MG RX-78-2 Gundam Ver.3.0 [WIP: Ankles & Feet]

In keeping with the order of assembly given in the instructions, I began work on the Leg Unit of the RX-78-2 Gundam from the bottom up. This meant starting with the mecha's ankles and feet. These together with the Leg Inner Frame/Outer Panels and the Waist Unit will eventually make up its Lower Body. Here then are the very foundations of Grandpa Gundam; its ankles and feet. 

Master Grade RX-78-2 Gundam Version 3.0 Work-in-Progress: Ankles & Feet (Front View)

Master Grade RX-78-2 Gundam Version 3.0 Work-in-Progress: Ankles & Feet (Back View)

From the outset it was fairly clear what Bandai was trying to accomplish when they separated the lower leg build into ankles and feet rather than fusing it as one whole piece. More than that, Bandai had also engineered two articulation points on the feet itself thus allowing the sole to bend both outwards and inwards on itself. Taken all together, this design should allow for a higher degree of mobility on the feet and ankles. That's always a good thing when it comes to posing your Gundam. 

Sticker decals provide the only out-of-the-box options for markings on the ankles and feet

Build complexity of the ankle and feet translates into better articulation and movement

Bottom and top view of the Master Grade RX-78-2 Gundam's ankle and feet

As per the norm in a Gundam build, the greater freedom of movement usually comes hand-in-hand with higher complexity thus more tiny parts to paint before assembly. This is something I like to term as the Gundam Process. Admittedly though, the said process has slowly become second nature to me. While I do not claim to be good at it yet - more complicated builds lie ahead - now I can at least face the task with much less trepidation. Practice breeds a familiarity that lays the foundation for a more confident application of technique. This in turn leads to an improved skill set. And if all goes well the end result should be an artful piece of scale modelling. That's the hopeful idea anyway.     

Repeatedly having to paint and assemble small parts into a greater whole equals familiarity with the Gundam process

Despite their design complexity, actual assembly of the foot/ankle wasn't too complicated to be fair. It was quick and painless, which made the highly articulated final build all that more impressive. Below are a series of shots showing the gradual assembly of the RX-78-2 Gundam's feet and ankles. 

Individual parts of an ankle/foot all painted up with decals applied, and awaiting assembly

Assembly begins with the core of the foot inner frame (see left side) ...

... with the inner frame done, next up are some armor panels (see left side) ...

... and finally all that's left for the foot is its final three outer armor panels (see left side)

Feet is finally assembled (see left) with the ankle parts (see right) soon to follow suit

RX-78-2 Gundam foot (see left) and ankle (see right) fully assembled

It's always nice to get a section of a build done up quickly sans any problems. And the ankles and feet of the RX-78-2 Gundam was that kind of build. They look good to boot.

Master Grade RX-78-2 Gundam Version 3.0 Work-in-Progress: An ankle and foot

With the bottom up approach, next on the build list are the leg inner frames. The process is similar to that of the mecha's arms in which an inner frame provides structure and articulation while the outer panels provide the aesthetics. For now I will wallow in the satisfaction of taking another step towards the completion of the Grandpa Gundam project. So it's not without irony that I leave you with this quote just as things are going well for me ... Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong. That's a famous law. If you live a long life, you'll understand. - Tanya von Degurechaff aka Tanya the Evil.  

Star Wars Millennium Falcon [WIP - Upper & Lower Hull: Basecoat, Panel Lines & Water Decals at 1/144 scale]

My journey with the Star Wars scale model kits was supposed to have continued with a piece serving as the dioramic complement to a figurine nearing completion, both at 1/12 scale. But plans change. While I've always been uncomfortable with half-finished kits gathering dust in semi-storage, there are admittedly some projects that I can see no way forward for. Previously, the Bandai Star Wars 1/144 scale Millennium Falcon was just such a project, premised on a significant shift in my hobby skills.   

Bandai 1/144 scale Millennium Falcon Work-in-Progress: Basecoat, Panel Lines & Decals on Lower/Upper Hull

Let me explain. Midway through the Millennium Falcon project, I had added an airbrush system to my set of tools. However when I had begun this project, water decals were being used to represent colored panels on the hull. In terms of realism, painting the panels will always be a better option but then I couldn't very well have a hotchpotch of hull panels comprising some with decals mixed with others that are painted. So caught in two minds, unsure whether to strip panels containing the colored decals and repaint, or to proceed using only decals and not paint, I did nothing. Finally in a moment of clarity, I decided to go the latter route so as not to let all my previous work go to waste.

