MG Gundam Astray Red Frame Kai English Color Guide

Update (03/12/2010): Translated Construction Manual can be found here.

Translated the color guide for the Master Grade Gundam Astray Red Frame Kai that was recently released this month. More photos of the Gundam Astray Red Frame Kai can be found here and here.

How to remove paint seepage errors

Being a newbie to 21st Century painting techniques, I used to think that by using Tamiya Masking tape alone one could hope to avoid the paint from seeping through the masking tape during spraying. After watching this episode of Plamo Tsukuro (Building Plastic Models), I found out that even the pro's suffer from that same mistake. Nice to find out too that there is a method for fixing this problem. There is a funny part in this exchange, wherein after explaining to the cameraman the problem of paint seepage that happened to the kit, the cameraman tells him "can't we just leave it as is?"... hehehe

Who's got next?

To quote my ex-boss, "It's a wonderful problem to have". Well this is one of those type of decisions that I love to make... specifically which Gundam kit to build next. I already started with the 1/100 Gundam Dynames a while back then put a stop to that to build the Gundam Astray Blue Frame Second L (which I just recently finished).

1/100 MBF-P03 Gundam Astray Blue Frame Second L Assembly Part V

Update: Finished shots after I reworked the Gundam Astray Blue Frame can be found here.

Finished working on the non grade 1/100 Gundam Astray Blue Frame from the SEED vs Astray series of Gundam. Part IV of this build can be found here. Been kinda whacked out lately that I didn't have the drive to document the build like I usually do. This time I finished this for myself, no hassles of documenting it. This is basically me enjoying the build and not worrying about mistakes I make along the way. You will see some mistakes that I didn't bother correcting... hehehe.

Bandai MG 1/100 Zaku II of Johnny Ridden v2.0 English Color Guide & Manual

I posted before that Shin "the White Wolf" Matsunaga's Zaku II custom was a model kit I'd buy if I were basing it on box art alone. Johnny Ridden's Zaku II is a model kit I'd buy If I were buying it based on "name" alone. I mean how cool is a name like "Johnny Ridden"? Its like being the Clint Eastwood of Zaku pilots... and when I mean Clint Eastwood, I mean "Josey Wales" Clint Eastwood.... hehehe

Bandai MG 1/100 MS-09R Rick Dom English Color Guide and Paint Conversion Chart

Bandai MG 1/100 Gelgoog of Char Aznable ver.2.0 English Color Guide & Manual

Char Aznable's Custom Gelgoog from Mobile Suit Gundam. I'm still in the process of watching Mobile Suit Gundam, having recently borrowed a set of DVD's from a friend. So my knowledge on the Gelgoog is next to nothing. I'm only basing what little I know on the MG manual posted at Dalong.

MG Zaku II Shin Matsunaga ver 2 Custom English Color Guide

Update (04/25/2010): Translated construction manual of Shin Matsunaga's Zaku II can be found here.

If I were to judge on box art alone, I would really end up buying this Master Grade version of the MS-06R-1A Zaku II Shin Matsunaga Custom. Really great rendition of a Zaku in action. Good thing too that the actual kit came out nicely *snicker*... still, I'd be tempted though to frame the box cover and hang it on my wall... hehehe

MG Hyaku Shiki HD version English Color Guide

I thought that Bandai released only 2 Master Grade versions of the Hyaku Shiki, one was the regular Hyaku Shiki with shiny gold plating, while the other was the one with the Balute system. So I was very pleased to find out that they released another variant known as the Hyaku Shiki HD version

Bandai 1/100 Gundam Astray Green Frame of Trojan Noiret English Color Guide & Manual

Trojan Noiret's Gundam Astray Green Frame that is part of the mecha found in the SEED vs Astray side story of Gundam Seed. Since I'm a huge fan of the Astray design I'd be sure to buy this if ever one comes within reach of me. So huge a fan that I'd be willing to over look the fact that its just a Gundam Astray Red Frame that was colored green and the Gerbera Strait sword was ditched in place of a rifle *snicker*

