WIP : Italeri 1/48 A-36 Apache Pt. 2 – Cockpit
Cockpit work begins with a base coat of black and a marbling coat of white.
Then thin coats of Model Color Model Color German Cam. Bright Green that doubles as Interior Green. I’ve read that the A-36 might not have had green interiors but I’m going with the instructions.
This was done for all the parts that will be green color.
The kit comes with a simple decal harness but I decided to improve on it. So out comes 1.5mm masking tape and paint. Not much will be seen once the canopy is installed but hey, “I know it’s there”.
More things that won’t really be seen: weathering for the interior. But it’s good practice. First is sponge chipping with Model Air Metallic Steel.
This was quickly done on all the parts to beat them all up.
After a gloss coat, I gave everything a wash from Mig AMMO Deep Brown Panel Line Wash to add some depth. This was quickly cleaned up after 30 minutes of drying.
All the panels were washed the same way.
Everything was given a blast of flat coat and once they have dried, it’s time to install them and never really see them again. It’s also time for the tedious gap filling stage. 😀
Build Log
Part 1 – Construction | Part 2 – Cockpit | Part 3
WIP : Italeri 1/48 A-36 Apache Pt. 1 – Construction
New year, new build. This time it’s the Italeri rebox of the Accurate Miniatures’ 1994 release. The Italeri boxing was released in 2013 with new marking options. Boxart is quite striking and the box is quite big but it turns out the 4 runners really only barely filled 1/2 of it.
Interior details are nicely detailed though not quite as sharp as more modern kits.
The nose if molded as a separate piece of 2 halves and the instructions call for the these to be put together then connected to the fuselage which is also made up of 2 halves. I decided to attach each nose half to each fuselage half instead which should reduce the chance of any steps from occurring at the nose-to-fuselage joint later.
The sidewall details are nice and more than adequate for my needs.
So are the details in the landing gear bay.
What makes the A-36 an A-36 (and not simply a re-named P-51) are the additions of dive brakes on both surfaces of the wings. These add the capability for the A-36 to divebomb. Though nicely done, they are unfortunately molded in place.
The pilot seat attaches to the floor with only 2 thin rods. I don’t think that will be strong enough so I decided to reinforce how they join.
I added plastic plates onto the bottom of the seat. These plates will attach to the control stick rod on the floor plate and add 1 more point of connection.
0.8mm of spacers was enough for the seat to er… seat properly. And they are small enough not to be visible from above.
The rear wheel comes molded as 1 piece and will need to be attached at the beginning of construction. There’s no practical way to modify it to be inserted at the end of the build instead so I really hope it doesn’t break off…
The horizontal stabs and the landing gear were quickly prepped. Italeri provides both weighted and non-weighted wheels as options in the box. I do believe that this is the first kit I’ve done that has weighted wheels.
The kit comes with pair of 500 lbs bombs made up of 6 parts each. The 4 fins on the back are fiddly though since they are butt jointed. It took a bit of eyeball 1.0 to get them to line up properly.
A dryfit test shows that the kit should fit fine except for the bottom of the left wing being slightly warped and sink marks on both top and bottom sides of the nose.
Painting the cockpit is next and I can start cementing everything together.
Build Log
Part 1 – Construction | Part 2 – Cockpit | Part 3
Completed : Bandai HGUC 1/144 RGM-79GS GM Space Command
Kit Info
Brand: Bandai HGUC 051
Scale: 1/144
Media: Injection plastic
Markings: Custom
The Subject
The RGM-79GS is a late production GM deployed in the One Year War. It is an upgraded variant of the original RGM-79 GM with improvements in performance and maneuverability. Two variants were subsequently developed: the RGM-79G GM Command and the RGM-79GS GM Space Command. The RGM-79GS has performance that is onpar with the Zeon MS-14A Gelgoog and as its name implies, is optimized for space combat so it differs from the GM Command by having a backpack designed for space use, a 10% increase in output, more apogee motors and greater propellant capacity for longer operational time.
Production numbers are low and these were mostly assigned to platoon commanders. Several were featured in the OVA ‘Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket’.