Primer and paints used on the Millennium Falcon's Upper and Lower Hull, in addition to water decals

Process-wise nearly half the work had already been completed more than a year ago. Way back then I had primed, basecoated and then gloss coated both the Upper and Lower Hull in preparation for decal application on the individual armor panels. Shortly after though, everything just got mothballed.

Millennium Falcon Lower Hull Work-in-Progress: After primer coat, basecoat and clear gloss top coat

Millennium Falcon Lower Hull Work-in-Progress: After panel lining with an oil-based wash

Millennium Falcon Lower Hull Work-in-Progress: After applying water-based decal markings

To get the ball rolling again, I took both hulls out of storage and began panel lining them. Past experience had alerted me to Bandai plastic's proneness to cracking when exposed to enamel thinner. To combat this predicament I used oil-based (instead of enamel) washes for panel lining. This allowed me to clean any excess wash with odorless mineral spirit or white spirit. Both are much gentler on the Bandai plastic. Since the switch, I haven't had the Bandai plastic crack on me.

Millennium Falcon Upper Hull Work-in-Progress: After primer coat, basecoat and clear gloss top coat

Millennium Falcon Upper Hull Work-in-Progress: After panel lining with an oil-based wash

Millennium Falcon Upper Hull Work-in-Progress: After applying water-based decal markings

In terms of decal I will always favor water-based ones over either dry transfer or sticker decals. Having worked with the latter recently, it only made me more appreciative of the water decals that Bandai provided for the 1/144 scale Millennium Falcon. In this case, the beauty of using decals was two-fold. Firstly, they looked surprisingly good. Not counting the eye of an expert modeler, you would be hard pressed to tell that these were decals instead of paint. Secondly, any damage to the decals during application actually doubled up as chipped paint ... a win-win scenario.

Both the Lower and Upper Hull have yet to be weathered

Because the Upper and Lower Hull already looks so busy with just the basecoat, decals, panel lines and molded details, any attempt at weathering has to subtle. Too much and everything will be a dark mess. At the moment, I can't decide whether to start weathering both hulls first before assembling the two halves together or vice versa. We'll see ... soon hopefully. There is a sense of gratification in bringing an abandoned project back to life. Since my unbuild kits now number more than finished ones, getting another project up and moving towards the finishing line, well, feels great. And with that I leave you with a totally unrelated quote from the world's deadliest spy, Mr. Sterling Archer, “Something, something, danger zone! I know. I’m not even trying anymore.”

MG RX-78-2 Gundam Ver.3.0 [WIP: Upper Body Completed]

With various sub-assemblies comprising the Upper Body now complete, I can finally put together the first meaningful series of photos of the RX-78-2 Gundam. Up until now, one couldn't really see a coherent end product because the individual sub-assemblies had been showcased in isolation. That changes with the assembly of a fully painted and decaled Upper Body section. It's a major milestone for the mecha of which there are roughly two; the other being the Lower Body. Apart from the mecha itself, there are the Core Fighter and yet to be painted weapons as well as standalone pilot.

Master Grade RX-78-2 Gundam Version 3.0: Upper Body [Completed]

Prior to this milestone post, it felt anticlimactic at times because the end result of a particular sub-assembly couldn't yet tell a complete story. For that I apologize. For you see, these blog posts is partly an outlet for me to showcase my work and partly an online repository of work-in-progress processes for self reference purposes. Add to that my need for order and structure in a project and you'll often get staid posts. On the flip side, it does offer a somewhat detailed look into the hows and whys of each step, which may be helpful to some modelers. That's my hope anyway.   

Sub-assemblies of the Upper Body all painted up with decals applied, and awaiting assembly

I almost hate to bring attention to this issue but there is a specific section on the Grandpa Gundam's Upper Body that displays a major FUBAR on my part. Instead of leaving it well alone despite things not being perfect, I decided to try and fix an issue and made it worse. Now I'm not going to reveal what the FUBAR is yet but I'm pretty sure you'll catch the eyesore from the photos below. In the unlikely event you cannot find my mistake, I will point it out to you at the end of this post.  

For the first series of photos, the RX-78-2 Gundam Upper Body was placed against a blue background

An acrylic stand was used as a temporary base to prop up the Upper Body for the photo shoot

Sticking out from the Ransel/Backpack like two slim, cylindrical pods are the Beam Saber Hilts

Back view of the RX-78-2 Gundam Upper Body, against the blue background

Even without any weathering, there is already a lot of things going on in the Upper Body

A bit of Gundam trivia: the round, hollow elbow joint that allows its metallic innards to show is the Normal version that was first installed on the mecha; a Magnetic Coated version (non-hollow) was subsequently installed to improve performace

Extended arms served mainly to adjust the Upper Body's center of gravity thus preventing it falling

A darker background was utilized for the next series of photos you see below. If could be just an optical illusion but I felt the black background somehow made the details on the Upper Body 'pop' just that little bit more. Perhaps it's stating the obvious but I guess one's eye would tend to focus on the details if the background is just empty black space with nothing to offer visually.  