Bandai 1/100 Zaku Warrior + Blaze Wizard & Gunner Wizard English Color Guide & Paint Conversion Chart

The main mobile suit of ZAFT in the Gundam Seed Destiny series, the ZGMF-1000 Zaku Warrior. Notable pilots of the Zaku Warrior are Dearka Elsman and Athrun Zala, with the latter only piloting it reluctantly. In the episode of Gundam Seed Destiny wherein Junius 7 was dropped into earth , Athrun Zala rode the Zaku Warrior as a civilian in order to assist the ZAFT forces investigating the incident. There they were pounced on by ZAFT forces loyal to Patrick Zala who were responsible for the dropping of Junius 7 in the planet. Dearka, Athrun and Yzak Joule once again fought together as a team to fend off the attackers.

Bandai 1/100 Blaze Zaku Phantom Heine Westenfluss English Color Guide & Paint Conversion Chart

Bandai 1/100 Blaze Zaku Phantom of Rey Za Burrel English Color Guide & Paint Conversion Part

Rey Za Burrel's mobile suit as part of the mobile suit crew of the Minerva was the ZGMF-1001/M Blaze Zaku Phantom. This was originally together with Shinn Asuka in the Force Impulse Gundam and Lunamaria Hawke in the Zaku Gunner Warrior before being joined by Athrun Zala with the Saviour Gundam.

Bandai 1/100 Gunner Zaku Warrior Lunamaria Hawk English Color Guide & Paint Conversion Chart

Lunamaria Hawk's Zaku Gunner Warrior from the Gundam Seed Destiny series that was made into a lovely 1/100 kit by Bandai. Together with Rey Za Burrel and Shinn Asuka they were the mobile suit complement of the Minerva battleship of ZAFT. This Zaku variant is a long range specialist and houses the Othros cannon attachment.

Bandai 1/100 Chaos Gundam English Color Guide & Paint Conversion Chart

Sting Oakley's ZGMF-X24S Chaos Gundam. Ok so its not exactly Sting Oakley's since he stole it from the ZAFT armory during the opening of Gundam Seed Destiny... hehehe. As a member of Phantom Pain, he snuck in together with Auel and Stellar to steal the Chaos, Abyss and Gaia Gundam. Its a nice looking Gundam though, with the mobile missile pods on its back that can detach and fly separately to attack an enemy. I can't seem to understand though why Bandai only rendered the Chaos Gundam in 1/100 grade and not the Abyss and Gaia. Maybe their 1/144 scale counterparts did not have enough sales volume to merit a 1/100 scale version?

Iron Man Scene copied from Starcraft 2

I posted before that I thought that the first Iron Man movie copied its armor installation scene from the Starcraft2 Cinematic. Well on the announcement that Starcraft2 is going on beta testing this month. Let me re-post it again.

Command and Conquer Classic Free Downloads

Kinda off topic but I just had to post about this. Aside from Starcraft, as my most favorite RTS, the one that started it all for me was Westwood's Command and Conquer. So on the eve of the release of Command and Conquer 4, I was happy to find out that they had made available for free on their website, Command and Conquer Tiberian Sun. Also available for free at that link is the original Command and Conquer and Command and Conquer: Red Alert.

1/72 VF-27 Lucifer Normal Type English Color Guide

Update: English Translated manual for the 1/72 VF-27 Normal type can be found here.

Color Guide for the recently released 1/72 VF-27 Lucifer Normal Type was translated to English. The normal type is the cannon fodder variant of the VF-27 Lucifer mainline fighter of Battle Galaxy that was seen in the Macross Frontier anime series.

