Star Wars Tie Fighter - Bandai 1/72 Scale Model Kit [Unboxing and Pre-Assembly Review]

As a young kid in kindergarten trying to replicate the Star Wars universe as seen on the big screen onto the drawing pad, I quickly developed a deep appreciation for the Galactic Empire's Twin Ion Engine Starfighter i.e. the Tie Fighter. Not only was it relatively easy to draw, it also had the coolest engine roar imaginable to a five-year-old way back then. It was my favourite Star Wars vehicle up until Empire Strikes Back came out and with it the All Terrain Armoured Transport (AT-AT) walker. But the Tie Fighter remains my favourite space faring vehicle in the Star Wars franchise so far.    

Bandai Star Wars Tie Fighter 1/72 Scale Model Plastic Kit, front view of box art

Side views of the Bandai Tie Fighter box art

Instructions came in the usual Japanese language only booklet. However they look straightforward with easy to follow diagrammatic step-by-steps. The Japanese phrases/sentences are short enough that Google Translate should be able to work its magic without losing too much in translation. 

Front and back cover of the Bandai Tie Fighter instructions

Simple diagrammatic instructions with the occasional Japanese phrase/sentence

The Tie Fighter seems to be one of the simpler vehicle model kits in Bandai Star Wars line. One thing is for sure, it's going to take a lot less time to put one together and paint it up compared to the Millennium Falcon. My gut feeling tells me this build will be more about bringing out the small details (either through decals or paint) as the colour scheme of the piece is rather monotone and dull. Both the cockpit interior and main central hull of the Tie Fighter have great details (Sprue A2 and B).

Sprue A2: Cockpit, top access hatch, viewport, laser cannons, fuel tank cap and miscellaneous stuff

Sprue B: Central hull, laser power system, and wing parts

On sprues E1 and E2, the solar array panels have been separated from the wing braces.This is great mainly because it does away with the need to mask off the panels before priming/spray painting the braces. Similar to the rest of the Tie Fighter, the details on the wing braces is equally excellent.

Sprue E1: Outer wing braces for the Tie Fighter

Sprue E2: Inner wing braces for the Tie Fighter

Sprue F: Solar array panels and pilot options i.e. one standing and the other seated

There is an alternative option in which the top access hatch and front viewport comes in clear plastic (Sprue G). With proper masking/painting, the final completed pieces will have a more authentic look than say the same pieces that come with just empty holes (see Sprue A2). That being said, I will likely use the latter for a better view into the cockpit interior (as was the case for the Millennium Falcon).

Sprue G: Clear plastic options for the Tie Fighter's top access hatch and front viewport

Sprue SWE1: Energy discharge from laser cannons (left); Sprue SWB4: Death Star base (right)

Meanwhile, the base is meant to be part of the Death Star's surface. It looks the part too which is cool. And in a nice touch that's replicated in many of Bandai's other Star Wars model kits - there is a pair of green plastic pieces simulating the laser canon shots/energy discharge. Also included are extremely detailed markings for the Tie Fighter and its pilot, in sticker as well as water decal form. Use of these should enhance the overall look of the model kit, especially in combination with paints.  

Bandai Tie Fighter markings in sticker (left) and water decal (right) form

This is one Star Wars vehicle that warrants more than one version. Actually, I do have plans for two i.e. light grey and blue grey colour schemes from A New Hope and Empire Strikes Back respectively. On top of that, I would love to eventually do a Trench Run Diorama. But first things first. For now, I plan to work on the blue grey version before adding a light grey one to my collection. Personally I like both colour schemes so I'm looking forward to how they'll turn out. Can't wait to get started.

Bandai Millennium Falcon [WIP - Cockpit interior, external hull and canopy; assembled sans weathering]

It has been an extremely slow week for hobby-related activities as I've an ongoing writing deadline to meet. It took every little bit of precious free time I had just to glue together the Millennium Falcon's cockpit interior and external hull, except for the final 'windowed' canopy piece which was dry fitted just in case I needed to make changes to the interior. Two canopy options were available i.e. one with clear plastic 'windows' while the other had empty holes for 'windows'. I went with the latter choice. 