RX-78-2 Gundam Upper Body against a black background

Details seem to 'pop' a little bit more when the Upper Body is up against the darker background

Upper Body has a nice combination of neutral, primary, metallic, off-white and pure white hues

Both the Beam Saber Hilts stuck on top of the Ransel/Backpack can be removed ...

... and have clear red parts - mimicking activated sabers - stuck on them (to be shown in a later post)

Back view of the RX-78-2 Gundam Upper Body, against the black background

RX-78-2 Gundam's Upper Body will eventually connect to the Lower Body comprising its waist, legs and feet

All in all I'm pretty happy with how the Upper Body turned out with the exception of one thing (see below)

So did you spot the eyesore that I saddled the Upper Body of the RX-78-2 Gundam with? Carefully observe the red-colored lower right section of the Upper Body (lower left when looking at it from the Front View; see first photo). See it yet? Ouch! Right? I had tried to remove the sticker decal in order to reposition it more accurately. Despite knowing to avoid doing this, I had in my arrogance felt I could somehow make it work. Well, I couldn't. Removing the sticker decal resulted in the decal losing its adhesiveness. To make it stick back to the Upper Body again I had tried using Super Glue - a horrible face palm moment. Long story short, both the paint job and decal were badly damage. And on that frustrating note, I end this week's post and wish you a great weekend ahead.

500th Post Special: My Top 10 Studio Albums to paint and draw to; a Spotify experience

Access to Spotify has allowed me to relive my 'youth' by streaming music I had on cassette tapes and compact discs. The former has gone the way of the dodo bird while the latter is nearly there if it hasn't already. That some of the artists here don't even make my Top 10 favorite artists list isn't a discrepancy at all. Because for me there is a marked difference between the totality of an artist's body of work and a sole studio album that just works on every level, every song. Even so I do regret not including one particular band as one of my favorite artists; they come in at No.6 in this list.

Before we start here are some ground rules as to what type albums are allowed on this list. First and obvious condition is album tracks should mostly be recorded in a studio. Secondly, each artist is only allowed to appear once in this list. And whilst the occasional cover song is acceptable, the album should comprise mainly of original songs. Finally these albums have been more than the sum of their brilliance in music alone in that each has coincided with a few milestones in my life. So without further ado and in no particular order, here are my Top 10 English Language Studio Albums:


No.1: Oasis - (What's The Story) Morning Glory
(Creation, 1995)

Stuck in a biochemistry research lab late into the wee hours day after day in my final year of uni brings back fond memories only because of one thing. Oasis and their sophomore album (What's The Story) Morning Glory? Liam Gallagher's irreverent vocals coupled with the band's guitar driven wall of sound made for a compelling listen, over and over again. Liam's brother Noel was a songwriter who had a decent set of pipes himself. Putting aside the sibling discord that continues to this day, this album was a musical roller-coaster ride that I still listen to repeatedly till this day.   


No.2: T'Pau - Bridge of Spies
(Siren, 1987)

At a time when pop music was my world, the music of T'Pau perhaps epitomized all that's good of this oft derided music genre. In general, pop albums tend to lose their appeal upon repeated playback as the hooks that make you fall in love with the music quickly will in turn, ironically so, make you tire of the song just as fast. But Bridge of Spies is different in that it's one of the very few pop albums that has sustained my interest even after all these years. Moreover the group's name is inspired by a Vulcan character in Star Trek, my favorite sci-fi universe. What's not to love about that.


No.3: Norah Jones - Come Away With Me
(Blue Note, 2002)

For a calming effect, there is only ever going to be one singer for me ... Norah Jones. My years in the financial sector was easily the most stressful work-wise. Through it all, listening to the bluesy, jazz and folk influenced album of Come Away With Me was a soothing balm to my then shattered soul. Coupled with her mellow voice, Norah Jones has a way with song phrasing that just melts the troubles away. Her debut effort was a joy to behold and it remains a firm favorite in my albums playlist. Most notably she is the only solo artist to have made it to my top ten list.  