MG RB-79 Ball "Shark Mouth" English Color Guide

RB-79 Ball from MS IGLOO is definitely one of the weirdest mobile suit conconctions that the Gundam Universe came up with, and of course, to make into a Master Grade Model kit. Prior to the "Shark Ball" there was also the RB-79 Ball ver Ka and the RB-79K Ball from 08th MS

Yamato Toys 1/60 VF-19 Fire Valkyrie and 1/60 Brittai Soft Vinyl Figure

Saw this a few days late from the Yamato Toys official blog. Looks like Yamato toys is going to be releasing a VF-19 Kai of Basara Nekki in 1/60 scale perfect transformation by 2010. Along with that is a 1/60 soft vinyl of Brittai from the original Macross Series.

Bandai 1/100 Saviour Gundam English Manual and Color Guide

Yep, I'm still on my Gundam Seed Destiny "high", so I'm translating the color guide of Athrun Zala's Saviour Gundam. I kinda like the design of this Gundam and the way it can transform to Mobil Armor. Athrun Zala was assigned this Mobile Suit after formalizing his return to the PLANT armed forces: the ZAFT. After getting his bird he got assigned to special forces FAITH then was tasked to be part of the Minerva spaceship. He also mentored Shinn Asuka, who was piloting the Impulse Gundam at that time. He eventually got shot down riding this which paved the way for his eventual piloting of the Infinite Justice Gundam.

Master Modeler: Creating the Tamiya Style by Shunsaku Tamiya

After reading a snippet of this at Google Books, I got hooked. Its basically about the founding of the Tamiya model kit factory that is considered by many as one of the most successful model kit companies in the world today. I remember that Tamiya kits were the Holy Grail for me when I was a boy, they were expensive but you could be sure of the quality. Not to mention that when you talked about model paints, Tamiya was the only one available... hehehe

Yep, I'm definitely a sucker for success stories. It used to be when I was in a local bookstore I would always go for the war books, as I grew older I became more interested in the lives of successful self made individuals. Oh and I'm not talking about movie stars, there's a ton of that in the bookstore *snicker*.

MG ZGMF-X19A Infinite Justice Gundam English Color Guide

Update (03/21/2010): English Construction Manual of the MG Infinite Justice can be found here.

I just finished watching again episode 49 and 50 of Gundam Seed Destiny, hence I'm officially in the Gundam Seed Destiny "high" zone *snicker*. So I decided to look up Athrun Zala's Infinite Justice Gundam and translate its color guide to English. I'm currently finishing up also watching Gundam Seed, its only now I understood why the Freedom and Justice Gundam were that special. Its because they have neutron jammer cancellers on board them that negate the effect of neutron jammers allowing them to be powered by nuclear reactors. This in turn gives them unlimited operating time.

Megahouse Klan Klan Armored Figure

Saw this picture at Amiami's blog of a Klan Klan figure wearing a VF-25 Messiah's Super Pack. Since its from Megahouse, I guess it would be logical to assume that it is a 1/8 scale figure. This was taken from the ongoing 2010 Wonder Festival in Japan.

1/100 GN-001/hs-A01 Gundam Avalanche Exia English Color Guide

So I thought the Tieren was the last Gundam 00 1/100 model kit that was left to be translated, turns out that there is still the 1/100 Gundam Avalanche Exia that wasn't really seen in the series but came out in one of the Gundam 00V side story.

1/100 MSJ-06II-A Tieren Ground Type English Color Guide

Update: English translated construction manual of the 1/100 Tieren can be found here.

The Human Reform League's MSJ-06II-A Tieren Ground Type from the Gundam 00 Season 1. The Zeon Mobile Suit definitely has such as strong influence on this one, with the color, the mono eye and the shape of the head. There is also a space version of the Tieren with large propellant canisters on its legs and is usually colored blue. Another Tieren type is the Taozi which was specifically designed to take advantage of the Quantum brainwaves of Soma Peries. Bandai however did not make any 1/100 kits of this, only some High Grade versions.

Looking for an Economic and Efficiant way of Painting Model Kits

Lets face it, this hobby of ours ain't exactly cheap. Aside from the cost of the model kit, one of the major things that burns a hole in the pocket of a model kit builder is the paint. And with gas prices going up, we can expect not only the model kit to go up but also the paints. That's because plastic and paints have some derivative of crude oil as their raw materials. So any way a modeller can try to scrimp on the use of paint can help further his hobby.