Bandai Millennium Falcon, cockpit sans weathering

Interesting bit of trivia - Industrial Light and Magic had used the same 'empty-holes-for-windows'  canopy during filming of the Millennium Falcon scale model in the original trilogy. From what I gathered, they did so to prevent light reflections from ruining any shots of the cockpit interior (and the actors seated inside) when it was in space. However, during the first Falcon scene on planet Jakku in The Force Awakens, the canopy with 'glass' windows was used. This made sense though as it was a desert scene and not having light reflecting of the canopy would have looked wrong.  

Without the final cockpit piece obstructing light, the interior is still highly visible at this stage

BB8 is not visible from a head-on angle, even in an 'opened-up' cockpit

Decals on the hull plating blended quite well into the paint job, thanks to a layer of matt clear coat

Prior to the final 'windowed' piece being attached, I took some shots of the assembled cockpit interior to show how things should look like if there were some LEDs lighting up the interior. You can check out those shots of the assembled interior in the three photos above and two below this paragraph. 

A last view of the cockpit ceiling before the final piece is attached

Millennium Falcon cockpit area (top view) prior to the final piece being attached

Only after the final canopy piece was dry-fitted onto the rest of the cockpit/exterior hull did I finally have an idea of how the whole thing really looked like without any interior LED lighting in place. And enough of the cockpit remained visible to the naked eye to dampen any misgivings I may have had of not lighting up the interior with LEDs. Hooray for the empty-holes-for-windows canopy!     

Millennium Falcon cockpit area (top view) with the final piece assembled

Use of the 'empty-holes-for-windows' front cockpit piece allows more light into the interior

At the moment, the final piece of the cockpit has only been dry-fitted not glued on

Rey's face is surprisingly still visible from this side-on view

Even at this early stage in the Millennium Falcon project, I'm already pretty happy with the results achieved using a combination of Tamiya/Mr.Hobby spray paints and Bandai water decals. It goes to show that a decent vehicle paint job can still be had, even without an airbrush and compressor kit .

Rey is thankfully still highly visible through the cockpit

BB8 peers out from the depths of an unlit Millennium Falcon cockpit

With the Millennium Falcon shaping up to be a long-term project, it looks like I'll be working on (and likely completing) some of Bandai's other less complicated Star Wars model kits in-between. One of their simpler kits is the 1/72 scale Tie Fighter from the original trilogy and that's the one I'll start on while still working on the Falcon. More on that in my next post. Until then, stay well and happy.

Bandai Millennium Falcon [WIP - Hull plating within the vicinity of the cockpit, before assembly and weathering]

Five years into the hobby and this is my first attempt at painting the surface/hull of a large vehicle model kit. Sigh, how lame is that. And being the obsessive compulsive perfectionist that I seemingly am, I took a fairly insane amount of time researching the various methods before I even started. That and the time consuming hunts for paint supplies meant this first attempt took forever to begin. Just a quick note: the following techniques were based on the knowledge of how different types of paint interacted with each other; sourced from an online article titled Enamel, Acrylic, Lacquer paint?

Hull plating of the Bandai Millennium Falcon cockpit area sans weathering

Phase 1: Primer, Basecoat and a Gloss Clear Coat
After priming of the plastic parts with a light grey Tamiya Fine Surface Primer, I then followed up with a layer of Tamiya AS-20 Insignia White lacquer spray paint. Within minutes of applying this basecoat, a light clear gloss coat (Tamiya TS-13 Clear) was then sprayed on. Use of a lacquer clear coat serves a trio of purposes. First, it creates a protective layer that prevents damage to the basecoat that may arise from subsequent work on the hull. Second, it creates a smooth surface that makes it easier for decals to adhere to. Third, capillary action of the wash works better on a smooth surface. 

A basecoat of Tamiya AS-20 Insignia White was sprayed over a light grey primer coat, followed by a clear gloss coat

Phase 1 ends with a base colour for the Millennium Falcon and the surface prepped for panel lining and decals 

Phase 2: Panel Lining with an Enamel Wash
Using either Tamiya's black or grey wash by itself wasn't quite going to cut it because the former was too dark while the latter too light. So I mixed a batch in a ratio of two parts black to one part grey wash. As mentioned earlier, the capillary action of a wash works better on a smooth surface. Hence the layer of clear gloss coat allowed the Tamiya Panel Line Accent Color to achieve the same results as when used on a smooth bare piece of unprimed and unpainted plastic model kit part. Moreover, the layer of clear coat allowed the basecoat to withstand repeated wipes of the Tamiya X-20 thinner, which I used to clean excess wash stains that strayed from the grooves onto the hull surface.  