Info adapted from Gundam Wiki
The Kit
This kit was originally released in 2004. As such, it still suffered from some of the problems of the early HGUC line: a somewhat squat appearance, overly large hands, a short neck and limited articulation. Bandai also didn’t try too hard to hide seamlines during this time. Options include:
- One open left hand
- Beam saber in injection plastic with molded on right hand
- Beam spray gun and shield
Of note is the lack of a clear beam saber while a clear visor is included. Parts breakdown is logical and straightforward with generally accurate colors as per the lineart. A small sticker sheet is also included.
The Build
I’ve had this kit snapped together for quite a while and decided it’ll be a ‘quickish’ build. Overall, it didn’t take too much time and any delay was simply due to my malaise.
To fix the proportion problem, I extended the upper legs, lower legs, front skirts, and forearms between 1.5mm to 2mm. I wasn’t neat about it which came back to bite me in the finishing stages. I also extended the neck polycap by 1mm to give the kit a longer-necked look and the base of the torso was extended 2mm.
I then proceeded to lose the left ‘ear muff’ which I replaced with a scratchbuilt antenna array and the cockpit door which I replaced with one fashioned from 0.25mm plastic plate. I also added verniers into the vents on the legs for added details.
Colors & Finishing
I kept the color scheme similar to the original lineart with additional red flourishes on the forehead and lower legs. I originally wanted 2-tones for the red areas but it didn’t work out. Other that that hiccup, everything went on without a hitch.
Markings were as usual from various decal sheets. I then added chipping with a sponge. Once these have cured and given an overall gloss coat, the kit went through the usual rounds of panel wash, fitering, streaks and fading with Mig AMMO Panel Line Wash Deep Brown, Mig AMMO Oilbrusher Starship Filth (a dark gray) and white oil paint. Last on is a light mist of flat coat to knock down some of the overall sheen and tie everything together.
I was supposed to finish this kit at the end of 2018 but it rolled over to 2019. In any case, add one more to my RGM collection.
Build Log
> Part 1 : Construction
> Part 2 : Painting & FInishing
Number 1 of 2019
Upcoming : Hasegawa Crusher Joe Fighter 1
The actual model of the upcoming Fighter 1 from Crusher Joe has appeared. Looks good!
A definite get for me! More pictures on Hobbysearch.
A look at Rocket Punch in 2018
I finished 9 kits in 2018.
That’s 1 more than 2017, but I was short 3 kits from my target of 12. Ah well… life beckoned.
Among these 9 kits, I was most happy with my ‘Cover Fire’ vignette since it has quite a few firsts for me including figure painting, making ruins, heavy weathering and actually completing a vignette. The Shiden kit itself shows my poor workmanship quite starkly but all in all, the whole thing came together quite nicely.
The most trouble-free build was unsurprisingly the Y-wing starfighter from Fine Molds. This kit was as shake and bake as they will ever come.
For the new year, I will again try to hit 12 completed kits giving me an average of 1 a month. To facilitate that I think I should have a better strategy by sprinkling a few easier builds in between the more time-consuming ones. I will also keep going with the eclectic mix of subjects for sure.
Anyway, some stats from the site itself:
- I made 58 posts totaling 20,343 words
- 2018 saw 20,868 views from 8,813 visitors
- The most viewed 2018 work is the Kinetic 1/48 Dassault/Dornier Alpha Jet A ‘Top Aces’
- The most viewed post is the Hobbyboss 1/72 Grumman F-14B Tomcat ‘VF-102 Diamondbacks’ (which is from 2016)
- The most viewed WIP post is WIP : Hobbyboss 1/72 F-14B Tomcat Pt.1
I made a similar number of posts in 2017 with a similar number of views. This year, I did more work but I had less posts because I consolidated my work into longer entries per post. I only published the post after each major stage was done. I’m still debating if I should continue with this as it meant I can go almost 2 weeks without any updates on the site. Anyway, I want to balance time between posts and actual content more. Maybe I’ll add more non-build content? But that will definitely eat into my building time. Definitely something to look into.
OK. Now onwards to more builds and a dwindling stash.