Mr. Hobby Real Touch Marker

Was curious as to how to make those shadow effects on a plastic model kit when I ran across the real touch markers of Mr. Hobby. I translated first the color chart that was posted on the site.

1/100 SVMS-010 Over Flag English Color Guide

Update: Translated Construction Manual for the 1/100 Over Flag can be found here.

One of my most favorite mobile suit designs that if I had the cash, would most probably by more than 1 of these. The SVMS-010 Over Flag was flown by Graham, Daryl and Howard in Season 1 of Gundam 00. They were part of the Anti-Gundam taskforce of the Union. They were using hopped up Flag fighters with better weapons and power plants. Hence the "Over" Flag designation.

1/100 GNY-001 Gundam Astraea English Color Guide

The GNY-001 Astraea from Gundam 00P side story that happened a few years before Gundam 00 Season 1.

1/100 Gundam Astray Blue Frame Second L Construction Part IV

Part III of this build can be found here. Most of the major leg parts are built already, all that remains are the orange parts on the upper shank of the leg as well as the knife sheaths.

1/100 GNY-001F Gundam Astraea Type F English Color Guide

The Gundam Astraea Type F from the Gundam 00 side stories flown by Fon Spaak.

1/144 HGUC AMS-129 Geara Zulu English Color Guide

Update: English Translated Construction Manual can be found here.

The AMS-129 Geara Zulu from Gundam Unicorn. This is the mass production (cannon fodder) mobile suit of the Neo Zeon faction that will undoubtedly look good being blown up by the Gundam Unicorn *snicker*.

Amiami 50% Off on SAL and EMS shipping for February 2010

Just saw this now on Amiami's english website. And the battle for online anime retail supremacy heats up with this announcement! Traditionally Amiami has always had one of the lowest prices (usually 20%+ off on model kits), add the 50% discount in shipping and you have yourself a fiesta in February!

1/100 Gundam Astray Mirage Frame Second Issue English Color Guide

Update 06/03/2010: English Translated Construction Manual of the Gundam Astray Mirage Frame 2nd Issue can be found here.

Update 02/12/2010: Review for this is already up at Dalong. There's a picture of it beside a Gundam Astray Red Frame and it shows that its about a head taller.



I used to think that there would never be a Gundam Astray Frame that I didn't like, but that was before I met the Gundam Astray Mirage Frame Second Issue. To me its Ugly with a capital "U". I wasn't that much fond of its predecessor either, the Gundam Astray Mirage Frame. Then again, aside from the design, the color scheme of purple and pink is just painful to my eyes. I don't want to insult the designer of this but dammit man!, what were you drinking?

Gundam Plastic Model 30th Anniversary Clear Parts Campaign Part II

Kinda late on my part, but I saw this second release schedule of Master Grade kits with clear parts as part of the Clear Parts campaign of Bandai to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Gundam model kit manufacturing. Included on the list are the release dates and selling price, but I know that you get this cheaper if you are overseas by ordering from some online hobby shops in Japan.

Bandai MG 1/100 LM312V04 Victory Gundam Ver Ka English Color Guide & Paint Conversion Chart

Master Grade LM312V04 Victory Gundam ver Ka from Bandai. This design first made its appearance in V Gundam and was made by famous Gundam designer Hajime Katoki.

Robotech Armored Cyclone

Took some picture of the Armored Cyclone motorcycle toy that I had. This motorcycle was made by Matchbox and can't really transform to armor mode. Not sure when I bought this, but most likely it was somewhere around 1987-1988. When I bought this the box was already battered and only the cycle was inside it. No stickers, but I read that there are supposed to be stickers that go along with this. The cycle is made of plastic with rubber tires and held together by screws.

1/100 MG GN-X English Color Guide

Update: Translated English Construction Manual of the Master Grade GN-X can be found here.

Posted at Dalong already was the manual for the Bandai Master Grade GN-X from Gundam 00 Season 1.