with close for epic action.
Ian

Japan Trip 2011 - Day 4 - Cycling round Kyoto.

The second and sadly only full day i spent in Kyoto i rented a bicycle and tried to see as much as i could in the single day.

Lots of temple, shines and beautiful old structures in Kyoto, maybe the equivalent of Oxford or Cambridge in the UK if Tokyo was London, sadly it no where near. From the station where i stashed my gear in the coin locker i headed towards the amazing Kinkaku-ji with the stunning Golden Pavilion visiitng any i could on the way, stop what i thought was a shrine but turned out to be a university on graduation day, standing there until realised that i was a uninvited guest, took a few photos and popped in the bike again. After that i got very lost and found my self at the Town Hall which was quite far away from where i wanted to be, saw the Movix theater thats appeared in alot of anime in some sport of roofed street. Once at the Kinakau-ji i headed towards the river to see the massive stepping stones, some stones carved as turtles, sting-rays and boats which i really like. Had to return the bike by nightfall, later on i went up Kyoto Tower, then spent hours in Yodobashi camera and played Pichinko, deafening! Cream crackered after that day and did sleep well.

Did not lock the bike up once! Ive never been to a country where you would leave your bike unlocked, Japan is so safe!






































Ian

U.C Hardgraph 1/144 - Type 74 Hover Truck / M353A4 Bloodhound - WiP

Time to get back to some modelling.

These neat little hover trucks came with the U.C Hardgraph 1/144 Ground War Set, not sure if this is called the Type 74 Hover Truck from 08th MS Team or M353A4 Bloodhound from MS Igloo?

 Lately ive really been into modelling the One Year War U.C Hardgraph style and been wanting to add a bit more detail to some of the 1/144 vehicle ive got and brought back from Japan. RG Zaku II and Wappa where the first i started and this weekend i added some more detail the the Hover Truck.

Ive added new railing, antenna, opened up one of the hatches, some wiring and covered up the back ramp, is a very detail little model and almost perfect against the line art, ive been copy the detailing on the 1/35 scale model.

Just now primed it and cause it so small should take now time to paint.
Ian

Japan Trip 2011 - Day 3 - 9hour Capsule Hotel, Kyoto

One of the "to do list Japan" was to stay in capsule hotel, Japanese capsule hotels are kind of famous in the UK. After some research stumbled upon the awesome looking one in Kyoto which is cooler than i imagined. Lots i looked into in Tokyo look quite old and ive heard to get alot of drunk salarymen in them which i would rather avoid, other guest where mostly tourists and young cool Japanese.

Premise of 9hour is one hour to clean and get ready to sleep, seven hours of sleep then the final hour to wake, clean and leave.

I freaking loved it, i mean i found it a bit strange in the pod and didn't sleep anywhere near 7 hours, its like Kubrick's 2001 made real.










Youtube video below is what sold me on this capsule hotel, explains whats its about better than i could.



Always a plus when yu check in and the lass behind the counter is super cute ;)
Ian

Japan Trip 2011 - The score, haul, loot, swag, mostly model kits

Had to buy a new bag in Japan to get of the souvenirs home, i was worried that i over gone by baggage limit on the plane which is 23kg for each bag but both together weighed less than 20kg.

Most of this was bought in Akihabara, my new favorite place in the world! Got lots of photos of that place for later.

I bought alot of kits (at half the price i usually pay!) and got one of my top wants the Bandai Ex 1/144 Magella Attack, got a nice selection of Platz kit and some MSV zaku which i will in the far future use on the RG Zaku, a whole load of sundries or random supplys you just can't get in the UK and plenty of mecha mooks. Take me too long to list everything but will do some review on some individual items in the future.





Think ive got enough model to keep me building for years to come.
Ian