A visit to Brookhurst Hobbies
I just got back home after spending twenty days settling my son down for his new life in college in Irvine, California and well, I had some spare time so I popped into Brookhurst Hobbies (Google map), who this year is celebrating their fifty years of establishment. That’s an amazing achievement especially considering the state...
Remembering: The Testors Model Guide – My first modeling bible
Way back in the early 90s in college I got my modeling itch back but I thought to arm myself with some basic modeling skill first. I found this book at a bookstore (remember those things?) and read it before attempting my first aircraft kit, a Hasegawa 1/72 F-16A kit. As you can see, the …...
A shopping spree in Tokyo in December 2023
At the end of December, my family and I made a short trip to one of our favorite vacation spots, Japan! Scale modeling shopping is always on the to-do list when in Japan. As we decided to take it easy and not hit every tourist spot in Tokyo, this trip afforded me a chance to …...
A visit to HQ Hobbies
I’m currently in Milford, Connecticut accompanying my daughter to a competition and I found a hobby shop! HQ Hobbies is a 21 year old shop run by Randy and his assistant Pumpkin. As usual with an American shop there are a lot of AMT/Monogram car kits. But the shop also carries some reasonably priced Eduard …...
Mig AMMO Medium Fine 0.02mm Rigging… what was I thinking?
It’s as if I don’t get enough eye strain as it is when I’m doing my scale models. And also as if my attempt with a 1/48 scale rigging was a resounding success in the first place. Anyway, a 1/700 ship model has always been on my model bucket list which is why I need …...
Musings : Kudos to Wave Corporation!
So there I was disassembling my Wave 1/72 Legioss kit to prepare for painting when the hip joint snapped due to my gorilla strength. After some cursing and swearing, I took a look online and saw that the kit was long discontinued. So I checked the kit to see the broken part could be repaired. …...
Upcoming : Hasegawa’s what-if UAVs
Hasegawa is known for reboxing their old kits with new decals and slapping on a ‘limited edition’ label on them. Just look at how many times they have released their 2nd F-14 mold. Lately though, they have done something new with their existing kits: modify them into what-if UAVs. There has been 3 so far: …...
A visit to the 1/1 Unicorn Gundam at Odaiba, Tokyo
Every gunpla nerd is required to make a pilgrimage to the 1/1 scale Unicorn Gundam statue in Odaiba, Tokyo. It was finally my turn this time. I went in the afternoon and the Unicorn remained in Unicorn mode the whole time. I do believe it only activates Destroy mode every 2 hours starting from 11am …...
Scale model shopping in Akihabara, Tokyo
Ahhh Akihabara, otaku central of Tokyo. Games, electronics, maid cafes and of course, anime and manga products can all be found here. If you’re a scale modeler, you have to visit Akihabara if only to be amazed by the size of the selections offered in the shops. But any self-respecting geek would get at least …...
Guide : Painting a 1/48 US WWII Pilot
While finishing my Italeri 1/48 A-36 Apache, I decided to go ahead and paint up a pilot figure so I can use it as a size reference. It’s what I have been doing with my 1/72 modern pilot. This WWII pilot figure comes from the Hasegawa 1/48 WWII Pilot Figure Set. The instructions simply say …...