A 2:1 ratio of black to grey wash was mixed in a glass jar (third from left)

Cockpit hull plating after panel lining and the excess wash stains wiped off using enamel paint thinner

Phase 3: Decals and Matt Clear Coat
Based on my experience, I have found Bandai's water decals to be of extremely good quality. But the key to making the Bandai decals work really well is through the use with a Mr.Hobby product called Mr.Mark Softer (not pictured here). Basically, it's a solution which softens the decals so that they conform easily to shape of the model part they are placed on. This is especially important when dealing with tiny decals (some as small as a few millimeters in width/length). To cap off this phase, another Mr.Hobby product - an acrylic matt clear coat called TopCoat - was used to provide a rougher surface more suited for weathering purposes, and to make the decals blend into the painted hull.

Bandai water decals for the Millennium Falcon pictured together with the Mr.Hobby Topcoat

Cockpit hull plating, before assembly sans weathering

At this stage, no weathering has been done yet. Weathering will most likely be applied only after the cockpit area is attached to the main hull. At least that's the plan for now. Also before any of the above steps were attempted, I tested them out on unwanted parts. I highly recommend you do this especially to see how your area's weather conditions affect the spray paints (opaque or clear). In the hot and humid conditions I work in, I usually spraying from a distance of less than one feet (roughly 30 cm) for the best results. Actual distance varies from between six to 10 inches (~ 15 to 25 cm) depending on the pressure I put on the nozzle. Up next will be the assembly of the hull plating over the cockpit interior. Only then will I know if the figures and interior will still be visible to the naked eye.

Bandai Millennium Falcon [WIP - Cockpit interior's control and instrument panels, and initial dry fitting]

Without any likelihood of LED lighting to illuminate the Bandai Star Wars 1/144 scale Millennium Falcon's cockpit interior, I opted for a high contrast colour scheme. This meant simulating light with bright strips/points of paint (mainly bluish white, red, yellow and blue) against a brownish black grey panel board. I'm hoping once the cockpit's outer hull is fully assembled, the interior will still be reasonably visible from the outside looking in despite the lack of internal lighting. 

Initial dry fitting of Rey and BB8 in the Millennium Falcon's cockpit interior

Clockwise from top - overhead instrument panel, control panel, seats and back instrument panel

Size comparison against a five sens coin and a paperclip

Photographic references for the cockpit were based on a combination of the actual movie props and the 1/6th scale model cockpit by Hot Toys. The former shows me how the cockpit actually looks like in 1:1 scale while the latter shows me how modellers represented the panel lights at a smaller scale. 

Millennium Falcon cockpit as seen on the movie set

Hot Toys 1/6th scale Millennium Falcon Cockpit

Absence of LEDs also means I won't be able to light up the sublight drives on the back of the Falcon. Nonetheless, the Falcon can still be accurately depicted in a flight diorama without its sublight drive 'powered up'. In The Force Awakens, there is a scene where Rey switches off the Falcon's engines, plunging it into free fall. Sweet! Now, the model won't look weird sans lighting on its back section.

Rey was piloting the Millennium Falcon during its first scene in The Force Awakens

BB8 hangs on as Rey takes the garbage for a spin

Estimated location of BB8 during the first Millennium Falcon scene in The Force Awakens

In the said scene, Rey was positioned in the pilot's seat while BB8 was anchoring itself to the ship (see above). So in line with that, the only figures I will be placing in the cockpit are Rey and the smallish rotund astromech droid (see below). BB8 isn't exactly placed in the correct location in the model kit's cockpit. That being said, I guess a little creative license could be allowed now and again.  

A closeup shot with BB8 in focus instead of Rey

A sneak peak of the ongoing assembly of the cockpit - here with the control panels in place

By the next post I should have finished decaling/painting (sans weathering) and assembling the Millennium Falcon's cockpit interior as well as the exterior hull surrounding the cockpit. It's kind of insane that I'm wasting so much time painting a section of the ship that's going to be barely visible in the eventual gloom of an enclosed interior. But sadly details are my Achilles heel in miniature painting. If I see them I can't not paint them. Even if they barely see the light of day. Que sera sera.