No.4: AC/DC - Let There Be Rock
(Atlantic Records, 1977)

To me, every AC/DC album with Bon Scott at lead vocals was a rock masterpiece. Now I'll admit their first album sans the late singer at the helm was their best ever album. But overall I still prefer the band's body of work during the Bon Scott era. And of all the albums ACDC produced with him as the frontman, Let There Be Rock was arguably the best of the lot. Bon Scott's drawl was the voice of Rock music. In my opinion, no other singer can compliment lead guitarist Angus Young's insane riffs so well. Are there better singers? Sure of course. In tandem with ACDC's Blues/Hard Rock, no.    


No.5: Paramore - Brand New Eyes
(Fueled By Ramen, 2009)

As we grow older we tend to cling to the music of our younger days; seemingly unable to embrace new sounds in a big way. Technically this isn't actually music of my youth seeing I was already on the wrong side of my 30s by then. Brand New Eyes made the list seeing that Paramore was the last band I took to in a big way and that was nearly a decade ago. This is an excellent album. In it, Hayley Williams showcases vocals that are full of attitude and emotion while accompanied by a tight band with forceful sounds arising from quickfire beats of her fellow band members' guitars and drums.


No.6: The Beatles - Abbey Road
(Apple, 1969)

The Beatles need no introduction. And trying choosing just one Beatles album for this list was almost impossible. Almost. Abbey Road, the band's penultimate studio release (but their final one recording-wise) remains my favorite Beatles album. For me, what tipped this album above the rest was the 16 minute medley of eight short songs toward the latter half of the album. Incidentally, Abbey Road also has my favorite album cover of all time. Inexplicably and unforgivably, I had left The Beatles out of my Top 10 artists list. Back when I did that list, it had been ages since I had access to their entire discography and had forgotten the genius that is their music. With Spotify that's no longer the case.


No.7: Queen - A Night At The Opera
(EMI; Elektra, 1975)

What can I say about this album that hasn't been said. It has that six minute operatic rock song. You know the one. But more than that the entire album just works as a whole. In the years Queen were together, each band member wrote more than one No.1 single. That talent is out in full force in A Night At The Opera. As Wayne Campbell puts it "I think a little Bohemian Rhapsody, gentlemen."     


No.8: Nevermind - Nirvana
(DCG, 1991)

Admittedly I never gave Nirvana a listen when they burst into the mainstream music scene. It would take a completely unrelated incident (see Special Mention below) to eventually point me towards Seattle Grunge. My enduring memory of this album relates to their first hit single. Back when record stores were still a thing, I used to walk by one on the way to school. And on this shop's window were numerous TVs were linked together to make a huge display to play music videos. One day the shop front was just packed with people. All of them watching Nirvana perform Smells Like Teen Spirit. You know a band is big when it can make people from all walks of life to just stop and listen.


No.9: Guns N' Roses - Use Your Illusion I & II
(Geffen, 1991)

Peer influence got me listening to Gun N' Roses when they debuted with Appetite For Destruction. But if I'm honest I never really truly got into GNR until their third and fourth consecutive studio album releases. Although strictly speaking each is an album in its own right, I've always considered them as an inseparable whole. Studying for my uni entrance exams, not doing that well, and feeling just absolutely fed up - I guess GNR music was an outlet for my teen angst. To each is own.      


No.10: Metallica - Master of Puppets
(Elektra, 1986)

I started listening to Metallica right about the time they were entering mainstream music via The Black Album. This was sometime in the early '90s. But as appealing as Enter Sandman sounded, it wasn't the Metallica music I connected with. That came later as I searched their album backlog and came across Master of Puppets. Machine gun riffs, loud and headbanging music - it all appealed to me as I was slowly transitioning from the world of pop music to something heavier. The special mention album below lit the spark but it was the heavy metal of Metallica that made it burn.


Special Mention: Ugly Kid Joe - America's Least Wanted
(Mercury, 1992)

America's Least Wanted is strange one. It's not a great album; it's not bad either. But in terms of epic personal milestones, this album tops them all. Up until the time I got my hands on it I was still mainly into pop and classical music. Weird as it may sound, this Ugly Kid Joe album was an a-ha moment for me musically in which a door to many other genres be it rock, punk, folk, alternative, metal, jazz, blues, etc. was suddenly opened to me. The story of how I got this album is even more unbelievable. You see, my late dad was on a business trip overseas and happened to pass by a record shop. For some reason he went in and asked the owner what do kids listen to nowadays. Well, he was given an album with a cartoon figure showing the middle finger and he still bought it. The rest is history.         

There are of course many albums which have been undeservedly left out of this personal Top 10 Studio Albums list. Some are included in the photo montage above. How many can you name? If you had patiently read through this post until the end then I thank you profusely for having indulged this old hobbyist his trip down memory lane. The next post will be strictly about model kits. Promise.